Edit: 6/5/18: Next wave of grammar fixes and wording tweaks or some scenes altered to avoid cliches. Took out AN question and answer sections.
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zzz- normal separation
ooo- dream or vision separation (could be a past event of some kind)
Mental thoughts, past speech, or distant speaking unless indicated otherwise
"Did you ever know that you're my hero, and everything I would like to be? It might have appeared to go unnoticed, but I've got it all here in my heart." ~ Bette Midler
"Waiting hurts. Forgetting hurts. But not knowing which decision to take can sometimes be the most painful..." ~ José N. Harris, MI VIDA: A Story of Faith, Hope and Love
zzz
FentonWorks. 7:45 PM.
It technically wasn't their first date, Danny reminded himself. He let out a breath of air after repeating his new mantra in his head for the tenth time. He and Sam had gone alone to eat with each other before. The only difference was that this one was more official, planned, and was happening after their most recent talk regarding the future they may or may not have together.
Danny was snapped out of his thoughts when there was a knock on the frame of his door. He glanced up to see his dad standing there. "Hey dad, what's up?"
Jack smiled. "Nothing much, just checking to see how you were doing. I know this is your first official date after a few months of being a couple."
Danny shrugged. "I guess it's just different for people that have been friends. I don't know. It feels that way."
Jack chuckled. "Boy do I know it."
Danny blinked and looked back at his dad. "Oh yeah. I almost forgot that mom was your friend before…"
Jack grinned. "Yep." The large man lumbered closer and then took a look at his son. "It's not as complicated as it may seem and don't try to base your and Sam's relationship off of anyone else and all that."
Danny smiled and nodded. "Yeah, I know dad."
Jack became soberer and clasped a hand over his son's shoulder. "Just remember she's your friend, she's your teammate, listen to her, let her know you care about what she thinks and feels."
Danny looked at his father for a moment and smirked. "I think it would be hard to forget all those things about Sam."
Jack gave his son a calm smile right as Maddie walked in. "You almost ready, Danny?"
Danny nodded as his mother walked closer. "Yep. At least I think so."
After saying goodbye to his parents and not so subtly trying to escape his mother's attempt to fuss over him, Danny transformed and flew towards the Mansons'
zzz
Manson Residence. 8:00 PM.
Danny landed softly on the ground before walking up to the mansion's door. The half-ghost glanced around quickly to see how populated the area was. Not seeing many people on the streets at this hour, he transformed before letting himself become visible.
Danny then knocked on the door.
"Please state your name and purpose."
"It's me, Hobson, Danny. I'm here to pick up Sam." Danny shuffled his shoe nervously for a moment before Hobson answered.
"Ah yes." Hobson swung open the door and smiled at Danny. "Please do come inside, Master Danny."
Danny blinked in surprise before thanking Hobson and coming inside. He was met with Jeremy Manson almost immediately.
"Hello, Daniel. Nice to see you." Jeremy said calmly, even if Danny could sense the apprehension coming off of him.
"Uh, thanks Mr. Manson."
Jeremy glanced up at the stairs and then looked back at Danny. "Sam should be down shortly. I think she's having a disagreement with Pam."
Danny chuckled slightly. "Ah."
There was a moment of silence before Jeremy cleared his throat. "I hope you understand what kind of trust I'm putting in you, Daniel."
Danny looked up at Jeremy as the man gazed at him evenly.
"Not just you two being a couple and all that entails with that, but even being around you. The danger."
Danny felt his stomach churn, intimately knowing just what Jeremy meant. "I know sir. I know."
Jeremy watched as a deep sadness and worry of some kind enter the young man's blue eyes, but then he also saw a determination hidden underneath. The two remained silent for a moment, before the sound of someone tearing down the stairs caught their attention.
Sam thundered down the steps, dressed semi-casually as Danny was. She rushed over and snatched Danny's arm. "We're going, hurry."
"Sammykins! You come back!"
Sam grinned back at her father and Ida as the older woman motored into the room. "Bye dad, grandma. See ya around eleven."
They then dashed through the front door as Hobson held it open.
zzz
Nirvana Restaurant. 8:24 PM.
"So… what are you going to try? Are you sure you don't want to go somewhere else?" Sam asked and glanced over the top of her menu to look at her boyfriend. Danny was scratching his head while he looked at the options.
They were currently in a new vegetarian and vegan only restaurant that had recently opened up in Amity Park. While it wasn't really popular yet seeing as there wasn't a large population of vegetarians in Amity, it was nice looking and would probably draw in a nice crowd of curious people.
"Yeah I'm sure. It's not as crowded here and you always have to find something on the menu wherever you go with me and Tucker. There have only been three people that have tried to walk up to us too, so that's a bonus." Danny smiled up at her and Sam couldn't help but smile brightly back.
"I'll punch the next reporter that tries to ask you more questions about ghost politics again. I feel like we should put a sign around your neck that says, 'can't talk about it, yet'." Sam smirked as Danny put his hand thoughtfully to his chin.
"The sad thing is that I'm actually considering it."
