Note: Hellooooo everybody! I sketched out my story plan today (a little late but meh) and there will be 13 chapters to this fic. Note this is only chapter 9 *wiggles eyebrows*
Also thanks for sticking by and waiting patiently for my insanely long breaks between updates, not gonna lie, I got heavily invested in the South Park fandom. So once I'm done here, and updated No Shame a few times and finished my Bleach fic Wrong Number (and mayyybe re-write Blind Date Blues because it was written forever and a half ago and I feel I've developed past that mess as a writer) then I will begin hopping between South Park and Danny Phantom. I have like 3 more fleshed out ideas I'd like to explore with good ol' Danny here before I feel I've wrung him dry, then it'll just be little ficlets ... anywho, I'm rambling. Enjoy my latest chapter I spent all day working on.
(Don't) Say My Name – Chapter 9
"Does Phantom have a death wish?!"
"I told ya! Whenever something interesting happens around here, Babypop ain't far behind."
Freakshow shakes his head in exasperation, watching the unbelievable scene unfold before them. "And he just throws himself at every stray that wanders by? Does he have a hero-complex or something?"
Ember gives a very unladylike snort, "That's the exact same thing everyone keeps saying about him! You catch on quick."
They dip further behind the smashed parked car currently shielding them just as a stray spray of green ghost flame singes the pavement at their feet.
Danny suddenly hurtles directly over their heads and Ember quickly grabs Freakshow's elbow, turning them invisible. The halfa rights himself and shakes his head, "Alright then, guess you don't wanna talk."
The hidden spectators watch in silence as the teen makes a fist, allowing power to pulsate and brighten from within his grasp. The darkening shadows of the late day sun sharply contrast with the bright green seep out his fingers, turning the dips and creases over his thoughtful smirk into something much more sinister.
"So how about we dance instead?" He taunts, before flinging himself back at the ghostly cat.
"…That child is frightening."
"Yeahhh, he's a little freak like that sometimes."
They watch as Danny flings increasingly stronger ecto-blasts at the beast, yet nothing sticks or even causes the creature pause.
"Shit, even I felt the power off that one." Ember shudders, "How is this lion so strong?"
Freakshow hums, "I've no idea, my dear. Perhaps it's special somehow?"
Headlights trail over their position (Ember quick to ensure they remain hidden from sight) as a car screeches to halt at the mouth of the parking lot. Tucker and Sam spill out and rush to the edge of the battle.
Freakshow hisses, "I remember those two, those brats still associate with Phantom?"
"Pfft, of course." Ember laughs, "Those three together make an unstoppable force. I swear the kid wouldn't be half as tough without them."
"Oh reeeeeallyyyyy?" Freakshow drawls, eyes glinting with plans.
Ember whacks him on the head, literally smacking the look right off of his face. He sputters in surprise, speechless.
"Stop it! They are off-limits!" Ember growls, pointing one ghostly finger at the man's forehead, "You can fuck with literally anyone else but do NOT mess with these three. I mean it!" She pokes the pointing finger between his eyes, hard, attempting to physically drill her threat into his skull.
Freakshow swats the hand away, "Cut that out, girl! I am a free man now. I can target whomever I please!"
"Umm no, suckboy, you can't." She rolls her eyes and turns back to the battle, but explains, "There's a truce in Amity: you can go about your business here and not have any problems from him" she nods at Danny, "but you can't hurt anybody. Whatever you do with your life, you cannot do whatever his little hero-complex interprets as mean to the public. If you do, then he whoops your ass and the truce is off, for everyone."
"I know. I was there when we got the explanation from that ridiculous Technoose Two-Point-Whatever." He cuts her off moodily as Ember attempts to correct the butchering of the ghost's name, "But! I am neither ghost nor part of this truce."
They instinctively dodge and reach for each other as a parked car lands behind them, belly up and smoking. They peer over the edge of their thankfully unharmed vehicle and watch as Danny takes a stand directly in front of the shopping mall entrance, arm flung up in defence and teeth gritted. His arm is bleeding profusely, yet they never heard him shout in pain.
