Disclaimer: I don't own anything from Danny Phantom.

Note (11/18/2020): I'm glad the last chapter turned out well and not gonna lie, it sucks that I'll have to gloss over the rest of what both Vlad's talked about off screen so to speak, but I really need to switch gears and return my attention to Valerie's side of the story. And I dunno, I know what I want to do with this story but it sort of feels like I'm going all over the place right now. Maybe it's because the focus as been so divided between Vlad and Danny, Danielle and Valerie, and in small doses Sam and Tucker.

In retrospect I probably should have split this into two stories where one is about Danny and Vlad dealing with the aftermath of defeating Dan and Danny's issues with his friends and the other, aka this one, is about Valerie taking his place as Amity Park's protector and fighting new enemies before Danielle shows up. Too late to split it up now but again, I'm doing my best to keep the story on track and sometimes it feels like I'm not getting anywhere even though we're 37 chapters in. Anyways blegh, just needed to vent a little bit and prepare you for another small time skip.


Chapter 37: Turning Over A New Leaf


Danny's POV

"-hmm, yeah it looks like Clockwork isn't in the mood for a visit today so we should probably head home and get ready for tomorrow. I need to mentally prepare myself for my first day at the school anyhow," I sighed heavily, closed my eyes, and turned around. Although I was unable to keep the hint of disappointment and dread out of my voice.

When I opened my eyes again though I could immediately tell something was wrong and tensed up before floating closer to Vlad, peering up at his face, "What's wrong? Don't tell me you suddenly feel guilty for not helping me out during those scuffles earlier. Honestly it was a really good work out for me so I appreciated the chance to fight solo for a bit. So seriously, don't sweat it! Or...is it that stuff going on at Axion Labs that's bothering you?"

Pinching the bridge of his nose and taking a deep shaky breath Vlad replied, "It's not that Daniel, it's just that I've already...met with Clockwork and frankly that was a lot of information to process even for me. He was concerned it would trouble you too much be there for this discussion or that you may have gotten too protective of me so Clockwork stopped time for everyone but me in order to say what needed to be said without interruption."

I opened my mouth to complain but Vlad cut me off by adding as an afterthought, "Ah, as a small consolation Clockwork told me you should be expecting a package from Valerie soon so at least that's something to look forward to upon our return. Remind me to add that to the schedule since I've been meaning to show you where your P.O. Box is located since I forgot to do so the last time we were in town. At any rate let's get out of here before anything ELSE decides to surprise us."

I could tell Vlad was getting a little grumpy so I didn't want to push my luck so I nodded mutely and took out the Infimap again and asked it to take us home. We made it back to the other side of Vlad's portal in record time as expected so at least that meant we'd be able to unwind a bit after how unexpectedly eventful this trip turned out to be. And I mean, I should have seen it coming that Clockwork had his own plans to talk to Vlad without me butting in. Sure it sucked that I was left out of the conversation but at the same time I could understand why...

I'm getting better but unfortunately I've been feeling really anxious lately, sometimes for no particular reason and I knew myself well enough to know by now that it's because I'm getting restless again. That's why I'm both nervous and excited about going back to school because for one thing it'll be a hell of a lot easier to hide my powers without ghosts randomly showing up and stealing my lunch or possessing the science teacher which yup, that totally happened once. And just like Vlad pointed out before while I may run into some snobby rich kids like at any school, for the most part everyone there was just a normal kid like me trying to get their high school degree so they could move onto college...

So yeah while I'm nowhere near ready to think THAT far ahead, Vlad promised he'd help me if I decide to actually go for my dream of becoming an astronaut and he'll make sure I 'pass' all the necessary tests since in some ways I already have. But for obvious reasons we can't let anyone find out there's my blood and body temperature aren't exactly normal sometimes. In fact, Vlad told me that in a lot of ways I'm actually OVER-qualified for deep space missions.

For one thing, in ghost form I don't necessarily need to breath in space or underwater. And since I have a cold ghost-core the freezing temperatures of space shouldn't bother me at all. It's pretty much the opposite given the fact that I can absorb cold energy the same way I absorb the leftover traces of ecto-energy in the air and self-generate it so basically I have a lot of energy to spare overall. Plus I don't really suffer from vertigo given how I can fly super fast even without a rocket. Anyways, the thought made me smile because it's nice to know that maybe my childhood dream isn't so far-fetched after all.

