DarkFoxKit: Hey everyone… so I have some sad news. See, Dragon here needs a break from the multiple stories he's been helping me with. He'll still help me with CoM, but I'll be doing WAP alone, and I'm not using a set schedule on my updates anymore. I'll update when I can and only when I can.

Darkdragon: I'll still be trying to help here and there with thoughts and ideas, but I most likely won't be actively writing the lines in this story until we get a comfortable amount of chapters ready for Child of Mew.

DarkFoxKit: We're gonna miss you, Dragon.

Darkzdragon: I'll still try to be around, Fox. Heck if you and the readers want, I can still come onto the ANs.

DarkFoxKit: Yeah, and maybe if we finish up CoM's first book, you can come back and help with WAP.

Darkzdragon: That sounds good. By the way, for those of you who don't know what CoM and WAP are, they are the acronyms Fox and I came up with for Child of Mew and We Are Phantoms. But anyways, Andy, you better take care of Fox if I stop doing the ANs. Don't give her a hard time.

Andy: Yeah, sure. *Is setting up a fox cage*

DarkFoxKit: Well now, this should be interesting. :3

Darkzdragon: *growls at Andy* Put away the cage or I'll make you wish you were in your ghost form.

Andy: Relax, you big dragon, this isn't for her. It's for another fox who's been eating the food out of my fridge.

Darkzdragon: I'm keeping an eye on you. I won't be too far away, so if Fox calls for help, you better watch out. Now readers, without further ado, the next chapter of We Are Phantoms.

Chapter 44: The Mansion of Masters

I waited beside Jazz with anticipation. It felt like hours after we rang the doorbell, but it had only been about ten seconds. My muscles were tense and tight.

"Who's there? This is private property!" The annoyed voice of Vlad said as the door opened.

Jazz began sniffling like she had been crying. I looked at her as she said, "Oh Uncle Vlad, Andy and I ran away from home. We just couldn't take it anymore, our brother hates us, our father's an idiot and we rather live with you."

"Wait, what did you say?" Vlad said with a look of shock and mild happiness on his face.

"We've ran away from home?" Jazz asked.

"No, after that," Vlad said.

"Our brother hates us?" Jazz asked.

"After that," Vlad said.

I sighed and almost facepalmed before I said, "Our dad is a big idiot."

Vlad smiled and said, "Yes, that one. Please come in, Jasmine and Andrew, I will have rooms prepared for you immediately."

Vlad all but ushered both of us into his mansion. Well, that went a lot easier than I expected. It's a good thing Vlad has a weakness when it comes to our parents.

A middle aged looking man wearing a prestigious suit while holding a silver tray and a cup of tea walked over to us.

"Your tea, sir?" The suited man asked as he presented the tea to Vlad.

"Ahh, thank you, Alfred," Vlad said as he took the cup of tea and took a sip from it. "Perfect, just how I like it."

I was looking at the suited man Vlad called 'Alfred'. I'm guessing he's the butler around here.

Alfred turned to us and asked, "Is there anything I can get for the young Master and Miss?"

"Oh no, we're good right now," Jazz said.

"Actually, Alfred, could you show them to their new rooms?" Vlad asked. "I need to get the adoption papers and make a phone call."

"Of course, Lord Masters," Alfred said with a respectful bow of his head. "Right this way."

Alfred walked ahead of us. Jazz and I looked at Vlad.

"Go on, you two, we'll talk about this after you get settled in," Vlad said.

Jazz and I decided to follow Alfred, we can talk about our plan once we're alone. I just hope Vlad didn't have bugs and cameras set up in every room and corridor in this mansion.

Alfred lead us up these big and fancy stairs, they had red and gold carpet. When we got to the top we were lead down a long corridor. If this place didn't have Vlad and his servants in it, this would make the perfect haunted mansion. Finally, after what felt like thirty minutes of walking, Alfred stopped us in front of two green and gold doors.

"The young Miss can have the room with the golden doors," Alfred said. "It has a private library in it as well as a grand fireplace. While the young Master may take the room with the green doors. It has everything a young teenager could want. A large television, video games systems, and a basketball hoop."

"Uh… thank you, uh… Alfred was it?" I said, being as polite as I could.

"Yes, young Master," Alfred said with a bow. "If there is anything you two need of me, please, just ask."

"We will," Jazz said.

Alfred took his leave as Jazz opened her door, "You go ahead and check your room out, Andy. We'll talk after we get ourselves… 'settled in'."

