Author's note: I updated a little sooner than usual, yay. Still over a month though, I know.
Also, please forgive how rough this story is. It truly is just a first draft, and I know in particular that a couple chapters could be combined to cut down on some of the repetitiveness. The problem is that I committed to this alternating point of view framing, which means I can really only advance the actual plot in Maddie's point of view. Danny's point of view doesn't really move the plot forward because he is just a stuck passive character at this point.
Quietly suffering through everything. Or sometimes not so quietly.
Dissembled
I could never make it alone.
He wanted her to leave when she was here and missed her when she was gone.
…
Maddie sat at the kitchen table, leaning over it with her arms folded on top. She had sent Jack upstairs to shower because she thought she just needed to be alone for a moment, but now she had no idea what to do with herself.
She had to find Danny, had to figure out where he was, had to…
But she didn't know what to do anymore. She had talked to everyone she could think of, looked in all of the places she thought he might be, looked in all of the places she never expected him to be, put posters everywhere she could think to and checked that no one had taken them down or covered them with missing dog or yard sale signs.
Did he really not want to be found? Did he really want to be gone?
She looked at her phone. No new messages.
She opened her text string with Danny and read his last message to her before she had grounded him and taken his phone: Is it okay if I'm a little late for dinner? Just finishing up some stuff with Sam and Tuck.
At the time, she told him yes that was fine, perfectly fine, just fine. But now it would never be fine again, she would never let him be late for anything again, she would be firm on the times he had to be home, she would homeschool him and never let him out of the house or out of her sight.
She wouldn't trust him again. Too much freedom and now he was gone and it was all her fault for trusting him so much.
Maddie rubbed her thumb over the on-screen keyboard and typed out, Where are you?
She wished she could send it. But the police had reprimanded her twice already for sending needless sentimental messages to his phone while it was in their possession. I love you, come back, I won't be mad, I want to fix this, I want to fix us, I want to fix you.
Messages she knew he couldn't possibly see right now but it helped just to send them anyway.
She deleted the drafted text and closed the messaging app.
She could still hear water rushing through the pipes. Jack was taking a long shower, far longer than usual.
She opened her contacts and clicked the detective's number. It rang four times before there was an answer.
"Detective Calhoun speaking."
"Hi, detective. It's Maddie. I haven't heard from you in a few days, so just thought I'd check in."
"Right, yes, sorry about that. I've had a busy week."
"Busy how? Did anything new happen? Any new leads?"
"We tried getting a transcript of any conversations Danny might have had through that calculator app on his phone. But the creators of the app tell us they are unable to retrieve any of that information."
"Can't it be hacked on his phone?"
"Our team has not been able to, no."
Maddie exhaled loudly. "So that's it, then? His phone isn't going to be any use to us?"
"Presently, no. I asked his friend Tucker about the app, but—"
"Wait, Tucker? You talked to him?"
"Yes, I spoke with him," said the detective. " A couple days ago."
"A couple days ago? Why didn't you tell me?"
"There was a lot of information to process, a lot of other things that came up that I needed to take care of. I also interviewed Brandan Cross. It's just been a really busy week."
"Brandan Cross. Danny's therapist." Maddie rose to her feet. "You spoke to him too?"
"Yes, we were able to meet."
Maddie clutched the phone tight as she paced the floor. "And? What did he say? What did Tucker say? Anything that helps?"
"Tucker said that he was familiar with the calculator app and even showed me the app on his own phone. He said he, Danny, and Sam would sometimes use the app for conversations they didn't want their parents knowing about. But he claims they always deleted the messages at the end of the day, so there were no conversations he could show me."
"Conversations they didn't want their parents knowing about? Like what?"
"Tucker said nothing bad, as he put it. But sometimes they wanted to sneak out past curfew to hang out. Dumb teen stuff, as he called it."
"Hang out to do what? Did he say?"
"He didn't mention any specifics. But based on our conversation, I do not suspect they were involved in anything illegal or dangerous."
"But then why would they want to keep that so secret? Why go to the trouble of using a secret app?"
The detective paused. "Tucker said that Danny was very afraid of getting in trouble."
"Afraid of what?" asked Maddie. "Us? His father and me?"
"Why would you suggest he might be afraid of the two of you?"
Maddie huffed. "I mean, was he afraid we would punish him if we found out he was sneaking out past curfew or doing other things he wasn't supposed to?"
"Well. Certainly no teen wants to be punished."
Maddie thinned her lips.
