ZAFT: Again with the snow?! I want it to go to FoxKit, not me! DX
DarkFoxKit: Aside from the snow, how've you been doing?
ZAFT: Fine, actually. Nothing big going on. Had a calm Valentine's Day. You?
Andy: Yesterday was Valentine's Day? Oh gosh, it went past me without my notice!
DarkFoxKit: Yeah… us single people don't usually pay much attention to Valentine's Day.
ZAFT: Makes me glad I'm single. I can't remember for the life of me… ^^'
Takuya: *Comes in covered in kiss marks from Zoe* Did someone mention Valentine's Day?
*All of us turned to Takuya*
Takuya: What? Why are you all looking at me like that?
Andy: Oh, no reason. Hope you didn't eat too much sweets while you were having fun with your girlfriend.
Takuya: Um… I think I'm going to go back to the chapter now… ^^' *Leaves room*
(Two symbols, one red, and one blue, spin before colliding and flaring with light as they do so, showing the title)
Digital Phantom!
(Shows three forms in shadow before they are revealed to be Danny Fenton, Sam Manson, and Tucker Foley)
Three worlds, connected side by side
(A swirling green portal is shown, followed by the sky cities of the living world before a computer monitor is zoomed in on, revealing another world of lush greenery through that)
Connections, with many secrets to hide
(Andy Fenton is shown with a small purple fox-like creature, Dorimon, in his arms as Takuya Kanbara appears behind him, a form in shadow behind Takuya himself)
Is one always chosen by fate?
(Danny is shown transforming into his ghost form, Danny Phantom, flying towards a vampiric looking ghost, Vlad Plasmius)
Or can one make their own destiny?
(Andy is shown looking on as his cell-phone transforms into a Digivice, the D-Arc)
Digital Phantom!
(Andy holds up his D-Arc as a heart symbol appears on the screen)
The power is deep inside!
(Takuya holds up his D-Tector before fractal code surrounds him, dissipating as fire erupts from it, revealing him as Agunimon, lunging out from the fire just as Dorimon glows and becomes Dorumon, firing off a metal ball into the distance)
Digital Phantom!
(The metal ball blasts past Vlad Plasmius as he fires off a ghost ray at Andy, who blocks it with his Fenton Rod)
Destiny is unbound!
(The Fenton Rod is smacked away by Vlad, going spinning before Sam, with a small puppy-like creature next to her, reaches up and catches it, a shadowed form with wings appearing behind her, transparent in appearance)
Digital Phantom!
(Sam throws the Fenton Rod to Tucker, who spins it before throwing it at Plasmius, a big bunny-like being with gun-hands appearing behind Tucker, transparent in appearance)
Fight on, without regret
(Shows Takuya looking up from his D-Tector as he makes eye contact with his Human Spirit of Agunimon, who give a smile back and reaches out a hand as Takuya takes it)
Two sides never rest
(Danny is shown reaching for a glowing Digi-Egg, before the light glows to reveal Patamon in front of Danny, green eyes meeting Danny's baby blue ones.)
Digital Phantom!
(Jazz is shown with the form of Lopmon beside her, a larger, shadowed form behind them both)
Never regret or look back
(Takuya is shown looking up as a ball of fractal code covers his hand, surrounding him before it dissipates to reveal his Fusion form of Aldamon)
Fight on, with victory
(Aldamon fires off a slew of fiery bullets from his cannons, each of those bullets hitting Plasmius before the ghost teleports away, revealing a shadowed form behind him)
Nothing will stand in our way!
(Andy, Dorimon, Danny, Patamon, Tucker, Terriermon, Sam, Salamon, Jazz, Lopmon, and Takuya all appear with Vlad above them, sneering evilly as all ten look on defiantly)
Digital Phantom!
Chapter 51: Facing Your Worst Fear
Sam didn't know what happened, just that their only hope was gone. Danny wasn't able to help them this time. The fusion Digimon was angry, he would have likely lost control after seeing what happened to Danny and Andy. She could be next, the Digimon could want to burn her next because this was all her fault in the first place. Or the Fright Knight would slice her with his Soul Shredder. Sam didn't want to have to confront her own worst fear.
"Sam, we have to move, hurry, it's not safe here," Salamon said to her.
But Sam was stuck in place. She was shaking with pure fright. She had never expected Danny or Andy to suffer the fate of the Soul Shredder, and now she was alone with a powerful ghost and an equally powerful Digimon, one she had faced in the Digital World before. She was scared. Yes, Sam hated to admit it, but she was truly terrified with these circumstances.
Patamon looked frantically at Sam and Salamon. He then helped Salamon nudge Sam.
"Sam, wake up, we have to leave! Wake up!" Patamon begged.
"Sam!" Salamon called out.
Sam snapped out of her dazed state. "Huh?" She then looked down at the two Digimon before her. "What did you say?"
"We have to move," Salamon said.
A big fireball barely missed Sam's head. Aldamon was fighting with both the Fright Knight and the pegasus. He was filled with rage, because of this, he was more powerful, but was fighting much more recklessly. His attacks were going all over the place, missing the two ghosts completely at times.
"At this rate, Aldamon's going to burn down the whole house." Patamon frowned.
"He's enraged." Salamon said, also frowning. "Normally this is expected from him, but… I've never seen him fight like this before. It's like… he's lost all emotional control. Normally, Aldamon keeps his emotions in check, but he fights as hard as he can. This… isn't like him…"
"We can't just leave… Danny, Andy, Tucker… Dorumon, Mr. Lancer, they're all in here," Sam pointed out.
"Then I'll try to snap him out of it!" Patamon suddenly volunteered and began to fly up.
"No, Patamon! He'll destroy you!" Salamon called out in worry.
"He won't, he's still Takuya, I know he is," Patamon called back, flying up to Aldamon.
"What?" Sam blinked, shocked at what Patamon just said.
Salamon frowned before she pushed Sam. "Let's at least get outside. I don't want you in here in the crossfire."
"But… what did Patamon mean?" Sam asked as she moved along with her partner's nudges.
Salamon frowned, knowing that this wasn't the time to keep secrets right now. "... Do you remember… about what I said involving human children in the Digital World… and how they were Legendary Warriors who saved us 4 years ago?"
Sam nodded. "Yes, I do." She was getting the feeling this had to do with what Patamon had said.
"Takuya… was one of them. The Warrior of Flame," Salamon confirmed.
Sam felt shock flood her, and she was floored by this revelation. "Then…" Her eyes went wide as she remembered every time she had seen Agunimon, BurningGreymon, or even Aldamon. "All those times I saw… That was Takuya?!"
Salamon nodded before she looked down. "I'm sorry… it's my fault that he's in there now… burning with rage and sadness… I never should've involved him or the other children with this…"
Sam blinked. "Salamon…" She then knelt down by her partner Digimon. "You may have involved them, but it was, in the end, the choice they made. You didn't force them into it. They chose to take up the task before them. It was not your main choice, I'm sure, but it was the one that worked, and I don't think the Legendary Warriors would want you to blame yourself for a choice they made."
"They may not… but I do…" Salamon sighed. "When I first brought them to the Digital World, I knew they would be our only hope with the Spirits of the Legendary Warriors choosing them… but when I met them for the first time… I could see just how young they were… they didn't belong in this war, and yet, they were. I felt responsible for them… I wanted to take them home myself after Cherubimon was dealt with, but… I… I failed them… in the end, they had to get hurt to save all of us, including me. They were just children, Sam, they were younger than you are now! And I put them in danger!"
Sam frowned. "Salamon, listen to me. What you did… you had no choice. In the end, it worked out, and from what I have seen, they care about the Digital World. The Legendary Warriors care about you. That's why they stuck around to save you. You did something you didn't want to do, yes, but in the end, you did what you had to do. Takuya… He wouldn't want you to blame yourself. He would want you to keep going, and to remember that it was his choice to take up the mantle you placed before him." Sam said. "He could have turned around and left, but he didn't, because he chose to keep going, to take it up."
Patamon was able to move faster in the air now, dodging the fireballs, though one did scorch his cheek, he kept going despite this. "ALDAMON! CEASE THIS AT ONCE!"
