DarkFoxKit: Huh… how did we forget to update for so long?
ZAFT: Life got in the way. ^^'
Takuya: Well, don't forget next time!
DarkFoxKit: I blame Digimon Survive. I got a little too caught up in it.
ZAFT: Kinda on my part too since I got so caught up in playthroughs of it… ^^'
Andy: Just don't make me have to survive those Digimon.
DarkFoxKit: Nice word play~ Anyways, we should let the readers get to the chapter.
(Two symbols, one red, and one blue, spin before colliding and flaring with light as they do so, showing the title)
Digital Phantom!
(Shows five forms in shadow before they are revealed to be Danny Fenton, Sam Manson, Tucker Foley, Takuya Kanbara, and Jazz Fenton)
Falling into destiny
(A swirling green portal is shown, followed by the sky and cities of the living world before a computer monitor is zoomed in on, revealing another world of lush greenery through that)
Reaching across new boundaries
(Andy Fenton appears with Dorimon on his head, a white-haired, purple-eyed form behind him in a transparent state. Takuya Kanbara appears behind him as well, the form of Agunimon appearing behind Takuya himself)
Let our stories come together
(Danny is shown transforming into his ghost form, Danny Phantom, flying towards Vlad Plasmius, who has a shadowed form behind him)
Growing stronger
(Andy is shown looking his D-Arc glows with a light coming from it that envelopes the screen)
Our pasts intertwine
(The Legendary Warriors' symbols are shown circling around the symbols of Danny Phantom and Andy Phantom)
Showing our future
(Takuya holds up his D-Tector before fractal code surrounds him, dissipating as fire erupts from it, revealing him as Aldamon, lunging out from the fire as Plasmius fires off ecto-rays at him, only for a glowing orange orb to appear around Aldamon and deflect the beams)
As we evolve
(The blasts speed past the screen as Tucker is shown with a large shadowed form behind him and Terriermon)
Let's go… EVOLUTION
(Sam is shown with Gatomon next to her, a shadowed form with angelic wings appearing behind them both.)
As our worlds collide
(Jazz is shown with Lopmon, his Mega form of Cherubimon appearing behind them both, transparent in nature)
We stand as one
(Jack and Maddie Fenton are shown, with a shadowed form behind them both with a white cape and blue eyes looking back at them.)
Growing strong
(A shadowed form is shown with blue eyes and a glowing white blade erupting from what looks like a giant weapon in the form's hands)
As we move along
(Danny is shown walking down the street with those closest to him appearing one by one; Patamon, Andy and Dorumon, Tucker and Terriermon, Sam and Gatomon, Takuya, Jazz and Lopmon.)
CHOU… SHINKA!
(Fractal code is shown before it dissipates to reveal the Digimon partners and Takuya all evolved, with Danny and Andy in their ghost forms)
Let's go… EVOLUTION!
(The group is shown facing down Plasmius, who looms above them with hands outstretched as a dark form appears behind Plasmius himself.)
Nothing will stand in our way!
(Andy, Dorimon, Danny, Patamon, Tucker, Terriermon, Sam, Gatomon, Jazz, Lopmon, and Takuya all appear with ribbons of fractal code streaming out from behind them, a swirling green orb behind the ribbons of fractal code.)
Digital Phantom!
Chapter 20: A Tour
Danny, Tucker, and Sam had a lovely time eating at the Nasty Burger 2, but there had been no news about anything about a sentence being removed yet. Echo seemed pretty annoyed by it, but he figured it would happen. The ghosts weren't likely to lift the sentence on the exact same day they set it.
The group was walking out of the Nasty Burger 2, still following Echo and Dorumon.
"I can't believe the food was that good!" Tucker exclaimed happily. "I'm going to be stuffed for at least two nights after that meal!"
"You're such a pig, just be glad our Digimon partners weren't here. They would've tripled that bill Echo had to pay for us," Sam huffed.
"Well, it's good you haven't changed much, Tuck." Danny chuckled. "Just don't eat that much back home, you'll drive the Nasty Burger out of business if you do."
"Hey, I think that would bring them business," Tucker argued. "Besides, they must've perfected their new sauce or something, because it was way better than anything our Nasty Burger had. And don't forget, you ate more than I did, Danny."
Danny looked at Tucker with a mock glare. "Oh, sure, blame the half-dead kid…" He pouted.
Dorumon was trying not to laugh at the banter between the three friends.
"So where do we go now?" Sam asked Echo as they were walking.
"It's starting to get late, so we should find a place to crash for the night," Echo answered back
"What? We've been here for almost a whole day!? But we have the C.A.T. tomorrow!" Danny shouted in worry.
"You're in the future, the C.A.T. has long since been over," Echo grumbled, rolling his eyes. "Besides, knowing Clockwork, you'll likely be sent back on the day you 'disappeared'."
Danny groaned. "Great… at least that makes us feel somewhat better…"
"If only we could be sent back after the C.A.T…." Tucker grumbled.
"That wouldn't do you much good. Mr. Lancer would have you take a make-up C.A.T. on another Saturday, do you really want that?" Dorumon asked.
"On second thought… maybe it is best we arrive on the day we 'disappeared'..." Tucker muttered uneasily.
"So where are we going to sleep in?" Sam asked. "Do you have enough money to afford a room in a hotel or something?"
"I mean he did have enough money to buy our sick new clothes, and the meal we had, so maybe he's rich." Tucker smiled.
"You wish," Dorumon laughed. "I'd be having an all-you-can-eat buffet every day if that were the case."
Danny looked at Echo. "Where are we going to stay for the night? Do you have a plan or a place lined up for us to stay at?"
"Well, I didn't expect… extra company to spend the night with…" Echo sighed. "My travelling companion would likely be staying with her dad for the night…"
"So… you would stay with your parents too then?" Danny asked as he raised an eyebrow.
"Who's this travelling companion you keep mentioning? … It's a she, you said… is she hot? Is she your girlfriend?" Tucker smiled.
"That's on a need to know basis," Echo grumbled. "And no, I'm not staying with my parents. It's… a little hard to. Besides, Fenton Works is loaded with ghosts, I'd rather not spend my night there."
Danny frowned. "Then… where do you stay when you visit them?"
Dorumon and Echo hesitated to answer.
"... Do you guys like camping?" Dorumon finally asked.
Danny blinked. "You… camp out?" He asked before he shook his head. "I… don't exactly mind it. In fact, last time I went camping, it was quite nice."
"Getting close to nature is always fun." Sam said with a smile before she frowned. "Although my parents would never let me camp out in the wilderness, saying it's not for one of our status and that we are not heathens who do stuff like that."
Tucker laughed. "Only your parents would say that, Sam." He then looked at Echo and Dorumon. "I… may not like camping out, myself to be honest…"
"Well, you're going to have to deal with it then, because I can't afford a hotel room. Dorumon and I are used to it, but we're going to need to get a few extra sleeping bags for the rest of you," Echo noted.
"That… isn't out of your budget, is it?" Danny asked Echo, not wanting to have to have him pay for something he could not afford.
"Don't worry about it. Sleeping bags are cheap," Echo answered. "And there's this new store that opened up about a year ago. I didn't get a chance to check it out last year I was here, but I've heard it's gotten some great reviews lately. They sell all sorts of products at a reasonable price, some are even discounted on certain days. So maybe we'll find some cheap, yet good quality sleeping bags there."
"Really?" Sam asked. "Then we should go check it out. I wonder what this place is like."
Tucker grinned. "I want a dark red sleeping bag!"
Danny grinned back. "Dark blue like space for me!"
Sam grinned at Danny and Tucker. "Well, mine is going to be black as night."
Tucker laughed. "Only you would go with black, Sam."
"Well due, I am a goth," Sam cheekly replied.