"Tucker also informed me that Danny asked him to help him delete some files from his computer," said the detective. "He claimed they were just some pictures and videos Danny did not want you and Jack to see. Tucker said that Danny was worried you might go through his computer while he was grounded."
"What kind of pictures and videos?"
"Tucker claims they were pornographic in nature."
"He claims it, so you're not sure?"
"I can't be sure since I didn't see them myself. But I have no reason to believe it isn't true."
"So you think that's all they were?"
"I do think that might be the case, yes."
"But why would Danny ask Tucker to delete them so completely that not even the police could find them?"
The detective did not answer.
"He knows Jack and I aren't that computer savvy. We wouldn't know how to find anything that he just deleted normally." Maddie paused. "I mean, are you sure that's all it was? Just porn? Why would he want to make absolutely certain no one would find that?"
"What might you have done if you had found those files on his computer, Maddie?"
Maddie frowned.
"Would you have scolded him?" pressed the detective. "Confined him to his room? Something else?"
"Why are you asking that?" asked Maddie in a low voice.
The detective said nothing for some time. There was a scuffling sound on his side of the call.
"Detective?" said Maddie.
"Sorry, I was just looking at something," said the detective. "Is there anything else I can answer for you right now, Maddie? I have a lot of work to get back to."
Maddie's stomach knotted, but she tried to shake it out.
"So Tucker couldn't show you any conversations from the calculator app, and he helped Danny purge porn from his computer." Maddie drew in a breath and steadied her tone. "Did he say anything else? And what about Brandan? What did he say?"
"I need to go over the other information I gleaned from their interviews a little more," said the detective. "But I will let you know when I have more to tell you."
"Why can't you just tell me now?"
The detective went quiet again. Maddie could hear papers shuffling.
"Detective," said Maddie more forcefully. "Why can't you tell me more of what they said now?"
"I think it would be better to tell you in person," said the detective. "Once I have everything compiled and ready."
"I want to know now." Maddie's nerves bristled. "Tell me now. If it's something that will help us find Danny, I need to know."
"I don't think it will help us find him."
"What do you mean? What is it?"
"I will let you know soon," said the detective. "I have a lot of work to do now. I'll call you if I need anything or if something comes up."
The call disconnected. Maddie fell into a chair and stared at her phone screen for some time.
Jack entered the kitchen, smelling like the apple cider soap she had bought him.
"Anything new?" he asked, opening the fridge and pulling out a large brick of fudge.
Maddie hid her phone between her thighs. "No. Nothing."
The morning had been sunny but clouds rolled in throughout the afternoon, and by evening, it was raining. Maddie usually loved to breathe in these spring showers but now they seemed bleak, sad.
She wondered if it was raining wherever Danny was, too. How far away was he from Amity Park? Or was he so much nearer than she realized?
The answer to that question didn't matter for the next couple hours. It was Phantom's turn now.
Maddie sloshed through the mud toward the lab, wishing Vlad had put some asphalt down here. Inside, she wiped her boots on the door mat before making her way to the main area of the lab.
Phantom was still on the examination table. Waiting for her. She no longer worried that he somehow wouldn't be here when she arrived. He was hers and he was here to stay. His presence was a certainty.
Until she was ready to be done with him. But that would be her decision.
She stood over him. He was awake.
"Shall we begin?" she asked.
He didn't answer.
She pressed two fingers on his jumpsuit emblem, right at his sternum. His body stiffened.
"I really want to get a look inside you," said Maddie. "I've been putting that off, doing all the easy, less invasive experiments first. But exploring the anatomical and physiological workings of your body has always been my main objective."
His breathing became shallow. Maddie moved her hand to his shoulder.
"I need to do some more thorough imaging first," said Maddie. "I want to get some CT scans using contrast dye. That will help me get the clearest idea of what to expect before I dive in there physically."
His glow dimmed, his face paled.
"That means I won't be cutting into you tonight," said Maddie articulately. "Don't start hyperventilating on me, okay?"
She unbelted his arm and placed it down by his side.
"And you won't fight me today, right? When I move you over to the CT scanner?" She unzipped his suit and pulled his arm out of the sleeve. "I won't have to use a muscle relaxant on you, will I?"
Phantom nodded without looking at her. Satisfied, Maddie inserted an IV needle in the crook of his arm.
"I'm going to let you remove your suit on your own," said Maddie, unbelting his legs and remaining arm. "But I have a sedative ready, so don't try anything."
She stepped back once his restraints were all undone and aimed a loaded dart gun at him. Phantom sat up, looking mystified and almost disoriented.
