Phantom's worry wouldn't seem to ease even as he and Fenton struggled to relax the rest of Saturday. They tried to distract themselves with YouTube, books, calling Sam and Tucker. They even tried homework much to both Danny's chagrin but the anxiety was ever present. And as day turned to night and the human Danny went to sleep, the unease just got worse
Phantom floated, watching the stars and the quiet street outside the window with a furrowed brow. All this, this waiting, it was really getting to him. He was trying to be patient and he hoped, he really hoped things would turn out okay. That Mom and Dad would figure out the ghost catcher but….
Mom not trusting him, her not apologizing was still bothering him. And it really hurt. The illusion of his stomach flopped. Things weren't getting worse at least but...they weren't getting any better either. He sighed. He'd been in positions like this before, when he'd been upset with his parents. An initial fight, feelings get hurt, and then...no resolution. The hurt would linger for a while until he'd eventually forget about it. He could do that now, just ignore and try to forget about what she said. But...the problem with hurt feelings was they always crept back.
Phantom turned away, deciding to do something else. Maybe he's read some more or… For some reason, he really wanted to sit in the lab in front of the portal and just listen to its song. It was a bad idea but he had to do it anyway. The ghost sat on the stairs, ears keenly listening to the ebb and flow of the voices. He enjoyed the feeling of the green swirling light shining on his face and penetrating through his suit. But of course, the ever present worry lingered below the surface. Some of it was his human side's natural reaction to the portal but the rest of it was much more mundane.
The ghost rubbed a hand across his face. "What are we gonna do?"
No answer came and yet….Phantom couldn't seem to stop worrying, even as the morning came.
Fenton blinked awake, a dream of watching the portal lingering in his mind. Or….likely not a dream, if he knew himself. He rolled over and there of course was his ghost half, floating above their desk chair with a book. Huh….he must have….left the lab at some point.
Yawning, the human closed his eyes again. He drifted in and out of consciousness for a little while. Then there was a rustling. Again, the boy's eyes fluttered open. Oh yeah, Phantom again… that must have been the sound of him turning the pages.
The ghost's head slowly rose up and he half smiled at the human Danny. "Morning."
"Morning." Fenton muttered in acknowledgment.
With squinted eyes, he reached for his phone. He noted the time, 10:40 am, with little interest as he scrolled through social media for a few minutes. Eventually though, he sat up and left the room to use the bathroom.
Fenton returned to find the ghost where he left him. Phantom looked up at the sound of the door opening. He put down the book, his expression carefully neutral though his shoulders were tense. Overall, he looked somewhat cross; it was a little concerning to see even if Fenton knew the attitude was not directed at him.
The human raised a brow. "You're worried." Again, it wasn't a question but a statement, an observation.
Phantom bit his lip, his shoulders falling. "Yeah...I'm sure you felt it."
"Yeah." Fenton shrugged sadly but said nothing else. He felt no need to continue; both of them knew what they were worried about and why so there was no need to say it out loud.
Then the human's stomach growled.
"Breakfast?" Phantom questioned with a raised brow.
"Breakfast." Fenton agreed.
Sunday progressed much like Saturday had. The pair tried to distract themselves and managed to finish with the rest of their homework within two hours. Then they lounged in the living room and watched tv. Softly, the sound of Mom and Dad working in the lab drifted up the stairs, occasionally punctuated by the louder sound of something being welded or hammered.
Fenton frowned, remembering his conversation with Jazz yesterday afternoon. She'd said something about convincing the two adults to take a break. He'd only seen them briefly around dinner time last night and they'd looked just as tired then as they had yesterday afternoon. Obviously Jazz's appeals feel on deaf ears. They must have gone up to their room to sleep at some point at least because Phantom had been down there in the middle of the night but….
"I think they came upstairs about midnight, after you'd already fallen asleep." The ghost supplied, apparently having picked up on that train of thought. "And Mom came down around 6:30." He rubbed the back of his neck. "She just missed spotting me down there."
A brief memory sprang into the human's mind. Floating crossed legs in the air and basking in the light of the portal, he was startled at the sound of the lab door being unlocked (Yes, apparently his parents had actually started using that lock again. Too bad it did nothing to keep out someone who could phase through solid objects). With a quick gasp, he flickered invisible and rose in the air to be just inches from the ceiling. Watching Mom, hair still unkept and bags still under her eyes, trod down the stairs, he phased out of the room.
Back in the living room, Fenton wrinkled his nose. "Yeah….that would not have ended well."
For a moment, he imagined the berating his other self surely would have gotten for being in the lab alone and in the early morning no less. From the ghost's paled face, he was picturing the same.
"She would not have been happy." Phantom shook his head. Then his face hardened somewhat as he crossed his arms. "But then again, she never seems to be satisfied with me."
