Author's note: I'm really happy that you all liked the last chapter so much. I don't typically like creating OCs, but I wasn't about to use Spectra. I wanted Danny to talk with a good therapist who genuinely wants to help him so that he'll realize more clearly the severity of his mental/emotional issues and his post-traumatic stress. Spectra would've just given him a sadistically skewed perception of what's going on with him. Not what I want for this story.

I don't know what you'll think of this chapter. I always feel really unsure when I upload Maddie-centric sections. I want to establish how she's feeling so that you'll understand why she keeps doing certain things, but I fear that I'm just going to completely turn you guys off in disgust one of these times. :b But I hope you'll be at least a little nice to me if this is that time...seeing as it's my birthday and all (August first).

(after being) Disparaged

Exhausted, drained, Maddie was done for the night. While Jack stayed behind to continue his own work, Maddie climbed the stairs out of the basement lab and placed her goggles on top of her hooded head. She rubbed her eyes as she scanned the living room. Jazz was sitting on the couch reading a book.

Maddie frowned. "Where's Danny? He's supposed to be in here with you. Is he in the bathroom?"

Jazz looked up from her book. "Actually, I think he went to bed." She tilted her head up toward the ceiling.

"Bed?" Maddie checked the time. Her frown deepened. "It's eight thirty."

Jazz shrugged. "He looked really tired."

Maddie studied her daughter. Such nonchalance and dismissal, and yet there was definitely a time when Jazz loved to analyze her brother's odd behavior.

Another thing for her to investigate. But in the meantime, she had to be sure her son was all right.

Maddie ascended the stairs and stood outside Danny's darkened room. She could faintly see him on his bed and under his covers. She quietly walked in and sat down on his bed beside him. His eyes flickered open.

"Hey, Danny," said Maddie in a hushed voice. "You're in bed awfully early."

"Yup," was his dull reply.

"Are you feeling okay?"

In the light cast from the hallway, Maddie watched her son's face carefully. "Danny, how are you feeling?"

Danny sat up with a sigh. "What do you want me to say?" he asked in a low voice.

Maddie looked at him sadly.

"How do you want me to feel?"

Her heart was breaking. She remembered when he had come home that day after school, the way he genuinely smiled, the way he seemed to actually be happy again. She had missed seeing him like that so much.

But then he came out of Brandan's office, and he was once again so melancholy and downhearted, no longer even had an appetite and declined her offer of buying him something to eat. Something had obviously happened during his therapy session, something significant. What had he and Brandan discussed? What had been revealed? Why was her boy once again so lost and distant in a place he kept her locked out of? Wasn't therapy supposed to help him?

Maddie resisted the urge to stroke his hair. "I want you to feel however you want to feel."

No reply.

"I was just a little concerned because I've never seen you go to bed this early."

"Not like I have anything else to do."

Maddie averted her gaze. There were still a couple more days before he would no longer be grounded. But she wished that she could lift it now. Any happiness it would bring him to hang out with Tucker again (not Sam) or play a video game would be invaluable. But she had to stay strong, had to carry out her parental obligation to see this punishment through.

Danny leaned back against his bed frame. "And I really am tired."

"But you're not feeling sick, at least?" asked Maddie.

Danny raised a brow. "Sick?"

"Yeah, well… I mean, that's not why you're in bed early, is it?"

"Sick in what way?"

Maddie frowned at his vexed tone.

Danny crossed his arms. "Like because of drugs? Is that what you're asking?"

Maddie pursed her lips. "No, Danny, that's not what I'm asking."

Danny didn't meet her gaze as he quietly thought for a long moment. "Sorry," he muttered. "I shouldn't have jumped to that conclusion."

She could see the slightest mist in his eyes as he looked off to the side.

"I just feel like…that's all you see when you look at me now," he whispered.

Maddie could feel herself trembling and shivering. She leaned forward and gripped one of his crossed arms, pulled it toward her so that she could hold his hand. Danny let her, his expression changing to one of mild surprise and confusion.

