AHA! I FINISHED TEH CHAPTER BEFORE NEW YEARS! (great inner sigh)
Haha, anyway just felt like posting this up. Happy New Years, everyone!
"Ice cream!" Danny laughs, staring at his vanilla cone after having only a single lick of it. "Now this I remember!"
"You better," I laugh in reply, taking a lick of my own chocolate cone. "It'd be a shame if you only had ice cream for the first time just now."
"Hey I'm not that old," Danny defends, only to change his face into one of uncertainty. "I think. I'm sure I lived after ice cream was invented."
"Yup..." Nett mutters inconspicuously, only for Shane to elbow the boy inconspicuously. All four of us after going skating went to the mall nearby to buy some ice cream Shane recommended. Now I'm kinda glad we took his suggestion.
What halts or stops our walk is Nett, who jumps and extends his arm in front of Shane and me, causing the two of us to drop our ice creams. "Wait," Nett hisses deathly.
At first I wonder what his deal is, but in the distant crowd of mall shoppers is my Mom. Sam Manson. "Hey it's Mom," I mutter, surprised. I have yet to notice the silent 'freaking out' of Nett and Shane beside me.
"Your mom?" Danny asks curiously, trying to see through the crowd from where I'm staring. "Where? I wanna meet-"
"BATHROOM!" Shane and Nett both exclaim, grabbing and pulling Danny from the scene in a rushed hurry, Danny dropping his cone as well.
With that, I'm left clueless and alone. "G-Guys?" I blink obliviously, seeing the bathroom corridors swish back and forth from where Danny was practically kidnapped by Nett and Shane. "... Guess they really needed to go."
Inside the mall's fancy public rest room, Nett and Shane catch their breaths as Danny stares confused at the boys. "What just happened?"
"Wendy's Mom; that's what," Nett pants, feeling heart-burn coming along.
"What's wrong with Wendy's Mom?"
"You just can't see Wendy's Mom," Shane and Nett both pant without further explanation. If Sam saw Danny, there's no doubt she'd recognize her deceased husband and that'd just end badly. If Danny saw Sam and possibly recognized her - aka his long forgotten love - then he's definitely 90% closer to a chance to disappearing and moving on forever.
Thus they SOOO can't meet.
Meanwhile Danny has his suspicions, but he refrains from asking any more on the oh-so-desperate-to-get-away topic. Luckily they're alone. "M...hm... Hey so this is what a public restroom looks like."
"You don't remember what a bathroom looks like?" Nett asks bewildered.
Danny shrugs innocently. "I'm dead. What need do I have for a bathroom?"
Without much time to respond to that answer, Shane's phone begins to ring and echo through the bathroom. Shane takes it out of his pocket and slides it open, holding the phone to his ear. "Wendy?"
"Uh hey. My Mom's decided she's going to take me out shopping for the afternoon," I say on the other line, a little bit of surprise in my tone. It turned out Mom managed to get this half of the afternoon off from her normal shift at work, and with a special amount of money saved up too. She thought it'd be fun to 'splurge' together - a first and last; for a special occasion (birthday) of course. "Will you guys be okay? Or do you wanna come with-?"
"No no you go with your mom!" Shane cuts off almost too quickly, however he regains his normal and unanxious tone. "Just go, seriously. Have fun. Foley and I will watch Danny."
"Okay..." I say, a little off put but not totally un-okay with the idea of keeping Danny with the guys. I mean, I get to spend personal time with my Mom again - splurging, whatever that is. Might be fun. "Don't get into too much trouble while I'm gone okay? We'll just be a couple hours and then I'll go meet up with you guys wherever, alright?"
"Yup sure got it," Shane nods.
I smile on the other end. "Thanks Shane you're the best!" I bid before I hang up. For some reason, back in the mens restroom, the last statement makes Shane's cheeks turn a little haze of red.
"So what'd Wendy say, lover boy?" Nett asks teasingly.
Shane slides his phone shut. "Wendy's going shopping with her mom for a bit. It's gonna be the three of us for a while. Is that okay with you, Danny?"
"Um, sure," Danny replies, looking around. "Are we gonna wait in here?"
"That's a good question," Shane answers honestly. A few hours... with human Danny... wow. "Nett what're we doing?"
"Well we've already seen the interesting parts of our run down urban blight," Nett explains sarcastically. All of a sudden an idea comes to mind. "Hey who's up for a real bad idea?" Nett asks, Shane's face faltering a little.
"Must beat waiting in a bathroom for a couple hours," Danny replies unsurely. "Unless, that's the norm now a days. Is it?"
"No," Shane and Nett say out flat. Shane then looks at Nett. "So what's your so called bad idea?"
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
"D-D-D-D..." Tucker Foley's standing at his front door, on hand at his side and the other on the knob holding the door. Tucker never even got to fish the word he was trying to save before fainting backwards and onto the floor.
Danny's eyes are bulging a little, as are Nett and Shane. "Nett this is a genius idea. Let's bring your dad's dead friend over alive."
Nett shrugged. "I just wanted to freak him out. Sadly this... didn't go out the way I was hoping it would."
