ZAFT: ACK! We forgot to update! O.O *Scream*
Takuya: And you guys were doing so well with being on time too...
Andy: Where's Kit? I haven't seen her in almost 5 days.
ZAFT: You're her character, Andy. Don't you know? O.o
Andy: *Frowns* She couldn't still be in her room, could she? *Goes to Kit's room, sees the door was closed. He opened the door, seeing DarkFoxKit playing on her Switch* Kit? What are you doing? Get on the AN! We're already late! … Have you been playing that game you got since Saturday!?
DarkFoxKit: Um… I guess? What day is it?
ZAFT: *Wanders over to Kit's door* It's halfway through the week, Wednesday...
DarkFoxKit: ….. CRAAAAAAAAAAP! GET THE CHAPTER READY!
ZAFT: Yeah… we will. ^^'
(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 56: A Fever Dream
Takuya was not a happy camper. His morning started out great. It was a clear sky, there was even a rainbow. But as soon as he stepped outside, he noticed the entire road was wet. Several vehicles and buildings were dripping in water. Several roads were closed. Schools, including Casper High, were closed until the water damages were fixed. And when he saw Danny, helping a very soaked and limping Andy up the front door, he immediately knew something Digimon related had happened.
"And what caused you two to get so wet?" Takuya asked as he folded his arms across his chest.
"We… had some terrible rain and flooding?" Danny smiled sheepishly.
Patamon and Dorimon were also soaked. Their fur was going to take ages to dry off.
Takuya frowned. "Yeah… sure it was…"
"Can you interrogate us when we're in the house?" Andy begged. "I'm too tired to stay standing in this wet street."
Takuya sighed. "Fine… But I want the truth, not the lies when you get in." He moved aside to let in his twin cousins and their Digimon partners.
Maddie and Jack were outside in the backyard. They were tinkering with the Assault Vehicle. They were going to add in some new features, and they were planning to tell their kids about it soon.
Once Danny and Andy were inside the house, Jazz and Lopmon saw how wet they were.
"... I'll get the towels," Jazz said.
"I'll get the hot chocolate," Lopmon volunteered.
Takuya sighed. "Okay you two… What happened to get you two so soaking wet? Why is Amity Park soaking wet?"
Danny helped Andy sit down on a chair before he sat down on a chair too.
"You remember that Ranamon warrior who attacked us as Floody Waters?" Andy asked.
Takuya frowned. "I do. Why?"
"Here, you might want to use your D-Tector to hold on to these," Danny said, holding out the Human and Beast Spirit of the Legendary Warrior of Water, which he had been keeping in his pocket.
Seeing Danny with the Spirits of Ranamon and Calmaramon was all the answer Takuya needed to realize what happened.
Takuya took out his D-Tector and held it up so the scanner could suck in the two Spirits. Ranamon's Spirit was first, followed by Calmaramon's. The symbol of Water appeared on the screen before fading away. "So… Ranamon's Spirits found a host then? Is that why you had her Spirits?"
"Yeah, it's a bit of a long story," Andy sighed tiredly.
"Ranamon took over Paulina's body," Dorimon informed. "And after Danny broke up with her, Paulina used Ranamon's powers to try to drown Andy, thinking he was the reason why Danny broke up with her. We almost drowned at least ten times last night, and Va-"
"He doesn't need to know everything that happened, Dorimon," Andy groaned.
Takuya blinked at the fact Andy cut off Dorimon's explanation, but decided to let it go for now. "I see. So that's what happened. What about Paulina? Is she okay?"
"She didn't seem to have any injuries when I checked her over," Danny answered. "She was just unconscious. I did overshadow her for a brief moment to make sure she didn't remember anything that happened though. But I can only erase so much, she's likely to remember she had Ranamon's Spirit at one point. I also took her home while she was unconscious, maybe if we're lucky she would think our dating was just a dream or something."
Jazz soon came back with some towels. She helped wrap Danny and Andy up in the towels.
"You two should take a warm shower soon, I don't want you catching a cold," Jazz said in concern before she looked at Andy. "So… how was your patrol night?"
"... Very watery," Andy grumbled.
Danny sighed. "And in need of my help apparently."
Dorimon and Andy both looked down in guilt.
"Sorry… I didn't want to call for your help…" Andy frowned.
"I should've done a better job at protecting him," Dorimon said, looking guilty.
"So, what happened on your patrol?" Jazz asked. "Did you run into a strong Digimon or something? Or some kind of water ghost?"
Lopmon came over with two mugs of hot chocolate for the boys.
"Worse," Takuya spoke up while Andy and Danny took their respective mugs. "They fought with a Legendary Warrior. The Warrior of Water, while it was raining."
Jazz blinked. "Wait… Another Legendary Warrior showed up?" She then looked at Andy and Danny with surprise. "And you fought them?!"
"She was coming after my head!" Andy defended. "I was just trying to defend myself."
"How did a Legendary Warrior come to attack you?" Jazz asked. "I mean, I can understand defending yourself, but what was this Warrior's reason for attacking you?"
"The Legendary Warrior was Paulina," Danny answered after taking a sip of his hot chocolate. "She thought Andy was the reason why I broke up with her, so she had it out for him."
Jazz paled at hearing that. "That girl needs some mental help…"
"Digimon can feed off of negative emotions in a way," Patamon spoke up, cuddling in Danny's towel. "Paulina's spoiled attitude and negativity likely fed into Ranamon's corruption, and it ended up twisting both of their minds."
Jazz frowned. She was both fascinated by what she was hearing as well as a bit disturbed and worried. She knew Takuya was able to become a Digimon, a Legendary Warrior to be exact, and this new information only fed into her concern for him.
Takuya noticed Jazz's concerned look. "Hey, don't worry, I'm perfectly fine, Jazz."
"Although there was that one time you attacked me," Danny brought up.
"Not helping Danny!" Takuya snapped.
"Well, it's true!" Danny defended.
"I lost control of my Beast Spirit! I didn't mean to! It's not easy to control such a powerful Spirit!" Takuya exclaimed, but he was a bit red from embarrassment.