At his words, the Legendary Warrior stopped. He turned to face Patamon. "Why?!" Aldamon snapped. "You saw what that ghost did to Andy and Danny! To Mr. Lancer, Tucker, and Dorumon!"
"Look at what you are doing," Patamon spoke with authority. "You are burning the house, and you are going to hurt the very people you are trying to save if you keep doing this! You are not a wildfire, Takuya, you are a Legendary Warrior, you protect people. You have to focus your rage, not let it control you, do you understand me?"
Aldamon looked down, his eyes softening from their hard, icy glare. He knew Patamon was right. Closing his blue eyes, he sighed. "You're right… I should have more control over that…" He clenched his fists as he looked up, his eyes no longer clouded with pure rage. Sure, they had that hard, icy glint to them still, but they were now clear and focused. "I won't let the Fright Knight get away with this!"
"My parents always wanted me to be like them, or a model they could show off," Sam continued speaking while Aldamon surrounded the pegasus in a tornado of fire. "I rebelled against them, showing that I was my own person. I became a goth just to spite them. And while I am into a lot of darker stuff, I don't mind the lighter stuff as well, like angels. I guess I was surprised you became my partner because I didn't think an angel would fit me."
"Do you ever regret having me as a partner?" Salamon asked as the Fright Knight swung his sword at Aldamon, who dodged out of the way.
"No… No, I don't." Sam said seriously as she looked at Salamon. "I don't regret it at all." As she said this, Aldamon flew at the Fright Knight and hit the ghost right in the face with a nasty uppercut.
"Despite everything… are you still willing to fight with me?" Salamon questioned as the pegasus tackled Aldamon in the chest. Aldamon grabbed onto the pegasus's neck before tossing her into a wall.
Aldamon's eyes widened when he saw the Fright Knight creating a purple fireball and aimed it at the unconscious brothers. Aldamon quickly flew over the twins, shielding them with his body.
"There's a chance you may not make it through the battle, a chance you will always risk whenever you do go into battle," Salamon added. "And while I rather not put you in danger, unlike your parents, I want you to decide for yourself if this is what you truly want."
Sam frowned. She looked down in thought. She thought about it, but in the end, she knew there was only one choice she could make. She took out her D-Arc. "I will remain with you, Salamon." Sam said as she looked up at her partner. "This is what I want. It's something that I choose to do, whether it is acceptable to anyone or not."
Salamon gave Sam a smile. "Then let's go save our friends, together!"
Sam's D-Arc glowed brightly as words formed on the screen. "DIGIVOLUTION."
"Salamon, digivolve to…" Salamon's skin began to peel away around her face and then her body. Her ears also peeled away, just as fractal code surrounded her. Her skin and fur began to come back, but it was white this time, and her form became bipedal in a way. Her tail grew out and gained a purple tip as well as a purple spiraling line that circled around her tail all the way. Her skin and fur came back on her feet, and then her paws before green-yellow gloves with red-orange stripes appeared on her paws. Her skin and fur on her face came back, as did the skin and fur on her ears, but with purple tips on the tops of her ears. A holy ring appeared at the tip of her tail. "Gatomon!"
Sam blinked when she saw her partner went from a cute little dog to… a cute little white cat. "Uh… did you digivolve or… slide evolve?"
"I know I don't look like much, Sam, but I am indeed a Champion level Digimon," Gatomon assured her. "Don't worry, my small size can be put to better use than you would think~"
Aldamon grunted as he took the blow of another purple fireball, his armor and wings getting singed big time. He looked back at the Fright Knight over his shoulder, panting somewhat heavily as he glared at the powerful ghost. I don't know how much longer I can keep this up… He thought grimly.
"You will now join the others in your own dimension of fright and terror," The Fright Knight announced as he stood over Aldamon, holding up his sword.
"Lightning Paw!" A white thing suddenly punched the Fright Knight so suddenly and with such force that the Fright Knight went through the wall of the house, creating a big hole.
Sam whistled. "For such a little cat, you can sure pack a punch."
Gatomon purred. "Why thank you~" She purred as she observed her own handiwork.
"Gatomon? You digivolved?" Patamon asked in surprise as he landed.
Gatomon nodded. "I did, thanks to Sam." She replied with a bit of pride.
Aldamon groaned as he opened his eyes, surprised to see a new Digimon standing there, and yet he felt like he knew her.
Aldamon finally found his voice. "Salamon…?" He was exhausted, but he was still able to fight to an extent. If it wasn't for the ecto-energy contaminating everything, he would have reverted to human form by now.
"Gatomon is an Animal Digimon. It has a very healthy curiosity, so it loves pranks. Although its body is small, it is a precious Holy-species Digimon, and its appearance does not match the true strength it possesses. It wears a Holy Ring on its tail, but if it is lost, its power is decreased and it can no longer exhibit its original power. It is a Champion level Digimon, and a Vaccine type." Aldamon heard the voice in his head informing him.
"Are you okay?" Sam asked as she looked at Aldamon in concern.
"I'll live…" Aldamon replied before he felt his body almost give out on him. He managed to get himself standing, but it was clear he was tired from fighting so hard and from taking the blows of so many ghostly fireballs. His wings were singed badly and his back armor was almost black from soot.
"This battle is far from over," Gatomon spoke up.
The Fright Knight and his pegasus flew back, both looking quite angry.
"We will save our friends, I'll make sure of it!" Sam called out.
As if in response to Sam's determination, the ring on Gatomon's tail glowed brightly.
"Yes, we will!" Gatomon agreed.
Aldamon nodded. "I won't stand by and do nothing either." But he wasn't sure if he could keep it up for much longer.
Patamon stood beside the unconscious Danny and Andy, then he put his hands together and began a prayer. He may not have the same natural skills as Calumon did, but he knew there was still something he could do.
"Andy!" I called out for my brother in this dark voice. "Where are you!?"
I felt like I've been looking around for hours. Where am I even? This place felt cold and filled with unease… I looked up, and blinked, seeing a green light up ahead. I quickly ran towards the green light, wanting to get out of this cold void. However, as soon as I reached it, I was shocked when I saw… myself, screaming in pain, and his body changing into my ghost form.
I remembered the pain of the accident, but I had never seen myself transform into my ghost form like this before. It was surreal to say the least. I watched as me… I… changed into a ghost, black hair fading to white, skin changing to a tan color, the black of my hazmat suit becoming white and the white charring into a black color as the eyes turned ecto-green. It was like watching a playback of a movie, but I knew it wasn't.
Then the me I was watching suddenly fell to the floor, unconscious. I heard voices calling out my name.
"DANNY!"
I saw hands grabbing onto my ghost's body and dragging it out of the portal. I could see the worried faces of Tucker and Sam, staring down at my ghost as if I had actually died. Then I saw another me- no… that wasn't me, I saw Andy, coming downstairs. He looked at my ghost body in horror.
"No! Danny!" Andy screamed as he ran to the other me's ghost body. "What happened to him!?"
I was confused, this didn't happen. Andy never saw my ghost form after the accident.
"He's dead… he's a ghost now, Andy…" Tucker's voice said, suddenly sounding monotone.
I blinked, surprised. What was going on? Tucker's voice wasn't monotone. I watched as Sam spoke up next. "He is not living anymore. He doesn't need things the living need to survive…" Her voice sounded like a creepy witch's almost, which unnerved me.
"Step away from that ghost, son!" Dad suddenly appeared out of nowhere, pointing a bazooka at my ghost self. "He must be exterminated."
"No! Dad! He's still Danny!" Andy yelled, hugging the other me desperately.
"He's Danny now," Mom said, suddenly appearing as well. "But how do you know he will still be Danny in a year or two? How do you know he won't start becoming more like Vlad? Or what if he becomes more ghost than human? What if he starts eating our emotions, and drains us? He's not your brother anymore, he's a ghost."
I blinked, surprised at what I was hearing. Drain emotions? Become more ghost-like? What is going on here? I wondered to myself.