"Well, you freakedhim out!" Shane grinned sarcastically, extending an arm to the unconscious mayor before them. "I think this actually beats you knocking your father out cold with your phone!"
"Mm you're right," Nett ponders, unusually calm. "You think he'll ground me for this, too?"
Eventually the boys enter Nett's house and Danny helps them settle Tucker Foley onto the couch, closing the door behind them. Nett thought it'd be a decent (safe) idea to stow away at his place until I was done going around with my Mom.
Taking Tucker into consideration, he already knew their secrets, so what harm could come to them bringing and hiding Danny over for a couple hours? Apparently a lot.
Tucker's vision eventually returns as a blur, accompanied by a tired and dizzy groan. "Ugh, what hit me?"
"Your freshly-swept floors?" his son replies, all three heads visible within Tucker's line of view from the couch pillows. Shane's and Nett's faces Tucker recognizes. The third face - it's another reaction. Not like before. No stammering. Just, wide eyed staring... Creepy wide eyes staring.
Danny's starting to take notice. "Nett I think he's in shock."
"Damn right I am how the hell are you alive?" Tucker says coherently, sitting up from the couch and adjusting his glasses while fixing his hat. Once settled, Tucker takes a good look at Danny, even poking the irritated man in the face first.
"Ow," Danny jumps, holding his face. "I felt that."
"Good God you're not a ghost," Tucker gasps, retracting his hand. "…What sorcery is this?!"
"Desiree," Shane whispers lowly so Danny can't hear.
Nett awkwardly begins introductions. "Um, Danny this is my dad, Tucker. Tucker this is Danny, Wendy's ghost teacher."
"We've met," both men state, staring at one another - one a little less stressed than the other.
"You have?" Shane asks on his and Nett's behalf.
However Nett shakes his head. "Look whatever. Danny's alive. For a day, we think. We're hiding out here until Wendy can get back from her shopping-spree with Sam."
Tucker's glasses fall forward a bit. "Sam?"
"Yeah," Shane nods once.
"I'm, guessing I'm still not allowed to see this 'Sam' woman," Danny accepts confused.
"Technically no..." Tucker starts, wondrously still processing how alive Danny really is. "Uh, hey kids, why don't you guys go upstairs and, rage against the machine or something. I'm going to have a talk with Danny."
"Dad?" Nett asks warily.
"No it's fine. Go ahead," Danny urges, keeping a competitive stare against his old friend. "Tuck and I are gonna do some catching up."
"Tuck?" Shane and Nett both repeat, looking to them both for answers.
"Like we said - we've met," Tucker replies, not moving his suspicious gaze from Danny's freshly living one. Tucker then holds out a fifty dollar bill from his shirt pocket. "I'll pay you fifty bucks to go to the Nasty Burgers and clog your arteries."
"Later Danny," Nett says, grabbing the fifty and heading out with Shane. Soon enough, the front door locks again, and it's just Danny and Tucker.
"So we meet again," Danny smiles slyly.
"And in the flesh," Tucker says as a play on words. "You... you really look exactly the way you did all those years ago."
"The gray hairs not matching your amount yet under that cap?"
"Not as much," Tucker replies wittily. "Knowing the kids, they haven't said anything about Sam, have they."
Danny shakes his head, leaning forward. "No I can't say they have. Is she someone I knew?"
"A little," Tucker admits. "Do you really want to find out?" Tucker offers, but Danny narrows his eyes. "It's safe. I can tell you enough, if you want. Enough that won't make you disappear."
"Remembering Sam would make me disappear?" Danny's voice raises, but only slightly. His stature sits up a bit more, and his eyes become less narrowed. "Who is sh-"
"Do you want to know?" Tucker asks again more seriously. More solemnly.
"Would you?" Danny asks suspiciously. Really would he?
"Anything I do, I do for the sake of the kids," Tucker plays out, adjusting his ever-present tie. "If I'm careful how I go about this, I don't think it'll do too much damage."
Danny begins to worry a little. The atmosphere with Tucker is so much different than with Shane, Nett, or me. "Should I not be curious?"
"It's okay to be," Tucker assures. "It's your choice. Do you want to know who Sam is?"
Danny contemplates this carefully. Just because of all the emphasis put on this single woman, Can't see her. Can't meet her. Can't talk to her. 'What's so special about Wendy's mother...? "I want to know."
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
Tucker and Danny take a trip downstairs. None of the kids are present in the house. I'm off with my mother while Nett and Shane were practically bribed out of the house. Tucker's appearingly small apartment-like house actually has so much inside. Tucker's son's high tech bedroom, Tucker's secret make shift ghost lab in an extended closet, an attic, and an underground basement, not to mention all the other normal necessities of a house like a living room and kitchen.
"Um, how big is your place exactly, Tuck?" Danny asks cautiously as he and Tucker go down the wooden steps.
"Being mayor has some financial perks," Tucker replies with a sly smile. "Pretty sweet huh?"