"We know, that's what we used to our advantage when we were fighting Calmaramon," Andy chuckled, before he let out a sneeze. "Ah-Choo!"
"And I think Andy has a cold…" Danny chuckled sheepishly.
"It was just one sneeze, that doesn't automatically mean I have a cold!" Andy grumbled.
"Sure it doesn't." Danny teased his brother.
"I hate fighting water monsters. My fur is going to take days to dry," Dorimon moaned.
"And I was supposed to give you a good night rest, Danny, instead you almost saw me drown," Andy grumbled bitterly.
"I would rather have you alive and have myself be tired than let me have a good night's rest and found out you became a full ghost due to drowning." Danny assured his brother.
"Well, you two will get plenty of rest for a while, since all the roads and schools have shut down for a while due to the water damages," Lopmon said. "Can you believe the news is blaming this on 'Invisobill' inviting his ghostly friends that caused pipe leakages that made the flooding?"
Takuya groaned at the name for Danny's ghost form that the news media gave him. "'Invisobill'? Can't they use a better name for Danny's ghost half?"
"I need a publicist…" Danny grumbled.
"I think it's a nice pun for his name, considering 'Invisobill' often likes making puns and witty banters when he should be focusing on the actual bat- Ah-choo!" Andy sniffled.
Takuya grimaced. "I wonder if the news media will have a stupid name for my Digimon form at some point…"
Danny chuckled sheepishly. "I wouldn't tempt it, cuz."
"Kids!" Jack's energetic voice suddenly called out.
Everyone flinched from the sudden shout just as Jack and Maddie came into the kitchen, looking excited.
Maddie, however, frowned when she noticed her two boys were wrapped up in towels and were wet. "Danny, Andy, did you two end up in the middle of that big water flood we had last night?"
Danny flinched a bit. "Um… maybe? It was because of a Digimon! We had to go out and fight it or the city would have been flooded even more!"
"It was a hard fight, and that ghost boy helped us out! So he wasn't responsible for the damages like the news were saying he was!" Dorimon spoke up, hoping to also defend Danny's name.
Maddie frowned a bit more. "You kids should be more careful! What if that Digimon hurt you or worse?"
Takuya, at hearing that, felt his form tense and he clenched his fists. He growled a bit.
"We know that you kids have Digimon of your own to fight back with, but that doesn't mean you should go looking for trouble," Jack reprimanded. "At least not without us backing you up."
"But you guys specialize in fighting ghosts, not Digimon," Jazz pointed out.
"Maybe not now, but we can figure it out given time." Maddie retorted. "Even if we are more specialized in ghost fighting, you kids can't take on a Digimon alone. What if your partner Digimon got hurt or worse?"
"Which is why we've been tweaking the Fenton RV. We've made it so it would now have a water mode. It will be able to transform into a boat, or a submarine if we want to go underwater." Jack smiled proudly. "We… haven't worked out on making weapons effective against Digimon yet, but at least we have the transportation figured out!"
Danny blinked. "A submarine mode for the RV?" He then grinned. "That's cool!"
"We haven't been able to test it out yet, but we're planning to soon… preferably when the roads are opened up again," Maddie chuckled.
"Wow… you guys can turn a tank into a submarine? Maybe you should work for the Celestial Digimon…" Lopmon muttered, clearly impressed.
Jack chuckled sheepishly. "That's nice of you to say, Lopmon."
"There's just a few more bugs we need to work out before testing," Maddie said. "Oh… Danny, Andy, you better get a warm shower before you catch a cold."
"Will do, Mom," Danny chuckled.
Andy had to hold in another sneeze, and just give his parents the thumbs up.
Takuya felt like smacking his own face at the fact Andy had sneezed almost three times now. Yep… Andy has a cold...
Jack and Maddie went into their lab to look for some parts for their RV.
Andy then sighed before he looked at Jazz. "So where the heck were you when I was calling for help? Tucker and Sam weren't answering either. It was like you were all ignoring me while Dorimon and I were trying not to get killed, and also trying to make sure the hospital didn't get flooded."
"I don't know what Tucker and Sam were doing, but I was helping my parents with something. I swear, I didn't know you were calling, Andy," Jazz quickly apologized.
Takuya sighed. "And I was out like a light, so I didn't realize you were in trouble."
Andy grumbled. "We need a better call system…"
"At least I was able to hear you," Danny sheepishly grinned.
Patamon nodded. "Danny sensed you were in trouble, and when you needed him most, he woke up, transformed, and was off like a rocket to find you!"
"Yeah, I've never seen him fly that fast before," Lopmon agreed.
Jazz grinned. "At least we know your bond is still as strong as ever despite the hiccups along the way."
Both twins were blushing in embarrassment at that acknowledgement.
"I'm going to take that warm shower now," Andy grumbled.
Damion Grey was looking at Valerie's temperature in concern. "99.8. You definitely have a fever, Valerie. It looks like that flooding last night really got you a nasty cold."
Valerie sniffled bitterly. "Ugh… I hate colds…" She muttered before sneezing. "Ah-Choo!"
"I'm going to make you some warm soup. Then I'll have to go see if the pharmacy is still open so I can get you some cold medicine," Damion stated. "Will you be okay by yourself for a little bit?"
Valerie nodded. "I will. I'm not going anywhere…" She sniffled again. "Ugh… Stupid cold…"
"As long as you drink plenty of liquids, eat healthy, and get a lot of bedrest, your cold will be gone before you know it, sweetie," Damion chuckled before he went into the kitchen to make some warm soup.
Gomamon came out from under Valerie's bed once Damion was out of sight, she had a dead fish in her mouth. She hopped up onto Valerie's bed and dropped the fish. "I hear fish is good for you."
"Ugh… Gomamon, get that stinky fish off my bed…" Valerie groaned.
"Fine, your loss," Gomamon shrugged before she picked up the fish and began eating it.
Valerie sniffled again. "I can't believe we had to fight a Legendary Warrior… Are they all that strong?"
