Note: I'm finally back with an update! It's been a while. I've been busy with my Invisobang story but it's finally finished. There's more about that at the end. But anyway, enjoy this much awaited chapter of Face to Face!
Fenton was distracted staring at the clock...again. His math teacher, Mr. Faluca, droned on in front of him and he was trying to listen. He really was but….there was just so much going on in his mind. Yes, he was less worried now that Phantom was back from the Ghost Zone, but now his curiosity was peaked. Halfa. There was a word for what he was and right now, his other self was talking about that with Sidney, the ghost he'd met earlier.
Fenton was so tempted to peak. He could, he realized. He could softly withdraw and see through Phantom's eyes and hear through his ears. But… he needed to stay here, stay present. He was the human half right now, just Fenton. He couldn't risk getting lost, getting tangled up with Phantom again before they were ready and able to really be one person.
So Fenton pushed away the thought. He put his pencil to his paper, copying the numbers and equations down. So this was new material. His brow furrowed, trying to figure out where the teacher was. After a few minutes, his expression relaxed. Alright, okay. This was actually starting to make sense.
Class continued and Fenton continued taking notes. About ten minutes later, the intercom turned on. "Danny Fenton." The boy looked up, stiffening at his name. "Danny Fenton. Your father's here to pick you up."
Fenton's stomach suddenly flopped with nerves as he felt his classmates' eyes on him.
Mr. Faluca turned to look at the boy. "Go ahead Danny."
He quickly started packing up his things, trying to ignore the muttering of the teens around him. Moments later, he stood and slung his bag over his shoulders. Head hung low, Fenton walked past his teacher and opened the door as the lesson continued without him.
Now in the hallway, his thoughts whirled, his worries resurging. Why was his Dad here? Why was he picking him up early? And-
The boy paused, the realization suddenly hitting him like a freight train as he passed by the rusty locker 724. Phantom. His ghost half had run off, in front of Mom. The woman was probably worried out of her mind.
The boy then continued, pulling his phone out of his pocket. Huh...it was actually surprising that he hadn't got a panicked phone call from one of his parents yet. But that must be why Dad was here to pick him up. Obviously, Mom had told Dad what happened in the lab. And it made sense. If ghost Danny was missing, they'd want to make sure human Danny was safe at least.
Fenton's heart sank in guilt at that thought. He hadn't even called his parents. Not after he'd calmed down at lunch and not after Phantom had arrived through the portal. They'd both been silent for the past hour. Well...at least he'd get the chance to tell his parents what happened and ease their worries soon. Actually, he could do more than just tell them that Phantom was safe.
The human reached out with his mind, calling into the empty space between the two pieces of his mind. Phantom?
A gentle nudge was received in acknowledgement.
Fenton swallowed. Dad's here to pick me up. You need to come too. He's probably worried out of his mind.
The echo of his own guilt came back, projected from Phantom. Alright. I'll meet you in the car.
Fenton nodded, humming in acknowledgement before he turned his attention back to walking down the hall. After a quick stop at his locker, the boy continued towards the front office. He pushed open the door, freezing as he saw the people staring back at him.
"Dad….Jazz." He muttered, eyes flickering between his father and sister's worried faces.
"Danny." Dad breathed, relief flashing over his face. He took a step forward, sweeping the boy up in a hug.
The human Danny stiffened, blushing at the attention. His gaze shifted to the secretary who was looking at the large figure blocking the door with barely contained judgment. "Dad. I'm okay." The boy muttered, pulling away.
His father's face fell but before he could reply, Jazz advanced. Her face was set with deep worry. "Danny. Do you know where-"
"Yes." Fenton cut her off, anticipating her question. "He's safe."
"But where-" She started.
"Not right here." The boy whispered.
"Come on. Let's go to the car." Dad interjected, placing a gentle hand on Fenton's shoulder.
The man returned to the desk to sign the two teenagers out of school before the three quickly walked towards the front doors. They exited, crossing the parking lot towards the GAV. Dad unlocked the vehicle and the three piled in.
As soon as Fenton was seated in the backseat, Jazz turned to face him from her place in the front. "Your ghost half ran away to the Ghost Zone?!" Her eyes were wide, tone rising with exacerbation.
