Dan placed the last of the groceries into their new refrigerator before finally standing up straight. Most of the contents were for Danny, seeing as the full ghost didn't need to eat, but part of him couldn't help but wonder if he still liked any of the things in there. Burgers and pizza certainly weren't very pleasant anymore, but maybe something a bit more bitter would be to his liking.

Turning to Danny, who was in the middle of biting a banana popsicle with his fangs, Dan asked. "Did you like the mall?"

Danny removed the icy treat from his mouth with half of it and the stick missing. He then removed said stick from his mouth before replying. "I liked all of the cool stuff we took, but the people were a little mean. Do we get to kill them later? I haven't gotten to do that since we got here."

"We'll see." Dan said, ruffling the boy's hair just as a knock sounded from the door. "Human form."

Danny groaned, finishing his popsicle before reverting to his human-self. Said human-self now sported a big white and black hoodie his father had gotten him, the sleeves covering his hands and hood pushing his hair into his face. He liked how warm it was, and it made him feel a bit more ghostly while human. He figured that was good, since he'd been using it a lot lately.

Dan finally reached the door after disguising himself, pulling it open to reveal Jazz, Tucker, and Sam. He couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at them-particularly Sam since he didn't remember seeing her. But Jazz was definitely a surprise too, seeing as he was pretty sure he never mentioned an address. "What are you doing here? And how did you know where I lived?"

Jazz spoke up, smiling kindly at him. "I'm Tucker's math tutor. I stopped by to help him with some work, and he told me all about his "new neighbor." So I thought we'd drop by and say hello. Oh, and this is Sam. She's one of Tucker's friends."

Dan looked at the goth, who watched him with that suspicious look she'd always had when meeting someone new, before turning and stepping further into the apartment. "Well, come on in then."

The trio stepped inside and looked around-admiring the new furniture. It was all quite dark, with black-out curtains covering the windows and sporadic lamps in the corners. Two doors lied on one wall-with one being open to reveal Danny's room, and another being presumably Dan's. A final door lied on a different wall, being cracked open just enough to reveal that it was a bathroom. There was also a balcony, but a dark screen door kept any substantial light from coming in.

"So, you guys vampires?" Tucker asked as the full ghost shut and locked the front door.

"No, just solitary." Dan said before returning to the kitchen, where Danny stood on the counter and watched their visitors. "Somebody seems grumpy."

Danny pouted, turning to his father with his arms crossed. "Those were the people that hurt you and me. Why are they here? Why aren't we hurting them?"

Dan scanned the halfa's sorrowful face briefly, before he sighed and sat on the counter with the boy. Danny sat beside him, waiting for an explanation with open ears. "I know what they did, but right now we have to be nice to them. They're going to help us get home-to all of your favorite things-but before they can do that they have to trust us. That means playing nice."

Danny looked up at that. "Like with the survivor camps?"

"Exactly." Dan said with a smirk, as the halfa leapt up from the counter with renewed cheer.

He approached the older group, looking up at them with a big smile and a light tone as he addressed Sam. "Hi! I'm Danny! I really like your outfit."

Laughing lightly, Sam bent down to meet the boy's eyes-unable to resist being nice to him. She figured it was because he was young and couldn't hurt a fly, but Dan could tell the boy had been practicing how to subdue his natural ghostly aura. It became clear pretty quickly that Danny made a lot of things at least a little nervous. "I'm Sam. How old are you, Danny?"

The tone Sam used was weird coming from her, as even the halfa felt a little off, but her answered anyway. With a confident smirk he raised up both hands. "I'm 10 years old!"

The ray of charm was broken however, as Tucker shouted from beside a computer desk, a box in his hands. He was staring in shock, as a "No way!" sounded and had everyone staring at him. "You've got a copy of Doomed!?"

A small smile unwillingly formed on Dan's face as he approached Tucker and plucked it from his hands. "Yeah, I saw that in the store today and decided to buy it. I loved this game when I was younger. Haven't played it in a few years..."