"Yes, I'm afraid so. They are the Legendary Warriors for a reason after all. But don't worry, they're not all bad like that one was," Gomamon reassured Valerie. "I think that one got twisted by that human girl's negative emotions. If the Spirits are in the wrong people's hands, they can cause a lot of destruction and chaos."
Valerie sniffed again. "Ugh… So we just have to hope the other Spirits are in the right hands then? I don't like the idea of random people having these Spirits…"
"I don't know how the Spirit got into that girl's hands. But supposedly the other Legendary Warriors are supposed to be keeping these unused Spirits safe. It's possible something happened to the one who was holding Ranamon's Spirits," Gomamon remarked.
"Great… Well, hopefully one of these other Legendary Warriors got the Spirits of Water so we don't have to worry about Ranamon again…" Valerie noted, before realizing it was in the ghost boy's hands. "Oh… no… the ghost boy has the Spirits…"
"Yeah, but I think he took them somewhere safe. I know that he did something that made you hate him, but I think we can trust him, Valerie," Gomamon said softly. "He helped us in that battle with Ranamon. He saved your and Andy's life. As a Digimon, I can sense when a ghost has ill intentions, and that ghost boy clearly didn't have any."
Valerie frowned, but didn't protest. "If you say so…" She sighed. "I'm not really in the mood to argue against what you just said because of this cold… so I'll just trust your word for now."
"You just focus on getting better," Gomamon remarked. "I'm sure Andy is feeling the same way right about now."
Despite the warm shower and the hot chocolate, Andy still felt cold. He was trying not to show it though. He couldn't afford to be out of the action, especially since this was a prime time for ghosts to attack Amity Park while people were trying to fix up the water damages. Danny still needed his rest. Jazz, Sam, Tucker, Takuya, and Dash might be able to handle it, but if there was a big invasion, like with Walker's invasion, they were going to need all the help they could get.
Only Dorimon knew Andy wasn't feeling well, and as such, was frowning when the boy was trying to hide it.
"You can't hide this, Andy. You're sick right now." Dorimon said, frowning.
Andy was currently in the kitchen, with Dorimon on the table, munching on some scrap metal Maddie gave to him. Andy took out some ice and put them into an ice pack before he shoved the ice pack on his face.
"I'm not that sick. It'll go away soon. And I can't afford to be out of the action right now," Andy said stubbornly. "Danny needs to rest, and he won't do that if he finds out I'm… well, not feeling all that great."
Dorimon sighed. "You're just as stubborn as your brother. You both don't want to rest when you need it."
"I'll rest when nobody else is looking… okay, maybe I can tell them I'm taking a short nap or something. I mean we did just come back from an all night fight after all," Andy decided.
"It's not going to work, you're going to get found out," Dorimon warned.
"I can make it wor-" Andy bumped into his older cousin.
"Ow…" Takuya muttered before he saw Andy had bumped into him. "Oh, hey Andy."
"Hey, Takuya… sorry, didn't see you there," Andy said, before realizing he was still holding the ice pack and quickly hid it behind him.
Takuya saw that and frowned. "Andy, are you okay? Why do you have an ice pack?"
"Oh, this?" Andy sheepishly smiled, holding out the ice pack. "I was just feeling a little hot is all. I think the water damages may have affected our air conditioning."
"... It's November, Andy…" Takuya reminded.
"Must be a warm front then," Andy said.
Takuya frowned some more. "Andy, you sound stuffed up. Are you sure you're feeling okay?"
"Yeah, of course! I'm… just not breathing through my nose because Dad's old ham is still in the fridge," Andy quickly said. "I'm… uh… going to go to my room now. I think I need a nap after that all nighter fight I had."
Takuya didn't move. "Andy, you need to rest. You're coming down with a cold."
"No I'm not." Andy frowned. "And I was going to rest, if you would just move out of the way."
Takuya sighed. "Okay… Never mind…" He moved aside so Andy could leave.
"Thanks," Andy said before he started walking out of the kitchen.
Dorimon sighed, but he hopped down from the table and went after his stubborn partner.
Although Andy was trying to hide it, Takuya could see that Andy wasn't feeling 100%. He wasn't too surprised though, considering Ranamon had been gunning after him all night, nearly drowning him several times.
Andy, why didn't you just ask me to join you on the patrol? It would have helped you avoid getting sick… Takuya thought with worry, until he remembered what happened the last time he tangled with Ranamon, and how he had to be taken to the Digital World to be healed. Ugh… Now I remember why...
Takuya sighed to himself. I guess in a way, Andy didn't want me to get hurt again...
The nap didn't feel like a restful one. When Andy woke up, he had a headache, and his sniffles got worse. He groaned a little, turning over in his bed.
"Andy?" Danny said in worry. "I was about to go on patrol. I'm worried that ghosts might try to take advantage over Amity Park being damaged from that fight last night. But you don't look so good."
"Ah!" Andy quickly sat up, trying not to fall back down from how much his head felt like spinning. "Patrol? Right now? Don't you think you should rest first, Danny? You didn't have much of a decent sleep last night."
"Andy, you're coming down with a cold. You need to rest." Danny said seriously. "I can afford to go on patrol since I'm not the one who is sick."
"I'm not sick," Andy argued. "I can easily go on that patrol instead."
To try to demonstrate it, Andy got out of his bed. He managed to hold back a wince from his aching head, and stay standing straight. "You see? No biggie."
Danny folded his arms. "No, bro. You rest. I had enough sleep. I can go instead."
"Andy, you listen to your older brother." Dorimon scolded.
"He's only older by two hours!" Andy protested. "And I'm fine!"
"Yes, but I'm older by two hours, so I am the older brother." Danny pointed out.
"Besides, you'll never get better if you try to go out and fight," Patamon added. "You'll only worsen your condition."
Danny nodded. "So you rest, Andy. I can handle this patrol easily."
Andy was about to argue when Danny transformed into his ghost form. The coldness Danny emitted made Andy shiver unwillingly. Danny picked up Patamon before looking at Andy again.