"Alright. You'll come and meet me in 'my room', right?" I asked.

"Yeah, I just need to unpack my laptop," Jazz said as she went into her room.

I walked over to my own green door and opened it. It was really big, almost as big as our entire living room. It was pretty intimidating actually, but Alfred was right, there was everything here an average teenage boy would want here. Why would Vlad have this? … Was this meant for Danny if he ever convinced, or blackmailed, my brother into staying here?

I flipped on the lights so I could get a better look at the room and saw that I also had a fireplace. Like Alfred said, there was a huge TV. But it wasn't your ordinary, run of the mill big TV. This thing was the size of the Fenton RV, it could probably be used as a jumbotron in sports stadiums. There was a large king sized bed in the middle of the room. The sheets look really puffy and comfortable. I could probably sleep there all day. I looked back towards the TV and saw every video game system I have ever heard of. The Zbox 720, the ES4, and the Waa U were the ones that really caught my eye though.

I still only had my old Game Pyramid, the first Waa, and the ES3. What kind of games does Vlad have here? I opened a door near the council and to my surprise it was a walk in closet filled with so many games that Vlad could probably open a video game store. Heck he could probably rival Gamego with the selection of games he had in there.

I do love a good video game, and as much as I would love to spend all day playing these games, I had a mission to do. I heard Jazz opening the door, so I closed the closet door and walked over to the bed. Jazz entered my room, holding her laptop under her arm as she looked around.

"Hello Andy! I came to check up on my brother!" Jazz said as she walked in and looked around the room a lot like she was the paranoid character of a spy movie. She then opened her laptop and showed me the screen which said 'Are we clear? Have you checked for bugs?'

I frowned at her as I typed in 'No, I just got in here. This place is too big to check for bugs.'

"How are you settling in?" Jazz asked in a voice that would make anyone suspicious as she typed in 'Can't you use your ghost powers or something to check the room?'

"I'm settling in just fine, Jazz," I said, sounding calm and totally like a normal person, unlike her super cheery attitude before I typed in 'First of all, try to tone it down a bit. And second, I shouldn't try using my ghost powers, because Vlad would more than likely sense me using it.'

"That is good. I was wondering if you were hungry or anything," Jazz said, sounding a little more relaxed and less suspicious. She then typed in 'Sorry. You're right, you probably shouldn't use your powers unless you have to. Maybe for now we should just go with what Vlad wants until he let's his guard down.'

"I am pretty hungry, we kind of skip breakfast after all," I said.

I typed in 'Okay. Maybe after he calls our parents to let them know where we are, we can try to explore around the mansion.'

'He's probably gonna try to rub it in Dad's face,' Jazz typed in. "Then let's go get something to eat, shall we?"

"Don't we have to tell Vlad or Alfred that we need to eat?" I asked before typing in, 'Yeah, and maybe he's hoping to use us to get Danny to join too.'

"Yeah, we probably should," Jazz said with a nod before she closed her computer. "Let's try and go find them."

We both stood up and opened the door. The long corridor looked longer than I remembered, but then again it was a lot darker when I went through here while Danny and Vlad were fighting.

"I have a feeling we could easily get lost here," I said.

"Yeah," Jazz said. "Maybe we should use one of the phones in our room and hope that it's meant to call Alfred."

"Do you know how to use those?" I asked. "I mean I only use phones to call someone with a phone number. Is this like an intercom or something?"

"It doesn't have any dial or buttons so I'm guessing if we just pick it up it will connect and call someone," Jazz said as we walked back into my room and over to the phone that was on a bedside table.

I looked at Jazz and she shrugged before she began reaching for the phone. Just before she could touch it, it began ringing on its own. Jazz and I both jumped away from the phone.

"IT'S ALIVE!" Jazz screamed as the phone continued to ring.

After a few seconds passed, and the phone just rang, both of us calmed down. My heart was still beating hard against my chest though.

"R-relax, Jazz, I think Vlad or Alfred are calling us," I said. "We… should probably pick up the phone."

"You're right…" Jazz said before she picked up the phone. She then shakily said "H-hello?"

"Ahh, young Miss," Alfred's voice said over the phone, calming Jazz down. "I was trying to call the young Master and then I was going to call you. Lord Masters wished me to tell you that breakfast is ready if you two are hungry and that I should call to see if you need me to come and fetch you two."

"O-oh, yes, of course," Jazz said. "We are hungry, and breakfast sounds lovely."

