Chapter 6

Oh, I suppose I forgot to mention it last chapter, but the bad weather jokes were totally on purpose. For those of you who haven't read my bio yet, I'm a Meteorology major. There might even be a chase today!

Wow..that's a lot of you reading...It boggles my mind still that people read this. Do you guys read this multiple times or are there actually that many people reading?

Glad you enjoyed the last chapter and the fact that Danny's back. I figured as much. Here's the next one! Two words: Blanket Scenerio.

Disclaimer: see chapter one.

Line Break

Clockwork: Introductions? Fine. I am Clockwork, master of time. I've been charged with the task of eliminating your future, so that never happens.

Line Break

Lilith struggled to stay awake. During the flight to the portal she realized she was more tired than she had originally thought. By the time she made it to the basement lab and came out of invisibility she could hardly stand.

Her physical pains had started to agonize her the moment the battle adrenaline had left her body. She managed to lean against the portal operations machine. She pressed the button for it to open. Luckily for her she hadn't needed to override the fingerprint scanner. She did have Fenton DNA in her.

"Just a few more steps, Lily, and then you'll be home and safe." She muttered to herself, incoherent to anyone who might be around her. Looking up longingly at the portal one last time she collapsed on the floor.

"I just want to go home…" She thought as she lay there. "I want to go home…" She breathed.

Almost as soon as she was down a soft, comforting voice filled the air. "It's okay. I'm not going to hurt you. You're safe here…" The male voice was reassuring enough.

"Dad?" Was her last thought before going into unconsciousness.

Lilith woke up to the ever familiar soft hum of the ghost shield cage that surrounded her room. She lazily rubbed her eyes, wondering how she had gotten back home and in her pajamas. She decided that someone from the Ghost Zone had found her, considering she had been so close to the portal and that she hadn't made it back by curfew.

She stretched her body, still feeling a bit groggy. The events of the night before were coming back to her quickly. While she was stretching and remembering these things she bumped into someone.

Yes, someone. Lilith heard a deep voice groan beside her as she dared to look. A question came to her mind.

"Why is Ted next to me in my bed? Hey, that rhymes! I've gotta tell the Ghostwriter next time I see him."

It was only after that thought that she screamed.

Ted woke up to the unpleasant noise. He quickly rolled his body over and shot straight up upon seeing Lilith in her pajamas and himself still in most of his formal attire. She stopped screaming for just a moment before they both then screamed together, desperately trying to scramble away from the other.

"Ted, what are you doing here?" Lilith was the first to get a grip on the situation and decide that questions needed answering.

"I don't know!" The panicking teenage boy defended. "Last thing I remember before blanking out was this crazy ghost kidnapping us and taking us through the ghost portal! And…and something weird was happing with you, Lily. One second you were a ghost and then you changed back into you!" He said quickly.

Lilith slowly lowered the lamp she had been holding. "You…you saw…?" She said in absolute horror.

"Saw what? I saw a lot of crazy stuff last night!" Ted ranted as he paced across the room. "First a ghost attacks the school and this new ghost-kid comes and saves the day. I went looking for you and I figured you'd gone to the old Fenton house to get a weapon or something then I saw the ghost-kid turn into you! I'm just very confused right now." He said finally, sounding defeated.

Lilith contemplated her options for a moment before saying, "Go ahead and sit down, Ted. You don't want to be standing up for this." He complied. "What you saw last night…well, we're in no immediate danger so, here…was this what you saw?" She said as she transformed into her ghostly appearance.

Ted nodded dumbly with wide eyes. "How…?"

"I am the ghost-kid you saw last night." Lilith admitted. "I was trying so hard to keep it a secret…the last thing I need are the Guys in White on my tail and then I'd never be able to go back to high school and then I'd miss out on possibly my only opportunity left to be human." She sputtered quickly. "I've lived in the Ghost Zone almost my whole life, I hardly ever leave. Sometimes it's like I'm not even human…" It felt strangely good to finally say it out loud, but she still couldn't help feeling misserable about it.

Ted noticed that tears were forming in her eyes. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his handkerchief. He walked over to Lilith and handed it to her saying, "If it really means that much to you, I won't tell anyone your secret. I promise."

