Danny flipped open his phone to check the time. Past four. No messages or calls. Danny sighed, closing the phone and slipping it back into his pocket.
"Where is that Fruitloop?" Danny muttered to himself, looking up and down the street. The familiar black car didn't arrive, so Danny pushed away from the chain link fence and made his way home. Tomorrow maybe…
…
New model spaceship half created at the foot of his bed, Danny lay on back, quietly staring at the ceiling. He glanced to his phone. Nothing. Turning onto his side, Danny stared at the opposite wall, where a NASA poster Vlad had given him in a gift basket when this whole crazy thing began was hung.
Danny sighed and was surprised when a puff of white escaped his lips. Danny smiled and sat up, looking around the room, expecting to see a certain vampire ghost. Danny turned into Phantom quickly, excitement coursing through him as he rose from his bed and fazed though the wall and out into the evening air.
"BEWARE!" Danny's heart sunk when he saw the over-alled specter waving his arms menacingly. Danny groaned, looking up and down the street, ignoring the irritating Box Ghost as he searched for a different irritating menace.
"Vlad, where are you?"
…
Danny turned over, the room dark, his covers holding him in a comfortable warmth as he struggled to find sleep. He kept his eyes shut, bringing his knees close to his chest, trying to quiet the racing thoughts in his head.
A pressure ran through his hair, like warm fingers, soothing and gentle. Danny sighed contently, the tension leaving his body. The feeling through his hair remained a constant, as another feeling caressing his cheek, trailing down his neck. Danny sighed, turning over onto his back, the covers drawn over his head, the darkness overwhelming him.
The ghostly fingers ran over his neck and down, through his shirt, tickling his chest. Danny squirmed and shut his eyes tight, the feeling soothing and enticing, teasing him with its unfamiliarity. The pressure felt strong, commanding, and dominant, not the usual light feminine touch he was used to imagining. Danny's fingers twitched and he gripped his sheets tightly, his back arching slightly.
The feeling trailed lower and lower, the pressure like fingers sliding up his inner thigh. Danny felt a breath at his neck, like a kiss, and then a quiet sigh in his ear before, "Relax, Little Badger…"
Danny gasped and shot up in bed, breathing heavily and looking all around him. His ghost sense didn't go off and the room was empty. A dream then…
Danny ran a hand through his messy hair, the feeling of a large hand in his hair still causing his skin to tingle. Danny shook his head, that deep familiar voice still clear in his ears. Danny shifted, his T-shirt sticking uncomfortably to his chest and a heavy feeling between his legs. Danny groaned in embarrassment.
"No no no…" the boy muttered, burying his face in his hands. "What's happening to me…?"
…
Back and forth. Back and forth. The fork in Danny's hand twisted and turned, the pea on his plate rolling as he pushed it around on his plate. He glanced to the seat opposite him, where Vlad sometimes sat when he came over for dinner.
The conversation between his mother and father dragged on, the same topics, the same debates, the same ideas, the same exclamations and stories that Danny could mouth them verbatim should he desire. At least when Vlad came over, there was a new voice in the mix, interesting stories to listen to, and Vlad would at least invite Danny into the conversation. Danny loved his parents, but they still treated him like a kid despite knowing that he was part ghost. Rarely asking for his input or his opinon.
"Danny, something wrong with your dinner? You're barely eating," Maddie asked, suddenly looking over to her son, whose plate was still filled. Usually he woofed down his food in seconds. "You feeling okay?"
"Yeah I'm fine, mom. Just not hungry," Danny muttered, setting down his fork. "Did Vlad call at all today?"
Maddie glanced to Jack, who shook his head. "I haven't heard from him. Come to think of it, he hasn't called for a few days now," Jack answered, scratching his head in thought.
Danny looked to the doorway, where a mistletoe had once hung. The dream from a few nights ago flashed in Danny's mind, causing a bright blush to blossom on his face. Danny shook his head, standing up. "I'm not too hungry tonight, mom. I'll eat later maybe." Danny picked up his plate, put it into the fridge and hurried upstairs to his room.
…
"Danny, everything alright?" Sam asked her friend as she noticed Danny's out of focus look. "Hello, you listening?"
"Hm?" Danny muttered, looking to his friends. Sam and Tucker sat by him in his bed room, assorted notebooks and textbooks laid out on the bed as they all attempted to study for the midterms soon approaching. "Oh sorry, did you say something?"
"Well, I was trying to quiz you on the vocabulary like you asked but apparently there's something more pressing on your mind than passing Biology," Sam said, putting down the flash cards. "Wanna spill?"
"It's nothing really," Danny said. "I should have expected something like this anyway."
"Expected what?" Tucker asked.
"Vlad acting weird," Danny explained. "I haven't seen him since Christmas. Usually he stops by the house, or sees me after school to train."
"How's the training thing going anyway?" Tucker asked. "Now that you two are…what? Friends?"
Danny shrugged. "Not really. We're just…well I'm not too sure but we're not enemies anymore."
"Ever figure out why exactly he changed so much?" Sam asked. "Not that I think he actually did completely change, because this whole "turned over a new leaf thing" or whatever just came out of the blue. No way he just woke up one day and thought "Hey I'm going to stop beating up on Danny and trying to wreck his whole family"."
