"Hello, Great One."

Although I wasn't expecting the voice and it caught me off guard, I still return the greeting with a warm smile.

"We haven't seen you in a while."

I turn myself around, brightening my smile as I take all of Frostbite in. "No, I was… preoccupied. But it's good to see you again." I float forward and go in for a customary handshake. Frostbite instead envelops me in a full-blown hug that squeezes the air from my lungs.

He swings me around to sit on his shoulder and starts lumbering toward the village I know lies over the obstructing snow drift. "It's always good to see you, Great One, though I expect your visit is not a social call?"

He phrases it like a question, but it's more of a statement. Comes with being an ancient ghost with access to near-infinite power, I guess.

My good nature at seeing an old friend slips at his true comment. "As much as I wish that…" To emphasize Frostbite's point, my phone vibrates in my belt. I quickly check the caller ID-Robin- and send it straight to voicemail. I didn't tell anyone where I was going, but by declining their calls, they know I'm hanging up on purpose and not missing their calls because I'm kidnapped or something.

I slip the phone back into my belt.

"When is it ever just a social call?"

"Good point," he laughs. "But can it not be both? Before you continue; your cape is a very nice addition. I'm impressed with your balanced ice levels, and clearly, your power has grown if you flew here yourself."

"I've done that before," I point out.

"Consciously?" he teases lightly, and I give him a half-hearted glare.

"And how are things in the Land of the Far Frozen?" I ask, gesturing to the village that starts to appear as he climbs. "You know, before I come and disrupt it again."

He chuckles. "They are well. It is unlikely for conflict to occur, since so many of the Far Frozen people are incapable of violence."

"When was the last conflict?" I ask.

He lets out a heavy sigh. "The Ghost King. He is the only one to dare come here."

"During his reign or when Plasmius let him out?"

"During his reign. When he was released from the Sarcophagus of Forever Sleep, he was more concerned with getting his Ring than he was with eradicating us. Surely he would have had you not stopped him, but thankfully, it didn't come to that."

"Why does he hate you guys so much?"

"Don't underestimate the power of ice, Great One. A core of pure ice is far more rare than you may believe." As if sensing I want to hear more, he continues, "The obsessions rooted in ice reflect its nature. They are peaceful, protective. The emotions used to fuel them are far deeper and more complex than anger or vengeance."

"What about Klemper?"

"He is a child, Great One. Children are rare to stay. He died innocent, which is even more uncommon in a ghost. Most of these rarities stay to protect family or something likewise, but he's been here far longer. The only thing keeping him here is his loneliness."

"And that gave him ghost powers?"

"He does not destroy or create. He is pure innocence and he has done what seems impossible- He's maintained it through rejection and neglect. He's seen the entire world but hasn't been affected. He searches only for companionship and everything else filters out. He is lonely, and a ghost core reflects a ghost's nature. The only thing Klemper has known is cold."

"That's incredibly depressing," I remark. "How do you know this?"

"He's been here."

"And you didn't accept him?"

"We did, Phantom."

"He's here?" But at Frostbite's brief silence, realization dawns on me. "He's gone."

"Yes." I bow my head in respect, and Frostbite gives me a reassuring smile. "Do not count this as a bad thing. He achieved his goal. Being a child, he was incapable of creating another. He was only with us for a short time."

"What emotion fuels you?" I'm curious, now that we've been talking about power emotions.

"Curiosity," he replies, giving me a warm smile, "And the spread of the wisdom I earn from it."

"Hrh," I grumble, "sounds like you and Clockwork would be great friends."

"That we would, and are. Ah, we're here."

I shake off whatever comment I had been about to make and change the topic from Clockwork to where we are. "I never said what I came here for-"

We're at the Far Frozen's medical research lab/hospital. "And this isn't it anyway…"

"When was the last time you went to a doctor, Great One?"

"I spent like a month in the infirmary at Mount Justice," I respond petulantly, floating off of Frostbite's shoulder.

"And they know how to treat half-ghost hybrids?"

I don't answer, opting instead to pout. "I don't want to."

"Great One, you came here for the Infa-map, did you not?" I startle at the mention. He smirks at my surprise. "It is the only ghostly artifact of which one of your allies has control. Well, we have more, but you can understand my hesitancy to let you know of their existence." He smiles warmly as I give an awkward cough.

