I'm so sorry about the long wait, you guys!
Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom
Metanoia
Chapter 14
Danny sat alone in his bedroom, once again reliving the events of that morning. The ghost hunter had drawn the curtains in his normally well lit room, the gloom of his surroundings mirroring his dark mood as he dully considered the black fury that had threatened to overcome him.
He had assaulted Dash, possibly causing irreversible injury to the quarterback in the process. He'd never be able to forgive himself if he had left Dash unable to play football for the rest of his life. No matter how much he despised the bully, Dash was still a civilian, a member of society that he had sworn to protect when he had first decided to join Dalv Enterprises.
It disgusted the ghost hunter, how little control he had over his own abilities. He had been apprenticed to Vlad for three years now, and he was still a danger to himself, and worse, everyone else around him. Although he was now easily his mentor's equal in terms of strength, Vlad's protégé knew he had a long way to go before he could even hope to equal his benefactor. It was unfortunate that raw strength wasn't all that was required to serve the higher authorities.
He had no idea where all the pent up aggression had come from; Danny hadn't even been aware that he was capable of keeping so much rage and frustration bottled up inside without him noticing. The ghost hunter had always thought himself a fairly positive person. The unbridled violence with which he had responded to Dash's mockery had proved him wrong.
Yet, the agent had to admit that he was intrigued. Ever since he had been recruited, Danny had never seriously considered if he would be capable of murder. But now, he no longer felt that killing another human being was beyond him, especially after the fervor with which he had attacked Dash earlier that day. It was almost pathetic, how fragile normal human beings were. If Val hadn't been there to subdue him, Dash Baxter would have indisputably been dead.
His aversion to murder had always been a hurdle that Danny wasn't sure he would ever be able to overcome under the service of the higher authorities. Although he knew that Vlad would never allow him to accept a mission that he didn't feel comfortable with, the agent now felt that he was fully capable of taking on any assassinations the government felt fit to assign him. It almost scared him, the ease with which he knew would would be capable of disposing of his targets. With a multitude of spectral abilities to choose from, his victims wouldn't stand a fighting chance against him. Not that he would allow them any mercy.
Vlad's protégé's eyes widened, stunned by his own brutality. It had never before occurred to him how much he had changed during his time at Amity Park. Despite the emotional anguish caused by returning to the town of his parent's deaths, Danny was glad that he had accepted the assignment. He was definitely a far more capable agent now than he had been three months ago.
The ghost hunter's morose train of thought was broken as the ringing of his cell phone came to his attention. The agent flipped open his phone, allowing a smile to cross his features as he took note of the caller ID. Trust Valerie to check up on him the moment school was over. Sometimes, he didn't know what he would do without her.
"Hey," he greeted, picking up the call. "Calling to check if I'm still alive?"
"Yeah," his best friend replied jokingly, and Danny didn't need to be able to see her to make out the expression on her face. "How are holding up?"
"Not too badly," the halfa shrugged. "How's Dash?"
"Pretty badly beat up," Valerie winced. "But he'll live. I doubt there'll be any lasting damage."
"I'm an idiot," the agent bit his lower lip, previous good mood rapidly disintegrating.
"No, you're not," his partner asserted firmly. "I would've done the same thing. Dash was a jerk, and we both know it."
"But I shouldn't have let myself stoop to his level," Danny grimaced.
"I was there when he came to," Valerie laughed. "And I told him that if he ever insulted Vlad Masters again, an enraged overshadowed boy would be the least of his worries."
Despite his sober mood, the half ghost's lips quirked into a smile as he imagined the look on the quarterback's face. "Thanks, Val."
"Anytime, pretty boy."
"Promise me you won't tell Vlad," Danny's brow furrowed. "He's not going to take it well if he discovers I've been assaulting civilians."
"No problem," Valerie chirped. "You will. Look at it this way, it'll be worse if he finds out on his own."
"Vlad's always so busy," Danny bargained, silently cursing the fact that his wide eyed puppy dog stare didn't work over the phone. "It might never come to his attention."