Fenton frowned, his heart clenching at the statement, the bitterness in it. He opened his mouth, wanting to argue that that wasn't true but…their conversation on Wednesday after Mom and Dad's argument in the lab rang in his mind. 'She doesn't trust me. It's me, not you…..Why does she accept you but not me?' He had been trying not to think about any of that over the past few days. He and Phantom hadn't even talked about it since then. Fenton had thought they were being patient and waiting for things to get better but maybe that wasn't what they were doing. Maybe-
But then an explosion rocked the house. Fenton screamed in fright at the same time Phantom grabbed for him, instinctively turning both of them intangible. The human's eyes bulged, his heart pounding out of his chest. The smoke alarm started blaring.
Feet pounded above them and Jazz appeared at the top of the stairs. "What was that?!" She shouted, alarmed even as she ran down the stairs.
The Dannys returned at tangibility, as their sister stopped beside their spots on the couch. The siblings' eyes feel on where the sound had come from.
"The lab!" All three yelled with equal panic.
Before Fenton could register what he was doing, he'd leapt from the couch, ran across the kitchen, and flung the lab door open. His heart dropped at the sight. His parents stood around a singed and cracked lab table, Dad brandishing a fire extinguisher and spraying the remains of a certain invention.
Jazz ran past him. "What happened?! Are you okay?"
The large man released the trigger on the extinguisher. "Fire's out. See, it's fine." He said, much too casually.
"Fine?! You blew up the ghost catcher!" Mom yelled, pointing angrily.
The kids all ignored the statement, running (or flying) forward now that it looked safe to approach. "Are you guys okay?" "Are you hurt?" "What's going on?" A cacophony of questions rang out as Fenton's panicked mind tried to piece together what was happening. But the parents ignored the questions.
"I blew it up?!" Dad jabbed a thumb in his wife's direction.
"I said those batteries would overload! I said that!"
"I did the calculations, Maddie! Twice! I did them twice and they're fine!"
"They still blew up, Jack!"
Jazz cut in. "Mom! Dad!" The adults just yelled over her.
"I can see that!" The man growled. "Your wiring must have been faulty!"
"My wiring?! My wiring!? Well, if we'd stopped when I'd said, then maybe-"
"Stop!" An echoing voice suddenly roared. The arguing adults instantly froze, turning to look at the only ghost in the room. "What is going on here?!"
Mom's eyes widened, taking in an angry and panicked Phantom. Dad shrugged sheepishly. "Well we-"
"Never mind that!" Jazz waved her arms. "Are you two hurt?"
"We're fine, sweetie." Mom waved off the concern.
Dad gave an over eager attempt at a comforting smile. "Yeah, Jazzerincess. Your mom and I are fine."
Fenton frowned, crossing his arms. His eyes trailed the adults, looking for injuries. Though they still looked disheveled and their hazmat's suits were dirty, there were no tears in the fabric. No burns or visible bruises or cuts. The human's shoulders relaxed in relief. "You guys don't like hurt."
"We're not, Danny boy." Dad confirmed holding out his arms as if to display how uninjured he was. "We're fine."
Their sister was only barely placated. "Fine! The lab's a mess! And you both...you both…." Her lip quivered. "It's lucky you're both uninjured."
The human Danny nodded in agreement. Slowly his heart rate was decreasing as his initial fear for his parents lessened. Now a different feeling was welling up in the back of his mind.
Phantom pointed at the invention on the table. "Is that…" His voice and his hand shook. "Was that the ghost catcher?"
Fenton's heart dropped into the pit of his stomach, his eyes widening. "Mom? Dad?"
The man bit his lip. "Danno…."
The lack of confirmation was answer all the same. "You….you blew up the ghost catcher." The ghost mumbled quietly, his voice strangely haunted.
"Yes." Mom said equally quiet with a large measure of guilt ringing in her voice. "But…."
"You blew up the ghost catcher." Phantom repeated, this time gritting his teeth.
"We'll fix it, I promise." Dad pleaded.
Fenton could feel his anger rising, a pale reflection of that which was seething in his other self. And the words, they did little to comfort.
The ghost's eyes burned, flashing brighter. "You blew up the ghost catcher!" He stuttered. "That...we...we can't... without it...How...how could you?!" He gritted his teeth in an almost snarl before disappearing.
The human Danny's heart seemed to lodge in his throat as the phantom sensation of phasing through something crashed through him. The living room flickered into his view before he was phasing into his bedroom.
Somewhere far away, voices called his name. "Danny!" Was that Jazz? Dad? Mom? Wait, no….they weren't far away….
"Danny?" Jazz asked quietly.
He, Fenton, blinked. Yes, he was Fenton, just the human half. He was still in the lab with his parents and sister.
"Danny?" His sister repeated.
The boy shook his head, dispelling the fog. "Yeah, I'm here."
Mom crossed her arms, giving him an uncertain look. "Do you know where he went?"
"Of course." Fenton said, like it was obvious. Because it was.
His eyes flickered to the stairs and then back to his mother's face. She raised a brow, asking the silent question.