The faces pressed against the glass from within the mall suddenly puts the teen's defensive stance into perspective. He allowed himself to be hurt in order to protect the citizens, both invisible spectators groan at the heroics.
Ember glances between their current hiding spot – a tiny sports car – and the increasingly more attractive sturdiness of a full-sized family van a little further back. She roughly grabs Freakshow and hauls him to its more desirable safety before turning to glare at him, "Well what if you hanging around with me lumps you in with us ghosts?"
Freakshow frowns, "That hardly seems fair, to either you or me."
They watch as Sam and Tucker gear up with a few weapons, Sam fussing with her jewellery and slipping much too many combat knives within her clothes while Tucker waves a gun in greeting at Danny. The teen gives a quick two-fingered salute with his good hand before returning his attention the fight.
"I so did not get released from jail to enjoy my freedom by running from everyone in the Ghost Zone and Danny-Fucking-Phantom because you fucked it all up for me, Freak." She tears her gaze away from the halfa and his creepy glowing blue eyes to stare at her companion imploringly. "Please?" She rests a hand on his shoulder and gives it a gentle shake.
Freakshow sighs and scrubs a hand down his face, "Fine. Fine!" He relents exasperated, "Ruin my plans before they even start…" He gives her a quick side smirk before staring straight ahead, "But only because I was looking forward to working with you in Florida, alright? I just don't want to sour this budding partnership."
Ember beams at him and gives him a side hug which is very awkward considering their crouching states. "Awww! Freeeak~"
"Hush, ghost." His half-hearted attempt at hiding his returning smile falters and turns to alarm, "I-is he lobbing snowballs at the lion right now?"
Ember stares with her mouth hanging open, at a loss for words.
The worst part of it all is the snowballs are actually causing a reaction. Finally. Even if it just causes the giant feline to shake its head in irritation. It's something.
Tucker and Sam burst out laughing at the absurdity of it all, Ember and Freakshow struggling to remain quiet themselves.
"I guess the core powers are a little more effective than the normal stuff!" Danny calls, unnecessarily.
Sam gives a thumbs up, "Give ice a try now!" She turns to the friend at her side, "Tucker, how about you do a little research? Something to do with lions and how to calm them down?"
Tucker nods and pokes his ear, prompting a blue holographic screen to project ahead of himself, "I'll see what I can find on core-related fighting too. There's a couple professional ghost-hunter groups in other countries that I talk with pretty frequently, they might have some ideas too."
As he types away, Ember stares in wonder at the technology the boy so nonchalantly processes. Freakshow is much more interested in Sam's backpack, watching as she pulls out and assembles a sawed-off double-barrel shotgun with delicate glowing green bullets and leans it against a tree.
Both teenagers have moved back to the edge of the parking lot, allowing more space for Danny to work with his ferocious competitor. They seem to operate like a well-oiled machine, used to the drama of civilian life in danger and moving with confidence. Freakshow points this observation out and Ember agrees that these kids have clearly seen too much battle.
"They would do well in the armed forces, I believe." He muses.
Ember's ponytail sways as she shakes her head, "No way. I mean, I agree with you that they'd be good but they would never join the military. These three? They're way too 'good-guy.' They'd never be able to fight humans, let alone kill anyone. Jesus Christ, just saying that felt wrong." She chuckles at herself and Freakshow looks at her in surprise.
"That's a very good point - very insightful. You really are quite intelligent, McClain."
"Flattery gets you everywhere." She playfully nudges him, "But I wonder if you meant that like you were expecting me to be dumb because I'm dead?"
"Well you wound up dead, didn't you?" He nudges her back. He grins at her pout, "And yes, truthfully I was led to believe ghosts are mindless animals. We had a couple low-level ghosts haunting my home as a child that we used to prank, so you can understand where I'm –"
Danny has iced the ground, tripping up the lion and without realizing it, freezing his audience to the pavement. Ember quickly phases them through the trap and they carefully settle back down on the frosty ground in quiet amusement.
The lion roars indignantly and scrabbles for purchase as Danny quickly lashes some ecto ropes all over its body. He restrains it's four feet together and the poor beats topples over, yowling and spitting flame-laced breath at the floating teenager.
