Jazz got up from her seat in the living room. She'd been searching on the internet for Danny Phantom sightings with her laptop. She'd only gotten a conspiracy site following the times Danny intervened in history. She still had the hope that her little brother would escape. Her parents, guilt-ridden since learning the truth about their son, were in the lab trying to build trackers in a desperate attempt to find Danny. There wasn't a plan after that. Finding Danny was the only goal. She strolled to the front door and hid her worry for her brother. If they wanted to protect his secret, they had to stick with their cover story. Danny was staying with Maddie's sister, Alicia, in Spittoon. She answered the door and blinked in shock. Batman. The caped crusader of Gotham city was on their doorstep.
He smiled at her and wordlessly stepped inside. In a daze, Jazz shut the door and stared at the black-clad hero.
"Are your parents here?" Batman asked. He'd been as careful as possible to not be seen before he got to Fenton Works. Jazz shut her gaping mouth and nodded.
"Ye-yeah. They're um they're in the lab," Jazz stammered.
"Could you get them? I need to discuss something with you all," Batman requested. Jazz numbly nodded and rushed to the lab.
"Mom, dad. I can't believe I'm saying this, but… Batman is here and wants to talk to us," Jazz announced to the two jumpsuit clad inventors. Her parents looked up.
"Batman?" Maddie repeated. Jazz nodded.
"I don't know why he's here, but he wants to talk to us," Jazz repeated. The parents hesitated to leave their projects behind but followed their daughter upstairs and invited Batman to sit down in the kitchen.
"We found Danny," Batman told them. The reaction was instantaneous. Maddie's eyes swelled with relief and Jack's serious scowl lessened. They hadn't smiled in weeks. It was uncharacteristic, especially for Jack, he hadn't even bothered to restock on fudge.
"Is he here?" Maddie managed. Batman shook his head.
"No, he's very weak. I'd like to ensure that he regains his strength before he leaves our protection," Batman replied.
"Is… is he hurt?" Jazz whispered, understanding the underlining worry.
"He needs to recover. But he seems to heal quickly. His injuries aren't the concern. He's physically weak and he hasn't been properly eating recently," Batman explained. He knew this was going to be difficult. But this was the boy's family. They deserved to know his condition.
"What I have to tell you… the facts are your son was tortured. The specifics are gruesome. If you wish to know, I'll tell you but I doubt you do. But they kept him gagged and gave him nutrients through an IV. He hasn't exercised at all since he was taken," Batman informed them.
Maddie gasped and tears fell down her face.
"My poor baby. Where is he?" Maddie whispered. Batman bit his tongue, he had to remain calm and neutral.
"I'm afraid I can't tell you that. If anyone knew his location it may put him in danger of being taken again. Danny has asked me not to tell people about what he is," Batman answered.
"What?! But… Batman, we've been worried sick. We have to see our son!" Jack thundered. Batman wasn't fazed.
"I understand your concern for your son Mr. Fenton. But Danny has been through a lot. We need to approach this carefully. I don't want to do anything that could in any way possibly upset him. Which is why I haven't gotten the Guys in White shut down and members arrested already. Danny wants to keep his secret," Batman explained.
"No! I want those monsters to pay! They stole our son and-and tortured him. They deserve to be hanged!" Maddie shouted.
"Mom! Danny doesn't want people to know that he's half-ghost. We should respect that," Jazz interjected.
"But-" Maddie began.
"She's right Mrs. Fenton. I told Danny that I could get them shut down but I had to tell others what they did. Danny point-blank refused," Batman added. Maddie and Jack looked like they wanted to argue.
"Mom, dad. I want justice for what they did to Danny too. But… Danny's been through enough. If Danny doesn't want people to know he's a halfa, then we shouldn't tell them. He's the one that's been through everything," Jazz reasoned to her parents. Batman considered the girl as a single tear fell from Jazz's eye.