The human bit his lip. "Our room….I should…..I should go..." He pointed up stairs before looking down and muttering. "Before I do something stupid."
Fenton glanced up tentatively, taking in the worry and guilt in his parents' faces. Then his eyes fell on the destroyed ghost catcher. All air seemed to leave his lungs as his heart throbbed. Tears starting to collect in his eyes, the boy ran up the stairs without another word.
Only moments later, the human Danny barged into his room before slamming the door. He took a shaky breath. His hands were shaking, maybe from his emotions, maybe from the cold. The temperature had dropped since he'd last been in here, enough to make his breath visible. And like he told his parents, the culprit was in the room.
The ghost floated in the middle of the room, his back facing the human. His posture was stiff with his shoulder's hitched almost all the way up to his ears. His hands were balled at his sides, lit with green ectoenergy.
"Phantom?" Fenton softly ventured.
No verbal response came, but there was a mental and emotional one. The human could feel it in the tensing of his muscles, the heartbroken anger. Phantom wanted to hit something or shot something. He wanted to scream or cry or…..
Fenton balled his fists, taking a steadying breath. He felt the same of course; he too wanted to lash out but instead he slowly walked around the ghost, keeping his distance from the neon green light. "Danny?"
The human took another step, opening his mouth to call his other half's name again. But then tearful green eyes met his. Fenton's eyes instantly watered...or had that already been happening?
"Are you-" The human started, taking in the other's expression. But he stopped. He was going to say, are you okay? But that was a dumb question. He could visibly see that Phantom was not okay and if he couldn't see it….he could feel it.
Phantom vigorously shook his head. He floated forward, towards his human self before stopping. His frown deepened as he looked down at his green-lit hands. With a sigh, he extinguished the lights before looking back up at Fenton's face. "You're looking kinda blue." He said both concerned and worried.
"Yeah." Fenton shivered, again registering how his hair was raised in goosebumps. He wrapped his arms after his chest, his hands under his armpits to warm them. "So are you."
It was subtle but there was a very slight icy blue tint to the skin of Phantom's face.
"Oh." In response, the ghost's expression fell. He pitched his eyes closed in concentration for a long moment. "I can't turn it off." The ghost sounded alarmed.
Then there was a knock at the door. "Danny? Can I come in?" Jazz questioned.
Both Dannys' eyes widened in identical panic. "Umm...no." "Don't come-"
At the same time, their sister quickly said. "That's it. I'm coming in whether you want me to or not." Jazz bursted into the room, her arms instantly wrapping around herself. "Why is it so cold in here?"
That just brought back Phantom's growing panic. "I can't...I can't stop it…" He choked out.
Jazz frowned. "You're doing this?"
The ghost nodded. "I..I don't know how to stop!"
"Oh Danny." Their sister walked forward, hands reaching out to touch him.
"Stop!" Fenton grabbed her arm. "We could...we could hurt you."
Both Dannys's eyes met, Phantom's lip trembling. The human could tell he was remembering that night he'd accidentally burned Fenton. But the boy shook his head; there was no need to feel guilty about that. Or about the possibility of hurting Jazz.
The girl looked between the two, giving Fenton a cautious look.
"Cold burn." Phantom said simply. "I can't...I don't know how to stop!" He shook his head. "You...you guys should go.. or...I'll…" He glanced up at the ceiling, floated upward.
"Danny, wait!" Jazz exclaimed. She pulled her arm out of Fenton's grip and started walking towards the closet. "You can do this. Just calm down."
Again, the ghost shook his head, his chest starting to heave. "No, I..I can't."
"Yes, you can." The girl said earnestly as she riffled through the closet. She threw something at Fenton.
"What is…" The human looked down at the object in his hands, a hoodie with gloves in the front pocket. Understanding, he started to pull on the garments.
Jazz was pulling on one of Danny's coats herself. Lightening fast, she put on a pair of gloves.
"No I…" Phantom argued, tears falling down his face.
Their sister planted herself in front of him. "Yes, you can." She took one of his gloved hands in hers. "You are in control, Danny. You are. You control your powers; they don't control you." The ghost boy shook his head. Jazz squeezed his hands. "Just breathe with me okay. In...and out…." Phantom tried to copy her actions, still panting. "Okay, Let's think warm thoughts….alive thoughts."
Even with his core inside his other chest, Fenton felt how the words stung. "Alive...alive thoughts? I'm...I'm not alive…" The ghost gritted his teeth. "I'm...I'm dead….I'm stuck like this, 'cause Mom and Dad blew up the ghost catcher! I'm...I'm trapped! I'm...I'm just a ghost, 'cause…." The words blurred together into an ugly mix of anger and despair.
Jazz didn't recoil. "They'll figure that out but right now, you need to-"
"Figure it out?" Phantom scoffed. "They...they have no clue. They've been arguing about it all week and...it's not like it'll fix anything." His eyes flashed brighter. "Mom will still look at me like it'll turn into a monster any moment or...like I'm not even here."
