I really am very sorry this took so long to get out. I finally got around to sitting in Barnes and Noble and writing some after church on Sunday and got this chapter figured out. I'm the queen of procrastinating. Still... three chapters left to go. Did you think she was getting to go home today? Well...

Chapter Twenty Nine – The Truth at Last

Thursday, June 12th 1998

Abbi glanced at the three teens one last time and nodded. Then she turned to the map and gripped it tight. "Take me home."

Phantom, Sam and Tucker waited for the tell-tail signs of the Infi map activating. The wind and portals forming out of no-where. Whisking the holders off to some unknown place. But that didn't happen. The map didn't move, didn't glow, didn't even twitch.

"Did… did something go wrong?" Abbi asked, gazing from the map to Frostbite in confusion. Frostbite too looked confused.

"I'm am not sure. Try one more time, perhaps being more specific?" Frostbite suggested.

Abbi looked back down at the map. She began speaking quietly, as if whispering. Tucker noticed Sam's eyes narrowing at Abbi but he knew she couldn't make out what she was saying… but he also knew that Danny could.

The map glowed softly at first but within seconds it faded away, leaving Abbi and Frostbite still standing there.

"I… I don't understand, what happened?" Abbi asked.

"I'm not sure, but the map sometimes takes people where they need to be, not where they think they need to go. There is much about the map we still do not understand. I am sorry young one, but the map will not lead you home today," Frostbite said. Taking the map back when Abbi let her hand drop from it. Slowly he placed it back into the chest. "Is there anything else I could help you with?"

"No, thanks anyway Frostbite," Phantom said, walking forward and laying a hand on Abbi's shoulder. "I'm sure we can think of something else to help you," Phantom told her. Even though Abbi nodded, Tucker was sure she didn't quite believe it.

"Of course Great One, you are welcome to stay as long as you need, perhaps the library could be of any help? It is also a good place for deep thought as well," Frostbite announced, gesturing his ice arm back towards the hallway.

"Thanks, we'll give it a try," Phantom said, giving the snow monster a small smile.

Their group was quite as they followed Frostbite down a few odd hallways until he opened some rather impressive double doors into a large room. The four walls were tall and their shelves were filled with books of every color and size. At the center of the room sat both a large table and even larger arm chairs. Clearly meant to sit yeti's and not humans.

"If you need anything, just send a yeti to get me. I will leave you to your search," Frostbite announced, bowing to Phantom before exiting the room.

Tucker gazed around the room along with the others. "Any idea's where to start?"

"Are these even in English?" Sam asked, sounding very doubtful.

"Only one way to find out," Phantom answered.

DP DP DP

"How can you read-"

"We aren't talking about how I can read a language I've never seen before, okay?" Phantom answered Sam for the fourth time after he read her the title of yet another book. The glare on his face was deep. Tucker was closer to chuckling then the other three teen's but he kept it to himself.

"Well it wouldn't do much good if Danny is the only one who can read any of these books," Sam said, putting "Winter Herbs for Ailments and Ills" back on the shelf. According to the titles that Phantom had read, they had come across history books, herbal remedies and the proper way to build an igloo but nothing that seemed to point towards returning to ones correct time period.

"Guys, this isn't exactly the Hogwarts Library. I don't think we are going to find a spell book titled 'Helpful tips to returning to ones correct time'. Let alone a book on time travel as it is," Abbi said, sinking low into her armchair. "This is pointless."

Phantom, Tucker and Sam all looked at the chair then at each other, utterly confused. Sam spoke up first.

"Um…. What's Hogwards?"

"Hu?" Abbi peeked over at them, blinking in surprise before understanding dawned on her. "Um… it's 'Hogwarts', it's from a book series that isn't published yet…, really good series though…" Abbi mumbled, looking away from the three of them. "Forget I mentioned it."

"What series?" Tucker asked.

"Nope! It's not important. I'm not spoiling it!" Abbi said.

Team Phantom gave the girl an odd look before shrugging it off. Sam went back to picking up random books while Phantom walked along a row, reading the titles off to the room in general.

"'History of the Ghost Zone'? If this was any other day, that might be interesting," Phantom said, pulling the book from the shelf.

"Maybe Frostbite will let you apply for a library card," Tucker snickered.

"Haha, you're so funny Tuck," Phantom replied, rolling his eyes, putting the book back on its shelf while taking note of where it was in the room. Abbi thought that was kinda funny.