Danny blushed lightly, looking away from his friends. "Change of heart I guess…or something," he mumbled. He shook his head, looking back to his friends. "It doesn't really matter why though. He has changed, I can see it. He's been around more often, hasn't been as much of an asshole, bothers to help me with school and the ghost thing…he's trying and that's the most I can say about him ever." Danny sighed, scratching his head. "He apologized to my parents. He saved our lives. He got hurt to protect us. He…"
"So then if he's been so great lately, why's he disappeared?" Tucker asked. He glanced at Sam and then back at Danny. "Did something happen Christmas?"
Sam looked to her ghost friend too.
Danny shrugged. "I don't think so. Not anything major anyway. I just don't know anymore. One minute things are fine and the next they're weird. And now he's gone and I don't know where he went."
"He'll come back, Danny. He always comes back," Sam laughed, picking up the flash cards again. "Why not just enjoy your Vlad free time while you have it?"
Sam's smile faded slightly when she noticed Danny glance out the window, a worried expression on his face. "You're really worried, aren't you?"
"Shouldn't I be?" Danny asked, still staring out the window.
"He's a tough guy, Danny. He's fine, I'm sure of it."
That wasn't the problem though. Not really. Danny knew Vlad was fine; he wasn't worried about his safety. He was worried that maybe Vlad had been a bit more upset about Christmas than he had seemed. That maybe Vlad had…given up.
Ugh, why does that even bother me!? Danny argued to himself, squeezing his eyes shut. Wouldn't it be better if he stopped seeing me that way, anyway? It's not like anything is going to happen from it. Then we could just be teacher and student, without him touching me or trying to kiss me or looking at me like I'm this precious little… Danny felt himself blush and shook his head wearily.
Vlad would never give up though. He was after mom for twenty years, relentlessly. This thought eased Danny a bit, for whatever reason, but it still didn't answer the question. Where was Vlad?
"Maybe he's just taking a bit longer this time forming his next big plot?" Tucker joked, flipping lazily through a textbook he wasn't actually reading.
"Yeah, evil never rests as they say," Sam joined in, with a smirk.
"He's not evil, you guys!" Danny snapped. "And he's not plotting anything, he's just…I don't know what."
"Hey, easy, we were just teasing," Sam said, raising her hands.
"Sorry sorry, I know," Danny said, rubbing his forehead. "I didn't mean to snap, it's just…this whole thing is confusing me."
"What whole thing?"
"This whole Vlad thing!" Danny exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air in exasperation. "His random transformation! For as long as I've known him, he's been in love with my mother, plotting to kill my father, and generally being a selfish asshole who will do anything to get whatever he wants. And now he's…nice to my dad, and apologizing and sacrificing himself for others, and giving, and…not in love with my mom…" The boy sighed. "I don't know why he changed and what's worse is…I don't know how I feel about it."
Sam and Tucker shared looks. Danny looked to them, back and forth. "What?"
"Well, you've seemed pretty happy about his transformation, at least from what I've seen of you two," Tucker answered awkwardly. "I don't know if it's because you don't have to hide your secret anymore, or if it's just the relief of him not attacking you that has you so…relaxed around him."
Sam nodded. "You're definitely different around him now, Danny. Not so much happier but…relaxed I guess was the best way to describe it. Though sometimes you seem flustered, like Tucker gets around that new Home Ec teacher." Sam laughed but Danny just ducked his head.
Relaxed. Danny wasn't sure if that was his exact feeling around Vlad. But maybe. How can I be relaxed around a guy who always wants to kiss me? Danny thought. Danny supposed flustered was a good word, but he'd have added annoyed, weirded out, awkward…true, there were times when Vlad helped him with something and Danny felt awe for the man's intelligence and power. There were times when Vlad said something and Danny couldn't stop laughing, or when Vlad smiled and Danny thought Vlad looked a lot better when he smiled than when he smirked, or when Vlad's hand ran through his hair and Danny thought that Vlad's hand felt very warm…
But those thoughts didn't mean anything! Maybe Danny was starting to like Vlad a little, but that was only because now Vlad was becoming an ally instead of an enemy. Vlad had hands down been Danny's worst adversary, and no longer having to worry about that was a huge load off of Danny's chest. Of course Danny was going to be grateful and happy about it.
Danny sighed. But none of that changed the feeling Danny had in his chest right now.
A few days ago, Danny had gotten his test grade back in math. An A-. It was the best he'd done so far ever in that class, and when Danny had seen that letter, his first thought had been, I can't wait to show Vlad! Danny's first thought was imagining how happy Vlad would be, that proud smile on his face and how he'd most likely run his fingers in Danny's hair like he always did.
Danny blushed, thinking about it, a miserable expression on his face. Every day he waited for Vlad to stop by, or to call. Every day he wanted to tell the man how well he did, wanted to ask him a question about his powers, or show him a new technique he'd been working on, or ask him to go for a fly, or have the man just sitting by him and explaining to him the complicated workings of professional football and why the Packers were very clearly the best team out there.
Danny swallowed and buried his head in his hands, his face burning up. He couldn't believe but maybe…maybe in a way he almost missed—
"Danny? Everything alright?" Sam asked, reaching out and touching the boy's shoulder. "If you're really worried about him, why don't we go looking for him at this house?"
"All the way in the Wisconsin?" Danny asked, looking to his Gothic friend with a raised eyebrow.
"Why not?" Sam said with a shrug. "We could just take the Ghost zone."
"Ghost zone…" Danny muttered, a thought itching in the back of his head. "Wait a minute." He reached under his bed and pulled out the new laptop he'd been given from Vlad a few weeks ago. He opened it and pulled up a program he'd installed from his old desktop. The digital infimap popped up. "Last time I saw him, he'd mentioned something about a thing in the Ghost zone called the Espil Mirror."