"Danny, that's not true." Their sister chastised, trying to get the ghost's attention.
"And she hasn't even apologized. I mean… she knows she said horrible things. She should know she hurt me but she'll barely acknowledge it. Is she...is she even sorry?!"
"Danny!" Jazz tried again, now visibly shivering.
That finally broke Fenton out of his trance. He'd been so caught up in the anger, he'd been frozen beside himself. But now he sprang into action.
The human stepped forward, taking Phantom's other hand. "Phantom! We can worry about that later. But now we need to fix this." His voice was stern, the determination instantly drawing his other self's attention. Green eyes met blue as the ghost realized what he was doing. He tried to pull away but both humans' grips remained firm.
Fenton continued. "Jazz is right. We need to think warm thoughts, alive thoughts."
"But-" The ghost started.
"We are still alive." The human implored. "Remember who you're talking to."
Phantom nodded slowly, barely perceptibly as more clarity entered his vision.
"Yeah, that's right." Fenton cracked the most subtle of smiles. "Here, breath with me." He breathed in and out, his ghost copying. "You remember what lungs feel like. And our heart? I know you can still feel it." He focused inward, on the distant churning of his spectral energy. "'Cause I can feel our core. And I can feel how much it hurts."
Slowly the cold lessened as the temperature rose.
"That's it. You're doing it." Jazz encouraged. The girl also breathed in and out, following the Dannys' rhythm.
Fenton felt his heart rate slow as the rhythmic action calmed him. Fenton and Phantom breathed in unison, the pulsing of the ghost's core paradoxically increasing. The human could actually feel it physically through his glove but also somewhere distantly in his mind. At the same time, the ghost's skin also warmed, slowly reaching a temperature that no longer threatened to burn bare hands, and then farther, to something that could be comfortably hugged.
The human Danny did just that, taking a step forward to embrace his ghost half. Phantom eagerly returned the hug, sniffling. Now that he was calmed, the ghost had started crying. Fenton was too, his throat closing up with emotion. With his powers under control, everything that had just happened hit him. What happened with the ghost catcher and everything Phantom had said. Harsh, painfilled, despaired words but….he'd be lying if he said he didn't think and feel the same way.
After a long moment, Jazz's arms wrapped around both boys as she joined the hug from the side. "Shh, it's okay." She cooed. "It's okay."
"No it's not." Phantom muttered. "I could have hurt you."
"Well, you didn't." Jazz comforted. "You got things under control."
"Yeah." The ghost agreed passively, only slightly comforted.
"You did." Their sister reassured. "You're trying so hard. And I know you'd never hurt me."
Phantom did seem to relax at her words, the guilt he was projecting to Fenton lessening. For a few more breaths, the hug continued until the siblings pulled apart.
"I am so sorry about what happened in the lab." Jazz finally said.
"Yeah, that." Fenton frowned, crossing his arms. Then he looked up at Jazz. "Is that why you came upstairs?"
The girl's face softened. "I wanted to check on you." She glanced between the two cautiously. "I'm glad I did. You were really upset."
"Do you blame me?" Phantom muttered, crossing his arms.
"Of course not." Jazz said kindly. "You're feeling what you're feeling and that's okay. And I know it doesn't feel like it. But…." The girl bit her lip. "It's going to be okay. This might delay things but Mom and Dad will figure out how to help you."
Fenton frowned at the statement. He wanted to disagree, that previous anger that his other self had displayed still lingering in his mind. But at the same time… the human boy sighed. "I know."
"You're right." Phantom continued also sighing. "I'm...I'm still mad at them for what happened to the ghost catcher but I know they're trying. I shouldn't….I shouldn't have said they weren't earlier."
"You were angry, Danny. It's understandable. Although…" Jazz frowned. "Speaking of earlier, do you want to talk about what you said about Mom?"
Phantom suddenly stiffened. "No." He said flatly.
"Danny." Their sister pinned the ghost with a glare before turning towards the human.
Fenton crossed his arms and raised a brow. "Why are you looking at me? I'm not gonna contradict myself."
Jazz blinked twice, her frown deepening. "Really? You don't want to talk about how you're clearly still angry at Mom about what she said on Wednesday?"
"No. I don't." Phantom ground his teeth.
"Danny, this isn't healthy." Jazz started.
"Jazz." The human boy scowled, with the same angry and closed off posture as his other self.
The girl continued undeterred. "You can't keep bottling stuff up like this."
"I'm not-" Phantom started arguing.
Jazz cut him off, pointing seriously at Fenton. "You promised me, you promised you'd talk to me, that you'd let me help you."
That caused both Dannys' mouths to snap shut. The human half looked down. "I did promise you that."
The girl seemed to notice the change in attitude, her own tone softening. "So then talk to me."
The human Danny opened and closed his mouth, searching for words but none came out. He couldn't decide what to say, where to start. Tentatively, he glanced at his other self. The ghost still had his arms crossed, expression screaming that he'd already said too much.
