Disclaimer: I still don't own Danny Phantom. Butch Hartman does, and I somehow doubt that will be changing any time soon. Since I'm not making any money from this, there is nothing for the law-ninjas to sue out of me.
Author's Note: Wow, I literally just BARELY made my self-imposed 2-week deadline for this. Literally last possible second! I actually wanted to cover a lot more ground this chapter than I did, but at 8 pages long I thought it would flow better to bump some of the material to the next chapter. And look! Selofain was super awesome and did fanart from the prologue chapter! So check it out: http:// www. deviantart. com/ deviation/ 59522418/
Chapter 3: Imperfect Reflections
"All that you've taken from others
Will be taken from you
All that your dissonance smothers
Will then come back to you
Whatever happens tomorrow, and whatever you do
Just keep in mind, that the source and end is you"
-"Another Me" - Epica
There was someone else standing next to Sam, casting worried glances in the direction of the now-distant dragons. The ambient lighting of the Ghost Zone struck glimmers of silver from the mop of otherwise black hair, and cast soft shadowing on his jeans and t-shirt. That wasn't what stopped Dan dead. It was the eyes.
Blue, glowing blue.
You!
He spun around, cape billowing as he prepared to blast whoever had thought to sneak up on him while he was preoccupied with the crude grave. Much to his surprise, there was nothing behind him. No one.
"Show yourself so I can waste you." He growled, letting the green blast dissipate, unused.
I'm right here.
Half-frantic at the mysterious voice he thought he heard, he spun again, checking the gravesite. Nothing there. He checked behind the rock formation. Nothing there. He peered cautiously between the trees surrounding the small clearing. Nothing there.
"Right where?" He snarled, unable to bear that terrible silence save for the fury of the brewing storm that threatened overhead.
Right in front of you, you monster.
His gaze was almost forcibly drawn once again to the grave, the resting place of his weakness, of the humanity he had purged so ruthlessly years ago.
"Great, I'm hearing things." He muttered, trying to convince himself that there was nothing there.
No, you're not.
That stopped him up short as he stared at the grave, still seeing nothing, but certain now there was something there. "Right, if I'm not, who are you and where are you? I haven't blasted anyone today."
You know who I am, and you can't just blast me. Not yet.
Somehow, the non-voice managed to be melancholy and accusing all at once. It set his teeth grinding, the mere thought that his weakness still seemed to exist in some form or another. His ghost sense hadn't gone off, which implied that the owner of the voice wasn't a ghost. Or at least, wasn't manifested as one yet.
"Maybe I should just blast this instead?" He raised his hand, green energy crackling around it, aimed at the pile of rocks that served as Danny Fenton's grave.
It won't do you any good. I'll still be here. You can't get rid of me.
There was something... almost smug about the non-voice's tone that would normally have set him to blasting anything nearby. Instead he let his arm drop back to his side.
"What are you still doing here?" He snarled finally.
Waiting.
"For what?"
For her to stop you.
"Are you talking about that witch who betrayed us both?" He hissed, both hands curling into fists tight enough to have drawn blood had he still been human. "You're here cheering for her, after she tried to kill you? After she tried to shoot you after we trusted her?"
She didn't betray me.
The situation was stupid and he knew it was. Arguing with a pile of rocks! He kept up the argument for a little while longer until the non-conversation became too much to bear.
"Right. I don't have time for blathering at nothing. That cheesehead has got to be somewhere. I need to tear him to pieces."
Go ahead, run away. The voice taunted as he turned to leave, laden with accusation and scorn. Isn't that what you've been doing all these years since the explosion? Running away?
Well, he'd finally quit running away, and it hadn't done Dan much good. The shock of seeing him, now manifest as a complete ghost startled the spook badly enough that he forgot to keep himself invisible, reappearing several feet away from the pair.
"You-!"
Sam yelped, surprised by his sudden reappearance. Her partner raised an eyebrow, apparently surprised as well but not as prone to jumping.
"What do you want?" He declared softly, stepping in front of Sam, steely blue eyes staring at Dan with almost piercing clarity.
It was ridiculous. Dan knew the black haired ghost in front of him couldn't possibly stand a chance in anything close to a fight. It had taken Danny Fenton almost a decade just to manifest as a ghost; he had to be weak as an infant! Yet the slender ghost had placed himself between Dan and Sam, and had the gall to glare defiance? His weakness, that he had taken such delight in ripping apart ten years ago thought to defy him?