"If only you were loaded when we were kids," Danny notes as he finally feels no more steps beneath him. They've reached the basement. It's dark, but Tucker manages to find a pull-string for a single light bulb. Somehow, it' enough to ignite the whole floor. More storage boxes everywhere - and even more eerie than the attic Tucker showed Sam.
A rat strings by a few feet away. "Packrat, much?" Danny blinks.
"I have no shame," Tucker shrugs. "Keeping everything from your youth comes in handy; like today in fact. Follow me. Be careful and watch your step."
Tucker maneuvers over a few single cardboard boxes deeper into the room, and Danny mimics the man's movements. Danny's still a little clumsy on human legs and weight, so this proves a little difficult. "Hm, I wonder where I put it."
"You don't even know what we're looking for?" Danny asks in disbelief, already half way into the room. He just barely manages to keep standing.
"It's in a box..." Tucker thinks aloud, quite vaguely. Everything in the room is a box. "Mm, maybe I should start labeling these."
"You think?" Danny glares until he finally trips, ending with a loud and painful bang. Tucker winces before he turns around to assess the damage. Just a single knocked over box.
Tucker squints his eyes through the dark. "Hey I think you've found it. Great job Danny!" Tucker grins, marching over to help the box, and not Danny, up.
Danny lifts his head, blowing his ever-present black haired bang out of his face. "No sweat," he replies, a little dizzy in the head.
Danny sits up as Tucker kneels down to remove the tape from the box. It's a little dusty n top, so Tucker blows a cloud of it away the opposite direction. There's no label written on the box, so Danny's very anxious to see what's inside. It's about this Sam woman, he presumes. Does it hold her old trinkets? Some of her belongings? A photograph at least so he may know what she looks like?
Tucker opens the two flaps of the box open, revealing the box isn't as full as Danny thought it was. Nonetheless Tucker resumes his role and pulls something out first. It's a green scrunchy. Tucker gazes at his nostalgically as Danny does the same, but in a different manner Confused. Bewildered... Awed. "That's... what is that...?"
"Sam's old hair-tie," Tucker laughs. "She flung this at us once when we got on her nerves."
"She knew us?" Danny asks.
"Yup, the three of us were good friends back in the day," Tucker tells, intriguing Danny. So they knew each other from back then, too. Tucker pulls out a book. It appears to be a photo book. This brightens Danny's blue eyes so much. "Here," Tucker says half-heartedly.
Ignoring the tone in Tucker's somewhat dejected voice, Danny takes the book with excitement. he opens the photo album mid-way, only to find the pages empty. Next page: empty. Next page: empty. Next page, next page, next page - all empty.
A look of confusion startles Danny's face. Close to the end, he instead flips back, past the album's mid-page, and finally finds a picture. There's a little girl, dressed in a long, grey, lacey night-gown, barefoot and hair a mess. Danny smiles, figuring this girl to be this Sam woman as a child. The page before shows a handful of pictures of the same girl, but younger. Maybe a year or two younger - probably age 2.
Next page back. Age 1 maybe. The baby girl, hair much shorter, is learning how to walk, crawl, eat. All very cute and beautiful pictures.
Next back is the last (technically the first) page, and it only has one picture. It's a new-born baby girl, held in the arms of her mother in a hospital bed. The mother's head is cut off from the photo, but the baby is the emphasis. Baby Sam is beautiful.
"Sam looked so beautiful as a kid," Danny smiles, wondering more about her. How she must've looked like after the age of 3. "How do I know her?"
"Danny," Tucker says carefully and cautiously, though Danny doesn't catch on. "Those pictures aren't of Sam." Danny's face contorts in confusement. "They're Wendy."
"Wendy?" Danny repeats in quiet alarm. He does a double take at the photo in front of him. "Wendy why this her? Why are you showing me this - I thought you were going to tell me about Sa-"
"The woman holding the baby in that picture is Sam," Tucker tells calmly, pointing at the arms of the mother. The loving arms, holding her new child. "Our childhood friend, our Sam -Wendy is her daughter."
Danny's wary. He knows this already. The woman Sam is Wendy's infamous and unknown mom. Why is this such a big deal? Why wouldn't Nett and Shane let him see Sam? "Why are you showing me this, Tuck," Danny asks seriously. Suddenly it occurs to him. "Where's the dad?" he realizes. He was in none of the few pictures. Maybe he was the one taking them?
Instead of an answer, Tucker just gives Danny a steady look.
"What?" Danny asks, getting impatient. But before he can yell anything out, a flashback ensures. It's of Danny and me, while we were training in Fenton Works:
"My mom said that my dad died when I was little. I don't really remember anything about him so I guess it's okay now."
"Wendy's dad died..." Danny recalls from the back of his head. However he shakes his head. Something's wrong with that statement. "No, he died before she was born." How do I know that? Tucker also did spill one time ago when they first met:
"When did I die exactly?"
"Fourteen years ago,"
"I died only fourteen years ago?"
"I died fourteen years ago," Danny re-states, his breath paced faster. "Wendy's fourteen years old."
Tucker's stare intensifies and he lowers his head, though focusing his eyes harder, as if telling Danny Almost there.
