Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Summary Contest: See profile

A quick note: Wow... I've never seen so many "Danny come back!" reviews in my life. Must've really made you all mad with that last chapter, eh? Mwahaha. You guys are going to enjoy this one even less.

Reviews: Moon Cosmic Power, PhillyE2Heart, Droodle Phantom, MysticLady3, dg19, Abster1, catgirlversion3.0otakufan, Summers Rage, SkyAngel429, Werefox Alchemist, Van Uber, SkyeDancer, dannychic, Perfect yet broken, Siren of Time, dptvshow.

Special thanks to Red's-Fury and PhillyE2Heart (even if he doesn't remember reading it, hehe)

Chapter 7: To remember

Sam stumbled down the road, tears slipping down her cheeks and her arms wrapped around her. Vlad had let her go after she'd been forced to watch Danny begin his training to be the evil son Vlad had always wished for. Now, she was walking down a road in Wisconsin with no idea of how to get home. She closed her eyes, choking back a sob. Why, Danny? Why couldn't you have just waited? We would have found a chance to escape eventually. She looked up as a horn honked at her before a vehicle pulled over onto the side of the road.

"Hey, need a ride?" a woman asked, leaning out of the window of her truck.

"Yes, please. C-can you take me to the closest phone?" Sam walked up to the truck, nearly stumbling before she managed to grab hold of the side of the vehicle.

"Sure. Hope in, sweetie."

Sam thanked her and climbed in, rubbing her arms nervously as the woman made her way to the nearest town. The woman asked questions before politely backing off when Sam finally said she didn't want to talk about it. She thanked the woman again as she got out of the vehicle, making her way into the store.

"Are you all right, miss?" the owner asked. "You look like you've been run over by a truck."

"I just need to use your phone," she said, brushing off his question. "Thanks," she added as he set it on the counter for her. She dialed the only number she could think of at the moment: Jazz.

Jazz had just gotten off the phone with her parents, reassuring them that Danny would be fine when she got a call from an unknown number. She put the phone to her ear. "Hello?"

"Jazz," Sam choked out, tears slipping down her cheeks. "I need you to come pick me up. I-I'm at a store in Wisconsin."

"Wisconsin?" Jazz gripped the phone tightly. "Wait, was Vlad involved in this?"

"I'll tell you everything later. Please, Jazz, just come pick me up?"

"All right," Jazz said, trying to sooth the girl who sounded like she was about to burst into tears then and there. "Just give me the address of where you are."

Sam gave her the address then hung up. "Thanks," she whispered, managing a weak smile up at the store owner. Her legs gave out beneath her, and she slumped to the ground, leaning against the counter as she began to cry. "Oh, Danny," she whispered, "why?"

Jazz stepped into the store, looking around her for a moment before her eyes fell upon the goth girl slumped against the counter, whimpering in her sleep. Jazz knelt beside her, gently shaking her.

"Danny?" Sam sleepily opened her eyes, tears filling them as she found the face of a Fenton before her but not the Fenton she longed for.

"Sam, what happened?" Jazz whispered.

"H-he gave himself up," she choked out. "He gave himself up for me…"

Daniel kept hearing a voice, and it wasn't his dad's voice either. He looked up as his dad walked up to him, urging him to train harder. "Sure, Dad," he said, returning to his rigorous training routine with more vigor.

He didn't miss a single shot, smirking as the ghosts cried out in pain and agony. His ghost ray was now a deep gold color after only a month of training. He stopped short as an image appeared in the virtual training where he was practicing, an image he felt he should know well. It was a young woman with black hair and beautiful lilac eyes. She wore a black mini skirt and a black tank top. She was gazing at him with an empty look, as if she were just a shadow of what she had once been. He stepped toward her, red eyes gazing at her curiously.

"Sam," he whispered, the name feeling foreign on his lips.

But then the image disappeared and a blast hit him from behind. He grunted as he fell forward before whirling around and releasing a blast of his own. He smirked in satisfaction as the ghost was obliterated, and the imaginary world about him disappeared. He looked up as Vlad entered the room, fuming. He sighed, lazily running a hand through his hair as he returned to human form. What had he done now?

"You hesitated! You never hesitate, or you'll be hit with worse than that!" Vlad growled.

"It's just a small hit," Daniel muttered, "and it's not my fault your program went wacky and inserted a human."

Vlad's face paled. "A human? Who was it? Who did you see?"

"I don't know. I feel like I should remember her, but I don't."

Vlad's eyes narrowed, the color coming back to his face in a rush. "She's no one. You shouldn't remember her because she's just a computer error."

"But—"

"To your room!" Vlad barked, pointing toward the exit.

Daniel rolled his eyes. "Fine, whatever." He stuffed his hands in his pockets and stalked toward the exit, grumbling about retarded dads and their screwy computer programs.

Vlad waited until the door had closed behind the young man before he let out a low growl. "He's remembering…"