CHAPTER 15 - Hurt and Comfort
He wouldnt lie; Danny almost bolted right back into the Ghost Zone at the sound of his parents' voices. But he gathered every bit of courage he could muster and opened the lab door, seeing his parents in the living room, shrugging their snow-covered jackets off. Feeling his friends behind him, he stepped into the kitchen and took a deep breath before releasing it, glancing at Jazz, who, through her anger, gave Danny a pointed nod.
"...Mom? Dad?"
Jack and Maddie froze and looked up, seeing their son in the kitchen. There was that silent, awkward moment of trying to process what they were seeing before reaching the realization that after almost four months, their son was right there at home, ALIVE.
Maddie let out a sobbing shriek and ran right at Danny, hugging him so tightly Danny felt his spine pop. Jack just stared, looking as though his brain short-circuited from the shock. Danny stood there patiently as his mother sobbed and hugged him and looked him over for any possible injury, babbling incoherently before hugging him again.
"...Danny, where on Earth WERE you?" she finally managed to cry out, shaking him by the shoulders. "We have been worried SICK, Danny! Where were you?"
"...Mom, Dad..." Danny began, taking a shuddery breath. "...Sit down. Please."
"Danny, we want to - !"
"Mom, sit down, and I'll explain things. Everything." He lowered his eyes. "...Even the things I've been keeping from you for three years..."
"I dont understand..."
"You will." He lead his mother to the couch and sat her down, then turned to his father. "Dad, sit. This might take awhile. All I'm asking is that you listen to me, keep an open mind, and NOT attack me." That last bit seemed to jerk Jack out of his stupor.
"Why would we attack you, Danny?" he asked, confused. Danny opened his mouth to reply, but the front door opened and Vlad stepped inside, taking off his snow-covered coat.
"Sorry for the wait, Jack, but there was a call I had to ta..." He cut off, seeing Danny standing in front of him. "...Daniel...you're back..." Danny could hear the legitimate and relieved tone in Vlad's voice. "...You're alright..."
Danny nodded curtly to Vlad. "I am...and I have to talk to my parents about...a few things." He gave his nemesis a pointed look, and Vlad's eyes widened slightly.
"I...I see," he said, hanging the coat up. "...Daniel, I too have been searching for you. We have all been worried..." He sat down on the couch, opposite of Maddie mother, leaving room for Jack. "This is something I REALLY must hear."
'Bastard,' Danny thought. He clenched his fists for a moment before relaxing them and sitting down in a chair. "Fine," he said, making Vlad blink in surprise. Danny let a twitch of a smirk pass over his lips before going back to serious. "Well, Vlad, you've kept it a secret long enough, anyway...and for that, I thank you. But Mom and Dad need to know now."
"...Vlad, what is he talking about?" Jack asked, looking at his 'best friend'. Vlad gaped at Danny in shock for a few moments before collecting himself and playing along, not one to let the brat get the best of him.
"I think that is for Daniel to tell you," he replied, lacing his fingers together. "...If you think this is for the best, Daniel..."
"Trust me. It is." He looked to the side, seeing his sister and friends standing against the wall, all three looking tense and worried. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "...Three years ago, when you first built the Fenton Portal and couldnt get it to work, me, Sam, and Tucker were down in the lab, fooling around. Sam convinced me to go into the Portal just for a picture. We just thought it would be cool to think of what we could find if the Portal REALLY worked, you know?"
He paused, gathering his bearings. "...I put on a HAZMAT suit and went in, just to look at it better...and my hand hit a button while I was in there..." He winced, remembering the pain clearly. "...And it turned the Portal on...while I was still inside..."
Maddie gasped, putting her hands over her mouth. "Danny...that could have KILLED you!" she cried. Danny nodded, wringing his hands.
"...In a way, Mom," he said softly, "it did."
Silence.
"...What?" Jack asked after a long few moments. Danny looked at his father sadly.
"...It sort of DID kill me," he said. "...But only by half. It mutated my DNA, turning it into what you call GNA. I'm half dead...making me half-ghost."
More silence, followed by Maddie shaking her head, muttering "impossible" under her breath. Jack just sat there looking gobsmacked. Danny let that sink in for a moment before continuing.
"Being half-ghost allows me to...transform at times," he said. "I can become a ghost at will...a ghost that everyone's...frequently seen..." He stood up and clenched his hands again. "...Please...dont attack me." Before they could answer, the white transformation rings formed around his core and separated opposite ways, showing them his ghost form.
Danny was sure he was almost unrecognizable from those few months he'd been gone; his hair had lengthened, draping his shoulders slightly, and gently waving as though caught by a gentle breeze. His eyes were glowing more brightly green than before, almost pure green. He ghostly aura was bright; brighter than most full ghosts.