"I don't think he'll get too mad. Besides, it was sweet of you to defend his honour," Valerie paused, as if reevaluating the statement. "In a weird, twisted way."
"You don't leave me with a lot of options," The ghost hunter sighed. "What do Sam and Tucker think?"
"They seemed to buy that you were overshadowed, but I told them to give you a bit of space. You'll probably need it, anyway. You don't have much time left to get ready for whatever Vlad's put you up to."
"It could be worse," Danny conceded dully.
"It's cute Sam cares so much for you," Valerie teased. "Make sure you keep in contact."
"I doubt she's going to want to talk to me after that stunt I pulled today," Danny shrugged. "Maybe it's best we just pretend I was never assigned this mission."
"It definitely qualified as a dramatic exit," his partner grinned. "But seriously," Valerie continued, her tone abruptly sober. "None of us think any less of you because of what happened today."
"They don't know the truth," Danny pointed out morosely.
"And they're never going to find out, so stop worrying about it," Valerie asserted firmly. "Would you like me to come over? You sound like you could use the company," his best friend offered, her voice softening.
"Thanks Val," Danny maintained. "But I'm fine. Like you said, I don't have much time to get ready for recon."
Although in actual fact Danny had already spent the past few hours calibrating his surveillance devices to the instructions Vlad had left him, he knew that he had to leave himself enough time to visit Manson Estate before he commenced his infiltration of the Guys in White's headquarters. He owed Sam at the very least a proper goodbye. As much as it would hurt, he would never be able to forgive himself he didn't at least try to straighten things out between them. Even though he couldn't bear to face Sam with his human half, Phantom was obligated to inform her that he was leaving, after the indecorous kiss he had claimed from her in what seemed like an eternity ago.
"I'll leave you in peace, then," Valerie laughed. "Don't screw up tonight."
"Your faith in me is astounding," Danny chuckled dryly. "Have fun on patrol."
"Don't I always?" His best friend grinned, ending the call.
He supposed he should inform Vlad, and get it over and done with. Returning to his room, he retrieved his communicator, entering his mentor's identification code with practiced ease. Settling himself on his bed, he leaned against a wall, waiting for Vlad to pick up the transmission. In all honesty, Danny wasn't entirely sure how the billionaire would react to the news. Nevertheless, Danny could not deny that a small part of him hoped that Vlad would support his actions. He had, after all, been defending his benefactor's honour when he had assaulted Dash.
Danny started as the communicator screen abruptly flickered to life, jolting him out of his train of thought. The agent had been half hoping that Vlad would be busy.
"Hey Vlad," the younger halfa greeted.
"Ah, Daniel. I was expecting your correspondence," his mentor smiled, setting down his porcelain teacup on its saucer. "I trust that you are ready for the infiltration?"
"Yeah," Danny replied. "I've already calibrated all the equipment as per your instructions."
"I'm glad you're prepared," Vlad nodded approvingly. "Was there anything in particular that you wanted to discuss?"
"Actually, yes," Danny began, steeling himself before he lost his nerve. "I attacked a jock in school today," he informed bluntly.
"You what?" His benefactor's eyes widened in surprise, discountenance evident. His apprentice was hardly one to pick fights with civilians.
"He was rude about you, so I punched him," the agent stated simply. Let Vlad draw his own conclusions from the news. At least he didn't seem to be getting angry.
"I imagine you were overzealous in your assault," the billionaire favoured Danny with a pointed look. "You wouldn't be telling me this otherwise."
"Yeah," Danny winced. He wasn't about to reveal the true extent of Dash's injuries to the veteran spy. "Valerie said that he's going to be okay, but maybe I did hit him a little too hard."
"I would have thought you'd be above losing control of your abilities with such minor provocation," Vlad chided, his expression torn between disappointment and amusement, as though unable to decide between the two emotions. "Nevertheless, what's done is done. We must look towards your assignment for this evening."
"Vlad?" His apprentice looked up, unsure. "I really need to ask you something."
"Anything, Daniel," Vlad replied, curiosity evident on his features.
Danny took a deep breath, steadying himself for his question. "When you were on the field, did you ever... kill anyone?"