Danny laughs and somersaults to dodge the flame, exchanging high-fives with his friends. Tucker shuts off his computer and Sam sighs regrettably towards her unused shotgun.
"That was fast." Freakshow murmurs, watching the girl sadly tear apart her shotgun once again, "I wonder how they plan to deal with this h- OW what in the devil…?"
He suddenly is being battered in the arm by Ember, the girl flapping for his attention and accidentally smacking him in the ear a few times. Freakshow prepares to smack her right back when he notices the look of utter concentration on her face and follows her line of sight.
The lion is wiggling his toes and carefully lines up a claw with the ropes.
"Oh?"
Slice!
Within seconds the lion is up and roaring, shaking out it's mane and dashing in the opposite direction of Danny and his friends.
"Oh!"
Danny notices and curses low before throwing himself into the air, chasing the cat down. He throws himself onto the mane and wraps his arms around its giant head and heaving backwards with all his might. He lets out a loud groan of effort as the lion thrashes and twists, trying desperately to shake him off.
Danny doesn't relent, he just twists with the movements before suddenly veering hard to the left. In an unbelievable show of sheer strength and determination, he pulls the lion over and flips it onto its side.
The thud that shudders through the pavement shakes up the legs of both his secret observers.
"Jesus fuck! Did that just happen?!" Ember exclaims in a breathy whisper. Freakshow stares at the unbelievable sight, slowly nodding his head but otherwise speechless.
Danny, having taken some of the lion's weight in the fall, grunts and slowly rises, standing over his foe and panting.
But cats are agile - even giant, dead ones - apparently.
Its eyes open wide and it howls loudly, kicking its back legs in a wild panic to get upright NOW.
One spastic leg claw catches the teen by surprise, hooking into his already injured arm and side and slicing up and out like he isn't even there. He winces and phases, too late, before hopping into the air painfully.
He touches around the wound daintily, taking in the ripped material and flesh beneath. He grimaces and waves to the concerned shout of his friends that he's fine.
Suddenly he freezes and looks up, "Guys?!"
"What?!" Sam calls back, fear flashing in her eyes, "What's wrong?!"
Danny hovers a hand over his wound, and the other over his forehead, "I'm so dizzy… I – I think I have… cat-scratch-fever!"
Ember snorts before hiding her mouth behind a fist, eyes rolling with the effort. Freakshow furrows his brows between the groaning humans, smiling half-ghost and the ghost girl at his side, "Care to explain?"
She shakes her head, "He's making a joke. A bad one. Kid's fine." She waves her hand at him dismissively.
"Hmph." Freakshow decides he needs to update his worldly knowledge before attempting any more world domination plans. He can't very well rule over people he can't understand!
Danny smiles and winces, accidentally turning too quickly. He looks at the feline below himself and begins making a face of deep concentration. Its not a good look on the kid, Freakshow observes wryly, "He looks constipated."
Then suddenly there's two Phantoms and Freakshow takes back any other humourous comments he was about to make.
"Since when can he do that?!" Ember blurts out in disbelief.
"You took the words right out of my mouth, my dear."
The two Dannys lob ecto-blast after ecto-blast at the lion, flying in circles and attempting to confuse it. The only thing he did was confuse everyone watching as to who was the clone and who was the original.
Just as they both power up an ice-ball each, the lion chooses that time to strike, a pouncing and slashing ball of fury. Danny is quick to drop his power-up and roll a dodge. But the lion is quicker, learning his maneuvers and turning its head to snap, fast as a cobra, sinking its teeth deep into Danny's neck.
The boy screams and convulses, both friends crying out in alarmed dismay before the bitten Danny ripples out of view.
It was the clone. What a stroke of luck.
Danny shudders, sloppily throwing the gathered energy ball at the lion before holding his neck in distress. Apparently, he feels what the clones feel? How interesting.
He lands near his friends and they each pat his shoulder with sympathy. "That was awesome dude, he lasted so long this time!"
"Yeah Danny, that one was a big improvement." Sam agrees, keeping an eye on the lion as it sniffs at the spot the clone disappeared from.