"You better stay in bed until I get back, bro. I'm counting on Dorimon to make sure you do just that," Danny said to Andy.
"I'll take care of this stubborn boy!" Dorimon saluted with his stubby arm.
The irony was not lost on Andy, since just last night they had Patamon doing the same thing to Danny.
Danny chuckled at the sight of Dorimon saluting with a stubby arm. "You do that. I'll be back soon." With that, Danny turned intangible before flying out of the bedroom the twins shared.
Andy went over to the window and grumbled, lightly banging his forehead against the glass. "Must be nice to have ghost powers. You rarely get a cold. I should be the one out there, Dorimon. Danny may not see it, but he does have bags under his eyes. And he needs to lay a low profile since the media is blaming his ghost half for these water damages!"
Dorimon frowned. "Yes, but you're no better. You have a stuffy nose and look pale. You both need rest, not just Danny."
"How can I rest knowing my brother is pushing himself like that? He may be half dead, but he's going to be full dead if he doesn't get the proper rest his human half needs," Andy groaned.
"Why not ask Takuya to take over the patrols?" Dorimon suggested. "He can do that easily, you know. This way, both you and Danny could get some rest."
"... You know what? I'm going to do just that. And have Agunimon bring that stubborn brother of mine back home, even if he must drag him by the ghostly tail." Andy grinned.
Andy began walking to the door, before he had to go into the bathroom. He needed some tissues, badly. "Ugh… if I could even get downstairs…"
Dorimon sighed. "I can go get Takuya if you want since you're so sick."
Andy grumbled.
"So… can you do it? Your cousins kinda need it," Dorimon said to Takuya.
Takuya nodded. "Yeah, I can do that no problem. Taking over the patrols would be better for me anyway. I've not done much since I got back."
"Great. Andy… kinda wants you to drag Danny back here," Dorimon chuckled sheepishly.
Takuya groaned. "Ugh… Well… If I'm to do that, I may need my Fusion or Beast Spirit forms since they can fly. I can't catch Danny in my Human Spirit form."
"Do whatever you think you need to," Dorimon remarked. "Danny needs to keep a low profile anyways."
Takuya nodded. "Okay. I guess I'm going with my Fusion form then if I'm bringing back Danny."
Takuya then noticed a certain cousin trying to sneak his way downstairs.
"Andy!" Takuya snapped. "Where do you think you are going?"
"Uh… to get more ice?" Andy said sheepishly, holding up his ice pack.
"Dorimon can get you the ice. You get right back in bed, mister!" Takuya scolded.
"I better digivolve so I can have my hands," Dorimon sighed. "And also to keep Andy in bed."
Andy grumbled as he went back upstairs.
Takuya sighed. "Now I see why you wanted me to take over the patrols…"
"Yeah… you better hop to it," Dorimon sighed. "Maybe you can ask Jazz and Lopmon to join you."
"I could, but knowing Andy, he will try to sneak out again. It's best Jazz and Lopmon stay here to help keep Andy in bed so he can rest." Takuya admitted. "And that's not counting when I get Danny back. He will be harder to get to rest because he has ghost powers and can use them to try to escape."
Takuya just realized how big of a headache it would be to keep a ghost in bed, and he groaned. He was not looking forward to that.
Danny yawned as he sat down on top of a building. He was pretty tired from last night's battle, but he couldn't afford to rest now, not when his brother was feeling sick, and ghosts could attack at any moment.
"Are you sure you want to patrol?" Patamon asked his partner, seeing Danny yawning. "You still need to rest."
"I have to. While I know the others are able to fight, I'm the best chance against other ghosts and Digimon," Danny replied.
"Yes, but you're not the only one who can fight them toe-to-toe." Patamon pointed out. "There are two others who can as well."
"Look, I'll just finish my patrol and then worry about rest," Danny sighed.
Then a large shadow loomed over Danny. The ghost boy yelped and flew back a bit, getting into a defensive position, before realizing who it was.
There, behind Danny, was Aldamon. He didn't look too happy either. "What are you doing out here?"
"Isn't it obvious? I'm out on patrol," Danny answered. "We have to stay vigilant, especially during Amity Park's time of need."
The Legendary Warrior frowned at the response. "Look… you need rest. I can take over from here."
"But what if you need help?" Danny asked in concern. "And this is my town, I'm responsible for keeping it safe, even if the people living in it don't like me."
"It might be your town, but it's not just home to you either." Aldamon pointed out. "You have Dash who lives here, Jazz, Sam, and Tucker. They can fight back as well. You aren't solely responsible for this place's protection." He then flared his wings a bit. "I don't want to have to take you back by force, but I will if I have to."
"Come on, Aldamon. The last time I let someone else patrol for me, he almost drowned, and is now at home sick!" Danny pointed out. "You'll have to forgive me for being skeptical about leaving patrol to someone else after that!"
Aldamon sighed. "Andy didn't know Ranamon would attack. It was just a matter of wrong place, wrong time for Andy. It wasn't because it's your responsibility to keep this town safe." He then looked back up. "Please, just leave this to me. I can handle myself."
Danny stubbornly crossed his arms. "I can handle the rest of this patrol."
Patamon sighed, but he waited for the inevitable.
Since Danny wasn't paying Aldamon much attention, and he was already pretty sleepy anyways, it was easy for Aldamon to quickly fly up to the halfa. Danny only had time to blink before Aldamon chopped Danny's neck with his hand, which knocked Danny out. Aldamon caught the boy with his other hand, and Danny transformed back to human. Thankfully nobody had been watching them.
"I'm sorry, Danny…" Aldamon murmured softly. "But this is for the best." He then flared his wings and took flight back to Fenton Works, where he could have Danny rest.
"Ugh…" Patamon groaned, sweating a bit as he was flying towards Fenton Works. "I'd appreciate it… if you… carried me… too…"
Patamon plopped down onto the floor in exhaustion.
Aldamon looked back at Patamon and gave a sheepish grin. "Sorry…"
Andy was looking at them from his bed. "Heh, looks like you actually did manage to bring Danny home."
