Hey guys, I'm back with another update finally! :D Luckily I'm back in the groove of updating all my series, so hopefully that'll keep up.
Thanks to these people who followed/faved since last chap: The Dragon Legend, Master-Juan-X, Ella Le Hissy, Little Luffy, Gajeel-rocks, Yozura no Hono, 2000girl, AsRiver, RoxyEmeralds, cassjo, obsessive360, and movielover9. :D
And thanks to those who reviewed: Invader Johnny, Kimera20, and Guest! Thanks so much for your feedback guys, and I hope you like this chap! ;)
Anyway this one's gonna be a two-shot, maybe even three, I'm not sure yet. So sorry for the slight cliffhanger... xD
TRIGGER WARNING: THIS INCLUDES SMALL AMOUNTS OF GORE AND VIOLENT SITUATIONS, PLEASE TAKE CAUTION IF YOU CAN'T HANDLE THAT SORT OF THING. It's obviously not much, as I hate gore myself, but I figured I still needed a warning. If you need more of a description, it's basically a dissection situation but I don't go into much detail, so most likely you'll be fine. But sorry in advance if you're not. xD
Disclaimer: I don't own the characters from DP or the song Stitches by Shawn Mendez.
Danny Phantom stared at the familiar purple ceiling, cold dread twisting in his core. It almost made him ignore the unnecessarily tight, ghost-proof restraints that were currently holding down all his limbs, and the ice cold metal table underneath him.
He was alone in the room, and complete, unbearable silence surrounded him. The only thing the ghost boy could hear was his own panicked breaths.
The one thing he had hoped to avoid had happened. Jack and Maddie had taken him by surprise during a ghost fight, and unfortunately they had succeeded in catching him with some new tech of theirs.
All right, all right, don't panic. Just try to escape while they're still gone. Plan A...
The boy took a deep breath before wildly jerking around on the table, attempting to loosen or break the restraints. He went through power after power: intangibility, duplication, ghost-rays, and even a failed attempt at ice.
Unfortunately, the metal never budged, and the anti-ghost-power feature didn't falter either.
Okay, Plan A was a bust. Plan B...?
Green eyes peered around the table, frantically searching for any levers or buttons that could be triggered easily. The boy silently cursed himself for not becoming familiar with the lab's newly incorporated features before then. It would have been handy to know which of the dozens of buttons would release the table's restraints.
The white-haired ghost was about to throw a ball of ectoplasm towards the control station in hopes of somehow miraculously hitting the right button, but before any actions could be taken, the door loudly creaked open.
Phantom flinched and lifted his head off of the hard table to look around to the best of his ability. He couldn't tell if his constant shivering was from fear or from the freezing surface below him.
Two distinct voices echoed down the stairway, continuing a conversation that Danny hadn't heard the start of.
"-really think we should start off with this?"
"Of course, the best time would be when he's fresh on ectoplasm. The interview and other less invasive experiments can always be conducted afterwards."
"Sure thing, Maddie! I'll get the tools ready."
The ghost flinched again when the two ghost hunters walked into his field of vision. Their hungry glares and purposeful strides definitely weren't a good sign.
"Uh... any chance we can talk this over?"
"Be quiet, ghost boy." The lady in the blue jumpsuit snapped, not even turning around to address the restrained ghost as she gathered materials.
Danny flinched yet again at his mother's sharp tone. Blinking a few times to clear his vision, his glowing green eyes scanned the lab again, looking for any possible way to get out of the situation.
Plan C... try to persuade them to interrogate me first?
"Hey, you know, I'm offering a once-in-a-lifetime exclusive interview if I don't get ripped apart molecule by molecule first-"
"Don't worry, Phantom." Jack bellowed from his side of the room. "They'll be plenty of time for talking after the first experiment!"
Danny groaned inwardly. "But I think I could offer much more honest answers right now, before I get disintegrated into a puddle of goo."
"Too bad. Jack, honey, are you almost done with the surgical tools?"