The two laughed as a waiter came up to them. He nodded politely. "Are you both ready to order or do you need more time?"
Sam expressed that she was ready and Danny nodded slowly as though finalizing his decision. Sam ordered veggie dumplings and a buckwheat noodle dish, realizing just how excited she was to try something more interesting than a salad at Nasty Burger.
"And you, sir?" The young waiter asked. Danny could tell the young man was staring at him, as though waiting for him to do something ghostly or bizarre. It made his skin prickle, but he tried to ignore it entirely.
"I want the Lasagna."
"Do you want the vegetarian variety or the vegan variety?"
Danny chuckled nervously. "I'm going to stick with the veggie variety. Not sure if I'm ready for fake cheese yet."
They handed in their menus as the waiter walked off. Sam smiled at Danny. "Playing it safe?"
Danny shrugged. "Safe as possible. Tofu's just not for this guy."
Sam let out a relaxed sigh. "This is nice."
"Yep. Not only that, but…" Danny grinned and pulled out his wrapped straw. In an instant, he'd blown the torn wrapper into Sam's face with a puff of air. "I can do that and not feel mortified."
Sam gave a particularly unimpressed look, but Danny's smile was contagious. "Very funny, tough guy."
Danny grinned. Time wore on as the two talked and ate. Danny discussed only briefly his worries about Skulker and his desire to look into whatever information Jazz might have about his past life. Sam agreed that it might help like it had for Technus.
Even they finished eating and left the restaurant.
"Where to next? It's only nine thirty," Sam explained and looked at her black and purple watch she had on her wrist.
"A meteor shower is happening around nine forty-five and I was thinking we could have a unique view on the roof of the observatory," Danny offered.
Sam nodded excitedly. "Yeah. That's sounds nice."
The two walked into a dark alleyway and only a flash of white light indicated that they had left.
zzz
Amity Park Observatory. 9:38 PM.
Soon, the two found themselves on the very top of the Amity Park Observatory building. There were several people below on the balcony area, getting ready to watch the event. No one had noticed the couple appear.
"Wow, this is almost like having VIP seating or something," Sam expressed as the two sat down near the top of the round roof.
Danny nodded and the two sat and waited in silence. Eventually, a bright streak of light shown in the sky, then another, and then finally it seemed as though hundreds of stars were falling.
Danny could hear the sounds of people ooing and awing down below as the event continued. He could feel his whole-body tense with anticipation and finally he turned to Sam. "Hey, wanna get an even closer look?"
Sam looked at him blankly for a moment before his meaning struck her. She nodded quickly as Danny transformed, wrapped an arm around her waist, and then shot into the sky with intangibility.
It took them a few minutes to reach the right height, but they did finally find themselves watching the small rocks rocketing past them and sometimes even through them.
"I remember when I was younger, I was sad to find out that people didn't wish on stars, but rocks," Danny spoke suddenly, nostalgia in his words.
Sam shrugged. "Eh, who knows? Maybe the wishes end up in the Ghost Zone. Clockwork told us that ideas, dreams, and thoughts of all kinds empower the Zone."
Danny blinked and gave a content smile at the thought. She had succeeded in warming his heart with that comment. "That's surprisingly un-nihilistic of you."
"Well maybe you taught me that hoping for something isn't as bad as I thought." Sam squeezed Danny around the waist as she finished. Danny smiled and did the same.
"And maybe you taught me that I needed to love myself before I should care about what others think of me. For a long time, I was trying way too hard to please everyone."
As the couple noticed that the meteor shower had started to slow, they quietly descended through the clouds. It was now almost ten fifteen and they needed to start in the direction of Sam's home. They touched down in the park behind a tree as Danny transformed again.
They then walked hand and hand through the park in the direction of Sam's home, taking their time.
"Tonight, was fun," Sam expressed.
"Yeah, very fun. Nice to have something like this right before I start learning how to talk to the president about Ghost rights…" Danny agreed and laughed anxiously.
Sam nodded in understanding, though the mention of the president did remind her of something important she had wanted to tell Danny. "I want to make something clear to you before things get even weirder with tabloids and being famous and all that."
"What?"
"I want you to know in your heart, that I love you, not phantom or your powers. A lot of people will probably try to claim that…"
Danny gave her a long stare and Sam looked up at him when she noticed it. "You really mean that?"
Sam paused, somewhat confused by his reaction to her statement. "Well… yeah? Why?"
Danny hummed and glanced upwards at the still twinkling stars. "I guess I kinda thought… that was part of it, at the very least."
Sam looked at her boyfriend seriously for a moment, trying to decipher what he was thinking. "Were you going to say anything or ask me?"
"Not really. I didn't think I'd be able to control it. I was kind of stuck. I mean you were the one girl that knew I was Phantom, who also knew me before I became half-ghost." He sighed. "But if I'd have ever chosen someone else before this mess then I would've had the awkward joy of having to eventually explain everything to them to avoid entrapment. There was bias everywhere. Honestly, I've been riding on the honest hope that our friendship was as strong as I thought it was and you were as good of a person as I saw you as. I figured that if you liking one half of me was the only thing I was going to have to deal with then it was something I could handle. I could deal."
