Re-Introductions

Danny felt an onslaught of emotions as he woke up, the two strongest being relief and fear. Relief because the nightmare was finally over, and fear because a new nightmare was just beginning. Memories of what happened came crashing against his already pounding skull, earning a sharp gasp and subsequent coughing.

"Woah, hey, it's ok," Dash's voice filtered into Danny's perception, his attention snapping up to him. "Just take a deep breath, ok?"

Danny shook his head, hands squeezing the blankets under him. With a sickening groan, he shut his eyes, hands freezing the blankets and cracking them apart with his electricity. "Hurts."

"What hurts?" Dash sounded worried, something Danny hadn't heard from him very much.

Danny didn't know how to answer. "All. Every. Uh..." Danny fell back into the pillow, eyes closing as his cores twisted in pain. He swallowed thickly, tears falling from half lidded eyes. He was looking at Dash. "Why are you helping me?"

Dash sat back in surprise. He had a chair pulled up close to Danny's bed, and by the looks of it, he hadn't moved in a while. "Why wouldn't I?"

"I was..." he swallowed sandpaper, "a real prick to you. Didn't you hear Dan? Aren't you..." Danny let a few more tears fall, voice growing even quieter. "Aren't you afraid?"

"Nah," Dash leaned forward, waving his hand in front of him. "That guy seems like a real liar. I think I'll believe you instead."

Danny nodded, closing his eyes and wincing as pain radiated from his arm. He hadn't had the guts to look at it yet. "Thanks."

"You ok?" Dash's voice was so quiet, Danny almost missed it. He opened his eyes halfway, shooting the elder teen a tired glance. "Ok, stupid question. Do painkillers, uh, work on you?"

Danny nearly laughed at that, but he bit his tongue, opting to offer him a small smirk instead. "Did you really just ask me that?"

"What? I don't know!" Dash exclaimed, laughing a bit. Danny shook his head, smiling a little. "So...that's a yes then?"

"Yeah, ibuprofen works best," Danny explained, taking his time with each word. Dash grabbed a bottle from the trunk next to him, procuring two little red pills and a mini water bottle.

"Here, they're extra strength. Should help a little," Dash offered, smiling as Danny dry-swallowed the pills and pushed aside the water.

"Thanks."

"You don't have to keep thanking me. It's fine," Dash reassured, smiling again. There was something under his smile, though — something that was gnawing at him.

"What's up?" Danny asked slowly, letting a bit of intensity fall into his tone. Dash shifted, smile dipping.

"Oh, uh, you're good at reading people. I forgot about that..." he laughed nervously.

"Dash."

"Yeah, right," Dash's smile fell, replaced with a confused, contemplative look. "I just...I think before- uh I mean after, I guess. Yeah, after you passed out, I talked to...to Phantom, I think you call him. I don't know."

"Oh," Danny wasn't able to say anything else. He didn't know what to say.

"He told me he'd explain. Maybe it's selfish, I don't know," another forced chuckle, "but I...want to know, I guess." Dash took a deep breath, nodding finally. "I want to know what's going on."

Oh. Danny didn't know what to say. It made sense, of course it made sense. Considering there was most likely nobody else left at Team Phantom — were they even called that anymore? — who trusted him, it made sense to tell Dash more about himself. It made perfect sense, so why was it so hard to wrap his head around?

"Of course," Danny replied in spite of his hesitation, deciding he owed Dash the truth at least. He was watching over him, after all. "Wh- what do you want to know?"

Dash's eyes lit up a little at that. "Who even is Phantom? I mean, he told me he was—" Dash cut himself off, sad realization washing over him. "He told me he was your ghost. That he was made because...you...?"

Danny chuckled nervously, rubbing his neck lightly. His fingertips caught on his scar, sending a shiver down his body. "Yeah, I died."

Silence hung between them for a few moments. "How many times?"

"Huh?" Danny shuddered, the response leaving his lips without a thought.

"He mentioned you—"

"Oh. Oh, yeah," Danny sucked his words in, eyes dropping to his lap. He studied his hands, trying not to see the indigo veins the nightmare monster wore. "I died...twice."

Dash gasped, leaning forward in his chair. "Why?"

"What do you mean?" Danny had to work to keep his breath from catching in his throat. He blinked away tears quickly.

"Why did you die twice, Fenton?" Dash shuddered, closing his eyes and letting out a puff of air. "You're so young. You're only 14—"

"I'm fifteen now, if that helps?" Danny chuckled lightly, earning a tired look from Dash. "Sorry."

"Just give me a fucking answer," Dash sighed, keeping his eyes on Danny now. It had been a while since he'd actually taken a good look at the upperclassman, and he looked more mature now. Maybe he was more mature.

"The first time was an accident," Danny choked out, hand rubbing idle circles in his chest. "My parents' portal didn't work. I was showing Sam and Tucker and it..." cold shot through his veins, eyes dropping to his lap again. "It turned on. I was inside. The rest is history, I guess..."