Phantom chocked on his own saliva. "Surgical tools?! Whoa-whoa-whoa, I understand your thirst for knowledge but cutting me open wouldn't really be that informative anyway-"
"It'll be plenty informative, ghost!" Maddie replied, obvious excitement in her voice as she opened up a notebook and prepared to take notes. "It's not often that we get to dissect such a high-level ghost like you. Plus, it could provide an explanation for why you're so... different compared to other spirits."
Danny chuckled nervously. "You know I could just tell you about why I'm different... Why don't we start off with some nice, non-invasive questions-"
Green eyes widened as a trey of very sharp, very deadly-looking metal tools was carried over.
Vlad, now would be a great time for you to come and save my butt again! Halfa intuition, could that be a thing? A telepathic link would be just awesome right now.
After a few uneventful seconds passed, Danny knew that miraculously developing telepathy wasn't likely to happen. He would have to deal with this one on his own...
All right, here goes the dreaded Plan D...
"Uh... listen, I have something really important to tell you. Like, life changing important."
"What could that be, ghost?" The orange-suited man asked, suspiciously cheerful for the situation.
"You see... you're right, I'm not a normal ghost. There's something that really separates me from the rest, like you noticed..."
The ghost hunters didn't respond, as they were both engrossed in their preparations.
Danny took a shaky breath. "So here it goes... I'm... part human..."
Simultaneous heads whipped up in shock, looking at the restrained ghost before meeting each other's gaze.
"That's impossible, Phantom. How would a ghost be something as ridiculous as 'part human'? Humans and ghosts aren't able to reproduce together, in case you weren't aware, ghost boy." The ghost hunter rolled her eyes.
"Well, when a ghost and a human love each other very much..." Danny explained sarcastically. "No! Of course it wouldn't happen naturally!"
"Well, would you care to explain how such a thing could happen then?" The ghost huntress questioned snarkily, resuming in her work.
"What if, theoretically, a human went into a malfunctioning ghost portal and turned it on from the inside... and it made him half-ghost?"
Maddie raised an eyebrow before slowly approaching the lab table. "Do you know what happens to ectoplasm and human blood when they come in contact?" The female ghost hunter leaned in close to the shaking ghost boy, their faces only inches apart. "They both disintegrate into nothing. Blood and ectoplasm aren't compatible at all. There's no possible way for someone to be both human and ghost, both alive and dead. An encounter in a 'ghost portal' would simply result in death. Not this crazy 'half-ghost half-human' business." Maddie backed away once more. "Jack, are we almost ready?"
"Yes, I'm happy to say that we are!" Jack plodded over with a large syringe filled with light blue liquid, with the largest needle Danny had ever laid eyes on.
"No, no, wait! I still have something important to tell you! A-And show you!" He tried to call up the white rings of light, but nothing happened. Fear instilled itself deep in his stomach. He couldn't transform. Not with the table cancelling out his powers.
"Save it, ghost. Time's a-wasting!" The Fenton father bellowed.
"I-I'm your son!"
Once again, identical expressions of shock appeared on the two Fentons' faces.
"And I can prove it, if you just please turn off the table for just one sec-"
Maddie's surprise dissolved into rage, and she roughly grabbed the ghost around the neck, forcing his frightened eyes to look into hers. "How dare you associate with my son! Now will you please stop with your ridiculous excuses, because nothing you say will change anything!"
"B-but I'm telling the truth!" Danny struggled as he felt his jumpsuit being unzipped, and as the sharp objects on the trey next to him began to come into view. "I'm Danny, your son! Please believe me!" Glowing tears began to trail down onto the metal table. "Mom, Dad, please!"
He was met with silence as his parents didn't bother to respond or halt in their actions.
Okay, definitely time to panic. Plan E.
"JAZZ!" Danny yelled at the top of his lungs. "SAM, TUCKER? ANYONE?! PLEASE-"
"Shut up, Phantom!" Maddie scolded forcefully. "Go ahead and give it to him, Jack. The sooner he's out of it, the better."