Searching continued but even Phantom appeared to be giving up hope. He was the last one to join them at the large arm chairs, floating up to sit on the one across from Abbi. Silence fell on the group. Each in a different stage of thought. Tucker was tapping away on his PDA, Sam had her head leaning back on the chair, staring at the ceiling. Abbi caught sight of Phantom giving her a curious look, prompting her to draw her knees up to her chest and avoid his piercing green gaze. But avoiding is was all she could do.

"Lilly?" Phantom started, drawing Sam and Tuckers attention, but Abbi didn't turn. "What was it you said to the map the second time, when Frostbite had you be more specific."

Tucker perked up, he had been wandering what Danny might have heard too. Sam was just confused.

"W-what?" Abbi stuttered, shooting glances at Phantom and then back down to her knees.

"Frostbite told you to be more specific the second time, so you gave the map a date to return you to. What date was it… I'm certain I must have miss heard you," Phantom explained, not taking his eyes off Abbi.

"I… well… what I said was…" Abbi scrambled for an answer that would make sense. If Phantom had indeed heard her… she was in trouble. "I said-"

"Cuz I swore you said June X 2018, but that's a lot more the 'a few years' into the future to me," Phantom said, sensing that she wasn't going to tell the truth without more pressure.

"Twenty… twenty-eighteen? Is that what I said? No wonder the map didn't take me anywhere if I gave it the wrong-"

"Please don't treat us like we are stupid, Lilly," Phantom cut her off. "There is something more you are hiding, and we can't help if we don't have all the facts. If something you've told us is wrong or if you've left something out, that could be the reason we aren't able to get you home."

"I really don't think-" Abbi started but this time it was Tucker who happen to cut her off.

"Come to think of it Lilly, how did you get sent back here. You never actually told me how," Tucker murmured thoughtfully. "What sent you back here? Was it a machine? Or a ghost maybe? But if ghosts…" Tucker trailed off, not finishing his thought.

"If ghosts aren't… what, Tuck?" Sam asked, a bite in her tone.

"Just… something Lilly said… about her time… nothing important," Tucker tried to backpedal the conversation.

"I think we are pasted the 'what's important and not' Tuck. We need to know. What are you hiding from me and Sam?" Danny paused… "Or does it involve us?"

"What? No! No!"

"Tucker!"

Abbi was getting very nervous though the whole conversation, anxiety building as Tucker tried to calm his friends down. When his cornered gaze turned to Abbi, so did Sam and Phantoms.

"Lilly," Phantom said, part anger, part request for the information.

"I… I mean… it's just… the thing is… that…" Abbi tried to think of something, anything to say but the longer she paused the more anger appeared in Sam and in Phantom's gazes. And if she wasn't mistaken, disappointment too.

She hung her head, defeated. "My name isn't 'Lilly'," she started. The three teens silent as they waited. "My name is Abigail. Abbi Fenton."

"What…" Phantom's voice was hardly a whisper. But Abbi wasn't done yet.

"Daniel Fenton and Sam Mason are my parents," Abbi finished, gazing back up, looking the two teens in the eyes.

Sam's gaze was wide as she took in Abbi's appearance in a new light. Phantom's gaze, however, was switching between Sam and Abbi. No one spoke for quite some time as the news sunk in, but slowly, ever so slowly, Sam and Phantom began to blush; red and Green, respectively, began rising in their faces as the implications of what Abbi just said raced through their minds.

It wasn't a gasp or a caught that broke the silence, it was Tucker, holding back his snickers until they were full blown laughs. Watching his two best friends figure out what Abbi meant was freaking hilarious to watch.

Abbi kept glancing from her lap to her parents and back, ignoring Tuckers giggles until a wet snowball smacked him in the face. Throwing him back against the large chair and effectively stopping the laughter, at least for a moment.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you…" Abbi started, eyes trained on her hands that twisted and turned in her lap. "It's just… how could I? You aren't supposed to mess with the past and what if I did something? What if I made it so you don't get together? What if I'm never born? But I wanted to meet my dad. I'd never gotten to speak to him or ever see him. He's gone on business. He's been gone for as long as I can remember. And then… then I heard my mom… she was saying stuff about powers and me and… I just wanted to meet you… I didn't think it would work and then suddenly… everything's black and I'm waking up in the hospital with you three…"

Silence reined for a moment as they listened, it was Phantom who spoke first.

