Phantom knew he shouldn't eavesdrop. He shouldn't. He'd gotten in trouble for it before, for listening in on Mom and Dad. But…..his ears were burning.
As soon as he closed the door to the lab, the frantic whispers started and they were getting louder. His parents were talking about him, obviously. Of course they were. He seemed to be the only things they talked about now, the only thing they worried about, the only things they argued over.
He shouldn't listen but...maybe it was their increasing volume or maybe like his eyesight, his hearing was enhanced. Either way, he could make out every single word.
"You can't encourage him like that." Mom was saying, harshly.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Dad sounded slightly confused.
"The way...the way you reacted to his powers, the flying. Even promising to train him!" Her voice pitched up in anger. "You can't do that! You cannot act like you're fascinated, like all of this is the most incredible thing you've ever seen."
"It is incredible, Maddie. Danny...our son can do amazing things."
"Amazing?! He's a...a...he's a…." Despite her anger, she choked on the word.
"He's a ghost. You can say the word. That's just what he is." Dad said blunty. "And yes, I'm interested. Can you blame me? We've dreamed about finding a real ghost and learning from them for years. We've already learned so much and we're help-"
"This isn't just some random ghost!" Mom shouted and Phantom could imagine her red face, her balled fists. "This is...this is our son! Our Danny! And he's…." She cut herself off. "This is serious! And you're acting like it's not! You can't act like this is a joke!"
"That is not fair." Just like that, Dad's tone changed, sharpening. "That's not what I'm doing and you know it."
"Do I?" The woman challenged. "Do I know? Because I have no idea! All I can see is that you're acting comfortable with this!"
"I'm not comfortable!" Dad's volume increased. "Of course I'm not! But I'm trying to make our son feel safe and like he can actually be honest with us."
There was a pause. After a moment, Mom responded, her tense voice quieted. "I understand that but you still can't treat this so casually."
"No." Dad cut in. "Don't you dare. Don't you dare accuse me of not taking this seriously. All I am trying to do is fix things. I'm trying to make good out of this horrible situation."
"Good….." Her voice was quiet and somehow that was worse than the yelling. "Our son….our son died. He died and it is our fault. We...we did that to him. We made him into….what he is now. And then...then we ripped him apart. We violated his mind. We chased him. We yelled at him. I….I shoot him." Her voice cracked. "There is no good...there is no good here. No good outcome. The best we can hope for is getting all of our son back in one body." She sighed. "And even then he'll still be….he'll still be a ghost." Painfully, she forced out the word.
"I know that. Believe me, I know all that. I am just trying to help both of our Dannys through this." Dad's voice softened, compassionate understanding entering it.
"Promising to let him fly and train his powers is not helping." Mom's voice hardened and the ghost boy could imagine her crossed arms.
Dad heaved a sigh, exacerbated. "How is it not helping?"
The woman sighed exacerbated right back. "We need to focus on figuring out how to re-fuse both versions of our son."
"I'm not saying that we don't. I'm not even suggesting we switch our focus! But training Danny's powers needs to be on the table."
"No. It doesn't." Mom said forcibly calm.
There was a pause and another sigh. "Look. I know you are not happy with this but wouldn't helping Danny figure out his powers be better than making him figure it out all on his own? Because he will. He's a teenager. If we tell him not to use his powers or forbid him from flying, he'll do it anyway. He'll experiment and sneak out again. But if we let him fly and train? We can supervise him and help him figure this out. Isn't that better than letting him wander around the town in the middle of the night?"
Phantom's stomach dropped with guilt at the thought but he didn't get a chance to think about it, as Mom argued. "But he could still get hurt."
"Our son could get hurt driving a car or using a kitchen knife. But we're not gonna forbid him from getting his permit or from helping in the kitchen. That's why we have rules, why we've taught our kids how to be safe in the kitchen or on the road."
Mom spat out. "But...these are ghost powers! They're dangerous!"
"And that's why we have to teach him! You've seen how his powers act up if he's upset. And yes, they can be dangerous. Yes, he could accidentally hurt himself or someone else. But Danny doesn't want to hurt anyone. And he's right. The powers won't go away after we fix him. So we need to help him figure out how to control them."
"But they...we can't…" Phantom could picture Mom shaking her head, teeth gritted. "We're the parents. We don't have to let him do anything."
"Maddie?" The man questioned, voice hitched up.
"No. It's still...it's still too dangerous." The woman sounded like a broken record. "We can't risk him getting hurt or...no it's...it's too dangerous."