The halfa jerked around even more when the needle came back into view. "No! No! You can't do this, please!" Tears began to cascade down the already-existing trails.
There was a prick on his neck, and his vision began to darken. Colors mixed together into a tear-filled blur, and the ghost's panicked hyperventilating began to ease as he began the slow descent into unconsciousness.
"Jack, give him another dose. He's still moving too much."
He couldn't even flinch as he felt another prick on the next and razor-hot slashes on his chest. The burning pain only increased with each passing second, but he was frozen, numb in a half-drugged, barely conscious state.
His eyes remained wide open, staring blackly into nothing as one of his biggest nightmares transformed into reality.
A tall stack of library books leaned dangerously in Jazz's grip as she attempted to unlock the door one-handed, her tongue sticking out in concentration.
"Come on... please don't make me-Finally!" The door swung open, revealing the empty family room.
"Hello, anyone home?" The girl called into the house. She was met with silence.
She had been out on yet another afternoon visit to the library, getting some more books for a school research project. Her parents were likely in the lab, like they always were at that time. Maybe Danny was out fighting ghosts? Or somewhere with Sam and Tucker?
She let her books drop onto the coffee table with a loud thud and walked over to the cracked-open basement door, hearing muffled voices from down the stairs.
"-result of a higher power level?"
"But ghosts don't need organs to exist, that's a fact. What would be the purpose of a ghost replicating the human anatomy like this?"
"There's even quite a bit of red blood mixed with his ectoplasm... Very strange indeed."
"Mom, Dad, what are you doing?" The teenager asked, feeling slightly nervous for some reason.
"Oh, hello honey! We're just performing a dissection. It's pretty gory down here, you may not want to come down." Her mother responded.
Jazz swallowed and raced down the stairs, only seconds later screaming at the sight before her.
"Oh my god! Oh god..." She felt unbelievably nauseous at the blood-stained metal instruments and scarily large pools of swirled green and red. She covered her mouth with her shaking hands to keep from screaming again.
"Jazz, dear, I know how it must look, but Phantom's just a ghost. He doesn't feel pain or have emotions, so there won't be a permanent negative effect on-"
"You don't understand what you've done!" Jazz choked, slowly approaching the lab table and sobbing when she saw the form of her brother closer up. "You just don't understand! Get away from him!" Her voice rose to a shrill scream, strangled sobs forcing their way between her words.
The two Fenton parents backed up in shock at their daughter's outburst, watching in confusion and alarm when she gently placed a hand on the side of the ghost's face. His eyelids were tightly squeezed shut, revealing how much pain her must have been in, even in unconsciousness. Even at his sister's gentle touch, he remained motionless.
"Jazz, he's dangerous!" Her mother scolded, but couldn't help but feel strangely guilty. "Get away from him, now!"
The girl ignored the ghost huntress, sobbing and running her fingers through the dimly glowing white hair. She had to do something... she had to get help! Should she call Sam and Tucker? No... they couldn't see Danny like this... they just couldn't.
With a nervous swallow, Jazz pulled her cellphone out of her pocket, keeping her aqua gaze fixed evenly on her brother's deathly pale face as she hit a number recently added to her speed dial.
For Vlad Masters, it had been a normal day. A sizable chunk of the mountain of paperwork was read through and filled out, and the number of interruptions had been surprisingly low for a Friday workday.
But the uneventful day had been abruptly changed for the worse when he got the call.
The hoarse, horrified tone was enough. With no hesitation, the halfa dissolved into pink light and reformed in a house he would have never thought he'd be visiting, had you asked him a year before.
Of course the main level of the house was quiet. The problem was obviously in the lab, where everything dangerous for Danny was. A sick feeling grew in his chest as he sunk through the floor.
Blood. Ectoplasm. Swirled across the floor and desk like a child's messy finger-painting.
It could have been considered pretty had the situation not been what it was.