Suddenly, everything around me changed. We were no longer in the lab, but in our room. I blinked, seeing Andy sitting on the bed beside… well… me again, still as a ghost.
"I can't do this anymore, Andy…" The other me said in such a broken tone that even I felt sorry for him… me… whoever.
Andy frowned. "You can't keep letting this get to you Danny, I'm sure with some time, you'll-"
"You don't know what it's like!" The other me suddenly snapped at my brother, which also made me flinch.
I stared. What is… Is this Andy's worst fear? I wondered. I watched this more carefully, hoping I could use this to try and understand why Andy was so nervous around me.
"You don't know how it feels for me to bust my butt out there, protecting people, only to be accused of being a malicious ghost and hunted down like an animal! You don't know how it feels to have our parents chase after me, insulting me, calling me worthless and scum on a daily basis! You couldn't possibly know what it's like to have these… these cravings! These awful, inhuman cravings!" The other me snapped angrily, making Andy shrink more. "Look at you… you're even too scared to look at me anymore. Is this all I am to you now, Andy? A ghost you fear? Heh… maybe one day you'll decide to destroy me molecule by molecule like our parents."
"No! I wouldn't! I couldn't!" Andy cried out. "Please don't say that, Danny! I'm sorry that I've been… scared around you lately, but-"
"Forget it… I thought I could trust you, Andy… but now I see I can't. Nobody can help me… except for Vlad… maybe I should just go live with him from now on. At least he can make me happy," The other me stated.
The other me suddenly flew out of the room, leaving Andy alone. Andy ran to the window, and screamed out. "NO! DANNY COME BACK! PLEASE! I WON'T BE SCARED OF YOU ANYMORE! I PROMISE! JUST PLEASE COME BACK! Please…"
My heart broke at that last plea. Is this what Andy is afraid of? Losing me? Or is it because I am half ghost? I wondered to myself. I couldn't believe that Andy had been hiding such a deep fear from me. Then a thought crossed my mind. Wait… Takuya said Andy was scared of us, not just me… What is he afraid of with Takuya? I shook my head, that was not important right now.
The scene shifted again. We were now in the Ghost Zone. I blinked, seeing the other me again… well, I guess he's the… Dream Me? Is this a dream? Whatever, he's Dream Me, I'm sticking to it. Anyways, Dream Me was floating in a castle, I think. I looked down, seeing what appeared to be some kind of red carpet. I blinked, confused, before seeing Dream Me floating up to what looked like a big, fancy, crystal-like looking throne. Then ghosts in expensive looking robes, hiding their faces, floated towards Dream Me, holding a crown.
The ghost in the robe held up the crown and placed it on Dream Me's head. "I now crown you King of All Ghosts! All hail King Daniel!"
I blinked as I watched this. Me, a king?! Okay, Andy has some really messed up fears! I thought to myself.
But it soon started becoming clear to me why Andy feared this. Andy walked into the throne room and looked like he wanted to talk to me, but then Dream Me rolled his eyes.
"Not now, Andy, I have important royal duties to attend to. Can't you wait back at Fenton Works?" Dream Me grumbled.
"But the Ghost Portals all shut down when you became king, bro-" Andy started to say, only to get rudely interrupted.
"You shall not address the king that way!" The robe guy snapped, before slapping Andy.
I stared in shock at that. Dream Me didn't even react.
"Can you go entertain this human for me? I have important business I need to attend to," Dream Me said in a condescending tone.
I watched as Andy began to look like he wanted to cry. Now I was getting a better picture of what Andy was afraid of.
The dream or whatever was shifting again. I saw Andy crying over me in a graveyard with my name on it, I saw Dream Me's ghost floating above him before he ascended into the sky, disappearing. Then the dream shifted again, to Dream Me talking to someone in a purple robe, and they both left Andy behind. Then it shifted again. I saw Andy running after Dream Me, who was flying away in his ghost form, not even slowing down to look back at Andy. Andy called out to Dream Me to wait for him, but Dream Me didn't even look back and flew faster and higher until he disappeared.
"Stop… don't leave me…" Andy weakly said.
I finally understood… Andy wasn't scared of me per say, but he was scared of losing me. I finally had enough. I walked over to Andy before the dream could shift again, and put my hand on his shoulder. Before, Andy couldn't seem to see me, the real me, but as soon as I touched him, he let out a surprised gasp before turning to look at me.
"D-Danny?" Andy looked at me with such worry and fear… not of me, but of how I would leave him again, his eyes were filled with anticipation and hurt.
I didn't say anything, instead, I brought Andy into a hug. I felt Andy's arms wrapped around me and he started bawling into my chest, begging me not to leave him again.
I didn't let go of Andy, just hugging him and trying to reassure him I was there, and not leaving any time soon. The dimension around us started freaking out, however. Apparently it didn't know how to handle its victim having the worst fear be denied. I saw it shifting constantly around us, it kept changing to somewhere in Amity Park, somewhere in the Ghost Zone, or Fenton Works itself. It didn't know what to do with itself. I could see more other mes around, looking evil or demonic, hissing. I kept Andy in the hug, not wanting him to see this.
Finally, the dimension cracked around us before it shattered, and we were back in the black void.
I looked at Andy. "Andy… I wish you had told me you were scared… scared of me leaving you. But I want you to know, that won't ever happen, bro…"
"What?" Andy looked up at me, sniffling a bit. "I… don't… I'm… scared of you leaving?"
"You didn't know?" I asked, surprised by Andy's comment.
"I… I don't know… I just know I was scared of you lately… and for you… I can't… I couldn't stop thinking of the 'what ifs'..." Andy answered softly.
I gave a chuckle here. "I can't believe I'm playing psychologist here, but you obviously didn't know the root of someone's fear is often unknown. I guess you didn't know yours."
Andy blinked a few times. I could see the gears in his mind grinding a bit. I felt him squeezing me a little, as if to reassure himself I was still here.
"Maybe… maybe you're right… there are many reasons, or many reasons I could come up with, why I've been scared of you lately… but… they all… they all end with you leaving or disappearing on me one way or another…" Andy admitted.
I smiled at Andy. "If you admit the problem, then you can start to work past it."
"Could I? The fact remains that Danny is… half ghost… he could fly, go through objects, and even go invisible. He could easily just… disappear one day… and there wouldn't be anything I could do about it," Andy shakingly stated, and he probably didn't think I was the real Danny right now with the way he said it.
It was probably for the best that Andy didn't know I was the real Danny, I doubted he would be this open about it if he knew.
"Andy, just remember, Danny loves you, and he cares about you. He wouldn't hurt you, and he will not leave you." I said to my brother, hoping to reassure him. "Whatever crisis he might face one day with his powers, I can guarantee he won't leave you behind because of it. While he may struggle, you have your own struggle too, bro… you have to remember to take care of yourself, because if you don't, then you'll make Danny worry about you. While yes, Danny is half ghost and that's not a problem one could easily comprehend without being half ghost themselves, you have your own problem with having a brother who is half ghost."
Andy blinked, clearly he never thought of it that way.
"And I'm… I'm sure Danny's sorry, for not seeing this was bugging you so deeply like this," I continued, giving a comforting rub on his back. "While you may not be able to fully understand what Danny is going through, Danny wouldn't be able to fully understand what you're going through with having a brother who's half ghost like this. That's not to say it's a bad thing though. It just means we need to put things into perspective instead of letting worry eat us alive."
Wow, I must've retained a lot more psychology lessons from both Jazz and Andy than I thought.
I shook my head in amusement at what I had just said. Yep, I retained more psychology stuff than I realized. I thought with some mental chuckles.
"Thank you…" Andy said, getting my attention. "You have… no idea how much I needed to hear that…"
I smiled warmly at my brother. "I'm glad I could help, Andy."
Andy then pulled away from the hug and looked at me. "I guess I… should've tried talking to Danny about this instead of letting myself worry to death about the 'what ifs'... maybe if I told him… we could work together to put my… and maybe his mind at ease about this whole half ghost thing… I know this is affecting him too."
I gave a nod. "That would be best. And I think he would appreciate it too."