Danny's eyes search the photo of the baby and the face-less mother Sam. All the facts are adding up together. Widowed Sam. Wendy father-less. Single parent. Dad died fourteen years ago. He died fourteen years ago. He's-
"I'm Wendy's father..." Danny trembles, saying that barely audible. Tucker closes his eyes. What's done can't be undone. Danny's so in shock that the album, the baby book, slides out of his shaking arms. Gravity and weight, weight of mental pressure, has never felt so strong to Danny. "I'm... Wendy's father...?"
Tucker nods slowly. Carefully.
"Wendy's... Sam's daughter? My daughter...?" Danny practically chokes out? Even though Danny can't see any visual memories, he can recall a sense of nostalgic and deep friendship he had with this woman Sam. Her face is no where, but the feeling she gave him when she'd walk by – he felt it again. "I marries Sam?" Danny registers. "We had a daughter...?"
"You've been with her this entire time, Danny," Tucker says, careful with his words. Danny's so fragile now he can't even imagine it. "It's been a long time but," Tucker can barely hide his happiness from finally saying this. "Wendy's your baby girl all grown up."
"No," Danny denies instinctively, forcing himself up and almost tripping back. He had to get away. Can't do it mentally, so he's doing so physically, even though there's really nowhere to go up there. Instead all Danny an do is reflect on the past year havng neverrealized he was with his own kid.
-"Wanna bet I can do it again?"
-"Oh and suppose something does come up. You can't leave this place.
What are you gonna do? Send your bird-minions after me and peck my enemies to oblivion?"
-"Hey don't make fun. I got you something too!"
-"So what else do I have to learn, Danny?"
"Wendy's my daughter..." Danny repeats, somehow unable to accept that so easily. It's not that it's bad. It's just... Wow.
"Doesn't it make sense, though?" Tucker speaks up, walking over to Danny who's finally stopped wandering. "Your resemblance as living people? Your ghost powers being passed down to her? You being a halfa when you were alive and now Wendy?"
I was a halfa, he realizes. Suddenly Danny remembers something else. "Sam. What about Sam what happened to Sam?" Danny still doesn't remember this woman, but he has this agonizing, desperate need to know she's alright.
"Sam's been raising Wendy this entire time," Tucker says. "She's alright. She came over the other day."
"Tucker you have to tell me about her. Tell me everything! What else don't I know about my own life? I had a wife and a kid! Wendy! I was a halfa! I'm that halfa!" Danny's heard stories about an amazing half ghost half human being - stories passed down throughout the ghost zone. No one's ever mentioned it was him. Why?
"I can't tell you too much about Sam."
"Not even a picture?"
"Danny you can't see her," Tucker warns strictly. "It's dangerous enough for me to tell you about her let alone that you had a kid together. If you catch even a glimpse of her face or what she looks like, there's a high chance something's going to happen to you which will end up with you having to leave Wendy." Danny's heart's been struck. "And according to Shane and Nett, you're training her for some big battle coming up, right?"
"The kids," Danny states, thinking quickly. The boys have been keeping Tucker up to date now, haven't they? "Do the kids know this? That I'm Wendy's dad?"
"Shane and Nett figured it out some time ago, they said," Tucker tells.
"Does Wendy know?"
Tucker hesitates. "No," he answers, striking Danny again. "Shane and Nett haven't told her. Or you."
"But why-?"
"They wanted you guys to figure it out yourselves," Tucker cuts off. They've never said that yeah but Tucker's sure that's what they intended. "Me, too."
Danny feels close to faint, but he fights it. "So, Wendy knows nothing about me."
"Nothing except that you're her ghost-teacher living under Fenton Works," Tucker shrugs. "She's Winona Manson Fenton."
"Fenton," Danny says with a slight jump in his heart. "My last name was Fenton? I lived in Fenton Works?" he asks with a smile. "That's why I'm always stuck there? It's where I used to live."
"And that lab's where you got your ghost powers," Tucker reminisces. "We were fooling around, and Sam somehow got you to go into your parents' broken ghost portal that wasn't even working yet. All of a sudden all these green lights flashed inside the machine, with you in it. When you came out, you were a ghost." Danny's memory flickers. "And you could turn back, too. You became a halfa."
"The ghost portal's ectoplasm altered my DNA," Danny recognizes.
Tucker can't help but smile a little too in this dim situation. "Yeah. You were school kid Danny Fenton by day, ghost-butt-kicking super hero Danny Phantom after the bell." Tucker adjusts his glasses. "You, me and Sam were a kickin' ghost fighting team. It seems your daughter's found her own, too."
Danny exhales. "Like father like daughter," he says with a shake of his head.
Tucker laughs. That sentence sure lightened the mood. "So? How do you feel now?"
Danny seems lost for words. Now that the atmosphere has lifted the tension a little, Danny has no idea what to feel. "Honestly Tuck I have no idea," Danny replies. "But what I do know is that Wendy not knowing... I have to keep it that way," Danny begins to plan.
"You never gonna tell her?"
"One day," Danny says, or thinks. Hopes. "After all this ghost training is done and she's set. Since September I've been her teacher, and I intend to stay her teacher for as long as I'm training her."