He absently noticed two confused ghost hunters standing a few feet back. A shaking, hyperventilating older sister standing right in the middle of the mess.
And Danny. Oh, Danny. Sweet, innocent Danny.
Vlad had only seen him like this in his worst nightmares.
The sight made him want to explode. Burn the whole wretched place down. Unleash his growing rage on the unknowing ghost hunters in the corner, oblivious to what they had done to their own son, slicing him up like a dead frog in a biology classroom.
He vaguely heard voices. A worried, teary-eyed, incredibly scared teenage girl, and suspicious threats towards the ghost from the two parents. But it didn't matter what they said. Nothing could have made him leave.
Monsters! You're both monsters... you don't deserve him.
... He didn't deserve this.
He swallowed back his hate and rage and disgust for his two former friends, leaving just unbridled horror. He forced himself to move forward, coming to a stop beside the metal table, intense nausea building up for the first time in years. It was bad. It was really bad.
He wasn't a doctor. He had patched himself a few times, but never for anything so incredibly major.
It was obvious that any normal human in Danny's shoes might as well be dead by then.
But he wasn't normal. He could still survive...
Had Vlad had even an ounce of trust in the Fentons, he may have forced them to fix what they had done. They surely could have. They were trained scientists, after all, likely equipped with a first aid kit and whatever other supplies were needed, along with the experience.
But if they made a single move towards their 'experiment,' he wouldn't hold back his wrath. They didn't deserve mercy. Not after what they did. And he wouldn't let them get near Danny ever again.
Oh, Badger... how do you get yourself into these things?
Time was wasting. Precious time that the half-dead boy might not have had.
"He's not breathing... he's not-" The shaking girl beside him muttered deliriously.
"If he still was at this point, I would be concerned." Vlad responded in a mutter, referring to the incredible pain breathing would have caused in Danny's state. The only indication that the ghost boy was still alive was his weak ghost signature, barely picked up by the older halfa's ghost sense. "He's still there. But barely."
"Jazz," the tight voice of her mother sounded from behind them, "Where's Danny? Where's your brother?"
Silence. Jazz sniffed, turning her eyes back to the former test subject with eyes shining with tears.
"Answer me, Jasmine. Where is my son?" The lady's voice quivered.
Vlad snarled, red eyes glowering, done with her obliviousness. She flinched, glaring at the ghost that had infiltrated her house. Jack wrapped an arm around her comfortingly, sending an angry glare to his 'friend.'
But the two ghost hunters didn't reach for their weapons, that were clearly within reach. At least Vlad was grateful for that.
More silence, and concentration as the older hybrid followed his instincts. Luckily the lab was kept pretty sterile, so an infection wasn't likely. He went through the motions as best he could. First to clean off as much of the blood as possible. Then stitches, which were unavoidable with the injury in question. Then gauze and bandages.
Then it was time to finally turn off that terrible table. The one keeping Danny from turning back into human and recharging his spent energy.
The wretched table that had kept Danny's secret too well.
"Turn it off." He growled to the two angry parents that had been forced into the corner. "And if you do anything but that, you don't want to know what I'll do."
Maddie glared at him again, still appearing confused about the whole situation, before approaching the control panel of buttons and levers. Her chosen one caused a constant hum that Vlad hadn't noticed to die down, veiling the lab in complete silence. The glow of the table lessened.
Danny's stiff position seemed to settle as well, and he was finally launched into true rest instead of drug-induced unconsciousness.
The rings appeared.
In the next few seconds the silence was broken by an anguished feminine scream, but Vlad didn't bat an eyelid. He couldn't bring himself to care about his former love's despair. Not after what she had done.
Luckily most of the blood was gone, so the sight was much less gory than before. But a very human boy now laid on the table, usual white shirt covering the bandages, but still the truth was evident.
"Danny!"
He whipped around and placed himself between the two shocked parents and their only son. A protective growl halted their movement forward, intense red eyes making them freeze in fear and uncertainty.