The two were silent for a moment, while Sam let the weight of Danny's admission settle in her heart. He'd thought that he would always have to settle, even with his own best friend. He wasn't exactly bitter about it, just understanding and accepting.
Sam narrowed her brows in determination and looked at her boyfriend's face. "Danny."
The young man locked eyes were her, waiting.
"I want you to know that I love Danny Fenton. There's no Phantom for me. Maybe at first, but that ended the day Ember first showed up."
"Huh?" Danny asked in confusion.
"Before that day, I was still dealing with the fear of what I'd done to you. I didn't know how to feel about my friend turning into a ghost and having a different form and everything. Until that day, I had seen you and Phantom as somewhat different people."
"Really?" Danny asked, not particularly upset, but more intrigued than anything.
"Yeah, you can ask Tucker how he came around to dealing with it. We didn't want to worry you until we'd worked through things…" Sam trailed off for a moment. A pause of peaceful silence came before Sam spoke again. "We were flying. You remember? And I happened to look up and see you from below. And I had an epiphany… You were superhero."
Danny smirked. "Wow, what an earth-shattering revelation." Sarcasm was prevalent in his tone and Sam smacked his arm in irritation.
"Hilarious, let me finish."
Danny nodded and squeezed her hand for her to continue.
"I realized that you'd become something I didn't think was possible. I mean, think about it, Danny. How many people would put up with the crap you do? Huh? Not many. We were all lucky enough that you got those powers. Let's face it, someone needed to be around to stop Vlad and everyone else that popped up. Okay so maybe you played some pranks, got frustrated, were a bit selfish once in a while, and went into the girl's locker room a couple times-"
"You know about that?" Danny squeaked slightly, but Sam ignored him.
"But in the big picture, you went above and beyond the call of duty. I felt like you could really have the chance to change peoples' lives."
It's why I had to make you regain your powers after the Desiree thing… I would've taken the burden from your shoulders, but… I don't trust myself. I don't trust myself like I do you.
Sam tried to ignore the guilt rolling in her stomach at the thought. After tricking Danny into essentially dying again she'd been nearly sick with guilt for days afterwards. It hadn't even hit her what she'd done until a day or so after the fact and that alone had made her question herself.
She glanced up at Danny to see him looking at her in confusion or awe, she couldn't quite tell. "When I looked up at you that day. Fenton and Phantom became one. I saw my best friend behind the white hair and green eyes and I realized above all of that…" She held his gaze for a heartbeat, hoping he'd understand. "That Danny Fenton, my best friend, was an incredible human being."
He looked at her for a moment, frozen. "What about Dark-"
Sam knew what he was going to say before he said it. "Stop. Yes, that was absolutely horrible and I can only imagine what that felt like, but I don't blame you for that. All I can say is that everyone has a breaking point, a line that can't be crossed with them. It's different for everyone probably."
They were quiet again. "And yet… the Danny sitting here fought him and managed to win."
Danny felt his own stomach clench with guilt. She probably wouldn't say that if I'd told her the entire story… But instead of saying anything, Danny only smiled the best he could and pulled Sam into a surprise hug.
He wasn't sure he was half the man Sam saw him as, but he could try to be.
zzz
FentonWorks. 8:00 AM.
"Sweetie?"
Danielle mumbled incoherently as someone touched her head. "Mmm…"
"Ellie, it's time to get up."
Dani finally recognized the voice and cracked open her eyes. "Mom?"
Maddie smiled down at her daughter. "What are you doing on the couch, dear?"
Dani blinked and continued to stare in confusion, she then wrinkled her face in concentration. "I… don't remember. What day is it?"
"Sunday and we came back at five am from a fight with a giant ghost spider and I tried to get you to your room but you had face-planted and refused to get up." Danny was coming down the steps tiredly. "You even tried to blast me with an ectoblast." The boy swung his arm and pointed at a black mark on the wall near the stairs.
Dani's face heated up and she gave a nervous laugh. "Huh, funny. I don't remember that."
Danny smirked. "Oh, and you probably didn't remember this either- Happy Brithday, sis."
Dani watched Maddie smile at Danny's words and she paused in confusion. "Wait. How? Today?"
Danny walked closer. "Yeah, Jazz figured out a while ago a rough idea of when you were cloned. You took several weeks to grow to maturity. This is the day, April sixteenth, that we estimated was when you were let out of the cloning chamber."
Dani blinked again and then glanced around at Maddie and then Danny again. "Really?"
Danny frowned a bit, worried he'd upset her somehow. "I mean, technically we can do whatever you want." He tried a half-smile. "That's pretty fun. Not many kids get to choose their birthday."
Dani shook her head and smiled brightly. "No, it's fine. Thank you, Danny!" Dani leaned forward and wrapped her brother in a hug. She then got off of the couch. "I've got to call and thank Jazz later."
"Your friends are all coming for dinner. We can give you your gifts then." Maddie expressed and moved towards the lab doors.