"This is the deal. Get your checkup and we'll see about lending you the map."

"Why would you let me lend it? I know how much trouble I got in last time I used it."

I follow Frostbite inside and fly where he directs me. "You were not the cause. And I understand the draw of curiosity. Do not feel guilty. The map knows its way back, and it knows where it wants to be."

"That was cryptic," I snipe as Frostbite starts ordering assistants around. I'm not sure how, but I end up agreeing to take my suit off, which I'd been very adamant about not doing. Frostbite doesn't comment, which I appreciate. He just pushes me inside one of the ice-tubes I'd woken in when I first got ice powers, secures the air mask around my face, and starts filling the tube.

I can't talk over the rushing liquid, but as soon as it's done being filled, I raise my voice to Frostbite. "I don't have time for this, Frostbite. I have to find Sam."

"With the Infa-map." When I nod, he smirks at me. "Then you'll have time."

I fold my arms and ignore Frostbite and his assistants' work. Have to admit, though… This does feel amazing. Any excess ice I hadn't used flows out of me, leaving me relaxed. It's like an open circuit for my powers; I don't have too much building or too little to feel comfortable. My core does still ache, that's true, but it's the only thing.

"Yes…" Frostbite mutters after a while, "That should work."

"What should?"

He looks at me, face serious. "You need to find Sam."

I resist the urge to roll my eyes. "Yes, I already knew that."

"Not for your benefit, Phantom. Though that will solve many problems happening in your core. Her prolonged exposure to ghostly energy has likely already changed her. The longer she stays, the more she changes."

"How did you even know where she was?"

He flashes me the screen on his tablet. "The fluid, Great One."

"It can read my mind?" I demand, surprised.

"No. It knows what you know."

"That doesn't make any sense."

"It does, just not to you."

I give him a blank look and he returns it, but he then has to turn away to hide his amusement. "Do not worry, Great One. It cannot share." He taps the screen, allowing the tube to drain and me to be released.

Once I'm dry and back in my suit, Frostbite leads me to the sanctuary where the Infa-map is kept.

"Frostbite?"

My voice is hesitant as the question pounding on my skull threatens to spill out.

"Yes, Great One?"

"Will I ever be okay again?"

Frostbite gives me a sympathetic smile and lays his frozen hand on my shoulder. "Danny, you have gone through what only a few before have survived. It is a great trauma and a horrible burden; but it is a part of you now. I know that's not what you wanted to hear. But you can't ignore it or push it away. Allow it to settle inside you. Make peace with it, and learn to remember what happened without experiencing it."

"You make this sound good, almost."

"Great One, you are great because you never give up. You are naive, it is true, but you learn from mistakes and come back harder and faster than ever. You are a savior. Take what you've learned and return better."

"What have I learned? What could I possibly have learned?" I feel the memories rise and I bite my lip, hard.

"Absolute zero," Frostbite replies, looking at me earnestly.

"What?"

"We are beings of ice, are we not? The cold, it is a part of us. But even we have our limits. Once, I was threatened. The whole Ghost Zone was threatened. I brought my temperature down, hoping the cold would fuel my core and its powers. I reached absolute zero. It was only for a fraction of a second, but it was enough to send a wave powerful enough to defeat the enemy… and enough to destroy my arm."

I look at his arm of ice.

"I was bitter. My arm was gone. But perhaps now I knew how far I could go."

"Oh." I allow myself to think of a memory- softly, slowly, and let myself feel the pain I remembered. I shake, but Frostbite says nothing. When the memory is through, I look at him with pained but triumphant eyes. "I know my limits now. And methods of torture, in case I need information."

Frostbite barks a laugh and swings the Infa-map into my hands. "I think it's time for you to retrieve Sam."

I open the map. "Yeah, definitely." The destination of Mount Justice stings my tongue, but I hesitate. "Frostbite, thank you. I couldn't ask for a better friend."

Frostbite nods as I shout out my destination and disappear in a flash of light.

Sorry for such an uneventful chapter. I want it to fill some plot holes and add to Danny's recovery, and hopefully it did just that. Thank you guys for sticking around so long! The story is so close to over, and as soon as I finish, I have a new and interesting idea for a fanfic. It's actually really unique and I have great ideas for it. Anyway. Until next time!

~Disclaimer, disclaimer~