Overdue Confessions

I check three times to make sure that my house is indeed my house before phasing through the walls into my actual bedroom this time. Tucker, Sam, and Jazz are all waiting for me, scattered around comfortably. As I fade to visibility, they don't look up until I transform back to Fenton.

I 'm met with three smiling faces. I try to return them, but I'm still freaked out over accidentally breaking into someone's house and lying on their bed. Their smiles fall into frowns of worry at seeing my poor attempt.

"What's wrong Danny?" asks Jazz softly in her open-up-and-talk-to-me voice.

I collapse, leaning against my desk, my mind a whirlwind. There isn't many things that can truly bother me anymore, but this is quickly becoming one of them. The room is silent as I play out what to say.

"As long as I can remember, I have had vivid dreams. I never thought much about them, they were always just there. Dreams where I was never a ghost. Dreams where I was actually adopted. Dreams where I joined a superhero group. Dreams where I was in my 30's and was raising a child of my own. They're so real that sometimes I would wake up confused, wondering where I was but I would always realize it was a dream and brush it off almost immediately." Looking up, I meet their eyes one by one. "After the accident things got weird."

"Weird how?"

I sigh. "Like after I wake up I'd spend an hour looking for a skateboard I don't own. Like how I almost turned human in front of my parents until they shot at me and I remembered that they don't know I'm Danny Phantom. Like how this morning I magically knew how to cook because I thought I did it every morning."

"Danny why didn't you tell us sooner?" asks Jazz.

"I didn't think it was a big deal," I say, rubbing my face, embarrassed because I realize how lame of an excuse it is. "I just figured my ghost powers were affecting my sleep or something, it wasn't hurting anyone and I was handling it."

"Was?" inquires Tucker warily.

I groan and cover my face. "It just keeps getting worse. At first it was only after I woke up, now it happens throughout the day for seemingly no reason, and it keeps becoming more and more detailed. It might take a bit, but I would always remember what was real and what was not. Sometimes I would remember on my own, sometimes one of you would point it out; now that doesn't happen."

"What doesn't happen?" asks Sam

"I can't tell the difference between them anymore," I say, blurting it out. The dam had broken now; words and worry are tumbling out of me. "I don't know what is real and what my mind made up! I remember both in detail. Like a full backstory, memories, textures, scents, absolutely flawless, kind of detailed."

The room falls silent after my explanation. Now after saying it aloud I realize how serious it is. Why hadn't I gotten help sooner? Was I insane? Was I going insane?

"Okay!" exclaims Jazz in an authority voice, standing and clapping her hands together for attention. "First we need to do a complete physical. Make sure that there isn't some kind of chemical imbalance or some other complication. You are one of the only half ghosts in the world after all, it could be that you are missing some crucial vitamin or hormone. We won't know unless we check."

"Danny, didn't you say Frostbite checked you over in a medical facility when Undergrowth attacked and you lost your ice abilities?" Sam asks, sounding a touch excited now.

I nod, hope beginning to filter through.

"To the specter speeder!" exclaims Tucker theatrically.

I let a smile cross my face as I follow my friends out of my room. I should have known that a little weirdness would not scare them off. We're in this together til the end. Wherever this crazy ride takes us, I can count on them being by my side. And in return I would always be by there's; no matter the problem, I would help.

Jazz runs to her room to grab some things, Tucker packs up some food, and Sam grabs some extra weapons while I get my parents out of the house. It's quite simple, all I have to do is shout 'GHOST!' and point in a random direction. Both brightly-hazmat-clad adults are off, waving their homemade inventions around erratically, screaming insults and threats at any ghost that is within listening distance. I feel bad, but after almost a decade of this kind of behavior, I'm sure the citizens of Amity Park can handle the menace known as my parents.

Within five minutes my loyal friends, my sister, and I are all aboard my parents' hovercraft, known as 'the specter speeder'. I transform into my alter ego before we glide through the manmade basement portal to the Ghost Zone. I prefer being human in the mortal realm, just like I prefer being ghost in the dead realm. Black hair turns white, blue eyes green, baggy t-shirt and jeans become a tight-fitted black-and-white hazmat suit, geek loser Danny Fenton is now cool and powerful Danny Phantom. Colors, scents, and sounds only found in the realm of the dead, and therefore only experienced by ghosts, assault my new senses as a comfortable numbing cold seeps into my bones as my powers chill me . My heart, now turned ghost core, vibrates happily, almost singing as we fly through the ectoplasmic-energy-drenched land of the dead.