Andy then gave me a look that was hard for me to identify, then his eyes went wide. "... You're Danny, aren't you?"
I went red. "Err…" I then sighed. "Wow… I didn't think you would figure it out that fast, bro."
Andy was just as red as I was. "Are you kidding? You're my twin brother. When my head was screwed back on right, I could tell it was you. Oh gosh… this is so embarrassing… I wish you didn't see me like that…"
I rubbed the back of my neck sheepishly. "Ehehe… Sorry, bro… but if it helps… I am glad I was able to see the root of your fear, something you had trouble seeing yourself."
Andy grumbled, looking away from me.
"Andy… I know you didn't want me to see that, but I'm glad I did. And I want you to know that I wouldn't leave you like that. And if I must work with you to prove to you that I mean it, even ten years or so later in the future, I will," I promised to Andy with determination.
Andy looked at me before sighing. "Oh stop. You working with me? I should be saying that to you, you're the one going through this whole halfa thing."
I shrugged sheepishly. "I mean what I mean. I will help you get through this fear of yours is what I am saying."
"... Thanks…" Andy barely whispered out, he was clearly still embarrassed.
I smiled at him, but then suddenly, a bright light appeared above us. This light was gold instead of green, and it felt warm and comforting.
"Danny… Andy… it's time to wake up… your friends need you…" I heard what sounded like Patamon's voice echoing.
I looked at Andy. "You ready to go back, bro? The others need us."
"Yeah… but… don't mention anything you saw here to the others, okay?" Andy replied, blushing.
I nodded to Andy. "I won't." I then held out a hand to Andy and smiled. "Let's go. We're needed."
Andy looked at me hand before he nodded, and reached out and took my hand. Both of us were then pulled up into the light.
Danny and Andy began to blink open their eyes, finding themselves back in the haunted room, though there were burn spots all over the place.
"Whoa, what's been going on while we were out?" Danny asked, looking around.
Andy crawled over to Dorumon, shaking him awake. Dorumon grumbled as he opened his yellow eyes too.
"Wow… what happened?" Dorumon muttered as he sat up. "Everything went black for me, and I don't know why."
"Probably because my soul was taken to a horrific nightmare dimension?" Andy grumbled. "I really rather not experience that again, okay?"
Dorumon frowned. "That… Yeah… probably best to avoid that again…"
"Lightning Paw!" Gatomon jumped at the Fright Knight, punching him through the wall.
"Whoa! Is that a new Digimon?" Danny asked, surprised.
"It's… you two are awake?" Sam asked in shock when she noticed the boys were awake.
"Yes… they managed to defeat the fear dimension they were trapped in," Patamon explained, looking up at Danny.
Danny looked at Patamon with a smile. "It was thanks to you that we woke up, Patamon." He reached out and scratched behind one of Patamon's ears.
Patamon blushed. "H-how did you know it was me?"
"There was a golden light that came down and well… I heard your voice from that light." Danny replied with a grin.
"Aww, you two are bonding~" Dorumon teased.
There was a sudden purple flame that narrowly missed them. Gatomon landed beside Sam.
"Reunion later, focus now!" Andy spoke up. "Sam, that Digimon… is that Salamon?"
"Salamon digivolved." Sam said with some pride. "Meet Gatomon. She may be a small cat, but she can pack a punch."
"It's good to see you and Danny were able to wake up," Gatomon greeted.
Danny grinned mischievously. "She's a white cat, and you wear black. I think it's fitting."
"Their color schemes do match your ghost form," Patamon chuckled.
"Sam, is there anything in that book that tells us how to beat the Fright Knight?" Andy asked as the Fright Knight rode on the pegasus and was coming in for more.
Aldamon was fighting back against the two of them to give them time to plan things out, though Aldamon was getting tired.
The Warrior of Flame hadn't even noticed Danny and Andy were awake yet, he was too focused on the fight. All he knew was that someone had asked Sam if there was any way to beat the Fright Knight.
Sam looked in the book. "Let's see…" She began to flip through the book. "Weaknesses, weaknesses… where is that section?!"
"Watch out!" Gatomon warned.
The Fright Knight got past Aldamon while the pegasus was dealing with him. "You will never find my weakness!"
The Fright Knight was about to swing his Soul Shredder on Sam. Gatomon and Dorumon jumped at the Fright Knight, both of them tackling him down. Patamon ran over to the fallen knight before expanding his body. "Boom Bubble!"
Patamon shot out the big ball of air at the Fright Knight's face while Dorumon and Gatomon held him down. Andy grabbed onto the nearest weapon he could find in the room, which was one of the spears with the teddy bear's head on it. Andy quickly whacked the head off of the spear.
"Hurry and find that weakness, Sam!" Andy urged before he ran over to help the Digimon out.
Andy whacked the spear against the Fright Knight's armor. The Fright Knight growled as he flared up his fiery cape and aura, which pushed most of them back. Gatomon sunk her claws into his arm's armor, due to her holy ring protecting her from the ghostly aura. The Fright Knight was about to bring his sword down on the cat Digimon.
"GATOMON!" Patamon cried out, seeing his friend in danger.
Seeing this, Aldamon panicked. He kicked aside the pegasus before pushing off the ground and slamming into the Fright Knight's side in a brutal tackle, throwing off his aim. Aldamon crashed to the floor from the move, feeling exhausted. He looked back up at the Fright Knight, panting heavily. I can't move...
The Fright Knight was angered. "Thou shalt regret that move, Digital Being!" He held up his sword, ready to bring it down on the Legendary Warrior.
"Stop!" Danny yelled as he began running towards the Fright Knight.
Danny hadn't wanted to transform earlier in case Mr. Lancer saw him, or the teacher would suddenly wake up, but right now, he cared more about saving his friends and family than his secret identity. With a cry, a bright ring of energy appeared on Danny's torso before it split horizontally, changing him into Phantom.
The Fright Knight suddenly stopped his attack, holding his sword mere inches from Aldamon's downed form. His glowing green eyes were wide with shock and, even though he had no face, what had to be horror was visible in those single color eyes. "Thou… is a… ghost child…?"
Danny didn't notice the sudden change in the Fright Knight's posture, he kept going until he punched the Fright Knight's helmet off. Danny's eyes widened in shock when he didn't see a head under that helmet.
"Great, you just turned the Fright Knight into the headless horseman…" Andy grumbled.
"H-hey! I didn't know he had no head!" Danny protested in his defense.
The Fright Knight got off of Aldamon to get his head back. The pegasus was staring at Danny itself, seeming to be shocked.
Sam grinned when she finally found the page she was looking for. "To cease the storm, to end the fear, the sword must sheath, in pumpkin near! You have to put the sword in a pumpkin!"
Danny looked back at Sam. "Great!" He then looked back at the Fright Knight. "But how do we get the sword from the Fright Knight? He's too strong! And… wait… did we even bring any pumpkins in the room?"
"Why… didn't we? It's Halloween!" Andy facepalmed.
"What about that one over there?" Dorumon asked, pointing at the pumpkin bucket Tucker had.
Danny looked over and blinked. "Well, it's not really a pumpkin, but it will have to do."
"I don't think ancient text would know the difference anyways," Andy remarked.
The Fright Knight finally picked up the helmet and put it back on his head. "I must speak!"
"You've already used up your words, Mr. October!" Danny yelled.
"Metal Canon!"
"Boom Bubble!"
"Lightning Paw!"
The three attacks knocked Fright Knight right into his pegasus.
Danny then flew at the Fright Knight, ready to grab the sword and end the storm once and for all. When he managed to grab the sword, the Fright Knight suddenly grabbed Danny's hand.
"I must speak with thou!" The Fright Knight spoke up.
"Andy! A little help here!?" Danny called out as he was struggling to get out of the Fright Knight's grasp.
Andy ran over, grabbing the Soul Shredder while the Fright Knight's attention was on Danny. "It's time to end this nightmare."
"Thou must listen to me! Thou art a ghost child!" The Fright Knight said to Danny.
"Yeah, I know that!" Danny snapped back. "I've been hunted by another ghost because of it, so I don't need any reminders of it!"