"Thank you." She said before giving him a hug and transforming back to her appearance Ted was more familiar with.

"So…what happened to you, to make you like…like…?" Ted wasn't sure exactly how to put it or where to take the conversation.

"Half-ghost" Lilith provided, still wiping away a few stray tears. "I'm half ghost and half human. Some ghosts call the hybrid a 'halfa'. Halfa ghost and halfa human." She laughed weakly. "I was born this way, actually, nothing special about it. The way it was explained to me is that I'm human, only with ghost powers and the ability to change my appearance. As far as I know…I'm the only one." She finished sadly.

"How can you be the only one?" Ted asked. "If it's a genetic condition I'm sure other people have it no matter how rare it is."

"It is genetic, but not the way you think. I got it from my dad. He was the original ghost-kid." As long as the secret was out she figured she might as well tell him everything.

"Whoa whoa, hold on just a second there. Are you telling me that Danny Phantom is your dad? Is he here? Speaking of which, where are we?" Ted babbled.

"Gee, and I thought I was a spazz a minute ago. In order, yes he's my dad, no he's not here and currently we're in my room." Lilith said a bit exasperated.

Ted gave Lilith a critical look. "Your room is surrounded by a cage of energy. Why is your room surrounded by a cage of energy?"

"To keep me in, you could technically leave if you wanted to, but you wouldn't know the way back to the portal. It's a ghost shield. Humans can go through it just fine." She said amazingly calm.

He looked about to say something several times and kept giving his friend weird looks. "We were taken through the portal…are we…?"

"In the Ghost Zone? Yes. In my room, in the home I've known for most of my life, also yes." She said again.

Ted stared. "When Cam said you lived out of town he wasn't kidding. You actually live in the Ghost Zone?" He asked again, still not really believing it. "And you're part ghost?"

"Yes, to all questions." She answered all of his questions calmly.

"So, do you know the ghost who took us here then? He was really big and…"

"…he had a metal battle suit?" She asked and getting a nod and a confused look from Ted. "That would be Skulker. He's the uncle I've told you guys about."

"And this is where we make introductions." The subject of the conversation said, pushing a green button and putting away the shield. "You are in a lot of trouble, Whelp. I warned you something like this would happen and now things have gotten out of control."

Lilith visibly gulped and involuntarily took a step back. This did not go unnoticed by the human bystander.

"You're afraid of him? Lily, you just beat up a freaky ghost last night. You could kick this guy's butt." Ted was bewildered.

Lilith didn't respond and painfully thought back to her almost one-sided argument with Box Lunch and Youngblood, but gave him a look that basically amounted to, 'You're not helping, shut up'.

"Then the issue arises concerning you." Skulker turned his attention to Ted. "You saw too much last night and although you may be able to keep her secret doesn't mean you're off the hook. I'm keeping you here until I know it is safe to bring you back."

"You can't keep me here!" Ted shouted defensively.

"What?" Skulker rhetorically questioned, genuinely surprised. "Yes I can! I am the Ghost Zone's greatest hunter! I can make it so you'd never be able to escape!" He said indignantly.

"Skulker, you literally can't keep him here." Lilith provided, giving the ghost a pointed look. "You can't even keep me locked up for long periods of time."

"Yeah! Wait, he really can't keep me here?"

Lilith sighed. "Ghosts normally can't touch humans in the Ghost Zone. The roles are reversed, humans are the ghosts here."

"I still don't get this." Ted finally said dejectedly.

"We need to talk, Whelp. Now" Skulker interrupted, getting back to the important subject at hand.

"You're right. We do." Lilith said evenly. "First off, who is Plasmius?"

As Skulker gritted his teeth the three heard a noise in the entryway. Putting the conversation on pause for just a moment, Box Lunch came flying in at top speed. The ghost quickly positioned herself next to Lilith and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Anybody want a cookie? Freshly made!" She advertised.

"Not now, Pest. Get out before I put your pelt in my living room!" Skulker said, annoyed.

"Stuff it, Frog-boy." Box Lunch shot back, switching from sweet to aggressive. "You've already corrupted poor Lily enough. She doesn't need to be involved in this." She hissed.