The words dug into his core. She was worried, almost sickly, about his safety but there was more.
"Why are you so opposed to this?" Dad challenged.
"It's...it's dangerous." Mom repeated.
"No." The other adult said sharply. "That's not it. You know why letting Danny fly and training him would be less dangerous than doing nothing. So why are you still opposed?"
Sudden silence fell over the room. Mom didn't answer but Phantom wished she would, that she would explain why she was being so stubborn and bullheaded. The ghost mulled over Dad's words. To Phantom's chagrin, they were true; he had no doubt that if Mom and Dad did forbid him from flying he would do it anyway. And as uncomfortable as it would be, training with his parents would be much better than continuing to struggle without directions. And that's what irked the ghost boy. The words were logical, just the logic that would normally convince Mom, so why was she being so ridiculous?!
Dad's quiet words cut through the silence."What are you so afraid of?"
There was another pause. His core pulsed nervously, waiting for a response. Phantom held his breath yet somehow he almost missed Mom's quiet answer.
"I don't...I don't want to lose him." The woman swallowed. "If we...if we encourage his more ghostly behaviors and attributes..." Mom's voice hardened again. "What if he loses himself, his humanity?"
Fear wrapped a cold hand around Phantom's core.
"Maddie!" Dad sounded offended. "We're not in any danger of him losing his humanity! Even as just Phantom, he's just as compassionate and sensitive as ever. Letting him fly, do something he loves, won't change that!" The man argued.
"We don't know that, Jack! We don't know how ectoplasm could affect his mind. He could deteriorate, lose his...lose his memories, like in many of the accounts. He could develop an obsession or hurt himself or someone else with his powers or-"
"No." Dad's harsh, angry voice cut her off. "Jazz was right. These preconceived notions, this bias against ghosts, they're wrong."
"But-" Mom started.
The other adult cut her off. "No. You're...you're just assuming the worst. That our son's gonna to go feral if we let him use his powers?! That is ridiculous."
"But...but he could...we don't know…" The woman stuttered.
"No." The man interrupted bluntly. "What I do know is, our son is not dangerous. He will never become dangerous. And we will not treat him like he is." Phantom could picture his father's gritted teeth. "Phantom is our Danny, through and through, down to his soul. He loves space and corny puns and hanging out with his friends. He always tries his best but is sometimes too hard on himself. And he's the most kind, compassionate kid we know. Becoming a ghost has not changed that and it never will."
The ghost could hardly make out the next words. "But he's so….he's so different from before." Mom's voice wavered with crushing sadness and a hint of fear. Phantom imagined her standing with her arms around her middle. "His love of flying. That confidence about being a ghost….I don't...I don't understand. That boy, the boy who cried, who begged for us to make his ghostly symptoms go away. What...what happened to him?"
"We destroyed him." The hair on the back of the ghost's neck rose at Dad's tone. "We ripped him in two, because we made him feel like he couldn't trust us with the truth." Phantom swallowed, guilt rising. "And with how Fenton and Phantom are with each other...that Danny isn't coming back. And maybe...maybe we need to let that version of him die."
Dad stopped and there was silence. Long, heavy, deep and depressive silence with no response from Mom. No words, no sound, nothing. And that silence was worse than yelling, than obvious disagreement. He couldn't see her face, her body language. Was her face red with silent anger, vehemently disagreeing? Was she silently mourning, still heartbroken and clinging to the normal, human version of him that she wanted? Or was her face downcast with guilt for what she said? Could he dare to hope that she was thoughtfully considering Dad's words and moving towards acceptance?
"You're not going to say anything?" Dad asked harshly. A pause. "Fine. I'm going upstairs to eat lunch."
Heavy footsteps sounded in the lab. Sudden panic rose in Phantom, as he realized what was happening and the compromising position he was in; he was standing with his ear pressed against the door. With a gasp, he floated backwards. He flickered invisible and flew up through the ceiling just as Dad opened the door.
Phantom quickly flew into his bedroom, before flopping down on his bed. His stomach knotted with worry and guilt. He shouldn't have eavesdropped. Shouldn't have heard Mom say all those awful things about him, the fears she had about his ghostliness overtaking him. His core clenched, his emotions pulling in two directions. He was angry at what she said, what she suggested. That he was dangerous, that he might lose his humanity, that he'd changed and him being a ghost was bad. But….those fears….he'd had those before, he's been afraid and maybe still was afraid of becoming a monster like in one of Mom and Dad's stories but…
You're not evil. We're not gonna to turn into a monster.
The words were suddenly in Phantom's head, his words but...not but….. they were his words. But….
