Note: It's been so long since I've updated this story! But it was my birthday on Monday so have a special chapter to celebrate!

"Other Danny said he's coming." Tucker said, putting his phone away.

Fenton gave a nod from where he was splayed out on the grass. His eyes flickered to the sky, nebulous worrying swirling through his insides. And…. his mind drifted away.

While his body was in the park laying between his two friends, his consciousness was in his room at home. His, or rather Phantom's, gloved hands reached for his jacket.

"Hey, Fenton." The ghost acknowledged, sensing his presence.

A wordless question, a wisp of a curious thought, was projected by Fenton. Phantom answered, bringing the memory to the surface.

The human remembered. The plan to make ecto-infused cookies. The frozen butter. Phantom's panicked confession. Mom's comforting words. Fenton had slipped away and the woman had just hugged him tighter. They'd cleaned up the butter. And… the last question. Why did you take so long to come home?

"Mom said we need to talk about that later." Phantom said what Fenton already knew.

Alright. I guess… we'll have to. Fenton's stomach dropped at the thought.

His ghost gave a shrugged, pulling the hoodie over his head. "Yeah." He muttered, shoulders low.

Human Danny winced in sympathy. The worry seemed to double, anxious butterflies swirling in both his body's. But… Fenton pressed forward, focused more on being here, with Phantom.

Illusionary lungs breathed deeply. Ghostly arms tightened over his chest. "It's gonna be okay. Let's just… focus on having fun with Sam and Tuck. We can worry about this later."

The human felt himself smile, both his mouths. "Alright." That was just Phantom, through the ghost's mouth. "I'll see you soon." The hands touching his crossed upper arms squeezed. "That's me hugging you back, dork."

You're a dork. Fenton rolled his eyes fondly. See ya.

With that, the human let himself pull away. He sighed, opening his eyes to the sky.

"-nny. Danny? You with us man?" That was Tucker's voice.

Fenton pushed himself up to his elbows, looking at his friend. "Yeah. Sorry. I was with Phantom."

Sam raised a brow. "Is everything alright? That's the second time in like five minutes."

The human Danny almost wanted to roll his eyes. Of course, when he'd just told his other half to not worry about this right now, now he gets asked.

Instead, Fenton sighed. "Yeah. It's…" He sat up fully, running fingers through his hair. "Phantom accidentally told Mom about…" He trailed off, eyes widening in realization.

"About?" Tucker asked, motioning him to continue.

"About…. Well…" Human Danny coughed, blushing sheepishly. "We hadn't told you guys but… Phantom accidentally cold-burned me the night before we told Mom and Dad about him."

Sam opened her mouth, hard eyes wanting to press. But Fenton held out his hands, interrupting. "Yes. We probably should have told you guys earlier. Honestly, it kinda skipped my mind but the point is… that made her wonder where Phantom was the first week after we split. She asked why… why it took a week to tell them. And now we're gonna have to talk to Mom and Dad and tell them about… about…. How…" He shook his head, pulling his arms to his chest. "You know…. You know what Phantom thought that first week. What he said, when I…reintroduced him at Sam's…."

For just a moment, both friends' brows furrowed in confusion. Then…

"Oh." The goth's expression softened.

"He tried to say you and him weren't the same person." Tucker added quietly.

Human Danny shivered, frowning. He didn't exactly need that clarification. Or want to be reminded. But…. the boy nodded. "Yeah. I guess…. We're just worried about having to have that conversation."

"I get it. I'd be nervous too. But…" The technogeek put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "I know it'll be okay."

"Yeah." Sam agreed. "As much as I'm shocked to say it, I'm sure they'll listen to you. They were really great last weekend."

"I know." Fenton nodded, still frowning. "They've been doing a lot better, especially Mom. But…" He shrugged. "I don't know. I'm still nervous."

His friends gave him understanding, sympathetic looks. Just their presence was a nice comfort. Still… the bad feelings were hard to shake.

Just then, human Danny shivered but for a different reason than before. A touch of cold brushed the edge of his consciousness. He looked up, eyes falling to the seemingly empty air beside one of the trees edging the playground. His lips quirked up, the beginning of a smile.

Visible, Phantom stepped out from behind a tree. He waved, hurrying over to the small group. The ghost stopped beside Tucker, his hands on his hips. "You were just telling me not to worry." He glared at Fenton, completely without heat. "I could feel your anxiety the whole way here."

Human Danny rolled his eyes, half-smiling. "It's nice to see you too."

