A huge thank you to Savirox, Lightning Streak, Lexosaurus, Anon, Gerren, and Barely Existent for your reviews on the last chapter! I hope this one is worth the wait! Just a quick reminder that I really appreciate reviews, especially since they are usually the reason I get in the mood to write in the first place.
Valerie wasn't entirely sure what she expected of the new Fenton Works. Part of her was really convinced that the Fenton's would use their newfound wealth to go ultra-sleek with their next lab. An all-white building with lots of glass and modernized furniture. Then she thought maybe they just built a replica of the old Fenton Works. Jack and Maddie were the sentimental sort, so really it wouldn't have surprised her.
What she did find when she had reached the building was not what she expected. She didn't know why, though, because she'd probably guess the building was theirs even if their name wasn't plastered across the front.
It was a small warehouse type building composed mostly of classic red brick, but from the right most end a giant metal structure bloomed out form the rest of the building, going from the side and then extending upwards to the top. She stared at the impressive structure with a fond smile. The Fenton's haven't changed a bit.
She deactivated her sled and walked up to the front door, which was made of the same metal as the building's addition. As soon as she was close enough, she felt the gentle tingle of multiple ectoplasm scans. A computerized voice spoke out loud. "Surface level ectoplasm traces detected. Ecto – signature recognized, identification: Phantom."
After the announcement, Valerie could hear the sound of a classic doorbell chime from within. She shook her head in amusement. The door slid open a moment later, revealing Maddie Fenton in her usual jumpsuit and a lab coat.
"Valerie!" She pulled the younger woman in for a hug, which Valerie returned. "You must've sensed that we were cooking up some new gadgets for you! Come in, come in!"
Valerie's eyebrows raised as she stepped in the door. The Fenton's had clearly decided that since they no longer had children to raise, they didn't have to devote as much room to living space as they had to previously. There was a small and simply decorated living room, and she could see the kitchen on the other side. There were a couple doors to her left that were surely a bedroom and bathroom.
To her right, there was an industrial level blast door and a decontamination chamber right outside of it. Next to the door was a panel that had a number pad and a fingerprint scanner. Maddie walked over to it.
"Jack and I definitely splurged a little when it came to the lab in this place." Maddie entered in a code and scanned her hand. "I think it's helping us with our empty nest syndrome." She said with a slight chuckle. The door slid open with a hiss of powerful hydraulics, and Valerie followed Maddie inside.
"Wow," Valerie said as she took in the room before her, "Looks like it was money well spent." The lab sprawled outwards, with row after row of lab tables covered in either analysis equipment or parts for any manner of ghost related weapon or containment unit. Further back Valerie could see a small conveyer belt system, where she assumed they produced the first few units of their new projects.
Maddie led her deeper within, coming to a stop in front of one of the lab tables. "We run experiments, build new gadgets, and create the first generation of prototypes right here!" She explained, eyes shining with pride. "There's hardly ever a dull moment. Danny's always coming here with something new for us to investigate. And then there's you, of course," indicating Valerie's suit, "We just love making new stuff for the Red Huntress."
Valerie blushed slightly as she smiled. "Well, I appreciate it." She looked around. "Where's Mr. Fenton?"
Maddie laughed. "When we realized it was you, he ran into one of the private rooms to finish up the gadget we were developing for you." She leaned on the table in front of her. "But you're not here for a tour, are you?" She asked, knowing look in her eyes.
Valerie blinked at her for a moment before sighing. "You caught me." She admitted, smiling sheepishly. She reached into one of the pouches in her belt and pulled out the little glass vial within. She held it up between them for Maddie to see. "I need you to help me with this."
Maddie blinked, and Valerie could already see the wheels turning in her brain. "Hmm. You want us to study it? See what it's composed of?"
Valerie shook her head. "If I had a bigger sample, maybe, but Danny and I already know what it is. It's extract from this ghost flower called a Blood Blossom."
Maddie put a hand to her chin. "Never heard of them." She frowned at Valerie. "So if you don't want us to study it…?"
"I want you to weaponize it." Valerie finished. "It's very toxic to ghosts. We haven't be able to test it, but we have reason to believe it can destroy a ghost's core. As in… a powerful ghost's core."
Maddie eyes widened. After a certain level, it was close to impossible to actually destroy a ghost in its entirety. "Oh, wow. This is a really powerful weapon we're talking about here." She took the vial when Valerie offered it to her, inspecting it in the light. "I guess what I don't understand is why. I mean, I know why, but Danny has yet to come up against a ghost he couldn't beat."
Valerie bit her lip. "It's a… tough reality to consider but… What if we didn't have Danny? For whatever reason?" It was a decent argument, Valerie figured. And a very good point, really. Maddie frowned at her words.