"So, what are we going to do today?" Dani asked and glanced at Danny.
Danny hummed. "David is visiting later to talk with me about my meeting with the president. You should probably sit in on that too. First, we could do some practice with our powers. I need you to teach me how to sense specific ghosts-"
"Oh! I'll go get Klemper! You could teach him about his ice powers."
Danny watched Dani run towards the lab. "Wait do you want me to go with you?"
Dani rolled her eyes. "It's just Klemper's place. I'll be back before you know it!"
Danny sighed. "Okay, just make sure to take a Fenton phone. I'll call the others and tell them what we're doing. They might like to come before dinner anyways." Danny chuckled when he noticed Dani had already disappeared down the stairs. He walked over towards the TV and turned it on, wanting to listen to the news while he called the others.
He paused in typing out Sam's number, when he heard what the anchorwoman was saying.
"The FBI and police force of Amity have been unable to find any evidence that Madeline or Jack Fenton abused their children, so no charges have been filed. However, how negligent they were towards their children is still a question of controversy. "My parents still give me guilty looks." A statement from Danny Fenton/Phantom himself reveals that his parents apparently have a lot to be sorry for. Has the current limelight their family has been thrust into, because of their son's secret being revealed to the world, prevented them from continuing their negligent behavior? Only time will tell." The woman turned towards a guest. "And here we have Mrs. Crockett. She has been involved with many cases of child abuse in the past-"
Danny numbly looked down and realized he'd crushed the remote in his hand. He gazed sadly at it for the longest time. "It's not their fault." After a moment of silence, Danny sighed and finished dialing Sam's number.
zzz
Ghost Zone. 10:21 AM.
Dani couldn't stop smiling as she flew in the direction of Klemper's lair. She was excited to really get back into serious training with Team Phantom after everything that had happened recently to disrupt it. Training was something they could do that didn't involve presidents, news stations, or people staring at them and being weird around them all the time.
As she neared the icy isle that was Klemper's home, Dani started to feel a strange sense of dread fill her. Something was wrong. Things were too quiet. She paused and glanced around slowly, noticing that there weren't any ghosts around or nearby. "Huh? Where is everyone?" Even though it was Klemper's isle, that didn't explain why there weren't ghosts passing by on their way to someplace else. Then, she felt a chill go down her back. A ghost was nearby… or was it? There was no blue mist floating out of her mouth.
"KAAAAAAAAAWWWWHHH!"
Dani flinched instinctually and whirled around in circles, trying to get a good look at whatever was stalking her. Her green eyes eventually locked on a terrifying looking bird with a wide black fiery wingspan and red eyes that burned like cinders. She bolted towards the isle, her heart pounding in her chest.
The creature gave another loud cry before pulling in its wings and diving fast. It was going to catch her if she kept her course. She veered sharply and shot towards one of the areas of the isle that had many caves. Without warning, she purposefully transformed into her human half and let herself fall through the ceiling of the caves. She kept herself from phasing again and took a slight tumble before she landed in a pile of snow inside the tunnel. "Oof!"
She struggled and pushed her head out of the snow, taking in deep breathes of cold air that would've burned in her lungs if she wasn't a half-ghost. Eventually she quieted her breathing and tried to listen for any sign of the creature outside.
"Phantom girl?"
Dani eeped slightly before glancing over and seeing Klemper huddled in a corner. It looked like he'd been there for a little bit. "Klemper? What happened?"
Klemper whined a bit before speaking. "The nice giants from the larger icy place started to visit me more often when they found out Mr. Phantom was my friend. I've even played with some of the younger giants in the snow before. They're so nice." Klemper hummed, trying to get himself back on track. "They warned me about dark things that were haunting the zone. Dangerous things. I was trying to make another snowman with ice when it appeared and shot down a ball of fire. It was hot and loud, so I ran deep into the caves and hid."
Dani frowned at the story, thinking, but then she looked up. "Great job, Klemper. That thing is really dangerous, trust me. You can't let it even touch you."
Klemper gave a tiny smile but then gulped. "How do we get away?"
Dani finished pulling herself out of the snow and hummed while she rubbed her chin. She thought long and hard before she let out a breath. "Okay, it can't hurt me like it can you. Trust me." She interrupted when she saw Klemper look like he wanted to ask. "I'm going to distract it, then you head towards the Fenton portal, okay?"
"But-"
"It can still be hurt, you just have to be careful to dodge enough," Dani expressed. "It's touching it that's dangerous."
Klemper was silent for a moment before he nodded. "Okay."
Moments later, the two found themselves peering out of the cave system they had been deep inside. They were able to spy the large bird sitting on an icy perch like a statue. "I wonder what it's waiting for?"
As if Murphy himself were listening in, the two perked up when they heard a noise and the bird's head turned towards a massive lizard that had just touched down on the island.
"Fudge." Dani cursed. Obviously, the bird couldn't explore the caves easily seeing as it's advantage was in the air, so it had called a friend to help it… or not. The two watched in confusion as the bird spread its wings and took off into the green haze of the zone.