"Yes. We did but-" Fenton held on his hands.
"How could you do that, Danny?!" She pointed. "And how long ago was this?"
"Maybe...an hour and a half? But-"
"An hour and half?!" Jazz glared. "And you didn't come get me! You didn't even call-"
"Jazz." Dad cut her off, voice uncharacteristically serious. "Stop berating your brother." He turned to Fenton, expression softening. "The other you is safe?"
The human Danny nodded. "Yes."
"And where is he?" The man calmly asked.
His eyes flickered out towards the school. "Still in the school."
"What?" Jazz gapped.
Dad raised a brow. "Maddie said he ran off through the portal."
"We...he did." Fenton bit his lip. "But uh...long story short, he managed to find his way back."
"How?" His sister asked.
"So...umm...apparently, there's a portal to the Ghost Zone in one of the lockers? Phantom managed to find it and flew through it."
"And he's still in the school because?" Jazz sounded slightly skeptical.
"He's making sure Sidney gets back to the Ghost Zone okay." Fenton said plainly, the information suddenly entering his mind. "He'll meet us out here soon."
Dad's brow furrowed. "Who's Sidney?"
"Oh." The boy blinked, realizing what he said. "He's...uh...a ghost who helped the other me find the portal. They talked about ghost stuff and.." He met Dad's eyes, tentatively. "Apparently, the ghosts have a word for what I am. I'm a halfa."
His father's eyes widened in response. For a long moment, he paused as if processing. Then he swallowed. "We can talk about all of that later but your mother…."
Fenton paled, looking down. "Oh...uhh...yeah." He froze, anymore words dying in his throat.
Jazz broke the silence. "Where is Mom?"
Dad's frown deepened. "She's…." He trailed off as if it was too hard to continue.
More tense silence. There was a tickle in the back of his mind, Phantom wondering if Dad was still waiting in the parking lot. Fenton replied with the image in front of him.
Phantom responded. Wait for me. I'm coming.
The ghost's more active presence withdrew before Fenton could reply. The human looked up. "Phantom will be here in less than a minute."
True to what he said, his ghost self soon phased through the back of the GAV. He flickered into view beside his human self.
Dad and Jazz both flinched, surprised at the sudden appearance before relaxing.
Phantom bit his lip. "I'm here now. Sorry it took so long."
"You didn't have any trouble with the ghost, did you?" Dad asked, raising a brow.
The ghost boy shook his head. "Nope. Sidney's cool. We had to finish our conversation." For a second, Dad and Jazz looked like they wanted to ask. But Phantom continued before they could, his gaze flickering nervously around the van. "Where...where's Mom?"
There was a pause before Dad started, tentatively. "Your mom….she…" He pulled out his phone. "She left me a message on my phone. Here...let me show you."
Fenton and Phantom both said nothing, anxiety flaring as the man pulled up the voicemail.
"Jack! Pick up your phone!" Mom's panicked voice rang through the phone. "Come on Jack! You need to pick up! Jack!" Her voice rose as she rambled. "Our son...our son, he ran off through the portal. Through the portal Jack! He...he came downstairs to talk to me and….I f-cked up Jack. I f-cked up!" Fenton flinched, shocked at the language.
"Oh god I...I...Jack, I screwed up." Her voice wavered, sounding watery. "He...he said...he said he was upset with me and...and...oh god...I just yelled at him. I just sat there and yelled at him and….oh god, I f-cked up Jack."
There was a clatter, the sound of quick footsteps. "He ran off and…. I need to fix this. I have to fix this. I…." She paused, determination entering her voice. "I'm going through the portal. I'm...I'm going to find our son and bring him home." More clatter, metal thumping again metal. "Go pick up Jazz and the other Danny. Make sure they're safe and tell them I love them. And I'll see you soon, okay? I'll see you soon and the rest of our son will be with me."
The message ended with a beep. There was a sudden, deep silence. After far too long, Phantom spoke. "She went...she went after us. Through the portal."
Dad nodded grimly. "I went back to the house before coming to get you and she was gone."