"And as her father?"
"I can't," Danny frowns, shaking no. "I can't... Because if I start looking at her as my daughter... and I start acting like her dad... I don't think I'll have the guts to send her out there to face who knows what," Danny admits with a disbelieving smile. "Oh my gosh... I've given her so many stupid tests. I could've killed her! I almost killed my daughter!"
"But you didn't," Tucker emphasizes, seeing his friend holding his head in his hands.
"Yeah! Somehow!" Danny panics, remembering all the things he's made me do. Danny runs his hands through his hair - another habit he realizes he's passed down to me, his daughter. Now, he has to continue training her – training her to face dangers he'd never have sent her on if he knew they were father and daughter. "Oh my gosh - how am I gonna look at her now?"
"You just do."
"How do I do that?"
"The same way I look at my kid every time he leaves for school, knowing he could be doing something life-threatening every day with your ghost of a daughter," Tucker says difficultly. Tucker turns away. "Look, Danny. I told you this, because I thought it was the right time. Was it? I don't know. That I have yet to find out." Tucker looks at Danny. "Did you think it was a good idea for me to tell you?"
"About Sam or Wendy?" Danny chuckles, dark humor rounding about.
"Both."
"... It's not bad," Danny smiles assuring. "I don't think I could ever regret knowing that this girl I've been putting up with all this time is, actually my daughter." He can't seem to get enough of saying that. Danny laughs. "I have a daughter," he laughs again. "Say Tuck."
"Yeah?"
"I know I can't see Sam yet," Danny starts. "But can you tell me about her?"
"It's too risky," Tucker admits with a hint of disappointment.
"But why? Why tell me about Wendy and Sam being her mother, my wife, and then just cut me off right there?" Danny asks. "Why can't I know more?"
"Because you're still here," Tucker states with a slight regretful glare, stressing every word. "You're still around Danny. You're dead. You're a ghost! You haven't passed on!" Tucker calms himself. "You're stuck on earth for some reason, Danny. You're still here!"
"Just tell me why I can't know about Sam!"
"Because you might pass on if I do!" Tucker blurts out, trying to reason with Danny, who suddenly receives a look of realization upon Tucker's statement. It's tough for Tucker to say so. "You'll remember Sam... Your oldest and closest friend, the girl you fell in love with, the woman who bore your child... And the instant you get everything back, regardless of whether you still want to or need to train Wendy - you'll leave." Tucker keeps his stare. "You'll pass on... And then what."
"Pass on..." Danny repeats. The idea's never even crossed his mind, since he's never imagined the possibility of ever regaining any of his human memories. He figured he was just a wandering spirit, born decades or even centuries ago, bound to this lonely town by fate to train the world's last halfa. He never could've seen... "You mean...?"
Tucker nods. "You'll move onto the next life or, wherever you guys go when you've finished your business down here or whatever. But my point right now is that Wendy needs you right now more than ever, in this life. She's learning so much and you're the only one who can guide her through the toughest time in her life." Tucker manages a half smile. "Learning how to master powers definitely weren't your easiest years."
Danny can only imagine what he must've been like, what with how strong he already is now. "It took me years?"
"Up through past college," Tucker says. "You were always trying to get a hang on things. According to you, Wendy's only been doing this since September... the boys tell me she has less than a year to catch up to your level before she has to face this this stupid apocalypse."
Danny's throat clenches. He's sending his daughter, to fight this thing. He doesn't even know what, but it's meant to match off against her very soon.
"Now stop being selfish, and asking me to tell you about Sam," Tucker adds, as if lecturing Danny. "You and I both know that when a ghost remembers their most important memory from life, then that's all they need to move on. You will eventually when you learn about Sam, believe me. But not now." Tucker's eyes soften. "Not while you still have your kid to look after."
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
Shane and Nett unlock the front door near evening, conversing amongst themselves. It's only been about two hours or so. Maybe more. A quick meal at the Nasty Burger and a movie to kill time with Tucker's left over bribe-money. Now they're back at the Foley residence, and in the living room they see Danny standing by the wall, looking at a few pictures hung in the frames.
"We're back," Shane calls, walking into the living room with Nett. Shane's holding the left-over popcorn bag. "We got some popcorn from the movie theatres if you wanna try."
"No thanks," Danny says distantly. He tenses up, only a little, in the presence of the children. "You guys had fun?"
"Being kicked out of the house? Yeah. We're good," Nett assures. "Where's my dad? Did you guys have enough guy time or whatever?"
"Tucker's in his room upstairs. He said he's working on office paper work now," Danny informs, still looking at the framed photographs. They're of Tucker and Nett mostly. One has me and Nett at our 8th grade graduation in those tacky blue gowns and square hates. Danny smiles, imagining himself there.
"Oh," Nett says. "Okay. Hey Shane I'm gonna go get a water bottle you want one?"
"Sure," Shane nods as Nett leaves for the kitchen. Left alone, Shane notices Danny very deep in thought as he looks up at the wall, just staring and saying nothing. Shane walks up with his hands in his pockets, and stands next to Danny. "Something on your mind?" Shane asks.
