This chapter is a little shorter than what I've been doing, and it was going to be longer, but... I couldn't stop myself. The ending was too funny. I hope you can forgive me.

Thank you to all readers, and a double thank you to all reviewers!

Jadejem1: Since he first showed up, Echo's been after Jack and Maddie for not paying attention to, and hurting their children. This has been on Maddie's mind the whole time. Then Echo threatened Danny. Then Danny turned on the sarcasm. It wasn't really any one thing, but a build up of several. Does that make sense?

GirlFish: Glad you're still reading this! If I recall correctly, you were one of the first reviewers. That is the question though, isn't it? All my plans for this story are pretty nebulous, but I'm hoping to give you guys an answer to that before the end of the month.

Avenger2003: That is an interesting thought. I might use it later on, if you don't mind?

jwagne51: This was always my intention. People do change, and, considering the actions of most other ghosts, and what ghosts can do, being hostile to one that appears to be threatening your child is logical. Jack and Maddie were never monsters. They just took things way too far, and never reexamined their preconceptions.

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Chapter 35: Extra

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"Okay," snapped Sam, annoyed. "What the hell are you all looking at?" She interposed herself between the Fentons and the crowd, and glared at her classmates, even managing to spare an especially dirty look for Mr Lancer. Weren't adults supposed to be more perceptive about these things? Not that she had seen any evidence of that. "Don't you have other things to do? Productive things. I mean, you do want to get home eventually, right?"

Chastised, most of the students moved off. Most. Paulina, Tiffanie, Dash, Dale, Star, and Valerie were still wrapped up in their dispute. Sam was pretty sure that they hadn't even noticed what was going on with the Fentons. Jeez, they were self-centered.

Mr Lancer, on the other hand, approached her. He leaned down, keeping his eyes on the Fentons, to quietly ask her, "Are you sure this is... wise?"

"Honestly? I have no idea. But trying to stop Danny would be a bad idea." She glanced backwards, to where Jazz had subtly inserted herself between Danny and their parents. "Danny's an emotional wreck right now. I don't think that Echo... Ugh. I don't know."

"Was he really going to hurt Daniel?"

"Not a chance. Danny's got problems, but self-harm isn't one of them. I think that the point of that stunt was to get closure, that he really wanted an answer to that question, but Danny backed out. I think he still wants an answer."

"Do you think that this is going to happen again?"

"I really hope not. I don't think this is healthy."

"But..?"

"But this isn't about what Danny consciously wants. Look. Talk to Jazz. I'm not a psychologist."

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Echo, invisible, watched the unfolding events. He wasn't sure he liked them.

So what if Maddie promised? You couldn't trust human promises. They weren't worth the breath they were spoken with. And Echo didn't need to breathe. (Sam, Tucker, and Jazz didn't count. They were the best. When they promised something, they meant it.)

He frowned. Thinking. Something about that... Something about promises. Something he had overheard... Something Sam had said, perhaps? He thumbed through his memories. It was easy, he didn't even have a weeks worth.

His face lit up as he found the moment in time that he was looking for.

Before leaving to explore this newly remembered possibility, he closely examined the Jack and Madeline. He wasn't about to leave Danny with them if there was even the slightest possibility that they had retained or attained a weapon. He then cast an appraising eye at Valerie. She still had her suit, but she was off limits. For now.

The refrigerator room was just as cold as it had been yesterday. Echo glanced around the room, and then peered behind a large jug of milk. There it was. The pomegranate that he hadn't eaten.

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After a hearty lunch (soup, courtesy of Rebecca and Kwan, who'd taken the culinary arts elective for the past two years), they finally, finally, set off. Down and in and away across the stairs.

Danny was already completely exhausted. Honestly, he was considering the merits of Sam's 'hate everyone' approach. Even though he knew that was basically a stylistic choice, lacking any substance. (He knew better than to suggest this to Sam. She considered shallowness of any kind to be a sin. Yes, she was a little hypocritical. Danny loved her anyway.)