I sighed in relief as Jazz hung up the phone. "Well, that was some spooky timing."

"You're telling me, my heart nearly jumped out of my chest," Jazz said as she sat down on my bed.

"I still can't believe we're here at all," I sighed.

"What do you mean?" Jazz asked.

"Well… I mean, ever since the college reunion fiasco, I thought for sure we would never be back here again," I said. "And…" I lowered my voice to a whisper. "The fact that Vlad is a very dangerous enemy, I feel uncomfortable being in his territory."

"If he was gonna attack you, don't you think he already would have done it?" Jazz asked in response, also whispering.

"Maybe, but Vlad can be pretty unpredictable," I said. "I mean for all we know he's just waiting for me to let down my guard so he can attack me and-"

"Will you relax, please? If you're that worried then just keep your Fenton Thermos on you, if he tries anything just suck him into it," Jazz said. "That or just stay close to me, since I am carrying some of Mom and Dad's weapons."

"... You sure you know how to use those weapons?" I asked nervously, remembering how she sucked me and Danny into the Fenton Thermos multiple times.

Before Jazz could answer, there was a knock on the door before someone opened it. Alfred was looking at us.

"Young Miss and Master, are you ready to proceed to the dining room?" Alfred asked. "Or do you need a moment to prepare?"

"We're ready," Jazz said. "We didn't have a lot of things, so we're just wearing the clothes we came in with."

Jazz and I stood up and followed Alfred. I think I remember eating in the dining room before, when we came for the college reunion. They had a lot of different cheese recipes here.

"You said you do not have a lot of things, which I am assuming means you do not have any change of clothes?" Alfred asked. "If that is the case, then shall I go purchase some suitable clothes?"

"Well, we have a change of clothes in the vehicle we arrived in," Jazz said.

"Just a single change of clothes?" Alfred ask before he made a tsk tsk noise. "Then after I deliver you to the dining hall, I shall go and purchase you some suitable clothing."

"Ah, maybe that should wait until after the adoption?" I quickly said. "You know, wait until we're sure it's official before you purchase anything for us?"

"Nonsense, Lord Masters would be distraught if he knew you two did not have a suitable wardrobe," Alfred said before he stopped in front of an elegant double door that had Packers related themes carved into the door itself. The door handles themselves looked like miniature footballs.

Wow, Vlad has an obsession with the Packers. Then again he also has an obsession with Mom, with revenge on Dad and with getting my brother to join him. I wonder if he has… problems. Well, then again, Danny and I did call him a fruit loop on more than one occasion.

"Lord Masters, I brought the young Master and Miss just like you asked," Alfred said after he opened the door and walked in.

"Ah, good," Vlad said. "Andrew, Jasmine, you may take your seats."

I looked at Jazz nervously, she gave me a reassuring smile before she gestured me to a chair.

"If you will excuse me, Lord Masters," Alfred said. "The young Miss and Master only have one change of clothes and I plan to correct that."

"Of course Alfred, you go and buy them some clothes," Vlad said with a smile. "Nothing is too good for my future son and daughter."

I couldn't help but shiver a bit from that. If Danny saw me now, he'd freak. Jazz and I sat down at the dining table. The only chairs available were next to Vlad. I really didn't like sitting this close to him.

"You two may eat whatever you like," Vlad said as he pointed to the table that was filled with food. There were pancakes, bacon, eggs, waffles, of course cheese, and so many other food items that I couldn't even name off the top of my head.

Vlad was already eating. Jazz and I hesitantly picked up a plate for each of us and loaded them with food. Once we picked out what we wanted, we started to eat, making sure to use our best table manners. I mostly just got waffles, bacon, and eggs, food I was familiar with. Jazz went with some omelets and what looked like a few croissants.

"What about refreshments, Uncle Vlad?" Jazz asked.

"Ahh, well sweet Jasmine, just tell me what it is you would like and I will go get it for you," Vlad responded.

"You have any orange juice?" Jazz asked.

I was too nervous to say anything. Jazz elbowed my side.

"Oof! … I'll take apple juice, if you have any," I wanted to facepalm myself. This guy is a freaking billionaire, he could have all the juice known to mankind!

"One apple juice and one orange juice coming right up," Vlad said as he stood up. "Give me but a moment."

When Vlad left the dining room to get our requested juice, I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding.

"Way to stay cool, Andy," Jazz said with a sigh. "Are you trying to blow our mission?"