"Thou not understand!" The Fright Knight spoke up.
Andy had to dodge a few giant spiders, and gnashing zombies. But he preferred those over the floating demonic teddy bear heads. He then jumped towards the pumpkin bucket, hoping that the technicality of it being pumpkin shaped would still count. Andy sheathed the Soul Shredder into the bucket's opening.
As soon as the sword was shoved into the bucket, green light began to shine from it before ecto-energy began to spark from it as well. Andy quickly hit the ground as the swirling clouds above them began to go from clockwise to counterclockwise. The Fright Knight could already feel his being fading away.
"No! No! I have much I still need to say!" The Fright Knight shouted as he hurried over to his sword to try to pull it out of the pumpkin bucket.
Unfortunately for the Fright Knight, there was nothing he could do. The sword released ecto electricity that shocked the Fright Knight away.
The Fright Knight landed on the ground, unable to pull his sword out or even get close to even try. The ecto-storm began to fade, as though it was being sucked into something like a vacuum almost. The roof of the house was suddenly sucked off as everything began to get pulled into the Ghost Zone.
Meanwhile, outside of the house, in Amity Park, the objects turned monsters started changing back to their normal forms. Jazz and Lopmon woke up, both still pretty dazed, but they noticed all the monsters were changing back.
"What's going on?" Jazz questioned.
Lopmon looked around. "It seems that ghostly energy is fading…" He noted in surprise. "But… how?"
Jazz turned, seeing the big vortex at Maple street, where her brothers were supposed to be doing their haunted rooms. "We're going to find out."
"Wait… what about Terriermon?" Lopmon asked, looking at the other rabbit Digimon.
Lopmon tried to wake Terriermon up, but he received no response. "He's not waking up… I don't think he's just out cold… something's happened."
"Is he okay?" Jazz asked. "He's not hurt, is he?" She reached Terriermon and picked him up gently, looking for any severe injuries.
"It might be Tucker. Once a Digimon and human form a link, then if something happens to one, the other might feel it, depending on how severe it is," Lopmon informed.
Jazz went pale at that. "Oh…" She looked back at the old house on Maple Street. "We have to get there! Tucker and the others may be in danger!"
Jazz, still holding onto Terriermon, began running to the old house as fast as she could. Lopmon quickly followed after her.
Petaldramon looked up, noticing that things were being sucked into the vortex. "That doesn't look good."
He then felt someone running closer through his senses with nature. He saw Jazz, carrying Terriermon, and Lopmon was behind her, running into the house. What is she doing?
Petaldramon wanted to go and check it out himself, but something told him it was too dangerous to head inside, that he was better off remaining outside the vortex's epicenter. He knew that Andy and the others were in the house, and they should be able to take care of Jazz, but for now, he needed to remain out here to make sure nobody else got caught up in that vortex.
Inside the house, everyone was trying to hold on to something solid to not get sucked into the vortex. The pegasus was already sucked back in. Danny was holding onto Sam, Tucker, and Mr. Lancer, using his ghost powers to grab onto the pipe under the floor. The Digimon were holding onto the floor with their claws. Andy was holding onto the door. Aldamon had managed to jam one of his cannons into the wall to keep a secure grip on something solid.
"I shall return! My honor and duty demands it! I must right the wrong!" The Fright Knight announced before his head crumpled into pieces, going up into the vortex, almost as if he was letting it go in shame. His body bent down before it too was getting sucked into the vortex.
Andy heard what sounded like Jazz's voice on the other side of the door. He could hear her and Lopmon calling out for them in worry. What's Jazz doing here now?
Then suddenly, something clicked in Andy's memory. He could see some of the skeletons were still in the house. Jazz was here. He remembered seeing a vision of Jazz being stabbed by a skeleton. Oh no… Jazz! Can I save her?
Andy looked over at Dorumon, seeing his partner was clinging to the floor with his claws. The others were also trying not to get sucked in. Andy knew he was the closest to where Jazz was, and he had to hurry. He began to move his legs, trying to fight back against the vortex's suction. The boy groaned, he felt too weak. Then he looked over at Danny. Danny might be able to save her if he knew what was about to happen.
Andy let go of the door, and let the suction move him closer to the Digimon before he grabbed onto Gatomon's tail.
"Gatomon… can you use your claws to get over to Danny?" Andy called out.
Gatomon looked back at Andy. "I think so, why?"
"No time to explain, just help me get over there, quickly!" Andy said urgently.
Gatomon nodded and began to make her way over to Danny, digging her claws into the floor as she moved closer and closer. It was beginning to hurt her paws, but she held on and pushed through the pain to reach Danny's side. Andy had to hold onto her tail like a secure rope.
When they managed to reach Danny, Danny blinked, wondering why Andy went through the effort just to get to him instead of riding this out safely.
"Andy! What are you doing!? You could get sucked into that vacuum!" Danny shouted over the suction.
"It's Jazz! She's here, she's going to get impaled by a skeleton soon! You have to save her! Hurry! Gatomon and I will keep Sam and the others safe," Andy quickly explained.
Danny paled. "O-okay!" He looked at Sam. "I have to go help Jazz. Can you help hold onto Mr. Lancer and Tucker?"
"Of course, just hurry!" Sam quickly said.
Gatomon doubled down once she was near. Andy grabbed onto Mr. Lancer's body and hunkered down while Sam held onto Tucker's body. Both of them had to grab onto Gatomon's back to keep from getting sucked in. Danny looked at them worriedly, but he knew he couldn't waste too much time. There was a reason why Andy asked him to save their sister. Only he could right now.
Danny turned intangible before going through the floor. Once he was under the floor, he flew towards where he could hear what sounded like Jazz's voice.
C'mon… I hope I'm not too late! Danny thought worriedly.
Danny heard footsteps just above him. He then heard Lopmon yelling in alarm and Jazz screaming. Suddenly, it felt as if time slowed down to Danny. He came up from under the floor. A skeleton that was falling apart from the vortex was reaching out to Jazz's spine with a sharp bone. The bone was alarmingly close to Jazz's spine, she didn't have time to react, Lopmon didn't have time to save her. Danny was trying to move his body faster, his right hand already curled into a fist, glowing with ecto energy. In a few silent heartbeats, Danny's right fist made contact with the sharp bone, breaking it into harmless pieces. The skeleton that tried to stab Jazz was then blasted into oblivion by the angry ghost brother.
"Danny!?" Jazz yelled as time seemed to be restored to normal.
Then the vortex began to try to suck her, Terriermon, and Lopmon up. Danny wasn't having any of it. He grabbed Jazz in a hug as Lopmon wisely grabbed onto Danny's shoulder. The ghost boy turned his free hand intangible and grabbed onto the pipe under the floor to hold on.
As soon as Danny grabbed onto the pipe, things began to settle down. The vortex vanished, the swirling winds finally settling down to nothing. The Soul Shredder, which was in the pumpkin bucket, then vanished into a mini vortex of its own, leaving only an empty spot where it had sat before.
With the suction of the vortex gone, gravity took hold again. Anything that wasn't sucked into the Ghost Zone fell back down.
"Are you okay, Jazz?" Danny asked his sister in worry now that everything was over.
Jazz nodded. "Yeah. I'm fine…" She was a bit shaken up, but she seemed to be okay for the most part. "What was that?"
"A leftover monster from the Fright Knight's sword," Danny explained. "It probably wanted at least one victim before it got sent back to where it came from. But I wasn't going to let it."
"You saved her," Lopmon said, sounding a bit shaken up at how close he came to losing his partner. "How did you know we were here? How did you even know that skeleton was there?"
"Andy heard your voices and… as for how he knew the skeleton was there, I have no idea, save for he probably had a future vision." Danny replied. "It… that's the best answer I have… I'm too tired to consider anything else right now."
"A future vision?" Jazz blinked.
"Come on, he can tell you himself. We need to make sure the others are alright," Danny sighed tiredly.
Danny was relieved to see everyone in the room made it okay. Though Mr. Lancer and Tucker were starting to wake up. Danny quickly changed himself back to human form.