Danny remains silent for a moment, as if contemplating. "So tomorrow is Wendy's birthday, right?"
"... Yup," Shane replies.
Danny remains silent for a few more seconds. "Then... tomorrow was the day I became a father," Danny adds. Shane's breath holds tight. "Right?"
Slowly but surely Shane's head turns with an unreadable expression. At the same time
Nett's head slowly pops out from the kitchen doorway, somehow looking the same. "What were you and my dad talking about exactly?" Nett questions.
"Isn't it obvious?" Danny says. It's sunk in to him yeah, but the whole secret he's not yet used to. "Well, am I right?"
"W-Well uh, yeah but," Shane's stuck for words. Even Nett, coming into the conversation, remains speechless and without answer. "Look Danny I'm sorry we never told you but we-"
"I understand why you kept it secret," Danny assures, forcing a bit of a smile to calm the kids. He recalls Tucker's and his long conversation about how he can't know any more about Samantha Manson. "I think I would've too in your situation."
"So, you know now," Nett clarifies, pointing a water bottle.
"Yup. I'm Danny Fenton, father of Wendy, deceased husband of Sam Manson. I was a halfa and I've passed my genes down to Wendy who's also a halfa. And now... here we all are."
"... I told you we should've skipped the movie and come straight back," Nett whispers to Shane, who shakes his head.
"Seriously guys I'm not mad!" Danny tries to persuade. "I'm just... still in shock, a little."
"Well duh you just found out you had a kid," Nett brings up. "And Wendy, at that."
"Actually, it sort of explains how you became human," Shane points out, catching both Nett's and Danny's attention. "Danny did you by any chance send Desiree after Wendy to grant her a uh, wish perhaps?"
Danny remembers. "Actually yeah," Danny replies. "What are you getting at?"
"I saw her, with my ghost blood abilities," Shane informs. "Wendy's ghost sense didn't pick her up, but Desiree must've heard Wendy say that she wanted to spend a day with her dad," Shane quotes. "Desiree must've made you human for a day, so you could spend time with Wendy."
"Whoa..." Nett reacts, looking from Shane to a totally distraught Danny.
Danny looks up at particularly nothing. "Wow."
"Did you find out how you died, by the way?" Shane asks curiously. "And for the record thatwe don't know."
"Actually no. I don't know," he says, fading. He recalls from Spectra, little moments and memories of how he died, though it's not perfectly clear. He knows he died in a car crash. It blew up in flames he believes, because he can remember the distinct burning-to death (no pun intended) feeling. Very hard to forget. "So what does Wendy know? About her dad?"
Nett tries to remember. "From what I know, for most of her life Sam's always told her that her dad died when she was too young to remember. I'm guessing she got the impression that he must've gotten sick or something and passed away."
"But then she found out a few months ago about how he was actually killed," Shane distinctly recalls. "We were listening in over Tucker and Sam, about Wendy's dad and how they couldn't tell her how he really died."
"How I really died," Danny rewords. So, car crash? Killed? Sounded like two totally different stories to him. "God I'm so confused."
"Wait so was he in an accident or was he murdered?" Nett asks the obvious. All of a sudden the doorbell rings, and the three men fall silent. Shane and Nett know it's me.
"Is that an alarm?" Danny asks, comedically breaking the tension.
"No that's the doorbell," Nett corrects as he makes his way to the front. "Wendy called a few minutes ago saying she'd meet us here. That must be her."
"Remember Foley no mention about any of this," Shane warns the big mouth dangerously. Nett doesn't give a vocal response, but instead makes a face that says 'who-the-hell-do-you-think-I-am?'.
And so Nett opens the door, showing me with a nervous smile. "Heey," I greet nervously. "Sorry for coming by without warning. Mom had to go back to work and wanted to drop me off where you guys were."
"No prob no prob," Nett replies positively, letting me in. He notices the bunches of shopping bags. "Looks like someone went splurging."
"On... bread," Danny reads, squinting his eyes on one of my bags. "Did the times change or is this really what girls spend their money on?"
"Not this century," Shane laughs, walking up to me and helping me with my bags. "Gosh Manson what the heck did you buy? This is all a bunch of junk."
"It's not junk! It's cool stuff," I say for lack of better words. "My mom and I got bored so we went to this huge thrift-store-warehouse on the uptown side of Amity Park. And oh my gosh they have soo many things for such cheap prices! Look! A vintage china tea set for seven bucks!"
Nett and Shane are giving me the same dead look. "What a steal," Shane replies sarcastically.
"Seven loaves of coffee-cake bread for four dollars?" Nett reads, looking at the receipt from another one of my bags. "Wendy you and your mom didn't splurge you two went bargain hunting, for junk."
"For the last time it's not junk," I defend playfully, stealing back a few bags they're going through. "Besides, we had fun."
"Not a single new hoodie in sight," Nett sighs. "Next time we go shopping I'm buying you your first fitted cap! My treat! Fifty bucks! Any one you want!"
