I always say this, "I'm not going to update for awhile." And then I turn around and update! I know I'm insane. I can't help it. One of these times I'm really not going to update. But you know inspiration comes to me at the last minute. And to those who review, I love each and every one of you. That said….I'm probably not going to update for awhile, for real this time. Busy weekend coming up, my family will not stand for me spending time at the computer. Darn it!

Chapter Ten

"Where's your mother?" Jack asked as Danny and the other's returned. He looked anxious, even though he was trying to make them believe he wasn't worried.

"She made him laugh," Jazz told her father. "He took off with her and we don't know where!"

Danny sighed and changed from his ghost form. He looked around the lab for a moment then quietly walked upstairs. Tucker and Sam didn't hesitate to follow him. There was no question of leaving him alone to his own thoughts.

It seemed that a Vlad was too busy working on, what ever he was working on to notice the arrival of Danny and the others. He wasn't working on his own however, Valerie wasn't about to let him skulk around Jack's lab. She was supervising what ever it was which he was doing.

Jack shook his head and looked at Jazz. "Guess we'll just have to find her with the homing device in her hazmat suit.", he said softly, almost in defeat.

Jazz blinked at her father. "Homing device?" she asked.

"You all have one." Jack answered flatly. "Your mother sewed them in herself. It was in case we all became separated while ghost hunting." Jack's expression saddened. "I never thought we'd have to use them though."

Jazz sighed and followed him to another corner of the lab, which for some reason had endless little dark corners where endless little projects hid. Jack pressed a few buttons on a keypad then smiled as the device began to beep.

"She's in range," he said happily. "We'll just attach this to the Speeder and we'll be off."

"We?" Jazz asked. "Where are we going?"

"To get your mother of course," Jack answered. "I'm not going to let this knave of a ghost take off with her!" He jumped into the speeder. "I'm just going to upgrade some of these weapons."

"Shouldn't we go get Danny?" Jazz asked. "I mean he's more equipped to fight ghosts than we are."

"Of course," Jack muttered absently. "Go get Danny. Wouldn't leave without him. This is now a family matter. You mess with one Fenton, you mess with all the Fentons."

Jazz grinned as she leaned into the Speeder to watch her father work. "All of the Fentons?" She asked. "Want me to call Gran…"

Jack held up his wrench. "No!" he said. "No need for everyone to get involved in this. Especially those who think we are…you know…." Jack spun his finger in a circle on the side of his head.

"Mmmm," Jazz said as she nodded her head in understanding. "Yeah, cause it's not like anyone in our family is errmmm crazy or anything." Jack raised one eyebrow as he surveyed his daughter. She smiled and he went back to work.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Danny sighed as he sat down at the kitchen table. He was hungry. So was Tucker and presumably Sam. Tucker was of course going through the refrigerator.

"Ha!" he said. "Meatloaf! I knew it." He threw Sam a bag of salad and she smiled at him gratefully. It wasn't long before the group was eating. Quietly.

"All right," Tucker said. "Someone here has to break the silence. What are we going to do?"

"I don't know," Danny answered. "I know I can't beat him. I don't know how much longer he's going to play with us all. He's got my mom but she seems to be reaching him." Danny shrugged.

"You said he thinks a lot like you do." Sam said. "Maybe we can second guess what he's going to do and counteract that."

"He says sarcastic things like I do," Danny replied. "There's a big difference between words and actions."

"Our only hope is separating his ghost halves," Tucker said softly. "But he's been one ghost for so long, what if it's impossible to pull them apart?"

Danny sighed. He looked at Sam who was looking down at her salad. She looked up at him. "What?" she asked. He shook his head and began picking at the meatloaf sandwich Tucker had made for him.

Tucker rolled his eyes and took himself and a few more sandwiches downstairs while excusing himself by saying other people might be hungry.

Danny and Sam sat in uncomfortable silence for sometime before Sam finally sighed and gave in. "Okay Danny." She said as she narrowed her eyes at him. "Start talking."

She was surprised with how quick he asked. "Are you glad that my ghost half and I have merged back together?"

"Of course!" Sam answered. "Don't be silly Danny."

