So recently, I posted the part above to my "Tumblr Prompts" collection on AO3 ad . You guys can thank a comment from GhostWriterGirl1 on AO3 for inspiring me to write more for this idea.)
Returning home…. the longer Danny stays, the more of a problem that becomes. He bonds with Vlad, who isn't Jack by any means and vows he would never dream to replace the man who raised Danny. But this Vlad does care about him.
And Daniel… Daniel is not what he expects. Danny slowly realizes that, though he and Daniel look very similar, they aren't actually identical. Physically, they have different freckles, different birthmarks, different scars, even different fingerprints. They even have different birthdays. And personality and interests wise, they're different. Daniel… isn't actually him. Daniel is his own person and just as real as Danny himself is. And what more…
The two bond and find they get along really well. They play video games and stargaze. Daniel takes him horseback riding. Danny shows off his powers. The two laugh, joke, and banter. They get on each other's nerves sometimes but the more time they spend together, the more it feels like…they're siblings.
The thought shocks Danny and reminds him of who is not here. Jazz. His big sister never existed here and he misses her so badly. One day, Daniel asks about her and Danny shows him pictures and tells him stories. And Danny ends up crying, overwhelmed with it all.
It's then Danny actually starts to face the fact that he erased his sister from existence. His sister doesn't exist anymore. And it's his fault. And even worse… Jack Fenton, not his biological father but the man who raised him, is dead. He got the man who he's always known as his dad killed.
Vlad and Daniel both comfort him and with that knowledge… they encourage him to go back. Vlad had already said he would sacrifice his own happiness for his best friend's life. and Daniel… he wishes Jazz was here and he could meet her. It's not fair that he exists while she doesn't. So he doesn't fight with his parents as they work on the portal to send Danny home. He doesn't want his reality to be erased but the pain on Danny's face… maybe his father, Vlad, is right. His happiness, his life, is worth giving up to save Danny's dad and sister's existence.
But still, Danny is conflicted. The more time he spends with this Vlad, the more he wishes that his Vlad was like this, someone he would be happy learning from and spending time with, this Vlad who apologized for things he didn't even do, who is a good father to Daniel and has slowly adopted Danny himself as a second son. Danny doesn't want to leave and lose him but….
The half ghost remembers another version of Vlad, the one that he met when he went to the future. That Vlad was repentant. That Vlad had helped him. And this one… if Vlad could change in that future, if the version of the man in front of him exists, then maybe his Vlad can change. Maybe, all his biological father needs is a second chance. Maybe then, everything can turn out well in his world too. After that revelation, Danny feels better about the choice to leave but at the same time…
Daniel. If he leaves, he'll never see Daniel again. At the best, they'll be separated, each stuck in their own reality. At worst, Daniel and everyone in this timeline will be erased from existence, everything that they are just gone. The thought of that is huge and nigh unfathomable but the thought of losing the boy he's come to see as brother, that hurts almost as much as Jazz not being there and his dad being dead.
But still, the portal eventually does get finished. And Daniel and Vlad again push Danny to leave and Danny makes his decision. Goodbyes are said. Vlad gives Danny a letter to give to his Vlad.
Daniel hugs him. "This isn't goodbye." He whispers. "You'll see me again."
Danny pulls back, saying nothing. The look on Daniel's face… he can't place it. Is this denial? Blind optimism? Or…despite it all, does Daniel somehow have assured hope?
Danny leaves through the portal, heading to Clockwork's tower. There, he goes back in time to reverse his mistake.
In Daniel's timeline, his reality is in its last hours. The rest of the world doesn't know but Daniel and his parents do. They hug each other and go to bed. That night, Daniel lies on his bed as the darkness encroaches, his world unraveling. He closes his eyes and somehow, instead of feeling afraid, the boy is at peace. As he drifts asleep, Daniel wonders if he'll ever wake up again. Maybe he won't and this is the end; all that will be left of him is memories in his counterpart's head. Or… he has a feeling, he has hope despite the circumstance… maybe he'll wake up in a different world.
As Daniel's world blinks out of existence, a new soul is born into another universe.
Meanwhile, Danny returns with the cure. For everyone else, it's been days. But for Danny he's been away for months. His hair is longer, he's taller. The changes are obvious and…the truth comes out. About Danny being half ghost, about the time travel, about… Vlad being his father.
Danny confronts his Mom about his true parentage, leading to a shameful story about a moment of weakness on her part. Jack had forgotten their anniversary and she was pissed off. She'd gone to see her old college friend, just out of the hospital. They'd both gotten drunk….things had happened and immediately after, Maddie cut ties with Vlad, disgusted by what they'd done together. She had gotten pregnant later and hadn't known which man was the father until now, though…she'd had a feeling.