"You want me to take off my suit?" he clarified.
"Unless you'd rather me take it off."
Phantom's face flushed green. Maddie had already seen this reaction from him several times, shame and embarrassment that she had never seen from other ghosts.
How did he do it? How was he able to fake that rush of ectoplasm to his cheeks?
She was determined to tear into him and find out.
He pulled his other arm out of his sleeve, then swung his legs over to hang off the table and removed the lower portion of his suit, leaving him in just his underwear. He draped the suit across the table beside him and hunched over, the IV needle still in his arm.
"Do I need to take off more than that?" he asked, sounding apprehensive and full of dread.
"No," said Maddie, chuckling. "I find it odd that you even care about that, honestly."
He gave her a small smile. "I suppose I'm faking this too, aren't I?"
"Of course you are," said Maddie. "But perhaps it's just part of your obsession and you have no control over the feelings you fake."
"Perhaps."
They both fell quiet. Maddie stepped closer to him, still holding the dart gun.
"Let's go."
She directed him to the CT scanner, aiming the dart gun as he walked ahead of her at a steady pace. He never looked back.
She debated the need to strap him down for the scan. He seemed so docile, compliant.
But that was probably what he was hoping for. He was waiting for her to get too comfortable with him, to slip up and keep him unrestrained for too long.
He lay patiently on the scanner table. Unmoving.
If he really was hoping she would get sloppy and too trusting, he was going to be very disappointed.
She belted him down, securing his arms above his head and keeping them straight to prevent the IV line from kinking. She connected the line to a supply of contrast dye.
"The dye will make you feel warm at times. Like a flood of warmth in your chest or lower body." Maddie moved to the computer. "That's normal."
Phantom gave her a curious look.
"I just don't want you worrying and hyperventilating again," said Maddie. "Just stay calm, please."
Phantom turned his eyes to the ceiling and released a long breath. Maddie keyed in the commands to begin the scan, moving the table inside the gantry and releasing the dye in intervals as the scanner whirred and rotated.
His face was stoic at first, then his mouth and eyes began twitching, his arms pulled against his restraints.
"Is there a problem?" asked Maddie.
Phantom shook his head.
"Then why are you squirming?"
Phantom tilted his head back and cleared his throat. "Just feeling a little itchy."
Maddie looked at his stretched arms. She could see a patch of green breaking out around his IV puncture.
"Do you feel like your throat is closing up?" asked Maddie. "Is it getting hard to breathe?"
Phantom shook his head.
"Just hang on," said Maddie, returning her attention to the computer. "Try to ignore it and keep still. Almost done."
A few minutes later, Maddie brought the table out of the scanner and inspected his arm. Several hives decorated his skin around the IV needle and across the rest of his arm. Maddie looked over his body, finding more green bumps and discoloration on his chest and neck.
"Amazing," said Maddie. "This has never happened before."
She pulled out the IV needle and took off her glove, feeling the uneven texture dotting his arm. Phantom turned his face in her direction but did not say anything.
"You're allergic to the contrast dye," she said. "This is a first. I've never seen this before." She halted. "Well, that's not true. This is the first time I've ever seen this happen to a ghost. But I've seen an allergic reaction to dye before. My son is allergic to contrast dye."
An image of her little boy's tiny body breaking out in rashes entered her mind. She shut her eyes and shook her head.
"But I'm not supposed to be talking about him," she muttered. "Leave it to you to make me think about him once again."
She prodded at his skin some more, feeling the warmth of the more swollen areas, a warmth that still felt cold compared to how a human would feel. One thing she could always count on to confirm he wasn't human, to justify everything she was doing here.
Even at times she was feeling less sure about his lack of humanity, at least he was still cold to the touch.
Phantom's brows drew together. "He is?"
Maddie stared at him. "What? Who is?"
"Your son," said Phantom. "He's allergic to contrast dye?"
He sounded puzzled. Maddie cocked her head.
"Yes, he is," said Maddie. "Is there a reason that interests you?"
Phantom lowered his eyes.
"Hmm. I see. You're trying to connect yourself to my son to get my sympathy, right?" Maddie leaned against the scanner table. "You're still clever as always."
Phantom turned his head away from her.
"He needed a CT scan once. When he was four years old." Maddie's voice softened. She knew it wasn't Danny's time but something about the pitiful look in Phantom's eyes made her want to tell him the story. "I'm sure he doesn't even remember now."
She looked up at the ceiling.
"Wherever he is," she whispered.
She could see Phantom's gaze turning back to her on the lower periphery of her vision. She met his gaze and gripped the edge of the table.