"Espil Mirror?" Sam asked, moving closer to Danny so she could see the screen. Tucker rolled the wheely chair over to the bed. "What's that?"
"An old ghost artifact, apparently," Danny muttered, typing into his computer, searching all the information he'd collected and that was stored within the map. "It shows you your deepest dreams or something."
"Seems pretty cool," Tucker said, watching Danny searching through the map. "I bet it would show me living in a meat palace." Tucker laughed and Danny smirked, clicking away on the hi-powered laptop.
"There!" Danny exclaimed, his heart racing. The dotted lines and arrow ended on a small floating island called Straw-Goh. "That's where it is."
"So how's this mirror going to help?" Sam asked.
"Not sure yet, but it's the only lead I have," Danny said, memorizing the location of the island before closing it and standing. He turned into Danny Phantom. When Sam and Tucker stood too, Danny said, "I'm going to go alone, you guys."
"What? But Danny, you've never been to this place. Who knows if it's dangerous?" Sam protested.
"I know, Sam but I can handle it," Danny said, looking away. He wasn't sure what it was, but he wanted to go at this alone. Maybe it was because he didn't want Sam and Tucker getting hurt because of him. Maybe it was because he felt like they wouldn't truly understand why he needed to find Vlad so badly, especially since Danny himself didn't completely understand it.
"There's something going on," Sam said quietly. Her purple eyes searched Danny's. "Something between you and him." Danny swallowed the lump in his throat. She sighed. "Maybe us mortals just wouldn't understand?" Sam's lazy smirk told Danny she was teasing, and he sighed in relief. "Vlad is a class-A jerk, a spoiled rich boy, and a total sleaze. When I'm around him, I can't help remembering all the terrible things he's done, especially to you." Sam gave Danny a level look. "I'm not sure if I can forget what he's done, but if you're willing to give him a second chance after all he's done and go on a wild goose chase to God knows where just to find him…then maybe I'll try not to think of him as a complete asshole." Danny laughed, figuring that would be as close to Sam saying she accepted Vlad as he was going to get out of her. "Just promise me he's not brain-washing you or something?"
Danny chuckled and knocked his knuckles against his temple lightly. "Nope, not enough going on up here for Vlad to really brain-wash." His friends laughed and Danny smiled.
"Be careful, dude," Tucker said, Danny and Tucker touching knuckles briefly.
"And tell that fruitloop off for us, when you find him," Sam said, punching Danny's shoulder. "For making you worry so much." Danny laughed and stepped over, his arms going around the shorter girl as her thin arms surrounded him. So much different from Vlad's thicker arms, encasing him, the broad chest and masculine scent of expensive cologne. Danny pulled away. "We'll just let ourselves out," Sam said with a smirk, gathering her things from the bed.
Danny smiled and saluted, sinking into the floor and down into the lab. He landed softly and stepped over to the portal.
"Danny? Where are you off to?"
Danny froze, his heart jumping for a moment before he remembered he didn't have to hide. He turned to see his mother peaking around from a large cylindrical device, his father rolling out on his back from under it.
"Uh, I was just going to take a trip," Danny said, his thumb pointing back into the Zone.
"We talked about this Danny, we don't want you going through the portal unless you talk to us first," Maddie said, stepping over to her half ghost son.
"Sorry, I forgot," Danny said. "I'm used to just going in…"
Maddie's face fell a little. "I know, Danny. And I'm sorry about that, that we weren't there for you in the beginning. But now that we know…I just don't want to worry."
"I'll be fine mom, I'm not going far," Danny said, stepping away from his mother and towards the zone. "I'm…I'm actually meeting Vlad in there."
"Really?" Jack asked, rising from under the device. "Vladdie hasn't come by lately, everything alright?"
"Yeah, he's just been busy," Danny bluffed, avoiding eye contact. "He just called though, said to meet him in the Ghost Zone for some important training. I won't be long."
"I'd loved to tag along and observe—" Maddie began, always eager to see her son in action, ready to observe ghosts in their natural habitat to learn more.
"Maddie, let the boys be," Jack said patiently, putting a hand on his wife's shoulder. "They need their time to train, while we need to finish the Fenton Anti-Chamber." Maddie glanced to the tall device they were working on and nodded.
"Alright. But be careful, Danny."
"Of course, mom," Danny said hurriedly, waving good-bye and flying into the Ghost Zone.
…
Danny went through the Zone and to Vlad's portal first, just to be sure the man wasn't home. He moved the giant purple football aside and entered. The lab was dark and quiet, eerie in its stillness, the bright green of the Zone washing over everything in the room. Danny quickly ascended, floating through the ceiling and floors to the main floor. He quickly and quietly searched, flying from room to room, carefully peeking in and out, feeling like a haunting specter in this grand, seemingly abandoned castle.
"Come on Fruitloop, where are you?" Danny muttered, ascending to the second floor. He searched and searched, all the rooms empty, room after room of nothing but books and Packers and dust.
Danny entered a large room, recognizing it as another bedroom, but this one seemed larger with a more personal touch. Danny entered completely and looked around. He floated over to the bed, noticing one of Vlad's black jackets. "Was he here?" Danny muttered to himself, looking around again before allowing himself to land on his feet before the bed.