"Thank guys, but it really took a lot out of me. Whew! I don't think I can do another clone today, I'm winded!" He pants, watching the lion as well. "Probably shouldn't have tried that, to be honest." He chuckles sheepishly.
His friends nod in reluctant agreement. Danny takes a deep breath, claps his hands together and jumps into the air, "Well, let's see what else I can do here…" And with that, he's back to dancing around his opponent.
Sam turns and speaks with Tucker about something as Freakshow turns to Ember, "Do you think there's a poss-"
"Oh." Ember cuts him off, grinning wide and nodding to something behind him. He turns and sucks in a breath.
"Finally."
They pause and watch, thoroughly entertained as the teens confront and accuse a very confused and wary Vlad Masters decked out in Plasmius form.
"Was that – did she just, throw a rock at him?"
"Pffft! Yeah! Oh my god, I love that girl!"
A stray ecto-blast laced with chilly core power flies near their spot and they turn to witness Danny ice the tip of the lion's tail to the pavement, tethering it in place. Needless to say, this did not please said lion. Danny then very quickly aims both palms over the feline's head, creating a frozen prison to settle over it in the shape of a dome. As the power fades, he takes in another deep breath and does it again, creating another layer over the first.
Each layer seems to cost quite a bit of stamina, and Freakshow wonders for not the first time how a ghost's core powers must cost different levels of energy versus their regular powers. They silently stare as layer after layer, Danny takes longer and longer to build the frozen trap.
He heaves a deep breath, forehead shining with perspiration, blood still oozing from his side as he shakily finishes the last layer of ice. The quality is much shabbier in comparison to the first one, this one rough and uneven in spots. Freakshow seriously doubts the child can handle anything else core-related today.
Danny only takes a second to ensure the ice will hold before giving a quick nod to himself and flying back towards his friends.
"Well… that was… spectacular." Freakshow states rather sarcastically.
They sit across from each other at the Nasty Burger, empty wrappers and drink cups in front of them both. Ember lounges in the booth, staring out the window with a frown on her face, "Yeah, no shit." She glances back at her companion before watching the faceless teenagers outside goof around. "I think the word you meant to say was 'intense' or 'crazy' or something with the word 'fuck' in it." Ember scoffs, one hand supporting her head.
"… I get the feeling you aren't talking about the food, my dear."
She rolls her eyes and shakes her head, watching as one teenager slings an arm around his friend, laughing along at something said between them. "I'm talking 'bout our resident Boy Wonder: Snow Cone Unlimited."
Freakshow squawks a surprised laugh and Ember finally faces him properly, smile on her face. She leans forward excitedly, "That power was insane though! What even was that?"
Freakshow hums, "I never realized he was so powerful, I should have tried harder when I had him under my influence."
Ember digs into her drink and throws an ice cube at the thoughtful look on her companion's face, "Oh shut up." She groans good-naturedly, "Everyone says that."
They sit in silence a while longer, mulling over the incredible fight they witnessed, just trying to process it all.
"So, could you feel the power rolling off of him at the end there, or was that just a ghost thing?" Ember finally asks curiously.
Freakshow shudders, his answer redundant to her now but he vocalizes it anyway, "I definitely felt it."
He swishes his drink a bit, lost in thought before his lips pull into a nasty smirk. Ember watches his face twist and joins him with a toothy show herself, "Plasmius?"
"Plasmius." He confirms.
She laughs, "Oh boy, that poor, poor man." She shakes her head, "He is so dead when the twerp figures out this spell."
Freakshow frowns at that, leaning back and crossing his arms, "Oh? But you know what Daniel said, he doesn't want to know anymore."
"Pfft, yes he does."
"Oh? Do tell."
"He definitely still wants to know, I'm sure the curiosity is killing him. But," she holds up a solitary finger, "His bleeding heart is just too kind. Old Timer almost cracked and spilled right there today; he was fully expecting to lay it all out there. To Babypop, that's just as good as the confession itself. He probably thinks he can change the man or something dumb like that by giving him the benefit of the doubt. Second chances, blah blah. Make him a good guy that goes to church and shit." They both scoff at the outrageous thought.