Dorimon, who was currently Dorumon, was blinking as well. "That took a lot less time than I thought it would."
"I kinda had to knock Danny out…" Aldamon admitted sheepishly. "He wasn't coming willingly so…"
"Good, now maybe Andy will actually let himself rest," Dorumon grumbled, clearly frustrated.
Aldamon carried Danny to his bed and laid the halfa down on it gently. "He should be out for a while, so I can get the patrol done without him coming after me."
"He's not going to be happy once he wakes up though," Andy chuckled before he started coughing.
Aldamon turned to Andy in concern. "You rest as well, Andy. I can take it from here."
"I'll get Jazz and Lopmon, they might be able to get some kind of medicine for Andy," Dorumon stated.
Aldamon nodded before he turned to leave to get back to the patrol. "I better get back to patrol. We can't drop our guard, but I don't think much will happen."
"Don't go jinxing it now… I sure did…" Andy sniffled.
The Warrior of Flame gave a chuckle at that, but nodded. "I won't, don't worry." With that, he turned and left, intent on getting the patrol done for Danny.
When Aldamon was gone, Andy curled up under the covers of his blanket. He didn't want to show how awful he really felt in front of his cousin. The boy shivered, feeling cold. Dorumon was giving his partner a worried look. "I'll go get Jazz and Lopmon… and maybe an extra blanket."
"Y-yeah… o-okay…" Andy shivered.
Patamon had already fallen asleep on the floor, too tired to even move to Danny's bed.
Dorumon got up and went to find Jazz and Lopmon, but only after he put Patamon onto Danny's bed so he would not be sleeping on the cold floor. "There we go. Can't have a Celestial Digimon sleeping on the cold floor, now can we?" He gave a soft smile to Patamon's sleeping form.
Andy didn't remember falling asleep, but he woke up to find a thermometer in his mouth. He heard it beeping before someone took it out of his mouth. He noticed Jazz was here, looking at the thermometer. He wanted to say something, but his head hurt, and his throat felt a little sore.
Jazz frowned as she looked at the thermometer. "Andy definitely has a fever…" She murmured softly to herself.
"What do humans usually do when they're feeling this sick?" Dorumon asked in concern. "Andy had a cold before, but not to the point that it was this bad."
"Humans this sick can only rest and take in fluids." Jazz sighed. "It's because their immune systems are working in overdrive, and that takes most of their energy."
"Would medicine help?" Dorumon asked.
"It does, yes." Jazz confirmed. "But it's only effective if the medicine is taken as directed."
"Don't worry, Dorumon. Andy has gotten pretty strong since you came into his life, I'm sure his body will be able to fight this off after some fluids and bedrest," Lopmon assured the other Digimon.
Andy closed his eyes again.
When Andy opened his eyes, he noticed that it had gotten darker outside. Takuya was in his room, and seemed to be talking to Jazz.
"There were some ghosts that tried to cause havoc, but they were easy to deal with," Takuya said.
"Good, the last thing we need is to wake up the boys right now," Jazz whispered.
Takuya nodded. "Agreed. I hope it continues this way. I haven't had to rely on my more powerful forms for those ghosts, but if I have to, I will."
"Yeah. But if Danny senses any ghosts, he'll wake up for sure and try to fight them himself, even if it's just the Box Ghost," Jazz sighed.
"Heh, that boy is obsessed with protecting Amity Park. If he could, he might put the whole city in his pocket or something!" Lopmon laughed.
Takuya gave a laugh as well. "I don't doubt it. If it would keep the city safe, he would do that!"
"Oh, Andy's awake," Dorumon noted.
"Ah…" Jazz suddenly grabbed something, and put it in front of Andy. "Here, you've been out for a while. You should drink some soup and warm water."
Andy nodded, feeling like he needed something in his very empty stomach right now.
"Ugh…" Danny stirred from the bed. "Huh? What, why am I back home?"
Takuya looked back at Danny. "You wouldn't come back willingly, so I had to knock you out. You need rest Danny, don't deny it."
"Well I've rested, can I get up now?" Danny pouted, looking a little upset.
"No, you can't." Takuya said sternly. "Being knocked out is not the same as sleep, Danny."
Danny frowned.
"Look, I was on patrol, nothing bad happened," Takuya gestured.
Danny grumbled a little. "Fine, but I want to eat something first, I'm hungry."
"Here, you can eat this gingerbread man until we get you some dinner," Lopmon said, giving Danny a small gingerbread man.
Andy watched with an amused and clouded mind as Danny began eating it. Wouldn't it be funny if that was an actual person he was eating? … Oh gosh, this fever has baked my mind.
"Fine…" Danny grumbled, munching on the gingerbread man. "But only because nothing has happened so far."
"I'm sure you'll hear from us if something did," Jazz chuckled.
Danny looked over at Andy, who was slowly eating his soup. "How are you feeling, bro?"
Andy looked at Danny, seeing him just finished swallowing up the last of the gingerbread man. "Poor little gingerbread man couldn't get away from the giant ghost boy~"
Danny looked at Andy in confusion. "Uh, bro? Are you okay?"
"Is that normal?" Takuya asked in concern.
Dorumon was on Andy's bed and snuggled up to him.
"I think the fever's making him a little delirious. That does happen sometimes," Jazz sighed.
Takuya winced. "Makes me glad I'm the Warrior of Flame… I don't want to experience a fever."
"I better get him a fresh ice pack to try to cool down the fever," Jazz said.
"I'll get it," Lopmon volunteered.
Jazz chuckled. "Lopmon's been such a helpful partner since we became partners."
Takuya chuckled as well. "I can see that. It's a bit odd to see the fearsome Cherubimon being so helpful to a human, but I can't complain."
Danny wished he could make ice for Andy, he didn't like how giggly Andy was as he was looking at him. "You're going to be okay, Andy."
"I know, the giant ghost boy wants to keep me safe, just don't eat me," Andy giggled.
Takuya grimaced. "Yeah… the fever is making Andy a bit weird…"
"Yeah…" Danny sighed. "Perhaps I should-"
"No, you're going to rest, Danny. We'll take care of Andy, but don't make us take care of you too," Takuya spoke up in a stern tone.
