Chapter Five

Gray Manor, April 20, 2006

"Dad . . . where are we going?" Valerie asked her sort-of-father, who was beginning to drag her across town. Danny walked just behind them. After she'd explained her life's story to him, he'd insisted that they go.

"The Fentons', that's where . . ."

Taking a glance at Danny, who's posture had (somehow) become even more perfect at hearing that name. "Why?"

Damon leered at her. "If you really care about Danny back there, you won't ask. He doesn't need to hear about them too much."

"I'm guessing, though, we need to be there in a hurry?"

"Yes."

"Well, I think we can get there faster if we take my jet sled. I can cloak it so no one will see us."

Reluctantly, Damon let go of Valerie's arm. "Okay . . ."

Valerie dashed behind a tree and activated her suit, and, more importantly, the jet sled. Rushing over and picking up Danny and Damon, she turned on the cloaking device.

"We don't need to be there that fast."

"Maybe I just want to be there that fast." Valerie sighed, and slowed the jet sled down, just a little. "Well, now we're all going at the same pace, anyway. You really need to get in shape, Dad."

As she saw the Fentons' (very recognizable) house, she slowed down, and deactivated the suit. To anyone watching, they would've appeared out of thin air.

Damon gasped for breath. "How on Earth did you get used to that?"

"Forget about the stupid ghost hunting thing. Would you please explain what we're visiting Danny's parents for?"

The man sighed sadly, and put a hand on Val's shoulder. "They're not his parents anymore, Valerie. They disowned him last year . . . when Danny's little accident happened."

Danny's accident? Like the one at the beginning of the school year . . . "Oh my gosh," she muttered under her breath. Surely he couldn't be Phantom in both worlds . . .?

"Yes. But we're here to talk them about . . ." But his sentence was cut off when the door to the Fenton home was opened by a rather paunchy man Valerie immediately recognized as Mr. Fenton.

Jack blinked, and looked at them. "Maddie!" he yelled, running off like a little child. "We have more company!"

Val heard a sigh coming from inside the house, and eventually Danny's mother appeared in the doorway. "May I help you?" she asked.

"We just came over to ask your help."

"Call our hotline. 555-SPOOK. Disobedience problems, hit one, medical problems, hit two, you get the point."

"It's a bit more complex than that, Maddie."

"Damon, if it has to do with him, I don't really think . . ."

Damon cut her off. "Do you believe in alternate timelines?"

"Yes, sure. What's that got to do with anything?"

Valerie stepped forward, realizing why they were there. "Hi, Mrs. Fenton. I think I might be from an alternate universe, and . . . well, I need your help to get back."

Maddie blinked, and glanced at her ex-son. "Come in, come in. We already have guests, but okay."

"Okay . . ." Damon and Valerie stepped in, closely followed by Danny. Maddie was reluctant to let the boy in, but decided against leaving him in the heat.

"Right, okay, just sit there. Samantha and Jeremy will be back in in just a minute."

Valerie blinked. "Samantha and Jeremy Manson?"

"Yeah. Is there a problem?"

"No, none at all . . ."

Maddie sat down in a cushy armchair across from them. "So, what's this about an alternate timeline?"

"Valerie seems to have either gone completely nuts and made up an entire life's story for herself, or she's really from an alternate history."

"What makes it different from this world?"

"Well . . . oh my . . . That's just wrong."

Samantha Manson had just entered the room, along with her father. And she was, it seemed, made of pure pink. Her face had been covered with so much makeup that she looked like a Barbie doll the machine messed up. Her dress was frilly and a shade of light magenta that would scare away Paulina.

"Hi, Valerie," she greeted cheerily. "Having troubles with Danny?"

If waking up in a world where ghosts were slaves and Danny was a completely meek slave-boy was a blow to the head, this was a concussion. "Wha . . . you . . .woah . . ."

"Val? Is everything okay?" the false sugar-coating that had long lined the Queen of Casper High's voice was now residing in Samantha's. It was just wrong.

"No . . . pink! Way. Too. Pink."

Sam's face contorted into a frown, and she turned to Jeremy. "I told you the makeup was too much."

"Sorry, sweetheart. We'll buy the lighter shade next time."

Samantha smiled again, and took the other seat next to Valerie. "Looking forward to Paulina's party this Friday?"

Valerie shook her head, still struggling to speak, but managing this time. "I'm not going."

"Why not?"

"Eh . . . family business."

Samantha pouted. "Okay. I guess there'll always be others . . . I guess."

Maddie sighed. "Could you two go see Jack? He'll help you just as well as I could."

"And bring Danny," Valerie added quickly.

"A few minutes with a cutie that has to obey my every command? Sure."

Valerie held back a shudder.

After Samantha and Jeremy left, Maddie sighed again. She seemed to do that a lot. "So what makes you think 'your world' is any different from 'ours'?"

"Where to start?"

Meanwhile . . .

(ordinary universe)

Danny wasn't acting like he should be. He wasn't acting inferior at all. Which was wrong, and very annoying.

This annoyance plagued Valerie until Mikey (she couldn't believe he could ever talk to her), passed her a note. "Danny's sending it to Sam, "he whispered. "Ten bucks says it's a love letter."

Valerie smirked. Maybe this had something to do with the mysterious Clockwork (there was no way they'd call Tucker that. He was late for every class she'd been to so far. Of course, there always was the possibility for irony . . .). She opened it tentatively.

'Sam -

Clockwork told me there's been a rift in Valerie's personal inter-dimensional time stream, whatever that means. This Valerie and our Valerie switched places. Along with several other Valeries, but I guess that isn't as important.'

There's been a rift in my personal inter-dimensional time stream? she thought, somehow comprehending that. So . . . here really is another world!

She folded the note up again, and passed it on to Dash, specifying who'd passed it to whom. "You owe me ten bucks," Val whispered back to Mikey.