The ghost's hands were shaking. "She's….Mom's in the Ghost Zone, looking for me. But…" He put his head in his hands. "I'm not there."
"I know." Dad said quietly. "You're safe and...your mom is a capable woman. She'll be okay." He turned back to face the windshield. "We need to head home now, okay? We'll find a way to get up with her and everything will be okay."
Phantom really hoped so. He did. He took a seat beside Fenton, reaching for his seat belt at the same time the human reached for his. The ghost's hand lingered over the lock. He hadn't done this, hadn't been in a car since he'd split himself, since he was still trying to pretend that he was a normal human. He buckled the seatbelt. Now he was a ghost and he was sitting in the back of the GAV and Mom was the one lost in the Ghost Zone. Suddenly, he wanted to zip right out of this car, through the roof and go home. He needed to find Mom, even if...even if-.
He shivered, a thousand possibilities tumbling around in his head. He'd managed to push it away for a time but what Mom had said to him before he ran off still tore at his heart. The anger had leaked out of him but he was still hurt and scared and confused. And now he was shook up after hearing that message. Mom cussed. She cussed. And she was panicking and scared and said she'd screwed up, that she'd had to fix this. She was determined to bring him home. Was she...maybe she was sorry? Maybe she...she got it now. And...he wanted to hope. He wanted to hope so bad but it hurt and he didn't know what to do or think or-
Fenton leaned into him, interrupting his thought. There was a brief flash of worry and then...the human was taking deep, purposeful breaths, trying to calm down. Phantom needed to calm down too. He couldn't panic, couldn't worry about all this right now. Instead he leaned back into Fenton's side and tried to relax. Passively, the two clasped hands.
"Danny?" Jazz's voice interrupted, her eyes focusing on Phantom, who looked up in acknowledgement. "I'm happy you're safe." She bit her lip and the ghost boy knew she was nervous like he was. "It's going to be okay." The girl could have been saying that for his benefit or for her own.
In response, Dad's gaze flickered towards his daughter and then at the two boy's through the rearview mirror. His eyes rounded, worriedly but lovingly, before he focused back on the road as they turned a corner.
The vehicle flew down the road while the passengers sat in silence. For once, Dad's fast driving was the least distressing thing on Phantom's mind. And it was fitting, that the man was in such a hurry to get home and figure out what to do. But the ghost had already made up his mind.
After what somehow felt like the blink of an eye and hours at the same time, the vehicle pulled into the driveway and slammed to a stop. All the passengers unbuckled. In a breath, Phantom turned invisible.
Dad looked back, eyes widening. Jazz gasped in worry. "Danny!"
The boy huffed. "I'm still right here. I'm gonna stay invisible until we get in the house. I don't exactly want the neighbors to see me."
His sister sighed. "Alright."
"Come on kids." Dad said visibly relaxing.
Phantom exited the GAV, following his human self. He shivered in the air. Now that he was here, at the house, it was taking all his self control to not dart forward in front of his family and fly down to the lab, through the portal, and-
Fenton found his wrist without effort and led him to the front door without a word. Dad unlocked it and the kids followed him into the house. Once they'd passed the threshold, Phantom had had enough. With the door closed, he returned to visibility and raced across the living room, kitchen, and down the basement stairs. He stopped at the bottom, eyes falling on the still open portal.
Behind him, the sound of footsteps pounded. His sister's and father's worried voices rang out. But the ghost didn't listen, too focused on the portal and the soft song emanating from it. A sound which he knew the purpose of and wasn't as scared of anymore.
Fenton jogged through the door and hopped down the stairs with the rest of the family at his heels. The human stopped abruptly, coming to stand beside his ghost who then turned to face his father and sister.
"I need to go after her." Phantom said quietly but with determination.
Jazz's expression shifted, turning serious. "You can't do that."
"Jazz." He started, testedly. "I need to help Mom. She's only...she's only there because of me and anything could be happening to her and-"
"Your Mom can handle herself." Dad cut in, equally serious. "I don't want you putting yourself in danger too."
The human Danny frowned. "She went off without a plan. No supplies. No idea what she'd face. She's probably lost."