"Why did the bird leave the lizard here?" Klemper murmured.
"Maybe it has something else it needs to do? I'm not sure. Let's focus on getting away."
"Phantom girl can phase through the isle as a human, can't she?" Klemper asked.
Dani rose a brow and looked at the ghost. "It's Dani, in case you weren't aware, and I wouldn't just leave you here. That wouldn't be cool."
Klemper stared at her and then smiled.
They both flinched when they heard a loud hissing and noticed the lizard had wandered close enough to spot them. A torrent of fire shot from its mouth and at the two of them. "Klemper, run!"
Klemper shot into the sky and off towards the portal while Dani dodged and shot an icy blast at the lizard's feet to distract it
The lizard glared at her and writhed, trying to break the ice off its feet so it could be freed. Black fire blazed out of its mouth, down the base of its skull, and then down it's back and tail. The ice broke and its eyes burned with senseless hatred.
"Wow, you are a great candidate for anger management. You know, if you weren't a lizard…" Dani sighed. "Great, now I'm making bad jokes like Danny." She dodged another rush of fire which not only seemed to melt the ice it touched but left bubbling green holes in the isle. The sight of the green goo frothing unnerved her greatly. Maybe Danny could survive an encounter with one of these things, but she might not. She turned sharply, transforming into her ghost form at the same time that she fired off a massive beam of ice.
She gritted her teeth and groaned, trying to force out enough ice to really hinder the fiery beast. It was even harder than trying to do the same to a fire core ghost. Eventually she stopped and bolted, not looking back.
After a few minutes, she saw the green swirling portal and sighed in relief. She glanced over her shoulder to make sure she wasn't being followed. She didn't feel that feeling of dread anymore, either. It was after thinking of these things that she slammed into something. "Hey!"
"Dani!"
Dani glanced up and saw Danny was looking at her owlishly. "Yeah?"
"Are you okay? Klemper told us what happened and I was coming to find you."
Dani smiled and put her hands on her hips. "Just fine! I can take care of myself, you know."
Danny exhaled and then smiled back. "I know." He then followed his little sister through the portal where her family and friends were waiting.
zzz
FentonWorks Lab. 11:09 AM.
Once Dani and Klemper had told their story to the Fentons, and their friends when they arrived for the training session slash birthday party, they had begun with basic training. This was where Danny and his sister would practice all the things they already knew how to do. Then they moved on to practicing with ice since Dani wanted more training and Klemper had been promised some help back during Christmas.
After a while, Dani moved to helping Danny learn how to know which ghost was coming. Danny practiced with some small ghosts his parents had been carefully studying and had planned to release soon. They were animal like and while some snarled, others just blinked confusedly at anyone who saw them in their containers. Dani's sense trick wasn't a very difficult thing to learn it turned out, and Danny was almost embarrassed that he hadn't figured out the feeling before then.
Tucker, Sam, Valerie, Ash, and Jace all worked with Maddie on target practice and other fighting techniques while Jack talked for a while with Klemper.
Eventually the two half-ghosts started working on new powers. Danny kept switching between trying to use telekinesis to lift small objects and brainstorming on whether or not he could turn into gas and if doing so was as safe as some of the other flexible things his body could handle. If he could, he imagined that controlling his misty body would feel similar to telekinesis, so practicing that more was a must. Dani herself was working on trying to put ecto-energy inside the core of her ice ecto-weapons, however she hadn't yet gotten used to just how much or little to use.
Her sword she'd been trying to form, promptly exploded when she poured in too much ecto-energy. Danny flinched in surprise and dropped the item he was trying to levitate. "No! Stultus, stulti." (No! Stupid, stupid.) Dani expressed with a small growl, letting her eyes light up green in frustration.
"Sed licet is, Dani. Iustum iudicium et error aliquid est." (It is alright, Dani. It just takes a bit of trial and error.) Danny tried to soothe.
"I know…" Dani sighed in English this time. Danny had recently been helping her how to use Latin. Though for some reason, it was a bit harder than it had been for Danny. No one was sure why that was yet.
"Hey I know what will cheer you up," Ash said suddenly as the others came closer to the two halfas.
"What?" Dani asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Opening your gifts, of course." Valerie stated and then gave a smile. Dani blinked in surprise and then laughed nervously.
"Heh, forgot it was my birthday."
Everyone made their way upstairs and soon found themselves surrounding Dani in the Fenton's living room with their gifts in hand.
She got a phone from her parents, Jazz had sent her some books and a scarf, Danny had worked with Jack to build her her own thermos to use, Sam had given her some anime she thought Dani might enjoy, Tucker had made her a CD filled with music she liked and could load onto her new phone, Valerie had gotten her a small charm bracelet, Jace had gotten her a collection of old games that just so happened to have Pacman in it, and Ash gave her a small necklace with a tiny ghost as a pendant. Both young teens blushed at that but didn't speak.
The afternoon went on and Maddie brought out a cake which was surprisingly not ecto-infested and Klemper was told, when he asked, that he could have some even though he hadn't brought a present.
