"Danny?" Sam hugged him, "How do you feel?"

"Um, do I…have to answer that?" he winced a little as Mrs. Manson laid him down on the couch.

"No," Sam kneeled down next to him, "You're parents would probably want to know what happened." She looked up at her mother.

"I already called his mother. She's on her way here," Mrs. Manson grabbed her coat off the couch and slipped it on, "Which means that, I am leaving."

"Why?" Sam turned towards her and gave her a questioning look.

"I'm sorry, but I don't really like the Fenton's," she grabbed her purse and slung it over her shoulder.

All four of the kids frowned. They watched as Mrs. Manson left, slamming the door behind her.

"Well, good reddens," Jazz uncurled herself from the armchair and walked over to her brother, "What are we going to tell mom?"

"I'm going to tell her…the truth," Danny managed a small smile.

"You mean…" Jazz stared at him wide eyed and unbelievably.

"Yeah," Danny closed his eyes, "I'm tired…of hiding it and…I'm sure they could really help me a lot."

"But what if they don't accept you?" Sam asked, "What if they try to experiment on you, or kill you?"

"That's a chance…I have to take," Danny's voice sounded more strained, "If they do that…I'll have to leave. Go…and live somewhere else."

"No Danny, we aren't going to let you do that," Jazz put her hands on her hips, "If Mom and Dad don't accept you and you have to leave, then I leave too."

"Me two," Sam crossed her arms.

"Yeah, me three," Tucker shoved a handful of popcorn in his mouth.

Danny gave them a smile that hid his true feelings, "Then if that happens I'll have to leave in secret. I'm not going to take your lives away from you."

"What do you want to do before your mom gets home," Sam smiled and watched Danny.

"Not much," Jazz said as she heard a car screech to a halt in front of their house. All three of the friends turned towards the door, giving Danny a moment to breathe. He let out a silent ragged breath. He bit his lip to get rid of the pain in his body. He had to hide it; he didn't want them to worry about him.

"Here she comes," Jazz announced. She turned towards Danny who immediately put on his, I'm fine act, "You ready?"

Danny nodded weakly; a little afraid of what was about to come.

The door flew open and slammed against the wall, causing Danny to cringe at the noise.

"Kids, where's Danny?" Maddie looked expectantly at them. They slowly parted leaving a pathway right towards the couch. Danny smiled a little as his mother ran up to him.

"Oh, Danny, what happened? Are you okay?" Maddie picked him up and squeezed him in a back crunching hug.

"Mom…can't…breathe…crushing…me," Danny gasped for breath.

"Danny, on the phone, you said something about ghosts," Maddie held him a little farther away, but kept a firm grip on his shoulders, so she could stare into his shining blue eyes.

"Yeah…Mom I-" he suddenly screamed in pain, losing eye contact with his mother. He brought his hand to his head and moaned a little.

"Danny?" Maddie brought him a little closer. She removed his hand from his head, but nothing looked wrong. He had some scratches and a few bruises that was all. Why sis he suddenly look like he was in so much pain?

"I have to tell her. I've kept it from her for way too long," Danny closed his eyes to think, "What's wrong with me? My head…ow… everything burns." Danny screamed in pain. Something wasn't right inside of him.

"Danny, stop. Just calm down," Maddie pulled him up to her in a light comforting embrace, but it didn't help anything. Danny simply screamed louder. His body ached and he felt something traveling through his veins, stiffening his muscles and causing his skin to clam up. He started to sweat, but this caused him to shiver.

"Something is wrong with your son Maddie, and it's much more complicated than you may think. He needs you to help him pull through in this. This is your chance to know him better," Maddie let her thoughts flood her mind as her son sat trembling in her arms.

Sam stood and stared at the two. She really wasn't sure of what to say. Danny had just randomly started screaming in mid sentence and it surprised her. She had always helped him when he was fighting, or when he needed her, but none, has ever gotten this far. He had never gotten hurt this badly. She was only fourteen! What was she supposed to do when her best friend was a thin thread away from dying at any second?

"Remember Vlad, before you reached him in the ghost zone? He stuck something into Danny. That must be what's messing with him. He needs you. You need to help him, it will pay off," Sam slowly walked up to them and sat down on the couch. She held Danny's hand, "It's alright Danny. Okay, you can get through this."

Danny finally stopped screaming just in time to hear Sam's gentle words. They may have been small, but the mouth they came from made all the difference. Sam meant the world to him, but he could never tell her that. It was the only secret he kept from her. He opened his eyes to see her violet eyes looking into his own eyes, and in a split second he had pulled himself away from his mother's arms and hugged Sam as tears formed in his eyes.

Sam was shocked. For a minute she stared at the boy who had buried his head in her chest in a tight hug, but soon, she softened and returned the hug. She felt a slight trickle run down her arm; tears. Danny was crying.

"Danny?" whatever was inside of him must have been making him act extremely out of character. He never cried. Not even in the worst situation, he just never cried. It wasn't Danny; it wasn't his character, "Danny?"

She didn't get an answer; all she received was a sharp breath, before he completely collapsed in her arms.