"Hey, I'm doing the best I can here," I said with a grumble. "At least I didn't give him the crocodile tears, telling him how heartbroken I was when I 'ran away from home'. Besides, how do I know he won't turn on us or something?"

"Well my crying helped us get in here," Jazz said. "And he probably will turn on us, we just have to be ready for anything. I mean, just look at what he did during the reunion just to try and get with Mom."

"Not helping, Jazz," I grumbled.

Before Jazz could say anything else, Vlad came back holding two glasses, one was filled with orange juice and the other filled with apple juice. We both quickly shut up and started eating again as Vlad put the glasses down in front of us.

"How are you enjoying breakfast?" Vlad asked.

"It's really delicious, Uncle Vlad, did you make this yourself or did your cooks make this?" Jazz asked, making small talk.

"I made this with a little help from Alfred," Vlad said. "The cooks and the rest of the staff will not come back until next week. I give them two weeks vacation every year around this time, as a way to pay them back for all they do for me."

"Wow, you're so thoughtful, Uncle Vlad," Jazz said.

I was still nervous, but I knew I can't stay quiet forever or Vlad will know something's up, if he doesn't already. "Yeah. That was pretty thoughtful. Most rich people would make their employees do everything for them."

"Well, those rich people are entitled snobs who lack the ability to do anything for themselves and steal and cheat their way through life!" Vlad said angrily. After he finished his small rant he calmed down and said, "I'm sorry, I'm just passionate about fair treatment."

I couldn't help but wonder if this was a partial rant about Dad, he is pretty bitter about him.

"Well, we know how that feels," Jazz said. "Our parents are always too busy for us, and our brother is always out with his friends, right Andy?"

"Yeah, that's right," I said, remembering those days when I wasn't part ghost like my brother.

"Well, don't worry," Vlad said. "As soon as you become my children, I will make sure to spend as much time with you as possible. I would hate for you two to feel alone."

"That's great!" Jazz smiled. "When will you be calling our parents about this?"

"Most likely this evening or tomorrow morning," Vlad said. "I want to give you two a little time to settle in first."

Before I knew it, breakfast was finished. Jazz and I had eaten our fill, and we were about to clean our plates up when Alfred returned.

"Do not worry, young Miss and Master," Alfred said as he walked towards the table and started to pick up the plates. "You two may go get settled, I shall take care of everything here. I put the new clothes that I purchased for you two in your closets. Feel free to try them on and tell me how they fit."

I looked over to Jazz and said, "He already got us new clothes? That was fast."

"Yeah, usually it'd take Mom hours to find clothes that work and then buy them," Jazz said, just as surprised as I was. "Granted, he is a butler, so he probably has had lots of experience choosing clothing."

"But it'd still take longer than one breakfast to get everything, right? Did he even measure us?" I asked.

"I think some butlers are able to tell our sizes from just looking at us," Jazz said with a shrug. "It's probably better if we don't question it."

"Right then, you may return to your room or explore at your own leisure, Jasmine," Vlad said. "But Andrew, I would like to talk to you… alone."

My blood went cold when he said this.

"If it's all the same to you, I think I would rather stay with my brother," Jazz said. "I don't want to get lost in the labyrinth that is your mansion."

"Jasmine, I know you want to stay with your brother in such an unfamiliar place, but this is important," Vlad said. "Please dear? Just let me have a word with your brother, it won't take long, I promise. If you're worried about getting lost, Alfred can take you to your room."

"... fine," Jazz said, not wanting to anger Vlad.

"It's okay, Jazz," I said, trying to reassure her. "We're just going to talk."

Jazz nodded to me, giving me a look that said 'be careful' before she left the dining room and followed Alfred.

Now that I was alone with Vlad, I looked at him. I tried my best to appear braver than I actually felt.

"So… what did you want to say to me, Uncle Vlad?" I asked, trying not to strain when I called him 'Uncle'.

"I just wanted to ask what you and Jasmine had hoped to accomplish by coming here," Vlad said as he picked up a tea cup and took a sip from it. "Because I highly doubt you two would run away from home on such short notice."

My heart skipped a beat. Okay Andy, just try to relax, don't freak out. Just act natural and sound convincing.

"Why would we come all the way here on our own just to find something here?" I asked him. "Why would we come here without Danny, who we both know can handle you way better than I can, and he can't even hold a candle to your experience."

"Because you want something and you don't want him to find out," Vlad said. "That or you thought that young Daniel would have… what do kids these days say? 'Flip his lid' had you told him the plan."