"Fenton." The ghost whispered. He rolled onto his back and closed his eyes. In his vision appeared his reflection, his human reflection in the mirror in the boy's bathroom at school. "You just spoke into my head."
A cheeky grin in the mirror. "I can use your mouth if you want." In the bedroom and the school bathroom, the words were whispered aloud.
"Please don't." Phantom's alone spoke, a grin spreading on his own face.
I won't...too often Fenton thought, slightly teasing.
The ghost mentally rolled his eyes before sobering. "How much of that did you hear?"
Just the end. I'm...I'm sorry you had to hear Mom say all that. But Dad's right. We're not a monster. Being a ghost doesn't make us a monster. It doesn't change who we are, deep down. We're still Danny.
Phantom wrung his hands. "But...we are different from before."
Yeah but those changes aren't bad. Fenton comforted. And...I like who we're becoming.
The ghost blushed. "Really?"
I mean...I'd like it more if we were really one person but….I like not being afraid of my ghost half anymore.
"I like not being afraid too." Phantom balled his hands in his sheets. "But still….Mom...why does she...why can't she…" Tears started collecting in his eyes. "Why can't she just accept me?"
No words of comfort came from Fenton but a wave of sadness, the same sadness the ghost was feeling. A quiet whine exited the ghost's throat and he could feel the urge to cry welling up in him.
But before he did, words drifted into his head. Dad accepts us. He...he defended us.
Phantom's breath hitched, startling at the thought. He'd been so angry and upset at Mom's words that his father's hadn't registered. "He did. He yelled at her for us."
That was a surprise, his Dad being the understanding and accepting parent. He had been the one who was the most gung ho about getting revenge when Mom and Dad (and Phantom himself) thought he was a ghost who had been overshadowing their son. But then again, Dad had looked at and recognized him first, down in the lab. Dad had had more doubts about the 'Phantom's just a copy' idea. Dad had talked to and comforted him after that first awkward breakfast. He'd been more comfortable with seeing his ghostly attributes, compared to Mom. Maybe, Phantom shouldn't have been so caught off guard by this welcome surprise.
Maybe what he said managed to knock some sense into her. Fenton offered, hopefully.
"Maybe….I hope so." Phantom replied, though he didn't feel all that confident.
Mom was stubborn, very stubborn. He and Fenton had talked to her, not about everything but enough that she shouldn't still be so blind. Jazz had even yelled at her. But….unnatural, wrong, dangerous….those words still dug at his core. Familiar fears lashed out- fears of being forbidden from flying, of having their powers suppressed, of being forced to be (pretend to be) normal.
Mom won't actually do something if Dad's against it. Phantom blinked startled, sending disbelief to his counterpart. Fenton continued sheepishly. I mean….they're fighting which sucks but…I don't think she'll actually do anything to us. And Dad….he believes in us. He's not gonna change his mind.
"Yeah." The ghost agreed. Fenton was right of course. But Phantom's core still fluttered uncertainly, thinking about that argument.
It's gonna be okay. His human self whispered to him. We've still got Sam and Tucker and Jazz. And we know Dad's on our side now. And...Mom will come around.
The human tried to sound confident but Phantom could feel he was equally unsure. The ghost sighed. "Just….we'll just have to keep hoping…."
Yeah, keep hoping. Fenton agreed. And-
Just then, the sound of a bell rang in Phantom's head cutting off Fenton's thought. In the bedroom, he sat up. "What was that?"
In the mirror, Fenton frowned. "The bell. Lunch is over." This time, the words came out of Phantom's mouth but the ghost didn't mind.
"Oh…" His lips turned down. "I guess you have to go to class."
Yeah….are you gonna be okay? The human pointedly met his reflection's eyes, his reflection's glowing green eyes….huh, at some point, the color must have changed. With the pointed contact, it felt very much like Fenton was looking his ghost half in the eyes. In a way, he was.
"Yeah. I'll be okay. We can...we'll talk more when you get home. You should focus on school."
Fenton's frown deepened. Alright. If you need me...uhhh….
"You'll be here." Phantom's lip twitched. "You're always here, 'cause we're the same person, remember?"
Yep. See ya, Danny. The human offered him a half-smile through the mirror. Fenton blinked and the green light started leaching from his eyes, the icy blue swirling with its counterpart.
"See ya, Danny." The green evaporated, leaving pure blue for a moment before the image disappeared, leaving Phantom with just the darkness of his closed eyes lids.