The ghost shook his head, half smiling. He stepped forward, pulling his human to his feet. "Hey Sam. Hey Tucker." The other two waved in greeting. "Let's play frisbee or something."

Sam stood, whipping grass off her skirt. "You're on." She jogged across the field, towards a pole holding a basket and bright, multi-colored plastic discs.

Tucker groaned. "No. I don't wanna run."

Both Dannys laughed.


"Over here! Over here!" Human Danny waved his hands enthusiastically.

Sam crouched near the trees, body tense. Her eyes searched rapidly. To Tucker and Phantom…. They both had her pinned. Her eyes flickered from the technogeek, to Fenton, and then… "Danny!" She fiend, flicking her wrist towards the ghost.

Phantom smirked, jumping forward. "Ready to hand it over?"

"Nope." The goth threw the disco over his head.

"Hey!" Tucker protested.

At the same time. "I've got it!" Fenton ran.

The technogeek and ghost turned, running towards the frisbee. Human Danny's eyes widened. The disc was falling fast, Tucker just the smallest bit closer. Fenton jumped, reaching up. So did Tucker, leaping towards the prize.

"Got it!" Human Danny's hand grabbed the frisbee. He landed, stumbling slightly.

Tucker's landing wasn't as graceful. "Umph!" He groaned, landing on his stomach.

"Sorry Tuck." Phantom grinned, a little sheepish.

The technogeek pulled his head up, spitting out a mouth full of grass. He glared at Fenton. "You cheated!"

Human Danny's brow wrinkled, hand out. "How did I cheat?"

"You're not supposed to use your powers." Tucker complained, voice lowering.

Fenton just felt more baffled. "I don't exactly have any powers to use right now?" He motioned to his ghost. "They're all over there."

Phantom grinned, waving. "And they're all on your team."

The technogeek just huffed, muttering something into the grass.

Sam jogged over to the three boys. "You're just a sore loser." She leaned forward, grinning at Tucker teasingly. "Upset that you haven't caught the frisbee even once."

The glasses-wearing boy sat up. "We've been playing for at least thirty minutes. And. Not. Even. Once!" He held up his hands. "You guys have to be cheating! Or…" He glared at Sam. "You're doing this on purpose. This is bullying!"

Ghost Danny also leaned down, grin less teasing than Sam's but still full of mirth. "You know, you have to actually run if you're going to catch it."

"I did run!" Tucker argued.

"You have to run more than one time." Fenton countered, an eyebrow raised.

The technogeek opened his mouth to reply but then closed it, seeing he was caught. "You got me there."

Human Danny chuckled, offering a hand to pull his friend to his feet. "How about we take a break? Get a snack, something to drink?" Tucker nodded, taking the hand.

The friends walked over to their bags. Fenton flopped down beside his, quickly grabbing his water bottle. He drank several gulps before handing it to Phantom, who sat beside him.

This was nice, Human Danny thought, eyes falling over the scene. There was the playground to his right, full of laughing children. The basketball courts to the left, with a few kids from their school. To his back, the soft splashing of the fountain, in the middle of the paved paths crossing the park. And in front of him…. The grassy field, set up with baskets for frisbee golf. Trees marked the other end of the space, a small patch of woods trailing to the other side of the playground and blocking the views of the surrounding buildings.

Fenton sighed, whipping his sweaty forehead. That had been fun, even if he was a little tired now. Just hanging out with his friends, doing something so normal and mundane. His muscles relaxed, freed from their prior tension. He'd… he'd really needed that.

The friends talked for a bit, laughing and gossiping about school. Finally, Sam stood. "How about another round?"

"I'm game." Tucker agreed, standing.

Phantom nodded, just catching himself before he floated. Instead, he pushed himself up. "Me..too."

Fenton tensed, taking in his counterpart's wide, uncertain eyes. The boy started to turn. What was he-

Oh.

The sky over the field rippled, like heat wafting off of concrete in summer. But… it was green. Human Danny pushed himself up, mind spinning. The green darkened and swirled. His mouth dried. A ripping sound, like thunder. And…

"That's a portal." Phantom sounded as numb, as shocked as he felt.

Just like in the basement at home….. A song, a quiet buzzing, both pushed and pulled him. But…. the rift shimmered, sharp and jagged, more chaotic than the one his parents had opened.

"What's that?" Beside him, Tucker pointed.

"Phantom just said." Fenton's brow furrowed. "It's a-"

He blinked, cutting himself off. That was a claw. His stomach churned as a pale blue scaly paw, nearly the size of his whole body, exited the chasm in the sky. A whole arm. Then in a blink…. a mouthy maw, reptilian snout, curled green horns. A head, attached to a serpentine neck.