"So what do you recommend?" Freakshow tilts his head and gestures with a hand, "Because I don't know about you, but I am eager to get on with my life. We can't follow these two around forever."
"You're absolutely right. So that's why we will tell him," she announces triumphantly, "tomorrow. We give ol' Plasy-pants the chance to man up and if he's still a goddamned coward then we move in for the kill." She slams a fist into her palm. "Then the fireworks go off and we sit back and enjoy the show!"
Freakshow cackles in glee, "Ah yes, I do love fireworks."
Vlad stares out at the milling teenagers laughing and going about their business, all of them completely unaware of the contemplative red eyes watching them from the roof of their school.
'How do I always do this to myself?' He thinks miserably, 'Every plan I ever come up with involving Daniel always ends with Karma biting me in some painful or embarrassing way. Is this Fate?' He muses over the idea of a greater power meddling with his life 'It would be so nice to be able to blame all of this trouble on someone else. To say it was simply not meant to be." He shudders, 'But that gives another being power over me… no, that won't do. This is MY life, MY choices… as idiotic as they may be sometimes…'
He sighs, wondering if he should attempt to locate Ember and Freakshow and get them to cease the spell. 'I have what I want now, after all. Danny won't be a problem if he trusts me and is so willing to put the past behind us… There's no sense in having the teenager forcibly lusting after his parents' college friend anymore.' He cringes at the thought. 'What a mess.'
"Ahem."
Vlad whirls around, raising one gloved hand and powering up an ecto-blast before even setting eyes on his opponent.
"Daniel!"
'Not opponent. Relax Vladimir.'
He quickly releases his energy and lifts his hands in surrender, taking a step back, "Ah, sorry Daniel. You startled me."
Danny rubs his forehead and Vlad reminds himself to refrain from accidentally setting off the spell again. Yet the teenager has no idea he should do the same, or why. Vlad grits his teeth, knowing that any prolonged conversation here will be detrimental for him.
"It's okay, old habits die hard." Danny grins, relaxing his own defensive stance and settling his feet to the roof of the building.
There's an awkward pause as Vlad waits for him to say something, anything. Finally, he coughs and says, "I'm surprised you found me up here."
"Oh, well I just used my Ecto-Location."
Vlad pauses, thinks about it, pauses again, "I'm sorry, what?"
Danny laughs, quick and light and it pulls a corner of Vlad's own mouth up in response, "Oh I got a new power. It works like echo-location but, ya know, I had to give it a ghostly name because Tuck said it wasn't cool to sound like dolphins or something. So yeah, Ecto-Location." He explains rapid-fire.
Vlad chuckles at the enthusiasm and takes a few steps forward, "So how did you discover this ability?"
"Oh, totally by accident. We were goofing around one night, seeing who could hit the highest note in this song we were listening to and then my ghost powers sort of bled into my voice." Danny sits down with a laugh, "Sam was so worried I was gonna Ghostly Wail her house down, so we had to go outside!"
Vlad copies the movement without realizing it, sitting down and crossing his legs opposite the teenager.
Danny continues, "So there we were, in the dark, Tucker called it cheating but Sam kept pushing me to go higher and higher. Eventually I closed my eyes to really get into it," he closes his eyes as well for emphasis. "Then I made this like, chirp sound and the whole park was there, bouncing back at me. I had to check that my eyes were still closed, it was bizarre."
"What did it look like?" Vlad breathes, barely louder than a whisper.
Danny cracks his eyes open and smiles at the utter fascination on Vlad's face, "It was like looking at a picture of the park, but with no light on. Everything was dark colours on dark colours. But I could see it all - with my eyes closed!"
Vlad leans back, laughing in awe, "That is very impressive, Dan-" He cuts himself off before finishing the name.
Danny doesn't seem to notice, he bounces up to his knees, eyes shining, "But that's not the best part! If I'm near a ghost when I do it then I see them. Like they glow their core colour." His fingers wiggle wide to emphasize his point.
Vlad stares a moment, trying to process but failing, "I having trouble understanding, what do you mean by that?"