The ghost opened his eyes and flopped back down onto the bed. Staring at the ceiling, he groaned in slight annoyance at the situation. He did feel somewhat better after talking to his counterpart but still, this situation….why was everything still so frustrating?!
Huffing out a breath, Phantom turned his attention outward, away from his thoughts. It was quiet. No banging from the lab. No yelling. No soft sounds of his parents making lunch and chatting. Not even the sound of the tv or radio. This was almost suspiciously quiet. It left Phantom wondering what his Mom and Dad were doing. His father was probably eating his lunch in silence. But Mom….could he dare to hope she was actually considering what Dad said and would change her mind? He wanted to, he really wanted to hope for the best but..he didn't want to get hurt again.
The boy laid on his bed for a while, trying to corral his anxious thoughts. Suddenly a knock sounded on his door. The ghost gasped, feeling his phantom heart skip a beat. Rapidly, he sat up.
"Danny? It's me." Ghost Danny exhaled in relief, recognizing the voice. "Can I come in?" Dad continued.
The ghost bit his lip. "Sure."
A second later, his door slowly swung open and sure enough, his dad stood on the other side. The man wore a haggard look. His lips turned down in an unhappy frown but kindness still shone through his eyes.
"Hey, kiddo. I wanted to see if you were alright." Dad asked.
Phantom sighed. "I'm….I'm okay."
The man shifted nervously. "Can I sit here with you?" He pointed to the bed.
The ghost boy nodded and Dad walked forward and sat down. The bed creaked and sagged under his weight.
"I'm sorry about earlier, son. Your mother….." He trailed off shaking his head.
"You two were fighting...about me." The words burned, coming out of Phantom's mouth. Dad glanced at him, looking slightly surprised. The ghost shivered. "I...I heard you yelling at each other."
Dad's face softened. "Oh, Danny. You shouldn't have had to hear that."
"You guys...you guys were fighting and it's my fault." His core clenched at the thought.
"No. None of this is your fault." Dad wrapped an arm around the ghost boy. "Your mom and I, yes we were arguing but that's not on you."
Phantom shook his head. "Mom...mom doesn't want me flying, or using my other powers, or training. But I just can't...I can't give that up."
"I know you can't….and I won't ask you too." Dad reassured. In response, the ghost looked over at him. The man sighed. "I know...I know your Mom's being stubborn but….she'll come around."
"But...she said….she thinks…." The boy choked on the words. He couldn't say them, not in front of Dad, not even after everything that just happened.
"She's wrong about you." Dad rubbed his back. "I've said it before but, I know you're good." His face reddened with shame. "We should never have made you feel like you weren't." There was a pause before the man continued. "Your mother knows you're good too."
Phantom gritted his teeth. "Then why is she being like this?"
Dad sighed. "I don't really know, son." He ran his free hand through his hair. "I know she's still scared but…."
"That doesn't excuse her treating me like this." The ghost balled up his fists.
"I didn't say it did." The adult assured. "But be patient with her, okay? She's coming around. It's just...she's scared and she doesn't like to learn she's wrong…...I think her pride is getting in the way."
Her pride was getting in the way? What was that supposed to mean? Phantom opened and closed his mouth, wanting to ask more. But he had no idea what to even ask. Not that Dad would know. Plus….guilt pricked his core…..He didn't want to talk bad about Mom to his other parent.
The ghost boy shook his head. "Okay. I will." He would. He'd try to be patient as much as it irked him. And hopefully, Dad was right about Mom changing her mind and knowing that he was good.
After a moment, Phantom put one arm around his dad, returning the side hug. "Thank you for believing in me."
Dad's face fell for a moment, deep lines creasing with sadness. Then it softened with parental love. "Of course, Danny. Of course. I'll always believe in you." He smiled, meeting Phantom's green eyes. "And son?"
"Yeah?" The ghost raised a brow at the question.
"I want you to know...I love you, just as you are. Ghost, human, equally both and anything in between. There is nothing wrong with you. You're just the way you're supposed to be." His voice rang with conviction as he smiled and ruffled the ghost's white hair.
Phantom blushed in embarrassment but didn't pull away. "Thanks Dad."
The man nodded. "So are you feeling better?" The ghost nodded. "Good. Good." Dad glanced at the door. "How do you feel about going downstairs and watching some Star Trek with your old man?"
Downstairs…...Phantom's stomach flopped. "But Mom…?"
"She's still in the lab. When I left her down there, she was thinking about things."
"Oh..okay." He bit his lip.
Dad stood up. "Come on Danno. It'll be okay."