Echo and Dorumon led the three teens to the store Echo heard about it. He did have to ask for directions a few times because he didn't know where the store was. The store was apparently called 'Spooks n' Stuff'. It was a unique store that sold a lot of different things, for ghosts, humans, and Digimon. Though a lot of stores already did that, this store seemed to be pretty popular according to the reviews.
"Who names a store 'Spooks n' Stuff'?" Sam asked. "It sounds like something for Halloween or something."
Dorumon grinned. "Well, you would be surprised. I mean, the fashion store was called 'Paulina's Fashion'."
"Yeah, but as much as I didn't like Paulina, she knew her fashion," Sam admitted.
Echo opened the door to the store, letting the teens walk in first. The store was a lot more humble than the mall was. While it was still decently big inside, it was more comfortable and easy to get around. There were some clothes being sold, though what got the teens' attention were the abundance of what looked like Fenton technology being sold here. There were several different colored D-Arcs being sold too. There were all sorts of antics as well. There were potted plants, and flowers of different kinds. There were some with ghostly glows on them, showing they were plants from the Ghost Zone.
"Why is it so cold in here?" Tucker shivered, wrapping his arms around him. "Glad I have a hoodie, jeez…"
"Yeah, it's pretty frigid in here," Sam agreed.
"According to the advertisement, the store is kept at a 58 degrees fahrenheit because the owner of the store is a ghost with an ice core. Huh, that's interesting, we don't usually find a place owned by a ghost in the living world," Echo noted in interest. "Employees are to wear jackets to keep themselves warm, unless they're cold by nature themselves."
Danny looked around, seeming to be unaffected by the cold. "Why do you guys feel cold? I feel fine." He noted with some interest before he paused. "Wait… 'I feel fine'? That's… odd."
Echo looked like he wanted to say something to that, but decided against it. "Let's just look for the sleeping bags, pay for them, and leave. I don't want to freeze my toes off while we're in here."
"Glad I have fur," Dorumon chuckled.
Danny chuckled as well. "Okay, if you say so, Echo." He looked like he wanted to make a witty quip, but he refrained from doing so, since Echo looked like he would be unamused by it.
While the group was looking around, Danny kept looking back whenever a ghost set off his ghost sense. There were just so many ghosts in here that it was difficult not to jump whenever one flew too close. He tried to ignore it by thinking about what could've happened to his brother that could've caused him to hurt Danny, and landed him as a wanted criminal.
Was it me? Did I do something that made Andy snap and hurt me the way he did? I don't even know how he hurt me enough that it would be considered breaking a law in the Ghost Zone. I mean… ghosts fight me all the time. Danny frowned. Was it an accident? Andy didn't seem to act like it was though, he seemed pretty… sad and regretful about it. I wish he would tell me what happened, maybe we could prevent it back in our time. He seems pretty cold to me though… maybe… I could try to get him to open up?
The longer they stayed in the store, the colder it felt like it was getting. There was also something in the air in this store that was… familiar to Danny. The cold temperature, and the strange thing in the air was making Danny's core purr in delight and comfort though.
Danny grimaced a bit as he rubbed at his chest. Okay… this is too weird… My core feels like it's happy here… and it feels odd...
"So they're just selling D-Arcs? They're not just toys? They're real?" Tucker asked in surprise as he was looking at the D-Arc selection.
"Ever since the Digital World became connected to this world, the Celestial Digimon began mass producing the D-Arcs so people could have connections with Digimon they want as their partner or friend," Dorumon answered.
Tucker looked like his head was going to explode with excitement. "That's awesome!" He exclaimed.
"Okay… let's get those sleeping bags before Tucker's head blows off." Sam muttered with a roll of her eyes.
Then Sam stopped when something caught her attention, she saw a beautiful red flower that was blooming inside a display case. Though this was the only flower that was in a display case of its own instead of with the others.
"Oh, wow…" Sam muttered as she walked over to the red flower. "What kind of flower is that? It looks so beautiful, but also mysterious…"
Sam saw the label under the display case. The label read: 'Blood Blossom'.
"Blood Blossom?" Sam raised an eyebrow. "That's an odd name for a flower." She then grinned. "But it sounds like my kind of flower. I wonder how much it costs?"
"Where are the sleeping bags…?" Echo frowned as he was looking around.
Then Echo noticed someone wearing what appeared to be a uniform, so he approached them. "Excuse me, miss?"
The person in uniform had short orange hair, teal blue eyes, and looked familiar, but Echo couldn't quite place it.
"Yes, can I help you?" The woman asked as she faced Echo.
"Do you carry-" Echo began to ask when a loud voice shouted in anger.
"What do you mean you sold out!? I demand to speak to your manager!" A blond haired woman shouted angrily at an employee at the counter.
"Ma'am… I apologize, but we sold our last batch yesterday." The poor employee apologized. "We're going to get another shipment in three days, can't you wait until then?"
"I can't believe you're making me, a paying customer, having to wait for three days! I'm leaving this dinky town tomorrow, and I'm not staying for three more days until you can get your act together and get more of it!" The woman snapped. "Now where is your manager!?"
Tucker, having walked over to where Echo was, frowned. "Wow… that woman sounds like what we call 'a Karen' back home."
Then, the manager of the store opened the door to his office, having heard what was going on.
"What seems to be the problem?" The manager asked in an all too familiar voice.
Echo, however, wasn't paying attention since he didn't care to hear a 'Karen' complaining about not getting her way. He turned his attention back to the employee he was talking to while the 'Karen' was listing things of what she had a problem with, and it was a long list.
"Do you carry sleeping bags?" Echo politely asked the young woman.
"Oh! Yes, we do." The woman replied. "Just check over by the camping stuff, near the entrance." She pointed over where said supplies was located.
"Oooh, I'll go check it out!" Tucker smiled as he went to the camping stuff.
"I better get the others so they can choose out their sleeping bags," Echo sighed.
"Heh, I think this is an interesting experience for you," Dorumon laughed.
The young woman noticed Dorumon, and blinked at him. "Excuse me, is this Dorumon your partner?"
"Hmm?" Echo turned back to the orange haired woman. "Yeah, he is. Why? He didn't eat something he shouldn't, did he?"
"Oh… no, no he hasn't. I was just wondering if he was. One of my brothers has a Dorumon as his partner, so I was just curious." The young woman replied.
Echo frowned. "Did his Dorumon have a green gem on its forehead?"
"Yes, his partner did." The woman confirmed. "Why?" She asked as she raised an eyebrow at Echo.
"... Just humor me for a moment, since I don't see a nametag… what's your name? Your full name?" Echo asked.
"Jasmine… Jasmine Fenton…" The woman, Jasmine, replied, eyeing Echo warily. "Why do you want to know?"
"Ah… no reason… well, I sometimes like to ask the people helping me their names if they don't have a nametag, I'm weird like that," Echo quickly said, his heart beating faster in his chest. "I'm going to go look at the sleeping bags now."
Echo and Dorumon quickly moved away from the woman named Jasmine, and as they were moving, Echo noticed the area got a lot colder. He looked over at Karen, who suddenly went quiet, and that was when he saw… him.
"You should leave, ma'am, you're upsetting our customers, and I have real work to do," He said to Karen in a calm voice, yet it was full of authority.
"Well, I will be making a complaint to your superiors." Karen said in a matter-of-fact voice.
"Good luck with that, I own the place," he said back.
Then he leaned in closer to Karen, despite being shorter than her, she began to back away. His eyes started to glow, and he gave a grin, showing his very white teeth to her.
Karen looked unnerved before she turned and quickly left, making the employee she had been harassing breathe a sigh of relief. "Thanks, sir… She was a real bother."
The woman knocked down a few things in her hurry to leave. He used telekinesis to lift everything back up, and put them in their proper shelves. "Come get me immediately the next time you have to deal with someone like that."