Jazz groaned, rubbing her eyes with her palms. "Two mouths and I still can't get you to talk to me." She then sighed. "Look, I already know you're upset about the stuff Mom's said about ghosts and you want her to apologize." Both versions of her brother said nothing, looking anywhere but at the girl. "Am I wrong?"
After a long pause, Fenton begrudgingly muttered. "No, you're not." Unhelpfully, he offered nothing more.
His sister sighed again. "Danny, things aren't going to get better with Mom unless you talk to each other." She pointed. "You said you would talk to her if things didn't get better. And they haven't gotten any better."
"Well, they haven't gotten worse." The human Danny wrinkled his nose.
"Just because they haven't gotten worse doesn't mean that you shouldn't do something." Jazz held up her hands.
"Look Jazz." Fenton sighed. "Dad said to be patient with Mom and that she'd come around, okay? That's what we're doing, being patient with her."
"Or maybe you're ignoring the problem because you don't want to deal with it."
The human Danny opened his mouth to argue that that wasn't true but he stopped. He'd been thinking something approaching that line of thought not even an hour ago. He bit his lip. "Maybe-"
Phantom cut him off. "Mom hurt us. Repeatedly, multiple times." He grit his teeth. "She's supposed to make the first move. She's supposed to apologize. But she's not even sorry."
"That's not true." Fenton immediately argued. "She changed her mind about training us and about the flying and...we've seen how guilty she looks."
"Have we?" The ghost held out his arms. "All I know is she's been avoiding me. Mom won't touch me. She won't look at me, barely talks to me. She's always working in the damn lab."
The human huffed. "She's been working to find a way to fix this, Phantom."
The ghost glared. "Like that'll do anything to fix all the sh-"
Jazz interrupted. "You're not being fair; you can't know what she's thinking. Mom might not even know how much she's hurt you, let alone-."
A flicker of anger reingnited in Fenton's heart. Beside him, Phantom hissed. "Is she stupid?" His eyes flashed. "What? She's just not paid attention the multiple times we've cried in front of her. She just somehow can't see how much pain we're in! No, Mom knows the shit she's said. She knows it's wrong and she should know that it hurt me!" The ghost waved his arms. "But she probably thinks I'm an unfeeling monster; why would it matter if I'm in pain? I deserve it."
"Danny. Stop." The human boy grabbed his other half's flailing arms. "We both know we don't really believe what. Mom doesn't think that either."
"Then why hasn't she apologized?!" Phantom shouted, pulling his arms out of Fenton's grasp. "If she knows, if she cares that she hurt me, why won't she apologize?!"
Jazz looked between the two versions of her brother, eyes wide with concern. "You're right." Both heads, one with black hair and one with white hair, turned to look at her. The girl sighed. "It's absurd to think that Mom doesn't know that she hurt you or that she doesn't care but...you haven't even talked to her about this, Danny. She doesn't know that getting a verbal apology is this important to you."
There was a pause as both boys took in the girl's words. Then Phantom gritted his teeth. "I shouldn't have to ask for an apology."
"Danny." Jazz sighed again. "I know that-"
"Mom's the adult." The ghost cut her off again. "She's supposed to apologize. She's supposed to reach out and try to fix this. Not me, I'm 14! I'm a kid. I shouldn't have to beg her to say she's sorry!"
"You're right. You shouldn't." Their sister held out her hands. "You shouldn't have to beg for an apology. We shouldn't be having this argument because our mother should be emotionally mature enough to actually talk to you and try to fix things. But apparently, she's not. For some reason, she's ignoring the issue and burying herself in work or she's a lot more oblivious than we think. Now…" She pointed. "You can keep doing nothing and hope that Mom will get her act together and tell you she's sorry. Which is not going to happen. You can keep waiting for an apology that will never come. You can just keep making yourself more angry, bitter, and miserable. And keep on feeling sorry for yourself. Or" She emphasized the word. "You can actually talk to Mom. If you want there to be a chance for things to get better, you have to talk to her!" Jazz finally stopped, looking thoroughly exacerbated.
And rightfully so, Fenton thought. Guilt squirmed in his gut. Even if Phantom had been the one to actually voice all those thoughts, they were all still his thoughts. The human still desperately wanted Mom to apologize. He just wanted things to be better but he didn't want to talk to the woman because he was afraid….
"What if…" Phantom swallowed. "What if we do talk and she's not sorry at all?"
And that was it. If they talked and learned Mom still thought all those horrible things about ghosts. What if he was still wrong, still unnatural, still lesser in her eyes? What if….
"Then you'll actually know." Jazz said softly. "And we'll figure out what to do from there." She put a hand on Phantom's and a hand on Fenton's shoulder. "No matter what Dad and I have your back."