"That's pretty expensive don't you think?"
"Fifty dollars for a stupid hat?" Shane says.
"It's not stupid it's cool!"
"Well I think it's pretty sweet of you," I smile.
"See? Wendy thinks it's cool idea!"
"I never said that."
As the the three of us argue over different shopping habits, Danny can't help but smile and watch back. When he looks at me, he realizes that this is the first time he's really looking at me - at his daughter. So this is really her...
"Anyway we should probably get me back to the lab before dark," Danny interrupts apologetically. "We don't really know how long I'll be able to stay like this and I'd rather not have a molecular break down again."
And so, the three of us leave Nett's house to escort Danny back to Fenton Works, where we presume he'll be okay for the night. I don't know whether he'll stay human or not, but just in case he doesn't, he's safe. He hugs me goodbye before I leave, and it's a really tight, warm hug. I feel at peace in his hug for some reason.
"Happy birthday, Wendy..." Danny whispers, holding me desperately.
I'm caught a bit off guard by his hug, seeing as I usually see Danny so well put together. But I smile and hug him back. "Thanks, Danny." He asks me if I had fun, and I reply gladly that I did, much of it thanks to him.
Once we bid Danny goodnight and goodbye, it's already dark out. Shane and Nett take it upon themselves to escort me home like the teenage gentlemen that they are. "So you had fun?" Nett asks.
"For the last time yes, I had fun today," I smile. "It's not even my birthday yet. Tomorrow."
"Well tomorrow we'll plan something even better," Shane says, surprisingly positive sounding.
Somehow I begin to laugh at that prospect. "I can't imagine tomorrow beating today. I got to spend all afternoon with you guys and Danny, and my mom. What more could I possibly do?"
"You leave that to us to figure out," Nett nods with a toothy grin.
We soon each my street, and we're a good five minutes away from my place. Shane takes a quick glance elsewhere before turning to us "Hey Nett I'm gonna go take a quick run to the corner store and get something to eat. You want anything?"
"Sure just some chocolate," Nett obliges. "I'll go walk Wendy the rest of the way and meet you in the store."
"Okay." Shane turns to give me a quick goodbye hug. "See you tomorrow, Manson?"
"I'll kick your butt if you don't," I reply jokingly. He gives me a quick warm rub on the back before running off to cross the street. And then Nett and I are well on our way.
"Looks like someone's blushing," Nett teases.
"Whatever," I sigh confidently. "Your jokes no longer phase me."
"Sure," Nett rolls his eyes. "Anyway here's a quick gift from Alex, before I forget to give it to you." Nett hands me an envelope with my name on it. "He couldn't figure out what to get you, so he got you a gift-card to the clothing store he works at. A hundred bucks."
"Oh my gosh a hundred dollars?" I practically gasp. Gosh Alex. "Nett I can't I-"
"He won't take no for an answer. It's his gift to you," Nett smiles.
I smile as well, looking at the envelope. "Tell him thanks for me when you see him."
"Will do," Nett nods before he turns to me. "So, how are you two?"
Hm? "Who? Me and Alex?" Nett nods. "Um... We're fine," I say, unsure of how to answer such an out-of-nowhere question. "Why?"
"You guys aren't dating or anything?"
A quick blush comes upon my face again, but it's only because I'm starting to remember when he told me he liked me - and I turned him down. I exhale a little. "No."
"Really?" Nett asks, genuinely surprised. He looks back forward. "Aw. I thought so since you guys always hang out around school in between classes." Seeing my suddenly distant uncomfortability, Nett changes the subject. "As for my gift, I'll give it tomorrow."
"Didn't get me anything yet?"
"Nope," he replies honestly. "It's so difficult to come up with something worthwhile for you."
"You don't have to get me anything, Nett," I repeat for almost the tenth time this weekend.
"Yeah yeah. By the words of Shane: you're worth it." I blush again somehow. Nett smiles in satisfaction once we reach my stoop and as he's giving me my shopping bags. "Heh. Teasing doesn't phase you huh?"
"Good night, Nett," I reply, taking all of my shopping bags onto my arms, plus my book bag. I climb my steps and reach for my keys in a difficult effort.
"Oh! One more thing!" Nett calls after he takes his first three steps back down the block. "Check your backpack before you go to bed!"
"Yeah yeah!" I call back, barely hearing him what with so much on my arms. I almost fall into the house, but I drop everything by the door step. I'll unpack my new belongings tomorrow morning with Mom when she comes home I figure.
I trudge up the stairs with my book bag, exhausted, to my warm and comforting bedroom. It doesn't take long for me to knock out. Today was soo... much. In reality, it was actually the funnest I've had in a long time. I'll never forget my 16th birthday.
x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
"Wakey wakey," cheers Sam's voice. My eyes struggle to open, but that's because they're on my pillow under my head. I lift my head and realize I'm still lying face down - wearing the same clothes I wore last night out. It's morning now and Mom's at my bed side, poking me awake. "Happy birthday, kid~" she greets.
"Hey, Mom," I laugh, trying to wake up.