Echo could sense the woman's fears that she left behind, it was pretty strong. She didn't seem to notice the ghosts in the area, which wasn't unusual. People who lived outside of Amity Park had trouble seeing ghosts, because they had a lack of exposure to ectoplasm. Something Echo learned when he was travelling the world. Though the fears were soon being taken by a certain someone.
"Y-yes, sir! Next time I will." The employee promised.
Dorumon nudged Echo. "Are you okay?"
"... Yeah, uh… we need to get the others and get out," Echo quickly said.
"What about the sleeping bags?" Dorumon asked, but Echo was already running to get to Sam. "W-wait up!"
"Sam, we need to- What are you looking at?" Echo stopped when he saw the flower she was holding, and flinched away from her. "Put that down!"
"Why?" Sam asked as she frowned, looking down at the flower. "It's a Blood Blossom. Pretty cool name for a flower."
Echo pushed Dorumon back a few feet when Sam was showing him the flower. "Put it back in the display case, Sam. A Blood Blossom isn't good for Digimon… or ghosts."
Sam frowned, but did as Echo asked. "Okay… but why isn't it good for Digimon? Or ghosts?"
When Sam put the Blood Blossom back, Echo took her arm and began rushing through the store. "I'll explain later. Where's Danny?"
"He… went with Tucker to look at the camping stuff. Why?" Sam replied.
"We need to leave," Echo said urgently. "We shouldn't be here."
Echo made a quick glance at the counter. He was still there, looking like he was making some kind of negotiation with another ghost.
Sam followed Echo's gaze, but couldn't really see the manager very well. "Echo… did someone recognize you?" She asked in a whisper to him.
"No… at least I don't think so, but they might." Echo frowned.
Echo, Dorumon, and Sam finally reached the camping section where Danny and Tucker were looking at different sleeping bags.
"We need to go, now," Echo spoke up to them.
Danny and Tucker looked back at Echo. "What? Why?" Tucker asked with a frown. "Is something wrong?"
"Yes, something is tremendously wrong. Drop everything you're holding, and let's move," Echo said urgently.
"But what about the sleeping bags?" Danny asked, surprised by how scared Echo sounded.
"We'll get them somewhere else, now go!" Echo said louder, but not too loud.
"Okay, okay! We're going." Tucker said as he and Danny put their stuff back.
They started to rush to the door when someone suddenly appeared in front of them. Echo quickly pulled back the three behind him. "Keep your hoods up."
The person standing in front of them looked just like Danny, the same black hair, the same blue eyes. Only he was a little bit taller, about the same height as Echo.
"You seemed… awfully in a hurry to leave. Is everything alright? I hope Jazz wasn't rude to you," He said in a polite tone, though he kept his eyes on Echo in particular, he did glance down at Dorumon a few times. Dorumon was trying to hide his crystal forehead.
"No, no, she was lovely," Echo answered, trying to make his voice sound distorted. "But we really need to get going now, and we would rather not take up any more of your time."
He frowned a bit, but let the group pass. "Alright then, have a good day."
Echo quickly led the group out of the Spooks n' Stuff, and they didn't stop until they were at least a mile away from the store.
Sam looked at Echo. "Okay, that was weird. Why did you have us leave so suddenly?" She asked as she put her hands on her hips.
"Yeah, and we didn't even get our sleeping bags." Tucker pouted.
"That guy… that was me, wasn't it?" Danny asked.
"No, it was a clone," Echo sarcastically answered. "Yes, that was you… or will be you."
Danny looked surprised. "Oh… I see… it would have caused some kind of time paradox if we were in the same location, right?"
"... Right, yes, that's exactly why I had us leave," Echo quickly agreed. "But it was… odd. I didn't expect to see him here, I thought he'd be at the Ghost Zone…"
"Why would my future self be at the Ghost Zone?" Danny asked as he raised an eyebrow.
"... You ask too many questions," Echo grumbled. "Come on, let's go get sleeping bags from a different store, then we'll find a place to camp out for the night."
Danny sighed. "Okay… At least we won't be at risk of a time paradox then."
Sam groaned. "As long as we don't encounter any more Karens… Those types of people can ruin someone's day…"
"In more ways than one, since we were pretty much kicked out because of her," Tucker joked.
Meanwhile, back at Clockwork's Tower
"The Observants are going crazy out there!" A familiar ghost weasel laughed as she flew into Clockwork's Tower's window. "I think they sensed the paradox evil ghost was released or something!"
Clockwork gave a vague smile. "I expected as much." He chuckled. "Not that they can really see time as it moves."
"But is it true? Is that Dan ghost actually released? The Observants are acting like it's the end of the universe or something," Avala asked.
"Why don't you go ask my guests?" Clockwork chuckled as he turned into a child and pointed with his time staff.
Avala blinked before she noticed three familiar faces looking at some kind of glowing orb. "No way…"
Avala quickly flew down to the small group. "Takuya!? Dorumon!? Andy?! Is that you?"
The small group looked up at Avala.
"It's you, that weasel time traveler ghost!" Dorumon pointed out. "What are you doing here?"
"You're in the Master of Time's lair and you're asking what a time traveler like me is doing here? I think the proper question is what are you three doing here," Avala pointed out.
Takuya grumbled. "Someone had the bright idea of sending Digimon and ghosts out to our time for some reason and one of them sent us here…" He muttered while glancing at Clockwork.
"Now was it really that bad?" Clockwork chuckled.
"Yes…" Dorumon muttered.
"You still haven't told us why we're here," Andy pointed out. "You pretty much sent Danny, Tucker, and Sam into the future and haven't even tried to get them back here."
"Oh, honey, you should never try asking this guy for a straight answer. He loves his cryptic riddles," Avala grumbled. "But I realized I never properly introduced myself to you. You can call me Avala, I'm Clockwork's little agent."
"Agent?" Andy blinked.
"Clockwork isn't always allowed to do things due to his… employers' strict rules. So he needs someone to do certain things for him without getting in trouble," Avala explained. "He found me, and let's just say I was all too happy to oblige. I mean I get to travel through time, how could I say no to that?"
Takuya groaned. "Of course…" He sighed. Then he looked back up. "But why send those Digimon and ghosts after us?" He asked Clockwork, but the boy had a feeling Clockwork would not give a straight answer.
"Were they after you? Or were they guiding you?" Clockwork asked back. "Perhaps what happened was meant to happen."
"You see? He likes to talk in riddles," Avala pointed out.
Takuya put his hands to the sides of his head. "This is so confusing…" The boy groaned.
Dorumon wanted to burst out laughing at Takuya's reaction to Clockwork's cryptic response. "What's so confusing about it? He basically just led us here."
"And he had a reason for it," Andy added before looking at the being inside the glowing orb.
"Oh! My! GOSH! Is that Dan!? The big bad ghost locked away in the Thermos!?" Avala asked in excitement, likely seeing Dan for the first time. "Huh… he's smaller than I thought he would be."
"I've de-aged him back to his original age when he fused," Clockwork explained.
"Oh… well if you could do that, why didn't you do that before?" Avala questioned.
"He had to be weakened. He was far too powerful to de-age back then, even after Danny defeated him," Clockwork answered.
"He's a ghost, right? A full ghost? How was he able to get older?" Andy asked.
"Can ghosts age?" Takuya asked as he scratched at his head.
"Well… Clockwork's shifting in age…" Dorumon pointed out.
As if on cue, Clockwork shifted to an old ghost. "In a sense, ghosts can age or appear older or younger than they actually are. But it depends on the core, the age of the core can make the ghost's body older or younger. The older the core, the more complex it will be. A ghost's core is very complicated, and each one has a different core. It's hard to say what each of their cores would do. As for Dan, his core is unstable due to missing both of their halves, and needing to cling to each other without destabilizing."
"So you're saying Dan only exists because both Danny's and Vlad's ghost halves wanted to keep existing?" Andy asked.