It came closer to the time that David was supposed to arrive and so Danny told his friends goodbye and Dani went to the door to see her friends off. Luckily there weren't any news reporters stalking around so they weren't disturbed. Before Dani could turn around to head back inside, Ash touched her hand so softly that she almost didn't feel it. Dani turned and glanced around, noticing that Jace had already said goodbye and gotten some ways down the road.
"Yeah, what's up?"
Ash was quiet and gave her hand a soft squeeze before speaking. "Would it bore you to go steady with someone like me?"
There was a quiet pause and Dani didn't know how to react to the feelings surging through her. Her stomach felt like something was crawling up the sides, her throat tightened a bit as she looked at him.
"Boring? Why would you say that?" Dani blurted out, without thinking. Nice one, Fenton. Yell at the poor guy.
Ash blinked and then shrugged. "I mean you're really interesting and not just because you're a ghost, but because you help people and came from such a bad place and fought your way into a place you're happy with. You're really strong and brave to do and say the things you do."
Dani was stunned that someone she'd only known for a few months seemed to think so highly of her. "You really think I did all that?"
"You were told that you would never amount to anything, but then you proved your creator wrong, travelled the world, and kept fighting until you found a good place to be. Your will to live and be happy is really inspiring." Ash chuckled slightly and let go of her hand. "I'm only different from anyone else in a crowd of people because I have white hair. I'm boring if you take it that away."
"What!?" Dani yelped out at Ash's conclusion. "But you stood by my side even when you found out I wasn't completely human! You stayed my friends after all of this. You and Jace are so loyal and kind."
Ash's cheeks started to warm and he swallowed, not expecting Dani to have a response like that. Dani reached out a grabbed Ash's hand, which had been limp at his side. She felt of it and tried to get used to the feeling of his hand inside hers.
"I don't know how to do the girlfriend boyfriend thing, but I'd like to try," Dani expressed quietly and then gave Ash a smile.
Ash smiled back. "Awesome." He blushed a bit at the weird answer only for Dani to let out a loud laugh at the generic response and Ash joined her laughter not long after.
zzz
FentonWorks. 3:43 PM.
It was a few hours later when David finally arrived at the Fenton household. Maddie told Jack, Danny, and Dani and they all met up in the kitchen to sit around the table or stand in Maddie and Jack's cases.
"Sorry for being a little late. I almost got here super late because of a delay for my flight. You know how that is," David chuckled and pulled out a few papers from his briefcase.
"It's fine. We didn't have much to do today anyway," Danny answered calmly.
David nodded and then straightened himself before getting down to business. "To be frank, I don't have much to give other than some advice and things we need to think about. After all, I'm just a self-practicing lawyer. I'm not intimately aware of how our relationships with other countries are faring."
"Of course, we know you aren't a miracle worker, David. You've already done so much for us," Maddie expressed and Jack gave a firm nod.
David gave a polite smile. "Thank you for that. I'm glad I've been a help." He turned more towards Danny. "The harsh reality is that we need to give them and the world the idea that the Ghost Zone isn't a realm full of less intelligent beings that will submit to human law entirely, without-" David paused, giving emphasis to the last word spoken, "-making it seem like we're all in danger and need to completely seal away or god forbid destroy the Zone."
"How are we supposed to do that?" Dani asked. She'd been a bit bored at first, until she'd begun to realize just what kind of tightrope they had to tread.
David gave a half-smile. "Well, having the leaders of the Zone you've invited will undoubtedly help. Showing that there is government, but more importantly, some type of order, will be more convincing."
"And me?" Danny asked.
"Your ghostly friends will need to show that they greatly honor you and would find offense if their practical ambassador was not treated well," David explained and then gestured with his hands towards Danny. "We just need to set up the right picture for the president, congress, and the other world leaders and ambassadors present, to see that the ghosts belong to themselves and are sovereign. They also need to be aware that you are an American citizen as Fenton, but maybe you are more like an ambassador legally when you are Phantom." David looked at everyone and smiled. "Short version is, get it across to them that the ghosts are like a collection of united nations in their own right and you are highly respected by them if not culturally part of their peoples in one form or another-YOW!" David stood up sharply and everyone glanced down to see Cujo growling and holding onto the man's ankle.
"Cujo!" Dani yelped and pointed at him. "Bad, let go!"
Cujo looked at her and then relented, allowing David to stumble back.
"Are you okay, David?" Danny asked and walked closer while Maddie hurried off to find a med-kit. "He's just been really protective lately because of all of the reporters. He's confused."
David sat back down slowly as Dani scooped the dog up. "It's fine. I don't think he hurt me too bad. I don't really think he even broke the skin. It was a warning nibble, heh."
Maddie came back moments later and looked over the spot. David had been correct that the bite hadn't broke the skin, but Maddie still swabbed the area and made sure it was clean. "Ecto-contamination is somewhat rare, but it seems to almost react like an infection at times. With enough force or the right vehicle, it can develop into ecto-acne. Call us if anything happens, though it shouldn't."