"I- yes. That's a… Good point that I hadn't..." She squeezed her eyes shut for a moment before looking up at Valerie with a tentative smile. "You're right. We'll get to work on it. It's always impressive to me how you are able to think ahead Valerie, even when that can be… Hard."
Valerie chuckled nervously. "Well, you know…" She would probably do anything to get out of this conversation. As if answering her silent wishes, Jack Fenton burst into the room, giant grin in place and large hands hidden behind his back.
"VALERIE!" He boomed, excitement clear in his voice. "Just the Huntress we wanted to see!" He covered the ground between himself and the two women quickly. "Do I have the gadget for you!" Without much pomp or circumstance, he revealed the object from behind his back.
Valerie didn't know what it was by sight. It definitely wasn't a gun, but it didn't look like a containment unit or explosive. Still, she managed a wide smile. "Wow! That's… uh…"
Maddie came to her rescue. "It's an addition for your hoverboard." She elaborated, slipping the vial in her lab pocket. "It'll help a lot with catching any quick, pesky ghosts. It's sort of like a tractor beam. It'll stop any ghost in its tracks long enough for you to capture it! Or, you know, destroy it. Whatever!" Jack and Maddie did their best to respect Danny's inclination to simply capture ghosts, but old habits die hard. Valerie smirked at that.
"I'll use it for the greater good, for sure." She gave Jack a hug. "Thanks for this." He eyes darted over to Maddie for a moment. "For everything."
Jack laughed and put a huge hand on Valerie's shoulder. "Of course! You're one of the best hunters of our time. Really, it's an honor for us!" He placed the device on the table before him. "Now, I say we eat some of the lunch Maddie made for us then you let us at that board of yours so we can slap this baby on there."
Valerie nodded. "Sounds great." She shared another look with Maddie as Jack hurried towards the door.
She was about to follow when Maddie reached out and grabbed Valerie's wrist gently. "Valerie," She began softly, "You have always been a very rational girl, and I really do respect that but I have to ask you to understand: Danny is my son. And that kind of love isn't always rational."
Valerie swallowed as best she could around the lump in her throat and nodded. Maddie gave her a soft smile before releasing her arm and following Jack out of the lab.
Maddie was on to them, that much she knew for sure.
Danny's patrol had gone off without a hitch, and he had even caught another couple of low level ghosts. Suddenly his phone started to vibrate from its place in his boot. He landed on a nearby building and reached down to retrieve it. He glanced at the name on the screen. Valerie.
"Hey," he said as he answered, "How did it go with mom and dad?"
There was a sigh from the other side of the line. "Well enough. It actually only took about five minutes to convince your mom to make the gun."
Danny pulled the phone away from his ear and glanced at the time. "Val, it's been almost two hours since you left."
"Yeah, I know. Your parents insisted I have lunch with them and then they added an upgrade onto my sled."
"Oh yeah?" Danny sat on the edge of the building, allowing his feet to dangle over the edge. "What's it do?"
"It's pretty cool actually." He could hear soft wind noise as she flew slowly. "It's this beam thing that can, like, grab hold of ghosts while they're flying around. It's supposed to be able to keep them from moving for long enough to catch them."
Danny almost dropped his phone. "Wait, what?!" That sounded just like the thing from his dream.
"Oh, sorry. I don't think I explained it great. The really science-y explanation was over my head. You'd have better luck if they explained it to you, I think."
Danny fought to keep his breathing normal. "Right. Yeah. I'll talk to them." Or Clockwork. If anyone might know whether this was all a coincidence or his dream was actually some warped premonition it would be him.
"Cool. I'll go ahead and take up the rest of your patrol while you go talk to Laura. Text me where you left off." They already had a route from high school, and Danny still used the same one after she had moved away.
"Ok. I'll see you later." He hung up and quickly texted her where he was. He was still shaken as he took off towards the GiW.
His dream had been scary enough without bits and pieces suddenly becoming reality. With a sinking feeling in his stomach, he wondered what else would come true. He shook his head at the thought. There was no way he was going to go on some homicidal rampage, and he certainly wasn't going hurt Valerie in any capacity.
Clockwork would hopefully know what's going on, but first things first: He had to talk to Laura. Which wasn't a conversation he was looking forward to in any capacity. He could have gotten to the GiW facility much quicker, but he genuinely hated going there, and maybe putting it off would give him the chance to relax a little.
Too soon, the building came into view. Danny rolled his eyes as he felt proximity scans tickle his skin. He hated going to the GiW. He really, really did. In the back of his mind he knew the scans would identify him as a friendly and that there were several ecto-gun turrets powering down from their hidden locations.