Phantom took a deep breath. "Yeah. Okay." He stood. "We can watch some Star Trek."
Dad's eyes lit up at the idea and the ghost boy couldn't help but smile too, despite his nerves.
School passed pretty normally and soon enough, Fenton was walking home. The boy's shoulders tensed and he stuffed his hands in his pockets. Earlier at school, he'd had a distraction but now….everything that he caught a glimpse of in the lab, that argument between Mom and Dad, how he reassured his other self through the bathroom mirror….. It all came back into his awareness and with it a wave of anxiety. He didn't know what happened with Phantom after he'd turned his attention away and gone to class. Presumably nothing extremely stressful, as he didn't get anymore bursts of worry from the ghost. But all the same, he was going home now and would likely have to deal with Mom at some point. And...the boy sighed….he still didn't know what to do about her but what he'd said had been true. He and Phantom had people on their side and maybe...maybe Mom would come around.
A twenty minute walk later, Fenton found himself at his front door. One hand wavered over the knob as he clutched his key in his other. He braced himself. It would be okay. Whatever happened with Mom, they would be okay. Taking a deep breath, Fenton unlocked the door. He opened it to find Phantom and Dad sitting around the TV.
Fenton blinked, taking the peaceful and mundane scene in for a moment. Some of the tension in his shoulders evaporated at seeing how relaxed the two looked. He closed the door.
"Voyager?" Fenton questioned pointing at the screen.
"Yep." His ghost half nodded. He sat up from where he was laying on the couch. Then he patted the seat beside him, inviting Fenton to sit.
The human boy tentatively glanced at his dad, who reclined in the arm chair.
The man raised a brow. "You can watch an episode before starting on your homework."
At that, Fenton put down his bookbag and sat down on the other end of the couch. Phantom readjusted himself before plopping his feet down in his human counterpart's lap. This earned a small chuckle from Fenton.
"How was school, son?" Dad's question drew both boy's eyes.
Fenton shrugged. "Good I guess… it was just a normal school day."
His father gave a nod before turning back to the tv. His eyes lit up. "Ooo do you recognize what episode this is, Danny-boy?"
Both Dannys also turned to the tv. Fenton furrowed his brow in thought at the opening scene. "I don't think so?"
Phantom shook his head. "Nah Dad. Not yet."
Dad's expression didn't fall at the negative answer. Instead he kept smiling. "Keep watching. I know we've watched this one together. You'll remember it."
Fenton thoughtfully watched as the Voyager crew beamed onto an alien planet and promptly split up to explore….that was not going to end well but hopefully, whatever hijinks ensue, things would work out. But anyway, it was bound to be an interesting adventure.
"I think I do remember this one." Phantom perked up. "Isn't this the one where B'Elanna gets split into her human and Klingon halves?" As soon as the words left the ghost's mouth, he blinked starterdly at his counterpart.
Fenton copied his action. "Huh…." He looked down at himself and then back to his ghost. "Life imitates art." The ghost snorted in response. Then the human tilted his head. "Wait…..are you the Klingon half in this comparison?"
Phantom frowned and wrinkled his brow before shrugging. "Eh, there's worse alien species to be, I guess."
With that, the pair turned attention back to the episode. Now that he thought about it, Fenton did seem to remember this episode. Dad had enthusiastically shown it to him on rerun at some point, along with many other episodes which started his love of Star Trek. The vision of a bright future. Exploring alien worlds. Discovering the mysteries of the universe. Those ideas- boldly going where no man has gone before- resonated in his heart from a young age and helped spark his dream of seeing space and becoming an astronaut. Fenton smiled at the thought, feeling more of his previous anxiety trickle away. At the same time, he could feel similar happiness projecting from his other self, the feeling magnified by the physical contact.
And that was another good thing about being home. He and his ghost half weren't separated by distance. They could actually talk and interact without any mental reaching, glowing eyes, or weird double vision. Somehow, being side by side seemed to lessen some of the strain of being split.
The episode continued and Fenton continued to watch, happily taking the distraction, the opportunity to just enjoy the story on the screen and not think about school or his numerous personal problems. And hanging out with his Dad was pretty cool too, not that the boy would say that outloud. It was nice, being able to share this common interest with the man as the three (in body at least) traded comments and reactions.
Too soon the episode ended. Dad turned off the tv. "I should go see what your mother's up to. She hasn't been up since before...well you know." He frowned, looking concerned. Then he shook his head, addressing the pair. "And you've got homework to do."
"Yeah." Fenton sighed, remembering his assignments. "Come on." He pushed Phantom's feet off his lap, earning a huff from the ghost.