"A morbid question considering your current mission is merely recon," his mentor raised an elegant eyebrow. "What has prompted the query?"
"Nothing," Danny's fingers curled into fists as he recalled the violent fury that had overcome him mere hours before, when Dash had dealt the brutal insult on his benefactor. "Because I'm ready. If I get told to assassinate someone, I'm pretty sure I could do it."
His benefactor stiffened, hunching his shoulders as though a great weight had suddenly been thrust upon him. His expression grew weary, as he prepared himself for the conversation with his apprentice that he had been dreading for years. "Never unless absolutely necessary," Vlad sighed. "Murder is not something to be taken lightly."
"Obviously not," his apprentice hastened to add. "It's wrong. But what if the higher authorities assign you an assassination? If I had to kill to stop innocent civilians getting hurt, there's no way I'm holding back."
"Attacking in anger as you did today is a lot easier than setting out with the intention of murder." The deep blue of Vlad's gaze regarded Danny, its intensity cold and sobering. "With assassinations, your every move must be planned with hairline precision. A far cry from roughing up an obnoxious member of your peers."
"I know all this," Danny insisted. "But with my powers, there's no way I can get caught. Surveillance devices are useless against me."
"No matter how unconventional the methods, assassinations can always be traced back to the agent that performed the task," Vlad's pursed his lips, frowning. "And if it is, the higher authorities will not necessarily shield you from vengeful syndicates."
"They won't have to," the agent's gaze hardened. "Because there's no way they'll ever catch me."
"I am all too aware how easy it is to kill with our abilities," Vlad massaged his temples, as though reliving countless bad memories. "Basic intangibility is all that is required, to reach into someone's chest, and remove any of several vital organs."
Danny nodded wordlessly, as the veteran agent's previous statement sunk in, unsure what to say. His benefactor's expression softened, and the agent felt an embarrassing longing to be face to face with Vlad, so that the older halfa could tousle his hair in the manner that usually annoyed him.
"I never wanted this for you, Daniel," Vlad shook his head. "I cannot bear to allow you to make the same mistakes I did."
"I know you do," his apprentice replied, voice unwavering. "I just thought I'd tell you that I'm ready to serve the authorities however they require."
Vlad looked as though he was about to speak, but decided against it, bringing the delicate china to his lips.
"We will discuss this in greater length when you return," The veteran agent conceded reluctantly. "Perhaps now is not the best time to be having this discussion."
"Yeah," Danny shrugged. "We'll talk about this later."
"Very well," Vlad smiled, the lines of worry lifting from his visage. "I look forward to the intelligence that you will gather from this mission."
The communicator screen flickered, going blank, and Danny was once again left feeling alone. Although Vlad had taken the news pretty well, the agent suddenly wished he had been subjected to the brunt of Vlad's rage, rather than the bitter disappointment present in his mentor's eyes. Perhaps he should have accepted Valerie's offer to come over. He would have appreciated his best friend's company.
He shook his head to clear it, as he felt himself suddenly filled with fresh resolve. Vlad was depending on him to gather sufficient intelligence to launch an inquisition into the Guys in White's activities. He would not let his benefactor down. But first, he was going to have to pay a visit to Sam.
It was going to be a very long night.
-
Sam stifled a yawn for the umpteenth time, her gaze seeming to skid over the words of her notes on proportional representation. She didn't seem able to absorb anything tonight, not that she had ever seriously believed that school work would manage to distract her enough to forget about the incident at school. Her politics homework would just have to wait for tomorrow.
The Goth threw herself onto her bed, burying herself beneath its satin sheets. She hoped Danny was doing okay. Sam had no idea how he was faring after the incident, massaging her temples as she once again resisted the urge to pick up the phone on her bedside table and call him. Valerie had said to give him space, but she wanted to make sure that he was alright before she saw him again in school the next day. Valerie might be his best friend, but Sam liked to think that she had just as much right to speak to him as Valerie did, especially since he was bound to be feeling guilty for beating up Dash.
Sam started as she heard the gentle thud of a figure landing lightly on the floor of her balcony, her breath hitching in her throat as she bolted upright. Why did Phantom have to pick now, of all times?