"I already breached that trust in telling you guys against Danny's wishes. I don't know what Danny's going to say when he finds out you know, but… I don't want to make things worse for him," Jazz admitted.
"We've already told him that his parents know about him. We thought if he knew they knew, he'd be willing to pursue this. But he didn't," Batman revealed. Jazz turned to the dark knight.
"How… how did he take it?" Jazz ventured.
"He looked worried. He was upset to hear that is parents felt guilty. He's very quiet right now. Talking too much causes him discomfort. He hasn't been able to speak much," Batman answered. He didn't know how Danny felt about his parents learning his secret. But he did seem distressed at the time. Jazz nodded to herself.
"Danny's gotten good at hiding how he feels. Especially since getting his powers. If you could tell that much, he's probably terrified of how you guys feel about him," Jazz informed the table, nodding to her parents.
"Why? He's our son! We love him," Jack challenged.
Jazz bit her lip and glanced at Batman. This was going to sound terrible but she had to explain how Danny felt to her parents and maybe help Batman understand her brother better. If she wasn't allowed to go to her little brother, then this was the best she could do.
"You threatened to rip Phantom apart molecule by molecule. Every day for a long time. Danny knows you guys love him but… there's always been a fear that your love for Fenton mightn't be enough to protect Phantom. I've tried to convince him to tell you guys but he was always worried that you'd try to "fix" him. He doesn't need fixing," Jazz explained, chosing her words with utmost care. She didn't want to make her parents feel even guiltier but this was the truth. Jazz could understand why Danny didn't want to reveal his secret in return for justice.
After hearing a little about how Danny felt about his parents learning the truth, Batman could understand the boy better. He'd lost his secret, became a lab rat and was tortured for almost seven weeks. Having feared this much from his own parents prior to his ordeal. His reluctance in having his secret revealed further was more than understandable. Maddie and Jack hung their heads guiltily. They couldn't even say that the fear was unfounded. They did say those things. They had considered what they could do to help their son with his ghost problem. But right now, they just wanted to see their son and tell him that they loved him.
"Please Batman, we… we just want our son back," Maddie whispered with a soft sob. Batman pushed back his own sadness at this sight.
"I promise you Mrs. Fenton, when he's ready, you can see him. But are there any things I need to know about Danny before I go? Allergies? Special requirements?" Batman replied.
"Danny hides his insecurities well Batman. And he rarely talks about things that bother him. But his powers are affected by his emotions. When he gets really angry, sometimes his eyes will glow green. When he's really scared, I've seen that the temperature can drop. Not noticeably unless you're looking for it. But, that's all I can say. Getting him to open up is nearly impossible and he's constantly hiding his problems. But flying helps to calm him down," Jazz explained. She had to get Batman to understand that Danny needed his space, even if he shouldn't be left alone. She didn't know what kind of condition her sibling was in but these were constants she'd spotted. Batman nodded, committing the tips to memory. They were odd stipulations but Jazz knew they were invaluable pieces of information. Jazz stood up.
"I could pack a few things for you to take to Danny as well. A few things from home might help him feel better. And we can write letters to him for you to deliver," Jazz suggested. Batman smiled.
"That sounds like a good idea, Jasmine. I'm sure it won't be long before you can see him. But I don't want to rush into anything," Batman retorted.
"Call me Jazz," Jazz called over her shoulder as she went upstairs to pack a few things for her brother.
There you are. Danny's family know that Danny's in Batman's protection now.
Also, they've covered for Danny's absence by saying he's in Spittoon with his aunt. This is mentioned periodically throughout the story, particularly when the story involves Amity Park.
There was a question where someone asked that couldn't Batman just shut down the Guys in White regardless of Danny's secret because of the experiments they do. I believe that unless Batman can prove that the Guys in White broke the law by experimenting on a human, the simple but effective response from the Guys in White will be that they were doing their job, catching, destroying and researching ghosts. So that's why Batman doesn't just go public with other experiments and try to shut down the organisation.
Until the next chapter.