Human Danny stared, uncomprehending as the beast… ghost?...Pulled itself through. What…. What was this?

"That's a dragon." Sam's voice, not scared but… awed, excited. "That's a dragon!"

The creature… the dragon… seemed to register the words. Its head turned, pulling itself farther through the portal. A red eye, the size of his head, fell on Fenton. The pupil narrowed into a slit.

Silence. Just the sound of his short breaths. Then… the puff of smoke from great nostrils.

"Run!" Someone yelled.

Chaos fell. Pounding feet. Screaming. Shouting. Human Danny didn't register, numb and shocked, held captive by the gaze.

"Danny! Danny!" Someone, maybe Sam, maybe Tucker was calling him, pulling him along.

The dragon pulled itself the rest of the way through, the portal disappearing with a pop. The scaly head whipped back. An angry snarl rumbled the empty air.

Hands pushed him down. He was on the other side of the fountain. When had that happened?

"We need to call his parents." Sam was saying.

"A dragon, Sam!" Tucker waved, pointed to said reptile. "How are they gonna deal with a dragon?!"

"I don't know!" The goth pulled at her hair, rapidly swiping on her phone.

Deep, rumbling growls echoed behind them. "Ball. Want ball."

"Is it… talking?" The technogeek gasped out.

Fenton's head whipped side to side, a cold dread falling over him. "Where's Phantom?"

"Ball? Are you saying ball?" His own echoing voice.

Human Danny whipped around, peering over the wall of the fountain. There was his other half, floating right where they'd left him.

"Ball!" The creature roared.

"Danny!" Fenton hissed.

The ghost hazarded a glance back but didn't reply. Instead, he faced the dragon again. "You want a ball?" He floated sideways, eyes pinned on the creature. He landed in front of a round, pink object and squatted. "Here. Here's a ball." Phantom held out the rubber ball.

The dragon narrowed its eyes, breathing another puff of smoke. Fenton felt his stomach drop.

His ghost half, his stupidly brave ghost half, wound back his hand and threw. "Fetch!"

The dragon's eyes flickered to the ball, following it. The object bounced, rolling back towards the playground. Human Danny held his breath. Could that… maybe… maybe that would work?

The massive head whipped back. "Toy? I don't want a toy!" The dragon roared, the back of its throat starting to glow.

Fenton's eyes widened. Oh, no. A stream of green fire spit from its mouth, setting the patch of grass in front of Phantom a blaze.

The ghost boy held out his hands, flickering backwards. "Hey! There's no need for that." His voice shook slightly but he forced it steady, calm and placating. "Let's just talk about this."

Another plume of fire. "I am no child!" The dragon lumbered forward, towards Phantom and…. the playground.

Fenton's heart pounded, eyes flickering to the wooden climbing structure. The sound of crying children increased in volume. There were… there were kids hiding over there….

"Just calm down." The dragon stepped closer, ghost Danny floating in between it and the playground.

Fenton took off running.

"Yes! I said a dragon!" Sam hissed into the phone.

Tucker yelled. "Danny! What are you doing?!"

The human ignored the call. The dragon was getting closer and those kids….

"Mommy! Mommy!" A girl's voice hiccupped.

The boy skidded to a stop, throwing up mulch. There! Between a small climbing wall and the slide. Half a dozen kids huddled in the dark corner.

"Run!" Human Danny motioned behind him. "Get out of here."

A thud, followed by a yelp. "Stop! I'm trying to help!"

Fenton winced at the bruise suddenly forming on his back. Phantom….

Another roar. His gaze jerked to the noise. Flames licked at the edge of the mulch.

"Hurry!" The teen insisted.

The kids didn't have to be told twice. A brief glance at the other kids and the oldest, a boy of about ten, grabbed the hands of a younger girl and boy and ran. Another pair followed quickly after.

But the crying girl in the corner stayed. "Mommy! Mommy!"

Human Danny bent down, hurrying inside. He frowned, noticing her bloody knee. Then he blinked. This girl… he remembered. Phantom saw her, the day after they'd split, in this same park.

"Sophie, come on." Her name appeared, just there in his head. "Let's find your mom."

The four year old looked up, brow wrinkled in confusion. Then…. Recognition. "Why's your hair black now?"

Fenton didn't have time to puzzle out the reaction. Smoke wafted, the air heating up. The boy didn't think, pulling the girl to her feet and picking her up. He ran, carrying her with a strength he didn't normally possess.