"Danny would've trusted me if I told him," I said, looking down. "But I didn't tell him I came here, because there was no reason to. He and Jazz are having some issues with each other right now, and something in her must've snapped, and she wanted to run away. I didn't want her going alone, so I stuck with her." It was half true anyways, and telling half truths is usually more believable than trying to come up with a believable lie.

"Hmmm okay," Vlad said. "If you won't tell me the truth about it then I guess we will have to move onto the next subject. Andrew, how would you like to train under me? Become my apprentice?"

"Uh…" I looked back up at him. "That came out of the blue." Oh great, what do I say now? "What… exactly would you train me on?"

"Why I would train you in your ghost powers of course," Vlad said with a knowing smile. "First you would need to learn the basics, without knowledge, trying to learn your ghost powers is like trying to walk in Amity Park blindfolded."

Heh, it's kind of funny, not too long ago, Vlad couldn't care less about me. Now that I'm part ghost like he and Danny are, he wants to make me his son and apprentice as much as he wants to make Danny his son and apprentice.

"What do you say, Andrew?" Vlad said as he walked around me, most likely sizing me up or something. "I could teach you so many things about ghosts and ghost powers, that you would never be able to discover on your own."

This is getting creepy for me. It seems that Vlad really wants me to be his apprentice. "Vlad, I just got here. At least give me some time to myself before you try to train me in anything. We were enemies the last time we saw each other."

"Hmmm, how about this, as a show of sincerity I will give you a book about any ghostly subject you want, as a gift?" Vlad offered.

I realized this was my opportunity to find out more about the different elements that each ghosts have, what the element does for each ghost, how the ghost manipulates his element, and everything else I had thought of. Danny probably would rather not have to read a book about this, he may never want to accept anything Vlad has to offer, but this may be a wise choice. I just hope it doesn't come back to bite me later.

I nodded to Vlad, "Do you have any books on the elemental cores that reside within each ghost?"

"Hmmm, yes I believe I do," Vlad said.

"Then I want to read one," I said.

"Ah, so you're intrigued by your ghost powers, hmm?" Vlad asked. "You remind me of myself when I finally accepted these powers for what they are."

Oh great, then that means I'm in danger of growing up to being like Vlad. That's good to know…

"Great, so where do you keep this book?" I asked.

"I keep it in my private study, of course," Vlad responded. "I will go get it for you. For now you can go to your room and play some games, unless you would like to participate in a training session with me."

At least he didn't call it his personal library. I wonder if I should take him up on his offer to train with him. I can see how that would be beneficial, but at the same time I feel like I would be betraying my brother if I agreed.

"It is your choice, Andrew," Vlad said.

"Uh… well…" I couldn't help but rub the back of my neck as I tried to think what would be the best course of action. If I was Danny, obviously I would decline Vlad before he even made the offer, but I'm not. I do think this could really benefit me in the future. As long as Vlad doesn't try to brainwash me, and I don't end up betraying Danny, this should be fine.

"Actually, I would like to learn how to better use these powers," I said after making up my mind.

"I'm glad to hear that, Andrew," Vlad said. "Is there any training you have in mind? Or would you like me to choose the lesson?"

"There is one thing I've been trying to learn for a while," I said. "Apparently, ghosts can use something that's like telekinesis, and I've been trying to learn how to use it. Do you think maybe you could teach me?"

"Telekinesis would be an appropriate name for it, though if Daniel were here he would probably name it something like Ghostly Grip or something similarly childish," Vlad said. "But yes, I could possibly teach you how to use it better. I would first have to see how much of it you have mastered. Though I shall only agree to teach you more on one condition, you cannot hold back when you show me how much of it you can use. If I sense even a hint of deception, then the lesson shall be over."

"Of course, I wouldn't have any reason to hold back, especially if I want to learn past what I already know," I said. "During training, I'll try to look past the whole enemy thing and just see it as a mentor and student if that gives you any reassurance."

"Good, then I shall ask Alfred to make sure he keeps Jasmine busy while we are training," Vlad said. "I assume you would prefer she not know our identities?"

I nodded and said, "Yeah, it's best if she doesn't know."

I could probably tell Jazz to use this time to try and snoop around while Vlad and I are training. As long as he doesn't know Jazz knows, he would have no reason to suspect anything from her.

"Then let us proceed to my study," Vlad said as he started walking towards one of the doors. "Once there I shall call Alfred and tell him to keep your dear sister occupied while we are busy."