Jack and Maddie looked as though all brain function had ceased as they stared at their son. Even Vlad looked shocked; it had been awhile since he had seen Danny in ghost form, and the Phantom before him looked much older and ethereal, in his opinion. Jazz gazed on, enthralled, and Sam and Tucker just examined him curiously.
Danny sat back down, and the sudden movement made Jack instinctively whip out a ghost-fighting weapon. To everyone else's surprise, it was Vlad who grabbed Jack's wrist tightly.
"Jack, NO," he said firmly, forcing Jack's hand down with little effort. "He's telling you the truth!"
Maddie flickered her eyes between Vlad and Danny, the latter of whom was tensed up as though ready to bolt. "But Vlad...it's...he's...it's impossible...!"
"It is NOT impossible, Maddie," Vlad replied. "He IS your son. This ISNT a trick."
"He's right," Tucker spoke up, nodding at Danny. "We were THERE when it happened, Mrs. Fenton...we SAW him change. We've been keeping it a secret for him."
"Why?" Maddie demanded. Jazz looked at her mother incredulously.
"Are you kidding?" she asked, gesturing to Danny. "For three years, you two have done nothing but hunt him down! You two are GHOST HUNTERS! Of COURSE Danny wouldnt want to tell you!"
"Then how did YOU know?" Maddie rounded onto Vlad, who let Jack's arm go.
"I'm afraid I discovered this fact when your family came for the class reunion," he said, only telling half-truth. "Why do you think Daniel's attitude changed toward me halfway through the visit?" He turned to stare at Danny. "He's just been untrusting of me, thinking that I'd blow his secret to the world at any given moment."
"Yeah, with good reason too, fruitloop," Danny muttered incoherently under his breath. Out loud, he said, "Sam, Tucker, Jazz, and Vlad have been kind enough to keep my secret, even from you. All of them can verify that I AM your son."
More awkward silence. This was getting old, and Danny hadnt even told them the worst news.
"As for where I've been all this time," he began, choosing his words carefully, "I've been in the Ghost Zone." He saw Vlad's eyes narrow slightly, but ignored him. "You see...there are things going on in that word now...things that need my attentions. There's - "
"Danny, this is CRAZY!" Maddie shouted, shooting up from her seat. "Why NOW? Why NOW are you telling us that you're HALF GHOST? That you've been in the Ghost Zone?"
"If you'll let me FINISH," Danny replied testily, his hands clenching into the chair arms. "This is difficult enough to say as it is, Mom, so just let me finish, and THEN I'll answer your questions. I only have a week to get this fixed out, so PLEASE." His tone actually sent his mother into silence, and she quietly sat back down. Danny sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"...I came back now because it is a week before Christmas. I chose this time so we could spend it together as a family before I have to go back." He raised his hand quickly before his parents could interrupt. "In the Ghost Zone, there's a change of government going on that will affect the entirety of that world. I am to become one of two who will rule it." Everyone seemed to shocked to say anything else, though Vlad's eye twitched a few times. "On Christmas Day, a day where all ghosts are under truce not to fight or cause harm to any creature living or dead, it will be announced that I am being engaged to my...significant other.
"I am going to be married on my eighteenth birthday...and I'm going to become a Prince."
Jack looked about ready to pass out, and Maddie didnt look any better. Vlad's expression was a mix of shock, fury, and jealousy. Danny took a few moments to let the information settle before moving on.
"This week up to Christmas, for now, is the only time I will spend with you. One of the terms of my marriage is that no human will be allowed into the Ghost Zone. I am working on a way to visit you all after the marriage, but..." His fingers absently brushed the gem Pariah Dark gave him. "...I know this is a lot to push onto all of you, but I'm tired of the secrets. I really am."
"Who are you marrying?"
It was Vlad who spoke. Danny looked up to see the older halfa staring at him like he wanted to throttle him. Danny simply stared back with just as much acid in his gaze.
"I cant tell you," he said. "But rest assured, VLAD, that he's powerful. Even more powerful than Plasmius."
"...Whoa, wait, 'HE'?" Tucker exclaimed looking at Danny. "...You didnt say anything about marrying a GUY, Danny."
Danny mentally cursed himself for the minor slip, but didnt let it show. "No, I didnt. But it didnt really seem important. Look, the point is, I'm here for a week, then the engagement to my fiance is announced Christmas Day. And on my eighteenth birthday, I'm getting married and we will be the new monarchy of the Ghost Zone. It's crazy, it's insane, but it's fact. It something I hate to shoulder on all of you, and something I hate to shoulder myself, but it HAS to be done."
There were several minutes of agonizing silence. Danny hated it; he wanted his parents to do something...ANYTHING...!
After a few more minutes, Jack finally stood up and walked toward the lab. "...Dad, where are you going?" Jack didnt answer, and Danny stood up to follow him. "Dad, please, I'm sorry for keeping all of this from you, but...Dad, what are you doing with the cruiser?"