Cold suddenly swirled through his veins. And in his head. Ice! Ice! Come on! His own gloved hands, glowing with blue light. Yes! Ice surged forward, snuffing out the flames.

No. Both thought at the same time. I need to be here.

Fenton jerked back. He needed to focus on getting Sophie to safety.

Half a minute later, his feet hit the concrete of the parking lot.

"Sophie?! Sophie?!" A woman called frantically.

"Mommy!" The child answered, wiggling in human Danny's hold.

The mother turned sprinting forward. "Sophie! Thank you! Thank you!" She careened to a stop, scooping her daughter out of the teen's arms. "Are you okay? Mommy's got you."

"She hurt her knee." Fenton quickly added, panting slightly from the exertion. "She was hiding under the slide."

The woman's gaze flickered to him, shining with gratitude. "Thank you. Thank you so much!"

Something in him buzzed pleasantly at the praise. He gave a nod. Then…. more screams behind them. Fenton glanced back, eyes widening. He turned and ran.

"Wait! Where are you going?" The woman yelled after him.

"There's more kids!" Human Danny glanced back but didn't stop. There were more people who needed his help.


"Just calm down." The dragon stepped closer, ghost Danny floating in between it and the playground.

Fenton took off running.

Phantom glanced back. What was his…. The crying kids. Oh right. The boy sighed, never more relieved to be stuck in two bodies at the same time.

The ground shaking brought ghost Danny back. Right, the dragon. It was getting closer. The teen darted to the side, towards the trees at the end of the grassy field. If he could get the creature away from the wooden structures…

"Let's just talk about this, okay?" He held out his hands, placatingly.

The dragon turned to him, growling. Its tail whipped to the side. And…. oh no. Phantom's eyes widened, letting out a yelp as the scally appendage knocked into him. The boy fell, rolling over the grass.

He jerked up, back twinging unhappily. "Stop! I'm trying to help!"

Another roar. Heat wafted off the creature, flames surging towards the edge of the mulch.

No. No. This was bad. There was too much fire. People would get hurt. If he could just freeze it, like the butter at home.

Phantom's eyes widened, pushing on his core. Cold suddenly swirled through his veins. And in his head. Ice! Ice! Come on! His gloved hands glowed with blue light. Yes! Ice surged forward, snuffing out the flames.

For just a second, he was with Fenton, running across the mulch and carrying his charge to safety.

Then. No. Both thought at the same time. I need to be here.

Phantom jerked back. He needed to focus on dealing with the dragon.

"Too… tight." In front of him, the creature grumbled, clawing at its neck.

No. Phantom's brow wrinkled. Not at its neck.

"Get it off." Glowing blue paws yanked at a golden collar, inlaid with a large green gem. "Get off!

"So it doesn't like the collar." Ghost Danny muttered. "Maybe if I get it off, it'll calm down." He darted to the side and up, flying behind the dragon's neck. He reached, a hand wrapping around the chain. "If I can just…"

The dragon whipped around, jerking its head back.

Out the corner of his eye. Fenton ran along the edge of the clearing with two elementary schoolers. The creature's tail flailed, crashing into a tree.

The creak of wood. "Look out!"

The teen shoved, pushing a six year old boy out of the way. A flurry of leaves. Human Danny hit the ground just in time, rolling into a pile of branches and leaves.

Phantom yanked on the collar, ignoring a sudden sting in his leg. "Stop! I'm trying to help you."

"Want to go to the ball!" The dragon roared, beating its wings. It rapidly rose into the sky.

"I don't know what that means but maybe we can do something about-."

The serpentine neck jerked, throwing him off. Phantom tumbled head over heel. The trees. Fenton was running away, a tear in his jeans and leaves in his hair. The playground. At least it wasn't on fire any-

Car! Turning intangible, ghost Danny sailed through the parked vehicle. He pulled on his core to slow his momentum and rolled to a stop, half phased into the pavement.

"Look Mommy!" Phantom's head jerked up. There were Sophie and her mom, hiding crouched behind a car. The child pointed. "It's the glowy boy. You're not as scary as I thought. But… your hair's white again?"

The ghost boy blinked, mind spinning. "Thanks?"

Another roar.

"Gotta go. Bye!" Phantom flew up again, driving towards the dragon which was now flapping towards the basketball court.

He darted up, grabbing at the chain. "I know you can understand me. Stop struggling!"

