Hey, here's an extra long chapter to make up for a week of no wifi and too many mountains. Enjoy!

They didn't get to talk much at the warehouse due to Danny being late for his curfew and Edward wanting both of them to get a decent amount of sleep before school tomorrow.

When Edward saw Danny the next day, it was in his homeroom class and he was late again. Now Edward knew exactly why. He caught the boy whispering something about Technus to Tucker and Sam who gave him sympathetic winces. Edward had never had the pleasure of meeting that particular ghost himself, but he couldn't imagine it had been fun.

"See me at the end of the day, Daniel." He said, smiling through his stern exterior, hoping Danny saw that it was just for show.

His classes came and went. He suffered through kids misunderstanding the simplest poetry, he ate his lunch in the staffroom with Tetslaff, he handed out a couple of detentions. It was a completely normal day, but everything had changed. The first ghost attack was during second period, and while Danny wasn't in his class at the time, he saw him out of the window fighting and presumably winning against Ember. Edward wished he would be a little more careful. He knew Phantom got some injuries from his fights, but knowing it was Danny Fenton slamming into those walls made it all the more terrifying. He also noted that Danny apparently forgot intangibility existed half of the time. Maybe he could use a little training too.

In his sophomore English class, which contained both Danny and Valerie Gray, he saw Danny's ghost sense go off again and let him go with a sigh. When Valerie's hand flew up, he gave in to her as well, figuring that despite his reservations, she could take care of herself. He would have to have another talk with her about unnecessary violence.

Edward could hardly wait for lessons to end and even he could see how dreary his speeches on poetry were by fifth period. The moment the bell rang, he sat down at his desk and waited for Danny, tapping his foot on the floor in anticipation.

The boy entered quietly, almost too quietly for Edward to hear. Like a ghost.

"Hi." He said. His body was tense and his teeth were gritted.

"Danny," Edward started, unsure of what to say.

"I'm sorry." He interrupted. "I'm sorry for lying."

"You say sorry too much." The teacher noted. "You have nothing to be sorry for."

"But this is all my fault!" Danny cried. "It's my fault you're a halfa and I should just have told you from the start but I was so happy that there was finally someone else like me and I didn't want to ruin it by letting you know that it was just… me."

"Just you?"

"Well, you know. I'm me. I'm not really heroic or strong or witty or anything that Phantom is."

"Danny, you are Phantom." Edward told him. "You are all of those things. You're also human. You act as if Phantom is a separate being, but it is all you. And you protect this town and we are all grateful to you. I'm not mad at all, and you don't need to be sorry."

"Thanks Mr Lancer." He said, voice small.

"It's Edward, Danny. You've been calling me Edward for two months."

"And it still feels weird." The corners of his mouth pulled upwards into a small smile and he looked up at Edward. "Thanks. For this. For not getting mad."

"Like I said, I already had my suspicions. You know, you're not really doing a good job of hiding it. It's no wonder Wes Weston figured it out."

Danny was grinning now, eyes crinkling with laughter. "Don't get me started with him. I mean, he's right, but he comes up with the most bizarre stuff. Like, apparently, I'm an ancient roman ghost come to rid the world of everything pure and good posing as me. Don't know where he gets these ideas from. That's only the most recent. Last year, I was a normal boy who had wandered into his parent's freaky lab and died in a tragic accident. Then, I 'came back to life' as a ghost fighting superhero."

"Isn't that exactly what happened?" Edward asked, assuming that Danny's accident had happened in his parents' portal but not wanting to ask.

"Well yeah, but that doesn't make it any less crazy. Good thing most of the school thinks it's bullshit."

"I'll say it again, language, Danny."

"Sorry."

"I saw that eyeroll."

"Sorry."

There was another eyeroll, but Edward chose to pointedly ignore it. He didn't want to spend all of his time correcting Danny's swearing, even if that boy did it way too much. Now it was time to bring out the big guns. "Danny." He said, catching the boy's attention and stopping his teenage antics in their tracks.

"What?"

"I think you should tell your parents."

There it was. Edward could see Danny's face slowly slackening and his eyebrows furrowing then raising incredulously.

"What?" he repeated the word, but there was venom in there now. It reminded Edward of the last time he had brought up the Fentons around Danny. He gulped.

"I think you should tell them." He said again. He ignored the way Danny's eyes burned deadly green. "Your life is suffering because of this. Your grades are…"

"Terrible. They're terrible." Danny finished for him, raising another eyebrow. "Where are you going with this?"

"I wouldn't say terrible,"

"I would."