"He just kept throwing up," said Maddie. "He could never keep any food down. He complained about his stomach hurting all the time. It got to the point where he wouldn't eat anymore. So his doctor suggested a CT scan to see if there were any abnormalities. Liver damage, gallstones, blockages, cancer…" Maddie paused. "I was really worried when that was mentioned as a possibility."
She was quiet for a moment, remembering how nervous she was the night before Danny's scan, how she prayed that whatever it was, it could be fixed and her boy would be just fine.
"But it wasn't cancer," said Phantom.
Maddie looked down at him.
"I mean, right?" said Phantom. "It wasn't cancer, right?"
"No," said Maddie. "His scan was fine. His results were unremarkable. They diagnosed him with acid reflux and irritable bowel syndrome and gave me a new diet plan to follow."
She turned around and rested her elbows on the table, crossing one leg over the other.
"But it wasn't acid reflux or IBS either," she said, hushed. "Actually, food made him sick because of me."
She sniffled. She couldn't look at Phantom now, not when she was confessing something she had never told anyone.
"I did some testing of my own and found that he had been ingesting ectoplasm. Jack and I often stored samples in the kitchen fridge when the lab fridge was full. I guess it kept contaminating the food. Food that I would prepare and serve to the whole family. Serve to him. My son."
She brought her fingertips to her lips, gently sucking at them.
"He barely ate anything on his own for years after. Even after I cleaned out the fridge and prepared meals more carefully. Even when I went out and bought food from somewhere else. He just never wanted to eat. It got bad enough that we considered having a feeding tube placed."
She recalled all the fits he used to throw when she tried to get him to eat, how he'd run away from the dinner table and Jack would have to chase him down and bring him back.
"But you didn't do that either," said Phantom. "Right?"
Maddie looked over her shoulder at him. "Yes. Right. We were eventually able to get him to eat more with incentives: staying up a little later than his bedtime, reading his favorite story about the stars and planets. Stuff like that." She faced forward again. "But he still doesn't like eating very much. I can tell. I try to make his favorite food but he never gets that excited about it. He's still so thin for his height, his age." She smiled. "Nothing like his father at all. Jack stuffs his face all day long with fudge."
Her smile faded. She pressed a palm to her forehead.
"It was my fault," she whispered. "I poisoned him and now he hates eating. And I worry about him getting enough to eat all the time because he only likes eating when he's in a good mood and prefers to starve himself when he's upset because eating used to make him sick when he was younger. And so now he thinks eating will just make him feel worse. And I don't think he even remembers that anymore but I do, I remember, I know it. But I never told anyone. I never told his doctors because I was worried what they'd think or who they'd tell."
She clutched at the front of her jumpsuit, her chest shuddering beneath it. She breathed deeply several times.
"And I've never told him because I don't know what he'd think of me for being such a bad mother who kept poisoning him." Tears filled her eyes. "But I really didn't mean to do it."
She had kept this secret for so long. And it had spilled out of her so easily just now, a confession she had been wanting to make for over ten years.
So cathartic to finally get it out, to have someone hear it.
Especially someone who wasn't even a real person. Someone who would be dead soon.
"Anyway." Maddie sniffled and smoothed her hood over her head. "He had an allergic reaction to the dye as well. Hives and rashes, just like you. In his case, we stopped the application immediately. But you are not my son, and I really needed these scan images."
She wiped her tears away.
"I just wish I knew what it meant, you having an allergic reaction when no other ghost has exhibited that before. Or the hyperventilating. Your dramatic reactions to pain." Maddie rubbed her lips together. "You have extraordinary powers compared to most ghosts and yet your body seems more fragile somehow. I don't understand you."
She turned to face Phantom again, ready to undo his restraints and take him back to the main examination table. His eyes appeared wet, his lips trembling slightly. Maddie paused, trying to make sense of his expression. He wasn't going to cry again, was he? Why?
"What is it?" asked Maddie.
Phantom gazed up at her. "He'd never think you're a bad mom," he said, his voice low and raspy.
Heat sparked in Maddie's face. "What are you doing? Are you trying to comfort me again?"
Phantom did not reply. His eyes were still misty.
"I told you not to do that." Maddie shook her head. "Don't do that. And don't tell me what he thinks, you don't know him, you have no idea—"
She gripped the edge of the table and ducked her head, resisting the urge to slap him as she composed herself. She had to keep her emotions out of this, had to control herself and not take her anger out on a specimen, that wasn't what a good scientist did.