He stared at the jacket for a moment before picking it up. It didn't feel particularly warm, so it wasn't like Vlad was just here. With a light blush, Danny brought the jacket to his face, sniffing it. The scent of cologne still clung to the fabric, but it was faded. The familiarity of the smell made Danny close his eyes, imagining Vlad's deep voice, so proper and nice when it rumbled quietly. It made him think of those comforting hugs, and Vlad's hand on his head. Danny blushed deeply, his nose buried in the material. What was happening to him? It was like a disease…
Danny heard a crash and nearly jumped out of his skin, dropping the jacket and looking around him.
"Meooow!"
Danny's rapidly beating heart struggled to slow as he saw Maddie jump from the nightstand to the bed, staring up at Danny angrily.
"Maddie…how long have you been here by yourself?" Danny asked, reaching out to scratch the cat's ear. She purred happily at the affection. "Do you know where your daddy is?"
Maddie continued to purr, ignoring Danny's questions. The boy sighed. "I really wish ghost powers came with the ability to talk to animals." Danny picked up the cat, cradling her in his arms. When he stepped back from the bed, his boot hit something. He glanced down to see the thing Maddie had knocked down, causing the crash.
He bent down. The framed photo of him and Vlad. Danny stared at it a moment. He and Vlad had been on the Fenton roof at the time he'd taken this picture. Vlad had been gazing out at the city. Danny had been messing with his phone, taking funny pictures of himself to send to Sam and Tucker, when Danny had accidently snapped one of him with Vlad in the background. Vlad's expression in the picture had seemed so serene, so curious and relaxed that Danny had saved the photo, later deciding it would make a good, albeit a bit embarrassing, Christmas gift. Danny smiled at the idea that Vlad had really liked it.
"But then…where is he?" Danny muttered, putting the frame back on the nightstand and sinking down to the main floor once again. He entered the kitchen and saw Maddie's bowls filled with clean and fresh water and food. "So was he here recently?" Danny mused to himself, setting Maddie down to the floor, where she happily walking over to her bowl and began eating. Danny looked around, noticing three sticky notes on the counter, written in a thick, unfamiliar handwriting.
Mr. Masters, completely the usual duties. R
Mr. Masters, completely the usual duties. Fed the cat as well. R
Mr. Masters, I don't remember you saying if you were on a business meeting. Please call me if this is the case. Completed the usual duties and fed the cat. R
A maid, maybe, Danny thought. The man has ghostly henchmen, and he's rich enough to have human servants so it's not an impossible idea. But that means Vlad's been gone for a while now.
Danny glanced down at the small white cat. "Don't worry Maddie, I'll be back with your daddy soon. And then we can both ream him out for abandoning us."
…
Once Danny had deemed the castle Vlad-free, he sunk back into the underground lab and back into the Ghost Zone. "Straw-goh, here I come then," Danny said, following his mental map towards the island.
It was quite the trip, but thankfully Danny ran into little trouble before finally landing on the island, where a large manor stood. Cautiously, the boy entered, looking around him. It reminded Danny of Vlad's castle, though older, with more dust and cobwebs and a much appreciated lack of yellow and green.
"Vlad?" Danny whispered, floating more into the manor. No sounds greeted him, no ghosts jumped out or attacked, no Vlad flying around the corner. "Vlad!" Danny called a bit louder, looking all around him. He flew forward through the long hall, two grand doors seated at the end. "I'm guessing if I'd put an old magical mirror anywhere, I'd put it behind the two biggest doors," Danny muttered to himself before pushing the doors. They creaked open like a yawning mouth. "Hello?"
He peeked inside, noticing the empty room, just as abandoned and disarrayed at the rest of the place. Danny's eyes were drawn to the far end of the room though, where the only object in the room sat.
Danny flew over. "This is it," Danny whispered, staring at the dusty face of the mirror. He looked all around him. "Vlad?" Nothing. Not a sound or a motion. Danny groaned in frustration, sinking to the floor, his back to the mirror. "Where is he?"
A shiver ran up the boy's spine and a puff of cold white air escaped his lips as a light mist surrounded Danny. The half ghost jumped up, preparing to fend off whatever ghost inhabited this place.
"Danny Fenton."
Danny looked around, confused. "Who's there?"
Before the boy, a ghost appeared, forming from the mist that bleed from the mirror. Her form was white, her face smooth and blank, as white as her hair that blended into the mist. Set on her oval face, two solid blue eyes.
"I am the ghost who inhabits and owns the Espil Mirror," the spirit said, her voice quiet and calm, cool like the mist surrounding the magical object.
"Uh hi…" Danny glanced from the mirror to the spirit. "So then, have you by any chance seen a ghost by the name of Plasmius? I know he visited your mirror a while ago. He's tall, blue with fangs and weird black hair. He's got a cloak like some kind of vampire wanna-be?"
"Have you come here searching for your deepest desires?" the spirit asked.
Danny blinked. "What? N-no, I'm looking for a ghost. Has he been by here recently?"
"Many ghosts come to my mirror, searching for their greatest desire and how to obtain them," the spirit replied and Danny felt his teenage patience wearing thin as the spirit refused to directly answer his question.
"That's great, but have you seen Vlad or not?" Danny asked, trying desperately to keep his tone in check. "I know he came by here before. Do you have any idea where he is?" The spirit tilted her head slightly, regarding the boy before her passively. Danny sighed. "Please, I just really need to find him."
"Why?" the spirit asked. "Is that what you desire more?"
Danny blinked. "What? No, it's not what I…I mean, it's what I want now."
"But is it your deepest desire?" the spirit asked, floating behind Danny. "Look into the mirror, and see what it is you truly want."