Edward scowled. "They're not the best grades I've ever seen, and they're not the best grades you could get. But I don't just care about your grades."

"Could have fooled me." Danny muttered.

"Daniel!"

"Sorry."

"Danny, when was the last time you 'hung out' with someone?"

He looked confused for a second, before scowling again. "Thursday." He ground out. "Sam, Tucker and I went to the nasty burger."

"And what did you do?"

"We… ate burgers. That's kind of what you do there."

"Was there a ghost?"

"Well, yeah… there's always a ghost. Boxy turned up."

Edward smiled at him. "There's my point. Your whole life revolves around ghosts. It would be good for you to take a break from that. When was the last time you spoke to your parents? When you sat down and had a proper conversation with them?"

Danny's silence gave him all the answers he needed.

"Danny, it's not healthy. I know protection is your obsession, but you can't spend all your time and energy on it. You are still a human, just like I am. Humans need support. Humans need time off."

"My parents don't seem to think I'm a human." Danny pointed out; his fists clenched. "the last time I talked to my parents, they told me that I was 'a filthy ball of ectoplasmic scum not worth the time of day' and that they wanted to 'tear me apart molecule by molecule'. I think I'm fine as I am."

"They love you Danny. You just need to give them the opportunity to know you." He paused, giving Danny time to take it in. "You know, when I was your age, I had a boyfriend." Danny brows rose again.

"You're gay?"

"I'm bisexual. I didn't tell my parents that for a long time. I was having a relationship with this boy and they had no idea. I thought they would hate me – you know my generation wasn't nearly as accepting as yours. In the end, someone else outed me in front of them. I remember going back home that day, and I was sure they would think I was a freak. Instead, we sat down and had a talk. They were completely fine with it and they wished me and my boyfriend luck. I broke up with him a month later, but I knew they would support me through whatever."

"That's great." Danny said, "But my parents aren't like that. I'm not gay, I'm a ghost. Their whole life is hating ghosts. They hate ghosts more than they love me and Jazz."

"You would be surprised at what parents would do for their children." Edward said quietly. "I've been a teacher for years and I've never seen a parent who truly hates their child. I'd at least like you to think about telling them. it would take a lot of pressure off you, and they could help you figure out a schedule for keeping on top of everything. Even if you don't, I'm more than willing to do what I can to help. I can go easy on the homework, and you can have extensions if you need them. I'll go with whatever excuse you give me – even if it is 'Cujo ate my homework'."

"Cujo has eaten my homework." Danny grumbled. "Multiple times."

"Alright. Anyway, I want you to tell me what I can do to help, and I will do my best to make this easier for you. All I want in return is for you to at least think about telling your parents. Deal?"

Danny's eyes lowered and he frowned. "Deal." He looked Edward in the eyes. "Thanks, Mr Lancer. What?" he asked at Edward's raised eyebrow. "It feels weird calling you Edward at school."

"Fair enough." Edward chuckled. "Now, I think you have an essay on Lady Macbeth to get started on."

"Do I have to?" he moaned. "I don't get her at all! She's crazy!"

"That's why she's so interesting to analyse. She's not just a one dimensional character."

"Sure."

"I would think," said Edward, "That with your life, you would have quite a lot to say about her. You could compare her to some of the ghosts you meet on a daily basis and look at her downwards spiral into insanity in comparison to one you've seen in real life."

"You mean Vlad?"

Edward laughed. "From what you've told me, he seems like a very lady Macbeth like character. Have a go. I think you'll do well on this essay."

Danny huffed in response, gathering his bag and nodding at Edward as he went out of the door. Edward heard him muttering to his friends who were presumably waiting outside and hoped it was about Macbeth.

He was on his way home when he got a text from Danny. He wondered for a second how he had got his number before remembering that he had given it to all his students way back when the ghost attacks started, in case they needed help or just someone to talk to. Very few people used it, but he felt better knowing they had some sort of support.

The text asked him to meet him at 14 Maple Avenue at 5:15. That was, if he remembered correctly from the school records, Sam Manson's address.

A few hours later, he was pulling up outside a house in possibly the richest area of town. He could see people sticking their heads out of their windows, wondering who the bald guy with the cheap mini was. He did feel very out of place here. He was sure Mayor Masters lived on this road, and everyone knew he was a multi billionaire. Why he chose to live in Amity Park instead of some fancy city abroad, Edward couldn't tell. Perhaps it was the ghosts. As Plasmius, it would be in his best interests to live in the most haunted town in America. Edward supposed that being the mayor didn't hurt either.