Takuya blinked. "That… actually makes a certain amount of sense; the ghost half needs the human half to exist. Err… at least I am assuming that." Takuya added quickly.
"And because Vlad's ghost half was already an adult, Dan's core decided to age him up to an adult. But because Danny's ghost half was still young and a child, the core only went as far as the 20s. Realistically speaking, if he had been aging like a human, he would've already been hundreds of years old by now," Clockwork explained. "Because he had been trapped in the Thermos for hundreds of years."
"What? That long? How?" Dorumon asked, surprised.
"My lair exists outside of time, but that's not to say that time couldn't still be passing. I exist in different time eras. I exist 12 years in the future, but also in your present. Dan existed in a time that stopped existing for about 346 years now, so that makes him 370 years old now," Clockwork answered.
"It only felt like one year, but then again, my sense of time got warped while being inside a damn thermos for so long in a place that exists outside of time," Dan huffed in annoyance.
Andy looked at Dan. "How did you turn out like this?"
"Why should I bother telling you? You who abandoned me when our friends and family died?" Dan snapped.
Takuya looked at Dan. "Why would you say Andy abandoned you?" He growled out in response, his eyes taking on a slightly feral look. "Andy would never abandon someone!"
Dorumon watched this all with interest, cocking his head to the side as he did so.
"You'd be surprised what people you thought you knew would be capable of during times of grief, Takuya," Dan softly growled. "Look at me! Your supposed cousin, the one you claim to be such a good, pure hearted person!"
Takuya felt his heart clench at those words. "That's…" His shoulders slumped. "It…" He found he had no rebuttal to that comment from Dan.
"Well, you can tell us if you want to make us feel bad," Andy stated. "After all, what better way to get at me, the one who abandoned you, than to burden me with the knowledge of how I left you and you turned into what you are now?"
Takuya looked up at Andy, as did Dorumon. Both of them were surprised at what Andy was asking Dan to do, but at the same time, both realized Andy wanted Dan to do that, so they could find a way to help him.
"Ah, of course. You are the smarter of the two of us, aren't you? Of course you want me to tell you, so you can find a way to prevent it." Dan mocked. "Or to find a way to survive it and abandon me."
"Prevent it? No, it's already happened to you, and that timeline's already been erased," Andy said coldly. "What I want to know is how the hell this happened to you in the first place. You were once my brother, even if you are part Vlad now, surely you can understand why I want to know. It's for a selfish reason of course: curiosity. I don't have anything to prevent since you don't exist anymore, or at least, you shouldn't."
Dan gave a mocking sneer. "Oh, that is just cold, dear brother of mine~ I had no idea you could be so icy in attitude if you really tried~"
Andy didn't give an answer back. He just kept looking at Dan.
Dan frowned. "What? Why are you staring at me like that?" He demanded, his forked tongue sticking out in an attempt to intimidate Andy.
"Well, you're boring. Didn't realize when my brother grew up, he'd just become as boring as the fruitloop," Andy shrugged. "Maybe we should just put you back into your eternal timeout in the Thermos now since you just want to be boring."
Dan actually had the sense to show the tiniest bit of fear at being shoved back into that thermos. "Y-you wouldn't!" He stammered out, trying to hide the slightest bit of fear in his voice.
Takuya looked at Dan. "Oh, he would. Trust me." He said as he gave a bit of a wry smirk to the evil ghost in the sphere/barrier.
Dorumon covered his mouth to keep from laughing or saying anything that could ruin the moment.
"Takuya, could you pass me the Thermos? The new one? The one that hasn't been worn out?" Andy smirked.
Takuya had a matching smirk as he took out a new Fenton Thermos. "You mean this one?~" He sang as he tossed it to Andy.
Dan looked worried. "Y-you wouldn't! You don't have what it takes! You can't possibly finish me off so you have to seal me away in that thing again!? You really are weak-hearted, dear brother!"
"Eh, I think of it as more of a time out for you being so naughty," Andy shrugged, not at all bothered by the insult. "Besides, judging by your reaction, this is a punishment worse than obliteration. So wouldn't this make me crueler than just mercy killing you?"
Dan glared at his alternate dimension brother, while Andy glared back, neither brother backing down. However, Dan, as twisted as he was, knew well enough that Andy would go through with this threat. Unlike his Andy, this Andy still had his brother. So it wouldn't matter if Andy sucked him back into the Thermos or not, he would still have his pure and untouched brother to go back home to.
"Y-you don't have it in you to be so cruel to me!" Dan protested.
Takuya grinned at Dan now. "Aww, is the evil Dan afraid of the big bad Thermos?" He teased. "I'd imagine that's a cold response, right?"
Avala whistled. "I didn't realize you guys had such a dark streak."
"You want to know my past so badly? Fine! I'll tell you, but don't come crying to me if you rather you didn't know!" Dan snapped. "On second thought, cry, cry a lot!"
Andy put the Fenton Thermos down, then he brought over the nearest chair in the area and sat down. "Okay, we seem to have all the time in the world, so go ahead, tell us your life story."
"It's simple. I cheated on the C.A.T. Mr. Lancer found out and called our, -my-, parents down to the Nasty Burger to have a talk about what happened. A ghost showed up and I wound up fighting it alongside my brother, but the ghost trapped my parents, sister, friends, and Mr. Lancer against the Nasty Sauce tank. The tank overheated, and exploded, killing all of them. Vlad took me and my brother in, but the grief was too much and I asked him to remove my ghost half. However, when that happened, my ghost half went and removed Vlad's ghost half as well, and then fused with it. My human half was killed, and I went on a terror spree that lasted ten years. But then my goody-two-shoes past self arrived in the future and I went back in time to ensure my future would happen. I almost succeeded if not for my past self defeating me and sealing me in that thermos." Dan listed off. "There, now you know what happened."
"Not… really? I feel you skipped a lot of details," Andy stated. "For one, you never mentioned what happened to me, or how I 'abandoned' you. Or how Vlad managed to remove your ghost half, or why and how your ghost half fused with his. How did your human half die? How was he killed? Why did you go back to the past in the first place? Why did you want to become the way you are now? You've told me nothing, really."
Dan grumbled. "You are worse than my brother…" He muttered. "Fine. First, I killed my human half." Dan gained a sinister grin. "Do you want the juicy details of how I did that in full glory?~ Or would you rather I skipped that part?~"
Takuya and Dorumon both frowned at that, clearly very disturbed that Dan killed his own human half and seemed to have enjoyed it.
"Why?" Andy asked.
"What?" Dan frowned, seeming taken aback by the simple question.
"I'm asking you why you killed your human half," Andy explained.
"That's it? No gasp? No shock? No 'how the hell could I do that to my own human half?' Just… why?" Dan demanded.
"Oh, I'm sorry, you mean waste everyone's time on freaking out over something you did in your moment of insanity in a timeline that no longer exists?" Andy sarcastically answered. "My bad. Ahem… 'Oh no, you evil, sick, twisted fiend! How could you do that!? Why would you do that?' … No seriously, why?"
Takuya looked at Andy. "You know… you're sure being snarky right now…" He noted. "I'm not sure if that is a good thing or if you are feeling alright."
"At this point, I'm past feeling shocked and anxious," Andy answered. "What I want right now is answers."
Dan growled. Andy was being a rather difficult audience. "Why do you think!? Because I wanted to! No more human emotion or weakness to slow me down! I won't have to keep feeling his pain, grief, and guilt!"
"Ah, so you killed your own human half because you couldn't take the guilt and grief anymore? Sounds like you did it out of cowardice," Andy noted.
"YOU were the one who left me during all this! You, the only other survivor of that Nasty Burger explosion, just left me alone to rot!" Dan snapped. "Because you were too much of a coward to face your own damn emotions! You've got nothing to talk about!"