Danny pouted. "Aw man! You're just as bad as Jazz, cuz!"
Andy just laughed as he started to close his eyes again, having just finished drinking his water.
*Andy's Fever Dream*
I yawned a bit, as I was walking out of the house. "Takuya! Where's Danny? It's almost time for school to start."
"How should I know?!" Takuya's voice snapped back from behind me, making me jump a little. "I've been trying to find him."
I turned around, seeing Takuya… or… no, Flamemon. Flamemon grumbled, she looked a little put off. Her pink hairy mane was rustling a bit.
"I haven't seen him either," I heard Jazz's masculine voice speak up.
I saw Jazz coming downstairs. His hair was tied into a ponytail, he really liked letting it grow out. His partner, Lopmon, was chuckling. Lopmon was cream and pink colored. This was all normal of course, I didn't know why I was taking a note of that.
Flamemon looked back as a Leomon in an orange hazmat suit came out. "Danny isn't ready for school yet?" The Leomon asked in my dad's voice.
I couldn't help but whisper to my cousin. "Does… Dad seem a little different today?"
Flamemon shrugged. "No different than he normally is."
"Where is that boy?" Mom's voice called out as she came into visibility. Her glowing blue eyes and pink and black hazmat suit gave it away.
"I think he said he needed to protect the town last night, but I thought he was just going on patrol before coming back to sleep," I noted. Wait, wasn't that supposed to be a secret from Mom and Dad? … But why would it be? They've known for years Danny is half ghost. Heck, Mom is a ghost herself.
Mom sighed. "Someone needs to go find that boy. He's going to be late for school."
Flamemon grumbled. "And that will be up to me, no doubt…" She rolled her blue eyes at the fact it was usually her who went to get Danny.
"You are the best ghost boy sniffer here," Dorumon, my partner, chuckled.
"Haha…" Flamemon grumbled. "Very funny, Dorumon." She sighed. "Might as well get on with it then…"
Flamemon walked out of the house, I was just about to grab some breakfast when Flamemon suddenly came rushing back, looking rather surprised.
"What's wrong?" Jazz asked, seeing our cousin already came back.
"You all might want to come outside," Flamemon quickly said.
Jazz blinked before running outside, along with Dad and Mom; Mom just went through the wall using her intangibility.
Dorumon and I hurried outside to see what had Flamemon so worked up about. As soon as we did, however, I began wishing we didn't. I was looking up, seeing Danny Phantom looking down at Amity Park. That itself wasn't unusual… it was the fact Danny Phantom was about the size of a colossus… maybe bigger. He was towering over the entire city, easily covering up the sun. Danny didn't look malicious though, nor did he look happy. He looked worried. The look he was giving Amity Park looked like something someone would look at a sick baby with. Concern, worry for the poor, helpless little infant. I noticed a lot of other people, ghosts, and Digimon who were living in Amity Park as well were staring up at the towering ghost boy.
"What's going on?" Jazz asked, surprised. "Danny's… a giant…"
"No, he dwarfs a giant with how big he is!" Lopmon gulped.
"How'd he get so big?" Flamemon asked.
"Someone probably shot my poor baby with an ecto biggifier, and injected too much into his system!" Mom frowned.
"When I find that person, I will let them have a taste of my Fist of the Beast King!" Dad exclaimed in anger.
Danny tried to move, but he almost crushed a car. He yelped a little, frowning. "Poor Amity Park… too small and fragile… I need to keep it safe. I need to protect everyone."
Despite Danny's size, his voice was surprisingly soft and gentle.
Flamemon looked uneasy. "What's Danny doing?"
"I think he's scared of hurting anything and anyone in Amity Park," I remarked.
"He wants to protect us, but how is he going to do that with how big he is? Just one foot step could kill several people." Jazz frowned.
"Mom, is the biggifier temporary? And if it is, how long until it wears off?" I asked.
Mom frowned. "That depends on how much he was injected with. Judging from how big he is… I'd say it will take months, if not years, until it wears off."
"YEARS!?" All of us shouted in disbelief.
Flamemon smacked her face. "Ugh… great… Now what do we do?!"
"Danny might try something drastic to keep Amity Park safe if we don't do something soon." Dorumon frowned.
"Maybe… he'll… keep us in his pocket?" I suggested sheepishly.
"... Does his hazmat suit have any pockets?" Jazz asked.
"I don't know…" Flamemon muttered.
"I never saw him with pockets on his hazmat suit." Lopmon noted with concern.
"So where would he put Amity Park then?" I questioned.
Danny then stood up, I didn't even realize he had been sitting down. He looked so much bigger standing up. He frowned before he started to smile.
"I know a great way to keep Amity Park safe~" Danny grinned before he reached down towards the city.
Danny's hands were spread out. One hand was going to the farthest right side of Amity Park, while the other hand was going to the farthest left. I saw both of Danny's arms turning intangible, before the entirety of Amity Park was trembling. All of us lost our balance and fell to the ground. The trembling soon stopped as we were getting closer to Danny's face.
"Dorumon, we need to fly!" I called out urgently.
Dorumon looked at Andy and nodded. "You know we will!"
Dorumon got bigger, his wings got bigger too. I jumped on his back before he went flying. As we were flying, I looked back at Amity Park, and my eyes widened in shock and horror. I saw Danny holding Amity Park with his two hands. Amity Park looked like it was on an island now. Danny must've used his intangibility to pluck Amity Park and its underground stuff from the ground. What is Danny planning to do with Amity Park?
Dorumon gasped as he saw Danny was holding the city. "What the…? Is planning to carry the city? Or is it something else he has in mind?"
"Fly closer, Dorumon, let's try to talk to him," I spoke up.
Dorumon hesitated a little, but he did start flying over to the giant ghost boy. Dorumon had to fly around the city in order to get to Danny's face. I couldn't help but shiver at the sheer pressure and size Danny was at the moment. It was also very cold. I suppose I should've expected the drop in temperature considering Danny was a ghost.