"I know this has been hard for you," she said, her voice shaking, her tears brimming. "I don't want you to think I don't understand what you're being putting through, what's being asked of you. But please know that this is hurting me, too. It hurts me to see you like this, Danny."

She stroked his hand. Danny made no movement himself.

"I don't want to do any of this to you. I don't want to put you through this." Maddie sniffed. "But I'm only doing it because I love you." She looked at him tearfully. "I really do love you so much, Danny. I hope you know that."

His eyes were vacant as Maddie continued to hold his hand. He did not speak for some time. Maddie waited, waited for him to hopefully say that he loved her, too.

"Okay," he finally said.

Maddie's eyes filled with more tears, but she turned away so that he wouldn't see. "Good night, Danny."

"Good night."

Maddie walked out of his room, left his door open behind her as she moved down the hallway. She covered her face and let her tears fall freely and silently.

She looked up at the sound of footsteps coming up the stairs, steps that weren't heavy enough to be Jack's. She wiped the moisture out of her eyes and off of her face as Jazz appeared in the hallway and entered her room. Maddie pulled herself together and stopped her before she could close the door. "Jazz? Can I talk to you?"

Jazz studied her mother seriously before nodding. "Of course."

She opened the door fully and held out an arm behind her, inviting her mother to come in. Maddie took a seat on Jazz's bed, and Jazz sat in her desk chair.

"I know things have been kind of crazy lately," Maddie began, "but I just wanted to check in with you, see how you're doing."

"I'm doing just fine," said Jazz.

"School going okay?"

"Of course. As always. No problems there."

"Excited to be graduating soon?"

"Oh, you have no idea. I can't wait to start college." Jazz smiled to herself dreamily.

It warmed Maddie to see her daughter looking so happy and optimistic. She had been accepted to a very prestigious university and was already counting down the weeks until she could register for her first roster of classes.

Yes, indeed, Jazz was off to bigger and better things.

While Danny was…

She hated to do this to Jazz, hated to bring up the subject of her brother once again when she was so cheery about her future prospects. She didn't want Jazz to think that Danny was the only child on her mind lately.

Even though it was absolutely true.

Maddie looked down at her hands, stalled for just a moment longer. "So…how have you been feeling about everything that's been happening with Danny?"

Jazz blinked. "How have I been feeling?"

"Yes. What do you think about it? And I don't mean from a psychoanalytical standpoint. I just mean your own personal feelings."

Jazz looked away with a small pout as she thought. "Um…I guess I feel…sad?" She looked back at Maddie. "I mean, I feel bad for him. I can tell he's having a really hard time with it."

"He is," agreed Maddie. "He really, really is." She sighed and tried to decide the best way to phrase her next question. "But is it at all…surprising to you?"

"Surprising?"

"Yes. Did you ever think that he'd get into something like that?"

"Well, I mean, I've always known that he struggled with his confidence and self-esteem, especially since starting high school. That's why I tried to help him sometimes, using the stuff I had learned in my psychology books. But he never wanted to hear it." She lowered her gaze. "I guess maybe I made him feel worse, made him feel like there was something wrong with him."

"You're a good sister for trying."

Jazz smiled but said nothing.

"But what about his use of painkillers? Did you know about that before?"

"I…no."

"Are you sure?"

Jazz looked at Maddie in confusion.

"It's just… Remember when I asked you last week if you had noticed Danny taking painkillers?"

Jazz hesitantly nodded.

"Do you remember what you said?"

Jazz's eyes blanked as she recalled the memory of the conversation.

"You said that it had been you taking the painkillers. Because of your hair," Maddie reminded her as non-judgmentally as she could. "But that wasn't true, right?"

Jazz bit her lip.

"Why were you trying to cover for Danny, Jazz? Why didn't you just tell me the truth?"

"Because…" Jazz didn't meet Maddie's gaze. "Because I didn't want to get him in trouble."

"But this was really serious, Jazz."

"I know, but…" Jazz's eyes clouded. "He always hates when I meddle in his life. He's gotten mad at me so many times for it. And I just…I didn't want him to blame me for you finding out about it." She sniffled. "I didn't want him to hate me. I didn't want it to be my fault."