"I remember your accident," Dash's voice was drenched in fear and regret. Danny couldn't get himself to look up. "I- I was so...horrible to you. And you'd just died."

Danny shook his head, closing his eyes. He was crying again, he realized, wiping the tears away quickly. "Yeah, well it didn't feel like it right away because I also...kind of lived. It was the ectoplasmic energy, it...kept me half alive or something. I don't know..."

"When was the second time? Was it...recent?" Dash's voice got quieter somehow, just barely above a whisper. When Danny didn't answer, he cleared his throat, drawing the halfa's attention up to him.

"It was during the asteroid panic. I made a mistake, and I lost my powers, so I got them back," Danny's voice snapped hard against the walls. "I just didn't know I'd have to- that I'd have to- to die to get them back."

"Fenton—"

"And it hurt, Dash," Danny was crying now, hot tears dripping straight down. He could taste salt and ectoplasm on the corners of his lips. "You'll never know how bad it hurt."

Dash watched as Danny sobbed, hands coming up to cover his face. After a few moments, he collected himself, bringing his arms back down before finally glancing at his throbbing, injured arm. Dash must have wrapped it, the white bandage leaking red and green in the middle. Twisting the injured arm, he hissed in pain.

"I'm so sorry," Dash whispered, eyes full of pity as he looked at Danny.

"Don't be," Danny let out a humorless laugh, shaking his head a little. "Not your fault."

"Yeah, well it's not yours either," Dash reassured, flashing him a small smile.

"If you say so," Danny shook his head, swallowing hard. He gazed down at his arm, gently touching it with his uninjured hand. He gasped painfully, pulling away with a sharp grunt.

"Aah, yeah, don't do that," Dash winced in sympathy, pulling back in his chair a bit. "Your friends are on the way, but...it's pretty bad."

Danny huffed slowly, eyes clenching shut. "When Phantom took over...did anyone get hurt?"

"That's what you're worried about right now?"

"Well...yeah," Danny looked up at the jock, blinking confusedly.

"You don't need to think about that right now. Just...relax for a second, ok?" Dash gave him a small nod.

Danny relented, sinking further back into the pillows propped behind his neck. "Fine," he grumbled, mind still on his peers. They had all looked at him like he was a monster. Maybe he was.

"Why do you do that?" Dash asked, tone bubbling with an undercurrent of concern.

"Do what?" Danny's eyes were half-lidded, breaths shallow and small.

"Care so much about everyone? I mean, they want you—" Dash cut himself off, cursing himself under his breath.

"They want me what, Dash?" Danny laughed a little before stumbling into a cough. He brought his uninjured hand to his mouth, wiping away a bit of residual silver fluid. "I saw how they looked at me. They all know that I'm the monster they should be fighting."

"That's not true."

"It isn't?" Danny shot back, closing his eyes and letting a few rattling breaths wash over him. "Dan wasn't lying. I grew up into him in an alternate timeline. It doesn't matter why, I...I let myself become that thing once before. Maybe...maybe I'm too dangerous..."

"You saved everyone," Dash cut in, drawing Danny's tired attention up to him. "You keep saving everyone. You're only dangerous to the people — and ghosts — who deserve it. I believe in you. We all believe in you."

"Not anymore," Danny shook his head, more tears falling down his face. "They'll never trust me again."

Dash pursed his lips, looking away from Danny's face for a few moments before snapping his attention back. "Meg and I are making sure nobody else can get to you. I can talk to Kwan, he'll be fine. Star and Paulina were supposed to be coming back tomorrow...uh, I mean today, by now? Yeah, they're supposed to be coming back today anyways, so they'll be here. And of course, your sister and your friends will be here soon. It'll be fine."

Danny's composure cracked, entire form shaking. He looked at Dash with terrified eyes, a hint of green swirling in the icy blue. "You promise?"

"I- I promise," Dash looked surprised, offering a shocked smile as Danny swallowed hard again. With one final grunt, the younger teen sank deeper into the pillow, letting himself fall into an uncertain, dreamless sleep.

By the time Danny drifted back into consciousness, his friends must have already arrived. He could tell because Sam had her fingers twisted in his hair, stroking gently in a way only she knew he liked.

"...scared? Why would they believe Dan?" Sam's voice was quiet as she spoke to someone else. Danny kept his eyes shut, afraid the light might hurt too much at that moment; his head was still pounding furiously.

"Well, they did see Phantom come through before we left," Valerie reminded. She must have been across the room by the sound of her voice.

"That, and..." Dash's voice was low and protective as he spoke. "Well, when Phantom took over, he didn't exactly hold back. There are a few injuries, and people aren't happy."

"But that isn't—" Sam started out loud, only to be shushed by at least three other people. "That...isn't Danny's fault. Dan was hurting him, of course he fought back."

"Well, not everyone sees it that way," Meg's voice startled Danny, almost causing him to tense up. He kept himself still instead, deciding they wouldn't tell him this information if he was awake. He needed to know what was going on.