Danny glanced to the mirror, but noticed the spirit reaching out towards him from the corner of his eye. "Hey, back off," Danny grumbled, floating away from the misty ghost. "Look, I don't want any trouble. Just tell me what you know about Vlad and this mirror and I'll leave."
"I am not a threat to you, Danny Fenton," the spirit said, ever the calm, neutral air. "This mirror is not a trap or something to fear. I created it long ago to help people." The spirit gazed at the object of her creation, her solid blue eyes almost seeming fond despite her blank expression. "So many hide their desires away, either out of fear or insecurity. So many are unaware of their truest dreams. This mirror allows them to see it. Reveals it completely and truly to them. I help them find it, and show them it's possible to obtain their deepest desire."
"So Vlad came here looking for how to get what he wanted…and ended up seeing something else instead," Danny reasoned softly. He looked to the mirror, imagining Vlad standing before it. Danny sighed. "Crazy fruitloop." Danny looked to the spirit again. "So if he saw…me, or us, or whatever in the mirror and realized that's what he really wanted, then where is he now? Why'd be just disappear without telling me anything? He abandoned his precious little cat, for ghost's sake!"
"When people visit my mirror, they are either completely lost, or have some sort of idea to what they believe they shall see," the spirit answered calmly. "Most are surprised by the truth inside them."
"I'll bet," Danny muttered.
"If what they see is too hard for them to bare, they give up their deepest desire. If they try, and find the path to what they want most is too hard, they will give up. I've seen it happen again and again throughout the ages." Danny listened silently, watching this old ghost speaking so quietly. The spirit regarded Danny mutely. "When one gives up on their deepest desires…gives up on their hearts dream, on the one thing that will bring them the greatest happiness, it is like they are giving up on themselves. I offer them a glimpse into their hearts, and a path that will guide them. But if they cannot find the will to follow it, then what right do they have to continue on?"
Danny swallowed thickly, an ominous feeling filling the air. "They have a right to try again," Danny began. "When someone falls, yeah they may stay down for a bit. But if you sit on them and don't give them the chance to stand again just because you think they've given up, you're not giving them that second chance."
"I give second chance," the spirit said. "He nearly gave up once. That was his second chance."
Danny's eyes widened at these words, his blooding boiling in his dead veins. He narrowed his eyes which blazed an angry green. "Where's Vlad? What did you do to him?"
The spirit remained unfazed, but her gaze moved towards the mirror. Danny glanced at it briefly before cautiously floating over. The surface was fogged by the mist. He reached out, wiping the layer away to see the mirror's clear surface rippling and morphing. Danny removed his hand quickly, his gaze stuck on the mirror.
A being stood before him in the mirror. Paulina? Valerie? Sam? Danny closed his eyes. "No, stop. I don't care what you think I want, all I want right now is to find Vlad! I'm not here for games!"
Danny gasped when he suddenly felt something tug at him, a pressure in his chest, where his icy core was. He looked behind him to see the mirror guardian there, her arm reaching out into Danny's back. "Hey! W-what are you—"
"Making things easier for you," the spirit replied calmly.
"Get away from—"
"Daniel…"
Danny's eyes widened at the familiar voice. He turned to the mirror to see Vlad, a small smirk on the older man's face as he regarded Danny through the mirror.
"I'm proud of you, my Little Badger."
Danny's heart leapt at the praise, his face turning warm at the sincere smile directed at him.
Vlad's hand reached out, as though offering it to Danny. Danny's fingers twitched, wondering what it would feel like…those long warm fingers that felt so nice in his hair…what would they feel like intertwined with his own fingers, or drawing lines on his sore back or—
"Stop it," Danny muttered, closing his eyes and shaking his head.
"Daniel, it's alright. You don't have to fight so hard anymore. I'm here."
"Stop!" Danny exclaimed, pulling himself away from the spirit behind him and from the mirror. It felt like pulling claws from his flesh. He backed away and noticed the image of Vlad fade from the mirror. The spirit didn't move, her arm still outreached where Danny used to be. "Just stop…"
"Why?" the spirit asked, her tone ever calm and cool.
"Because that's not…you're just going to show me the same thing you showed Vlad and it's not…"
"Not what you believe you want?"
"I know what I want!" Danny yelled angrily.
"You want to find Vlad Masters, that's what you repeatedly say. Why do you wish to find him so badly?"
Danny opened his mouth but faltered. "Well, because he's missing."
"So you believe you have to be the hero and find him? That's all?"
Danny glared, his heart racing, his head still full of Vlad's voice from the mirror's image. Hearing it had made Danny feel relief for just a moment, seeing him again after these two empty weeks.
Danny knew why he needed to find Vlad. He knew it, and looking at the spirit before him, he realized she knew it too. Was this how Vlad had felt when he'd first arrived, after having this spirit digging around inside his heart to learn more about him than even he knew or wanted to admit to? Vulnerable and raw and confused and scared?
"Enough games. I get it. Just tell me what you did to Vlad!" Danny yelled, already knowing it'd be in vain.
"Ghosts come to me for help. They come to find out their deepest desires. What is it you desire the most?"
"I already told you…" Danny growled, tired of the questions and the aversions.
The spirit didn't say a word. Danny's hand clenched into fists, his hands glowing green. A sound came from the spirit, almost like a sigh. "You two are the same. So resistive to the truth. So afraid to be happy."
"I'm not afraid to be happy."
"You're afraid to be happy with Vlad."
Danny flinched away, his face burning what must have looked to be an unhealthy green. This couldn't be happening. He couldn't believe what she was saying to him!