"Sam?" A familiar voice called out, and in a moment of insanity, Sam could have sworn that the insecurity present in its tone belonged to Danny, not Phantom. Except there was no way that Danny could have made his way up four stories onto her balcony.
She ran a hand through her dark hair, hoping that her appearance wasn't too disheveled as she stepped out of her room and onto the overhanging balcony. "I was wondering when I was going to see you again." Sam allowed a smile to grace her features for the first time in what seemed like forever.
"Yeah," Phantom grinned. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"
"How's Danny?" She asked. "Have you see him since-"
"He's fine," Phantom reassured. "He just needs some time alone to get over what happened."
"I can't believe he was overshadowed," Sam's lilac fingernails dug into the pale flesh of her forearm as her brow furrowed in concern. "Have you caught the ghost that did it?"
"Red took care of all that," the ghost hunter shrugged, taking a deep breath. "I don't think you'll be seeing Danny for a while."
"Why not?" Confusion penetrated her features. "You just said he was fine."
"My benefactor was not pleased that Danny was overshadowed," Phantom continued, sickened by the lie. "He wished his heir to return to Wisconsin immediately, where he will be safe."
"Danny's gone?" Sam repeated, somehow unable to comprehend what the ghost hunter had just told her, as her entire world seem to shift before her eyes. "When did he leave?"
"A couple of hours ago," the white haired youth's lips pursed into a thin line. "He'll be in Wisconsin by now."
"Why didn't he say goodbye?" She demanded, uncaring that she was directing her anger for Danny towards Phantom. "Didn't he think I'd want to know?"
Danny suppressed the stab of guilt that overcame him as he noticed the hurt in Sam's eyes. It was for the best, he told himself. A relationship between them would amount to nothing more than both of them getting hurt. "Maybe he thought it was too hard to say goodbye."
"But you'll be here, protecting him," Sam insisted. "He'll be safer here with you and the Red Hunter around."
"My duty was to remain in Amity Park until my assignment is completed. After that, the town will be down to just Red again, when my services are required elsewhere," Phantom informed, relieved that there was at least some truth in the statement.
"But Danny wouldn't want to leave," the Goth maintained. "Vlad Masters can't just force him to return to Wisconsin."
"He feels awful about what happened today," the ghost hunter began, astonished how easily the confession left his lips when he was under the visage of an alias that Sam believed was someone else. "He told me he thinks it'll be best if he left."
"He's being stupid," Sam raged. "How could we possibly blame him for what happened? And even if he hadn't been overshadowed, Dash Baxter had it coming." She paused, and Danny wasn't sure what to make of the wetness of her eyes, or the intermittent trembling of her lips as she drew choppy breaths as a multitude of emotions evaded his mind, as he found himself abruptly overtaken by guilt. "You have to talk him out of it. Please."
"I'll see what I can do," he managed out, violently quelling the intense longing to take her into his arms, and simply hold her, to provide a source of comfort from the anguish that he himself was the culprit of. Nor could he banish the desire to put an end to the ceaseless deception once and for all, to tell her the truth about everything, and how he felt about her. Saying goodbye was going to be even harder than he had thought.
"Promise me you'll change his mind," she pleaded, and it could not escape Danny's attention how heartbreakingly beautiful she was in his eyes, despite the hurt evident on her features. "You're the only chance I have of ever seeing him again."
"I'm not sure-" The agent began, only to have his hesitance to promise the impossible, along with mere rational thought banished from his mind, as his crush threw herself into his arms.
"I'm sorry," she sobbed, burying her face into his chest, her slim frame. "I know crying isn't going to solve anything."
"Everything is going to be fine," Danny cleared his throat, willing himself to ignore all manner of inappropriate thoughts that crossed his mind whenever he caught the faint scent of her perfume, or the manner in which her lithe figure convulsed against his form when wracked with sobs.
The ghost hunter raised a white gloved hand, stroking her raven hair in a gesture that he hoped was solely comforting, fighting the fervent urge to press his lips to the corners of her lavender eyes and kiss away her tears. He needed to stop leading her on. His inability to control himself was what had gotten him into this mess in the first place.