"Why? Don't they trust him?" Tucker's voice was full of concern, a hint of anger coloring it at the end. Just how many people had they managed to cram into Danny's room, anyways?

"They hardly even know him," Meg explained. "Hell, I hardly even know him. If it wasn't for— well, if I didn't trust you...all of you...I don't know where I'd stand, either."

"Meg—!" Valerie's voice was shrill, raising in volume.

"Shh!" again, a few people shushed her at once, earning a small apology from Valerie.

"He saved all of us, more times than you could even begin to understand," Valerie spat acid at her ex, voice hard and sharp.

"That doesn't erase his past," Meg explained pointedly. "Even if he has an excuse for everything he's done wrong...people still pay attention. We all may be young, but we aren't dumb, you know."

Danny's world began to spin around him, a small groan escaping his lips against his will. Sam pulled her fingers from his hair, hands cupping his face gingerly.

"Hey, Danny? Phantom? Are you awake?" she prodded gently as Danny's eyes fluttered open.

"Hey," his voice was hoarse, swallowing more left over silver. It tasted like his own blood.

"How're you feeling?" her voice was quiet and soothing. She traced circles in his cheeks with her thumbs, rubbing lightly.

Danny looked down at his arm, relief washing over him when he saw fresh, non-bloodied bandages. "Better. You guys looked at my arm?"

Sam's face fell, eyes traveling down to his bandaged arm. "It...um, we did. It's really bad. You're lucky there wasn't any nerve damage, but the muscles...you might never be able to use your arm the same again."

"Oh."

"I'm so sorry," Sam eyed his face before looking down at his arm. "I'm sorry for everything I said. I'm sorry I didn't follow you, I—"

"Hey," Danny grabbed her arm with his uninjured hand. "It's ok. I'm sorry I went alone, I just...I just thought..."

"Shh, it's fine," Sam hugged him, pulling his head to her shoulder. "You're good. Your arm is wrapped and healing, everyone is ok, and we're going to be leaving soon."

"Leaving?" Danny pulled out of her embrace, sitting back a bit. "Why? Where are we going?"

"We—"

"We can't just leave them here unprotected. Dan sought them out because he knows I can't just sit by and watch them get hurt," Danny explained quickly, words tumbling over themselves.

"They're not unprotected, remember?" Sam reminded Danny, rubbing the tears from his face. He must have started crying at some point. "They're trained. And the ones who aren't are in training. They'll be ok."

"But Dan—"

"Is after you," Sam's tone hardened at the mention of Dan. "We have to make sure you stay safe. That's more important than sticking around."

Danny swallowed his words hard, nodding and looking away from Sam. "Where are we going?"

"Back to Vlad's old mansion. He doesn't seem to know we came from there, so it should be an ok place to camp out again," Sam explained gently. Danny closed his eyes hard, her words from earlier scraping against his throbbing core. He'd almost forgotten about how she'd talked about Phantom, but the memory flooded his core with acid as soon as she mentioned the mansion.

"Ok," he didn't mean to spit them as aggressively as he did. Clearing his throat, Danny looked around the room, noting that their smaller Team Phantom was joined by both Meg and Dash. He turned his attention to them, taking a shaking breath. "What's going to happen here?"

Meg opened her mouth to start, only for Dash to cut in. "I'm coming with you. I talked to Kwan and he's game too. Oh, also Star and Paulina, they got here like an hour ago and won't let you leave without them."

Meg's attention snapped to the blonde, eyes turning to slits as she assessed him. "You're kidding, right?"

"Huh? No, why would I be?" Dash asked, genuine confusion coloring his voice.

"You can't just leave!" Meg's voice was shrill against the concrete walls, winces from the other teens causing her to take a deep breath and quiet herself before continuing. "We need as many people as we can get. With everything that just happened...what will the others think of you just leave?"

Dash looked back at Danny, studying the younger teen carefully as he responded to Meg. "I'm needed elsewhere. That monster is still after Danny, and he needs all the help he can get right now."

Danny started right back at the jock, a stunned smile lingering on his lips. "You don't have to."

"Yes, I do," Dash nodded finally, turning back to Meg. "I'm going to go get Paulina and Star. Oh, and Kwan. Then, we're leaving."

Meg looked back and forth between Dash and Danny for a few moments before her gaze caught on Valerie. Danny watched as she choked a bit, closing her eyes and taking in a slow breath. "Fine. Just- just leave. We'll be fine."

With that, she turned on her heal and left quickly, earning a small squeak from Valerie. "W- wait!" she ran after the other girl, leaving everyone else in a stunned silence.

Hey all! What do you think?

Thank you all for being patient with me - it was actually very nice to have a little more time between updates. I haven't been writing as much because I've been busy, so having a few days to catch up was nice :)

Anyways, poor Danny! He really goes through it from here on out. Let me know what you think about the direction I'm taking the story, I'd really love to know!

Thank you, as always, to everyone who favorites, follows, and reviews! It honestly means the world to me :)

Until next time,

~Ash