"But then why did you lie and say it was you taking them? Why didn't you just say you didn't know?"

Jazz did not reply right away. "Um… I guess I just…wanted to help him. I don't know." She put her head in her hands. "I just hate when he's mad at me, so I thought that maybe…maybe he'd…I don't know…like me more, trust me more if I did what I could to keep him out of trouble."

Maddie watched Jazz hold her head with a puzzled frown.

"I know it's stupid, but he's…he's kind of the only friend I have right now." Jazz started crying. "And he doesn't even know that. I don't think he even considers me his friend."

"Your only friend? You have other friends." Maddie tried to rack her memory. Surely she had seen her daughter hanging out with other kids? But the more she tried to remember, the more she realized just how often Jazz stayed home for the weekend, how she always came home right after school and never hung out with anyone, how she was always reading a book but never texted or talked to anyone on her phone.

And the rare occasions when she did go out?

Indeed, it was always Danny and his friends she was going out with.

Oh, no, no, no. Her other child was struggling, too. She couldn't deal with this, couldn't handle having two children to help. One was already too many.

Maddie pulled Jazz to her bed and wrapped an arm around her. She tried to soothe her daughter with motherly tones. All right, all right, it was all okay. She understood now, and it was okay, okay. Just fine.

"So you're not mad at me?" asked Jazz in a whisper.

"No," said Maddie. "Not at all."

Jazz sat up and wiped her eyes.

"You'll make so many friends in college, Jazz," said Maddie. "You're too sweet and wonderful and beautiful not to." She looked over at Jazz's bookshelf. "But you have to stop hiding behind your books. Don't get so caught up in homework and academics. Make time for fun."

Jazz nodded and smiled.

"Are you going to be okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine."

"I'm here to talk anytime you want."

Jazz hugged her mother. "Thanks, Mom. You're the best."

"Well, at least one of you thinks so." Maddie ran a hand through her long red hair. "But please, it really won't do Danny any good if you try to help him hide or cover up something just so he won't be mad at you. In fact, that could be really dangerous."

Jazz thought, pondered, quietly nodded her understanding.

Maddie stood and stretched. "Don't stay up too late, okay?"

"Are you going to bed?" Jazz asked.

"Not yet. I'm actually thinking of going out ghost-hunting."

"Ghost-hunting?"

"Mmm hmm."

"For Phantom?"

Maddie looked down at her with an amused expression. "Well, I'll take anything. I could always use more specimens for my research." She grinned. "But Phantom would certainly be nice."

Maddie dreamily looked into the distance, but her daughter's lack of a reply was not lost on her. She looked back down at Jazz to see her scrunching up her mouth in what appeared to be worry.

"What is it, Jazz?"

"It's just—I mean—why exactly do you want to capture him? I mean, what has he done? He hasn't done anything wrong, has he?"

Maddie crossed her arms and simpered. "What does that have to do with anything?"

Jazz pouted in confusion.

"It's not that I think he's an evil ghost that needs to be punished or locked away. On the contrary, I don't think he's evil at all."

"Then why—?"

"Because he's a ghost, and a very interesting one at that." Maddie looked up at the ceiling wistfully. "I have to claim him before someone else does. I have to figure out what it is about him that makes him so much more humanlike than other ghosts."

Jazz was quiet for a moment. "So…you think he's humanlike?"

"Very much so. That's why he's regarded so highly by so many in this town." Maddie smirked. "He has them all fooled."

"Fooled?"

"Well, because he's not really human, obviously. He's not a real person. He's just able to imitate one really well, better than any other humanoid ghost we've seen." Maddie shrugged. "You could almost swear his emotions are real."

"Why are you so convinced they're not real?"

"Because he's a ghost, of course."

A ghost having real emotions. What an entertaining oxymoron. Maddie didn't want to sound condescending in her reaction, but couldn't Jazz see just how ridiculous that question was?

"But…" Jazz seemed to be thinking deeply. "But I don't think he's an imitation. I mean, from what I've seen of him, he seems pretty…genuine." Jazz looked at Maddie hard. "How can you possibly be so sure he's not a person with real feelings when he just seems so real? Isn't there any chance that you could be wrong, that he could maybe be that one ghost that does have real feelings? That maybe that's what makes him so different from the other ghosts?"