Both boys were moving to stand as the sound of light feet moving up the stairs rang out. Fenton fixed eyes on the lab door, nervousness suddenly prickled his heart. The door opened and the boy swallowed, seeing who came through, his Mom. Her shoulders were tense, her mouth in a tight line. Fenton's stomach flopped; was she still angry? at Dad? at him? Despite himself, her words from earlier rang in his head- dangerous. He could still become a monster, was still wrong and unnatural.
Phantom's hand rested on his arm, green eyes meeting blue. We're not those things.
The corner of the human's mouth turned up at the reassurance. Earlier, he'd said (thought?) something like that to his other half after Mom and Dad's argument. Gently, Fenton poked back with his own soft comfort.
"Danny?" Mom's voice drew the pair's attention. "You're both home."
"Yeah." Fenton said, taking in her expression. She didn't look angry anymore. Instead she worried her lip, her eyes wide and face flushed with what might be shame.
"Good." The woman nodded. "How was school, sweetie?"
The human boy raised a brow. "It was fine."
Fenton chose not to elaborate. He didn't feel like participating in small talk with Mom especially since he was still hurt and a little angry at her. With his short answer, the living room fell into an awkward silence. Tentatively glancing among the pair on the couch and her husband, Mom approached. Fenton watched with warry eyes as she sat down in the arm chair beside the couch.
Mom sighed. "I wanted to talk about earlier." She swallowed meeting Fenton's gaze. "Your counterpart asked about flying and your father brought up training your powers. And I..." She trailed off, unsure how to continue.
"I know what happened." Fenton said.
"Oh...he already told you?" Her eyes flickered to the ghost before falling back on the human.
"No." The human Danny said plainly, causing his mother to wrinkle her brow in confusion.
Phantom pointed between his and his counterpart's heads. "The...uhh...memory sharing thing."
"Or perception sharing? Since it happened in real time..." Feeling nervous, Fenton wrung his hands. "Anyway I….ummm….I heard most of what happened."
"Oh." Mom blinked, frown deepening. "Well..your father and I had a small disagreement after you left."
Fenton pursed his lips. A small disagreement? Well, that sounded like an understatement.
His ghost huffed. "Yeah we heard you arguing."
Mom paled for a moment, her eyes widening like she was caught red handed. Then her cheeks reddened with shame. "Well….I'm sorry you heard any of that. I'm sure I said some rather….unkind things."
Fenton's heart clenched painfully. Unkind? Really, unkind? "It's…." The human trailed off. It was not okay, not at all. But he didn't have the heart to say anything, not when his voice was threatening to shake.
Beside him, Phantom crossed his arms. The human felt distant anger rise in his counterpart as the ghost fought to not scoff. He also remained silent.
"Anyway….I thought about what your father said and…." The woman closed her eyes for a moment before forcing out the words. "I'll agree to training your powers and won't forbid you from flying."
"What?" Fenton blinked, shock momentarily overtaking his pain and anger.
Mom swallowed. "Your father had a point. Not training you to control your powers would be more dangerous than doing nothing….and….I hate saying this but….keeping you grounded would be cruel."
"Grounded?" Phantom asked quietly, tilting his head.
"As in keeping you on the ground. Physically grounded, so you can't fly." She pointedly frowned. "You are still grounded from your computer and going out with your friends for the next week."
"But you'll let us train?" The human boy asked, eyes wide with tentative hope.
Mom sighed unhappily. "Yes. I will." She glanced at her husband. "Your father and I will talk about how to safely move forward with your training."
Dad nodded, eyes bright. "Yeah! We can section off a part of the lab as a training area." He tapped his chin. "We'll need to set up targets for shooting practice. Maybe an obstacle course for flying? Oh! And I'll get a speed gun! You're a fast one!"
Fenton wrinkled his brow. How exactly did Dad know that? Oh wait….his stomach flopped remembering Mom and Dad chasing his ghost self with their ectoguns. He pushed the memory away as Phantom glanced at him, blanching.
Mom shook her head. "Not right now, honey. We need to focus on working on the ghost catcher. Also…" She looked between the two version of her son. "It might be better to wait until we re-merge you."
Fenton crossed his arms. Well, that actually sounded like avoidance of the issue, not true agreement. On some level, he wanted to argue but Phantom surprised him.
"Oh yeah. That might be a good idea." The ghost said sheepishly. His human half gave him a quizzical look and he shrugged. "I actually have pretty good control right now." To demonstrate he turned one hand invisible. A deliberate pause later, it flickered back into view. "But when we were together, we had almost no control...well in human form anyway."