"I have memories of it all you know," Danny told her. "I know everything that Phantom was feeling while we were separate."

Sam leaned on her arm and watched Danny as he kept his eyes on the food he was playing with . "I can hardly be held accountable for what he was feeling you know," she said.

Danny looked up at her and smiled. "I know. It's just hard he hated me there for awhile."

Sam shifted in her chair uncomfortably for a moment. "Don't you mean you hated yourself for a little while there?"

Danny laughed half heartedly then looked back down at his plate. "I'm just trying to understand that ghost half of me. Being with out it. Being with it again. I was thinking back to the timeline Clockwork stopped. The one where Dark Dan came into existence and I was just wondering how that was possible."

Sam shrugged. "You know your ghost half better than I do. He didn't seem to be very happy at being separated from you in the first place. Like you told me before, you betrayed your ghost half by trying to rid yourself of it. It became angry and, well, we all know how the story goes."

"Yeah," Danny said still having trouble reconciling himself with his ghost half and his ability to become such an evil being.

"You know what Danny," Sam said in exasperation. She wondered why Danny was allowing himself to stew in all this negativity and worry. "You made us all a promise that you'd never turn into Dark Dan. I believed you then. I believe you now. Tucker and I trust you with our lives. Your ghost half can only turn evil if you let it. So don't let it." She shrugged her shoulders then stood and put her dishes in the sink.

Danny smiled as he watched Sam cleaning up the mess Tucker had made. "Besides," Sam continued. "There are more important things to worry about than the problems you were having with your ghostly side." She turned and looked at him and leaned back against the kitchen counter. He just smiled.

"What?" she asked. "Why are you looking at me with that weird goofy expression."

"Because you," Danny answered excitedly. "Have just given me a great idea!" He stood and ran down toward the basement.

Sam stood up straight and called. "What did I say?" She called after him but he was gone. "Gee," said to herself as she walked down the stairs. "You'd think it'd be too much bother to clue me in?"

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Danny rushed down stairs then stopped. Who would he talk to first? Vlad or Dad? He looked at his father and Jazz working happily on the speeder then at Vlad in the corner. Vlad seemed to be instructing Valerie on the mechanics of some device, Tucker was watching over her shoulder. Danny hoped it was the device he thought it was, seeing how Jack was now distracted.

"Vlad," Danny asked. "Is that?"

Vlad looked up and gave Danny a look of annoyance. "Yes yes and yes," he said. "And then some." He smiled his smarmy smile and went back to work. Valerie shook her head and Danny pulled Tucker aside.

"What is he doing?" Danny asked.

Valerie looked at Danny, "He's modifying some gadget of your father's."

"When operational," Vlad said softly. "It will stretch over the portal. Any ghost flying throw the portal will fly through it and be caught. Additionally any two part ghosts, such as yourself and Dark Dan will be separated. And of course caught in the net and unable to merge." Vlad banged on it. "But I can't get a few things right!"

"Whoa there!" Valerie said as she pulled away the electronic pieces from Vlad. "Don't break it Mr. Short Fuse! I really think you should wait for Mr. Fenton."

"Wait for Mr. Fenton," Vlad mocked. He looked at Danny. "You're Father is too busy trying to plan the fruitless rescues mission of your mother."

Danny sighed and walked over to the Speeder where Jazz and Jack were speaking in low tones. Jazz moved over so Danny could enter the Speeder.

"Glad you're here Danny," Jack said in his usual booming voice. "I've just about got these modifications complete! Then we can go get your mother."

"Dad," Danny said almost timidly. "I need you to focus your attention elsewhere. I don't trust Vlad and he's working on something and…."

Jack raised an eyebrow at his son. "And you need me to make sure he's not doing anything sneaky?"

"Yes," Danny answered. "I need you to stay here and keep him in line. I have a plan to rescue Mom."

Jack took an irritated breath then looked toward Vlad. "I have a good mind to crush that evil little weasel between this thumb and this index finger," he said angrily.

"Well Dad that's great," Danny said wondering how Mom managed to keep him focused. "But how about after we get Mom back?"

"Your Mother?" Jack asked. "She'll be fine Danny. Don't worry about a thing."