She lifted her head again, releasing a long breath. Phantom's eyes were no longer wet, but she could see the trails his tears had travelled down his face.
"Time to go back," she said.
Maddie walked Phantom back to the main examination table. He climbed onto the table and lay in position, holding his arms up for her to secure in place.
"Are you hoping to get special treatment for good behavior?" asked Maddie as she fastened and tightened each belt.
"You won," said Phantom, quiet and almost nonchalant. "You won me fair and square. I fought my hardest and still couldn't beat you. No sense in fighting you anymore."
Maddie finished restraining him. "Seems like we could've avoided a lot of trouble if you had just accepted that from the beginning."
She rubbed the tip of her thumb under his left eye, noting the scar that still streaked across it, showing no improvement from the days before.
Her gaze moved to his bare arms, which were still covered in green spots.
"You're not having trouble breathing, right?" she asked.
Phantom shook his head.
"Are you itchy at all?"
"Not too bad. Just my arms and neck."
"I can see if Vlad keeps some Benadryl somewhere. I guess maybe you've earned that." She pointed a finger in his face. "But it's only because I need to get you back to good condition before I can do any other tests. So don't get used to it."
"Don't worry, I won't," said Phantom, sounding fatigued and worn.
Maddie searched through Vlad's drug inventory and found a collection of antihistamines.
"I couldn't find anything in liquid form." Maddie placed a hand behind Phantom's head to prop him up. "Here."
She held a small pill between her fingers right at his lips. Phantom frowned at it.
"You want me to swallow this?" he asked.
"Yes. It should relieve your allergy symptoms. You can dry swallow this, can't you?"
Phantom's eyes wrinkled.
"Can you not?" Maddie sighed. "I guess I can get you some water."
"No," said Phantom quickly with a shaking voice. "I can do it, I just—sorry."
He opened his mouth enough for Maddie to drop the pill in. Maddie watched the muscles in his jaw and neck move as he swallowed it down. His expression relaxed as Maddie moved her hand out from under his head.
"You should start feeling less itchy soon," said Maddie.
Phantom nodded but said nothing.
Maddie stared at him, wondering what to do now. She really couldn't perform any tests on him in this state, not until his rashes disappeared entirely.
She would uncover the secrets in his body soon enough. But his mind, there was so much there she worried she would never discover before he succumbed to her experimentation.
"Tell me about your name," she said.
Phantom squinted one eye. "My name?"
"Yes. Your name. Danny Phantom."
Phantom rolled his eyes up briefly before looking at her again. "What about my name?"
Maddie held her arms. "Talking about my son earlier reminded me that you and he have the same first name. It's a common name for boys, I suppose, so I'm not too surprised."
Phantom lowered his gaze.
"Did you choose that name for yourself when you became a ghost? Danny?"
Phantom shook his head.
"Has it always been your name, then? Before you died? When you were human?"
Phantom paused before nodding.
"You really remember that from your past life, then? Fascinating," said Maddie.
Phantom shrugged.
"Did your parents name you Danny?" asked Maddie. "Or your mother, since you claim to remember her. If we were to find your birth certificate, would that be the name on it?"
"I suppose it would probably say Daniel," said Phantom. "But yes. Danny is what my mother called me."
"Did she choose that name for you? Or your father? Did you have a father? Were you named after someone?"
Phantom said nothing.
"I chose my son's name," said Maddie. "Danny. I had to fight with Jack on it, he hated that name. He thought it sounded 'dumb,' his word. But he got to choose our daughter's name, so I got to choose for our next child. That was the deal we made."
Maddie reflexively trailed her fingers along her belly, remembering the feel of being pregnant with her baby boy.
"I always wanted a boy," she whispered. "And I always wanted to name him Danny. Not Daniel, just Danny. Such a perfect name."
Phantom's brows pinched. Maddie continued drumming her fingers on her belly, remembering when her boy was so close to her, part of her, and now he was—
No, why was she doing this to herself again, it wasn't Danny's turn. She had all day tomorrow to cry over him. It was Phantom's turn now, she had to focus on—
"I guess my mother did choose that name for me," said Phantom.
Maddie dropped her fingers from her belly and stared at him for a few quiet seconds. Phantom's gaze was fixed on the ceiling.
"She had good taste," said Maddie.
Phantom did not respond.
"What about your second name? Phantom," said Maddie. "That wasn't your last name from when you were human, right?"
"No," said Phantom. "It was not."
"Right. I don't think I've ever heard of anyone with that last name." Maddie chuckled. "So did you choose that name yourself?"