She smiled at the pair, obviously trying to comfort. But it stung. Guilt wiggled through his insides; Fenton remembered Mom and Dad fighting, arguing because of him. He imagined: Escalation, shouting, tears. Mom storming out. Dad taking him and Jazz to their grandparents. Their family ripped apart because he was stupid and got himself killed. Anguish rippled through him even as Phantom's cold hand found his and a hint of emotion pressed into Fenton's portion of their mind. If it was anyone else's hand, it might have been comforting but that was his own hand, his own mind trying to say it's okay. And he wasn't sure he believed what he was thinking.
Jazz was in front of him, gently brushing his bangs from his face. "Just think about what I said, okay? Everything's going to be fine." Silence lingered as neither boy responded, not that any part of them knew how. Finally their sister ventured. "Danny?"
Fenton looked up, meeting her eyes. "Yeah. We hear you. We'll…." He glanced at his ghost half, a wordless conversation passing between the two in a matter of seconds. "We'll think about it."
The girl raised a brow. "You will?"
"Yes." Phantom agreed, passionlessly. "You...you made some good points, I guess. We'll have to talk about it."
Jazz nodded, studying the pair for a long moment and seemingly judging their sincerity. "Okay." Her expression finally softened, though the glint in her eyes said she wasn't exactly satisfied. "If you decided you want to talk to Mom today, I can come with you but….fixing things is on you and Mom. You guys are the only ones who can make things better."
Fenton looked down and frowned, considering the words. A heavy sadness fell over him; with the previous anger evaporated, the grief and fear weighed down heavily on his shoulders. Still, he said nothing.
Meanwhile, Jazz lingered for a moment. She glanced towards the door. "I should probably check on our parents. They were cleaning up the lab when I left. Although….I need to make them take a break before they kill themselves." The girl then turned to face both versions of her brother. "Unless you want me to stay with you."
Phantom shook his head. "No, it's fine. I think..." He glanced at Fenton who met his eyes. "I think we need to be alone."
Again, Jazz studied them, a deeply troubled expression maring her face. Finally she conceded. "Alright. I'll be downstairs if you need me." She paused for a moment, before again wrapping her arms around Fenton and Phantom. "I love you, little brother."
The human Danny just stood there; he didn't have the heart to return the gesture or the words. After a long moment, Jazz pulled away. Her concerned eyes fell on both boys, even as she left the room.
For a short eternity, Phantom and Fenton just stood and floated side by side in their room. Their fragmented mind struggled to process what just happened as the fire of their anger cooled into a freezing despair.
The human Danny was the first to move. Slowly, like his limbs were weighed down, he stumbled to the bed and flopped down. The boy put his head in his hands. "Mom and Dad….they blew up...they blew the ghost catcher." He stuttered the words painfully.
Phantom sighed. "Yeah."
"That really happened." Fenton said numbly.
The ghost nodded in sad confirmation. After a few beats of silence, the human looked up. Frowning heartbrokenly, he pulled his legs up onto the bed and then his knees to his chest. He met Phantom's eyes. "What are we gonna do?"
The ghost's core clenched. He knew that question wasn't asked expecting an answer but oh, how he wished he had a solution. But he didn't. There wasn't a solution, not one within his grasp at least. With a deep sigh, Phantom floated forward. He sat down on the bed, hip to hip with his other self. With his own knees pulled his chest, the ghost's posture mirrored the human's.
"I guess...we keep waiting." Phantom grumbled.
"I don't wanna keep waiting." Fenton mumbled.
The ghost said nothing; there was no point. They had to wait. And that hurt, the thought of this lasting for weeks or even months more. But…. "We can do this." Phantom leaned into Fenton. "We can keep doing this. We'll be okay?"
The ghost was getting so tired of saying that, of trying to hold on to hope.
"What are we doing?" Fenton interrupted, looking at his ghost.
Phantom blinked at him, in confusion.
The human shook his head. "We run into one roadblock and we fall apart again."
"This isn't one roadblock." The ghost huffed. "Things keep...things keep getting worse. Everything's falling apart."
"Not everything." Fenton's hand found his.
The ghost looked to the side, studying him. "Yeah...not everything." He still had himself; things were still good and getting better between his two halves. He had Sam and Tucker. He had Jazz and Dad. And the ghost catcher, it was….it was broken. Although knowing Dad? With that man's eagerness and determination, he'd find a way to fix it, come hell or high water. But still...there was the main issue.
"We need to talk to Mom." Fenton said, following his thought.
The ghost paled. "I don't...I don't want to."
"I know." The human whispered, the word conveying the great depth of that knowledge. "I...I don't want to either but we have to."
"No we…" Phantom shook his head. "We can't."
Fenton bit his lip. "We need to, though."
"But…No, I don't...I don't want to." Fear wrapped a cold hand around the ghost's core. "We can't." He whined.
The human's voice rose slightly in heartfelt concern. "Phantom?"
"I...I can't...I…" The ghost stuttered. "Fenton... I'm scared." Suddenly, he wrapped his arms around the human, clinging to him desperately for comfort.
Fenton returned the gesture without hesitation. "I know." He was scared too, Phantom felt.