I didn't realize I was getting distracted with the thought of school and my future again until Vlad opened the portal and pulled me inside by the arm when I didn't respond to something he said. Closing it behind us, Vlad unexpectedly whirled around and hugged me out of the blue and I blinked in surprise. Seriously, was what Clockwork had to say really that bad? I knew Vlad had some work to do to if he wanted to really change his mindset on a few things but Clockwork only says those things whether we like them or not to help us in the end and I knew better than to doubt him since he was right about what a huge mistake it was for me not to trust Vlad with the truth about the situation with Dan sooner.

"Ok Vlad, you're really starting to freak me out. Are you SURE you're ok?" I asked, awkwardly hugging him back since it seemed like he really needed it for whatever reason.

Hugging me a bit tighter before letting out a strained chuckle, Vlad finally replied, "Daniel, you know how much I love you don't you? If so, I hope this means we can finally let go of everything that happened and move on with our lives. I don't want to be reminded of how close I came to losing you anymore, little badger. All I want is to enjoy what we have now because we've earned this, I'VE earned this haven't I? The chance to be part of a family again..."

Shaking my head because Vlad was acting like a needy little kid asking for comfort and reassurance like I'VE been doing for months, I closed my eyes and told him, "Look, I don't know what Clockwork said to you but trust me when I tell you he never says anything without a good reason even if it's not what we want to hear. And yeah I had a feeling I definitely wasn't gonna like what he had to say to you because knowing the past and the future of a person is different than seeing how much you've changed AS a person. He might know a lot about you because of his time powers but I'm the one who knows YOU, Vlad. We haven't been on the same side for long so I get it, you might need a bit more time to change your tune but honestly I'm just happy that I can actually call you my friend and mentor now."

Blushing a bit I muttered, "And well, we are basically a family now so I wouldn't worry too much. At this point I've stopped keeping track of who did what back when we were enemies because none of that matters now. We're here now because you decided to help me when I needed it most which makes all the difference and I still need you so would you please stop acting like a baby? I mean you ARE the adult here right?"

Finally pulling back but looking a bit more relaxed now, thank GOD, Vlad smiled softly, ruffled my hair affectionately, and nodded, "Thank you Daniel. And forgive me for what happened just now, I suppose I let my emotions and weariness get the best of me since it has been a long day for both of us and not everything went as smoothly as I'd hoped when we decided to make this trip to the Ghost Zone. Still, I know making this trip meant a lot to you so I hope that's one less thing you have to worry about my boy. And don't worry, I'll be alright, I just need time to process all that new information.

"At any rate we should both get some rest. We have a busy day ahead of us tomorrow as well but once we're done I'd like to treat you to dinner. After all, once you start school again you'll be fairly busy yourself I'd imagine. Just remember though, should you need anything such as something we may have missed the last time we went shopping or help with your homework, I'm here for you little badger. Goodnight," and without waiting for me to reply he began walking up the stairs instead of teleporting straight to his room.

But I figured he was giving himself time to think after changing back to his human form so I followed silently after him before saying goodnight to him to at the top of the stairs. I did give Vlad another quick hug for good measure because I had a feeling that whatever Clockwork said had really shaken him. And it takes a LOT to shake Vlad...

He's right about one thing though, I did feel better after sharing my biggest secret -well ok maybe it's not technically my biggest secret anymore- with him. To me, it was just another huge sign of trust I wanted to make to Vlad by sharing Clockwork's existence with him. Now that I've done that I can relax and focus on what I want to do from now on instead of worrying about all the what if's and should have's because he's right, we've earned this. I just hope that Vlad won't let whatever happened get to him because the last thing I wanted to do was reopen old wounds or something by mistake or make him feel bad, the biggest reason I wanted him to meet Clockwork wasn't so much that it would make me happy, it's that I wanted to help Vlad just as much as he's been helping me.

After all, that's what family is for isn't it?


The following morning was a lot tougher than I expected it to be since Vlad and I were both pretty beat for one reason or another, he didn't have dark circles under his eyes but I could tell he didn't get much sleep last night. As for me, I slept like a log which is a welcome surprise so I did what I used to do for my sister and made us both some coffee. By now I knew Vlad's taste in coffee by heart and I was tempted to making breakfast myself but the ghost chef shooed me out and reminded me I still needed to finish getting ready.