"Why are you searching for Vlad Masters, Danny Fenton?" the spirit asked, her tone strong in the quiet of the room. "If you will not allow me to assist you, then you must answer that for yourself."
"I told you…he's missing and-and his cat is—"
"Why are you looking for him?" Danny's heart pounded in his chest. He shut his eyes, remembering Vlad's voice, his stupid jokes, his annoying pompous attitude, his comforting touches, his uneasy smiles that he wasn't used to giving, his dark eyes and deeper laugh…
Danny's voice was quiet and raw. "I miss him."
The air seemed to warm some, the atmosphere releasing as Danny breathed a sigh he hadn't realized he was holding. He looked to the spirit before him, floating closer until he stood between her and the mirror. "Please. Please, you know what I'm feeling, better than I do. It's hard for me to put into words, because I don't even understand it myself! Ever since he's been trying, I've been feeling…confused. I'm used to being angry at him, and fighting him, and knowing he's always up to something and pretty much hating him! Now…now I don't feel that anymore. Now all of that is gone and I'm left with a man who says he loves me and protects me and is more like me than anyone I've known. Who's tried harder for me than anyone and makes me feel…" Danny's face burned and he shook his head miserably.
"You said you were a spirit who showed users their deepest desires, and then helped them to get those desires," Danny said, lifting his head and fixing his green eyes to the spirit's blue ones. "I want to get Vlad back. Help me."
"Why do you want to find Vlad Masters?" the spirit repeated.
Danny groaned in frustration, throwing his hands up above his head. "I already told you, I don't know! He's missing and I miss him and—"
"Danny."
Danny lowered his arms at the spirit's patient voice. He wasn't going to get anywhere, or get any closer to finding Vlad, until he finally admits it to himself. It was annoying and humiliating and terrifying, and Danny wanted nothing more than to blast the misty spirit where she floated. But that wasn't going to help.
Danny swallowed, his heart feeling too large for his chest. His head was swimming but he opened his mouth and said in a weak voice, "It's because I love him."
Danny swallowed and lifted his head, glaring weakly at the spirit. "I love him, okay! I don't even know when this started or how or anything but I do, and I can't just leave him here! You're the one with the magic mirror and this ideal to help people get what they want so help me! I want Vlad back, so tell me what you did with him!"
The spirit stared at Danny, and something about the air around her making Danny think that if the spirit had a mouth, she'd be smiling. Her head turned to the mirror.
Danny looked over too, moving closer as the mirror's surface rippled and pulsed, the mist swirling around it before clearing to reveal Vlad. His eyes were half-lidded, as though in a trance. He was human, with no suit jacket, no tie, not moving. Danny eyes widened as he stepped over, putting his hand up. "Vlad?" The image in the mirror didn't move. "Vlad!" Danny rounded on the spirit. "What did you do to him!?"
"When someone gives up on their greatest dream, they are essentially giving up on themselves. What's the point of going on when their one chance at true happiness is dismissed?"
"Vlad…gave up?" Danny asked, his tone hurt and a strange feeling entering his chest.
"He thought what he was given was good enough. He was afraid to pursue you further. Afraid of total rejection. Afraid you would never be happy with him, and that'd be left utterly alone once more."
"Idiot…" Danny muttered. "This was because of Sam, wasn't it? He's always so overly dramatic, so controlling and jealous and…" Danny groaned, leaning his forehead against the mirror. "Such an idiot."
Danny narrowed his eyes, stepping back. He turned his hands intangible and reached for the mirror, but he felt a jolt and his insubstantial hands hit the glass. Danny growled and tried again and again until he was banging against the mirror.
"Danny Fenton, you and Vlad Masters are two beings I have never encountered before." Danny paused in his rage, his chest heaving as he listened to the quiet words of the spirit. "You are someone who will do anything for those you care for. Vlad Masters is someone who has never been the object of such care. Both of you complement each other, balance each other; good and bad in both, ghost and human."
"Ghost and human," Danny muttered, looking up at Vlad's blank face. Danny dropped his hands and let the white rings spread over his body. As blood rushed into his system and his heart began to beat, his felt the pressure and cold of the Zone surround him.
Danny kept his gaze fixed on Vlad as he reached into the mirror. His hands sunk in to the elbow. He felt something warm, a pressure. Danny's heart raced as he grabbed, holding on tight before pulling with a loud yell.
Danny fell back, holding on as Vlad was ripped from the mirror. The two fell to the ground, skipping and bouncing until they halted in a jumble, Vlad atop Danny.
Vlad blinked wearily, putting a hand to the ground and pushing himself up, shaking his head. He looked to the boy below him. "Danny…?"
"Vlad?" Danny croaked, the wind knocked out of him from the fall. He stared up at the man, looking over his face and neck and hair. He didn't look hurt. Danny smiled weakly. "You alright, Fruitloop?"
Vlad's eyebrows scrunched in confusion. He looked back at the mirror, up at the spirit and then back down at Danny. He blinked and his gaze softened. A small smile spread over his lips. "Daniel…" Vlad laughed and leaned down, his weight covering Danny as he held him close.
Danny's eyes widened, his face buried in the crook of Vlad's shoulder. The strong, masculine scent, so sharp and expensive, surrounded Danny and the boy closed his eyes, sinking into the warmth and strength of Vlad's arms. Vlad was safe. He was back. Danny wasn't going to let him disappear again.
"You found me, Daniel," Vlad whispered, his hold tightening just that much more.