Stop that! Dan growled at himself. You know better now. You should, at least.
The awkward silence dragged on for several seconds, neither party quite sure what to do next. Dan tried to match glares with Danny, red versus blue before Dan finally spoke.
"You do realize-" Dan couldn't keep the all of the smug sarcasm out of his tone. "-that if I was here for a fight, we wouldn't be having this conversation right now. It would already be over."
"I won't let you hurt anybody else." Danny replied softly, almost uncertain. Obviously he was aware that if it did come to a fight, it would not end in his favor. "Not after what you did."
"Danny..." Sam put a hand on his shoulder, clearly worried. "You don't have to do this, it's not your-"
"It is my fault." Danny replied, a trace of anger finally seeping into the slender ghost's tone. "And it's my responsibility. I won't let him hurt anybody else."
Dan mentally gagged at the useless heroics. Sure, he blamed himself for what had happened. It was his... or rather their... fault. Danny Fenton had cheated on the test. Their friends and family died as a result. Torn apart by the grief, they had agreed to Vlad's crazy idea.
They, they they. Plural. He and his weakness.
"Oh, do put a lid on it." Dan finally snapped, breaking off his end of the stare down by turning away from the pair. "I don't have time to waste listening to your prattle."
It was cowardly. He knew it was cowardly. But running seemed to be the best option for the time being. If he stayed, Dan wasn't sure what would happen; or how he would react. Seeing Valerie had aroused rage. Seeing Paulina had left him reeling with confusion and something not entirely unlike loss. Seeing Sam awakened an ache of loss he had thought himself incapable of feeling for the past decade; one those human emotions he used to think had been purged the day he tore Danny Fenton apart.
Seeing Danny Fenton himself... Dan wasn't sure how to feel or react. He had killed the boy, murdered him in a manner so horrible that looking back even he had to cringe. Out of all the murders he was responsible for, it was his very first that was also his most vicious. Sure, the slaughter of thousands, perhaps tens of thousands was on his head; however they hadn't been so... personal. They had died in ways horrible and violent, energy blasts that left little but ash, tons of debris that left only mangled corpses, plunges from vast heights ending in a red spray on the ground below; but Danny was the only one that Dan had killed with his own hands. Slowly. Very slowly.
Not even Valerie would have had such a vicious demise had he gotten his hands on her.
You can't bear to face what you were, you fool. Part of his mind whispered traitorously. Dan ignored the nagging doubt and took off, letting his two duplicates that had been distracting the dragons disappear abruptly. Thankfully, none of them tried to pursue him as he disappeared into the distance for parts unknown.
"... Danny?" Sam glanced at her friend once the threat had vanished.
"I..." Danny's expression softened, turning from defiant to a sheepish grin. "... Wow, Sam, I thought I was a goner for a minute there. Again."
"You and me both!" Sam wavered between wanting to swat Danny or hug him out of relief. "I hope the others are okay."
Shortly afterward, the two dragons came back into view, both apparently unharmed. The blue one glowed briefly, shifting down to the more recognizable (and less intimidating) form of Dora Mattingly. Her partner remained in dragon form, casting a worried glance in the direction Dan had gone.
"You two okay?" Danny asked, quirking an eyebrow at his other two friends.
"Fortunately, he wasn't able to get a single attack in." Dora grinned briefly. "However we weren't able to hit him, either."
"I dunno." Her partner rumbled. "I don't think he was even trying. I mean seriously, we've all seen what the guy can do. He only split himself twice-"
"Three times." Sam interrupted.
"Whoa, wait! Three?" It would have been amusing to see such an imposing dragon yelp and jump in surprise were such antics not already expected of Dora's royal husband. "Sam, Danny, he came here? Are you guys okay?"
"He didn't attack." Danny replied with a frown. "Something weird is going on here."
"Come to think of it, Valerie called right before he showed up." Sam cringed. "We better find out how the Patrol is faring. If he was in Amity Park first..."
The goth ghost didn't finish the statement, nor did she really need to. After all, for ten years Amity Park had been the primary target of Phantom's rage. The wasteland that surround the new city from one horizon to the other was the proof of the fire-headed spook's terrible ambition and frightful power.
"Okay." The multi-hued dragon bobbed his head once, apparently coming to a decision. "You wanna find out how Val and the others are doing, while I chase after him?"
