There was something off somehow, wrong. He couldn't quite put his finger on it as he regained consciousness, but there was definitely something. He remembered fighting Technus' car-bots and using his Ghostly Wail, and then passing out. So why hadn't Technus or Angel used the opportunity to finish him off? Or had they? Was he a ghost? Was that why he was so cold? Only one way to find out; Danny opened his eyes.
He was lying on a cot in some kind of warehouse; he was cold because there was no heating in the building. As the quiet sounds of sniffling reached his ears, he slowly sat up to find Angel facing away from him. Her helmet sat on the floor next to her; her head was down. Was she actually crying? "Are you okay?" he asked dubiously.
She lifted her head, then wiped her eyes and turned. "Of course," was her harsh reply, all traces of her mood gone save for her reddened eyes. Sadly, she was unable to maintain the charade and broke down again. "He took my Sweetheart!" she cried. "My baby! You help me get her back, and I swear on Frank's grave, I will never bother you or your family again."
Danny nodded his understanding, but not his agreement. "How do I know I can trust you?"
Angel stared at the ground, then looked back up with a defiant glint in her eyes. "You could find out, and I'd kill you for it. Or you could consider the fact that I've had about an hour to kill you already and haven't done it."
After a moment, the boy nodded again and reverted to his alter ego. "What are those black boxes?"
"I don't know. He said they block telekinesis."
Whatever material Technus had made his mechanical form out of, it was nearly impervious to an ectoplasmic energy blast. They needed some way to stop those little black boxes. He smirked; Kat was about to make herself useful whether she wanted to or not.
"My parents are going to kill me," Danny muttered. Angel didn't respond; he wasn't surprised. "I'm not supposed to be out this late," he continued as though she cared.
"Excuse me," said a quiet voice. The two involuntary allies looked up to see a young waitress smiling nervously. "I'm afraid you're going to have to move; this seat is reserved."
"By who?" Angel scoffed from behind her helmet. That was probably what made the girl nervous.
"Um…our ghost." She blushed slightly, as though embarrassed to say it. Danny covered his mouth to stifle his laughter. He had always wondered why Kat was allowed to be in a bar when she looked his age.
"I don't believe in ghosts," Angel replied blandly. "You want me to move, throw me out." The girl hesitated a moment longer before walking over to talk to her manager.
Danny shook his head. "You still don't believe in ghosts?" No response, naturally. He began to wonder if she was stubborn or just stupid; as much as she had seen that couldn't be explained-
His train of thought was broken as Kat appeared across the table wearing a pink dress. Wait; pink dress? He blinked and looked again, but it was still pink, and still a dress. She leaned forward slightly on her elbows to address Angel. "I do hope you don't mind, my dear, but I like to drink alone. Remove yourself."
"She's with me," Danny interjected, fading into view.
Kat jumped, clenching one fist in a startled reaction. "You do that to me on purpose, don't you?"
The ghost boy grinned impishly and nodded. "Lose another bet?"
Kat sighed theatrically. "No, same one. Please don't ask. So who's your friend?"
"We're not friends," Angel snapped.
"This is Ebony Angel," Danny explained. Kat lifted her eyebrows but didn't interrupt. "Your dad took her motorcycle, and I'm going to help her get it back. In exchange, she's not to try to kill me or my dad anymore."
"Have fun with that, then."
"You're helping."
"Wanna bet?"
A black gloved fist slammed hard into the table, causing Danny, Kat, and several patrons to jump. "Your father took my Sweetheart," she growled menacingly. "Now, you're going to help us, or I will kill you for it."
Kat blinked. "I'm a ghost."
"I don't believe in ghosts."
"Okay, stop please!" Danny exclaimed before it could turn into a cat fight. To Angel, he said, "Just let me handle this," then turned back to Kat. "Okay, tell me if this sounds familiar. A bunch of robots made out of cars that are impervious to my Ghost Ray and telekinesis."
She narrowed her eyes. "Have you been reading my mind?"
"So that was your idea!" Danny exclaimed triumphantly. "Technus is terrorizing the city, and I can't beat him because of your stupid idea!"
Kat opened her mouth, then slowly closed it again and looked down at the table. "I…might have mentioned something about using ectoplasmically-charged reinforced steel cars. In fact, it's entirely possible that I mentioned that to Dad. And while I don't recall exactly, it could even be that I mocked his intelligence because he hasn't beat you yet, and mentioned that that would be a good way to do it."
"And the little black boxes?" Receiving only a blank look, he continued. "They cancel out my telekinesis. Was that your idea, too?"
After a moment's confusion, understanding dawned on Kat's face, and she shook her head. "I think Skulker built those, or the prototype, anyway. It was a few years ago. According to the rumor mill, the technology was stolen. Since it was a box, Box Ghost was the prime suspect, but Walker could never prove anything. So Dad's got it, huh?"
"That doesn't make any sense," Danny muttered. "I didn't even become half ghost until a few months ago. How could he know to build something like that?"
Kat raised an eyebrow. "Don't flatter yourself, Phantom. Most ghosts know telekinesis in some form. How do you think I control cars?" She shook her head. "Fine. I can't help you fight him, but I will get those boxes down. Just keep him busy for a while."
Once she was gone, Angel turned to Danny. "Can we trust her if she's that guy's kid?"
The boy chuckled lightly. "Don't worry. She's helped me beat him before. Come on." He held out his hand, but she didn't take it right away. Instead, she turned away to stare straight forward again.
"Frank was a mechanic, you know." Somewhat surprised by the abrupt change of subject, Danny didn't reply. "He was like a father to me: took me in when I left Hollywood; taught me how to fix bikes. He's the one who taught me to be a hero. He'd hate me if he could see me now, wouldn't he? This…hateful, vindictive shell of what I used to be. Don't ever let anyone bring you down, kid, or you'll regret it for the rest of your life."
The boy sat quietly through the short monologue, uncertain of how to respond. She confused him. First, she tried to kill him. Then, she liked him, or something. After that, she swore eternal vengeance against him. And suddenly, she was…
Well, he wasn't sure what she thought. When she finally held out her hand, the signal that she was ready to leave, he decided to file it away for later. They still had Technus to worry about and a city to save.
A/N: Just so there's no confusion, I would like to remind everyone that, while Kat is not a ghost, she has always referred to herself as one.