Despite his exhaustion, however, he was leading the procession. The (mostly) human part of it, anyway. There were wisps scouting ahead of them. Danny carried Leader in his arms, and another pair of wisps rested on his shoulders. Dozens of smaller, pin-head- to penny-sized, wisps nested in his hair, others, in his clothes. His pockets were full of the little ghosts.

They were lucky they were so light.

Jerks.

Although, thanks to them, he had managed to beg off carrying anything more heavy.

He still had no idea why they wanted so badly to be close to him. The Amity Park wisps acted similarly, when no one else was watching, but he hadn't been able to interpret their answer. Maybe it was untranslatable. Maybe they were just being coy. Maybe the reason was sinister, or embarrassing.

For now though... He hugged Leader more tightly, and the smaller ghost wriggled and purred.

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"But do you think it's possible?"

The other shadow closed his book with a snap and glared at Echo. Probably. It was hard to tell, between the thick glasses, the very nearly uniform color of the eyes, and the glow. "What part of 'I have the same information as you,' do you not understand? Are we really this neurotic?"

"You're supposed to be the smart one," replied Echo, "and you have all these books."

"If I'm the smart one, what are you supposed to be? You're acting like one of those crazy-obsessed manga characters."

"We're ghosts."

"Don't give me that, you know what I mean."

"Yeah, and you know it's just an act. Mostly. I just want him to be safe. I don't want them to hurt him again."

The other shadow sighed. "I know. I get it," he said. "But that doesn't change the fact that I don't have any special knowledge. I don't know what you expect me to do."

"But the books, shouldn't there be something in one of them? I mean, these are mostly GZ publications, right? Obsessed authors chucking their books into every lair they come across?"

"Yes. That's true. What's also true is that all of these are in alphabetical order by title because we couldn't be bothered to actually figure out a logical system. Except for the left side, which is arranged by color. Why did we do that anyway?"

"Aesthetics, probably. It's near the balcony."

"That makes sense. But my point is that trying to find a useful book on the subject would be like trying to find a needle in a haystack. Even I don't know what most of these are about. And they're going to be here any minute now." The shadow ran a nervous hand through his hair, tucking it behind one ear.

"They're at least an hour off. Even if they ran."

The shadow groaned.

"Give me your opinion, at least."

"Fine." The shadow licked his lips and adjusted his glasses. "I've got to wonder if this was some kind of subconscious self-sabotage."

"Huh?"

"My eyes. The glasses. If I'm really supposed to be the 'smart one' or the voice of reason, or whatever."

"I wouldn't be surprised. Ask Jazz if it's really bothering you. But don't change the subject."

"Okay. So for the most part, pomegranates are symbolic, they're used as part of a larger action, formula, or ceremony, or as a supplement. Something extra. But but they do have Stygian properties. Some of them, anyway. The problem is, we can't tell if any of the ones we have have Stygian properties, or how Stygian they are, because we're Stygian. Or at least, he is. We keep our promises."

"So..."

"So it's possible, it's just that it'll be really hard to tell whether or not it worked. If we had water from the Styx, that would work, and I'd say go for it, but unless you know something I don't..." The shadow shrugged. "On the other hand, you can use it as a kind of placebo. Tell them that it'll bind them to whatever promise they make, and if they don't go through with it, then we'll know we can't trust them, and if they do, then we know that they're at least trying." The shadow frowned. "Or that they've seen through us. Either way."

"You mean lie to them?"

"Don't sound so scandalized. You've been lying."

"No I haven't!"

"You told them that you were going to kill Danny."

"No, I implied that I was going to kill Danny. I never said I would. All I said was 'or else' and that Danny would be better as a ghost. And you call yourself the smart one."

"Would he be better as a ghost, though?"

"It's a matter of opinion."

"I suppose. Actually, a thought just occurred to me. Go see if you can find any more pomegranates, and meet me in the workshop." The shadow disappeared.

"Oh, come on, don't leave me hanging like that! What's the thought?!"