"What if…" she still thinks I'm a monster? What if I'm still wrong? What if the only reason I'm safe is because I look like her Danny? He couldn't say the words, hardly think them but the thoughts buzzed anyway, stabbing at his core. And the last. What if, really, Mom loves Fenton but not me? The last question burned. Something like jealousy, a horrible, ugly feeling, rippled through him. What if she loves you but not me? It burned at him, this envy he'd felt before. And Phantom hated himself for it, even as he dared to think the thoughts.
"No." Fenton squeezed him harder. "We are the same. If she doesn't love you, she doesn't really love me either. She loves who she thinks I am, and that's not real."
Yeah, that was right. That was true. Phantom let the feeling pass. Yes, he didn't need to punish his other half with that jealousy. But he didn't need to punish his current self for that feeling either. He needed to be kinder to both sides of him.
Both Dannys stayed like that for a long time, as the presence of his human slowly dulled the ghost's fear. The feeling didn't go away but...it was dampened, muted. Even so, it wasn't enough to bolster Phantom's courage.
Finally, Phantom pulled away. "I...I'm sorry." He wrung his hands. "I...I can't talk to her, not today."
"Danny, if we keep putting this off…"
The ghost interrupted. "I know but...I just...I need some time to work up the courage. To think about what to say."
The human sighed, giving his other half a deeply concerned look. "Okay."
Fenton didn't sound happy, understandably, but to the ghost's relief, he didn't press. The human probably figured it would do little more than start an argument and he would be right. The ghost didn't have it in him to budge, even if he knew what he should do, even with his human half's determination.
"I'm sorry too." Fenton leaned into his counterpart. "I hate that this is happening at all. But we'll be okay. We'll talk to her together. And maybe it won't be as bad as we think."
"Yeah." Phantom said passively. "I hope so."
The pair sat for a few minutes with no more words shared. Just turbulent emotions and a soft attempt at self soothing.
Downstairs, a door opened and closed.
Phantom looked up. "We should stop sulking." Floating off the bed, he rubbed the back of his neck. "I should probably apologize for blowing up on our parents."
"Yeah." Fenton said with a slight frown. He stood and gave an attempt at an encouraging smile.
With that, both Dannys left the room and walked towards the stairs. They paused at the top, looking over the livingroom and kitchen. Mom, Dad, and Jazz were standing around the table, talking in hushed voices.
The ghost nawed on his lip, the shadow of his stomach flopping. What were they talking about? Were they mad about how he reacted? Disappointed? What would they say if he went down there? Was he going to go down there? No. Who was he kidding? He couldn't-
"Phantom." His human half whispered. "It's okay." He put a comforting hand on the ghost's arm and squeezed. "Come on. Let's go."
Numbly, Phantom nodded. "Yeah. I'm coming."
The pair started down the stairs, Fenton's feet stomping along the way. All at once, the room fell into silence as the other three family members looked at both boys. Keenly noticing his other self's reddening face, the ghost blushed and looked away from his family. He couldn't make eye contact, not after how he'd acted earlier and...not after what he'd said upstairs.
Coming to the bottom of the stairs, Fenton and Phantom stopped. There was tense silence for a moment, the room completely still. Until…
"Danny-boy." Dad took big steps across the living room, his arms outstretched to embrace both halves of his son in a hug. A step away from the pair, he stopped and lowered his arms. His eyes widened and concern marred his features. "Oh, kiddo. Are you okay?"
Phantom frowned; clearly, he and Fenton didn't look as put together as they were trying to look. "Fine." He muttered, denying the truth.
At the same time, Fenton looked down. "Yeah.
Dad's lips turned down, though his eyes shone with love. "Danny." Something in the tone of his voice said he saw through the act. "I'm so sorry." Without preamble, the man wrapped his large arms around both versions of his son. "I am so sorry son, about what happened to the ghost catcher. I'll fix it, I swear."
The words stung; they stung so bad but Phantom did believe them. He returned the hug, even if tentative. "I...I'm sorry I blew up on you guys. I shouldn't have yelled at you."
"It's okay, kiddo. I get it." Dad comforted.
The ghost shook his head. "No it's...I know it was an accident. You didn't mean to do it. But you'll…"
"We'll fix it." The man reassured. "Your mom and I will fix it. Or...we'll make a new one. We'll get you fixed up in no time."
"Yeah." Phantom said mildly.
Both Dannys and their Dad lingered in the hug for a long moment before pulling away. The ghost felt somewhat better after his father's reassurance, especially that the man was not upset at his outburst. And then he looked up. For a second, he met his Mom's violet eyes before she looked away.
Despite that, the woman stepped forward. "Danny." She said softly, for once no anger or annoyance in her voice. "I promise we'll remake the ghost catcher and have you re-fused before you know it." She then sighed. "We should have been more careful with the invention but we've learned our lesson." Mom took another step forward. She gently placed a hand on Fenton's arms before hesitating on Phantom's. After a too long second, she touched the ghost's arm. "I swear to you," She looked to Fenton and then Phantom, expression sincere. "We will fix this. We'll get you back in one...back on one body." Her gaze turned back to Fenton. "And then we'll put all of this behind us."