Phantom hardly noticed when her crying stopped, as Sam raised herself on her tiptoes, placing a soft, but purposeful kiss on his lips. Green eyes squeezed shut as he struggled to keep the carnality of his desires under control from the simple, yet incredibly intimate contact. He drew a shuddering breath, fighting the ardent yearning to draw her closer to him, to feel her soft curves against his skin.
God, he wanted her. Perhaps even more than she wanted him.
But Danny knew that he had to stop himself before the situation spiraled out of his control. If Sam persisted in her advances, the agent knew that he would not be able to stop himself. He had come here tonight with a purpose. However much he wished it otherwise, his duties to his benefactor would always come first.
"You are emotionally vulnerable right now, and not thinking straight," he asserted firmly, drawing himself up to his full height. "I'm not going to take advantage of you."
"You're not," she insisted, as her fingers trailed along the ridges of his torso as she rested her head against his chest. "I want this."
"Sam," the ghost hunter stiffened as he reluctantly removed himself from her grip. "Danny wasn't the only reason I came to see you tonight."
"Then what's the real reason you came to see me?" The suggestive smile playing on Sam's lips seemed out of place with her teary eyes.
"We have to end this," Danny told her simply, the hardness of his resolve evident in his gaze. "Getting involved with me is putting you into danger."
"It was only one incident," Sam frowned, taken aback. "And you've caught that ghost now, so it won't happen again."
"That incident with Skulker should never have happened," his eyes narrowed. "If my enemies were to find out about you, you'd be under threat from half the ghost zone."
"It's a risk I'm willing to take," Sam declared, crossing her arms in a defiant gesture.
"I can't let you take that chance," Phantom insisted. "I'm not even going to be around to protect you."
"You'll be around long enough," The Goth maintained firmly.
"No," Phantom's eyes narrowed, and Sam could detect a tinge of bitterness in his voice. "I won't."
"You're leaving too?" Sam faltered. "But I-"
"I've been assigned another mission," Danny lied fluidly, ignoring the stinging in the corners of his eyes. "I leave tonight."
"Why didn't you tell me before?" She protested.
"For the same reasons Danny didn't," his gaze softened. "I couldn't bring myself to say goodbye until I had to. I thought it would be easier this way."
"It's not," Sam glared. "There's no way in hell that you can say this is easy."
"The only way a relationship between us will end is with you getting hurt." White eyebrows narrowed to frame his grimace. "And I care too much about you to ever let that happen."
It was not until then that Danny realised that his face was mere inches away from Sam's, so close that he could see the individual tears that clung to her eyelashes, that he could feel the intoxicating warmth of her breath caressing his lips as their gazes locked. The desire blazing in her amethyst eyes was almost too much to bear, a fervor the agent knew was reflected in his own gaze.
Was this the life he had chosen? To always be forced to walk away from everything he loved for the sake of his obligations to the higher authorities? Sam was possibly the best thing that had happened to him since the accident, and Danny knew that he would be haunted by this mistake for the rest of his life. But he had no choice in the matter. His duty would always come first. With the object of his affections so easily within his reach, his loyalties to the higher authorities hardly seemed worth it.
It was not until she moved to close the distance between their lips that Danny abruptly came to his senses.
"I can't," he withdrew, white eyebrows narrowing to a troubled expression of pure anguish as he removed himself from her grip. "I'm sorry."
"It's okay," she uttered softly. "I'm not going to cry again. You're not worth it. Neither of you are."
"Listen, Sam." Danny faltered. "You're a great girl, and you deserve so much better than either Danny or I have to offer."
The Goth shook her head. She didn't even have the energy to deny the fact that she had been infatuated by both Danny and Phantom at once. Not that it would have mattered which of them she had chosen. In the end, it seemed that the decision had been made for her. It didn't seem fair that both of them had chosen to walk into her life at the same time, and that they were now leaving before she had worked up the courage to make a move on either of them. "So I guess this is goodbye." Sam's eyes shone with the wetness of unshed tears.
