Chapter 9

He had screwed up. He had majorly screwed up. He had created an entire new level of how badly someone could screw up.

The destruction stretched for three blocks. Three. Entire. Blocks. Countless numbers of houses destroyed. Families left without homes, everything they owned ruined. And how many people had been hurt? He'd seen dozens of people with scratches and dark bruises. How many others had broken bones? How many were in the hospital?

How many had he killed?

He grabbed at his hair and rocked back and forth in his corner. So much destruction, so much pain, so much hurt…and it was his fault. It was all his fault. If he had just had a thermos…if he hadn't fought Skulker for so long. He shouldn't have stalled. He should have woken Tucker up. Tucker probably had a thermos in his room somewhere. He could have sucked Skulker in, prevented this entire disaster.

Should have done it differently. Anything. Anything would have been better. He would rather have been caught and made into a pelt for Skulker than do what he'd done. If he'd known the fight would have ended like that, he would have let Skulker go. Better he terrorize the town and do minimal damage than Danny destroy three blocks.

How could he have let that happen? He'd thought he had control of his powers. He'd thought he knew exactly what he was doing. But waking up that morning, seeing the devastation…

It was like someone shoved blood blossoms in his stomach. Eating flowers wouldn't fix this problem though. He didn't know what would. There was no changing what had happened.

He had been careless, pure and simple. All because he couldn't handle what was going on at home, because he couldn't just relax and trust his sister. And people had gotten hurt because of it.

No wonder people hated ghosts so much. Even when trying to help, they could still mess it up. Maybe his parents had the right idea. Never trust a ghost, not even him.

He bit down on his knuckles, his eyes shut tight.

Who was he if he wasn't a protector?

What was he supposed to do? Where was he supposed to go?

He didn't know. He didn't have a clue.

Time moved around him, but for Danny it didn't matter. He was stuck in a horrible nightmare, one he didn't know how to wake up from. This wasn't one of Nocturn's dreamscapes…he couldn't just shock himself awake. This was real life, and therefore much, much worse.

Voices floated through the alley. Bitter, hushed, excited; neighbors passing by, going about their day. There were too many of them. They were coming too close. They were going to find him, and then they'd let him have it for destroying their homes. He deserved every bit of it, but he didn't want to be found.

It had been all he could do to find this corner after he woke up. The sun had blasted him, waking him only a few hours after he'd passed out. He'd pushed himself to his feet and looked around to figure out where he was. And then he froze, eyes glued to the wasteland before him. Rubble stretched for half a mile where houses used to be. He knew, just knew, it was his fault. He knew the power of his wail, how destructive it could be.

He had collapsed to his knees, struggling to keep himself together. He hadn't meant for that to happen…he hadn't meant for anyone to get hurt.

Voices drifted up to him from the street, and then the sobs of crying children. Guilt churned in his stomach. He was too close, they would find him, he would have to admit he'd screwed up and couldn't fix it…

So he ran, sprinted down the steps of the fire escape and then disappeared into the city, looking for a quiet place to hide. He remained as Fenton, a more inconspicuous screw up than Phantom. Besides, he didn't have the energy needed to transform.

He'd found an alley on the opposite of town, mostly filled with dumpsters. He wedged himself into a space and curled in on himself, thinking maybe if he made himself small enough he could actually disappear…

But he didn't disappear. He stayed stubbornly solid for hours, hunched in that little ball, his face pressed into his knees, with nothing but his guilt.

How could I have let that happen? I should have known better…I shouldn't have gone out by myself…it was stupid. I'm so stupid.

The thoughts ran through his head in an endless circle. He really was nothing but a menace, just like every other ghost.

Something smacked into the back of his head and bounced in front of him, metal tinging on the ground.

"Ow!" He pulled his face from his knees, blurry eyes landing on his least favorite invention. "The Boo-merang?" The last he'd seen of this, he'd taped it to the back of his desk and pushed it against the wall. He'd never even told anyone what he'd done with it, though he'd meant to at least tell Sam and Tucker eventually…

So what was it doing here?

"Danny!" Jazz yelled, sliding into his view and crouching in front of him. "Danny, are you okay? Are you hurt?" She put her hands on his shoulders, her eyes checking him over for injury.

"Jazz?"

His parents ran into view. "Danny!"

He jumped to his feet, using the wall to push himself up. Uncurling from his ball was painful, spreading pins and needles through his legs.

"Mom? Dad?"

"Oh Danny are you alright?"

Danny didn't answer; there were too many questions in his head. His gaze pinballed between his parents and his sister, at the concerned looks he was getting. Finally, his confused look settled on his sister, begging for answers to questions he didn't know how to ask.

Luckily, she understood most of what he needed. "It's okay Danny. They both know, and it's okay."

They both know? He looked at his father.

Jack smiled. "You should have told us you were Phantom! We would have stopped shooting at you!"

A small laugh bubbled in Danny's stomach, going far enough to spread his mouth in a thin smile, but it was gone just as fast.

His eyes travelled back to his mother. And he couldn't help but think of her, of the terror on her face as she backed away. Of how that terror was justly deserved, considering what he'd done that morning.

Jazz took his wrist. "Danny, it's okay. They aren't going to hurt you. Trust me."

"Yeah, but…I wouldn't blame them." He pulled his wrist out of her grasp, pressing himself back against the wall.

"Oh Danny," Maddie said. She switched places with her daughter and put a hand on Danny's shoulder. "Danny I'm so sorry for yesterday. I was confused and scared and it took me a while to wrap my head around."

He tried to shake her hand off, but he didn't have much room to maneuver. "No mom, you're right! Ghosts are evil! All we do is destroy, even if we're trying to help!" He pressed himself back into the wall, intending to slide down into his ball, but he couldn't.

Maddie grabbed his arm and pulled him into her, wrapping her arms around him. "Danny, that's not true. You have helped people. I was blinded by my own beliefs; I couldn't see the truth, even when it was right in front of me."

"But all those people…" he whispered.

"We'll find a way to fix it," Maddie said. "Homes can be rebuilt."

"That's right!" Jack said. "Rebuilt and upgraded! All the homes in this town are full of outdated systems! Now they can make new and improved homes!"

"What if they didn't want them?" Danny asked. "They don't get a say in this at all…"

Jazz put a hand on his arm. "It'll be okay Danny. It was an accident, that's all. Now we just have to make the best of what we've got."

He looked at her over his mother's shoulder, and then at his dad. His gaze finally drifted to his mother's, and the sobs he'd been holding back broke through. He clung to his mother, burying his face in her shoulder. She rubbed circles in his back and swayed with him, muttering over and over that it was okay, that they loved him and that they weren't going anywhere.

Jack walked to their side and surrounded both of them in his arms, opening them briefly for Jazz to enter. The four of them stood for a while like that, their arms around each other. Danny's sobs died down, but he made no move to end the hug-fest. It had been a long time since he'd hugged either of his parents, or even his sister for that matter. It had been a long time since he'd felt like he could. But there were no more secrets, no more walls between them. He didn't have a second life standing behind him, whispering 'what if's into his ear. He could just enjoy this right now; enjoy his family and the unconditional love they gave him.

After all, if his parents could look past over a decade of prejudice against ghosts and still say they loved him, even after his screw up that morning, there was probably nothing he could do that would turn them against him.

As terrible as the last few days had been, they were worth it. The fact that he knew now, without a doubt, that his family would always be there, made all the stress worth it.

It would mean changes, but they would be changes for the better.

Okay, I know that sounds like an ending, but I have one more chapter for y'all! Stay tuned for an epilogue!

In the meantime, please review!