Maddie gave her a teasing smirk. "Jazz, sweetie, are you one of those girls who's in love with him?"

Jazz's entire face turned as red as her hair. "What? No! Why would you even ask that?"

Maddie shrugged with mock innocence. "I don't know. Just the way you're trying to defend him. I wouldn't blame you, honestly." She looked at Jazz mischievously. "He is pretty cute."

Jazz was still completely red as she sputtered.

"And admittedly, that makes him all the more enjoyable to hunt down," said Maddie casually. "I mean, chasing after an ugly ghost would certainly not be as much fun. It's nice to so closely study a ghost who's also easy on the eyes."

Jazz covered her face with her hands but appeared to be too mortified to reply.

Maddie patted her on the shoulder. "Okay, sorry. Didn't mean to embarrass you." She kissed her daughter on the top of her head. "Good night, dear."

As Maddie entered the hallway and closed the door behind her, she could see Jazz falling backwards on her bed with her hands still over her face. Maddie chortled to herself, tickled by her daughter's apparent crush on the ghostly hero of Amity Park.

But her jollity was short-lived. Her eyes fell on the open door leading into her son's room. She approached and observed his sleeping silhouette in the light being cast from the hallway. She gazed at him just a bit longer before turning off the hallway light and finally retreating to her own room.

She lay on her bed on top of the covers and stared at the ceiling with the light on. She sighed, breathed, tried not to think about any troubles or qualms or stresses. There would be plenty of time to worry tomorrow. She just wanted to relax, wanted to do something that she enjoyed, something just for her and no one else.

She closed her eyes and put her hands in her hair, replaying her secret memories of Phantom in her head when she was close enough to touch him, memories that belonged to only her and could never be taken from her.

She longed to be that close to him again.

And when that finally happened, she was determined to never let him get away from her again.

"Maddie?"

Maddie jumped, her eyes shooting wide open. She sat up on her elbows to see Jack in the bedroom doorway smiling at her.

"You going to bed already?" Jack checked the time. "Well, I guess nine thirty isn't all that early."

Maddie shook her head. "Oh, no. I'm actually not tired yet."

"Oh, well, that's good to hear." Jack moved up to her, pushed her back on the bed and leaned over her. "I'm not tired either."

He pressed his lips to hers, trailed them down her jaw to her neck. Maddie closed her eyes and let him, allowed him to press his large hands against her and feel her up and down and around and everywhere.

But when her eyes were closed, the ceiling light filtered through like the ethereal glow of someone else…

She opened her eyes again to banish the image. How completely repulsive to be thinking of him while in the intimate embrace of her husband!

But she just wasn't in the mood for this right now. She didn't want to pretend, probably couldn't pretend even if she did want to.

Jack's movements and gropes were getting more aggressive, more passionate. Maddie could feel his excitement building and rising.

"Jack." Maddie gently pushed against him. "Jack, not now."

Jack halted and looked down at her in confusion. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine."

Maddie pushed him more, and Jack quickly but reluctantly moved off of her and sat on the bed beside her. Maddie sat up but could not meet his gaze.

"You sure?" asked Jack.

Maddie nodded. "Yeah, it's just that…I actually want to go out for a bit."

"Right now?"

"Yes."

"Okay. To do what?" Jack checked the time again. "I mean, we could hit up a bar or something, I guess. We haven't done that in a while."

"Not since before our kids," Maddie said with a smile.

"Yeah, you're right. They kind of changed everything, huh?"

Maddie sighed. "They sure did."

Jack patted her thigh. "Well, they're old enough to take care of themselves now, so we can go wherever you want."

"No, we can't. Not while Danny's…" Maddie paused. "We have to make sure he stays here."

"We don't have to tell him we're leaving."

Maddie smirked. "Then we'd be the ones sneaking out. That's not setting a good example for him."

"It wouldn't be sneaking out! It's only sneaking out if you're a kid." Jack wrapped an arm around her and kissed her head. "And we're adults."