So after hurrying through breakfast myself I flew back to my room to double check that I had everything I needed in my new backpack. Yeah, you heard right, a backpack. At first I assumed this school was going to be one of the fancy ones where you carry a suitcase with only a laptop in it and other basic essentials but nope, while still somewhat fancy this school had backpacks like any other school. The only rule is that they aren't allowed to have patterns on them, especially camouflage because apparently a student tried to stash their backpack in the woods to hide extra snacks in that wouldn't fit in his locker and when he couldn't find it the smell attracted animals too close to the school campus or something like that.

When I got back Vlad was waiting for me and seemed to be in a better mood because he smiled at me and glanced me over for the umpteenth time since Vlad couldn't stop admiring how I looked in my school uniform, "Are you ready to go Daniel?"

"Yeah," I nodded, sheepishly smoothing my hair down, "Are you sure you're not just trying to make me feel better by saying I look good in this? I mean it's much comfier than I expected, but I still feel weird wearing a uniform again. Especially since the last time I wore one is after you made EVERYONE at my school wear one as part of a new anti-ghost policy and we not only looked hideous, but all the other students looked like they wanted nothing more than to murder me."

Brushing some imaginary dust off my shoulders and smiling proudly as he adjusted out my tie one last time, ignoring my jab at his time as mayor thinking of new ways to make me look stupid as Phantom and Fenton, Vlad assured me, "Nonsense my boy, you look absolutely dashing. I wouldn't be surprised if half the girls there confess their love to you before the end of the year. Also, if I remember correctly, even though I purposefully made those uniforms look as stereotypical as possible I was surprised how good you looked even then. Too bad neither of us were in the mood to give compliments. At any rate, I'm just as happy as you are that this uniform is fairly straightforward and easy for you to change into since I know you're not a fan of suits the way I am. Now, shall we go?"

Nodding and loosening my tie again as soon as his back was turned we went outside to the limo since I wasn't able to convince Vlad to use one of the sport's cars again because he actually had a business meeting to attend around lunchtime which meant he was going to have guests riding with him. At least we already knew where the school was and almost everyone would already be in class by the time we got there and a few students already carpool in a limo which surprised me so at least that meant I wouldn't stand out nearly as much as I thought. Either way, while I kept hoping for the best since this was a new school, far away from ghosts and my ghost hunting parents, I was still nervous about the whole thing regardless.

Figures I've faced worse while fighting ghosts and it's the idea of starting school halfway into the semester that has me all worked up. On the up side though Vlad promised we'd work on helping me figure out duplication once we start training again since it'll help with my multitasking and leadership skills according to him. He told me private schools like this usually have a lot of group projects for that reason and it's not the same as just being paired up like that time I ended up watching a fake baby with Valerie which Skulker 'kidnapped' and it was the only four sack that wasn't accidentally baked into a cookie like the ones Tucker opened a babysitting service for. And by that I mean, if someone slacks off, it's on them and not the group but the group can get extra credit if they ALL do a good job which is pretty awesome.

Moving on, as soon as we made it to the school campus -which by the way is called Silverleaf Academy according to Vlad which I kinda guessed give that there's a silver three-leaved emblem embroidered on the left shoulder of my fancy new royal blue vest- we were greeted at the door by this tall skinny women wearing her hair in a long braid that looked like she could be the headmistress of some Victorian soap drama. She told us where the principle's office was before returning to her current objective which seemed to be organizing the files and seemed totally unphased after Vlad introduced us even though she clearly knew who he was. Her gaze lingered on me though as soon as she heard my full name and Vlad explained how I'm his godson but she just smiled at me sympathetically and seemed friendly enough if a little indifferent and more interested in keeping to herself while on the clock...

Speaking of time, Vlad stopped me before we entered the principle's office to tighten my tie again since he knew I had loosened it before we made the drive over then told me to mind my manners and make a good first impression which is easier said than done. Well, or so I thought. Turns out I had nothing to feel worried about because the moment we stepped inside the cheerful voice of a man who could almost pass for a young clone of the movie actor Sean Connery, accent and all, greeted us and asked if we needed a drink before we got started. Vlad turned down the offer of course but I was a bit curious to see if he'd actually give us anything or just direct me to the nearest drinking fountain.