"Is that what I did? Sorry, your story didn't inform me of what 'I' did," Andy replied. "Now stop shouting how you liked killing your human half, and think about the why. And I mean really think about it. I've been split in half before. I doubt you would've just killed your human half on a whim, even if you fused with Vlad's ghost. You said you wanted to kill him to get rid of the human emotions and weakness. Exactly what brought you to that conclusion? After all, ghosts have emotions too, sometimes their emotions seem to be stronger than a human's, at least in terms of aggressiveness."
Dan snorted. "Isn't it obvious? My human half was weak, too burdened down by the past memories to let go. I wanted to get rid of any reminder of my weaknesses."
Takuya's eyes went wide when he heard that. "You killed your human half to get rid of reminders of the past… to get rid of any reminder of what you lost…" He realized.
Dan looked at Takuya with a glare. "So what if I did?" He snapped before he paused, an odd look crossing his face. "I… did do that…" He murmured.
"The next question I wanted to ask was what made you decide to kill people?" Andy questioned.
"Isn't it obvious? I wanted to!" Dan grinned, showing his fangs.
"I know my brother, and while Vlad can seem scary, I don't think he was the type of man to just kill because he can. Don't tell me you did it because you wanted to. You had to have a reason for it," Andy pointed out.
Dan grumbled. "You are definitely worse than my brother…" He muttered. "Why would I kill people? Why should they get to have happiness while I lost everything in my life that made me happy?!" Dan retorted.
Dan then punched the barrier he was in, but it made no signs of dents or cracks. "Why do they get to move on happily with their lives? Why does the world get to keep spinning when mine had to end? Maybe killing them would be a mercy, so nobody would have to feel the pain of loss like I had to. They can all be together for eternity. People are going to die eventually, all I did was speed up the process! Why should that be looked at as evil!?"
Takuya clenched his fists; he wanted to scream and yell at Dan that what he did only caused more harm than good, but when he looked at it from a more… logical perspective, it made sense in a twisted way. He looked back at Dan, surprised that he could understand the ghost's twisted logic in a way. "That… as twisted as it is… it makes sense… to an extent…" He murmured.
"But life is supposed to be precious." Dorumon frowned. "Even though we Digimon are… sort of immortal, with the reborn mechanic that we have, we would lose our memories of our past incarnations. We wouldn't be the same Digimon we were back then. Memories are precious, just as life is. I… only got lucky that I kept my memories when I was reborn."
"It could've been more than that…" Andy said softly, petting his partner who was sitting next to him.
Andy looked back at Dan. "Do you still want to kill everyone?"
"What kind of question is that?" Dan huffed.
"A reasonable one," Andy replied back. "You have a chance to truly start over, you know… do you really want to spend it by killing and risk being sealed away again?"
Dan huffed again. "Of course I would. It's the only way no one can be hurt ever again."
"Dan, you're intelligent," Andy said.
Dan blinked, he didn't expect that kind of response.
"Now use your… core to think," Andy said, pausing on the core part as he recalled that pure ghosts didn't have brains, but cores to use to think. "People who die with regrets or strong emotions would, more often than not, become ghosts. And ghosts can still suffer, they can still feel emotions despite what you may think, ghosts can still feel pain. By killing people, you didn't end their suffering, you just led them to new suffering."
Dan looked down, not really sure what to think. But this Andy's words had a certain amount of sense to them. He looked at his hands, hands that had taken so many lives, both ghost and human. "I… I did do that…" He murmured, frowning to himself.
"Now think of this from both Danny and Vlad's perspectives. Would your parents, your sister, your friends, and even your brother, approve of you doing what you did? Would Maddie have wanted you to do what you did to all those people?" Andy asked. "They died due to you doing something wrong, like cheating on one of the biggest tests in school. Why would you think doing more wrong things would make things right? Hurting the world because you were hurt would only cause more pain and suffering, not make it better. Do you understand that?"
"Yes! Of course I understand!" Dan snapped.
"Then why did you do it?" Andy asked back.
Dan growled as he hit the barrier again and again, shouting about how it wasn't fair, how he lost everything and everyone, how what he did should be justified. He kept going and going, until he eventually grew tired and curled up at the bottom of the barrier, crying like the child that he was now.
"I don't know…" Dan finally said in a soft tone.
Takuya frowned as he watched Dan and his actions. It was clear Dan was hurting over the loss. He didn't know what to do to channel that grief more effectively… ! Wait… Takuya realized as a thought crossed his mind. Was Dan too upset to find a way to channel his grief properly? I mean… he was 14 when he lost everything in his life… "Could… could it be that Dan didn't have a proper outlet to channel his grief?" Takuya wondered aloud. "I mean… Dan, in his timeline, was only 14 when his life as he knew it ended… Everyone he was close to he lost… how do you channel the grief from such a loss in a healthy way, all while 14 years old?"
"That's the point, isn't it? He lost his sanity when Vlad separated his ghost half," Andy speculated. "He was hurt, and confused. From my experience, his ghost half was still Danny. He was likely angry and upset that even though he was removed from his human half, he still felt all that pain, and it was likely even stronger in him, so much so that he lashed out at the closest person to him, who happened to be Vlad. My guess is that the fusion with Vlad's ghost half happened by accident, because when he removed Vlad's ghost half, he must've tried to overshadow him. But since they were both missing their other halves, their core fused with each other in a desperate attempt to be whole again. But I'm just guessing from what I've learned about ghost cores and separating the two halves of a halfa."
"How do you know all this?" Avala asked, who had been watching the conversation.
"I accidentally got split in half myself once," Andy admitted. "While I never fused with another ghost or halfa, I do at least know what it's like to have both of my halves be separated. It can really mess you up."
Takuya grinned. "Well, your ghost half was more mischievous and caused Danny to be split in half, so yeah, being split can make you messed up in the head."
"But what're we going to do about him?" Dorumon asked, pointing at the still crying Dan.
"It might be best to let him be for now, then talk to him again later when he lets it all out," Clockwork suggested. "In the meantime, although time doesn't technically move here at the same rate as it does in the living world, it is getting late for you. Would you like a bed to sleep on?"
Takuya felt the exhaustion from the battle coming back to him. "That… actually sounds nice… I'm about ready to fall asleep standing up…" He groaned out.
Dorumon grinned. "Don't pass out on us now~"
Andy chuckled a little. "It's rather funny how at ease you are to sleep in a ghost's lair."
"I'm too tired to worry about that right now…" Takuya grumbled. "That's why I'm not protesting sleeping in a lair of a ghost." It also doesn't help that my Spirits are not responding to me as well, mostly because they are tired as well...
"Wait…" Dorumon blinked. "You're a ghost, why would you have beds?"
Clockwork just grinned. "Sometimes I have some special guests that need to sleep. Don't worry about it."
Avala was giggling to herself.
"You and Dorumon go on ahead to sleep, Takuya," Andy said. "I'm going to stay here a little longer."
Takuya looked back at Andy. "Are you sure?" He asked, not entirely sure about leaving Andy alone right now.
Andy nodded. "Yeah, don't worry about me. I'll be fine."
"I'll stay here with you," Dorumon said firmly. "I'm not leaving you alone here."
Andy chuckled. "Alright then."
Takuya sighed. "I guess… Just… if anything happens, have Dorumon come and get me, okay?" He said. "You might need my help."
With that said, Takuya turned and made his way to Clockwork. "I… please lead me to the beds… I… feel like passing out now…" Takuya groaned out as a yawn escaped him.
"Of course, Takuya Kanbara." Clockwork grinned.
"I'll be on the lookout for your employers. They're not gonna approve of this if they see them," Avala sighed.
Clockwork sighed too. "I know."