Tucker and Sam know the way, so Jazz and I are free to take in the green and purple outer-space-like atmosphere. Sadly, Jazz is hardly distracted by the floating random debris from who-knows-what, by the islands, or even by the ghosts that we pass on our way. No, instead of even questioning these things, my lovely, overbearing, older sister spends the time quizzing me on everything that could possibly, even slightly have a trace of a connection to my problem.

"Danny, do you remember what you ate before the first time you confused reality for the dream world?"

"No." I say, rubbing my eyes.

"Come on Danny, you didn't even try to remember."

"That is because I don't! In case you haven't noticed I have been a little busy with keeping my grades up, hiding from bullies, avoiding mom and dad, and, oh yeah, fighting for my life against paranormal creatures." I give her an annoyed look. "So, yes, I am sorry for not remembering what I had for dinner almost a year ago."

Jazz blushes and shifts uncomfortably, mumbling an apology. I sigh. My annoyance drops. "No, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have snapped. I am just worried and stressed."

Jazz nods and an awkward silence falls between us. Jazz clears her throat, getting back to business. "If we don't figure out what the problem is while we are with Frostbite then we should start journaling."

I nod going with the subject change, "Like what?"

"Like, what you eat, how much and when. Who you fight, how long it took, how you feel afterwards. I suppose it would be too much to remember what powers you used while fighting them," Jazz muses before continuing. "We should also keep track of what these dreams are about."

I groan, "That is so much work."

Jazz smiles, "Do you want to get better or not?"

I sit back, pretending to think.

"Well, you had better make your decision now because I see the Far Frozen."

Slowing the aircraft, we cautiously make our way to the designated landing pad amid the icy wasteland-or wonderland, depending on who you ask. The yetis of the Far Frozen are incredibly protective of their home and would proudly fight to a second death to defend it's beauty. Thankfully, we're friendly with them but it's always a good idea to approach slowly and give them time to identify you as such.

Tucker, Sam and Jazz begin pulling on their coats as I open the hatch to greet my longtime friend. Ever since I had gained control of my ice core, the source of my powers as a ghost, the extreme cold hasn't bothered me. Frostbite was the one who taught me how to control my core.

Said tribe leader is waiting in all his fury, abominable snowman glory with an ice prosthetic arm,between two of his guards holding expertly-crafted spears. If something happens to those, they would still have their incredibly sharp teeth and claws as backup. All three are wearing the bare minimum of clothing, despite the frigid weather, which is normal for the yeti. They don't need anything warmer with their thick white fur and their ability to modify their inner body temperatures, just like I can. The style of their clothes oddly reminds me of an ancient Mayan civilization.

"Frostbite!" I exclaim, leaping into him. He catches me in a hug, which I happily returned.

"It is good to see you Great One," the fierce yeti exclaims with a sharp-toothed smile, which anyone who doesn't know him would interpret as menacing. Setting me down before turning to the others, Frostbite turns to my companions. "Lady Sam, Sir Tucker," he says before eyeing Jazz with some caution

"Oh. This is my sister Jazz," I introduce. "Jazz, this is Frostbite. The leader of the Far Frozen tribe."

Frostbite beams the second he hears me say the word 'sister'. "It is an honor to meet the family of the Great One," he says, extending his hand in greeting.

Jazz blushes, taking his hand. "It's nice to meet you."

"Think we could get inside?" asks Tucker. "I didn't feel like zipping up my coat."

Not for the first time, I admire the elegant ice crystal dwellings. Everyone here is an ice element and can control, form, and shape ice with ease. They are artists, warriors, carpenters, and visionaries and their village reflects that. The buildings, or building really, are connected by either skyways or underground tunnels so the general public can continue to do their thing when the Far Frozen has one of its many blizzards.

The shape and texture of the walls reminds me of a cave or underground tunnel, but it is all made with sparkling ice and expertly-shaped to reflect and redirect natural light from outside so little to no artificial light is needed. Not only is this system genius and energy efficient, it also makes everything twinkle and glitter like the building is made of nothing but diamonds. Add the timeless rugs, antique furniture, and top it all off with modern and even futuristic accommodations, and it is enough to bewilder anyone. I don't think too much on it. It doesn't really matter in the end, and I have seen and done weirder. But If I had to describe the yeti's architectural style in one sentence, it would be along the lines of a 'futuristic mythical castle built in a cave'.