"This...this isnt happening, Danny," Jack said, his voice shaking. "...I will NOT have my only son...a part of that GHOST world...!"
"Dad, this isnt negotiable!" Danny replied angrily. "TRUST me, if I could change it, I would! But I CANT stop being half-dead until I DIE! I cant stop this wedding at ALL! I'm the ONLY one who can become the Prince!"
"NO!" Jack shouted, making Danny flinch. His father RARELY shouted in anger. "NO, Danny! NO! Even if I have to tear apart every ghost in there molecule by molecule, this is NOT happening!"
"Dad, NO!" Danny cried, standing in front of the Portal. "NO HUMANS ALLOWED! If you go in there, your life could be in danger! PLEASE, DAD!"
"Danny, get out of the way!" By this time, everyone else upstairs had come running to see what the problem was.
"DAD, STOP!" Danny was in tears by now; he KNEW this would happen. "I DONT WANT YOU OR ANYONE ELSE GETTING HURT! PLEASE!" Danny's pleas went unheeded as his father started up the cruiser. He buried his hands in his hair and looked between his father and the Portal before making a quick decision.
He held up hand and charged it with as much ecto-energy he deemed necissary, adding a bit of ice to it, before blasting it into the closed Portal doors.
The explosion was not a small one, and the whole house actually shook as the hole in the wall the Portal once was was gutted completely; not a hint of machinery remained. Danny lowered his hand, reeling both from the sheer POWER he'd put into that blast, and from his hasty decision. He chanced a glance back, and saw his parents gaping at him in complete and total shock. Even Vlad looked in awe, and was staring at Danny oddly. Sam, Tucker, and Jazz just looked shocked at the fact that he had destroyed one of the very few permanent, albeit artificial, portals on Earth.
Danny clenched his fist tightly, causing angry frost to frazzle around it. His hair was glowing softly, and 'battle mode' was fighting its way up, having sensed a 'threat'. Around his neck, the gem Pariah Dark had given him began to pulse and glow softly, attracting the attention of Vlad, who stared at it almost hungrily.
"...I'm sorry," Danny murmured, forcing his power down. "...I couldnt risk you, Dad..." He reached up to fondle the gem, seeking comfort from it. "...My fiance has border patrol on all artificial portals to prevent human from entering...he's serious when he says no humans allowed...I didnt want you getting hurt."
"...Danny..." Maddie said hesitantly, staring at him like an anomaly of nature. "...What ARE you...?"
Danny turned to her, his eyes aglow softly with sadness. "...Half ghost. Half dead. Soon to be completely dead." A few tears escaped his eyes and fell down his face, freezing into ice en route before disintegrating into featherlight flecks of frost that vanished. "...And I think...It was a mistake coming here..." He stalked back to the steps, and was stopped by his friends.
"No, Danny, it wasnt!" Sam said, pulling on his arm. "You came to see us, and we're so happy that you did!"
"Yeah, dont go yet!" Tucker added. "Come on...stay, just for the week okay? Please?"
Danny looked at his best friends sadly. "...I came up here to have a Christmas visit...and I cant even have that without my own family looking at me like I'm a freak. At very least, all of you know I'm fine." He pulled his arm away from Sam and walked up the stairs, only to be stopped by Vlad, who put a strong hand on his shoulder.
"Daniel, there are still questions I...we...need to have answered," he stated, his voice and eyes matching perfectly in tone: genuine concern laced with a demand for some real answers. Danny could tell the moment Vlad had him alone, the older halfa would start an interrogation that would most likely end up violent. He gave Vlad a hard, icy glare before turning and leaving the basement.
"Danny, stop right there!" Danny's mother used her authoritative tone that although was nowhere near as powerful as Pariah Dark's, still commanded instant obedience. Danny paused and turned to see his mother stalking out of the lab, looking confused, angry, and distraught all at the same time. She stared at him angrily for a few moments before actually SLAPPING his face.
Danny froze, unable to think properly for a few seconds. His mother NEVER slapped him. EVER. He raised a shaking hand to his cheek and stared at her.
"How DARE you!" she shouted, balling her fists up, making Danny wary of her ninth-degree blackbelt abilities. "We dont hear from you for almost FOUR MONTHS, then you come back home to tell us THIS! Me, your father, and Vlad have been worried SICK about you! SO many sleepless nights! SO much time WORRYING and CRYING over where you are, thinking you're lying dead somewhere! HOW could you DO this to us!"
Danny felt a surge of painful guilt rise in his stomach, almost too much for him to bear. He backed away from his mother, shaking his head. "I couldnt tell you...!" he said, close to sobbing. "Please, Mom...this is hard enough on ME, as it is!"