He didn't care what they felt. He didn't care how much they wanted to cradle their broken son in their arms.
Vlad turned back around, gently feeling the boy's forehead. It was warmer than usual, and clammy with sweat. The slow rise and fall of his chest had resumed, though, so the man was reassured in that sense.
Jazz had moved since the last time he saw her. She now stood in front of her parents, quietly telling them that yes, Danny was Phantom. Yes, he was half-ghost and had never been malicious.
And yes, they had hurt him beyond belief and would likely never hold his trust again.
Once Vlad was sure that things were as good as they were going to get with the Danny's condition, the boy was scooped into warm arms, the head of thick raven hair resting heavily against the man's shoulder.
He shot a distrustful look towards the two inconsolable parents, then a concerned glance at the teenage girl. She seemed to understand the question he couldn't put into words.
"I think I'll stay here. And let Sam and Tucker know." The girl replied, still obviously shaken. "I'll call to check in, okay?" Noticing his unsure and aggressive expression towards her parents, she spoke up once more. "I'll be fine. Just... take care of him."
He nodded once in understanding, smiling in tired appreciation before disappearing in a flash of light, taking the injured boy along with him.
Nothingness. Warmth surrounding him, and cold inside him somewhere. Though the cold wasn't as cold as he remembered.
Memories flicked through his head. Strange snippets of things he barely recalled. Laying on a table of ice. White hot blades slicing across his chest. Yelling and sobbing and silence and gentle murmurs. Wordless sounds that he heard but couldn't quite comprehend.
He remembered being woken a few times. Once to swallow a handful of pills, and again to ease over in the bed. Hearing a familiar deep voice muttering to him, only to get no response. Countless other times of blindly seeing a white ceiling and then drifting off once again.
Or were those dreams?
Was everything a dream?
It hurt to move. That much he could recall. Every breath brought a sharp ache in his chest and stomach, like an enraged porcupine attempting to break free. Or like sharp, knife-like claws trying to rip their way out, over and over and over in an endless cycle.
He vaguely felt himself shift again, cringing at the harsh twinges of pain it caused. Was it morning yet? When would Jazz come badger him to wake up for school already? He hadn't heard his alarm. Maybe it was the weekend?
Gradually he felt himself become more aware. There were blankets and sheets covering him, covering up the cold. Bright light filtered into his closed eyelids, causing him to turn his head a bit.
There was silence.
Where was the sound of his father's buoyant exclamations about fudge and ghosts? And the smell of eggs and bacon (which were sometimes ectoplasm-infested sentient creatures) that his mom commonly made on Saturdays? And the clacks and whirs of new inventions, and the shouts of excitement when they seemed to function correctly?
Danny had to admit, the silence was refreshing. But what had happened to the loud, boisterous Fenton household?
He didn't flinch when a warm hand settled on his forehead. The warmth seemed to ease the pounding headache he hadn't realized he had.
It must have been his mom. That was a common thing on days she suspected he was sick.
Was he sick? He didn't feel normal. Something wasn't right, he was sure of that.
He sighed and couldn't help but want to drift off again. But the sleepy feeling was fleeting. It was time to wake up.
He let his eyes blink open, seeing the white ceiling first. With a sigh, he attempted to sit up, but grimaced when the aches flared at the movement.
"Careful."
Vlad's hushed voice caused him to jump in the bed, whipping his head towards the source of the sound. Just then he took note of his unfamiliar surroundings, the light purple walls and multiple tall windows.
He wasn't at his house?
"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you. How do you feel?"
The boy frowned at the unusually nervous, tired tone, and confusedly observed the man's strangely unkempt appearance. Usually he was all for looking prim and proper, nothing out of place.
But not today.
What had happened?
Danny swallowed, just then realizing how parched his lips felt, and he laid his head back down on the pillow. "Mm. I feel... okay. But a little weird." He tensed when he moved his own hand to lay over his chest, feeling what seemed to be bandages. So he had gotten hurt somehow? Why did he feel so out of it?