Jack and Vlad both learn and…oh boy… Jack is devastated, feeling utterly betrayed. And Vlad is losing his mind. He's ready to start with 'join me' speech, now flouting his paternity. But Danny drags him away to read him the riot act. This doesn't mean Vlad gets to keep being a creep and he doesn't get to be Danny's dad if he doesn't act like one. There's a lot of anger, a fight almost breaks out, but Vlad is still too weakened from the ecto acne to form so much as an ectoblast. He leaves with his tail between his legs.
Back in his castle, Vlad is fuming. So much has happened. His ectoacne returned and he got his cure. He learned the truth, that Danny is his son. But…what to do with that knowledge? He goes down to the lab to check on experiments and he's even more pissed. He'd been starting his experiments to clone Danny and while he had been away, all of the subjects had destabilized. Every chamber is just swirling with ectoplasm but empty of any life, human or ghostly. Vlad goes back upstairs.
Some time later, Danny shows up. He's since calmed down. He talks about the alternative timeline, about the other Vlad, and he gives Vlad the letter. Danny leaves and…
Vlad reads the letter, written to him from an alter version of himself.
'Your son is incredible.' It says. 'You are fortunate to have such a brave and compassionate boy.' The other Vlad's words explain more of what happened, what he learned from Danny about his counterpart. 'Now you know the truth. If I know Danny, and I am sure we both do, he does not wish to be your enemy. He wishes to heal your relationship. But will you allow that to happen, or will you continue to be bitter and selfish? You have a chance to make up for your mistakes and to be his father. Do not waste this opportunity, Vladimir."
The words are convicting, exactly what Vlad needs to hear. His heart is wracked with guilt but…the letter is right. He has a chance to do this right. And he must do this right.
Vlad calls Danny. He tells the boy that he read a letter and offers his apologies. Humbly, he asks for Danny to give him another chance. He offers to let Danny stay at his castle for a weekend and train him in his powers, no strings attached. Tentatively, Danny accepts. Things are tense at home after the news and he can't get away for a while but still, the two set a date for a few weeks later.
In the meanwhile, Vlad gets things in order. First he needs to stop work on any plan in motion against the younger halfa and the rest of the Fentons. The camera's spying on Fentonworks are deactivated. Threats are made to strong arm Skulker into stopping his hunt of Danny. Vlad considers what to do about Valerie, since with her grudge, she likely won't stop hunting Danny even if Vlad asks but maybe he can still persuade her. Either way, he doesn't need the recordings he's been getting from her; his plans to clone Danny will never come to fruition. And then finally, Vlad goes down to his lab to clean up and dispose of the remains of the cloning experiments.
Now that he's on the path of reconciling with Danny, deep shame fills Vlad as he thinks of his actions. That was an incredibly foolish mistake, a potential disaster. But at least he decided to stop before it was too late. He can get rid of everything, delete all the data and Danny will never need to know.
Except…. Vlad surveys at the tubes, flushing them of ectoplasm. And…he could have sworn all of the experiments had destabilized. They were empty just days ago. But one… there's a weak ectosignature, the soft glow of a forming core. The ectoplasm swirls, occasionally coalescing into a vaguely humanoid shape.
A pit forms in Vlad's stomach. This should not be here. Yet it is. And still…he could flush it, erase the evidence. And yet… something about that feels wrong. Part of him is curious, wanting to see what happens. And another part feels…something else, some positive feeling he can't identify. He can't get rid of it. He can't. And maybe he shouldn't, at least not yet. Maybe it would have been a mistake to cover all of this up without telling Danny. It would be dishonest. No, he needs to show Danny that he intends to change. He needs to show Danny even his most shameful actions.
Vlad cleans the rest of the lab and keeps track of the developing core. It's slowly growing stronger and nervousness grows in the man. It really shouldn't without his attention. It's still unstable and by all accounts should have dissipated by itself. Maybe… this is just a spontaneously forming blob ghost. It's not like he can measure any cognitive activity, not even a suggestion that the experiment might be or eventually become sentient, much less sapient. But still… occasionally, a hand, a leg, or arm solidify before disappearing again. Vlad has a bad feeling.
And for Danny…things are strange at home. He has his best friends and he's so happy that they're no longer infected with the ectoacne. Thing's have really changed with them. And Jazz… she's reassured him multiple times that she's his big sister and she always be; his different paternity doesn't change that. And Danny is so happy and relieved to have her back. But his parents…
Things are tense. They knew he's Phantom and that in and of itself makes things difficult but the other revelation… Danny's heard Jack and Maddie arguing about it multiple times. The man's felt angry and betrayed. For about a week, he left, going to stay with a cousin's family. Danny had cried, fearing that the two would break up and it would be all his fault. His mom reassured him of course, vowing that it wasn't, that this was on her. Still, Danny wasn't that comforted.