"It felt like we just survived an F-5 tornado…" Sam groaned, rubbing her messy hair.
"Now I know how those people felt at the end of the movie Twister…" Andy grumbled, rubbing his own messy hair.
Aldamon grunted as he pulled his left cannon out of the wall before he slumped back against the wall itself. "That was not what I expected to experience tonight…" He folded his wings tightly against his back so as to keep the damage to his back armor hidden. However, he gave a slight wince at the action because his wings were a bit singed as well.
"Aldamon, I know you're recovering from the experience, but you might want to either leave or change back before Mr. Lancer and Tucker sees you," Dorumon whispered.
"Too late on Tucker…" Aldamon sighed. "And Mr. Lancer might think it's part of the show…"
"The Fentons are also probably on their way," Dorumon added.
Aldamon groaned. "If I had the energy to, I would, but…" He trailed off here. He was too tired to even change back right now. "Just… give me a few minutes at least…"
"Is everyone okay?" Petaldramon stuck his head into the room.
"Petaldramon, excellent timing," Patamon spoke up. "Could you take Aldamon somewhere safe to recover?"
Aldamon looked at Patamon. "It's…" He then sighed. "Okay… I'm going." He managed to get to his feet, but his whole body was aching. Still, the Legendary Warrior made his way to Petaldramon and climbed on his back.
"Takuya! Are you okay?" Jazz asked in concern.
"Let Petaldramon take care of him, we need to make sure that Tucker and the teacher are okay," Lopmon spoke up calmly.
Jazz frowned, but nodded. "Okay…" She hadn't been too sure, but she swore she saw some damage to his back armor.
"Don't worry, I'll take care of him, I know some healing powers that should help get him back on his feet at least," Petaldramon promised before he left the building with Aldamon on his back.
"Ugh… wow… I felt like I had the worst nightmare of my life… I was stranded on an island with no technology or clothes whatsoever! And I was all alone!" Tucker cried.
Terriermon suddenly jolted up, still looking groggy, and shook his head. "Whoa… what hit me?"
Jazz smiled. "Good to see you and Tucker are awake."
Danny looked over at Tucker. "Tucker! Man, am I glad to see you up and about!"
"I'm glad too dude," Tucker agreed.
"Hey, uh… sorry about your Halloween candy… they sort of all vanished when I put the Soul Shredder into them." Andy grinned sheepishly.
Tucker gaped. "What?! NOOOOOO!" He wailed. "Not my candy!"
"Oh calm down, I'm sure Niki will be more than happy to share some with you," Terriermon grumbled. "Also, your shouting is giving me a headache."
"Sorry…" Tucker said sheepishly. "But Niki was taken by a flying monster…"
"Niki should be safe now that everything's going back to normal," Gatomon spoke up.
"Great! Uh… do I know you?" Tucker asked the cat Digimon.
"It's Salamon, she digivolved," Sam chuckled.
Tucker smiled. "That's great!" Then, Tucker had a memory come to mind at Sam's mention of digivolving. He remembered seeing Takuya do something similar. "Oh… Oh! Guys, you won't believe what I just saw before the Fright Knight took me here!"
"What happened to the haunted house!?" Mr. Lancer shouted when he finally came to.
"It… uh… couldn't take the heat?" Danny sheepishly answered.
Tucker felt like smacking his own face with his hand at the way it was worded like a question. "Dude… you need to work on your lying…" He muttered under his breath.
"There was a big storm outside, and I guess the lightning hit the roof," Andy spoke up.
Mr. Lancer frowned. "I do recall seeing some unusual storm clouds before I… what was that? It felt like I was transported to a horrifying world… Mr. Fenton, both of you, were you responsible for that?"
Danny flinched. "Um…" He was not sure how to answer that without sounding like an obvious liar.
"We used psychological horror," Andy stated, saving Danny from having to explain. "You never said we couldn't have help from our parents, so we used their technology to give you hallucinations that make you see your worst fear. It looks and feels very real. And what better way to scare people than for them to confront what they fear most?"
Danny gave a grateful look to Andy. "Yeah! It was to be a surprise! That's why we didn't say anything!"
"You boys are a couple of geniuses!" Mr. Lancer smiled. "You win! I cannot wait until Testlaff sees these two scary haunted rooms! I'm going to beat her for sure!"
Danny looked at Mr. Lancer. This is going to be a long night...
As soon as Mr. Lancer opened the door, Jack and Maddie were standing there, their bazookas raised.
"Mr. Lancer?" Maddie asked, surprised. "Is everything alright? We had a large reading of an ecto storm here just minutes ago."
"Everything is fine, Mrs. Fenton." Mr. Lancer assured her. "Your boys are a couple of geniuses with that haunted room of theirs."
"Is that so?" Jack grinned proudly. "Well they do know a thing or two about ghosts from us, so maybe that helped!"
Testlaff stood outside of the house with the other students from school.
"So what, is the theme going to be ghosts then? That's lame," Testlaff chuckled. "We have real ghosts haunting us every day. No fake could ever be scary. Let's just get out of here."
Testlaff began to walk away, with the students following her.
"What's the matter, Testlaff? Are you scared that my haunted house is going to be scarier than yours?" Mr. Lancer taunted. "That's why you assumed it's a ghost theme, and trying to leave quickly, aren't you?"
Testlaff turned to face Mr. Lancer. "What was that? Are you saying you have a scarier haunted house?" She prodded.
"Oh, I don't know. You won't ever find out if you don't come in and see for yourself~" Mr. Lancer grinned.
Testlaff frowned. "Okay then. Show me your 'haunted house'. I will be the judge of whether it is good or not." Her words made Mr. Lancer grin even more.
"Then come in, if you dare~" Mr. Lancer smirked.
Andy sighed, the haunted house was pretty much in shambles. Most of their decor was either torn up or taken into the Ghost Zone. There likely wasn't much left to show. Then Andy looked at the Digimon, and Danny.
"Hey, maybe we could put in some last minute changes." Andy grinned.
Dash was, thankfully, back in his room. Though he didn't have much to show without his equipment, but he managed to make the best of it by creating twisted and scary looking trees that looked like they were going to eat one's body or soul.
When it was time for the students to see Danny and Andy's room, Andy was the host instead of Danny. He had Tucker use what they could for special effects, like simple lighting, turning it on and off, Terriermon used his Bunny Blast as 'scary' lights. Lopmon created a miniature tornado that made it feel realistic enough to alarm some people. Gatomon managed to get in a jumpscare. She looked like an innocent white kitty, until she put on a demonic mask and hissed at them, causing some students to scream. Dorumon was using the lighting and shadow to make himself appear much bigger than he actually was, looking more like Dorugamon. Andy gave him some extensions for his wings, to make it look bigger, and the shadow made his teeth and claws look bigger and sharper. He also used the red gem on his head to glow and make him appear much more eerie.
Finally, there was the grand finale. When they came to the last part of the room, they saw Sam wearing some kind of black gown. She wore a skull mask over her face. She announced in a spooky voice how the dead would one day rise up and take over the living. Danny was invisible and in his ghost form. He overshadowed a bedsheet that Andy noticed was a leftover in the house. The bedsheet folded into a cloak, before Danny made himself visible. Andy stood behind the students, giving Danny directions on how to make his face look. Danny gave a sinister looking grin, which freaked the other students out. Some of them, like Mikey, commented how they couldn't even see where the wires were. Andy then secretly swiped Phantomon's Shadow Scythe card. Dorumon then, carefully, tossed the Shadow Scythe to Danny, who managed to catch it with ease. Sam then called him the 'Grim Reaper' and that he was going to get their souls. At that, everyone, including Testlaff herself, screamed and ran out of the haunted room. It felt too real, Danny's ghost aura was too vivid and real to be faked, which was what Andy had been hoping for.
With the Halloween haunted house night over, everyone was starting to head home. Jack and Maddie were talking about how they were able to get Danny to feel and look like a real ghost, and how impressed they were getting the details right. Because Danny was wearing the bedsheet as a cloak, nobody saw he had white hair, or his jumpsuit, they just thought they used special effects to make him appear ghostly, and wore green eye contacts. Jazz was trying not to nod off, she felt exhausted. She held onto Lopmon close to her chest. Danny and Andy were a little further behind them. Dorumon was following Andy, and Danny was holding onto Patamon.