The sun had long since set. The night sky was filled with stars, though it was a pretty dark night due to it being a new moon. Danny didn't mind it though, since it was a clear night, they decided to just sleep outside instead of in a tent. They laid in their sleeping bags that they got from a camping store. Danny enjoyed seeing the stars, which was easier in central park. Though surprisingly the light pollution wasn't so bad, so the stars were actually easier to see now than it was 12 years ago in his time.
Danny turned a little in his sleeping back, seeing Tucker and Sam already fast asleep in their own sleeping bags. They were likely exhausted by the day, not that Danny could blame them, he was feeling pretty tired himself. However, he had some things on his mind. Danny turned over in his sleeping bag to the other side, and saw the future Andy laying in his own sleeping bag, with Dorumon curled up next to him. But Echo was facing away from the group.
Danny frowned before he reached out and his hand stopped before he could poke Echo. Instead, Danny sighed as he sat up and looked up at the stars again. Why is Echo… err… Andy… kind of cold towards me? It can't be just my future self and Echo being a criminal, can it? I feel like there is more to this than he is letting on. Danny looked back at Echo again.
Danny tried to sleep, but this question kept burning in his mind. He and Andy had always been close, even if they were mad at each other, they wouldn't stay mad, and Danny remembered how Andy had that fear of him leaving him behind. They did grow a little apart after Danny's first accident with the portal, but they had been getting closer since the second accident. Danny blinked, he hadn't seen Echo using his ghost powers since they got here, and that made him wonder if Echo still had ghost powers, and if that maybe had something to do with Echo being cold towards Danny.
Unable to sleep, and having this eating away at his mind, Danny looked back at Echo again. He needed this, he couldn't just keep quiet and pretend it didn't bother him anymore.
Danny reached out and poked Echo on the side of his head. "Hey, Echo? Are you awake?" Danny asked in a whisper to the sleeping teen next to him. "Echo?"
"What do you want?" Echo grumbled without turning around.
"Um… I just… wanted to talk." Danny replied. "I'm sorry for waking you up…"
"I wasn't asleep," Echo admitted. "I just wanted time to myself."
Danny blushed, feeling awkward for not realizing the other teen had, in fact, not been asleep.
"What do you want to talk about? I can't reveal too much or this future could get erased," Echo stated.
Danny paused, trying to figure out how to word his questions to Echo. "Um… well…" Aw man… How can I word this without making it look like I am asking for too much information? Danny thought worriedly. "Um… can you explain what is going on with my future self and you? I feel… I don't know… like there is more to the story than there seems to be at first glance." Danny admitted at last. "Err… I get it if you can't tell me too much information to preserve this future and all, but… whatever you can tell me would be most appreciated."
For a long moment, Echo remained quiet. Since he wasn't facing Danny, Danny couldn't tell what Echo was thinking, or if Echo decided to ignore him after all.
But Echo finally said something. "I broke the rules… I broke one of the biggest Taboos, Danny. I hurt you and violated your core. I needed to… not only be punished, but also give some kind of restitution to you. I would have to beg penance, and hope they didn't give me some impossible job just to screw with me because I hurt their precious p- erm, ghost boy that they like so much. Things… got complicated. I'm not sure how much more I should tell you."
Danny blinked as he listened to Echo's story. "Wow… I… I'm sorry I asked…" He murmured before a thought crossed his mind. " Wait? Taboos?" Danny asked, as this was the first time he had heard of Taboos, or anything like them at all.
"You… don't know about Taboos?" Echo asked, turning to look at Danny for the first time since they started talking.
"N-no…" Danny admitted. "This… This is the first I've heard of them." He then chuckled a bit. "Being half ghost doesn't mean I know everything about ghosts, now does it?"
Echo gave a confused look. "Taboos are these major rules in the Ghost Zone. They're big rules that should never be broken, if you break them, the Ancients will come and find you and take you to ghost court. It's considered a serious crime to break one of these Taboos, about as big as murder in the living world."
Danny let out a soft whistle. "That does sound serious." He noted. Then Danny frowned. "Wait… how would I know what these Taboos are and if I broke one?"
"You've told me that-" Echo frowned, then he furrowed his eyebrows. "No… don't tell me… but that would be a paradox!"
Danny blinked in confusion. "What?"
"You seemed to have always known about the Taboos, because you talked about them to me and… some other people about them, and I had no idea how you knew about them. You would just tell me you've 'always known'," Echo explained. "That's why I was confused as to why you didn't know! You kept telling me you just knew, like maybe you inherited the knowledge somehow… but now I think you only knew because I, in the future, told you about them, and you just didn't want to tell me how you learned about Taboos!"
Echo grabbed the pillow he was laying his head on and screamed into it.
Danny blinked again. "Seriously? Um... That's… kinda awkward…" He muttered with a sweat-drop running down the side of his head.
Echo then removed the pillow from his face. "Does that mean this was always meant to happen? Did my Danny go into the future and meet with future me like you are right now?"
"Um… I would say something about that, but I am not a seer, so I can't say if it was meant to happen or not…" Danny admitted sheepishly.
"The future is fickle, Danny, even the best seers don't know what will happen until it happens. I'm sure I told you that before," Echo replied. "But I have learned a few things after 12 years of being a seer. While what I said before about there being thousands if not millions or more paths of the future still stands, there are… some events that are time locked."
"Meaning…?" Danny asked.
"They're destined to happen. You can try to stop it, but it'll still happen, someway, somehow," Echo clarified. "Like your accident. It's a time locked event. Even if you hadn't walked into the portal that day because of Sam, despite what Desiree may have tried to change, you would've still found yourself going into that portal, turning it on from the inside, and still become half ghost eventually, just under different circumstances."
Danny frowned. "I see…" He then looked back at Echo again. "Well… maybe you telling me about the Taboos is time-locked. I mean, how else could I have known about them?"
"Don't ask about paradoxes, they'll make your head explode," Echo grumbled. "I still can't believe you learned about Taboos from me of all people…"
A part of Danny actually liked the thought of teasing his Andy with this. The fact he knew something that Andy didn't, and that he just 'somehow knew' without finding out about it from research or whatever. It would definitely drive his Andy crazy. Heh, no wonder Echo's mad about it.
"Oh yeah, laugh it up, it wasn't so funny from my point of view," Echo huffed, hearing Danny snickering.
Danny grinned. "Oh, don't be like that~" Danny teased Echo. "You have to admit, keeping something like that from you is something I would totally do, just to mess with you~"
"Yeah, I know," Echo rolled his eyes. "You do realize I would get you back for that when I realize the truth, right?"
"You haven't realized it for 12 years," Danny pointed out.
"... Shit, you're right…" Echo frowned before realizing he just cursed in front of a 14 year old. "Don't repeat that!"
Danny grinned. "You know you love me~" He teased. "And as for your comment, why should I not repeat that? You're just about my age. Err… at least you look my age. And what teenager doesn't swear?"
"You don't," Echo said.
Danny frowned as he recalled all the times he swore, or rather the lack thereof.
"Besides, you're supposed to be a superhero, remember? Gotta keep your image pure for the kids~" Echo grinned.
Danny balked. "H-hey! I'm not that pure! I… err… am I?" He asked sheepishly.
"Danny, you would make unicorns cry with how pure you are," Echo deadpanned.
"W-what's that supposed to mean?" Danny asked, blushing.
"It means you're too pure for this world." Echo laughed.
Danny then blinked. "Wait… are we bonding? Like… as in brotherly bonding?"
Echo stopped laughing, and frowned. Danny frowned as well, seeing how pointing that out had killed the mood.
"Funny… I would've thought I'd resent you more and not bond with you ever again after 10 years of being away from you…" Echo whispered. "Yet here you are, ruining that for me too."
Danny looked at Echo. "I… I didn't mean to ruin the mood for you…" He muttered softly.