The point was, only the extremely rich lived around here and, while he knew the Mansons were wealthy, he didn't know quite how much. Danny had neglected to mention that Sam lived in a mansion.

He felt small and stupid climbing the steps to knock on the huge oak door. He heard pattering that turned into thundering footsteps.

"I'll get it, mom!" someone – Sam, he assumed – shouted. The thundering must have been her heavy boots. She opened the door puffing and out of breath. "Sorry." She wheezed. "Had to run up the stairs from the basement to beat mom to the door. Come in and be quiet."

"Who was it, Sammykins?" someone asked from another room.

"Just some guy handing out leaflets!" she shouted. "I told him to go away."

"Oh." Edward heard more footsteps tapping down the hallway and at Sam's panicked glare, went invisible quickly. He ignored Sam's shock. He had done it all too soon as Pamela Manson came daintily round the corner.

She was, Edward thought, the complete opposite of her daughter in every way possible. Where Sam's clothes were dark and gothic, her mother's were bright and flowery. Pamela's hair was blonde to Sam's dyed black and her voice tinkled. Edward had never heard a voice tinkle before. He had also never met this woman as it was usually Jeremy Manson who came to the parent teacher conferences. He could see why the two married and why Sam felt the need to rebel. The environment created by Pamela Manson alone would be stifling enough to make any child go mad. Combined with Jeremy, Sam must be insane by now. He felt a moment of sympathy for his student.

He realised with a start that Sam and Pamela were still speaking and it was becoming quite heated.

"Mom, no." Sam growled. "I won't try on the dress. I already know I'll hate it! Do I look like someone who wears pink frilly dresses?"

Looking at her attire – jeans, a punk band t shirt and a choker – Edward thought that no, she really didn't. He couldn't say that he knew many women, but none of the ones he did would want to wear the hideous thing that Sam's mother was holding up. Sam was physically flinching away from it as if it would hurt her. A little excessive if you asked him. A good five minutes later, Sam finally got her mother to go away and Edward regained visibility with a sigh of relief. He couldn't hold it for long unless he was in ghost form.

"It's weird seeing you do that." she said, eyeing him. "I'm used to it from Danny, but you're you. Anyway, come on downstairs. Everyone's waiting and my parents are going out in a second."

'Everyone' turned out to be Tucker Foley and Jazz and Danny Fenton. Edward blinked for a second, taking in their expectant faces and Tucker's stunned stare. He guessed it must have been because of the jeans. He had changed after school.

"He's here." Said Sam, rather unnecessarily. "Tucker close your mouth. Danny?"

Danny, who had been talking in whispers with Jazz, glanced up. "Yep. Training room's this way."

Edward followed them through the basement cautiously. Jazz kept looking back at him and smiling, as if trying to reassure him and herself at the time. He smiled back in response. He hadn't seen Jazz for a while since she had graduated and she was now apparently attending some prestigious university. Edward had heard something about acceptance into Oxford in England.

They reached the training room soon afterwards, and it was massive. Edward took in the climbing wall at the back and the mechanical training dummies littering the room with awe. There were hoops and obstacles dumped on the floor and hanging from the ceiling which he assumed were for flying practice. Great.

"So," Danny's voice broke him out of his silent musings. "Uh… can you transform and we can get started?" Edward noticed that Danny had transformed into Phantom and was hovering in the air with his arms crossed. His hands were tapping again.

"Yeah, yes." He stuttered. "Sure."

He pulled on his core the way Danny had taught him and felt the rings change his purple shirt to green and his black jeans to white. He still wasn't used to the feeling the weight of hair on his head, but he could work with that.

Tucker's mouth fell open again and the two girls joined him.

"Come on." Edward said, allowing himself a smirk. "It's not like you've never seen a halfa before." He gestured at Danny who was grinning madly as he cackled midair.

"You're our teacher." Jazz, who had managed to get a hold of herself more quickly than the others, reasoned. "It's weird even for me. I'm still not completely used to Danny."

"Hey!" her brother piped up. "You've known for ages!"

"I know." She smiled. "but you're my brother. It's always gonna be weird."

If Edward didn't know any better, he would say that Danny was sulking. he had never seen Phantom doing that before. Edward couldn't help but giggle. He was subject to a frankly terrifying glare from Danny.

"Anyway!" Sam shouted, getting everyone's attention. "We only have a few hours before mom and dad come back from whatever charity event they're going to today, so let's get on with this. I think we should test Mr Lancer's basic skills – speed and ectoblasts and stuff."