"That was brilliant, bro. I can't believe you were able to pull together a really good haunted room at the last minute like that," Danny complimented.
"Neither could I. But seeing how we could use Digimon, and your… unique talent, I figured we could put them to good use. That bedsheet cloak idea you had before gave me the idea of using you as the Grim Reaper for the finale," Andy chuckled.
Danny was grinning like a loon. "Did you see the way Testlaff screamed her head off when she saw me? I thought I would explode from holding back my laughter at that."
"I'm just glad you were able to hold back. It would've ruined the whole thing if you suddenly broke down laughing," Dorumon chuckled.
"My guess is that because Danny is a real ghost, the people could sense that, and because of that, it scared them much more than any fake we could've made, no matter how realistic," Patamon commented quietly so only they could hear.
"That's what I was going for~" Andy grinned.
Dorumon snickered. "And it worked out brilliantly~"
"I do have to say, you really know your horror, bro," Danny complimented.
"I've had the experience, and the imagination… as you, uh… probably saw in that dimension," Andy sheepishly remarked.
Danny grimaced. "We really need to work on dealing with that 'imagination' of yours, bro."
"Yeah… I know…" Andy sighed before he looked at Danny. "Though I also can't help but worry about you too. I mean… you did go through a pretty big change after all, this has got to be messing with your psyche too."
Danny sighed. "Don't bring it up, bro. It's bad enough I have to deal with ghosts after me, but I don't need you to worry about my psychological health either."
Andy sighed before he gave a nonchalant shrug. "You're right. I'm sure Jazz does that more than enough with you." Probably best not to let him know that I still want to keep an eye on his psyche. He would only put up barriers if he does.
Danny pouted. "Did you really have to mention Jazz?"
Andy then gave Danny a smile. "Yeah. And… thank you, for saving her back there, bro. We came close to losing her."
Danny nodded with a smile. "No problem, bro."
"Well, I for one can't wait until we get home so I can plop down in bed and not have to worry about this night anymore," Dorumon yawned.
"Looks like Patamon is already asleep," Andy chuckled.
Sure enough, Patamon was out like a light in Danny's arms. Danny smiled at the sight. "He's earned it. After saving us, I'm sure he is exhausted."
"I don't blame him, I think we all are. I just hope Takuya is able to get back home safely, he looked pretty banged up," Andy remarked in concern.
"Don't worry, he's a Legendary Warrior, he can't be beaten down for long," Dorumon reassured.
Danny frowned. "He… did look pretty bad, Dorumon. I mean, he could barely stand when Petaldramon came to get him."
"Let's trust Petaldramon will be able to take care of him for now. If Takuya isn't back by morning, we'll go find him ourselves. But if we tried to look now, we'll likely pass out from exhaustion," Andy sighed tiredly.
Danny sighed as well. "Okay… I'll trust you, bro."
Heh… you trust me so easily… yet I haven't been able to do the same with you… Andy sighed to himself.
Sam didn't really care about going back home so soon. Her parents did tell her to not stay out past midnight, nor did they approve of her going to that haunted house to help the 'bad influences'. She did it anyways, because she didn't give two flips about what her parents wanted. And she was glad she did, she was able to help save everyone from what could've been the end of the world, and Salamon managed to digivolve, finally. However, Sam looked down at the white cat beside her, both of them were sitting on a park bench.
"Gatomon? I'm just curious…" Sam started.
"Hmm? What is it, Sam? You can speak your mind around me," Gatomon prompted.
"Well, I've just realized, you didn't degenerate to your Rookie form. Dorumon does, as does Terriermon and Lopmon." Sam replied. "Why is it that you haven't reverted back to Salamon?"
Gatomon looked out into the night sky, feeling the pleasant cool breeze against her whiskers and fur before answering Sam's question. "Because it's not necessary."
"What do you mean?" Sam asked. "Don't you get tired staying in your Champion form?"
"That's normally true," Gatomon answered. "However, there are two things at work here. One, is my tail ring. It's a holy ring, it helps keep me powered up when I need it. Second, I'm a Celestial Digimon. Technically I should be in my Mega Form at all times, so this Champion form is easy for me to stay in. When a Digimon digivolves naturally, they can stay in that form. But the reason why the others degenerate back to their smaller forms is because it's necessary. They're too big in their Champion forms, it would draw unwanted attention. I, however, am still perfectly fine this way. Humans wouldn't pay me much mind unless I started doing things out of the ordinary. They would think I was either a plushy or a normal yet weird looking cat. Besides, staying in my Champion form allows me to be in a better position to protect you if the need arises. I wouldn't need to waste time and energy to digivolve in the middle of battle."
Sam blinked. "I see. So it's a combination of factors that allows a Digimon to either stay in their more powerful forms or revert back to a lower form." She then smiled. "Well, if it works out that way, I can't complain."
Gatomon nodded. "I should also thank you. It was your will and determination to keep on fighting despite the hopelessness of the situation that allowed me to finally obtain my Champion form. While I'm unable to become Ophanimon again, I feel stronger than I ever have before. It could be because I'm working with a human partner. I also enjoy making you happy. I feel like I have a real purpose here rather than playing governor back at the Digital World."
Sam chuckled. "It was probably boring after a while." She then sighed. "I get it's necessary for the safety of the Digital World for you to be one of the leaders, but I can imagine it probably got boring after some time."
"You have no idea," Gatomon chuckled. "I think a part of Cherubimon started the chaos as he did out of pure boredom as well. And you are the complete opposite of what I am, yet I find that interesting and fun, it keeps me on my toes, and it also helps me learn to see outside of my own perspective as well."
Sam grinned. "I'm glad I can help you do that."
"Yeah," Gatomon agreed. "Well, we should probably get back home soon. Parents or not, it's not good for you to stay out all night long."
Sam groaned. "If I did that, they would call the SWAT team to retrieve me." She stood up from the park bench. "Let's get home before they do just that."
Gatomon chuckled as she got off of the park bench and got down on all fours to walk like a real cat. She walked beside Sam, heading back home.
Takuya opened his eyes. It took him a moment to realize he had reverted back to human, and had likely lost consciousness for a bit. He noticed he was wrapped up in red, glowing leaves. They felt warm, and nice against his skin, especially his back, which felt like it had been burnt to a crisp.
Takuya looked around, trying to make sense of his surroundings. What happened when I passed out? And where am I?
"I see you're awake, I'm glad, you had me worried," A familiar voice spoke up.
Takuya blinked, surprised to see Petaldramon standing over him.
"Dash?" Takuya asked, knowing only he had the Spirits of Wood.
"Yes, it's me. I have to stay in this form so the Healing Leaves would work," Petaldramon explained. "You took quite a beating back there. If only Calumon was here, he could heal that injury in a snap. But it's going to take a bit before my Healing Leaves can heal you enough to get you back on your feet. The haunted house was a success. Although I didn't have most of my… equipment thanks to that vortex, I was able to use my Digimon abilities to set up something truly scary. Though Danny and Andy still won, so… I guess I'll have to tell them my secret when we get back to school later."
Takuya frowned a bit, but he knew that Tucker had seen him evolve, so it seemed he would have to explain things to Sam as well. He sighed. "I guess the time for the 'Tamers' and the Legendary Warriors to be separate is now at an end."
"Tamers? You mean ones like Andy?" Petaldramon asked. "Those with partner Digimon?"
"Yeah." Takuya replied. "That's what I called them when we had to deal with Dreammon. I helped to fight back after the others freed me, and I decided they were more like 'Tamers' than anything else, so, the nickname has kinda stuck, at least to me anyway."
"I guess it makes sense, they are taming their Digimon after all," Petaldramon chuckled. "Now you just relax for a bit, okay? Don't be afraid to fall asleep, sleeping will help the healing go by faster. I'll take you home once I think you're healed enough. I'll just tell your folks you passed out somewhere and I found you."