"Involved in what?" Lilith questioned a bit angrily. She wanted answers.

"Well it's a little too late for that now, Pest. Plasmius knows she exists. It's only a matter of time before he learns the whole story." Skulker said, still speaking to Box Lunch.

For the first time since Lilith had met her, Box Lunch looked afraid. This was not like her best friend at all. She sighed deeply. "Lily, there's something we all need to tell you. All of us, as in the ghosts, and we've only kept it from you because we care about you." She defended. "We probably should have told you and we should all have to REAP HORRIBLE FATES for it. I don't want to lose my best friend."

"What is it? What is so bad that you couldn't tell me?" Lilith said, a bit pained and slightly frightened.

"Your father is still alive, child." Skulker said finally. "So are your mother and their friend. Plasmius is the one who is holding them captive. You were incredibly fortunate that the Fright Knight did not find you all those years ago, otherwise you would be captive with them now."

Several emotions passed through Lilith at once. She wasn't sure what to think. She had grown up thinking she was the only human-ghost hybrid in existence. All her life she had secretly hoped that she wasn't and to hear her parents were still alive was…more than wonderful. She didn't really think about being angry at Skulker or Box Lunch, she was too sad about not being told the truth.

Tears of sadness and joy started to form in her eyes without Lilith noticing. When she did notice, it was when Box Lunch had her in a hug. "I know it's been hard on you." She said to Lilith. "But Plasmius is powerful. Way more so than any of us and keeping everything a secret was the easiest way to make sure he never found you."

Lilith didn't dare ask anything as she allowed Skulker to continue.

"Plasmius had been after your father ever since he learned of his ghost powers, always to take him under his wing. Those ghost vultures you fought before, yes I knew about that, "He scolded quickly. "Were his idiot spies and the resemblance between you and your father is very close."

"He's probably looking for you now, Lily. Your dad never joined Plasmius, if he had, well; let's just say the results for the rest of us wouldn't be pretty. You remember all the stories about Pariah Dark."

"How did you keep Lily hidden for so long, if this guy is so fearsome?" Ted asked. The two ghosts turned to him in annoyance. The human boy had been similarly annoyed at being ignored this whole time.

"This is because I work for Plasmius." Skulker admitted. He watched Lilith's reaction; it was a mix of a little confusion at first and then fear. Normally Skulker would have been ecstatic to see that look on her face as she had never truly feared him. Yet now was not the time and again he felt the foreign feeling of guilt- the very, very slightest of it., that is. Yet it was something he'd never had before Lilith had come into the picture.

"After going into the lab and finding you I reported back and I omitted our meeting. He would have asked me to bring you to him and I wanted to keep you for myself, to complete my collection." He finished for the moment.

Box Lunch sent Skulker an angry glare for his last sentence. She turned to her friend. "Lily, beware, don't do anything you might regret." She warned. "If Plasmius gets a hold of you I don't know what I would do…" she trailed off.

"Neither of you will be going to school on Monday." Skulker said, addressing Lilith and Ted. "There's a good chance that Plasmius will be there, waiting. He at least doesn't know you live here."

"I need to go." Lilith said quietly.

"Are you insane? What did I just get done telling you!" Skulker shouted. It amused the kids as he sounded like an angry parent, which he claimed all too often he wasn't.

"I need to get away. I just ... need to be by myself for a while." Lilith said as she ran out of the lair. No one stopped her.

"Is she going to be okay?" Ted asked in worry.

He didn't get an answer.

Scene Change!

Lilith was trying hard not to cry as she flew as fast as she could around the Ghost Zone. She knew her way around here better than the human world, but on this trip she found herself looking at unfamiliar landmarks.

She was deeply hurt and elated at the same time. Her biological family was alive. That was a great relief. The fact that they were prisoners of Plasmius didn't matter. She was already planning on what she would say to them. Since she was a little girl she had dreamt of them holding her, saying that they loved her.

That's not to say that she didn't love her adoptive family deeply. They returned it in strange ways and she knew it well. But she longed for human embrace. None of the ghosts ever gave her terms of endearment, the exception being Box Lunch who she had grown up with. She needed that badly and not from a friend.