His sister argued. "And getting yourself lost wouldn't help her!"
"I won't get lost." The ghost straightened, confidently. "Look. Mom's not coming back on her own until she finds me. I've actually been in the Ghost Zone before. And I can fly. I can get us out of trouble if something happens and get both of us back in no time."
Dad took a breath considering. "I understand that son. But...none of that will help you if you manage to get lost yourself. You don't know how far away your mom is. And what if you do find her but get lost on the way back?"
"Mom couldn't have gotten that far." Fenton insisted, holding up his arms. "And Phantom literally can't get lost."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Jazz rose a brow in challenge.
"I literally can't get lost in the Ghost Zone." The ghost deadpanned. He grabbed onto Fenton's arm. "If other me stays here, I'll always have a beacon to lead me back."
Dad and Jazz's brows both furrowed in confusion. "Really?" Dad frowned.
"That's how he got back to the school earlier." Fenton supplied. "We're connected because ya know, same person. He followed that line back to me."
Dad tilted his head. "You could use that to find your way back after you find your mom?"
Phantom nodded. "And Fenton can keep you guys updated. I can show or tell him what's happening."
Dad still looked confused, like he wanted to ask more but after a long moment, acceptance crossed his face. He conceded. "Alright. Go find your mom." The ghost boy floated higher off the floor and turned to face to portal.
"Hold on a second." Jazz interrupted. She stepped forward and hugged Phantom. "Be careful little brother."
"Yeah. Of course." Ghost Danny returned the hug before pulling away.
A second later, Dad was wrapping him up in a bear hug. "I love you and...I'm sorry."
"I...it's okay. I love you too." He whispered, returning the hug. His core pulsed nervously. The memory of his conversation with Dad last night flashed through his mind. He might have understood what Dad was apologizing for. For how Mom acted, for not being there for that conversation. But either way- "It's not your fault."
Dad didn't reply to the statement, squeezing his son a little tighter. "Hurry back but be safe Danny-boy."
Phantom pulled away from his father and finally, his eyes fell on the one person left to address. He grabbed Fenton's hand and squeezed. "I'll be back soon."
The human put his other arm around him, pulling him into a hug. "I know. Go find her. And…" He bit his lip and the ghost could feel his worry at the idea of facing Mom again. "It'll be okay...we'll be okay."
The ghost squeezed back. "Yeah. We will." He pulled away before flying towards the portal. With one last look back, he dove through for the second time that day.
The Ghost Zone (World of the Dead? Infinite Realms?) was the same as the last time he'd entered. Swirling green, floating rocks, purple doors in the distance. But this time, he was more aware of his immediate surroundings. He paused, right outside of the portal to take in the environment. The portal's frame was sitting on a shelf of rock. The shelf dropped off about ten feet in front of him. To either side, it dropped off after about twenty feet. He turned back around, facing the swirling green light. There was the portal but...what if he walked behind it?
There was in fact something behind it. The frame of the portal closed off in the back, forming a wall of sleek metal that reminded him of the lab at home. Phantom turned away from the frame, his back facing it. He frowned, spotting the edge of the rock again. It went all the way around, like the portal sat in the middle of an island or...he quickly floated over to the edge. The rock continued downward, like he was on the top of a mountain or a cliff.
He felt the shadow of his heart skip a beat. If Mom wasn't up here, then had she fallen? His eyes desperately searched over the landscape for a scrap of blue, the color of his mom's jumpsuit.
"Mom!" He called out. "Where are you?"
There was no reply, her form not in sight. Frantically, Phantom turned to the side. Still nothing. He flew to the front of the portal. "Mom!"
He then looked down, gasping. There was a tiny spot of blue, standing out in clear contrast to the green and brown landscape. It must have been hundreds of feet down, at the base of the structure. The boy started shaking, panic overtaking him. She'd...she'd fallen, hadn't she? Was she hurt or...or….
His eyes then widened noticing something. The small dot of blue was moving. No, not just moving. But moving quickly as if the figure was running or jogging along a narrow strip of rock, away from him. Stepping off the ledge, the ghost started descending.
"Mom!" He tried again, to no response. Obviously, she couldn't hear him.