The man responded with a low hmm, and Danny recognized that his smile of reassurance was forced. "You gave me quite a scare, there."
"Oh?" Danny muttered sleepily. "How long was I out?"
"Since Friday afternoon."
"What's today?" Danny asked, a little alarmed that he had slept for longer than he expected.
"Sunday, almost noon."
The boy raised his eyebrows in surprise. He's been out for almost three days? What could have happened to cause that? He felt an odd compelling to get out of bed, a sudden alertness that made his nerves tingle.
When Vlad noticed what the younger halfa was doing, a gentle hand made its way to his shoulder. "Just take it easy. Try not to rip your stitches."
Stitches? Oh, so he was injured, and badly it seemed. Did it have anything to do with the disturbing, dazed visions plaguing his mind?
He felt the bed jolt slightly as the man sat next to him, a steady arm helping him to sit up. The pain returned, his whole body aching at even the slow movement.
He was right before; the usual cold was all but gone, replaced with what felt like feverish warmth. He felt sick, not nauseous, but somehow not right.
"I don't feel so good." He heard himself comment, bringing a hand up to brush against his wrapped up torso.
He could hear Vlad's frown when he answered. "I'm concerned that your core might be... damaged. Or at least injured."
"Damaged?" He couldn't keep the alarm from his voice. His ghost core, the constant ice that was present right below his heart? What had happened to it?
"Do you have any symptoms? Please tell me if there's anything that may be a problem."
"Uh... I dunno." Danny leaned into the other halfas embrace, longing to be comforted. "I feel hot. And pretty weak. And I don't think I could use my powers if I tried." He said honestly, feeling his usual supply of ecto-energy nowhere near full power. Maybe that had to do with his core, being... hurt somehow. He looked down at one hand, trying and failing to turn it invisible. He had been right; just that one attempt brought on a new wave of exhaustion that made him close his eyes, reeling from the dizziness it caused.
"Here." A cold glass of water was held by the man next to him. With a shaky hand, Danny took the glass, careful not to spill as he raised it to his lips.
He had to admit, the ice cold liquid sliding down his throat did make him feel better. The unfamiliar heat seemed to recede for a few seconds before returning.
He took a few more cautious sips before setting down the water on the nightstand and swinging his feet around to the side of the bed. Dizziness forced itself into Danny's head once more, causing him to groan and blink away the spots.
Vlad seemed to notice what he wanted to do. "Do you think you're well enough to stand?"
The boy shrugged, not entirely sure of how far he could push himself. There were some very human needs that needed to be taken care of, though, so it wasn't like he had much of a choice.
Jazz sighed, ascending the lab stairs once more into the family room. For the past few days since the incident, her parents hadn't come upstairs for anything other than eating. And they refused to talk much, either... but they did have good reason.
Being the psychiatrist she was, she was concerned for them. Maybe Danny had faced the most emotional trauma, but that didn't mean Maddie and Jack weren't also scarred from the experience.
Sam and Tucker were on their way over. Jazz had called the evening of the incident and explained what she could, leaving out most of the grusome details. So the two loyal best friends were completely up to date on their friend's condition, at least with all the knowledge Jazz had about it.
She couldn't say the same for her parents; they still hadn't heard Danny's whole story, nor were they aware of his current condition. But the orange-haired girl planned to wait until her brother had recovered, and let him explain himself. It was his secret, after all.
That is, if he recovered. And if he could stand to be near his parents again.
Her thoughts were cleared by the doorbell, and without waiting to be let in the two freshmen entered their best friend's house.
Jazz looked over to them, smiling in greeting but remaining silent as she rested on the couch.
"Have you heard from Danny? Is he okay? What about-"
"Sam, slow down." The older teenager interrupted in slight amusement. "Danny's fine. I got an update yesterday."
"So he's still at Vlad's place?" The techno-geek questioned, joining the older sister on the couch shortly followed by the goth girl.
"As far as I know, yes. I was thinking we could call, right now."