Takuya nodded, feeling sleep coming up on him. "Thanks…" He then fell into sleep again, his exhaustion taking its toll on him again.
Although it was late, Danny just couldn't sleep. He laid wide awake in his bed. Andy and Dorumon had already fallen asleep in their bed. Dorumon decided to remain in his Rookie form since their parents now know about him. Jazz had likely passed out as soon as her head hit the pillow in her room, she had already looked like she was struggling to stay awake earlier. Lopmon was likely sleeping close to her, wanting to keep her safe, especially since Jazz was almost stabbed by a skeleton earlier.
But Danny couldn't sleep. Something was bothering him. His mind just wouldn't let him rest for some sick, twisted reason. Maybe Andy had a point in analyzing his mental health. Danny shook his head, he didn't want to admit that Andy and Jazz may have a point. He was the one with ghost powers, he was the one responsible for their safety.
"Having trouble sleeping?" Patamon asked, who was by the desk.
Danny sighed. "You could say that." He admitted.
"Any particular reason? Too much energy from absorbing all that ectoplasm from the Fright Knight's Soul Shredder? Or maybe there's something on your mind? Or perhaps a combination of both," Patamon guessed.
Danny grumbled. "I guess maybe it's a combination of both… Wait, I absorbed ectoplasm?"
"Don't be surprised, you do it on a subconscious level, even in your human form," Patamon remarked.
Danny sighed. "It's just that, the Fright Knight looked surprised when I revealed my ghost form." He said as he sat up on his bed. "It's… kinda freaky that he freaked out like that."
Patamon tilted his head for a moment. He had some knowledge on ghost culture thanks to his time with Vlad, but he wasn't sure if Danny was quite ready to hear about that one. "Don't think too hard on that. The Fright Knight is gone, that's what's important."
"I guess… but I'm also worried about Andy," Danny admitted as he twiddled his blanket a little. "I saw why he was so afraid of me, or rather, the root of the reason why. He keeps saying how he's worried about my own psyche, but he doesn't think about his own."
"Just like how you don't think about your own psyche?" Patamon pointed out. "You two care too much about others or each other rather than yourselves, I've noticed."
Danny gave a sheepish chuckle here. "We do, don't we?" He rubbed the back of his head. "It's… kinda hard to explain, but… I think I just have this instinct to protect those I care about, and it is much stronger than worrying about myself."
"Have you always been like that or is it something that came up… recently?" Patamon questioned.
"I can't remember, to be honest." Danny admitted. "I just know it's something that has been a part of me."
"Well, I can't say for sure. It could be a part of your ghostly obsession, or it could be something you've always had, but you never noticed until you needed to use it," Patamon remarked. "There's always more you could learn about yourself, whether you're ghost, human, Digimon or something in-between each one. But if it's a part of you, then embrace it. It will make you stronger when times are tough."
Danny smiled a bit. "That's quite the speech from you, Patamon."
"I do have some knowledge on halfas thanks to Vlad," Patamon admitted. "As well as ghost culture. I don't know everything though, not as much as Vlad does of course. But… well… I am glad I learned what I did. At least I'm able to use this knowledge to help you a little."
Danny smiled some more. "Heh… then some good came out of your time with Vlad."
"Yeah, you're right," Patamon agreed. "I never thought about it that way."
Patamon then stretched out his wings before he flew over to Danny's bed, then landed in front of Danny, looking up at the boy. Blue eyes met with green.
"Thank you, Danny, for giving me a second chance. I should also thank Andy for making it possible when he purified me," Patamon remarked quietly, and blushed slightly.
Danny grinned at hearing that. "I'm glad I could give you that second chance too, Patamon."
Patamon then looked down, seeming to be embarrassed to say what he wanted to say next.
Danny blinked. "Patamon? What's wrong?"
"... Danny… do you… well… this might sound rather silly, but… do you feel a bond with me even though we're not technically partners?" Patamon asked, his cheeks blushing from asking.
Danny blinked in confusion. "Do I feel a bond with…? Patamon, you're the one who woke me up from that cage on Skulker's Island, and you did the same again when we fought the Fright Knight! If that doesn't signify a bond, then I don't know what else would!"
"Yeah… well… it's just… there's something about you that captured my attention… that made me want to change back when I was still Tsukaimon," Patamon admitted. "I'm not sure if it's your purity, your determination to stay true to yourself, your heroic manner and deeds, or if it's because I have a soft spot for children… but…"
Patamon sighed. "I'm rambling. The point is… I may have made a mistake when I partnered with Vlad. I was… obsessed with the idea of creating a being who was part Digimon, part ghost, and part human. I forced the bio-merge when it wasn't natural with Vlad. While I don't feel obsessed with that goal anymore… I am still curious about it, to see if such a being could even exist. But I would never want to subject you through something like that, you deserve better… Danny, if you could have a Digimon partner-"
"Stop," Danny spoke up. "I don't think I would want anyone but you."
"B-but why?" Patamon asked, surprised. "Don't you think you deserve better than someone like me?"
"Patamon, you are the one I want to be my partner." Danny said seriously. "You weren't yourself when you became Vlad's partner. But that's over with. You have a second chance, and you need to make the most of it. I don't care if you were Vlad's partner. As I said, you weren't yourself. But now you are. You're the Celestial Digimon you are supposed to be, and I wouldn't have it any other way."
Patamon wanted to speak, but he was filled with emotion. He started tearing up, and he couldn't even get a word out. Danny picked up Patamon and hugged him to his chest. Patamon realized that the chest was where a halfa kept their core, their most vulnerable spot. The fact that Danny was hugging him this close to his core showed how much he trusted Patamon. Patamon then lost it, he started crying in Danny's chest.
As Danny was comforting Patamon, there was a light glowing on his nightstand. Danny looked over at it, that was where he had put his cell phone. The cell phone was glowing orange and green, and it transformed in front of his very eyes. The cell phone then changed into a D-Arc, just like the ones his friends and siblings had, but this one was black with a white border around the screen with matching buttons and a matching strap for the white border.
Danny was using one of his hands to keep hugging Patamon while he used the other hand to reach over his nightstand to pick up the now transformed cell phone. He studied the D-Arc, surprised and also delighted. The fact that this D-Arc appeared meant he and Patamon just chose each other to be partners.
"I can't… Wow! Patamon, we're partners now!" Danny exclaimed excitedly, although he kept his voice low so as to not wake Andy or Dorumon.
"Great, it's about time," Andy spoke up from his bed, making Danny jump.
"We were wondering when you two would finally become partners," Dorumon chuckled.
"Um… bro? How long have you been awake?" Danny asked, surprised Andy was awake at this time of night. "I was sure you were asleep."
"I was, until you and Patamon started having a conversation," Andy chuckled.
"Don't worry, we decided to pretend we were still asleep so you two could have your moment." Dorumon grinned. "Welcome to the team, Patamon."
Patamon looked at them, sniffling a bit. He still couldn't say anything, but he did give a happy looking smile.
Danny sighed. "Okay, I get it, let's just get some sleep, bro. You need it more than me."
"Maybe, but I wouldn't have missed that moment for the world, bro~" Andy grinned.
"Go to sleep," Danny grumbled, though inwardly, he was smiling like a goofball.
Dorumon snickered at Danny's response. "Alright, nighty night, enjoy cuddling with your new partner~"
Titanic X: ZAFT: Yes, yes he is pissed. XD
GirlFish: DarkFoxKit: Yeah, the Celestial Digimon are gonna be pretty interesting. You'll be seeing how they'll handle Circus Gothica. As for Pandora's Box… well, they'll likely have gained enough self control to not let it bother them by the time they get to it.
ZAFT: As for Ophanimon Falldown Mode or Lillithmon, we'll see how the story goes before we decide to include them in some way. ^^' But those are some possible ideas we will keep in mind. :3 By the way, glad to see you are reviewing again. We missed you. :3
DarkFoxKit: You also give some good ideas for the Digimon, which is what we need right now since we've been mostly focusing on the DP side of things.
ZAFT: I hope you can give more ideas down the road~ :3