Phantom closed his eyes, biting his lip. Those words, they sounded so sincere, so loving. He should be comforted, he would be, except...His core still clinched, previous bitterness lingering. We'll put all of this behind us, she said. As if they could, as if they even should. Things had changed, things would stay changed. Hadn't he already talked to Mom and Dad about how Phantom, his powers, were not going to go away after they remerged? Or….maybe he was reading into things too much.
"Okay." Fenton finally said, speaking for both of them. "We believe you and…" He glanced down muttering. "Thanks….thanks for not being mad about…"
He trailed off, peaking at Phantom who paled before attempting a glare at his counterpart. Really? Did he have to draw attention to that?
Fenton raised a brow, shrugging almost imperceptibly. Across from them, Mom looked between the two with a slight look of confusion before she furrowed her brow. "Oh sweetie, it's fine. I understand you getting upset." Despite the attempt at comfort, she sounded too nervous. The interaction quickly turned awkward as all eyes seemed intent on avoiding each other.
Across the living room, Jazz was glaring at both versions of her brother. She mouthed something, making a waving motion before Phantom vigorously shook his head. His sister's eyes narrowed, her lips turning down in disappointment. Meanwhile, Dad looked vaguely confused, obviously trying to decipher the silent conversation between his children.
Then, after a long pause, Mom took a step back. "Anyway, your father and I need to get cleaned up." She motioned to her soiled jumpsuit, earning a frown from both Dannys. "We'll make some lunch and then…" Her glaze flickered back towards the door to the lab.
"No." Jazz crossed her arms. "You are not going back in the lab today."
Mom turned sharply, narrowing her eyes at the tone. "Jasmine."
The girl held out her arms, undeterred by the use of her full name. "You guys have been working yourselves to the bone. You need a break."
"We need to be working on remaking the ghost catcher." The woman countered.
"You need to rest." Jazz pleaded. "You and Dad have been exhausting yourselves. Danny and I can see how tired and stressed you've been. And well this morning…." The girl trialed off, biting her lip.
Phantom gave his sister a wary look; they all knew what she was referring to but to the ghost's relief, Jazz didn't go into it. His gaze then flickered between his parents. Though Mom did look vaguely annoyed at being told what to do by her teenage daughter, she was clearly stressed and tired. And Dad….the bags under his eyes and the sag of his shoulders said it all.
Dad sighed. "That is true; we've been over doing it but..." He glanced at Fenton and Phantom. "Fixing the ghost catcher is very important."
Phantom frowned; there was a weight to the statement, an undertone of guilt, a desperation even. It wasn't about fixing the ghost catcher but what that action would accomplice, the mistake it would correct. Part of him, the impatient part, wanted to agree; fixing the device so he could re-merge was the most important thing in his world right now. And he was so tired and waiting and being unable to do anything. Even the thought of adding a day to his wait felt agonizing but…
Jazz was looking at him expectly. And Phantom knew he couldn't be selfish; he knew what he needed to say. "Yeah it is but...Jazz is right. You guys need a break before you hurt yourselves. The ghost catcher can...we can wait a day."
Dad raised a brow, looking at the ghost version of his son. "Are you sure?"
Phantom blushed, looking down. "Yeah, of course."
Guilt lashed out at him. Was him coping badly really having this much of an effect on his parents, driving them to work harder and harder to fix him to the point of exhaustion?
He shook his head, Fenton's memory of talking to Sam and Tucker running through his head. He didn't need to think like that. He didn't need to look put together for his loved ones. And anyway...how they reacted wasn't on him. He couldn't control what Mom and Dad thought and did.
Finally Mom agreed with a sigh. "Alright. We'll take a break today." She started taking off her gloves. "I still need a shower."
"And some food!" Dad piped up with a grin.
"Then maybe we can play a board game together." Jazz added, a satisfied smile growing on her face.
Phantom blanched, glancing at his human who wore an identical look. Please, not board games. Not when he was unsure of his ability to interact with Mom for any length of time without saying something he'd regret.
His sister rolled her eyes. "Fine. We can watch a movie then."
"Sounds good to me, Jazzrincess." Dad said, already walking towards the kitchen.
At the same time, Mom walked towards the master bed and bathroom. A moment later, Jazz followed the man into the kitchen, leaving Fenton and Phantom standing in the living room. The pair looked at each other, nebulous worry and unease drifting between the two pieces of their mind.
Phantom sighed, not looking forward to the rest of the day.
Fenton shook his head. "Maybe they'll let us pick the movie."
"Oh joy. Like that'll help." The ghost muttered unhelpfully.
The human rolled his eyes. "Come on. I actually do wanna get some lunch." He walked towards the kitchen and Phantom followed.