"Well I don't see the ghost, but I see this like point of light that represents them. The colour of it depends on the ghost's personal colour." He looks back and forth between Vlad's eyes, watching for understanding before sitting back on his bottom. "Like the other day, I found Ember and Freakshow at the school. Well, I only saw Ember but her core colour was this teal colour that matches her hair and powers."
"…Did you know it was her right away?" Vlad asks, ignoring how his heart hammers at the mention of those two particular names.
"Oh yeah, there's no mistaking a ghost through my Ecto-Location. It's super obvious who everyone is, it's almost like a feeling." Danny frowns and shrugs, "It's hard to explain."
Vlad hums in thought, totally blindsided by this revelation. 'I wonder if I have this power somewhere within me as well…'
"So anyways, I got Technus and Boxy to help me practise so I can get quicker at it. Now any time someone shows up and I have a chance, I use it. Its super helpful, there's no more guesswork when someone hides from me."
"So that's how you found me," Vlad muses, 'I never would've thought of that myself,' he thinks. "You really are incredible." He says with a grin before freezing, realizing he just uttered that out loud.
Danny startles before giggling at the look of utter horror crossing Vlad's features, "Careful Plasmius," the teen teases him, "you almost sounded sincere there."
Vlad, eternally grateful for the younger halfa's name choice, forces a chuckle, "Duly noted, Phantom."
'I was sincere though, wasn't I?'
They lapse into awkward silence, both wondering how to keep this conversation going.
Vlad clears his throat and attempts the classic ice-breaker, "So, come here often?"
Danny laughs at the stupidity before remembering that's typically used as a pick up line. He ducks his head and attempts to forget that thought before answering shyly, "Y-yeah, actually." He eyes his companion for a moment, "But you don't, so what's up?"
"Truthfully? I came for privacy. I have a lot on my mind lately and figured it could use some sorting out."
Danny leaps to his feet, "Shit, sorry. Want me to leave? I know how important those self talks are."
Vlad quickly gets to his feet too, wondering when he decided to sit down in the first place. "Not at all, please stay." For some reason he finds himself unwilling to part with his company, "I rather enjoy your presence." He says quickly, before realizing he should just stick his foot in his mouth sooner rather than later.
Danny's mouth drops open in surprise, "Really? That's... new."
Vlad softens at the statement and turns away, staring unseeing into the distance of their town. "No, it isn't, Little Badger. Not to me."
He gets no response from the one behind him, and sighs. 'He seriously believes I despise him.'
"Do you honestly think I came to Amity Park to play with you all those years ago because I hated you?" He turns back to Danny abruptly, seeing the frown mar the beautiful young face and wishing it away, "Nonsense! I find our little sparring sessions invigorating and enlightening." He smiles.
"'Play with me?' 'Sparring?'" Danny takes a step back and tilts his head, eyes widening, "…You thought … that was sparring?" He seems close to hysterical at the thought.
"Er, well... yes?" Vlad questions a little confused, "I'm not about to use full power on you when you're just starting out! That would've been just plain rude!" Vlad wonders where the teen is going with this.
"You weren't using full power?! 'Sparring?!'" He visibly pales and if it weren't poor timing Vlad might've made a joke about looking like he's seen a ghost.
But Vlad is starting to see the issue, "Oh Daniel... did you think we were fighting for real?"
Danny just stares at him with his pretty green eyes blown wide open, lips stretched open in a small 'o' shape.
Vlad thinks back to the teenager's behaviour during their encounters and smirks, "Wait, you thought all those times that you were besting me?" He tries to swallow his mirth but a few chuckles escape, nonetheless.
"...well you don't have to be so smug about it..." Danny mutters, red-faced and kicking the ground.
Vlad holds his hands up in peace, "I'm not! Trust me, I'm not. I'm just ah, surprised?" He bites his lip and grins down at the adorable blush crawling across Danny's face.
"Yeah well I'm pretty embarrassed right about now..." He sulks before squinting back at the man, "Just how much were you holding back anyway?"
"Ah well, we don't need to get into specifics." Vlad trails off, not wanting to offend the poor thing. "Suffice to say I was never intending fatal injury."