"I think I'll be just fine. Thanks for your concern though," David replied and stood to collect his papers. He smiled when he saw Cujo whine at him as though to say he was sorry. He glanced at Danny and nodded. "Well we've got the basic idea hashed out. We can discuss some other things like various verbal escape plans if someone tries to talk you into a corner."
Danny felt sweat try to form on his neck and swallowed. The idea of him freezing in front of those important people or not finding a societally acceptable way to explain himself or something was a terrifying thought. "Yeah, good idea."
"Jazz will also be able to help teach us about the important things to tell them regarding how ghosts work psychology wise. Hopefully your ghostly friends will understand why we need to explain to people how obsessions are important and such."
Danny nodded, thinking about how that could work. "We'll have to be careful. I don't want somebody getting the idea to use obsessions against ghosts."
"Of course." David then nodded to the family. "Have a great day and I'll see you next week."
Moments later, the door snapped shut. Jack turned to Maddie. "Since when is he on first name basis with our princess?"
Maddie rose a brow and gave Jack an exasperated look. "Jack…"
"What!?"
zzz
Central Park Area. 4:01 PM.
"It's quiet. I'm kind of surprised," Valerie expressed as she kept pace with Tucker. Currently, the park was only a small grouping of people that didn't stray far from the entrance and the food vendors. The two teens had decided to spend some time together after Dani's birthday get together had ended. Tucker smiled.
"The deeper into to park you go, the less people you find, especially after all the joggers have finished their routines in the morning and before the second wave comes after work hours." Valerie rose a brow.
"Should I ask why you know so much about the park and who visits it?" Tucker shrugged as they continued down the path.
"Fighting ghosts has brought us to the park on plenty of occasions. I've just kind of started to memorize when people were present and at what times. It helped if Danny needed to do an impromptu transformation." Valerie seemed a bit surprised.
"You really picked all of that up from visiting the park and just being vaguely observant?"
"Yep, I guess." Valerie smiled when she saw Tucker shrug as though trying to hide the tiniest bit of embarrassment.
"If you don't become a computer wizard at some high-end company, I'll be surprised." Tucker nearly tripped over his own feet at the brief mention. He barely caught himself and chuckled nervously.
"Um about that…" He took a breath and watched as Valerie looked over at him to give him her attention. "I went to talk to your father the other day."
"You did?" Valerie asked and stopped walking, causing Tucker to do the same.
"Yeah, he offered me an internship at Axion once I graduate." Valerie gave an amused smile and nodded.
"Sounds about right. You'll do great there. You'll probably out preform the people working there full-time!" Tucker smiled and then took a breath before continuing.
"I also managed to convince him to help me redesign a new ghost fighting suit for you, with help from the Fentons." A silence passed and Tucker looked over at Valerie, only to see her standing very still. "Valerie?"
"You went and talked to him, for me?" She questioned slowly and looked carefully at her boyfriend's face as though looking for any sign of deceit.
"Um, yeah. Everyone was worried for you and I just decided that I needed to try and fix it. I mean, it's somewhat my fault that I couldn't save you and your suit as well. If I had just checked you for nano-bytes before the whole Vlad thing-" Tucker froze when Valerie pulled him into an embrace and pulled him tight to her.
"Thanks, Tucker. I mean it. That was a really nice thing for you to do, especially after my father was so upset before the trial." She leaned back and got a view of a grinning Tucker.
"It was pretty awesome of me, wasn't it?" Tucker probed and Valerie watched as her boyfriend started to metaphorically preen like a peacock right in front of her. The girl rolled her eyes before something else Tucker had said caused her to speak.
"Also, that wasn't your fault, Tucker. Vlad was the one that activated the code. Besides, we were too busy worrying about other aspects of ghosts and our lives to remember to look at my suit for nano-bytes."
Tucker deflated a bit and a somewhat somber look came to his face. "Well I guess so, but I'm going to try my hardest to not let that happen again. I'm no ghost hero but like Danny has said before, that doesn't mean I can't be my own kind of hero."
Valerie felt a large smile come to her face as they continued to walk on the path they had taken. "So, what kind of suit are we talking about here?"
Tucker glanced at her and smirked.
zzz
Ghost Zone. 8:09 PM.
He suddenly saw opaque blue in his vision rather than black nothingness for what seemed like the first time in eons. At first, he didn't even move and continued to stare at the ice above him, all the intricate reflections of white, blue, and gray were beyond fascinating after seeing nothing for so long.
Then he felt the ache and let out a soft groan that felt and sounded so real he almost lost composure. Suddenly he was freed from the nightmares that had plagued him and he could breathe again. Vlad took in deep calming breaths and finally built up the courage to glance around the room he was in. After he was satisfied with that, he took note that there were no pustules on his arm… or his chest, his legs-
Vlad sat up and bit his tongue, trying to ignore the ache his muscles felt. His skin was clear. The ecto-acne had been at least subdued for now. After a few moments of coming to terms with being free from unconsciousness and finding out that he was also boil-free, Vlad realized that the same question from before had started echoing in his head. Now what?