"Here you go my boy and I hope you don't mind apple juice. Frankly I love any excuse to share the products from various brands that use the apples from our family's orchards which is primarily run by my eldest daughter while I run this school which has also been in my family for three generations. In fact, you're starting the year with us at just the right time since we have a tradition of taking the entire school on a field trip to go apple picking there every year before Halloween," shaking my hand, the man then smiled so widely it made his eyes crinkle before he cleared his throat and introduced himself after settling into his seat again and adopting a more professional air.

"My name is Principle Harthorne and it's a pleasure to finally meet you in person Daniel. Mr. Masters has already informed me of your situation and prior education to some extent so I look forward to seeing how this fine establishment will be able to help you reach your goals and catch up after such a harrowing experience. Rest assured I won't judge you due to the unique circumstances which led you here to live with such a local celebrity so to speak and we will do our utmost to make you feel welcome here. Now before we get you started do either of you have any questions or concerns you'd like to add before I explain how we do things here at Silverleaf? I'm sure Mr. Masters would like to make sure you're all settled in before leaving you in our care for rest of the day."

Glancing at Vlad without turning my head, I resisted the urge to shrug because honestly Vlad told me pretty much everything I needed to know. He even got me the school's official planner in advance so I could memorize the map which all in all was smaller than I expected but still pretty straightforward since you could get pretty much everywhere by following the path around the lake. There were a few exceptions for the bigger buildings of course like the gym which had an indoor pool of all things under the floor for when it's too cold to swim in the lake which again, is only allowed during swim classes. They even had a greenhouse which makes much more sense now given how the principle's family owns an apple orchard too and they like growing their own food to use in the meals here.

So yeah, this place might not be as super fancy as far as them just buying everything or hiring private chefs like some of the schools Vlad looked at, but even I could appreciate how everything here had a purpose and they also used what was naturally in the area to their advantage like the lake so they didn't have to build and indoor and outdoor pool. The fact that they had a pool at all was really cool though. According to Vlad they even have a small stadium for things like plays and film festivals, and for the latter they sometimes take it outside and project the films on the side of the wall like an outdoor theater...

Of course the thing that Vlad just knew would catch my interest is the fact they have an astrology club which comes with a pass to visit the local planetarium whenever you want, sometimes they even do sleepovers in the building itself. Either way the fact that they had clubs besides just the chess club and things like that we had at Casper High made me excited to try and be part of it. But obviously, I still have a lot of catching up to do with school in general so joining a club might have to wait til next year.

With that in mind, I explained that Vlad already let me know what to expect for the most part and shared my honest thoughts about this seemed like a nice place so far before zoning out a bit while he turned his attention to Vlad and they talked about the more formal stuff like getting a copy of my class schedule and all that. Eventually I stood up and looked out the window at the rainbow of colored leaves on the trees outside since we were well into autumn and watch as they fluttered onto the lake's surface and created dozens of small ripples on the surface. Kinda made me wonder if they do ice skating there when it freezes over during the winter since I've always wanted to try my hand at ice hockey.

They have an ice rink in Amity Park, or used to anyway I'm not sure if it's still open, but Sam hates the cold since it's bad for plants and Tucker is clearly not much of a sports fan. The most I could get them to do with me during the winter is go sledding on the hill in the park since that doesn't involve much skill. I miss the big snowball fights we used to have and remembered that one time in middle school when we managed to bury Dash up to his neck with a well-aimed shot at the tree he was running under at the time...

Now that things had settled down, I really missed them and wanted to be able to share my experiences here with my best friends. Honestly, at this point I'm not even sure if they still consider me theirs anymore which hurts but I guess I might have to accept what Vlad said about us drifting too far apart to fix our relationship. That won't stop me from trying though. And at the very least, I wanted to check in on Valerie myself to see how she's handling the ghost hunting because I'd rather hear it from her directly.

Right now, all of us are trying to turn a new leaf and adapt to the changes in our lives, it's not just Vlad and I going through this. We've both lost a lot, but we've also gained a lot too and I'm not ready to give up on my friends just yet despite how unsure I feel right now. I just need to give it a little more time and get my head back in the game and I'm sure things will work out. And if they don't, at least I have a chance to build something special here that for once in my life will make me feel like a normal teenager because while I may never actually BE normal, I'm happy that thanks to my parents and Vlad, I can come close to it.