"What was your childhood like?" Jazz asked, eyes both calculating and worried when she saw Dan's smile fade.

He found himself telling most of the truth, which he assumed Danny picked up on when he leaned in to listen. "It was what you'd expect, I guess. I grew up with a bratty sister who practically raised me since my parents were never around, but that was a long time ago. They're dead now."

"Aw... I'm sorry man." Dan shrugged at Tucker's condolences and moved to sit on the couch.

"It's nothing. While I had loved my family, they don't mean that much to me anymore. Especially now that I have Danny." The full ghost explained, chuckling when Danny ran up to him and hugged him, taking his place on the dark leather sofa. His eyes then locked onto the television as soon as Dan turned it on.

A silence then attempted loom over them, but Dan broke it while a chorus of laughs rang out from the TV. "Just what do you hope to gain out of this little visit anyway?"

Jazz shared a glance with Sam and Tucker before replying with a sigh. "We were curious about you. It's pretty obvious that there's more to you than you let on."

"There's more to everybody." Dan said with a dismissive wave. False-blue eyes then looked up at a clock hanging on the wall, before the full ghost got to his feet. "It's getting late. You three should head home now."

"But-" Jazz was cut off by the sudden strength that guided her, Sam, and Tucker out of the front door and into the hallway. A click of the lock later, and she found she had more questions than answers. Dan however seemed to think she had plenty of answers, as he turned off the lights and shed his disguise, returning to the couch with Danny. He couldn't help the chuckle that shook his chest as Danny remained enthralled by the screen.

Just like he used to...

Dan really couldn't imagine his life without his ghostly son anymore. A destructive fireball of life, that not only kept up with him in all aspects of combat, but would probably surpass him one day. A sweet lamb that was full of cuddles and joy, sometimes overbearing but never unappreciated. A son that he never wanted to leave him.

The ghost leaned back on the arm of the couch with Danny, who unconsciously shifted with him. Dan wondered if this is what Jack and Maddie had felt like when he was young. Before he was a ghost anyway-the very thing they wanted to rip apart and dissect. He found himself doubting it. They were seldom around, preferring to stay in that lab and tinker with that hole in the wall all day long. He'd never do that to Danny.

The halfa didn't deserve that kind of treatment. He deserved to grow up without fear of any kind of rejection-without anything holding him back. And Dan would make sure he did, even if he picked up some of Dan's bad habits along the way. And speaking of...

Dan gently shook the dozing half ghost's shoulder, red eyes meeting baby-blue's. "Hey Danny, do you want to go ghost hunting?"

And like that, sleep was gone from the boy's eyes. He leapt from Dan's arms and into his ghost form, big grin on his face as he nodded. The action alone was enough to lift Dan's spirits after his mental tangent. And soon enough he found himself tearing a hole into the Ghost Zone, still full of creatures ripe for the picking.

Danny wrapped his arms around Dan's neck, giggling eagerly as they entered the realm. Both felt much more at ease, especially the full ghost as he watched the halfa scan the area. "Did you find one?"

Danny made a humming noise as he searched, before his eyes landed on a shapeless blob in the distance. The corners of his mouth pulled back into a wide grin, as his hands lit up with shining energy. And, with a whisper like ice, Danny said his favorite word.

"Victim..."

A/N: You know, while this certainly isn't my favorite chapter, I really like the thought of Dan and Danny robbing the shopping mall blind before going out for pizza. It's a quality father/son activity, along with enacting the genocide of several ghosts. I also imagine that Danny's "Victim" gets a lot more disturbing as he gets older. In a way it's like what happened with the Box Ghost in Ultimate Enemy, and I find it adorable.

Also, quick apologies for not having this out earlier today. School is kind of a thing that gets in the way of my schedule sometimes. But I'll try to get the next chapter done a bit earlier. Hopefully. (I really can't make any promises.)