"Ah, I see that you have awakened."
Vlad jerked his head up and snapped his gaze to a couple of white furry beings. One, he knew was named Frostbite from his own research. Frostbite was the one that had spoken. "Yes. It seems I have. I am at a lost to how I came to be here though." Vlad had the temptation to be more biting with his words and to even throw in a smug remark or two, but honestly, he was more than willing to cut his losses and shut up for the moment.
Frostbite rose a brow as though he had expected Vlad to be rude. He let out a sigh and then took on a semi-stern expression.
"After you went through Clockwork's trial, I was told to monitor you and nurse you back to health. I have done my part." Vlad took in the ice giant's words thoughtfully, outwardly flinching at the memory of the trial. He stared at the wall for a long moment, being drawn into the memories he had of the things he'd witnessed in that gray-scaled world. Frostbite let out a breath of air and his stern expression dropped a bit when he saw how blank Vlad's face was. "You are lost." Vlad didn't stop staring at the wall, but his eyes did seem to grow clearer before he spoke.
"I feel that lost is not the right word. I'm a very educated man, but I can't for the life of me come up with a word that could tell you how I feel." Frostbite nodded carefully.
"Change, even good and healthy change, can be violent and unpleasant." Vlad cut his eyes over and a dark look was cast at the giant.
"Do not stand there and assume I've changed. You don't know me." Frostbite was silent for a moment before he spoke.
"No. I do not. All I know is of a faceless evil, as that is what you have presented yourself to me and my people. So far, we've only heard of you, seen you from a distance as it were…" Frostbite's eyes became contemplative and slightly troubled. "However, I know the Great One. I know his personality. We are fairly close, I would venture and say he sees something in you. Most would call it naiveté or idealism from a young being, but I see it differently. If the Great One was willing to try and encourage you to not allow yourself to pass on, then I can only follow his wisdom in good faith."
"Pardon?" Vlad asked quickly and a slight stunned look came to his features.
"Danny Phantom visited you while you were still critical. He pleaded with you not to die in essence," Frostbite replied and a quiet fell between the two for a moment.
"Daniel came…" Vlad spoke out finally, but the words were said without emotion. His face scrunched slightly in thought as if he were perplexed.
"Yes." Frostbite watched Vlad ruminate for a moment before he spoke again. "You must leave this place by the end of the week. I will allow you to regain most of your strength, but you must depart before I head for the human world."
Vlad finally looked up. "Why are you going to the human world?"
Frostbite stared at the halfa for a moment before replying, "Daniel is going to be leading peace talks between the world governments and some major regions of the Infinite Realms soon. He is attempting to rectify the mess you have made." Vlad had to put a bit of effort into not flinching at the ice that came from Frosbite's tone.
"Ah." Vlad paused internally. You are more refined and intelligent than that. How is 'ah' a proper answer?
"Aguta will escort you to the places within our realm that you need to know of during your temporary visit," Frostbite explained and gestured to the other ice giant in the room. Vlad glanced at Aguta and nodded. "We will leave you now. Aguta will be outside whenever you are ready." Vlad only nodded again and started to stare at the floor in deep thought. Aguta left and Frostbite went to follow, only to stop. The ice giant took a deep breath. He should probably be quiet, but he decided against silence in the end. "As you said before, you do not know what to feel. I also can't know what you feel either as that is unique to every creature; however, if I were you and didn't know where to start, I would consider trying to begin with showing others you realize your fault in things. I am not saying the fault is all yours. I simply mean that you are not without blame, no one is." After a moment with no response, Frosbite walked out and the door slid shut.
Vlad carefully looked up at where the yeti creature had been and considered his words. Hurt, anger, indecision, and a feeling of injustice still burned in him. How could he do anything different from what he'd always done? To him, everything felt so justified, emotionally…
The elder halfa closed his eyes and let out a frustrated breath. Vlad leaned forward and rested his forehead against his fist. As he thought about Frostbite's words though and some of his previous doubts, he knew that the ice giant was somewhat right. Even if he still felt that same burn in his chest, he now could see that he had not been blameless and not been always justified. He'd fooled himself for a long time. He truly had. If Vlad wanted to truly try something different he needed to trick himself again. He needed to focus on how to make up for his faults and missteps. He could worry about what he still viewed as the faults of others, later.
How could he even start though? He couldn't step out of the Ghost Zone without risking being arrested on the spot.
Vlad's eyes suddenly contracted as a thought came to him.
So, I hope that my writing is still pretty consistent and I'm not rusty or anything.
I also hope that the Danny and Sam date wasn't too gushy or overly-emotional. I tried to make it realistic and honest rather than a romance fest or something. Romance is an aspect of writing that I always have trouble judging when it comes to figuring out how much is too much or too little.
Oh, and I'd love to hear if any of you can guess what Vlad's idea is. I'm just curious about what you think might be going through his head. I won't answer of course, until the truth is revealed, but it would entertain me to see what you hypothesized.
NoSignal to All: Thank you one more time for your patience and support.
Until next time,
~NoSignal