He landed right in front of the doors, not surprised to see that Hayes was waiting for him. Usually he called Hayes before showing up to the facility, so he was likely very curious as to what he was doing there.
"Daniel." Hayes said as soon as his feet hit the pavement.
Danny crossed his arms. "Hayes." He responded in the same deadpan.
"What brings you here today?" He asked, subtly shifting so he blocked the doors a little better.
Danny rolled his eyes at the man's actions. "Relax, I came to talk to Laura. You know? My friend? I wanted to ask her if she wanted to see some of my parents' research on Spectra."
He couldn't see Hayes's eyes through the man's dark sunglasses, but he could tell from the way his brows furrowed that they were narrowed at him. "And that's all?"
"Yup," Danny raised a brow at the man, "Unless you have some ghosts contained for me to bring to the portal?"
Danny had to hand it to Hayes, his poker face was impeccable. "I don't. Proceed." He said, moving out of Danny's way.
Danny walked inside, a little disappointed but not surprised at Hayes' lie. Still, it was wishful thinking to see if he could get Skulker out by simply asking. He couldn't wait to get some solid evidence on him. The man could certainly stand to be knocked down a few pegs.
Before he was truly ready, he was at the labs. He was greeted with several kind hellos once he entered. Unlike the hunter population of the GiW, the scientists actually rather liked him. After all, he was pretty enthusiastic about answering any questions they had for him, and offering to look into any that he didn't know off the answer to on the top of his head. He glanced around, looking for Laura's signature bright red bun.
When he didn't see it, he walked over to her private lab. He hesitated in knocking for a moment, hoping she wasn't working on anything having to do with the Blood Blossoms. He steeled his resolve. Only one way to find out.
He knocked a couple times and waited, smiling to himself when he heard the sounds of papers falling and a soft "I'm coming!" From within. She was apparently messy as ever. Laura opened the door, face immediately brightening when she saw who it was.
"Phantom!" Her voice was giddy. "It's been a while! Come in." She stepped out of his way so he could enter, shutting the door behind him. "What can I do for you?" She asked with a warm smile.
Danny returned the look. "Hey, Laura." His eyes wandered over to the encased Blood Blossom, and as much as he'd like to simply talk without the circumstances, he remembered his goal was for his own protection. "I actually have something kind of important to discuss with you."
Laura blinked. "Oh, okay," She led him towards her office, pointing at a chair for him to sit in. She closed the door behind her sand sat behind her desk. "What's going on?"
"You met my friend Valerie, right?" He asked.
"Yes!" She answered enthusiastically. "Just yesterday, actually. I didn't realize you were friends."
Danny nodded. "Yeah, old pals." He smiled a little at his own joke. "She mentioned you were doing some research on Blood Blossoms." He said, getting right to the point.
"I am, they're quite fascinating."
"Right, and you're good at what you do, so I probably don't need to explain to you that they have… Dangerous potential." He leaned forward, elbows resting on his knees.
Laura's smile faltered. "Well, I actually don't quite know the full scope of the Blood Blossoms' 'potential', as you put it. You've clearly interacted with these specimen before though. Would you mind filling me in?"
"You know how difficult it is to extinguish ghost cores, don't you?"
Laura nodded. "Particularly more powerful ghosts. Like you, for example. It'd be nearly impossible."
"Right," Danny agreed, "Unless, for example, you had a very strong and very potent toxin."
Laura's eyes widened. "Oh no… Are you telling me that the Blood Blossom extract…? It could…?" She trailed off, horror already clear on her face.
Danny was counting on that. "Yeah. I mean, we can't exactly test it, of course, but I react badly to Blood Blossoms in all forms, so it's a pretty safe bet." His mind drifted to his dream for a moment, wondering if the effects of it would be like that which his subconscious had imagined.
"Oh my gosh. This is," Laura swallowed thickly, "A lot to take in. Did you come here to ask me to stop my research?" She looked willing, but upset at the prospect.
Danny shook his head. "No, not at all. In fact, it might be more beneficial if you keep up your research. What I'm getting at here is," He leaned in closer to her, voice dropping into a whisper, "If Hayes found out what you've stumbled upon here, he might try to take advantage of your research and create a weapon that could… destroy me."
Laura gasped, leaning backwards in her chair. "I'd never let him!"
Danny made a motion for her to calm down. "I believe you, Laura. But that doesn't mean he wouldn't just take your research from you."
"What should I do?" She asked, brows furrowed in worry.
"Well, best case scenario is that he doesn't bother asking you about them," He gave her a sympathetic look, "But if he did, and I really hate to ask this of you, you might have to lie."
Laura bit her lip. "Right. Lie. Sure, no problem."