Jack did come back and Danny knows he and his mom talked, seemingly coming to some understanding. But the man's been distant since then, throwing himself into invention more than ever. And Danny doesn't know how to approach him, how to say that he still wants to be Jack Fenton's son, if the man wants him.
But at the same time… Vlad. He wants to make up with the man. And him apologizing was a big deal. And he wants things to get better. He wants to be….he's not sure what relationship he wants with Vlad. He still remembers the other timeline and… he'd liked being a part of that family. He'd liked Vlad being a father to him. Does he want to be Vlad's son now?
But at the same time….he'd missed his Dad so much. He'd had guilt induced nightmares, he's cried about it. And the other Vlad had comforted him through it, talking about how much he missed his friend as well and how happy he was that Jack was a good dad to him. Now, he's back in his time. He has his dad back but… with how Jack will hardly look at him, it still feels like he'd lost the man.
Speaking of the other timeline, another thing haunts him. Danny has dreams. About him and Daniel playing basketball in the gym, about them playing video games, about them hanging out with Daniel's Sam and Tucker. Danny wakes up crying often. It hurts. It hurts a lot. So do things with Vlad and with his dad but…both of those people are here. There's a chance of making things right with both of them but Daniel…. Danny wakes up crying because he misses his brother and he's not coming back.
Sooner enough, the day comes and Danny arrives at the mansion. After awkward pleasantries and showing the boy his room, the two eat dinner. There's talking and training and star gazing. Finally, Vlad gets the courage to tell Danny the truth. He presents the truth, delicately explaining his plan to clone Danny.
Danny is in shock. He's not sure whether to be angry or upset.
But Vlad promises. "I vow to you, I've stopped the experiments. I will destroy and delete everything but…I want you to see with your own eyes. I want to… prove to you that I intend to be better."
The man takes the boy down to the lab. And Vlad is surprisingly nervous. He dreads how Danny will react. And Danny's reaction…. the boy's eyes widen, staring at the tube of ectoplasm. Stiffly, he approaches radiating disbelief. He places his hand on the tube and…
Vlad watches in equally strong disbelief as the ectoplasm swirls and solidifies. The man can hardly believe it as the creature in the tube changes, morphing into the perfect image of…the younger halfa in ghost form.
Instantly, Danny starts crying. "No. No. It's not… it's not possible."
Vlad just stares.
"No. You're not…this isn't…it's not… it's not possible."
The watery words finally draw the man out of his shock. Danny is upset, much more upset than he had anticipated. This is not good. Vlad takes a step forward, intending to pull the boy away from the upsetting scene. "Danny." Another measure of trust, using the boy's preferred name. "I am so sorry. I am so sorry, little badger."
The boy doesn't acknowledge him, still muttering in disbelief to Vlad's distress. He needs to pull the boy away. He had been intending to flush the pod now, to show Danny that he was in fact going to dispose of the experiments. Seeing a small core dissipated wouldn't have been that upsetting. But this…if the being remains in the false image of the half ghost's form…. He can't let Danny see that.
Grabbing his shoulder, Vlad turns Danny to the side to face him. "Please go upstairs." His eyes flicker to the side. "I'll take care of this."
Clarity enters Danny's eyes. "Take care of?"
The man's voice quiets. "I told you I would… dispose of the experiments. I don't want you to see this."
Danny pales, understanding. "No! NO! You can't! How could…how could you do that?!" He looks betrayed.
Vlad is taken aback. "Danny… what do you-"
"It's…it's him." Danny interrupts. "It's him."
The man blinks. "Who?"
"Daniel. It's…it's Daniel. It's him. He's here. He's here. He's alive." He's still crying but…he's smiling.
Vlad is still lost. "Daniel?"
Danny shakes his head. "He… he showed me. He's dreaming about that time we went horseback riding." He beams. "He's here. Daniel's here." He turns back to the tube. "You were…you were right, you dofus. You were right."
The older half ghost eventually manages to get an explanation out of Danny. He's positive, he's sure that the clone in the tube is actually his counterpart from the other timeline.
Danny turns back to Vlad. "Come on. Let's let him out. You need…you need to meet him. And Jazz! He'll be so excited! And my Sam and Tuck-"
"We can't. He's not stable." Vlad explains what that mean, seeing Danny pale.