She had been hoping that going to high school would help with that. She knew in her head that she was human, but didn't always feel that way in her heart.

She landed on solid ground, not really noticing the building she was at. She leaned against the wall thinking she could avoid contact with everyone. She started to cry softly putting her head in her lap, letting all of her bottled up emotions pour out.

"I didn't realize that onions could have that strong of an effect on you." A soft, yet steadily firm voice said. "Perhaps I should have planted carrots instead." He pondered out loud lightly.

Lilith forced herself to stop crying enough to respond. She looked up, but didn't need to. She recognized the voice and it was a wave of reassurance. She stood up and hugged the old ghost. "Clockwork…it's really good to see you again…" She said between sniffles. She didn't get to give hugs much, so she took them whenever the occasion arrose.

"You remember me." He said with a smile, but not surprisingly. "You have an excellent memory. Why don't we go inside so you can tell me what I already know? It might help." He offered.

"How could I ever forget you?" Lilith said as Clockwork helped her inside the tower. "You helped me not be afraid of the other ghosts when I first got here. I always used to wonder if you would ever show up again." She confessed. "I was almost convinced that you were just a dream."

"You get attached to others easily, especially when you were younger. That's just who you are." Clockwork said as he flew up and with a wave of his staff a portal of a past time appeared. Lilith recognized the people on viewing screen.

"Mom…Dad…Clockwork, why are you showing me this?" She asked, confused. Her parents were teenagers and in a younger Mr. Lancer's classroom doing homework.

Clockwork smiled. "Think of it as a belated fourteenth birthday present. I know it's not as good as the one I gave you for your tenth birthday, but more meaningful I think."

"You got me something on my tenth birthday? I don't remember…" She trailed off as she saw herself at age ten on the viewing screen, using the Ghostly Wail for the first time by accident. "How can you give someone an attack?"

"You're just like your father. You learn things when you need to or by watching someone else." Clockwork said cryptically as he showed Lilith Danny using the Ghostly Wail. "Remember this?"

Lilith furrowed her eyebrows in thought. "That was a dream I had the night before…are you saying that's how I learned it?"

"You have a lot of responsibility on your shoulders, although right now you don't realize it. You're only fourteen after all. Here, enjoy the show." He told her with a smile, not truly answering her question.

Lilith watched as the images panned in and out on the view screen. A lot of the events were of her parents as they were kids, fighting many of the ghosts that she knew. She watched her father in action and wondered no longer why the ghost community hated him so much. Already she was starting to feel more connected to both her parents, listening to their conversations and seeing them interact with others.

Other 'slides' were of her parents' college days. The one that really caught her attention was the one of their wedding…

"Sam! I can't find my tie!" Danny yelled, knocking on her door.

"Danny can't you wait until tonight to see me naked? Isn't it bad luck for you to see me before the wedding anyway?" Sam said bitterly, trying to wiggle into her dress. Danny blushed madly. He didn't want to push his luck at all. It was bad enough as it was.

"Fine, Tucker! Have you seen my tie?" He yelled as he walked away from Sam's dressing room.

"Ask Sam, she'll know!" Came another voice.

"Tucker! Not funny!"

"I never said it was!" Said Tucker's defensive voice.

The scene switched to the ceremony. Danny had found his tie and was pacing around nervously up at the alter as Tucker tried to get him to be still.

"Something's going to happen…" Danny muttered to himself. "No way is this going off without a hitch…"

Tucker watched his best friend in slight worry. "Danny, the ghosts are so afraid of you, they wouldn't dare…"

"Don't finish that, Tucker. Murphy's Law has plagued us from the beginning and it doesn't take days off like Walker does." Danny blurted out sternly. He then thought back to that disturbing incident in which they had found about that little fact.

"I'll never get that image of Walker in a bathing suit out of my head…" Tucker said, looking sick to his stomach.

"Same here." Danny agreed, also looking a bit squeamish.

Tucker then found himself scanning the people in attendance. His eyes found something that seemed to disturb him even more. "Dude…this probably isn't the best time, but check and see who's sitting in the back of the room…"

Danny looked. He instantly regretted it. "I didn't invite him. Sam didn't invite him. Why is he here?" He glared at Tucker.