"Oh, I SERIOUSLY doubt tha - "
"I HAVE TO DIE!" Danny shouted, the temperature in the air dropping dramatically. His eyes flashed a pure blue and his hair began to glow brighter. "I HAVE TO DIE, MOM! I HAVE TO MARRY A MAN, AND THEN I HAVE TO DRINK POISON TO STOP MY HEART! I HAVE TO BE RESPONSIBLE FOR EVERY GHOST IN EXISTENCE! I HAVE TO SHOULDER THAT! ME! I HAVE TO!" He turned away from her, feeling more icy tears run down his face. "I came here...because I wanted to see my friends and family again...and I cant even have THAT!"
"Danny...!" Jazz tried to console, but Danny kept walking. As a last resort, Jazz ran and pressed the ghost shield button, keeping Danny in the house. "Danny, wait!" Danny turned to glare at her, his eyes frosty blue.
"Lower the shield, Jazz," he growled, his voice just as cold as the ice that was slowly encasing up his right-hand fingertips. Jazz shook her head, crying.
"No, Danny...I cant lose you again! I just CANT!"
"Jazz, lower the shield before I start panicking!" Danny bit out, clenching his fists. Recognizing the signs of Danny going into 'battle mode', Tucker rushed over to Jazz.
"Jazz, you gotta listen to him!" he said urgently. "When Danny gets stressed or angry, it's NOT pretty."
"I'm NOT letting Danny go! Damn it, Tucker, he's my brother!"
"LET ME OUT!" Danny shouted, his instincts registering the ghost shield as captivity, and therefore, a 'threat'. "LET ME OUT, LET ME OUT, LET ME OUT!" He raised his hand and shot another ecto-blast right through the door, where it absorbed into the shield harmlessly. Upon sensing a ghost presence in the house, the security system kicked in and began attacking Danny.
"JAZZ, TURN IT OFF!" Sam shouted, rushing over to Jazz and wrestling with the older girl over the controls to the shield. "HE'S GONNA GO CRAZY, HE CANT STAND BEING LOCKED BEHIND SHIELDS!"
"LET ME OUT!" Danny kept shouting, his ecto-ice traveling up his left hand and arm. "GOD FUCKING DAMN IT! LET! ME! OUT! RIGHT! NOW!" Shooting his hand out toward the door, a strange blue-and-green-swirled energy curled around his hand before flashing out in a four-foot circle shape.
Danny had crated a natural ghost portal.
Everyone stood silently in shock, staring at the portal, which hovered midair for a moment before beginning to shrink. Before anyone could stop him, Danny flew into the portal, which closed just seconds afterwords.
As the Fentons, Sam, and Tucker began shouting at each other over what had just happened, Vlad quietly snuck back down to the lab, where he leaned against a wall and stuck his hand into his pocket, taking something out of it. Danny's necklace. It still pulsed with power in his hand.
When he had grabbed Danny's shoulder earlier, his finger hooked around the chain and turned it intangible, and it easily slid off when Danny walked away. Then it was a simple matter of slipping it into his pocket. He'd done it before, back when he committed petty theft after getting his ghost powers before turning to major crime. With everyone else occupied upstairs, he examined the necklace.
It looked quite old, like something one would find in buried treasure chests, only it was in perfect condition. A real silver chain and gem backing, and a gorgeous gem the size and rarity of which would be worth about a tenth of his fortune, should he sell it. But he'd never do that because A) it was definitely ghost-made and B) it belonged to Daniel, and most likely held a clue as to who he was marrying.
Vlad turned the necklace over to the backing and frowned when he saw something etched into it; it looked like a coat of arms, and it looked familiar.
Hearing the din coming toward him, Vlad put the necklace back into his pocket. He could look it up later.
Danny flew out of the portal at a breakneck speed, barely stopping in time to prevent splattering against the side of the castle. He raced into the castle, trying to find his room - his safehouse - when he slammed into someone.
Pariah Dark had been walking down the hallways to locate Fright, when something collided with him. Before he could start reigning down fire and hell, he heard sobbing and looked down to see his fiance crying and struggling to get up. It took him a moment to register what he was seeing, and quickly helped Danny up. "What are you doing back here?" he asked, trying not to sound accusing. It quickly became apparent that Danny was too distraught to answer, so Pariah Dark did the only thing he could think of.
He put his arms around Danny and hugged him tightly, slightly wary of the boy's near-phobia of touch. There was a few moments of unsure silence before Danny let out a fresh sob and hugged Pariah Dark back, holding tightly as though the Ghost King was his last lifeline.
Pariah Dark said nothing, mostly because he couldnt find anything to say, but also because he didnt want to ruin the moment.
"...It'll be okay," he found himself saying after a long while. "It'll be okay."
Hope you enjoyed the fluff.