"Yeah," Phantom uttered softly. "I guess I'll see you around."
"Take care of Danny," She requested, refusing to cry as she favoured him with a sad smile.
"That I can do," he returned the smile, feeling a huge weight lifted from his shoulders despite his leadened emotions. He wished that there was something, anything, he could do to make his departure easier for her before he walked out of Sam's life for the second time in three years.
'I love her.'
Danny's eyes widened at the cruel realisation. Never had he desired anyone so fervently, not even Valerie. He bit his tongue, refusing to allow himself to utter the words aloud. Sam didn't deserve to be put through this, especially not by him. The powers that be were probably laughing themselves sick over his plight.
Once, the ghost hunter had thought that he had loved Valerie, but whatever romantic affections he once held for his partner paled in comparison to what he felt for Sam. If he didn't leave now, he would never be able to.
"There's somewhere I need to be," he whispered, unable to meet her gaze. "Goodbye, Sam."
Sam shrugged, pretending to study the tiling of her balcony floor. She rejected the impulse to look up as Phantom subjected her to a final, lingering gaze of regret before turning away, disappearing in a blinding flash of white light as he leaped from the balcony railings.
As soon as she was certain that Phantom had completely dematerialised, Sam spun on her heels with blurred vision, finally allowing her tears to fall.
Author's Note: Poor, poor Sam. She's so close to figuring everything out. I hope I didn't bum you out with this chapter. Hopefully, you guys saw this coming and were somewhat prepared for it.
Metanoia's been giving me a fair bit of trouble, but I thought that I'd already left you waiting for far too long, so I decided to post whatever I had written so far. Sorry for the short chapter, but I thought an update was definitely in order. I apologise for making my lovely readers wait!:( I promise that I will finish this story, not matter what.
For those of you waiting for Anathema's Abode, it's done. I'm just waiting for the thumbs up so that I can post it. It was a fun chapter to write, so I hope you guys enjoy it!:)
Here's a little excerpt of Danny and Sam:
"Where are my clothes?" She demanded hotly. "And why was I in your bed?"
He cocked an eyebrow in amusement. "I haven't tried anything on you, if that's what you're worried about."
She folded her arms, doubt evident on her features as she subjected him to a glare of glacial standards.
He raised his hands in surrender. "I slept on the couch."
"What did you do to me?" She asked again, as her fist clenched around the hem of the over sized shirt she was wearing. She had already been humiliated once by Pariah's men. Sam refused to allow it to happen again. The mere thought that a ghost had laid hands on her in that manner made her feel sick.
"I didn't do anything," the stranger shrugged, unperturbed by her concern. "Your clothes were ruined, so I destroyed them."
"Just because my clothes were bloody was no excuse to dispose of them," her eyes narrowed.
"I wasn't going to let you on my bed without cleaning you up first," he countered, annoyance entering his voice. "You also had a tracking device on you. I removed it."
Sam bristled. "You had no right-"
"I had no intention of being discovered by your kin," he finished coldly. "What I do not understand is why you fail to be grateful for the fact that I rescued you from your assailants. You would have been long dead had I not chosen to intervene."
Sorry guys, but that's all for now. I don't want to give too much away!XD
Thanks to the lovely: Bloxham, EmeraldCalling, Eventual Member, shimoragurl, dannyfan101, cera meia, Writingcritter, The Big Red Fish, vladimir's disease, Hopeful Wings, yuuki, Evelyn Lucia, follow-ur-heart, katiesparks, days-of-elijah, kia, Twilight-Phantom66, FreakishlyObsessedVampyreGirl, Nysk, cordria, cariadiorarua, Capito Celcior, b4k4 ch4n, Viskii, Koccinelle, Nonasuki-chan, pearl84, mushroomcloudslooklikebroccoli, Secret Spy Guy, Fantomo Drako, CharmedNightSkye, uula and Sasia93 for their amazing and incredibly encouraging reviews. I have the best readers in the world!:D
dannyfan101: Don't be silly! Of course I haven't taken offence from what you said. I would have told you sooner, except you left me no way of contacting you.
As usual, please review, it makes me happy!:D