Phantom dove faster, keeping his eyes pinned on the blue figure as it continued down the twisting path. The road, since that's what it resembled, twisted back, forming stairs and sloping down under itself. Then it met another, darker colored strip, forming something like a crossroads.
The ghost boy flew closer as the figure jogged down the stairs. Then he paused, flinched at what sounded like a motorcycle engine. Reflexively, he flickered invisible. He glanced down the darker path at the crossroads. Something metal glinted in the dim light as the noise approached. Seconds later, the object materialized in the crossroads. It was in fact a motorcycle and...two glowing figures sat on the bike. The blue figure froze.
Phantom paled, his speed increasing. Seconds later, he landed above the crossroads at a raised part of the road. His back faced the stairs that the blue figure had just run down. His eyes widened as he recognized the scene.
In the crossroads, two ghosts, both of whom were in their early twenties, sat on a motorcycle. The man had greasy looking blonde hair and was wearing a biker jacket. Behind him sat a woman with green hair, in a red jacket and mini skirt.
"What is that?" The woman asked.
"Kitty, I think...that's a human." The other glowing figure's voice rose in harsh disbelief. "What is a human doing here?"
The girl scowled, judgmentally. "And what are they wearing?"
The blue clad figure slowly approached, holding something long and metallic to their side. "I'm not looking for any trouble." A familiar voice rang out, slightly desperate. "Please. I'm just trying to find my son."
Phantom gasped, his core pulsing excitedly. That was his Mom's voice. Mom! Mom was in front of him. She was okay. She was alive and walking around and….She was...being pinned by two unfamiliar ghosts.
The ghost boy stiffened at the sudden realization. He sprung into action, calling out. "Mom!"
The two ghosts looked in his direction, brows furrowing at his exclamation. "What was that?" The girl, Kitty, asked.
Phantom ignored the question, darting in between the ghostly couple and his Mom. He tensed, holding his arms out to shield her.
"What's going on?" Mom startled, taking a step back. "What was that?"
The man's brow furrowed. He blinked, eyes focusing on Phantom. Then he snorted. "Kid? You tryin' ta mess with this human too?"
"Mess with?" He muttered. Then Phantom frowned, realization hitting him like a brick wall. He was still invisible. With a slight mental push, he reappeared.
"Danny?" Mom's disbelieving voice rang out behind him. Then it shifted into something relieved and hopeful. "Danny!"
The boy turned to the side. "Mom." The same relief was in his voice.
The woman dropped her weapon. She took a step forward until she was close enough to touch. Mom reached out but Phantom was faster. Before he could really think about it, he was clinging to the woman from the side. "Mom! I found you."
Mom was shaking. Her hand reached up to run fingers through his hair. "Danny. Baby, you're okay."
"Yeah, I'm okay." He squeezed her. "And you're...you're not hurt or…."
Near the pair, someone snorted. "Mama's boy." Then there was yelp. "Ow. What'd you elbow me for?!"
"Give him a break Johnny." The green haired woman chastised. "He's what? Twelve?"
Phantom scowled, turning his head towards the other ghosts. "I'm fourteen!"
"Same difference." The man waved him off.
Ghost Danny stepped away from his mother again. Now that he knew she was really here and uninjuried, he turned his attention back to the other ghosts, though he did cast a worried look behind him.
"So…" The man, Johnny, looked between the two, a curious if slightly up-to-no-good expression on his face. "How did a human end up here?"
"None of your business." Mom said quickly, seriously.
Johnny raised a brow. "Some ritual to contact your dead son gone wrong?" Phantom and his mother both flinched at the word. "Found a thin spot and you waited for a portal to open."
"Like she said." The ghost boy glared. "It's none of your business."
The man smirked, opening his mouth to retort but Kitty elbowed him again. "Leave them alone Johnny. Let's go."
"Come on kitten. There's a good story here."
The young woman crossed her arms. "We're going to Ember's party. We'll be late if you don't hurry up."
"Fine. I'm going." Johnny rolled his eyes. Placing his hands on the handles, he pumped the gas. "See you 'round kid."