Danny reached out and grabbed one of her hands. "Laura? Are you ok with that? I know I'm asking for a lot."
She shook her head rapidly. "No. I mean yes. I'm fine. It's," She squeezed his hand, offering him a small smile, "The least I could do for you, really."
Danny grinned back. He never expected for anyone to do anything for him simply because he saved them pretty regularly. He was a hero, after all. That's just what heroes did. Still, it was nice when people decided to return the favor. "Thank you, Laura."
"Anything for you, Phantom."
"So she agreed? Just like that?" Valerie asked. She smirked when Danny simply shrugged his shoulders in response. "Geez Fenton, you must've put the moves on her."
Danny snorted as he turned onto the next street. "What moves are you referring to, exactly?"
Valerie laughed. "Act innocent all you want Fenton, but we dated for a few weeks. You know exactly what moves I'm referring to."
The duo had taken to Danny's car upon meeting up, choosing to drive over to the Box Ghost's usual haunt: an old abandoned warehouse in Amity's industrial district. There they would wait in the car until night fall when he was more likely to be active and snatch him up. Easy as one, two, three.
"It wasn't like that," Danny replied as he parked the car a little distance away from the building, "I just asked." His tone was clipped.
Valerie gazed over at him, eyebrows furrowing. "Geez, I didn't mean to offend you."
"No, you didn't…" He sighed in frustration. "Me and Laura actually did have a thing, once." He admitted.
Valerie's eyebrows raised. "Oh yeah?" she asked, inquisitive but not pressuring.
"Yeah, I met her as Phantom and I thought she was pretty and nice so I set it up so that she would run into Fenton."
"And how did that go?" Valerie asked as she reached into the backseat to grab their packed dinners and bottles of water. She handed Danny his sandwich.
He took it, fiddling with the cling wrap as he spoke. "Really well, actually. We went on a couple dates and everything was going great until a ghost attacked during one of them."
"Uh oh." Valerie was well aware of how that tended to ruin dates.
"Yeah, so of course Fenton had to find some lame excuse to leave so Phantom could save the day. I saved her right before she got crushed by a mini golf windmill. The second she noticed she was safe in Phantom's arms…"
"It was all over for Fenton." Valerie finished. She shook her head. "That really sucks man." She opened her sandwich and bit in, staring out the window as she listened.
"Yup. A couple days later she told me she wasn't into me romantically. It felt like a little too much of a coincidence." He shrugged, opening his own sandwich.
Valerie swallowed. "Why didn't you just tell her that you're also Phantom? She doesn't seem like the type to blab."
"I had thought about it, but… I don't know Valerie. I just thought that it might be nice to be with a girl who appreciates me as Fenton too." He sighed, staring down at his food but not eating. "It kind of makes sense though, you know? I mean, what do I really have to offer when I'm just Fenton?"
"Shut up Danny!" Valerie exclaimed, punching his arm. "You are nice, and smart, and good looking, and unbelievably caring. You have just as much to offer as 'plain old Fenton' as you do as Phantom. Maybe more." Her tone left no room for argument.
Danny stared at her with wide eyes, and he could already feel a blush creeping across his cheeks. "You… You really think so?" He asked, voice soft.
Valerie rolled her eyes. "Of course I do. In case you forgot, even when I hated Phantom, I really, really liked Fenton." She continued eating, clearly finished with the conversation. Danny just looked back down at the uneaten sandwich in his hand.
He did forget that a lot, it seemed. After all, Fenton and Phantom were one in the same. They were both him, and yet one seemed to be more universally liked than the other. It didn't usually bother him so much. He snuck another glance at Valerie. For all her rough edges, she sure knew how to make him feel better.
"Danny, if you don't start eating I promise you I'll take your food and eat it myself." Valerie threatened before taking a sip of her water and throwing her wrapper to the back seat. She waited for Danny to take a bite before speaking again. "We've got a good three hours before sundown. What do you wanna do?"
Danny swallowed the food in his mouth. "I've had a lot of trouble getting past this one level in Candy Crush if you want a shot at it." He suggested, already unlocking his phone.
Valerie rolled her eyes. "You're such a grandma." She held out a hand. "Let me see it."
He passed her the phone and continued eating. They sat in relative silence; a peaceful moment like the eye of a hurricane. Pretty soon they would be back to their usual nonstop routine of kicking butt and taking names, but for just a moment, they were allowed to just be.
It was nice.
Honestly my favorite part about writing these stories are the moments between the action where Danny and Valerie get a chance to just really enjoy each other. I could probably write dialogue for these two forever. It's always interesting to go back when I'm editing these older chapters and see how much their relationship and the plot has moved forward. Only a few chapters left before we really get going! Can't wait!