"Yes."
"Why that name?"
"Hmm." Phantom chewed the inside of his cheek. "I guess it just sounded cool."
"That mattered to you? Really?"
Phantom shrugged.
"When you say 'cool,' do you mean that you just personally liked it, or were you hoping having a cool name would help humans like you more?"
Phantom exhaled through his nose. "I don't really know. I don't know who I was trying to impress or what I wanted people to think. It seems kind of stupid now that I cared so much about it." He lifted one wrist, pulling at the belt holding it down. "Really doesn't matter now, does it?"
"It matters to me," said Maddie. "Gives me some clues about your obsession as a ghost."
Phantom huffed but said nothing.
"But your first name gives me clues about your psyche."
Phantom stared at her, his brows lowering.
"Why didn't you choose to go by just Phantom?" asked Maddie. "Why Danny Phantom? Why did you include that remnant from your past life in your name?"
Phantom was quiet for some time. Maddie waited.
"I guess maybe because I sometimes still felt like the person I used to be before I became a ghost," he said in a soft voice.
"And who were you?" asked Maddie.
Phantom said nothing.
"Do you remember your real last name?" asked Maddie. "From when you were human?"
Phantom paused before answering. "No."
Maddie studied his face closely. His eyes were trained on the ceiling, their corners twitching slightly. She continued to stare at him, waiting to see if he would glance at her even briefly, but his gaze remained fixed.
"I think you're lying," said Maddie.
Phantom shifted the position of his back on the table. He never blinked.
"I think you know what your last name was." Maddie moved so that her face was directly above his. "I think you know who you were."
Phantom's face paled. "No, I—"
"You had to have been someone important," said Maddie firmly. "Weren't you? Someone of significance."
"No."
"Yes," spat Maddie. "Why else would you remember anything about your past life when no other ghost does? Why would you remember if your life wasn't important somehow?" She pressed her palms to the table. "Something about you was special."
"No," insisted Phantom, his voice breaking. "I was nobody."
"Liar."
"No, really, I was nothing. I wasn't good at anything, no one ever paid attention to me or thought much of me at all."
"So then you do remember who you were?"
"I—no, but—"
"How can you even know you weren't anyone special unless you remember who you were?"
Phantom pressed his lips and inhaled deeply.
Maddie drummed her fingers on the table. "If you really weren't someone important or special, then there was something special about the way you died. Something that allowed you to retain memories of your past life."
She moved close to his face. Phantom tilted his head up but was unable to get away from her glare.
"You said you were electrocuted." Maddie removed her goggles from over her eyes and placed them on top of her head. "What else happened? That can't have been it."
Phantom looked away. "No. It was—"
Maddie held his jaw and forced him to turn his face to her. He shut his eyes.
"It was just an accident," he gasped out. "And I was just stupid and I was no one important and I don't know why I'm this way, I swear I don't know."
His whimpering was pitiful, pathetic. Maddie let go of him in recoil.
"I didn't want to be this way," he whispered. "I hate being this way."
His eyes were still closed tight as his head shook side to side and the rest of his body trembled. Maddie stared at him, unmoving, deciphering him. He was trying to distract her, trying to push her away, trying to protect the truth of what he really was.
She was getting so sick of this. So sick of this dissembling.
She hovered over him. Phantom opened his eyes and shrank back as Maddie advanced.
"I will find out what you are. I will find out who you were," she hissed directly into his face, her mouth mere inches from his. "You can't hide from me forever, Danny."
His lips parted and something slipped in his eyes, a glassy bewilderment. Maddie immediately realized her mistake and pulled back, straightening.
"Phantom," she said more calmly. "Danny Phantom. I have you and I will know everything you are soon enough."
She pulled her goggles back down over her eyes and fit all stray strands of her hair beneath her hood. She could see Phantom continuing to stare at her out of the corner of her eye.
"Are you sure you want to know?"
Maddie turned to him fully, taking a moment to process his question. He gazed back at her, the glow in his left eye still dimmer than the right.
"What if you don't like what you find out?" he asked, more pressing.
Maddie placed her hands on her hips and inclined her head, shaking it a couple times in disbelief. "This is going to happen, Phantom." She extended her arms gesturing around the lab. "There is no way out of this for you."
Phantom stared at her in silence. Maddie crossed her arms and scrunched her mouth.
He then nodded and turned his face up toward the ceiling. His eyes emptied.
No, but he wasn't empty. He had so much inside of him she had to cut into and remove.
So many secrets to surgically examine.