"Of course, V-man," Danny replied in a quiet voice, a smile on his face as he closed his eyes, reaching up to put his arms around Vlad, holding him. "I'm sixteen. I want attention all the time and when I get ignored, I get upset. You're my teacher, you can't just get kidnapped by weird mirror spirits. What kind of example are you giving me? I'm impressionable." Danny knew he was rambling, but his heart was pounding too fast and his mind was still racing too fast and his throat hurt and he was just too relieved to care.
Danny felt Vlad's chest rumble with his laugh. The two halfas stayed like that for just a moment longer before Vlad put his hand to the ground, pulling away slightly. He smirked down at Danny and leaned down, kissing the boy softly on the forehead. "My brave little ghost boy."
Danny blushed fiercely and pushed the man off. Vlad chuckled and pushed himself up, offering a hand to Danny. Danny took it and stood. He smiled up at Vlad briefly before looking back to the mirror guardian. His eyes narrowed and white rings hooped him and separated, turning him into Phantom once again. His hands turned to fists, surrounded by green energy. The urge to fight the ghost that had taken Vlad was strong, but Danny held onto his anger long enough to get all the information first.
Danny looked back to Vlad. "So what happened to you?"
Vlad looked down at himself, his face twisted in distaste as he noticed his missing coat and tie. He fiddled with his top button, his attention on the task as he answered in a disinterested voice, "My darling mirror friend found my decision to stay a "family friend"…not to her liking I suppose. She snatched me from my home into the mirror and then…" Vlad looked to Danny with an unreadable, firm expression. He smirked. "And then I'm suddenly falling into your arms."
Danny blushed slightly, glancing away briefly as he asked, "You've been in there for two weeks. Missing. Do you…remember anything from when you were in the mirror?"
"Two weeks?" Vlad asked, his tone still mild but his wide eyes giving away his true shock. Vlad paused and then shook his head. "No. I felt like I was asleep for a few hours…everything hazy and cloudy…" Vlad shook his head, looking to the misty spirit with a quirked silver eyebrow. "We spent so much time together. I thought we had something special. But I guess that happy relationship is over now, considering you stole me and trapped me in a mirror for weeks."
"You…" Danny growled, his green eyes narrowed at the spirit. "That stupid mirror of yours is nothing but trouble. You claim to help and then you pull crap like this…" Danny's fists glowed dangerously. He raised his arms, turning to the mirror. "So then maybe I should just save everyone else the trouble and get rid of it!"
Danny saw a flash in the corner of his eyes and before he could release his blast, Plasmius was floating before him. "Stop Daniel," he said calmly, his red eyes turning from him to the spirit. "This is my problem."
Plasmius turned fully to the guardian, who regarded Vlad passively, unfazed by the threat to her mirror. "You never bat an eye. You never really react to anything. You're barely even a being, it seems. Not your own being, anyway," Vlad began quietly.
"I am passive, neutral, a blank slate. I have no further emotion than this, so that whomever I assist has a blank canvas to bounce off of, to be directed by. My mirror reflects what they want and what they truly need. I cannot be anything more than a path for them."
Vlad nodded silently. "I must say spirit, it hasn't been much of a pleasure." Vlad smirked wearily. "It's never pleasant to have your darkest secrets and fears thrown in your face. It's not enjoyable to be told how much of a failure you are, shown all the mistakes you've made and why it's completely ruined your life." Vlad looked back at Danny. "But, without you, I wouldn't have been able to get what I have now. I would have still been the bad guy, the bitter villain trapped in the past, fighting the one person who now holds all of my affection. So thank you."
The spirit nodded solemnly. Vlad nodded back, but the smirk on his face only grew wider and bitterer, reminding Danny of the Vlad he had grown to know and fear. "But…old habits die hard. I don't forgive easily and I don't appreciate being kidnapped."
Vlad raised his arm and let out a blinding pink blast directed at the mirror. It burst in an explosion of glass and shards, pink specks of energy flaring out. A faint cry like a kettle rose, reminding Danny of his own ghostly wail. Plasmius and Danny shut their eyes and covered their ears, the room rumbling for a moment longer until finally all went silent.
Danny opened his eyes slowly, looking over to the shattered remains of the mirror. He floated over, looking around him briefly. The spirit was gone. He stepped delicately to the ground, his boots crunching softly. He looked at the broken bits of glass. Confused green eyes stared back at him, framed by snowy white hair. A blue face and red eyes suddenly filled half the shard of glass, regarding Danny.
"Daniel…" A gloved hand touched his shoulder softly.
Danny sighed quietly, looking over at Vlad. "She helped you."
"Yeah well, she also kidnapped me so…" Vlad shrugged with a casual air.
Danny sighed, shaking his head. "And you call me the child. You're reckless, plain and simple."
"Hot-tempered, perhaps. Reckless, never," Vlad said with a self-assured air, chin raised. Danny chuckled. Vlad smirked, glancing from the broken shards to Danny. "It truly was a magnificent piece, though. Did you get to utilize it?"
The tone Vlad used was level, aloof as though simply asking if Danny found the weather fair. But Danny wasn't an idiot. He heard the question and the underlying curiosity. Danny bent down and picked up a flat shard. He shook his head. "No. I didn't need to."
Vlad nodded his head, staring at the ruin before him.
"What happened to her?"
Vlad shrugged. "Not sure. She was a ghost, I doubt she died. Maybe she ran. Maybe she was destroyed."
Danny dropped the shard and turned to Vlad, crossing his arms. "You know, you're not fooling me one bit."
Vlad quirked an eyebrow, true confusion written on his face. "Huh?"
