Chapter 4

Danny floated lower over downtown Amity Park, passing over the old Daisy's Dairy as someone called out to him. He gripped his phone tight in his left hand as he smiled and waved at the people leaving the dinner that had seen him in the twilight. Glancing back at his phone, his smile dropped as he reread his mother's text.

Ghost activity over by Taylor's Grocery. Do you want our help?

He had told her to let him check it out, but secret he was worried. Elementals didn't usually set off the Fenton Spector Detector, it classifying their ecto-level too low to register. Letting the feeling of not wanting to be seen wash over him, he kept a tight grip on the phone as he got to the grocery store's parking lot.

So far no screaming, so that was a good sign, Danny thought as he flew lower.

Flying through the door, he floated through the store, keeping out of sight of the patrons going about their daily lives. He flew up, through the drop ceiling and to the roof, before becoming visible once more. Looking around the flat roof, he landed on his feet and sent a quick text back to his mom.

Don't see any. Are they still on the scanner?

"Phantom?"

Danny looked up, hoping his ghost sense would go off, only to notice the Red Huntress dropping from the sky on her black hover board.

"The Spector Detector said something was here," Danny informed, closing his phone.

"Same, but with a less stupidly named device," Valerie said, retracting her board into her feet. She landed on the roof beside him and added, "Once I got here, you were the only ghost it picked up."

Danny's phone buzzed, getting him to check the message. "Mom says it's gone." He flicked the phone shut and put it back in his pocket as he added, "This is the second time I've had this happen."

"Stood up by a ghost?" Valerie checked, the hint of a laugh on her voice. She turned her head to survey the front of the building and parking lot as she added more seriously, "A couple of days ago I had a blip on the radar. I threw it off as background radiation, with how often natural portals appear and how soaked in ectoplasm this town can be, but maybe it was your mysterious ghost."

"When?"

"Wednesday," Valerie said. "It was over by Daddy's work, but I couldn't tell how powerful it might be." She looked back at Danny as he picked his feet up to float and added, "Sorry I wasn't there Tuesday. I'm swapping time with Hannah so I can go to Floody Waters."

"I'm gonna start doing what you're doing," Danny admitted, keeping an eye around them. "About August I wanna try and get a part time job."

Valerie broke out laughing, a hand grabbing her stomach.

"What?" Danny asked. He crossed his arms over his chest as he watched her double over. "You can't see me working a job?"

"Man, I've seen your grades," Valerie said, straightening her back as her laughter slowly died. "There's no way you'd graduate doing this and a job."

"You don't think I could handle it?"

"No." Valerie's laugh dissolved before she added, "Danny, you put as much into everything you do already. You'd be even more sleep deprived, worried your work's gonna fire you for disappearing, figuring out how to call your work to tell them you're late because of detention when getting the detention in the first place is reason enough for them to fire you."

Danny eyed the girl, dropping his arms down as she rambled. "You deal with all of that?" he asked.

Silently Valerie nodded her head, holding her elbow to keep her right arm along her side.

"But I'd still like to have something I can put on a resume, you know," Danny said. Rubbing the back of his neck he added, "And being able to save something aside would be nice."

Valerie rubbed the arm before saying, "Maybe talk to Tucker. Vlad was sending me checks through the town's treasury so for a spell I was on the city's payroll. You've done a lot more for this town then I have."

"I've also done a lot more to this town," Danny pointed out. He let out a laugh as he added, "I've made more construction jobs."

"Hey, maybe offer if the city will pay for your superheroing, you'll give some ghostly help repairing things around here," Valerie offered.

"Yeah," Danny said, tucking the idea away.

The two stood on the roof, Danny dropping his feet down to step closer to the parking lot as patrons got back to their cars. The parking lot was thinning out since he had arrived.

"Hey, that mad doctor got taken to Axion labs."

"What, the Guys in White don't have him?" Danny asked, twisting at the waist to look back at her.

Valerie walked over to stand beside him as she shook her head. "Something's been going on in their headquarters," she said. "I'm still doing my homework in Daddy's office and his window looks out at their building."

