Disclaimer- Butch, not me, join in on the chorus, kids... Lita IS mine. Readers of other stories I've done might recognize her.

Interlude 3: Networking

"You know, I really appreciate you guys, and I know you want to take care of me," Cade drawled, settling the handset closer to his ear. "But did you guys really have to spam my inbox as soon as you heard where I was living?"

A throaty female chuckle echoed down the line. "It's not THAT bad, is it?"

"Lita, you sent a copy of Spenger and Stantz's Annotated Tobin' Spirit Guide, Maggie sent me the numbers of several good exorcists, and John emailed me what's practically a thesis on ghosts, spirits, and near-death experiences from some anthropologist he works with."

"I thought John was working with the Air Force."

Cade's response was dry. "He is."

His old friend laughed quietly. "Right, right. He didn't get away from the Wide World of Weird any more than the rest of us. So... speaking of weird, I hear you're seeing a ghost? On a professional basis, I mean."

"Danny Phantom." Cade let out a long breath. "Leets, I don't think he's actually a ghost, except in the most general definition of the term. Ectoplasmic entity, yeah, but I doubt he's actually the spirit of someone who died. He acts too... ALIVE for that. If he'd died, it would have to be recently, given his mannerisms and the fact that he talks like a modern-day kid. And if some kid had died around here that recently, people would know about it. Somebody would have recognized him. Nobody does."

"But you think he's human-based, rather than something that evolved independently on the spectral level. Like a familiar?"

Cade nodded, despite the fact that he knew she couldn't see it. "Yeah, I think so. My guess is he got thrown off by one of the kids here, Danny Fenton. It would explain the name, the physical similarity, the reason he was asking me about MPD a while back... you should read the report he did as a cover for the research. Reads like something out of your book, and he got some great extra credit on it."

"So Fenton knows?"

"I think so. All conjecture at this point, of course. The kid clams up tighter than safe under stress. He's used to keeping secrets, major ones. I'd guess he's a major part of Phantom's support system. He's got all the signs you mentioned-- jumpy, suspicious, doesn't look like he's sleeping well, cased my office like a veteran cop. Two good friends, almost totally socially isolated otherwise."

"Yeah, sounds like Superhero Syndrome to me. Has he stopped caring about ordinary problems?"

Cade snorted. "The other day, I heard him tell the bully who was shaking him down to hurry it up, he had 'other things to deal with.' Startled the guy so much he just kinda put the kid down and backed away."

"Makes sense. When your life is on the line repeatedly... little stuff doesn't scare you so much."

There was a moment of shared silence, both friends reflecting on the truth of that.

"So," Lita said finally, voice teasing, "Why'd you call? I know it wasn't just to hear the melodious sound of my voice..."

He rolled his eyes. "You're perceptive."

"I'm a shrink, it's my job."

"Yeah, well, fellow shrink, I need some help. You wrote a few reports on internal dichotomy and shadow-self conflict..."

Concern filled her voice. "Which one is this? Fenton or Phantom?"

"Phantom. Apparently he's got an evil counterpart... goes by the name of Plasmius. Got the Vader/Skywalker thing going on, on top of everything else. And Phantom's got enough of a dark side that it's a real concern on his part. Noble kid, scared out of his mind at what he could be, but..."

"Dragon/Paladin conflict. I'll mail you what I've got on the subject. Not something I envy you on, if he's based off a fourteen year-old. You barely know what you're capable of in any respect at that time. Realizing you can be as ruthless and destructive as the guys you fight is a real shock."

The sound of someone tapping at his office door made Cade look up from the call.

"Dang. Lita, I'll call you back, okay? Somebody's trying to get my attention."

"Duty calls for the high school counselor," she laughed. "Sure, call me back. I'll shoot you everything I've got about dichotomy splits. Be careful, Cade. We all know how you attract trouble."

"Pot. Kettle," he retorted, hanging up to the sound of her laughter. Sliding his cell phone back into his jacket pocket, he turned towards the door.

"It's open."

Black hair and wide blue eyes identified the knocker as Danny Fenton. One hand behind his head, the boy sheepishly entered the office, closing the door behind him.

"Uh... I'm not interrupting anything, right? I can come back..."

"Nah. Phone call to an old friend, but we talk all the time. It's my turn to run up the phone bill anyway. What can I do for you, Danny?"

The boy shrugged, setting his backpack down, but not taking the offered seat. "I was just wondering... the open house the other night. You... You don't like Vlad Masters, do you?"

Cade raised an eyebrow. That wasn't a question he'd been expecting. "No, can't say as I do," he replied. "Why do you ask?"

"Why not? Everybody else does." Danny's voice was bitter. "Everybody who meets him thinks he's just GREAT."

"Not surprising. He's charming, he's rich... your parents have known him a long time, that probably makes it hard for them to see his flaws. But... I read people for a living, Danny. I know slime when it oozes up to me."

"So... it's not just me?"

This time, Cade couldn't keep back a snort. "Not hardly. If your instincts are screaming at you that Vlad's dangerous, I'd listen to them. They usually know what they're talking about. I learned that a LONG time ago."

Danny gave him a long, unreadable look. "You didn't get into this job right out of college, did you? What were you doing in between?"

Smart kid. Cade grinned a little, feeling his respect for Danny Fenton go up another notch.

"My area of focus was actually in profiling," he replied easily. "Worked in law enforcement for a little while, 'til I realized it was either get out or burn out. So... here I am. Not a career move I regret."

Danny nodded absently. "So... Masters. What do you think of him, besides that he's slime?"

"Predator," Cade answered immediately. "Sociopath. Used to getting his way, and running roughshod over anyone who stands between him. Smart, but more to the point very, very sneaky. Manipulative. I'd bet he's studied psych at some point, if only for a better understanding of how to push buttons. And if he doesn't have a copy of Machiavelli's The Prince on his bookshelf at home, I'll eat my hat." He looked at the teen expectantly.

"You gonna tell me what the story is?"

Danny made a face, but sat in the chair in front of the desk. "It's kind of a long story, but to begin with... he's got a thing for my mom."

Cade groaned. "Oh, I KNOW this is not gonna end well..."