At the suggestion, both of the teens' faces lit up, smiling in anticipation of hearing directly from their friend once again.
Jazz hit speed dial for the umpteenth time in the past few days and set her phone on speaker mode, the three high schoolers waiting in anticipation for an answer.
"Uh... hello?" It was Danny.
"Danny!" Sam, Tucker and Jazz exclaimed simultaneously in excitement.
"Hey, guys! It's so great to hear you again!"
"Same to you, dude!"
"How are you doing?"
"When will you be all the way better?"
"Slow down, you two!" Jazz couldn't hold back a laugh now that she was talking to her brother again.
The staticky voice laughed back. "It's fine. I'm doing okay."
"Just okay?" Sam asked, worry laced through her voice.
"Well I, uh, get dizzy sometimes, but things are improving. Vlad says to just give it time."
"How is he, by the way?"
"Oh, the Fruitloop? He's fine." The boy lowered his voice. "But he's really boring. You guys better come over soon or I'm gonna lose my mind."
The three heard a muffled, "I heard that," through the phone.
"No you didn't." The boy responded back loudly.
Whatever Vlad's response was, it wasn't picked up by the phone. Danny snickered before turning his attention back to the phone.
"So, how are things in Amity? And what about the ghosts?"
"Don't worry, we've been handling it." Tucker responded. "Skulker attacked yesterday but he hasn't come back since realizing you were gone. I guess he's after the usual." He grinned, referring to the hunters weird desire for Phantom's pelt.
"Great. Well at least he's less likely to show up there again, I guess." Danny sighed. "I'm sort of out of commission right now. My powers sort of randomly spazz out. Like, even worse than the first month."
"Really? Why do you think that is?" Sam asked, concern hidden in her tone.
"Something to do with my ghost core being injured or something? The Fruitloop seems to understand it more than me." They could almost hear his shrug. "I'm fine, though. It's not as bad right now as it was on Sunday. I'm feeling better every day. Hopefully I'll be all healed up soon."
"Yeah..." said Jazz. "I sure hope so. We miss you, little brother!"
"Yeah, it's not the same without our town superhero. The news started to report on you being missing." Tucker commented, referring to Amity's news channel getting the story of a lifetime with Phantom seemingly disappearing into thin air, quite ironically for a ghost.
"Well, hopefully I'll be able to return soon... and nothing major happens before I do." Danny muttered, trailing off into silence. "Uh... how are Mom and Dad?" His tone noticeably become more guarded.
"They're... not the same. They've been in the lab since..." Jazz swallowed. "They're upset. And they want to fix things... they miss you, Danny."
"Oh..." Danny responded quietly, and the three teenagers felt pity at their friend's sadness. "Well... tell them that... I forgive them. And that I still love them... no matter what."
Jazz felt tears rising to her eyes, and she held back a sob. "Okay." Sam and Tucker looked at each other, a bit uncomfortable hearing the incredibly personal family conversation.
"I've gotta go." The boy said simply, tone carefully disguised.
"All right, dude. Hope you feel better!"
"Keep in touch, okay Danny?" Sam pleaded.
"I will." He took a shaky breath. "Thanks for calling, you guys. Talk to you later?"
"Of course." The orange-haired girl blew out a breath of air she didn't realize she was holding once the line disconnected.
You watch me bleed until I can't breathe
I'm shaking, falling onto my knees
And now that I'm without your kisses
I'll be needing stitches
I'm tripping over myself
I'm aching, begging you to come help
And now that I'm without your kisses
I'll be needing stitches...
jeez... I feel like everything I post on this story is just plain depressing. xD I guess I save most of the happy stuff for the main series. I promise I'll try to write something more lighthearted soon.
DON'T WORRY FRIENDS! A part 2 will be coming out eventually... admittedly not much happier but still, It'll go into Danny meeting his parents again and stuff. So look out for that along with happier one-shots!
Anyway, as always I hope you enjoyed, and see ya next time! :)