Again, the creature jerked and flailed. But Phantom held tight, legs wrapped around the muscular neck. There had to be some way to get this thing off. With an angry rumble, the dragon flapped up. It turned its head down and dived. Nope. That wasn't going to-

"What are you doing?!" Ghost Danny yelled, eyes wide with panic.

There in the middle of the basketball court was Wes Weston, staring at the sky with his stupid camera.

Phantom let go of the chain and leapt. Legs snapping into a tail, he darted and curved under the dragon.

"I knew it." The red-head pointed, visibly awed.

"Get out of here!" The creature's hot breath puffed on his neck, much too close. But… the jock wasn't moving. "Run, you idiot!"

Wes just stared dumbly, face paling. His eyes widened.

Ghost Danny dived, tail lashing. A massive claw swiped. He swerved, dodging bonelessly. A rumble, right behind his head. Phantom glanced. Pointy white teeth barred. Faster!

So close now. Ten feet from the frozen red-head. Five. Three. The ghost reached, arms stretching a bit farther than was natural. He grabbed Wes under his armpits.

The other teen yelled. "Hey! What the-"

Massive jaws opened. Phantom's core pulsed, twisting with panic and fear. Too close! Too close! But he turned intangible in the nick of time, effortlessly pulling the jock into the air. The scaly maw snapped close, right where Wes had been seconds before.

The ghost boy flew, eyes searching. Where to leave Wes…. There! Hiding behind the restrooms was Kwan. Phantom sprinted forward and dropped the other teen, for just a moment registering the shocked look on Kwan's face.

Ghost Danny circled back, annoyance flaring. "Let's get this over with!" Ectoenergy sparked in his hands.

The dragon turned. "Ball!"

"I don't know what that means!" The boy shot, neon green ectoblast sailing forward. With a soft hiss, it impacted the wing. "Yes!" The brief puff of smoke parted, revealing no mark. "Well that was a nat one." Phantom grumbled.

The attack just made the beast angrier. It spewed more fire. This was bad. Ghost Danny pushed out with his core. More ice!

The dragon landed, shaking the ground. Again, it pawed at the collar.

Phantom darted back. "Sorry. I shouldn't have done that but-"

"Annoying boy!" The creature swiped at him.

The ghost boy dodged. More fire. Ice shot forth. He was… he was getting tired. He needed to end this!

A crash. The creaking of wood. Screams. Phantom glanced back. They'd ended up by the bathrooms again. But now it was on fire. And… his core clenched, sudden icy fear coursing through his veins. Kwan and Wes were over there. And…. Fenton!

More ice. He had to put out the fire. His human self's heart pounded in terror. He needed to get the two jocks away but one of the beams had fallen on Wes's leg.

Phantom screamed, suddenly back in his body. A massive paw knocked into him, claws tearing through suit and skin. His back impacted the ground painfully.

The snoot hung, barely a foot over him. Those red, slitted eyes…. He scrambled backwards. Had to get away. He had to get away. Someone was running towards him. No. Why-

A pale blue paw slammed down, holding him in place. Phantom trembled. If he could just turn intangible…

"Hey!" A rock hit the side of the dragon's head. "Get away from him!"

Ghost Danny dragged his head up. Tucker?

Another rock. "Yeah, Lizard breath! Stop tearing up our park!" Sam looked irate, almost as fierce as the dragon.

The beast lifted its paw off him, stalking towards his friends who both took off running.

"Sam! Tucker!" Phantom pushed himself up, hand outstretched.

Almost instantly, Fenton was at his side. Blood dripped from three long cuts across his forearm. "Go from behind the head, right between the eyes." The human pulled him to his feet. "And stop telling it you're there!"

Phantom stared, mind spinning. "What? How-"

"Go!" Fenton pointed, shoving on one of his arms.

The human's eyes glowed green. And… he was seeing himself. And himself. And himself. A funhouse mirror. Fenton closed his eyes.

And they were Danny. Ghostliness and humanity intertwined, core and heart a fraction of a second from synchrony. Danny took off, a new determination coursing through him. He could do this. Protecting his friends, the kids, his classmates. Helped this enraged, probably confused and afraid dragon. It felt….right.

Silently, the boy darted forward, right between the dragon's eyes. Hands wrapped around the collar. There was a clasp and…. He tugged, pulling the chain free. The collar, or maybe a necklace?, dropped into his hands.

Instantly, the dragon began to shrink, to change shape. Seconds later left a blonde-haired, green-skinned young woman kneeling on the grass, staring sadly at her hands.

Danny gasped, shocked. The surprise was enough to pull the almost-halfa apart.