"You've never met your father? Me? I'm gone? Am I dead? Fully dead?" Phantom asked, worry filling his voice.

Abbi shook her head. "No, mom always talks as if my father, er… you, are alive, just… gone."

"Me? I'm your… you're my child? My daughter?" Sam asked. If Abbi hadn't grown up listening to that voice, she would have missed the awe she heard in Sam's tone. Abbi looked to Sam and nodded. "Do we… I mean…, how do we get along…? Do we like each other?" Sam asked quietly with a hint of worry.

"Yes, we get along well," Abbi said, drawing what Sam was truly asking about. "We have a good relationship. But Uncle Tucker did introduce me to meat and no, I'm not a vegetarian."

Tucker broke into a fit of giggle again. "Uncle? You call me 'uncle'?"

"Danny," Sam said sternly while gazing at Tucker.

"Gladly," Phantom said.

Another snowball hit Tucker in the face. "Hey! Come on! It's funny!"

Abbi laughed a bit at that, watching the three friends, before the conversation turned back to her.

Phantom's eyes filled with confusion as his memory traveled back. "So, if you're our… child… how come you don't know anything about ghosts? Why did the existence of ghosts shock you?"

"Ghosts aren't a problem in my Amity Park. They are never seen. No one talks about them. None of the grown ups mention stories of them or anything like that. Coming back here? Seeing everyone so calm about ghosts, well, calm-ish, was a bit nuts. And no, I don't know why. I don't know what happens between today and my day that changed Amity so much. If I ever get back, I'm going to ask, that's for sure," Abbi explained.

"That's impossible, my parents? Not tell their grand daughter about ghosts?" Phantom scoffed. "They would never be… able… to…"

Phantom's toxic green eyes widened, realization dawning. "Their dead… aren't they?"

"What?! No! No! They are just fine! Well… I assume they are just fine… since I've never met them. They live across state and we never visit them. We don't visit mom's parents either. They don't like me…"

"My parents left Amity Park? Wow… but, why?" Phantom asked, shocked and relieved that nothing had happened to them.

"I don't know. Mom doesn't talk about them," Abbi explained, shrugging.

"But that still doesn't explain how you got back here," Sam spoke up, looking at Abbi. "You didn't saw how, just that… you didn't think 'it' would work. What did you mean by that?"

Abbi looked at Sam as she spoke. "I heard you talking about me. About the fact I wasn't showing any signs of powers or of hiding any powers. That I wasn't acting like my dad when he was my age. It wasn't hard to figure out that my dad must have powers, powers that I was suddenly showing due to seeing… you…" Abbi looked shyly over at Phantom. "Some creep trying to seduce my mom. I attacked you and it brought out powers I didn't know I had. I was so angry," Abbi said looking down at her hands.

"Angry that my mom would cheat on my dad with this creep. Angry that he got away even if I didn't know how he got away. I ran from my mom, ran away, I needed to think. Needed to be alone. Then I started floating, my eyes were glowing, then I wasn't floating, mom was shouting at me to open the door… I didn't want to. I was about to think how I wished to go meet my dad, have him teach me about these powers when I remembered all the times my mom drilled into my head how I was never to wish for anything. That there was a ghost who could twist a wish around and make it come true in the worst way."

"I didn't think ghosts were real, but I had heeded that warning all my life," Abbi shrugged then shook her head. "Until that day when I decided to give it a try. I opened my window and… made the wish. Next thing I know this genie thing appears, says some funny words and it all went black." Abbi ended her story quietly. She expected the three friends to be confused, wondering about what could have happened or who this genie was. Instead they all had the similar look of recognition.

"Desiree," Sam murmured.

"Um… Who?"

DP DP DP

Posted 1/15/2020!

And there we are. The next chapter is started, about 900 words in so that's good. The chapters need a little maintenance to clean up time frames. Never split a story up between two different times... it's way too confusing. At least now I can drop the whole Lilly-Abbi thing. My kitty Alice is currently doing 'crazy cat time', always fun to watch.

And Frozen II is out! Yippy! Why have I only seen it three times!? We were to at least ten by now for Frozen, Lita!

Well, what did you think of the chapter? Outstanding? Acceptable? Poor? Dreadful? ...Troll?

Feel free to leave a review! They keep me smiling!

Morning Bleach