"Actually, before that, is it okay if I tell Jazz I'll be studying with you?" I asked. "Even if Alfred distracts her, Jazz can get pretty worried if she doesn't know where I am."

It seemed that Vlad had to think about my question for a second before he said, "Yes, you can go tell Jasmine that you will be studying with me. It will give me a chance to ready the training room. Once you are done, pick up a phone and have Alfred escort you to my study. I'm assuming you remember the way to your and Jasmine's rooms?"

I nodded my head and said, "Yeah, it's not too far from here."

"If it would help I could give you a little map of the layout of the mansion later," Vlad said with a smile. "Trust me, for newcomers the mansion is truly a labyrinth. That is why I started making maps and putting the phones in every room and hallway."

"I know. I remember exploring here when we first came here," I said. "Well, I'll go talk to Jazz. I won't take too long, Vlad."

"Be sure you don't, Andrew," Vlad said before he walked out of the room, leaving me standing there all alone.

I let out a sigh of relief. I was worried Vlad was going to call me out on my little plan. I suppose I have the advantage since Vlad still doesn't know that Jazz is in on our little secret. I turned around and made my way towards our, hopefully temporary, rooms. I'm not going to lie, the idea of living with someone who could possibly buy the world is a tempting and nice idea, but I rather be with the people I love. I'm sure Vlad feels the same.

I was glad I was able to find Jazz's room, I was worried I might've gotten lost. I knocked on her door.

"Jazz? You in there?" I asked.

"Yeah, come on in Andy," Jazz yelled so I could hear her voice through the door.

I opened the door to see Jazz was sitting at her desk with her laptop on. I walked over to her.

"Hey Jazz, I just came over to tell you that I'll be studying with Vlad for a few hours," I said, before pointing at the laptop, silently asking her if I could type what I really wanted to say. "I uh… hope that's okay with you."

"Oh, what kind of studying?" Jazz asked as she turned the computer towards me.

I began typing. 'Vlad wanted me to train with him. I took him up on his offer so I can better learn these powers for future uses. While we're training, I want you to take this time to try and snoop around the mansion, see what you can find.'

"Oh, you know, just educational stuff, so I can improve my grades in school," I said out loud.

Jazz typed in 'But what about Alfred? I honestly doubt Vlad is gonna leave me alone.'

"Oh, which subjects?" Jazz asked.

I typed in 'Ask him to give you the tour around the castle. While he's doing that, you can try to learn the layout with your photographic memory. Maybe you'll find something and try to keep it tucked away in your mind until you can be on your own to check it out.'

"History, literature, math… mostly math, because you know how bad I am at calculating," I said sheepishly.

'So ask for a tour and try to get little secrets about our "future dad"?' Jazz typed before saying. "Well then, enjoy your study time."

'And be sade.' Jazz typed in before she saw what she typed. 'I mean safe.'

I smiled and nodded to her. We seem to have a good system going here. I can keep Vlad distracted while Jazz does the sleuthing. I walked over to the door.

"I'll be seeing you later, Jazz," I said.

"Yeah, see you later Andy," Jazz said before I left her room.

I used the phone in the hallway to call Alfred. Of course I would need his help to get to Vlad's private study since I still wasn't familiar with this place.

"Here we are, Lord Masters' private study," Alfred said as he stopped outside a pair of grand doors.

"Whoa, this place is huge," I said as Alfred opened the pair of grand doors.

Maybe Vlad should've called it his personal library, because that's essentially what it is. It's bigger than any library I've been in or seen before.

"Ahh, Andrew," Vlad said as he stood up for a comfy looking recliner. "I was wondering when you would arrive. Is Jasmine okay with you studying with me?"

"Yeah, she's fine with it," I said. "So what will we be doing? Read a book on how telekinesis work?"

"No, because then you wouldn't actually learn anything," Vlad said. "In order to truly learn you must practice and get hands on experience. So I first want to see what you can do and then we can go from there."

"Alright," I said.

Vlad put a small pen on the table. "Let's see if you've already got the basics down."

I looked at the pen and concentrated. The pen glowed green as it began to lift. I moved my right hand around to make the pen move in the same direction.

"Is that all you are able to do?" Vlad asked as he watched me.

"I can move about two objects at the same time too," I said as I flipped the pen in midair. "But that's about it."

"Let me see," Vlad said as he watched. "I need to see the full extent of what you can do."