"...wow. I can't believe this." Danny stares off to the side forlornly, "What the fuck. Why didn't you say anything?"
"Well besides not knowing you didn't know until right this moment…" he lifts an eyebrow at the teen, "I did not wish to harm you too badly because you need the practice, dear boy. And the practice holding back all the time gave me finer control over my own powers, so it was a win-win." He crosses his arms, "And since you weren't going to let me train you for some absurd fear of me stealing you away," He rolls his eyes and ignores the way his stomach flutters at the different ways one could take that, "then I was going to give you ample training through other means. Even at the cost of your trust for a bit if that's what it took." Vlad looks up into the sky, noting the clouds and the very real possibility of rain later. "We are alone in this world but for each other. We need to stick together, and I refuse to have a weak partner at my side."
He returns his attention to Danny in time to see him smirk and lift an eyebrow, "'Partner?'"
Vlad bristles, twisting and walking away a few steps, "Uh, ah never mind that. I meant minion. Underling. Uhh slave to my bidding." He waves his hand, trying to appear nonchalant.
"You're reaching now. Just admit it already." The smile is painfully clear in the brat's voice.
"Nonsense." He insists, unable to face the teen or his ridiculous accusations.
"So you were secretly training me so I could one day work with you. Sorry, for you." Danny steps around Vlad's shoulder to catch his attention, before rolling his eyes, "What if that plan backfired?" He crosses his arms.
Vlad mimics the action, "It wouldn't." He says simply. "You may not view things the same as I but we would inevitably end up together, Little Badger. Maybe not working together directly but definitely near each other, of that I have no doubt."
"Uhhh?"
Danny's incredibly insightful response forces Vlad to elaborate, "We are one and the same, dear boy. Can you stand here now and tell me you could go away to college, work, etcetera living anywhere in the world, and forget that the only person who could ever possibly understand you, you could so easily forget? Could you imagine right now never again seeing nor speaking to me for the rest of your life?" He does his best to say it as a rhetorical statement, not like the clingy, desperate way his heart wants him to ask. He never realized how badly he needs an answer to that question until right then, vulnerable and raw before the only ever halfa in existence.
Danny looks down in thought, "... I never thought about it," he says quietly, thoughtfully.
The teen's response disappoints him, but he tamps that down and offers the other with a gentle smile and friendly pat to the shoulder. "You have time, Little Badger. It's not like I'll be going far." He ignores his heart pressing forward, begging to ask him to think about it right now damnit.
Inside Danny's mind, his thoughts are racing. He feels stupid for having never thought about it before. Of course they would always share a connection, they are alone against the world. 'Why was I wasting so many years fighting with Vlad – wait no - sparring. Ugh, that's another thing. He didn't know I thought we were fighting full-on. Jesus Christ, how strong is he? He must be amazing fully unleashed…' The thoughts that follow make Danny's cheeks warm, 'Now is so not the time for those thoughts.' He's glad they have taken this weird turn of events and decided on this truce; he can't imagine fighting with the only other being of his kind for the rest of his life…
"You must have been so lonely before I came along…" He murmurs without thinking, before sucking in his breath in embarrassment, wishing the words would follow his breath back into himself. 'What the fuck Danny, why did you say that out loud? That sounds so self-centered! Just shut up already!'
Vlad isn't facing him, but the tips of his ears darken. "Yes well, now you're here." He murmurs.
Danny feels himself warm in reaction to that and the implications.
"Now I'm here." He takes a step forward, the back he faces doesn't move, "and we definitely got off on the wrong foot, like super wrong foot," he laughs, "but maybe we can look back at all this in the future and laugh?"
Vlad barks out a laugh, "That is so cliché, Little Badger."
Danny hums and steps up beside Vlad to look over the side, arms wrapped around himself like a hug. He takes a moment to think before finally breaking the quiet, "I was so excited when we first met, because I thought I was a freak. Something born from a crazy coincidence and I would be lonely forever. I'd only been a halfa for a short time, I think like a month or something. But seeing you so easily be a person and a ghost made me realize there could be more of us, like obviously I'm not alone. There has to be others. Don't you think?"