"You sure that's a a good idea?" Danny's frown deepened. "Maybe I should go after-"
"Dude, don't worry." The drake cut the slender ghost off. "I can go after him faster, and if he goes nuts I've got a better chance of getting away than you do."
"But-"
"Danny, don't forget what he did to you." The behemoth's tone took on a surprisingly bitter note. "We couldn't help you out then, but we can now. Relax Danny, it's our turn to play hero."
"He's right, Danny. C'mon, let's head for the portal." Sam nudged her reluctant friend back toward their mutual lair and its portal.
"Okay!" The dragon flashed a toothy grin. "While you guys do that, and I'm tailing him... Sweetie, could you head back to the castle and... uh... do that royal alert the guards thing?"
Dora chuckled and floated into the air. "You mean prepare the royal army for battle? Of course, so long as you promise to be more careful than my brother was in dealing with that demon. Just because you inherited his amulet as the heir to the throne doesn't make you invincible!"
The dragon snickered nervously as Dora floated up to his face and planted a light kiss on his large cheek. "No kidding. Don't worry, even he'll have a hard time catching this fine sample sovereign masculinity!"
With that, the dragon took off, rapidly shrinking into the distance while his friends and wife rolled their eyes at the slightly misplaced machismo. Sam went back inside while Dora took off for the castle, leaving Danny alone briefly. He stared off in the direction Dan had gone, frowning.
He should be angry. After all, he had died an extremely hideous death at the hands of that ghost. The destruction of his hometown had been the spook's driving ambition for ten years. No one knew exactly how many people had been killed, how many ghosts reduced to oblivion by the madman. Then he had learned as had everyone else that some other him; from the past, ten years ago had ended up taking that monster back in time by accident, and succeeding where everyone had failed. His deranged ghost half had been beaten, trapped outside of time and never to return.
Danny knew he should have been furious. He should have hated the fire-headed spook, been thirsty for revenge.
If I was, I would be no better than him. And... I was the one the agreed to Vlad's idea. I cheated on that test that got everyone killed.
It was bitter, but it was the truth he had come to accept over the past decade. Danny had taken an unusually long time to manifest as a ghost, he knew that. Almost ten years spent bound to that lonely spot of land in Wisconsin, all alone. Not even Sam or Tucker had thought he would ever appear again, otherwise they would have visited often. He didn't blame them though, who would have thought that the deceased spirit of Danny Fenton's humanity would become a ghost while Danny Phantom was busy wrecking havoc in Amity Park?
And... Valerie had come. Not often, since at the time she was responsible for leading the defense of Amity Park, but she'd come. He would never forget the day she found out what had really happened, when he'd watched helpless as the huntress shed bitter tears over his grave. Maybe if he'd been smarter, he would have waited a few days before skipping town years ago. Maybe none of this would have happened.
That doesn't change the fact it did happen, or that he's back. Danny chided himself as he turned to follow after Sam. Right now we have to figure out what to do.
---
Dan didn't particularly care where he was running, so long as it put distance between him and... him. Well, and Sam. And Valerie. And everyone else so far that had reasonably assumed his return meant a fresh rampage in what remained of Amity Park. Their 'greeting' made that option sound disgustingly appealing. How was he supposed to change for the better when nobody seemed willing to give him half a chance?
Pheh, you blew it this time. He growled to himself, finding a clump of boulders floating in the void to land on for some high-quality sulking. You didn't belong in that other timeline, but you don't seem to belong here, either.
A few minutes later and he heard footsteps behind him. He didn't bother turning to see who it was. Dan figured any moment now there would be a useless attack, and then either a fight or another retreat. A few minutes passed in silence; perhaps his would-be attacker was hesitating or hoping to surprise him?
"Are you going to attack or just stand there?" Dan finally snapped at whoever was behind him.
"I thought attacking people was your thing." A familiar voice retorted. "But now I'm not so sure."
The voice surprised Dan enough to spin around with a barely audible gasp. The voice was familiar, though it had been in that other timeline when he'd last heard it. The figure standing behind him and staring warily was also familiar.
"...Tucker?" Dan found his voice, really unsure what to do now and settling for getting a good look at the ghost that had in life been his best friend.
Apparently being a ghost had been good for the techno-geek. Tucker's complexion had gone a dull green from its original brown, and he was dressed rather oddly. The red beret and geeky glasses were still there, however the rest of his garb looked something like an electronics store and a Renaissance Faire had been thrown into a blender; elegant yet efficient robes in yellow and grey. He also carried himself now with a confidence that seemed far more legitimate than it had been years ago.