I looked at the table and spotted another pen. I began lifting the other pen with my powers, and started moving the two of them around. I can move them at a decent pace, but it's not very fast yet.

"Is this the most you can currently do?" Vlad asked.

"Yeah, I've only just started practicing a month ago," I said as I slowly put the two pens back down on the table near each other. "Danny hasn't even tried learning it yet."

"I see, then we have quite a bit of work to do," Vlad said. "One question, when trying to grab those pens, what are you thinking? Are you trying to extend your body or are you just trying to pick it up with brute force?"

"Mostly the former," I said. "I was thinking since it's telekinesis, it would mostly work if I used my mind to make believe I'm picking it up with some part of my body."

"Then how about you try this. Forget that the pen is not right next to you," Vlad said. "Then once you have accomplished that, make your mind think you are picking it up with your actual hand while simply just wrapping your energy around the pen. Don't think of it as trying to reach out with the energy and grab it."

I nodded and tried to do just that. Because I already do something similar like that, it was pretty easy to get it down.

"Now before you lift it or anything, just extend your energy around the pen," Vlad instructed.

I did so. I think I can feel something.

"Can you feel it in your hand? Like you are actually holding it?" Vlad asked.

"Yeah," I said.

"Can you feel every feature of it like you are actually holding it in your hand?" Vlad asked.

"Yeah, I think so," I said as I felt the pen in my hand.

"Good, then that means you have a complete grip on the object," Vlad said. "Now I want you to very slowly lift your hand, don't do it too fast or you may be in for a surprised."

"Okay," I said as I lifted my hand slowly.

"I must say, you show quite a large potential," Vlad said as he saw the two pens easily float off the table where I had set them down. "Go ahead and put your hand back down. Now that you know how to grip we will see how many you can grip with a single hand."

I was surprised to see how much easier it was, I hadn't meant to grab two of them. I slowly put them back down.

Vlad walked over to the table where I put down the pens and stepped in between me and them. "Close your eyes Andrew, this is a test of just your talent and potential. It is best if you do not see how many pens I lay out."

I nodded and closed my eyes. A few seconds later I heard pens hitting the table and slid around.

"Now, keep your eyes closed and do what you just did before," Vlad said.

I did so. I could feel several pens in my hand even though I didn't physically touch them. I slowly lifted my arm.

"Wow," Vlad said sounding honestly impressed. "I knew you had potential, but by the looks of it, you are a natural telekinetic user. You may open your eyes now and see what you are capable of at this point in time."

I opened my eyes to see I had about… uh… looks like nine, yeah, nine pens floating in front of me.

"Wow, I was barely able to lift two pens before," I said, surprised by this development. Things are a lot easier to learn when someone who knows their stuff is teaching you.

"Now that we have seen what you are capable of, the real training begins," Vlad said with a smirk. "I hope you are ready."

Omnisense95: DarkFoxKit: Yes, yes he does. Andy usually always have a good reason to be nervous. ^^' Well, what do you think Vlad feels about him?

mysteryfan4ever: DarkFoxKit: It's kind of funny, I'm an only child myself, yet I'm writing about twins with an older sister. It looks like I'm doing a good job with it despite not having any siblings myself. If Andy had a pet? Hmm… well, Andy may prefer something like a hamster. Small, cute, and not so rough or rowdy. Either that or possibly a cat.

SleepingBeautyRocks: DarkFoxKit: We'll read it if we're interested. It's hard to want to read something when you don't want to. It does sound interesting though.

FriTik: Darkzdragon: Yeah, DarkFoxKit worked long and hard to create Andy. Honestly she created him so well I could possibly think he was based off a real person.

DarkFoxKit: Heh. Well, Andy was an avatar for my imagination when I like to think of being a part of the DP world when I was a kid. Well, I wasn't imagining Andy exactly, it was just some random person. When I wrote the story, I was thinking about what Jazz was thinking when she first saw Danny transform. Hence the title 'My Brother's a Ghost'. But I didn't want to write another one-shot, so I made it into a series, but with a twin brother instead. The idea for a twin came from Identity Crisis, when Danny split himself. Heh, you should know the story by now. XP

Darkzdragon: Oh I do, I just think he is very realistic.

sjsreader: Darkzdragon: We try to be amusing, just go look at the most recent ANs on CoM. And I can be friendly, as long as you don't mess with me. And yeah, Danny and Andy spending some time together is always a good thing since in the first story Andy was pretty much on his own. And that whole when people are angry they won't listen, that's kinda common sense if you don't rush into things.

