.
Danny pressed himself against the wall, breathing heavily.
On the opposite wall, his parents did the same. Only, they had guns pointed at him.
It took him a great deal of effort to stay visible. His body wanted to flick out of existence. For that matter, he wanted to return to ghost form and fly away. Or rewind the last several minutes and erase the mistake he had made.
"Danny?" breathed Maddie. "You- How- Phantom?"
"No," said Danny. "No. I'm Danny. I promise, I swear, I just- I'm Danny. I'm Phantom, too, but I'm Danny. Mom, I- Please... Don't-"
"How- How do you look like Danny?" asked Jack. "How long-"
"I am Danny. Mom, Dad, I... It was the portal. It was the portal, I was inside when it turned on, I-"
"You're dead?" asked Maddie. She slid down the wall. "You died?"
"Oh my god, we killed you," whispered Jack.
"No," said Danny. "I'm still alive. You can feel my pulse." He held out his hand. "I'm- I'm me, I promise."
"But you can't be," said Jack. He lowered the gun regardless. "You can't be Danny and Phantom. It isn't physically possible."
"But I am. You can- You can test it."
He took a deep breath.
"Please."
Maddie glanced at Jack. Jack looked at Maddie.
"Alright," said Maddie. "We can test it."