By now, Danny and Echo had set up in their sleeping bags. Echo's hood was down, and Danny had forgotten that Echo wasn't his Andy, because he looked so much like Andy, well he was Andy, but it was too easy to get his Andy and future Andy mixed up in his mind when he could see Echo's face.
Echo had been quiet for a while since Danny apologized. Danny felt awkward. He was having such a good time bonding with Echo, but it looked like he ruined that.
"I guess even after all this time, I can never truly stay mad at you… although I guess it really isn't fair for me to be mad at you, since you haven't done anything wrong," Echo sighed. "There's something… I haven't told you yet. I haven't been sure if I should tell you, because it's a key moment in this time's history."
Danny blinked as he looked at Echo. "W-what would that be? If… if it's a key point in this time's history, are you sure you want to tell me? I… I don't want to mess that up if you tell me…"
"Clockwork had to have a reason for sending you here," Echo said. "And it shouldn't be a coincidence that I'm the first person you came into contact with in this time. Maybe I'm supposed to tell you, maybe not… but… you wanted to know why I've been so cold to you, don't you?"
Danny gave a small nod, but he was worried about erasing the future if Echo told him too much.
"I was lying to you, Danny," Echo suddenly confessed. "Well, not all of it, but that whole thing about me breaking the Taboo and violating your core, and being a criminal on the run… that was the lie. I am on the run, but not because I'm a criminal. I never violated any Taboo, nor did I ever hurt you. I could never do that…"
Echo squeezed his sleeping bag as he remembered the events that happened 10 years ago, that brought him to this point in time now. "Someone else did that… and… well… ghosts have these magical things that could affect people and ghosts in many different ways. Digimon included. In the living world, if you sign a restraining order, you're forbidden from going to that person, but that doesn't mean anything physical was stopping you from seeing that person anyways. But in the Ghost Zone, once you sign a restraining order, you literally cannot see or hear that person for however long the binding contract lasts. It would be as if they just don't exist to you anymore. It's horrible, being punished in the Ghost Zone. They can do all sorts of things to you physically and mentally."
Danny began to look pale. "That's… I can't imagine going through that… It… so… the person who… violated my core… they literally cannot see me or hear me… in this time…? How does that tie into you?"
"Because I'm your twin brother, I had to sign the restraining order too," Echo answered. "Or at least that's what they told me. Apparently twins are so rare among ghosts that ghosts tend to treat them like the same person. They saw me as another you, I guess. But it wasn't just the restraining order. They also wanted you, and by extension, me, to drink this elixir that would… alter our memories. The accursed elixir would make it so that we would have trouble remembering our… those peop… that person who violated you."
Danny's eyes went wide. "Wait… this… drink… thing… it... would alter our memories?! That's… horrible! Did we even have a choice in the matter?"
"We technically did have a choice," Echo said, then he stopped looking at Danny and looked up at the sky. "Though we did sign agreement papers before the trial started. So if we didn't do it, we would be violating certain laws. Not Taboos, but still pretty serious laws. And you were worried if we didn't do it, then there would be a worse punishment for our- for that person. But I couldn't accept that. Besides, I wasn't a victim in that Taboo. I didn't have to sign the restraining order, or take the elixir. The law didn't say twin ghosts needed to be treated as one person, we were individual people. But nobody listens to a child, especially since said child was biased."
Echo sighed as he looked down. "You did… end up taking the elixir, and signed the restraining order. But I left. I had some help from Takuya and Dorumon to escape the court. They couldn't pin the blame on you because you already took it. They couldn't pin the blame on the person who broke the Taboo because they never technically violated me. I escaped, and nobody got in trouble for it, because I never broke the law. But of course, that didn't stop the ghosts from trying to find me anyways. So like I said, I am on the run, just not as a criminal."
Danny frowned. "It… it sounds like they want you to either make you take that elixir or something else." He noted before looking down at the grass beneath him. "I… I don't understand it… how can the ghosts think you are the same as me? You don't even have the same ghost sense as me; yours is dark blue while mine is light blue. Your eyes are purple in ghost form; mine are green. My hazmat suit is black; yours is dark blue. There are differences."
"Apparently twin ghosts are so rare that ghosts don't know how to treat twins," Echo sighed. "I was seen more as a duplicate or a clone than a twin. So since you got violated, they claim I was too, or I might as well have been."
"Is that why you… resented me? Because I… took the elixir and signed the restraining order?" Danny hesitantly asked. "... Who was it? Who broke the Taboo?"
Echo was silent for a long while.
"Echo… who was it?" Danny pressed, feeling more and more worried. "It… it wasn't someone close to us… err… you, was it?"
Echo was still silent.
"Andy, please tell me," Danny pushed.
That got Echo's attention quick. He quickly pulled up his hood, and several ghosts suddenly appeared in the sky. They began to fly down to where they were.
"And Dee-Dee was right there, blowing her nose! How funny was that?" Echo quickly said, forcing out a laugh. "Isn't that funny!?"
Danny realized he had said the 'A'-name and paled before he went along with Echo's lie. "Oh, yeah~ That was funny as heck!" Danny agreed, forcing a laugh as well. "She used a napkin that had spaghetti sauce on it, so she thought her nose was bleeding!"
The ghosts paused, then they flew back up, ignoring the annoying 'campers'. Seeing the ghosts were leaving, Echo and Danny both sighed in relief.
"Have some self restraint…" Echo hissed.
"S-sorry…" Danny apologized quickly. "But… please… Echo… tell me… who… who was it that broke the Taboo?" Danny pleaded softly.
"... I guess… maybe some futures were meant to be changed…" Echo whispered. "Or maybe you'll somehow forget about all this when you get sent back to your time. Clockwork should know better than to send you to ask me these questions…"
Echo closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them again. "Danny… it wasn't just one person… it was two. Two people… that we know… and love very much… but had the toxic mindset that ghosts were evil… and they made a very dangerous invention, not for ghosts, but for themselves."
Danny felt something in his gut, like a sinking stone was in his stomach. He felt his face growing pale. "Oh… oh no… It… was it…" Danny swallowed nervously. "It… can't have been them… not them…" He whispered. "Mom… and Dad…?"
"This could also be a warning, Danny," Echo said. "By that point, you've been a halfa for 2 years. But you never told Mom and Dad, and you haven't really tried changing their minds about ghosts not being evil. But by not telling them, it caused a rift between you and them… us and them… and by continuing having this mindset, they'll eventually do something that the ghosts can no longer ignore. Mom and Dad are smart, but they are very ignorant, and they choose to stay ignorant so they can justify creating weapons to hurt ghosts, weapons that already break hundreds of laws in the Ghost Zone. If you don't tell them or try to change their minds about ghosts in your time, it could lead to this."
Echo then looked around him. "Well, I make it sound like it's the end of the world, but it's not really so bad. Crime rate has been down, the new ghost king has been keeping peace between the three worlds. And hopefully by this week, Mom and Dad will finally be released from their penance. And you will be released from the restraining order binds, and the elixir's effects. Mom and Dad now know ghosts are civilized beings just like Digimon and we are. But I guess it felt like the end of my world. I left, I no longer had a home to stay in. I didn't want to see you for the past 10 years. If anything, the only thing this really affected negatively was me, and because of my own actions."
Danny frowned. "Yeah… but it still cost you a chance to be with Mom and Dad… as well as me…" He muttered. "I… I don't know what to really say other than 'I'm sorry'. It's… hard to imagine going through that."
"You shouldn't apologize. It hasn't happened with you yet, and maybe it won't," Echo shrugged. "Time is always changing after all. Just because what you see here has happened, it doesn't mean it's destined to happen with you. For all we know, you come from a different timeline altogether, and that's why it was safe to tell you all this. And… while what happened was pretty awful… it wasn't the worst thing in the world. I got to travel, see the world, for these past 10 years. I got to meet people I never would've met if I stayed in Amity Park. I got to help them too. I got to travel with Valerie and Gomamon as well. We all had a nice bonding experience together. I even… got to kiss Valerie. Well, I probably would've proposed to her by now if it weren't for the fact our aging is a bit questionable right now. And I still got to visit Mom and Dad every year when I would come back to Amity Park."