Fenton frowned, looking down at his own hand. "Oh yeah. And we don't really know much about ghost form 'cause… well, we didn't really experiment." The human bit his lip, unable to say the real reason in front of his parents; he'd been too afraid of his powers to really try.
"Yeah." Phantom agreed. "And I mean...that control might carry over but… I don't know if it's just from actually using my powers now or...something else." He didn't elaborate but Fenton had an idea what those thoughts were. Were the powers easier as just the ghost half, with less distraction from his human side? If they were…
"It would be better to train as one person then, since uhhh…" Fenton waved up and down his body. "This me can't actually use ghost powers and…. I don't actually know how to." His voice lowered on the last part, as he felt a mixture of embarrassment and shame at admitting that in front of his parents.
Phantom tilted his head, before patting his other self's back comfortingly. Fenton understood the gesture; his ghost self was saying there was no reason to be embarrassed or guilty.
From Mom and Dad, there was a pause as they considered the words. "That is part of the reason I suggested waiting." Mom bit her lip. "Also, we'd want to practice with your powers in human form as well, since you did have access in either form….assuming you can control them in human form at all." The woman said the last bit warrily.
Fenton frowned. "We can, if we try." He said confidently, earning another surprised blink from his mother. "And I want to now." He glanced at Phantom. "Both of me does."
The ghost nodded, giving his human an approving half smile. His face then turned serious, looking at Mom. "And flying? You will let us do that?"
"Firstly, there will be no flying escapades while you're grounded. But after…" Unsurely, the woman looked between the Dannys again. "We'll talk about it."
Phantom's face hardened. "That sounds like a no."
Mom pinched her nose. "Danny, I understand how much you want this." Fenton swallowed; no, she didn't. She really did not. "But I don't like the idea of you flying, especially while you're split. Maybe if you're just flying as….Phantom." She paused for a second at the word. "But if you're carrying your counterpart…"
The ghost held up his hands. "We've been over this. I won't drop him! I do have some self preservation!"
Mom sighed. "I did not say that. It's just...I'm worried"
Phantom glared. "No, you don't-"
Dad cut the ghost off with a sudden thought. "How about we get them a parachute, Maddie?"
The woman blinked at her husband. "What?"
"Fenton can wear a parachute, in case something happens. And we can have them...err..him...Danny use it after we get 'em sorted. That way he'll be okay if something happens to his powers."
Mom put a hand on her chin in consideration. After a long moment, she spoke. "Alright. We'll do that."
Again, Fenton and Phantom looked at each other, brows raised as if to say seriously. Phantom's face remained hard in anger but he nodded. The human shrugged.
Then he turned to address Mom. "Okay. That doesn't sound...too bad." Despite the words, his voice wasn't all that confident. Then again, it's not like he had much of a choose. If he ever wanted to fly again (and not outright do it behind Mom's back), he'd have to do what she wanted.
Phantom said nothing but his human felt his begrudging agreement, just as begrudging as their mother's agreement to let them train and fly. The ghost leaned back onto the couch with his arms crossed as Mom continued to look at the two. Tension rose; clearly no one was happy but none were willing to speak.
The ghost finally coughed, breaking the silence. "We have homework to do so if we're done…" He motioned up the stairs.
Fenton glanced at him, honestly caught off guard by the undertone of anger. But then again….
"Yes. You can go." Mom said flatly, again to the human Danny's surprise. He expected her to rebuke him for that attitude but… She sighed defeatedly, sadness and….was that, could that possibly be... guilt in her eyes.
Dad said nothing as Fenton stood and Phantom floated to his feet. They started towards the stairs when the man called after them. "Son. We'll call you when it's time for dinner, okay?"
Fenton turned. "Okay. See you later."
After turning back around, the pair headed up the stairs and into their room. As soon as the ghost closed the door, Fenton addressed him. "You're angry." There was no accusation in his voice, just curiosity, a request for an explanation.
Phantom threw his arms down to his sides. "She doesn't trust me."
"What?" The human asked.
"Mom. She still doesn't trust me." The ghost repeated.
Fenton frowned. "She doesn't trust us?"
"No." Phantom shook his head. "She doesn't trust me. It's me, not you."
"But we're-" The human boy started.
"The same person, yeah. But….you're the human half. I'm the ghost." He gritted his teeth, his voice mocking. "I'm….I'm still the part that's wrong and unnatural. I'm dangerous, unpredictable. I can't be trusted."
