A/N: Don't think of Vlad as OOC, think of him as showing a new side.

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"Daniel," Vlad said as soon as his lab appeared before us, "This your home now, and as such you are granted unrestricted access to every room in this house. Come, your personal effects will be arriving by airmail soon."

"Why didn't we just take them with us through the Ghost Zone?" I asked as we reached the staircase that connected the lab to the entrance corridor.

"Because that would have taken far too long. I want to get you acclimated to your surroundings as quickly and as comfortably as possible."

We received my things a few minutes later. As I looked at the Masters Manor, Vlad places a sympathetic hand on my shoulder. I can't believe I'm living in the same house as my archenemy. I should give him a chance. Maybe it won't be so bad.

As we sat in the living room watching TV that night, my mind keept going over all the times him and I've met. "Hey, Vlad?" I ask as I stir my hot cocoa absent-mindedly.

"Hm?"

"Of all the women out there, why did you obsess over mom so much? Why not try finding a girl?"

"Daniel, there was twenty years between the lab accident in Wisconsin and the class reunion. Don't you think I tried? Oh, sure, I went out a few times, but they never lasted. The girls only wanted me for my money. Your mother was the only one who ever loved me for me. However, she loved her father for who he was just that much more.

Listen, Daniel, I don't mean to insult your father. He was a good man, and I realize that now. I was just jealous of him. Oh, sure, he was a bit of an oaf, and he may not have been the brightest bulb in the box (no offense), but his heart was always in the right place. Besides, who hasn't tripped over a root or broken something in his life? Can you ever forgive me?"

"Well, we will be living together from now on, so I suppose I'd better. Speaking of me moving in, why did you invite me to stay with you, anyway?"

"I don't know, my dear boy." Vlad replied, watching his reflection in his glass of brandy. "I suppose I just want someone to talk to. After all, I'm not a young man anynmore, and it's nice to have some company in this big, empty old building."

"What about your staff? Can't they keep you company?" Or a cat?"

"Because the staff's a bunch of yes-men, and I will not get a cat."

"Why not, anyway?"

"Because I'm allergic."

"Besides, where would all my billions and ghost-hunting equipment go when I die? You heard right, Daniel. As soon as we get in touch with my lawyer tomorrow, everything here will be your when I pass on."

I nearly choked on my hot chocolate. "You're going to leave everything to me?"

"If you're willing to become my protégé."

"What's the catch?"

"No catch. With your father gone and you living here, I have everything I could ever need. Listen, Daniel, it's getting late. I'll show you to your room." He led me up the main staircase into a guest room right across from his, where we bade each other goodnight. All my effects set up, I changed into my pajamas and went to bed.

I was back in Amity Park, flying back to the Nasty Burger. "Mom! Dad! Guys? NOOOOO!" The explosion turned into a thunderclap as I awoke in a cold sweat, the rain pounding against the window. It was around midnight as the mist that my breath created turned an icy blue color. Against my own better judgment, I go ghost, allowing the intoxicating feeling of release from human inhibitions as the cold of the rings passes over me, freeing me from my weak humanity, the Dr. Jekyll to my Mr. Hyde. I am no longer the whelp known as Danny Fenton, but the powerful and mighty Danny Phantom!

As I peered down the hall, I saw that foolish Box Ghost, one of the cardboard boxes used to transport my things glowing in his right hand. "Oh, Box Ghost?" I ask, speaking in a slow and sly whisper. "Beware." I let loose a ball of ectoplasm the size of my head, destroying the box ghost's hand as it contacted with the box, creating a glorious explosion. I grinned as I see the fool, holding his bloody stump of an arm. I was about to raise an arm to finish him when, all of a sudden, my human side took over, forcing me to unclip the Fenton thermos. As I peer into the pathetic face of the sad creature before me, I open the thermos. I can't bear to look into the box ghost's eyes, brimming with fear, as I suck him in.

Shaking with adrenaline, an unexplainable fear, and shock at the fact that I'd actually mutilated a fellow ghost, I screwed the cap back on as Vlad ran out of his bedroom. "Daniel, my dear boy," he asked, "what happened?"

"Nothing." I lied as I turned back into Danny Fenton. Afraid of what I'd do the next time I'd turn ghost, I asked, "Vlad, I'm scared. I don't want to be half-ghost anymore. I can't deal with the emotions that come with it."

"That, my dear boy, can be arranged."

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A/N:Dun-dun-duuuuuuuun! BTW, "Urban Jungle" premiers in a couple of hours!