"What does he need, to be okay? So he'll be healthy." The boy begs.
"I need to do some research….." Vlad considers. "Possibly a DNA sample from you mid-morph."
Danny's already summoning the rings. "Yes! Anything! I'll do anything. Just please! Please save him."
The man holds out a hand to stop him. "Not just yet, my boy. And… I promise. I will." And Vlad will. He's not completely convinced that Danny is correct about the clone in the tube being who he says he is but if the boy wants to save him, then Vlad will do it, without question.
The pair go back upstairs and Danny is over the moon. Vlad has never seen him this happy. He's rambling about the other timeline and everything he wants to do with his brother when he's healthy. And Vlad is wondering how this has become his life.
Danny goes back home the next day but keeps up with Vlad, hearing how stabilizing Daniel is progressing. They plan for him to come back the next week to give the DNA sample. And Danny tells his friends, sister, and parents about the clone, to mixed results. All of them are off put to full on disgusted over Vlad cloning him. All are skeptical that it's really Daniel but they're happy for Danny, if that's the truth. But his mom, she has a sour look on her face, upset over the idea of bringing yet another person into the mess. And his Dad…the man is even more distant, even more uncomfortable. He seems annoyed at the idea of Danny spending even more time with Vlad and Danny is hurt but… his brother needs him and Vlad if he's going to be stable enough to come out of the tube.
The DNA sample is given. More plans are made. And Vlad is tense. The more time he spends focusing on stabilizing the clone, the more attached he is. There are many close calls, too many. He resorts to sleeping down in the lab to be there in case of emergency.
Danny visits again. "When do you think he'll be ready?"
"Next week." Vlad says confidently. "I've been administering a sedative as he accepts and integrates your DNA sample. I plan to wake him on the 6th."
The boy's eyes widen and he beams. "That's his birthday."
Danny eagerly awaits the day. He goes and buys a present. And on the sixth, he wakes early and flies through the portal to Vlad's mansion.
Meanwhile, Vlad has stopped admission of the sedative. "It won't be long now." He sighs. "I really hope that Danny is correct about you. But either way… I'm excited to meet you."
The man hardly stops speaking when green eyes pop open. The heart rate monitor spikes with panic as the boy in the tube flails. In his own panic, Vlad drains to tube. He's relieved as the figure stays solid. He pulls the door open and bleary eyes blink at him. A ring of light sparks at the clone's waist and his knees wobble. He falls forward and Vlad catches him.
The man cradles him to his chest. "Welcome, son."
The boy blinks up at him. "Dad?" The quiet voice asks and he passes out.
Vlad carries him to the hospital bed he's set up. He gently cleans the watery-ectoplasm away and dresses him in a hospital gown. He attaches machines to measure his vitals. And the man brushes the black hair out of the boy's face and waits.
Minutes later, Danny passes through the portal. "I'm…here." His expression falls at seeing the clone.
Vlad turns. "I know you wanted to be here. But he woke up early. I had to let him out."
Danny darts to the side of the bed and asks with wide worried eyes. "How is he?"
"Stable. He turned human right after I drained the tank. He's been passed out since."
Danny nodds and the two wait.
Soon enough the clone stirs. The other two half ghost perks up as he let out a small groan. Blue eyes slowly blink open and struggle to focus. The gaze clumsily flickers between Vlad and Danny before landing on the boy. "Danny?" He quietly asks.
The other boy's eyes widen with hope. "Yes. It's me." He leans forward, placing one hand on the bed. "Daniel, is it really-"
"I.. told you." One of the clone's hands weakly grabs for his. "I said you'd see me again."
Danny's eyes shine with pure joy, happiness like he's never felt before. He throws himself forward and wraps his arms around the other boy's neck. "It's you. Daniel, you're here. You're alive."
Daniel hugs back. "I…I'm here." He's crying happy tears and so is Danny. "I'm alive. Danny, I…I'm so happy…I love you so much."
"I love you too." Danny vows. "I missed you so much."
The two hug for a long time.
Finally, Danny pulls back. He presents the gift. "Happy birthday." Daniel's brow wrinkles in confusion. "It's October 6th. It's your birthday."
Understanding. "It is?!" The boy tears into the gift. It's a hoodie from his favorite band. He's ecstatically happy but soon the item is put to the side as he rambles with questions. "Man…I feel weird." He rubs his chest. "I still have no clue how I got here. Wait…where even am I? And.." His eyes finally fall on Vlad. "Dad?!" He beams. Then confusion. "You have white hair?"
Vlad blinks, astonished. "Danny was right."