"You know it." Tucker crossed his arms, eyeing Dan the way one might watch an unfamiliar dog.
"What are you doing here?" Dan growled, not moving from his seat. So far the geeky ghost hadn't made any overtly hostile motions, and he was curious as to what would have brought Tucker in pursuit.
"Followin' you." One eyebrow was raised, indicating something had stumped Tucker.
"Looking for a fight?" Dan growled, green energy lighting up his clenched fist.
"Dude, I'm wondering why you haven't." The geeky ghost finally blurted, backing away at the thinly veiled implication of violence. "Sam and Danny might not have noticed, but I did."
Dan narrowed his eyes and launched his blast, the detonation of a nearby boulder startling Tucker into a loud yelp.
"And just what do you think you noticed, hm?" Dan growled.
You're being an idiot. You've got the attention of someone and he's not trying to attack or anything. So stop trying to drive him off with the bad attitude you fool. He mentally chastised himself and took a deep breath and tried to collect his thoughts.
"I mean..." He began a second time, trying not to snarl the words out. "So finally someone's been observant enough to notice I haven't fired a single blast since I returned to this time?"
Tucker didn't respond immediately, and instead pointed at the cloud of debris from the detonated boulder. Dan nearly fell over.
"Okay, besides that one!" He snapped. "What's it matter to you?"
"Well!" Tucker puffed up with pride. "As the current king of the Mattingly estate and titular leader of the civilized portions of the Ghost Zone-"
"King and what-?" It was Dan's turn to jump at that tidbit of news, gawking at the shorter ghost.
"Hello!" Tucker held up an amulet that was hanging around his neck. "Cursed amulet? Dora and I are only the most famous couple in the entire Ghost Zone!"
It took Dan several seconds of open-mouthed gaping to process that. The amulet meant something... Wait, that other dragon-! Tucker, a king. That meant he wasn't just dating Dora Mattingly. That meant something else entirely, and Dan wasn't sure he wanted to think about it, but...
"You're married?" Dan blurted out, one word going through his mind at the same time. EW!
"So, it's obvious why it matters what you're doing." Tucker ignored the outburst. "Especially with your... uh... track record."
Dan's expression soured instantly. "That's not what I want any more."
Despite the fire-headed ghost's stony expression, Tucker couldn't help but gawk at that declaration. It was known throughout the Ghost Zone that this particular ghost was nothing but an insane madman, a genocidal maniac with thought only for how he would slaughter his next victim. At least, that had been the general belief as the years rolled by and the body count tallied higher and higher. Was it actually possible there was more to the single most feared ghost in the world than just the hate and destruction he'd terrorized everyone with for the past decade?
"It's... not?" Tucker managed to squeak out around his surprise.
"No, it's not." Dan repeated with visible annoyance. "Things... happened."
Tucker mentally heaved a sigh of relief. It was one thing to make pretty speeches and bold statements about waging an epic battle against a powerful foe. Still, and he was fairly certain the thought had gone through the heads of anyone that had encountered Dan thus far; it was another entirely to try and fight something you had no hope of overpowering. The strongest forces in both the human world and the Ghost Zone had thrown themselves against Phantom's strength; and had been torn to bits. What more could anyone have done to stop the ghost?
If he's not out to kill everybody... then what is he gonna do? Tucker frowned, deciding the situation was under control enough to pry for further information. "So, uh, Phantom-"
"Don't call me that." Dan snapped.
"Yipe-!" Tucker backed away from the irritable ghost. "Okay, don't shoot!"
Dan snorted at the display. "I'm not going to."
The silence that followed was decidedly awkward. On one hand, Tucker could understand where Sam and Valerie and Paulina were all coming from in regards to the fire-headed spook. He'd taken so much from everyone, there was no room for forgiveness. On the other hand, what sort of retribution could anyone demand? They had no means to forcibly extract it, and doing so wouldn't undo the years of slaughter.
And perhaps... there was something else.
Once Danny had manifested as a ghost, something hadn't felt quite right. Tucker didn't think Sam had noticed it, being so emotionally tied up with him. Neither had Valerie, driven as she was by her hatred for Pha-... for the ghost after what he'd done to her father and the city; especially after she'd learned the truth of what had happened to Danny. No, they would ever only see the bloodthirsty psychopath, they would never really see how it had changed the Danny they all knew. It was all black and white to them; Danny was Danny, Pha-... the ghost wasn't. Simple as that.