His best man for the ceremony put his hands up in defense. "If I have to say something, I'd say that your dad invited him."

The view went to the Fenton's in the first row, grinning wildly.

"Actually, I invited him."

"Jazz…we've had talks about this…" He told his sister, and for today, Sam's bridesmaid.

"And it's time for you to face your fears. By inviting Vlad to your wedding you overcome your fears by thinking about the only thing that makes you feel more strongly at the moment. In this case, getting married to Sam."

"I don't want to face my fear that could kill me at any time he wants."

"It'll do you good, Danny. Trust me."

Danny groaned, but his mood instantly got better as the music started to pick up and he saw Sam coming down the isle. He glanced at Tucker, who was grinning like a madman.

"I've known this day was coming since junior high. I deserve to enjoy this." He said smugly.

Sam finally made it all the way down. Her father gave Danny a pointed glare before sitting down with his wife. Neither of Sam's parents had remembered consenting to this marriage of their only child. Danny grinned. There was a reason they would never remember.

"Danny." Sam hissed. "Stop grinning, you're looking too happy." So said the Goth in the black wedding dress.

"Just thinking about tonight…" He said cryptically.

Sam glared at Tucker. "Stop poisoning his mind, Tucker."

Tucker looked hurt. "Me? He's just as hormone driven as I am! Don't blame me!"

A loud clearing of the throat alerted the friends that there were people watching and that the ceremony needed to continue on time. The three smiled sheepishly.

It all looked normal, until one of Sam's little cousins came running in screaming. "Ghost! There's a ghost in the other room!"

The entire chapel went up in an uproar. Danny glared at the double doors his parents had just run through, ghost catching gear in hand. The three friends (and sibling off to the side trying to get people to calm down) seemed to be the only ones not surprised by this.

"For the record, I blame Sam." Tucker said quickly, as Danny ducked behind the alter. He came back out as his alter ego.

"I'm going to take care of this quick. I am getting married today and whatever ghost that is back there is going to be in a world of hurt." He said as he flew off.

Sam glared at Tucker. "Weren't you the one to suggest we go to Danny's house that day? To 'look at all the cool gadgets' in his basement."

"Yeah, but you were the one who told him to go into the portal. Besides, he's totally your responsibility now."

The view changed to the reception room, where all the gifts for the soon to be newly wed couple were stored.

"I am the Box Ghost! As soon as I rid you of your useless contents, your perfect and priceless cardboard glory will belong to me!"

"You're going down now, Ghost!" Yelled a red-clad figure, despite the fact that she had been in one of the bridesmaid's gowns not thirty seconds earlier.

Danny floated around as he watched the exchange. "I'd forgotten about that…" he said mostly to himself. He turned invisible as he watched his parents run after the Box Ghost as well. "Maybe we should have had a ghost hunting contest at the reception. We've certainly got enough hunters around here…"

He watched as Valerie and his parents mercilessly pounded on the Box Ghost. "Oh, well, I'd better take him out of his misery." Danny said, taking out the Fenton thermos.

"They do finish the ceremony," Clockwork said reassuringly. "After three more appearances by ghosts. Your dad was quite the popular one around here."

"They…they seem really cool." Lilith said with an increasingly bigger smile on her face. "Box Lunch's dad was really chubby back then…" she laughed.

"I knew you would enjoy that one." Clockwork said. "How about this one?" Clicking a button on his staff, the view changed to a hospital setting. Sam was in labor and screaming bloody murder at Tucker.

"I'm going to kill him!" Sam screamed as one of the nurses continued to encourage her.

"Sam, you can't kill Danny. First, we don't know where he is or what happened and second, he's already half dead." Tucker said trying to think of reasons to make Sam not want to kill their missing friend.

"I meant Vlad, I have my suspicions, but that's beside the point. Keeping rubbing!" Sam yelled. Tucker diligently continued massaging her shoulders. "You're not doing it hard enough! Put some backbone into it!"

Tucker looked around nervously. "But Sam…there are doctors in here…" He whispered.