"Homework? But it's summer?" Danny pointed out.

"Taking a class to help me out during junior year," Valerie explained. "But either the GIW are moving out or they're renovating."

"We're not lucky enough for them to be moving," Danny grumbled. He looked at her and added, "But congrats to your dad. I forgot to tell you last time, but I saw him when I was there."

"He told me," Valerie said. "It's tough, you know?"

"His boss's a jerk." Danny paused a moment before asking, "Did you give him the deed?"

"Yeah." Valerie played with her scanner on her left wrist, poking buttons that let out soft beeps. "We're gonna move in before the end of the month."

"That's great!"

"I told him everything," Valerie admitted, the scanner disappearing back into her suit. She dropped her arms and looked back at Danny. "He wants to help Dani, actually."

"So he knows she's my clone?" Danny asked, nerves building up.

Valerie nodded her head.

Danny forced a smile on his lips as he said, "It'd be good for her, even just to have a good man in her life."

"You sound like a dejected father," Valerie said with a hint of a laugh.

"I mean, I feel partially responsible for her," Danny admitted. He looked at his hands, gripping them into fists as he added, "And she deserves someone better to look up to."

"You're only sixteen," Valerie pointed out. "You've got the world on your shoulders." She pointed out towards where the statue stood close to city hall and added, "Quiet literally. How can you also raise a little girl that doesn't want to stay in the same place for too long?"

"Where'd she come from the last time you saw her?" Danny asked, dropping his hands to his sides.

"I don't remember, but she wanted to go to Hawaii next." Valerie let out a laugh as she added, "I told her to at least fly with a plane. Girl thinks she can make the flight on her own."

"Right, she did say something about wanting to see all fifty states," Danny recalled.

"Two left."

Danny let out a sigh and admitted, "I haven't told anyone she's my clone."

"What, Sam and Tucker don't know?" Valerie asked in surprise.

Danny shook his head. "Jazz is the only one who might know, but that's because she's Jazz."

Valerie looked back to the parking lot as Danny realized the stars were as visible as they were going to get with the light pollution.

"I'll make sure Daddy knows so he doesn't tell them on accident," Valerie said after a moment.

"Thanks." Danny gave the area another look over, keeping an eye out for the ghost that didn't want to be found. "I guess nothing's here. You wanna patrol together?"

Valerie let out a laugh, jumping into the air to activate her overboard. "I don't think your girlfriend would like that."

"What, I can't be friends with another girl?" Danny asked as she rose upwards.

"There's girl rules, Danny," Valerie called down. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Team building!" Danny called up, glad it was going to be all of the official team going.

"Whatever, boss!" Valerie called back before flying towards Elmerton.

Danny watched her retreating form, wondering what would have happened if they hadn't broken up. He did still like her, but he couldn't remember when he didn't have a crush on Sam.

Once Valerie was far enough Danny was having trouble seeing her, he jumped back into the air. He turned towards home and started flying at a slow pace. Tonight was Fenton Game Night and he was sure Trivia Adventure was going to be pulled out. The game was already twenty years old, so the trivia was dated, but he had always liked the idea of leaving the solar system for unknown planets. Or Planet Quizzar as the game called a planet beyond Pluto.

Twisting, Danny put his hands behind his head and floated homewards. A sad smile pulled at him, reality pushing in the thought that he never will get to see the stars from outside of Earth's atmosphere again. He wished there had been enough time to enjoy it the one time he had but Valerie and Technus made that impossible.

Still, the short memory he would always keep a tight grip on.

And all hope wasn't lost yet, he tried to push away the realism. Next month he was going to be working with-or for- NASA. Hopefully they would send him a schedule soon, he realized. He also realized with dread he didn't know if he would be spending all of his time with the chief director or if more people had been brought into his secret.

He turned back over and dropped his hands as he told himself not to worry. There was still half a month till he and his mom were expected in Ohio. Hurrying himself home now he added, for right now he had an old trivia game to see how well he remembered the answers on the cards.