But Tucker knew better, he knew it wasn't so simple. He was likely the only one who ever acknowledged that the fire-headed spook was, whether they liked it or not, at least partly Danny. A Danny warped and twisted by grief and Vlad's 'contribution' almost beyond recognition, but there was some part of him that had been their friend. Perhaps he could see the situation more clearly, his perceptions unclouded by the romantic notions the girls both had. Perhaps his experience as a responsible leader during the rampages and subsequently organizing relations between the real world and the Ghost Zone had granted him a greater degree of maturity. In any event, he had noticed things, but elected to remain silent on them.
Their Danny was generally far quieter than he had ever been in life. He was usually timid, and there was always an air of despairing melancholy that hung about when he was near. Sure, Danny could still drum up some of that steely determination he'd had back in his ghost fighting days, but such instances were rare; he would still laugh at silly jokes, but the smile and laughter never reached his eyes. He never seemed entirely depressed or anything, just... flat. It was as if a part of him had been ripped out, leaving only part of the whole picture.
Which, of course, it had been. And now that part was standing in front of him, shoulders slouched and a look of awkward confusion that took Tucker right back to their days at Casper High. Something would have to give, and lashing out at the ghost wasn't going to help encourage him to stick to whatever had changed his mind while he was away. If he no longer wanted to lash out at everything and everyone, he clearly wouldn't be able to do so by himself. Certainly not with everyone he'd encountered so far trying to attack him.
To Tucker, the crowned King of the Mattingly castle and de facto leading figure in charge of real world-Ghost Zone relations, encouraging a non-aggressive demeanor was the only viable option for dealing with the spook. He knew they couldn't best the ghost in a fight if it came to that; and if they couldn't stop the destruction by means of brute force, they had to find an alternative.
Sam's never going to agree to that. Tucker groaned to himself. Neither is Danny. Valerie would just as soon try to blow him to bits even though none of her weapons would even scratch him! I'll talk to Dora later about it, but right now...
Right now, if anyone was going to take steps to encourage the ghost's apparent change in priorities and prevent a new unstoppable rampage, it was going to have to be Tucker.
"Okay..." He began hesitantly. "Y'don't like being called Phantom, point taken. Call it a hunch, I don't think you want to be called Danny either."
"No, I don't." Came the wary response.
So what does he want to be called then? Tucker groused to himself when a clarification didn't seem to be forthcoming. "So then, mind telling me what you'd prefer being called?"
That seemed to bring the spook up short as he looked down at Tucker incredulously, clearly not having expected the question. "What?"
"Your name, dude. I can't just shout 'Hey, you!' can I? Y'know, introductions? Here, I'll start." Tucker adjusted his beret and stood straighter, offering one hand as though for a handshake. "The name's Tucker Foley, king of the Mattingly estate and primary liason between the real world and the Ghost Zone. And you are-?"
Dan stared at him as if he'd just spoken a foreign language. It was utterly absurd, and he knew it. Still, absurd was a vast improvement over outright hostility. He could tell that Tucker was still wary, and rightfully so; but for whatever reason the geeky ghost had determined it was worthwhile to talk first. Certainly he had to realize that a fight was a waste of effort at best, suicide at worst.
"Dan." He finally replied, cautiously accepting the handshake; remembering not to grip too tightly. "Dan Plasmius."
Author's Note: First off, I haven't made a fanfiction recommendation in awhile, but this one is just too awesome to pass up. Remember that I recently got addicted to Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney? Well! I'm not the only one to have entertained the idea of a PW-DP crossover story. The Original Marisa is working on exactly that, and it's looking really, REALLY promising. So go give her fic a read and review! http:// www. fanfiction. net/s/ 3636423/ 1/
Secondly, I must once more extend my profuse thanks to you guys, my super-cool readers and reviewers. Thanks for all the ego-boosts (because deep down, you know we're all egomaniacs!) and enthusiastic responses. I hope my work continues to please! In any event, virtual root beer floats and chocolate-covered strawberries to: Angelic Kittens, i AM the Random Idiot, FunkyFish1991, Yenattirb, Selofain (Thanks again for the art:), zara2148, Fulcon, Anne Camp aka Obi-quiet, Moony's Metamorphmagus, and Eleirah!
See you next time! (Hopefully within the next two weeks... and hey, I didn't drop you guys on one of those murderous cliffhangers this time!)