"Vlad Plasmius, the great big baddie, always the tough one, doesn't care what someone does for him. Once crossed, all the gloves are off."
Vlad blinked, confusion evident in his tense body and expression. "Uh, yes, exactly. Did I give you a different impression just now?"
"If that were truly the case, why did you shoot the mirror? Why didn't you shoot the spirit?"
"You were going to shoot the mirror before," Vlad accused, dark eyebrows narrowing.
"Yes, because I thought the mirror was an evil object. You said you wanted to get back at the spirit for kidnapping you. So why didn't you attack her?"
Vlad opened his mouth but sputtered for an answer, blinking quickly.
"You shot the mirror to release all the ghosts the spirit trapped over the years. You did something good!"
"Oh perish the thought that Vlad Plasmius could actually do something good," Vlad drawled with a lazy roll of his eyes. "Don't you see the fangs, the hair, the cape? I'm the bad guy, Daniel, I don't do good."
Danny laughed, the tension in the air gone. He looked back to the shattered mirror. "Well. It's over then. The mirror is gone, and so is the spirit."
"Seems so," Vlad said quietly. "She's been with me every day since this whole thing began, helping me. Yes she was a nuisance most of the time, but…I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to do this on my own now."
"This?" Danny asked, turning to look at Vlad. Vlad's red eyes met Danny's, and the younger halfa was surprised to see uncertainty and fear in Vlad's gaze, where he'd usually seen only confidence and daring.
"This," Vlad agreed, gazing at Danny softly. He shrugged, seemingly at a loss for words. Danny had never seen the man so lost. "I don't know what I'm doing. I'm just going to mess it all up…again."
"Hey hey," Danny said, his cheeks tinging a light green as he searched for Vlad's gaze. "It's alright. Most people don't get magical mirror spirits whispering in their ear and telling them how to smooze a sixteen year old anyway." Danny laughed and Vlad smiled at the sound and jibe. "Most people just have to…figure it out on their own."
"We're neither dead, nor alive. We're not exactly "most people", my dear boy," Vlad said with a smirk and Danny laughed again at the ridiculousness of the conversation.
"Good point," Danny agreed. "Look. Just…do what you're doing and maybe…" Danny faltered slightly, his cheeks burning as bright as his eyes.
Vlad smirked and lifted his gloved to Danny's face, gently touching his cheek and lifting his face to look at Vlad. Danny closed his eyes but after a moment, opened them and looked Vlad in the eye. Danny swallowed, wondering if this would have been easier if Vlad had heard his confession just minutes before…
"Maybe…I-I mean, you're not exactly doing bad, so long as you're not acting like an ass or a fruitloop or—"
"But dear Daniel, who would I be if not that crazed up fruitloop you've come to love so much?" Vlad asked quietly, a smirk on his face and a fondness in his voice.
Danny smirked back. "True. You'd be way too boring and stuffy for my taste. I like you with just a touch of crazy to the otherwise lonely, pompous, football crazed halfa that you truly are."
Vlad laughed, leaning his forehead against Danny's. Danny smiled pleasantly, the tension gone as this man who had once been his greatest enemy laughed and held his face gently, smiling in a way that made Danny never want him to frown again. After so much…after trying so hard…he felt Vlad deserved happiness.
"Soo…" Danny began, causing Vlad to pull away a bit to look curiously at the younger halfa. "I've got these two tickets to the Kennedy Space Center. My birthday is in a few weeks and I was thinking of taking that weekend to go down to Florida." Danny blushed lightly, shrugging with a small smile. "You're not too bad to hang out with, and you've got a private jet, so I figured you'd make pretty good company."
Vlad blinked, his eyes wide as he stared dumbly at the boy before him. "You don't mean…"
Danny smiled cheekily and raised an eyebrow. "Want to?"
Danny couldn't read minds. He wasn't great at reading people like Jaz or his mother. But Danny figured from the large smile on the vampiric face and the wetness in Vlad's red eyes, that the man was happy. Very happy. Vlad hugged Danny tightly.
Maybe this was wrong. Maybe this wouldn't work. Danny wasn't sure how any of this even happened but he knew he'd give it a try. As confusing as it all was…as messed up as it may seem to others…in a way, it made sense to Danny.
Vlad was right, nothing about them made sense anyway. And for the first time in a while, Danny wanted to stop fighting. He didn't want to have to be the hero, always with the right answers. He just wanted to be Danny, not Fenton or Phantom, not human geek or ghostly hero. In Vlad's arms now, Danny figured he could relax. He could try. Vlad was strong and confident and smart, and yet here in front of Danny he was scared and unguarded and speechless.
Danny reached up, wrapping his arms around Vlad, holding him tightly, not sure what was going to happen next, what any of this was going to lead to. In his mind, he wondered if he should have looked into the mirror. In his mind, he wondered if allowing Vlad to destroy the mirror had been smart.
But in the end, he figured there was no going back. Only forward from here. Whatever that meant.
what's this? another update in one week!? Haha, well there it is, hope you enjoy ^^ THIS IS NOT THE LAST CHAPTER, so don't worry, still more to come ^^ but as you can see, things are finally getting good ;)
Please remember to favorite/follow if you like the story, as well as leaving me a little review if you can with you comments, questions, greetings or anything else(tell me if something's off, or confusing or weird grammatical errors!)! I love you all, thank you so much for all the follows and favorites and comments so far!
PS: A small (very terrible) joke in the naming of the Island where the mirror is held. Anyone get it? ;)