He turns to Vlad and snaps his mouth shut, the man watching him with amazement plainly written on his face, "Those are my thoughts exactly!" Vlad breathes, eyes wide, "If it was just me, then it's just this weird happenstance with the portal and wrong-place-at-the-wrong-time but then you came along." He fully faces the teen, "You and your fledgling powers and self-righteous attitude." His eyes trail all over the body before him, unknowingly making Danny squirm, "I thought to myself, 'Well this is no longer an isolated incident but rather a sequence.' A sequence, Daniel, do you understand the significance of that? A pattern! There is a rhyme and reason that made us who we are!" The man grabs the teen's shoulders excitedly, "And if we stumbled upon that sequence, then surely others have too, right?"
Danny takes in the earnest expression upon the older halfa's face, red eyes shining and pointed ears perked with barely contained energy. He can't help it, he turns his head and giggles, still trapped in the man's grip. "You really are a nerd, aren't you Vlad?"
Vlad jolts, suddenly very aware of how close he is holding the teen to himself and how tight his grip is. He immediately let's go and takes a sheepish step back. Danny shakes is head, not quite understanding the reaction but finding it amusing either way.
He watches Vlad go about straightening himself out (ha) for a moment before speaking again, "I would like to help you."
Vlad pauses, flicking his attention back to Danny silently.
"I mean, I want to help you find other halfas - if there are any. I'm sure we could recreate the scenarios our two portals went through and see what kinds of readings they put out. Maybe something there will give us a clue?" He asks brightly, hoping he isn't making a fool of himself.
Vlad smiles, it's a slow thing that unfurls with so much promise that it makes Danny's heart skip a beat and begin hammering wildly in his chest. The jump in pulse-rate confuses him, so he settles for a tiny smile in return.
Vlad opens his mouth to respond before the shrill bleet of the warning bell signals for the end of the lunch period. Both half-ghosts jump into fighting stances out of reflex and then smile sheepishly at one another.
"Uh, I should go." Danny says timidly, "I'll uh, catch you later?"
Vlad nods, "Yes, I should go speak with your principal about tomorrow morning's presentation." He rubs his neck and smiles shyly, "See you tomorrow, Little Badger."
Danny watches the man sink through the roof and disappear from view before turning around and crossing his arms, "You can come out now."
Ember and Freakshow suddenly pop into the visible realm, a little embarrassed for being caught.
"Seriously? Did you not hear my explanation about my Ecto-Location?"
Ember smacks Freakshow's shoulder and hisses at him, "I told you he saw us!"
Danny shakes his head, "What now? You two still watching Vlad?"
They nod, Freakshow steps forward, "Yes, about that… Daniel, we need to tell you something."
Danny holds up one finger, "Hold up, is it upsetting?"
Freakshow snaps his mouth shut, thanks to the aid of Ember's hand under his chin. She nods for them both.
Danny sighs, "Is it about Vlad?"
They nod again, Freakshow yanks himself out of Ember's grip and nods of his own free will.
Danny frowns at his feet, "Does it hurt anyone?"
They look at each other and shrug before shaking their heads no.
Danny tilts his head, "Is it about … me?"
They nod again and Danny lets out a long, defeated breath, "Okay, meet me at my house after school."
"You don't want to know now? Aren't you curious?" Freakshow sputters, bewildered.
"If its bad enough that you guys feel the need to intervene then yes, I am deadly curiously. But," he holds up a hand of silence, "I have a history test this afternoon that is super important for my grade. I need to focus." He looks between them, decision made, "Come to my house after school. My friends and I will meet you in the backyard."
Ember smirks, "I don't think you want your friends to hear what we have to say."
Danny shakes his head, "Whatever you have to say to me can be said to them too. I would just be repeating everything anyways."
The duo nods and watches Danny disappear through the roof as the final bell rings for class.
Freakshow grins at Ember, "He will wish he chose to tell them later and maybe omit some details."
Ember shrugs, "His loss. Babypop's embarrassment is our entertainment." She puts a foot up on the edge of the roof and looks over the edge, "Let's get out of here, there's a music store downtown that just opened that I want to haunt – I mean – check out."