"Danny! Danny, what are you doing to Amity Park!?" I yelled out, hoping Danny would hear me.
However, Danny didn't hear me, as he continued to lift up Amity Park. Danny ignored me, like I wasn't even there.
"Danny?" I frowned.
Dorumon had to move, because Danny was starting to move, and that was enough to get us to get out of the way. I looked back, seeing Danny bringing the island that was Amity Park to his torso. He almost looked like he was hugging it. Danny closed his eyes and gave a small smile.
"I'll keep you safe forever," I heard Danny say.
Dorumon and I gasped when we saw Danny turning Amity Park intangible, and pushed it into his stomach.
"Did he just…" Dorumon gaped. "Phase the town into his stomach?!"
I was at a loss for words. I could only stare as Danny finished pushing Amity Park into his stomach, which bulged out a little bit. Danny then looked down at something with curious eyes, before he reached down and picked it up. It was… Aldamon? But Aldamon looked a little bigger than I remembered, and… he smelled like… gingerbread?
Dorumon gulped. "Uh… Andy… You might want to look away…"
But I couldn't look away. It was as if the horror of the situation kept my eyes glued to the scene. Danny sniffed Aldamon, who was struggling to get out of his grasp. Then Danny opened his mouth and popped Aldamon in like he was some kind of candy. Thankfully, Danny didn't chew on Aldamon, he just swallowed.
"Oh, he did…" Dorumon gulped. "That's… disturbing…"
I couldn't speak, or even react, I could only watch. After Danny swallowed Aldamon, he laid down on the ground. Danny looked much happier now as he gently rubbed his belly. "There, all safe. I can keep you all protected forever~"
"What do we do, Andy?" Dorumon asked me.
"I…" I hesitated, trying to think of what to do. "Maybe… we can go back in time and stop Danny from getting injected with the ecto biggifier?"
Dorumon frowned. "How can we go back in time? We don't have any powers to do that."
"We use the Legendary Warrior of Time's help of course!" I pointed out like it was obvious.
"I'm afraid you won't be doing that," An unfamiliar yet familiar voice spoke up suddenly.
Dorumon and I yelped as a purple and blue blur appeared before us. I squinted my eyes, trying to make sense of this weird blob. "Who are you? What are you? What do you mean we 'won't be doing that'?"
"This is how it is destined to be." The blob said. "Your brother is destined to do this to keep his home safe."
"Keep his home safe? He just ate it!" I shouted. "How is that keeping Amity Park safe!?"
"Amity Park will become one with him, and will have a better chance at defending itself," The blob stated.
Dorumon frowned. "Become one with Danny? How does that work? He just ate the city! Is that what you mean by becoming one with him?"
"That is one way to become one with the boy," The blob chuckled. "And you must become one with Danny as well."
I let out a gasp when the blob poked my forehead and suddenly, Dorumon and I were being thrown towards Danny. We couldn't stop, we couldn't do anything. All we could do was fall towards Danny, who seemed blissfully unaware of us.
Dorumon cried out as he and I fell from the sky. Below us, Danny let out a very well timed, or a very ill timed for us, yawn. Dorumon and I screamed as we fell into Danny's mouth, and were soon falling down his throat. I shut my eyes as we were falling, trying to find that bond link to try to get Danny's attention. There was a strange heat coming from my chest as I tried to pull on the link. Then there was a sudden cold flash that made me whimper, and I curled up on myself as we kept falling. Soon, we ended up falling in some thick liquid.
Dorumon finally righted himself, making sure we were not falling anymore. "Ugh… Okay… that was weird…"
"We just got swallowed by my giant brother, along with the rest of Amity Park. 'Weird' is a severe understatement," I grumbled, recovering from that odd cold flash I felt.
Dorumon and I were trying to stay above the thick, green liquid we found ourselves in. Though to my surprise, instead of an organic stomach, it looked like we were floating in the Ghost Zone. I could see Amity Park floating on the liquid as well. But… it didn't look like it was being dissolved… it looked like… just another domain in the Ghost Zone, but with thick green liquid all over it.
"What the…?" Dorumon frowned. "Did Danny become the new Ghost Zone?"
Then, I heard a distant voice. "Andy!... Wake… And… ke… up!"
I perked up at hearing that voice. "Did you hear that?"
Dorumon shook his head. "No, I didn't hear a thing. Why? Did you?"
"I thought I heard Danny's voice," I said before smiling. "Maybe he found out he accidentally swallowed us, maybe he's trying to reach us!"
"Are you talking about the Ruler of this world?" I heard someone say.
I nearly jumped out of my skin, looking at who spoke. It was… "Skulker? Danny ate you too?"
"The Ruler of this world did not eat me. He is only trying to protect what is his realm." Skulker replied. "Soon, we will all be under his protection."
"Skulker, we've been eaten! It's only a matter of time before we become one with the 'Ruler of this world', and not in a good way! What's wrong with you? I thought you wanted to hunt Danny, not worship him!" I shouted, starting to lose my patience with the situation.
"The Ruler's will is just, not vile." Skulker said before he faded away.
"And… Wake up! Andy! Wake up! An… ke… up!" Danny's voice called in the distance.
Wake up? Why is he telling me to wake up? He's the one who fell asleep. I frowned in confusion.
I felt the entire area tremble. I looked around in alarm, seeing that some things were melting in the liquid. I turned to Dorumon, and yelped, seeing him sinking under the liquid.
"Dorumon!" I shouted, trying to grab him.
I couldn't find Dorumon. I was just grabbing air. Grabbing… air? In the liquid…?
Then I felt something soft and furry nudging my right arm before going under it. I tried to look, but it was dark all of a sudden, and hard to see. I squinted my eyes, seeing a familiar facing looking at me in concern.
"Dorumon…?"
I looked back down at the liquid, but instead, saw a bed, and a blanket over me. And there was someone else standing over me.
"Andy!" Danny called in concern.