Danny felt a grin cross his face. "Did you just say you kissed Valerie? As in, Red Huntress Valerie? I didn't know you were into the action chicks, br-erm, Echo~"
Echo rolled his eyes. "I've been with her for 10 years, Danny. She's been helping me, putting up with me, and talked to me about what happened back then to help me cope. She chose to come with me when she could've stayed home with her dad, and been compensated for what happened with the dog and the lab. How could I not love her after that? Hell, I would've married her if not for this strange age gap we have now."
Danny grinned again. "Yeah, but you still admitted you love her~" He teased.
Echo looked at Danny, before he smiled. "Right, I kind of forgot you're still mentally 14 years old. Admitting you love someone is still pretty funny to you. But I'm not ashamed to admit I love her. And I would kiss her again when I'm able to. She's actually my girlfriend right now."
Danny blushed at being reminded this version of Andy was actually older than him mentally. "Of all the times to ruin a good mood…" Danny pouted.
"Hey, now I'm the older brother~" Echo grinned.
Tucker, Sam, and Dorumon had been awake for the past hour, and had been silently watching the two.
"Should we tell them we're awake?" Tucker whispered.
"Shush, let them bond," Sam hissed.
Dorumon grinned. "It's been a while since I saw my partner this happy, so I say leave them alone." He whispered back.
Tucker pouted, but decided to let the two brothers, even if they were from different timelines, bond.
"But what about your Danny?" Danny asked. "Don't you want to see him again?"
Echo sighed. "I do… but I also don't… It's been so long since I last saw him. And the last time I did see him was him yelling for me to come back while I flew away. I left him… I'm sure he felt like I abandoned him, and I guess I pretty much did. Because I left without even bothering to look for him. In fact, I tried to stay hidden from him. I was… just so angry and upset with the situation… I was only 16 years old… mentally anyways, back then. I just wanted to leave and try to forget what happened. Ironic since I left because I didn't want to forget. Valerie helped me cope, she saved me from going down a dark road. Dorumon and Gomamon too. They were pretty much the voices of reason to beat back the guilt and sadness I feel about what happened. They also had to put up with a lot of my… erm… ghost puberty stuff."
Danny blinked. "Ghost puberty? Wait… you still have your ghost powers? After what you went through, I was under the impression you would've found a way to get rid of your ghost powers to lay low."
"Nope, it's not really something I can get rid of, even if I used the Fenton Ghost Catcher again," Echo admitted. "And as for ghost puberty… uh… well it's still something I would go through every now and then since I'm still a ghost teenager despite being 26 years old now."
"What happens during ghost puberty?" Danny asked.
Echo shook his head. "That's spoilers. That's something you'll have to deal with back at your own time, br… yeah."
Danny shook his head. "Never mind then." He then looked back at Echo. "So… what are these Taboos? And… which one did Mom and Dad violate?" He asked. "Maybe… if I know, it can be prevented."
"If it's time locked, there's nothing you can do to prevent it," Echo sighed. "Though I suppose you can change how it happens. I won't force you to reveal yourself to your parents since they… do have a chance of not reacting well with the knowledge their own son is half dead. I can't say when it happens, or what it is they made. Because I myself don't really remember. I don't have a photographic memory like Jazz does. Just that… at some point, the school will call for a mandatory attendance at the auditorium."
Danny frowned. "I see." He said. "So you won't tell me what these Taboos are? I was hoping you would tell me what they are, so I can know which one they violate. And… I have no idea what these Taboos are called or… anything like that..."
"Of course I'm not going to tell you. You already learned what Taboos are from me. Go to the Ghost Zone, explore it, and do your own research. You don't need your brother to hold your hand and spoon feed everything to you." Echo rolled his eyes.
Danny groaned. "This is your payback for me not telling you how I learned about them in this timeline, isn't it?"
"Well, you do need to learn all this yourself. It wouldn't be fun if I just told you everything, now would it?" Echo then grinned. "And yes, maybe that's also a reason too."
Danny groaned again. "I thought so…" He sighed. He then looked back at Echo and grinned as well. "In that case, maybe I will have to tickle the information out of you~" Danny wiggled his fingers in a tickling manner as he leaned towards Echo a bit.
"No, don't you freaking dare!" Echo warned.
"Maybe I will~" Danny teased.
Tucker, Sam, and Dorumon were trying very hard not to laugh as they were watching this display.
Danny smiled as he managed to get Echo at his tickle spot, which was his belly button. Echo was laughing and squirming around. Sam took a picture with her phone.
"C'mon~ Tell me what these Taboos are~" Danny teased his future brother as he tickled his stomach area.
"N-no! S-stahp it!" Echo laughed.
"Surprised he's not going intangible to avoid the tickle torture," Tucker noted.
"Echo doesn't like using his ghost powers much," Dorumon informed.
Sam blinked. "Huh… well.. It does make sense, as ghost powers would give away his location if ghosts can sense that kind of stuff."
Echo finally managed to grab his past brother's hands. "Alright! I think we stayed up long enough, maybe we should actually try to get some sleep tonight?"
Danny sighed. "Fine…" He groaned. "But I will get you to tell me about these Taboos somehow soon." He promised with a grin.
"Hey, I'm now actually older than you. And I have the mind of an adult. You are never going to break me," Echo huffed.
"We'll just have to see then~" Danny teased before he laid down in his sleeping bag. "I accept the challenge~"
"Good luck then," Echo replied before laying down in his own sleeping bag too. Wow… I never realized how much I missed Danny until now. After all this time… I somehow managed to bond with him so easily, even if he is the past Danny… but could I face my Danny? Could I really look at him in the eyes and still talk to him? I don't know… especially now… that he's… too important for a hobo like me…
Dp-Marvel94: DarkFoxKit: Yeah, Echo really doesn't want to get close to Danny due to the events that happened. Since you've read Mortified, you'll likely see a lot of parallels with that here.
ZAFT: And we do have our own twists planned for when we get that far down the road~ :3 But for now… just enjoy the next chapter~ It shows more here.
DarkFoxKit: Also, I just wanted to clear up something. I'm not angry or frustrated that Mortified went in a certain direction. I'm actually giddy that they did, because it gave me a lot to work with, and about 'what if that could've been prevented?' or 'how would Andy react if he was there?' kind of scenarios. So it's not written in spite, it's written from inspiration. As for the chaos with young Dan, Andy, and Takuya, yeah, that was pretty fun to write. I'm glad you felt the tension when it became a battle of wills with Andy and Dan.
ZAFT: I loved doing that part too! Can't go wrong with changing up a battle like that! XD
CT7567Rules: ZAFT: First off, I do plan to resume my Gundam fic in the future, but please keep mention of my other stories out of the reviews. Second, I am glad you like the twists we have here. Sadly, this fic is getting a reboot, so we will see how this goes.
DarkFoxKit: The reboot is due to the fact the longer we kept going with this story, the more… messy it got. It eventually became overwhelming, so I decided to ask ZAFT if they were okay to do a reboot. And the reboot allows us to explore another 'what if' scenario that I haven't done in this or my original My Brother's a Ghost story.
ZAFT: So I hope you will read the reboot as well, because we have new stuff planned for it~ :3
DarkFoxKit: I do apologize since you were looking forward to seeing more of the story. At the very least, we'll leave this old story here, and finish up The Ultimate Enemy's arc. And your idea with BlackWargreymon is interesting, so we might keep that in mind for the reboot. But keep in mind, we do not plan to give a lot of people Digimon partners. That was one of the reasons why we're doing a reboot. It became difficult to juggle so many characters at once.