"No." Fenton walked forward, taking both of the ghost's flailing arms. "You're not those things."
"But-" Phantom started.
"I know you." The human half-smiled. "I am you. You're not those things. We're not those things."
"I...I know that!" The ghost bit out, pulling his arms out of Fenton's grip. "I know Mom's wrong about this, about me. Even Dad could freaking see it but…" His fists balled. "Why does she accept you but not me?!"
Fenton's lip turned down. "If she doesn't accept you, she doesn't accept me either. But anyway…." He bit his lip. "I don't think that's what this is. She's just….I think she's just worried."
"Worried?! You heard...you heard what she's said!" The human's heart was breaking at his ghost self's indignant expression. "I can't believe you!"
"Phantom-" Fenton started, disappointedly.
"No!" The ghost's eyes flashed. "I can't...I don't believe you." His voice shook, anger leaching from it as he whined. "Why is this happening?"
Guilt pricked at the human's heart but he pushed it down. Eyes watering, he took a step forward and wrapped his arms around his ghost. "I'm sorry."
Phantom stiffened, freezing in his emotional display at the embrace. "Fenton." He whispered. "No. I'm…"
"I'm sorry. It's...it's gonna be okay. We'll figure this out." He squeezed the ghost. "Whatever happens with Mom and Dad, we stick together."
Phantom sniffled, returning the hug. "Yeah...Yeah." He swallowed. "Together." Acceptance of the comfort flowed from the ghost's core to his human's heart. "We stick together."
After a long moment of self-soothing, the human Danny stepped back. An instant later, Phantom clasped his hands in Fenton's identical ones. "I'm sorry. This...this isn't your fault. It's neither of ours fault. I'm just…."
"Upset?" The human squeezed his ghost's hand. "I get it. I am too."
"I just…Dad was being so supportive after what Mom said. And when she came up….yeah she said she'd let us train and fly but….she didn't even apologize." The ghost looked down.
Fenton's heart clenched. "No, she didn't."
Phantom bit his lip. "Why does she keep hurting us?"
The human had no answer, feeling his ghost's pain just as keenly as Phantom himself was. He sighed. "I don't know."
"Then what are we supposed to do?" Phantom asked.
"Maybe...we should talk to her?" Fenton said uncertainly.
Both boy's noses wrinkled at the thought and they pulled away from each other in synch. "Yeah….no."
Already Fenton could feel that this was likely to be a stupid decision but…..he remembered his conversation with Jazz this morning. He wasn't ready, especially since overhearing his parents' argument in the lab.
Phantom sighed. "I guess….Dad said to be patient with her, that she'd come around and...maybe I overreacted. Maybe it isn't that she doesn't trust me. Mom's just...being overprotective."
"I mean...I did almost fall when we went flying." Fenton shrugged sheepishly.
"Not that she knows about that." The ghost crossed his arms. He then pointed. "And I'd never have let anything happen to us."
"Of course not." The human added confidently. "But may there's still something to her being worried. But if wearing a parachute makes her feel better…"
"I guess we can do that." Phantom finished. With a long suffering sigh, he floated over to the bed and sat down. "We'll just have to show her that using our powers is safe."
Fenton sat down beside him. "And that we're comfortable with them."
The ghost rose a brow. "Are we?"
"We're trying, aren't we? And…. I was talking to Sam and Tucker at lunch about stuff and…." The human sighed, taking Phantom's hand. "Here, let me show you."
Fenton took a breath, closing his eyes. He focused on the conversation at lunch, about leaning into what was happening to him, about not trying to act normal and like nothing had changed. Instead, they'd show Mom and Dad who they were now. And who were they? Part ghost. It was non-negotiable. They were, He was Danny Fenton and Danny Phantom, and that was good. In a flash, the words passed from Fenton's portion of their mind to Phantom's. The ghost closed green eyes, taking in the memory.
After a long moment, Phantom turned, meeting his counterpart's eyes. "You mean all that?"
Fenton nodded. "Yeah. Of course."
The ghost smiled. "Me too."
There was silence for a moment as the two halves shared that moment of unity. That underlying tension from dealing with Mom remained but...they had something of a plan and were on the same page.
Finally Fenton sighed. "So...homework?"
Phantom rolled his eyes and offered a chuckle. "Homework."
Note: And another chapter! I hope you enjoyed it. I wanted to let you guys know, the next month is going to be crazy for me. Between moving to a new apartment, family christmas stuff, and writing for holiday truce, I have no idea how much time I'll have to write for this story so bear with me for the time being. I'm slowly but surely getting through this.