Danny felt Andy tugging their link in distress earlier, and it scared him. He quickly woke up from his bed and rushed over to Andy. Andy looked like he was having a nightmare, and he was trying to wake him up. Andy was mumbling some stuff in his sleep, something about being eaten, and Skulker, and a ruler of some kind.
Andy's arms started to flail around, as if he was looking for something. Dorumon quickly nudged Andy's arm to try to calm him down, which seemed to have worked.
"Dorumon…?" Andy croaked as his eyes started to open.
Dorumon smiled at seeing Andy awake. "It's me…" He assured his partner. "You were having some kind of crazy dream."
"Andy?" Danny asked in concern. "Are you okay?"
Andy blinked, looking up at Danny and gave a sudden yelp, nearly rolling off his bed.
"Hey! Settle down, bro! It's just me!" Danny quickly reassured his twin.
Andy stiffened as Danny pulled him back to his bed before he could fall out. Danny frowned, wondering what had Andy so riled up. Andy blinked his eyes again at Danny, before he started to calm down.
"You… took us out?" Andy asked, sounding relieved and surprised.
"Took you out? Out of what, Andy?" Danny asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Out of your Ghost Zone tummy," Andy answered as if that was obvious. "Maybe you should take out Amity Park too? I don't think people would like being protected in that way."
"Bro… Amity Park is just fine." Danny said slowly. "I think the fever is still getting to you, bro."
"Of course you think it's fine," Andy pouted. "You think you're keeping it safe…"
Then Andy looked as if he realized something. He sat up as he stared at Danny. Danny blinked, wondering what Andy was doing. Andy put a hand on Danny's cheek suddenly, surprising the older twin.
"W-what are you doing, bro?" Danny asked nervously.
Dorumon nudged Andy. "Andy? What's wrong?"
"Dorumon, Danny got small again," Andy said. "Or… did we get injected by the ecto biggifier?"
"Ecto-biggifier?" Danny asked.
"I think the fever has broken Andy's brain…" Dorumon muttered.
"Can you take out Amity Park, Danny? You can protect it after you get small again," Andy whined. "I don't want everyone to become one with you."
Danny looked uncomfortable with what Andy was saying. "Um… Andy? I don't have the city in my stomach."
"No, wait," Dorumon spoke up suddenly. "Just go with it."
"What?" Danny frowned.
"Andy is still half way in dream land, you should go along with it," Dorumon explained.
Danny frowned. "Okay… but how can I do as he asks if I don't know how to respond to it?"
Patamon yawned from Danny's bed. "You could just tell him what he wants to hear to calm him down."
Danny blinked, before thinking of something. "Okay, Andy, I promise I'll take Amity Park out, and it will be like I never ate it in the first place. But before I do, you need to sleep first."
"Sleep? Why?" Andy asked, though he was feeling pretty drowsy.
"You just sleep. I will make sure the city is out of my stomach for when you wake up next." Danny reassured his twin brother.
"Okay… thanks, bro. I'm glad you were able to hear me after all," Andy said with a goofy grin on his face.
Danny smiled at how goofy his brother was acting. Andy looked so adorable when he acted goofy. "Now go ahead and sleep, bro. Even giants need their rest."
Andy nodded before giving a lethargic yawn, before laying his head back down onto the pillow. A pillow for giants.
When Andy fell asleep again, Danny shuddered. "Wow… that fever is really messing with his head."
"But as long as he gets bedrest and liquids, he'll be fine in a few days," Patamon reassured his partner. "You're lucky, because you're half ghost, and your body has adapted to your ghost half by now, your immune system makes it nearly impossible for common diseases to invade your body."
"I don't want to know how it would be for a ghost disease…" Danny shuddered.
Patamon looked like he was about to say something, before frowning. "You… uh… probably don't want to find out."
"At least human illness is no problem for you now." Dorumon grinned. "Just wish I could say the same for Andy."
Dorumon curled up next to Andy, staying within cuddling range in case Andy needed him.
Danny sighed before he looked at Dorumon and smiled a bit. "You're just like a cat, Dorumon."
"I'm not… Gatomon is," Dorumon pouted.
Danny chuckled at that. "I mean you curl up like one."
"We should let them sleep," Patamon chuckled. "You should get back to sleep too. I'm not letting you go on patrol tonight. Besides, Andy might need you again."
Danny sighed. "Yeah… that's a good point." He had to admit, Patamon was right. If he went on patrol, if Andy needed him, he wouldn't be there for his brother. "I'll just get back in bed then."
"Good boy~" Patamon smiled.
Little did they know, a certain rabbit Digimon was watching them from the shadows, holding Jazz's cellphone. Hehehe, this is going to be gold~
Lopmon snickered. I can't wait to show Jazz this~ This will put her psychologist mind at work big time~
Titanic X: DarkFoxKit: Thanks, I was debating on whether or not to give Valerie a Legendary Warrior Spirit, a Digimon partner, or nothing at all since she's already got her whole ghost hunting equipment. I decided to give her a partner in the end. Originally, I planned for the partner to be Lunamon, but I decided on Gomamon instead.
ZAFT: And the fight was fun to write out too. XD
GirlFish: DarkFoxKit: Yeah, I know Gomamon usually becomes Ikkakumon when they digivolve, but I wanted to go a different route. And it shows that Digimon have different branches of digivolutions, so they're not locked into any particular forms. I think I remember one of the Digimon games I've played had my own Gomamon become a Dolphmon, which was what inspired this Gomamon to become a Dolphmon.
ZAFT: And Dolphmon, in the games, is crazy fast. XD As for Undergrowth… we will see what happens when we get to that episode. ^^' Kinda unsure of what to do with that at the moment… ^^'
DarkFoxKit: Undergrowth is still pretty far at the moment, we're still trying to figure out what to do with The Ultimate Enemy since we realized we kinda hit a snag on that one due to Sam, Tucker, and Jazz having Digimon partners who could keep them from getting killed in the Nasty Burger explosion. Having them get killed just for the sake of keeping it close to canon feels way too cheap.
ZAFT: But whatever we figure out, it will be good, that I can assure you. :3