Danny and Vlad slowly explain to Daniel what happened, that he's in the lab in Vlad's castle, that he's a half ghost, that he's technically Danny's clone.
"I'm…a clone?" He blinked, part shocked, part disbelieving.
Danny shrugged. "I mean, technically we've always been genetically identical so…we've always been clones of each other."
"But like…" He pointed to the tube. "Dad grew me in that."
That will take some getting used to but for now… family bonding. Vlad and Danny help Daniel dress fully and help him up the stairs to the main floor. They eat. They talk. And Vlad gets used to the idea of two Daniels. Or not two… despite technically having the same name, Vlad can already tell these two are different people. Really, he has to get used to the idea of always having a teenager in the house, because Daniel will be living with him.
Far too soon for anyone's liking, Danny has to go home. He tells his family the good news. And his friends, sister, and Mom are ecstatic for him and happy to met Daniel. But Jack…
"He really wants to meet you too." Danny says, shyily.
The man's expression is blank. "I…sure. I can meet him."
Clearly, he's not happy with this and Danny is disappointed.
At least, things are going better with Vlad and Daniel. Things are awkward. Daniel quickly learns that this isn't quite the dad he remembers. And he's saddened by that but…the man is trying. He hovers a lot, clearly afraid of doing the wrong thing, of something happening to his new son. But Daniel is so happy to be alive. He kinda remembers being in the pod, dreaming and thinking without being able to see, hear, or feel at all. It was surreal and he's happy to have a real body now. And the powers….that'll be an adjustment. And finally Danny… he's got his brother and he couldn't be happier about that.
The next time Danny comes to visit, Daniel goes back with him to Amity Park through the portal. There are introductions and it's awkward but happy. Jazz is great. Nosy and overbearing like Danny said but she's great. Daniel thinks he likes the idea of having a big sister. Sam and Tucker are great and Mom…. Daniel cries when she finally hugs him. It's been so long since he's seen his mom. Maddie acknowledges him as her son to his relief. And finally Jack… the man is polite but closed off. They have dinner and Daniel can feel the tension; he can already tell something's wrong between Jack and Danny
After dinner ends, Danny helps his mom with the dishes and Daniel tentatively goes to talk to Jack. The man goes down to his lab without a word.
Jack hears Daniel's approach with his back turned. "What do you want, Danny?"
"Uh…I'm… the other one."
The man turns. "Oh. What do you want?"
The boy blushes. "I just wanted to say…I was really excited to meet you."
Jack raised a brow. "Oh?"
"Yeah. Danny told me a lot about you."
"Really?"
A nod. "He…he really loves you."
"How do you know that?" The man asked, harshly.
"He told me. We…we talked about it a lot. Umm…" The boy looked down. "it's just… in my timeline, the accident killed you and… Danny… knowing that wrecked him." Daniel's heart clinched, wondering if he should say this but… "He had nightmares about it. His room was right beside mine so… I heard and…" He swallowed. He remembered walking into Danny's bedroom in the middle of the night to find his father comforting his brother. The really hard nights, it would be him on one side of Danny, his dad on the other, both of them hugging his brother.
Daniel finally looked up. "He missed you so much. And…he came back here for you, because he wanted you to be alive." The boy wrung his hands. "We… we didn't know that I'd end up here but….I… and my dad…Vlad….thought it would be worth it, if Danny got to have his dad and sister back."
Jack's face twitched, a mixture of emotions passing over it. "You really mean all of that?"
Daniel nodded. "Yeah just…think about it. I know Danny wants to have his dad back."
That night, after Daniel goes back to Vlad's castle, Jack goes into Danny's room to hug and kiss him goodnight. He hugs his son for the first time in a month.
Danny breaks down crying. He knew that Daniel had said something to his dad but this… "Dad?" He asks, tentatively.
"Yes Danny. I'm your dad. It doesn't matter who's blood's in your veins. You're my son."
Danny cries, weeps to the words, clinging to the man. Jack cries as well. Eventually both stop, reassured of their relationship.
Finally, tentatively, Danny breaches the top. "But…Vlad…"
"Vladdie… I'm still angry at him and your mother but… if he wants to make up for everything that's happened… we can figure this out." He gave a sad smile. "We can share you, if Daniel and me can talk again too. He seems to have a good heart, just like his brother."
Danny smiled, whipping a tear. "Yeah, I can talk to him about it. I… I love you Dad."
"I love you too Danny boy."
Another hug. And Danny felt hopeful. His spirit soured. Despite all the pain and grief, all the secrets that had come out, all the conflict, things might just turn out well. Whatever happened, Danny knew he had his friends and sister, his mom, his twin brother, his dad and his Vlad. They would be okay.