"To what do I owe this visit Great Conqueror?" Frostbite asks after we are settled inside.

I wince and glance at the others. Jazz is already asking one of the yeti guards about a library. "I want to have a check-up actually...if that is alright, of course." I feel like I'm mooching off of them sometimes; I have really leaned on the tribe a lot. At the same time though, it's hard to feel too bad when Frostbite and the other yetis grin hugely with pride, like they're doing now.

Frostbite smiles, his teeth glinting and eyes shining much like the ice crystals around us. "But of course!" his voice booms a lot like my dad's, before he turns to me with a look of concern. "Are you feeling ill?"

Sending him as much of a smile as I can, I answer reluctantly. "Not ill, per se, but things have been getting stranger than usual and I just want to cover all of my bases." Frostbite's heart-wrenching worried face almost makes me wince. I send him another smile to comfort the big softy. "I'm probably just getting a new power and it is messing with me. I'm sure I will be fine as soon as I learn how to control it." I choose to leave out that I'm pretty sure this had started before I got my powers.

Frostbite relaxed some but raised an eyebrow in interest. "You are still growing in power?"

I blushed and shrugged. "I guess so…"

The yeti ruler lets out another bellowing laugh, slapping my shoulder. "And you wonder why we call you 'great', Oh Great One!" My blush darkens and I shoot a glare in the direction of some snickering that is erupting behind me. Both friends and sister adopt looks of innocence. Unable to focus on such trivial things, my mind shifts back to the purpose of our visit. My thoughts race, hoping, praying I am somehow right and it's just some new power messing with me.

Despite the savage-like appearance and the 'classic' choice in decor, this tribe of yeti have one of the best medical facilities the ghost zone can offer, which means it's hundreds of years ahead of anything on earth. This is very good for me. Actually, me using their equipment is good for them too. There is a domain filled with scientists that exist to invent, discover, and create. Everyone wants their stuff, it's magical, I swear, but it's crazy hard to get. No one can steal from them-not with their security systems-and they have almost everything they could ever want, so trade is hard to bid for.

Somehow the scientists have found out that Frostbite knows one of the only ghost/human hybrids in existence and they practically begged him to take their medical equipment with the only payment being that he give them a copy of any scans or physical information they may gather on me. Word on the street is that they had tried to study Vlad, but his reaction was so vicious they were afraid to approach me.

Frostbite asked my permission before taking the deal. I'm not usually comfortable with that sort of thing-not with my parents so vocal about their own ghost studies-but in the end I agreed. They only want copies of information that is already done and It's the least I can do for the friendly yeti-ghost-people. The tribe would never get a deal like this again, and they really needed the equipment.

The Far Frozen is almost completely isolated from the rest of land of the dead. The yeti here require incredibly cold temperatures to survive, and few ghosts outside of their kind can withstand such a climate. The only time they ever really interact with the outside world is when some hotshot decides to attack them for their collection of priceless and powerful artifacts. This is another reason someone like me, who can survive the cold and moderate heat, is beneficial. So in a nutshell, if the tribe is going to have any medical care at all, it needs to be on-site and done by their own people.

Walking into the medical wing, I am instantly swarmed by no less than six yetis: three doctors and three scientists. Being my incredibly rare and thus vastly unknown 'breed', everyone is needed. It doesn't make me any less embarrassed at the attention, however. For me, attention means embarrassment, whether it's because of my clumsiness, my parents, or bullies, it has held true throughout my life. It took months of fighting and defending Amity Park as Danny Phantom for me to feel even slightly comfortable in the spotlight, but it's still hard in a one-on-one atmosphere.

"So what are you having troubles with, oh, Conquer?" asks Thermofrost.

I bite my lip. "We think it is a new power, but it could be some kind of nutrition deficiency," cut in Jazz. Sisters were just as annoying as they are lifesavers. "Besides that, we really aren't sure."

The head doctor, a female named Crystal Claw, nods in agreement. "Well, if you are not sure then perhaps we should do a full physical. We haven't done one since you received mastery of your ice powers."

I nod my consent.

-)(-

Sorry for the wait, hopefully this makes it is worth it.

You never realize how hard it is to write a full story from beginning to end until you try.

It seems like just when I think I have gotten the hang of it I learn something new and I need to go back and rewrite or add something.

…its exhausting

But, oh so worth it.

I do not own 'Danny Phantom'