Maddie eyed him warily.

"Don't give me that look," reprimanded Jack humorously.

Maddie chuckled and stood. "Anyway, I'd actually like to go out ghost-hunting."

She kept her back to him and nervously waited for how he would reply.

"Ghost-hunting?" Jack also stood. "Well, yeah, I guess we could do that. Why not? There are bound to be a couple of ghosts floating around we could bring back."

Maddie turned to face him. "I want to go alone."

Jack's face twisted with complete befuddlement.

"Ah, I mean, it's just that—ah—it's been really stressful this past week, and you know how therapeutic ghost-hunting has always been for me."

"I do know that about you, yes. But I don't see why you need to do it alone."

"Well, someone needs to stay here with the kids. Specifically Danny. One of us needs to make sure he stays in his room all night."

"Is that the only reason?"

Maddie frowned at his accusatory tone.

"It's not safe, Maddie." Jack shook his head. "I can't possibly let you go alone. I'd be too worried about you."

"Jack, don't you know me by now?" Desperate for a reason to not have to look at him, Maddie walked to her closet and pushed through her hanging jumpsuits. "I am more than capable of taking care of myself."

Maddie could feel Jack boring into her from behind, but he said nothing for a long time. She continued to pretend to look through her jumpsuits, pretended that she needed to put on a new one even though the one she was already wearing was perfectly sufficient.

"You're not going to be looking for just any ghosts, are you?" he finally asked with falling intonation. "You're going to be looking for him."

Maddie paused her feigned search.

"You're going out to look for Phantom."

Maddie turned around to face him. "Well, don't you want to catch him, too?"

"Of course," said Jack, "but I'm not about to insist on going out on my own to hunt him down."

Maddie narrowed her eyes, not sure what implication he was trying to make.

Jack threw up his hands. "You know he's like twenty-five years younger than you, right?"

Maddie scoffed. "Ghosts don't age the same way we do. Who's to say how old he is? I'd need to run a thorough examination on him to figure it out."

"You'd really like that, wouldn't you?"

"Well, it is kind of what I do. What we both do. It's what we've been spending all of our money on." Maddie glared at him. "What are you trying to say, anyway?"

Jack stared at her with heavily weighted silence. Maddie boldly matched his intensity.

At last, Jack lowered his gaze. "Fine. Go."

Maddie's breath caught at the sight of his sudden surrender. "Jack—"

"No, it's fine. Really." Jack sat on the bed and blankly stared ahead. "You'd rather look for him than be with me right now."

"Jack, that's not—"

"No, no, I get it." Jack's eyes hardened. "Our kids don't get their good looks from me, right?"

Maddie's heart chilled.

"So just go. Indulge your fantasy." Jack's gaze moved to the floor. "I'll just be here in our bed. Alone."

Maddie teared, trembled. She approached him with a slight shake of her head. "I'm sorry, Jack. Of course I'll stay here with you. I didn't mean to make you feel…" She choked on the remainder of her sentence.

"No," said Jack quietly. "I really think you should go. I don't want you to stay with me out of pity."

"No, I wouldn't—I could never—Jack, please—"

Jack stood and faced her with a defeated sigh. He gently placed his hands on her shoulders as he looked down at her. "Maddie, if it really will make you happy, then I want you to go. You do deserve it after all of the stress you've gone through this past week."

He pulled her in for a hug. Maddie wrapped her arms around him.

"Just please be safe," he murmured in her ear.

Maddie held him tight and silently cried into his chest. He was telling her to go, but was that really what he wanted her to do?

What did she really want to do?

She could either go out knowing he'd be lying in bed feeling lonely and unappreciated…

…or she could stay and lie next to him in awkward silent discomfort in which he'd probably still feel lonely and unappreciated.

When at last she was outside in the open air, she stared up into the sky and scanned the blinking constellations for any sign of the ghost who had started all of this trouble for her.

Yes, this was all Phantom's fault for being so extraordinary and elusive and enticing.

But perhaps she'd be able to forgive him if he would just let her take possession of him already.