Sam didn't really care enough to comfort Tucker about his continual fear of hospitals, all she was focused on was getting this baby out of her! …and then go destroy horribly a certain billionaire.

Suddenly Sam stopped screaming. It was soon replaced by crying.

Lilith looked closely. "That's me!" She exclaimed.

"Congratulations, it's a girl." Said the nurse as she wrapped the newborn up in blankets.

Sam and Tucker's eyes widened. "Let me see her, quick." Sam said without hesitation. The nurse did so without thinking anything of it.

The two friends looked at the eyes first. Both breathed a giant sigh of relief when they saw that the eyes were blue. "She got Danny's eyes." Tucker said complimentary.

Suddenly, the newborn's eyes turned green. The two blinked. "She really got Danny's eyes." Tucker concluded as the baby went invisible in Sam's arms.

"And his powers. I knew this was going to happen! I'm going to kill him." She said purposefully.

"He did warn us it might be genetic. Besides, you have to kill Vlad first."

"True and Lilith is going to help." Sam said, cuddling her now visible child fondly.

"Oh, no, you're naming her after the sack of flour? Sam, you got way too attached to that project." Tucker groaned.

"Shut up Tucker. Help me hide her ghost powers from the nurses." She glared.

Tucker glanced out the door. He didn't like this. "Modeling Agency. Modeling Agency." He repeated to himself. He opened one eye as he spotted a nurse going down the hallway.

"Hel-lo nurse!" He wolf-whistled. He proceeded to walk out to talk to said nurse.

Sam narrowed her eyes and looked lovingly at her child. "Don't worry Lilith; they'll all get what's coming to them. You can watch mommy destroy Uncle Tucker in a game of Doomed."

The scene faded. Lilith grinned at Clockwork. "Thank you." She said. "I think I really needed to see that."

"I'm only doing my job," Said the time master with his knowing grin. "The Observants may argue with me later, but I like you too much to care. Now it's time for you to be getting back home. They'll be worried about you."

Lilith nodded. "Thanks again. I don't suppose you'd be able to help me rescue my parents, would you?" She asked hopefully, knowing the answer already.

Clockwork took one of his time medallions off the wall. "No, I've done a little too much meddling already. Trust yourself a little more, you might be surprised at what you can do. Here. Take this, an early fifteenth birthday present."

Lilith put it on with a smile. "Will I be seeing you again?"

"You know where I live now, that's up to you." He said with a smile.

Lilith smiled and flew off, feeling infinitely better than she had been before.

The old ghost continued to float in the Clock Tower, still smiling. "Everything's fine. Everything's the way it's supposed to be."

A/N: Danny gets too much attention. I aught to start up a fanclub for Clockwork because he's so totally awesome. Who's with me! Skulker needs a fanclub too. I love him so much and also the Ghostwriter and Technus. I like Shadow too. For some reason I think he's cute. Although for all I know, there's probably some out there already…

I also wanna see Walker bust out some karate moves...but I doubt that's gonna happen.


Uh, anyway, a big thank you, thank you is going out to; DP fan, Sweeteen19, Meagaisnttheworld, dessyweird51 and lizziepercush. You guys are cool. Really cool. So super cool that I could be in the Arctic during the winter there and still not be as cool as you

I'm still utterly shocked people like this. Writing a next gen. story isn't typically how I get started in a category, but the other idea I had wasn't flowing very well. But as always, comments on plot, characters or just scenes you thought were funny are welcomed and appreciated. It makes the fic all the better for you.

As for the writing of this chapter…the wedding scene was hardto write. I kept trying to image what kind of wedding Danny and Sam would have. I came up with nothing so I went the route I was familiar with. I blame everything on the fact that Danny overshadowed Sam's parents…again. But the main point to that scene is that the Box Ghost showed up. That's seriously all I wanted to write about…I just hope it all wasn't too cheesy, especially with the Clockwork scenes. I was afraid of that happening. Everything from here on out I'm a little unsure on.

My personal favorite scene was Clockwork's line 'why don't we go inside so you can tell me what I already know, it might help." Hehe, I find that really amusing for some reason.

Until next time,

Unrealistic :-)