The two ghosts speed off, Phantom watching them warily until they disappeared into the distance. Finally, he relaxed, turning around to face the woman. For a moment, he hovered. After the initial hug, he was at a loss for what to do. He'd found Mom and she was physically okay. They should head home-
Mom quickly stepped forward, wrapping her arms around him without hesitation. "Danny baby." She gently cupped the back of his head. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." Somehow, with the stress of the confrontation over, she sounded more relieved than before. Her voice broke, sounding watery. "I shouldn't...I shouldn't have yelled at you. I shouldn't have said that. But I love you. I love you so much, baby."
The ghost listened to the words, his eyes tearing up. But he didn't have it in him to return the hug. He didn't pull away either. Instead he stood there, torn in two directions. He was happy, so happy that his Mom was safe. And the lack of hesitation, the words. They were exactly what he wanted to hear but…..
"It's okay. You're okay. It's going to be okay, Danny. I love you so much."
What was with the change in attitude? Well, he did run off to another dimension, after telling Mom that he didn't think she loved him. And well...oh god he had no idea what to think. This was too much. Too much. He needed to just get them home and-
Mom pulled away, peering at him with tearfilled eyes. She gently cupped his face. "Danny baby. Look at me." Obediently, he shifted his eyes up, to maintain her gaze. But it was a struggle as tears welled in his eyes and his lip quivered. "I love you." The woman breathed. "I love this you. I love Fenton…." He averted his gaze from her eyes, an ache piercing his core. "And I love Phantom. I love both parts of you. You're a part...you're a part of my son. And I love this part." Her voice wavered, tears falling down her face. "I shouldn't...I shouldn't have made you think that I didn't, that I wouldn't love you because you're a ghost but-"
Suddenly looking down again, Phantom pulled away. Damnit, damnit, damnit! This hurt too much. He couldn't stay here, couldn't do this, could't hear her say those words when...when….
Mom's expression fell. Slowly, she lowered her hand and didn't reach for him again. "You're still upset with me?"
Numbly he nodded. Yes, yes he was. Because they'd done this before. He'd heard her say this before, that she loved all of him and then she'd contradicted it with her actions. And he couldn't...he couldn't hope again, he couldn't trust again. It was too good to be true. It was-
"That's alright." Mom finally said. "You should be upset with me. I deserve that. But I do...I do lo-"
Another stab at his core. "We should get out of here." Phantom cut her off. "We can have this conversation later, once we're back through the portal."
Somehow, Mom's expression became even more heartbroken but she didn't argue. "Come on then." She started turning back the way she'd come.
"I was going to fly us back." Phantom said plainly.
The woman turned back around. "Oh of course." Her frown deepened, studying him. "You're going to carry me?"
His shoulder's fell, pouting. "You know that I'm perfectly capable of that."
"That's not what I meant, sweetie." She said gently, taking a step forward. "How do you want to do this?"
Phantom hesitated for a moment. "Here, put one arm around my neck." The woman did so. "And I'll grab your legs. Now hold on." The ghost grabbed her legs, adjusted the woman so he was holding her legs and back with his arms. Both her arms looped around his neck. Slowly, he rose off the ground. "Don't look down."
A small forced smile unfurled her lips. "I won't."
The boy hummed, looking up at their destination. "How did you get all the way down here anyway?"
"I climbed." Mom said plainly.
"You climbed?" He rose a brow in disbelief.
"It was the only option." She muttered. "I had to find you, Danny." There was no anger, no judgement. Just the determination, the desperation he's heard from her earlier.
Ghost Danny didn't reply, looking at the portal again. Well, it turned out, he had found her instead of the other way around.
Mom bit her lip. "It really scared me, when you ran off. But...we're going home now." She looked at him earnestly. "Everything will be okay. I'll...I'll find a way to make all of this up to you."
Oh god. He hoped...he hoped he could believe her. He wanted to but...time would tell.
Endnote: Thanks for reading! I'm also going to take some time to pump up my Invisobang story. It's 76K, guys! That's literally the second longest fic I've ever written. Posting day is August 23rd so please check it out when it comes out (For the angst, clones, identity crises, friendship, sibling bonding, and Frostbite being a good mentor/dad.)