Danny looked at Jazz who was making a twirling motion with her finger on the side of her head. It was true. Jack Fenton was totally lost without Maddie.

"I'll take care of Dad," Jazz said. "Just tell me what's going on over there." She pointed over to Vlad. Danny filled Jazz in on what was necessary then walked over to Sam who was standing in front of the portal.

"Ok Mr. Big Shot," She said as she kept her arms folded in front of herself. "What's your big plan?"

Danny looked at Sam for a moment as if he were trying to calculate her reaction to his plan. He took a deep breath and just went for it. "I'm going to convince Dark Dan that I'm willing to join him. That I'm willing to give up my humanity and be like him."

"Oh yeah like that will work," Sam scoffed. "He's not going to believe you!"

"I think he will," Danny said. "Because he wants too. He's lonely. Filled with hatred and anger. I'd be the same way if things weren't different now and I lost all of you."

Sam looked over her shoulder at Jack, Tucker, Valerie, Jazz and Vlad. "Same here," said Sam. She looked at Danny. "I mean I'd be pretty crushed if something happened to all of you."

"All of me?" Danny asked. Sam only nodded her head. Danny grinned.

"See. You give me strength and courage," he said. "We can get through anything." He put his arm around Sam and she leaned into him.

"You're going alone though aren't you?" she asked sadly. "Because he'd never believe it if we came with you."

"Yeah," Danny answered. He felt a little scared at the thought of going into a battle like this without back up. But he also felt better knowing his friends and family were going to be out of harm's way.

Sam felt tired. The last hours had felt like days and weeks. She supposed she had her own dark side to fight and her own inner demons to wrestle. Part of her wanted to run home screaming to make all this stop. She wanted to hide under her covers until Danny came knocking on her door telling her everything was fixed and they'd never have to fight evil like Dark Dan again. She never wanted to see Danny in pain like she had today. She never wanted to see him separated from his ghost half again either. All she wanted to do was for all of them to just go back to being carefree kids. Of course they'd never be able to go back and Sam knew she'd never abandon Danny, even if she didn't love him as much as she did. But she was scared. So much for loving someone deeply giving you courage. She turned and smiled at Danny who was looking at her uncertainly.

"When are you going to go?" she asked.

"Soon," Danny answered.

Sam bit her lip. "And when will you be back?"

"I don't know," Danny whispered as he looked over his shoulder again. "Who knows I might not make it back."

Sam continued to look into the ghost portal. She didn't want to look at Danny in case he saw her tears. "Oh darn," She tried to say in a humorous tone, "And I was just getting attached to you and all."

Danny snorted in half laughter then turned Sam to face him. She looked down at his shirt and berated herself for stewing in her own negativity when she'd just finished thinking that Danny dwelled on his too much. Danny lifted her chin and made her look at him.

"It's all going to work out!" Danny said as he looked into her eyes. "I promise!"

"And you can make that kind of promise why?" Sam asked.

"Because I'm the hero," Danny answered then kissed her.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Danny walked over to Jazz and put his arm around her. She let him lead her across the room where he told her his plan. She voiced her objections and tried to call on Sam to back her up and talk some sense into Danny. But Sam was on Danny's side. She wanted to be on Jazz's side. She wanted to beg Danny not to go, but she knew nothing was going to stop him and it was better that he felt he had some support rather than people second guessing his judgment.

Jazz went to the Speeder and retrieved the homing device and explained one was sewn into all their hazmat suits. Danny laughed then thanked Jazz.

"Be careful Danny," Jazz said softly as she hugged her brother.

"I will be," Danny said. "Just keep a good eye on Sam and Tuck. Don't let them come after me." Danny didn't quite trust the gleam in Jazz's eyes. "Don't you either."

"Party pooper," Jazz pouted. Danny turned back to Sam and hugged her tight. He took a deep breath and then was gone.

Sam turned to Jazz who wasn't quite sure what to expect. She could see strength and hope in the younger girl's face and Jazz wished she could borrow those feelings and that utter belief that Danny was going to succeed no matter what, because she was afraid, more afraid than she'd ever been in her life.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxX

Sorry guys, just another filler chapter. I hope you don't mind it. I just needed to adjust my direction a little bit.