Luna Lillyth: DarkFoxKit: What? You need to be more specific, what shield and where? If you mean the Ghost/Human shield in the football stadium of the episode, they just took Vlad's remote and deactivated it.

kittylover05: Darkzdragon: First off. Awesome name. Secondly, as funny as that would be it might be a little difficult. Since Fox is gonna be writing on her own for a bit she might stay away from that. But if we finish CoM first then I would be more than happy to help her out on it. What do you think, Fox?

DarkFoxKit: Yeah, it'll be easier to write it when I have some help. ^^' And maybe easier when I'm not writing two or three books at a time. Also, what is with fans wanting genderbent characters? I find it really awkward to write for.

Darkzdragon: Well there are a few ways it could work. Same personality opposite gender, slightly different personality opposite gender, or opposite personality opposite gender.

DarkFoxKit: Yeah, I know, but I'm just saying it is pretty awkward to write for. I'm not one to genderbend characters much.

Mana: DarkFoxKit: Thank you, though it is awkward to see 'Merry Christmas' after weeks had gone by. ^^' Still, we appreciate the thought.

Darkzdragon: Yeah, thanks for that. Happy Late New Years to you hope you're enjoying your January.

DarkFoxKit: You know, a Santa Claus ghost would've been interesting, but probably also too cliche. I think I've seen a few of those in other cartoon Christmas specials before, so to be honest I'm kinda relieved that Butch didn't use the ghost Santa idea. Though it would've been fun to see in the sequel to that Christmas special episode.

Andy: Nah, Danny already has that covered. I'm more interested in telling events that happened in my crazy life.

DarkFoxKit: Valerie being manager…? Uh… uh… Dragon?

Darkzdragon: Well the rules could be different in this universe. I mean who knows, there could be 14 year olds running Fortune 500 companies. So while Val wouldn't be able to become a manager in our world, she could in hers.

DarkFoxKit: Unfortunately I don't think Nickelodeon is interested in bringing back Danny Phantom any time soon. Hmm… well, they could've given Sam what they were planning to give to Danny before they came up with the concept of him being half ghost. Originally, they were going to give Danny a freaking motorcycle, and an owl that, I'm guessing, senses ghost. Wouldn't it have been cool if Sam had a motorcycle and an owl that leads her to ghosts when Danny's too busy dealing with another ghost? And I think that would've fit in with her character too, she loves animals, and she's athletic enough to drive a motorbike.

Darkzdragon: Yeah, I could see that. Maybe we should do that here. Well… maybe you should do that here until we finish up CoM.

DarkFoxKit: Hmm… yeah, maybe. I mean I've already come this far without using that, so I'm not sure how I'll give Sam a trained ghost hunting owl or a motorbike yet, but I'll figure something out.

ZAFT Prime: DarkFoxKit: Hope this was a fun chapter for you then. XP

Raidentensho: DarkFoxKit: No, Andy's suit will not change color. First of all, someone else that did a Danny Phantom twin story already did that. Second, I want to keep it simple. Since you can't even see the characters I write, and more often than not, I'll forget his suit can even do that. I don't think ghost rays changes color like that unless you're using a certain set? They're usually either green, blue or red, I've never seen purple. … You seem to be way too into anime. ^^'

funnydude2: DarkFoxKit: Thank you. Most of my stories are kind of like that.

Anime lover 3593: DarkFoxKit: I'm always happy to hear from you. And glad that you're still reading. The episode itself seem to be more about Danny and Jazz having a bit of discord since Jazz is acting like her father when it comes to ghost hunting.

Darkzdragon: I try. And I unfortunately need to stop working on this project for now because I'm getting stretched way too thin. As for my favorite part about working with another author? It would have to be being able to both share the rolls as well as bounce ideas off of them. They are also good at noticing errors that a single writer could miss. Honestly I doubt I could ever write on my own, I'm too dependant on a co-writer.

Andy: What was reckless of me? If you're not specific, I can't help you there. Getting out of the thermos was just a guess from a logical standpoint. Why do the ghosts always only escape when you put the cap on and then take it off? And the net thing… well, yeah, I'm not as strong as Danny, so I have to rely more on tricks and techniques. Which is fine by me.

Guest: DarkFoxKit: Heh, nice to see you picked up on the references. Liking the OC, huh? Thank you! Always happy to hear that people enjoy Andy. Actually, some people did make a fanfiction from this, though I'm not sure how far they got.