"Looks like the boys brought you home late last night," Sam guesses, ruffling my hair and making my bed hair much worse. "Get a change of clothes and meet me downstairs. I've got your cake all set up."
"Thanks, Mom," I grin as she nods and leaves me be, closing my door.
Once I take a deep breath, I force my body up. The night's definitely flown by. I must've been really tired yesterday. Actually, yesterday sounds like so much of a dream. But I'm sure it happened.
I go to the bathroom, seeing myself with baggy eyes and super wrinkled clothes. As I wash my face and brush my teeth, I look for my brush. "Must be in my bag," I mutter.
I leave my bathroom and look for my backpack somewhere in the room. It's in front of my bed and I search its contents from yesterday. Wallet. Tape. Phone. Extra sweater. "Brush," I grin, finding it at the very bottom. But there's something else inside my bag, too. A smaller gift box.
With a tilt of my head I take it out carefully. It's beautifully wrapped with a delicate ribbon tied around it. I look around the box for a name tag, but I can't find one. All there is is an envelope attached to the box under the ribbon, without a name.
"That's weird..."
I unravel the ribbon and remove the envelope, showing a small birthday card inside. "It's from Shane?"
Happy Birthday, Manson
Yeah... don't really know what to say in these kinds of things. I always hated writing in cards, but, I dunno. Guess there's a first for everything.
Happy 16th birthday. Kinda sucks how I missed like, five of your birthdays. Hope this gift makes up for them. Sorry if you don't like it. Foley didn't help at all. Danny suggested something, so I left to get it when you took Danny and Nett to the skating rink.
I remember that. Shane said he was going to go somewhere first and would meet us at the skating rink afterwards shortly after. Was that when he got whatever this is?
There's more to the card, but curiosity beats it and I go to unwrap the paper. Once that's done, I lift the box cover, revealing a bunch of soft cushion substance and paper. I gasp when I find out what it's concealing. I lift up a rustic golden chain, all linked up to a golden-colored pocket watch. I hold it up as gravity twirls it in a circle from the chain.
"It's so pretty..." I say, mesmerized by its shininess. And so familiar, the cover. I gasp in a flashback, when Shane and I visited an old vintage clock store when my Mom went to get her watch fixed. I saw this very pocket watch, admiring its beauty and authenticity, staring lustfully into the glass case as a little girl.
Like I said, sorry if you don't like it, but it's just something I remembered when talking with Danny. I found the old shop we went to with Sam. I didn't expect to find it, but that pocket watch was still there. Don't ask me how much it cost because you're not paying me back. It's your gift.
I laugh at that message.
The guy there said I could have it for a discount anyway, since no one ever really tried buying it since it was broken. I tried getting it fixed at the mall. Hope it works now at least. It'd suck if I gave you a broken or off-time pocket watch.
Anyway uh, thanks for such a fun year so far. Guess I have Jazz to thank for that, too. I don't think we'd be where we are now if it wasn't for her pairing us up for that stupid year-long project. Sorta makes you think we should get started on that soon, huh?
Happy Birthday, Wendy.
Shane
With a nostalgic and somewhat touched expression, I put the box and the card down to inspect my gift. It doubles as a very long necklace, so I drape the chain around my neck and look at it. The pocket watch really is the same one I saw as a kid. I click on the top button and open it, showing the exact time shown on my other clock.
I put it to my ear and listen to it tick. Tick. Tick Tick. It's soothing to me somehow. I tilt the pocket watch a little and find another compartment. On the other side of the clock, turning like a page, behind it lies a photograph. Two actually. One is of me, Nett, and Shane, in a goofy photo-booth picture at the mall. And on the other side is a picture of ghost Danny and ghost me, posing for a picture for Nett in the lab after a tough training session.
"Wendy you coming!?" Sam calls again
"Just a second!" I holler back, but I smile thoughtfully at the gift. It's a beautiful gift from Shane. I just want to cry and hug him. "Oh my gosh..." I practically gasp, closing the pocket watch and staring at the cover design. With a deep smile I hold the necklace clock to my chest. It's now one of my most treasured belongings, next to my late father's wristband.
Thanks, Shane.
AND HE KNOWS!
I know - Finally. Only took me like a little over 40 chapters. So so.
(MY APOLOGIES .)
Anyway I hope everyone has a great holiday vacation! Cheers to 2013 everyone!
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PREVIEW:
"And you haven't taught her, Danny! Come now, how do you expect her to be at the top of her game if she doesn't know Cyrokinisis?"
"You and your student come to my realm for a few days. I will teach her. Indeed Danny, it will be a good experience for her. And you."
x-x-x-x
"Okay. What's up?" Shane investigates.
"Just a little nervous, I guess. Danny hasn't exactly told me where we'll be going for the next three days.
x-x-x-x
Nett spins in his chair. "So what with the sudden interest in Danny's personal life? Don't we already know everything there is we need to know?"
"We don't know how he died," Shane says.
x-x-x-x
"Wow," I say, seeing my breath fog up the window next to me. "Where is this place...?"
Danny smiles a little at my wonder. "Welcome to the Realm of the Far Frozen."