"Sounds good." Danny said. "Have you still got my data in there to compare it to?"

Sam grimaced. "No. Technus destroyed it last time he got into the systems."

There was pure mischief in Danny's voice when he said, "Does that mean I get to do it again? Please, Sam?"

She sighed. "I guess so. Let Mr Lancer do it first."

Danny consented with a sad nod and he floated over to the corner where there was… a camera? Were they going to be filming this?

He posed his question to Jazz who nodded and explained that they kept records of each training session so they could rewatch them and see what needed improving. It was something Edward would expect from her, but not from the other three children, so he was confused when she said it was Tucker's idea from the start. Apparently there was a lot he didn't know about his students.

"Get to the start!" Danny called from across the room. Edward made his way over to him and gulped when he saw the obstacle course set out for him.

"Danny, I'm not sure about this." He whispered. "I've never done well with fitness tests."

"You'll be fine." Danny told him, laughing. "Didn't you used to be a cheerleader or something?"

That was true, Edward supposed, but that was also thirty years ago. Before he could think about it more, Tucker started a stop clock and yelled go.

Shocked into moving, Edward ran towards the dummies waiting for him and ducked as one of them punched out at him. That was… unexpected. He realised that he was probably supposed to fight these things. Much as he loathed fighting, he liked being alive even more. He was doing this then.

After a few disastrous attempts to knock over the damned things, he fell into a rhythm of duck, punch occasionally hoping he hit something, and run away. He liked that last part most. He was good at running away. With this strategy, he managed to get past the training dummies in what felt like hours but was probably only a couple of minutes. The next part made him blanch and consider turning back to the dummies.

Flying.

He hadn't liked the look of them earlier, and now that he was face to face, the hoops were even more terrifying. He let go of the gravity keeping him on the ground warily and hovered just in front of them. well, now or never. He flew through the first hoop safely, passed through the second fine. Then the ectoblasts came.

What kind of crazy death trap was this?

"They're just light!" Danny yelled from down on the ground. He was grinning in the most annoying way. "They won't hurt you!"

That didn't make it any less scary.

Edward wove in and out, trying his best to stay out of the beams, but managing to get caught by a few. He really really hated flying.

He landed on the ground completely out of breath and his heart was pounding. He did not want to repeat that if he could help it.

The last obstacle loomed above him like David and goliath. Except goliath wasn't a huge forty foot tall climbing wall. It wasn't even one of those nice walls with the colourful fake rocks. It was an actual cliff with outcrops that could easily kill a man if he were to fall off.

Edward didn't like to swear if he could help it, but shit.

He set one foot on the lowest shelf, ignoring the way it trembled. His hand reached up cautiously to find a handhold and the other leg came up. Okay. He could do this. Right hand, left leg, left hand, right leg. Repeat.

This was fine. This was totally and utterly fine.

This was not fine. He reached up and there was nothing for him to rest his hand on. He quickly placed it back where it was, but his leg wobbled and he lost his grip.

He was vaguely aware of someone screaming and thought that he must be falling. It was quite a way up.

He could fly, goddammit. He concentrated as hard as he could, trying to get his thoughts together enough to stay in the air. He managed just three feet from the ground and let out a sigh of relief.

He landed with a thump and sat back, dazed.

"Well," Tucker said somewhere above him. "You only got ten minutes over Danny's worst time."

"What he means," Jazz cut in, "Is that there's room for improvement. You did well, Mr Lancer."

"Thank you, Jazz." He groaned, still trying to get his bearings.

"My turn?" asked Danny.

The next five minutes were spent watching Danny absolutely destroy the same course that had caused Edward so much trouble. He shot down the dummies with no trouble at all, breezed through the laser beams and hoops and practically skipped up the climbing wall. Even after all that, Danny was still well enough to do a speed test where he discovered his top speed was 156 mph.

Edward wasn't even sure he could do 50.

They eventually decided to let him out of that hellish room, and they all crowded into Sam's basement cinema to watch a film. Everyone else seemed to think that was a perfectly normal thing to have in one's basement, so Edward just went along with it.

About halfway through their second cheesy horror film, Danny's ghost sense went off. He jumped up, then looked expectantly at Edward who wanted nothing more than to stay on the very comfy beanbag Sam had provided.

"Coming." He grumbled, wincing at his aching spine. "As soon as my back lets me."

Danny grinned and floated up through the ceiling. Edward followed him reluctantly.

I go back to school tomorrow and I'm terrified. Hopefully it'll go ok.