Chapter Ninety: Truce

"There you two are." Vlad looked up as Dan and Danny entered the den, where those that were tired of the crowd had retreated – namely the mothers, Vlad, Plasmius, Daniel, and the two mothers.

"Daniel, why aren't you socializing?" Danny asked as he entered. "Vlad, you're the host."

"It was your idea." Vlad raised an eyebrow. "Plasmius and I are enjoying the peace and quiet of the den." He looked over as Box Lunch let out a loud squeal in response to something Lucretius did. "Well, relative peace and quiet."

"Well, we just spent the last fifteen minutes resolving a dispute." Danny flew over and sat next to Sam, who was sitting on the floor with Lunch Lady so they could play with their kids. "We should bring the kids out, almost time to open presents." He smiled, putting his arms around her gently.

Sam leaned into his embrace. "Mm, a bit longer."

"Aren't you going out at all?" Dan asked Daniel.

Daniel shook his head. "I might come out for the presents, but honestly I don't really feel as at-home with those guys as you guys do."

"Dark's out there, though." Dan sat in the chair next to him.

"And he's always been the social butterfly. Even when we were one, I was always much more…social as Phantom than I ever was as Danny." Danny said softly. "I only had…well, two friends." He curled up in his seat. "And because of my stupidity…my friends…my family…" He wrapped his arms around his knees. "Nothing…can bring them back. I'm living in a world that's not mine."

Dan sighed, reaching up and rubbing his shoulder. "Daniel…" He smiled a bit. "It's painful…to lose loved ones. And while I got Danny back, I still remember how terrible it felt when I lost him. I sometimes wake him up in the middle of the night, just to make sure he's still there." He got up and wrapped his arms around him. "Nothing can change your past, it's true. But we can at least help you make a new life, right?"

Daniel nodded, smiling sadly. "You're right…I'm just being silly." He sighed softly. "I have all of you, but I'm crying about people that I lost twelve years ago. You'd think that twelve years would be enough time to grieve…"

"I didn't exactly give you time to grieve." Dark said from the doorway. He closed the door behind him and walked over to gently hug him. "I was really mean to you, wasn't I? And then I went and vanished on you for a year. "

Daniel nodded, wrapping his arms around him. "I was really lonely…"

Dark gently lifted him into his arms. "Well, you don't have to be anymore." He assured him, walking to the door with Daniel in his arms.

"We're about to open presents." Danny called after him.

"We'll be back in a bit. Oh." Dark looked at Danny. "How are you doing? Calmed down?"

Danny glanced away and nodded. "Yeah. I'm calm now."

"Good. You need to really master the urge, y'know." Dark winked and left the room with Daniel.

Vlad frowned. "What is he talking about, Danny?"

Danny shook his head. "Nothing. Just…something we discussed."

Vlad nodded slowly. "I see."

Danny looked down, sighing. Sam gently took his hand, smiling comfortingly.

.

"Pwesents!" Lucretius cheered as he was carried down to the main party room. Sam smiled as she held the tether, while Danny held onto the baby himself. "I wanna pwesents!"

"Not everything in there is for you, Luc." Danny said, laughing a bit.

Lucretius blinked. "But whyyyyy? It's ALL abou' me!"

Dan bust up laughing behind them while Danny and Sam exchanged weary looks, Lucretius continuing on about how he's the center of the universe.

"That's cute now, but he better grow out of it." Plasmius remarked as he and Vlad entered the room with Dark and Daniel.

"Looks like everyone's here." Vlad said, going to the tree. "Let's start handing out gifts, then!"

Danny smiled and took his seat next to Sam with Lucretius in his arms while Lunch Lady went to join Box Ghost. He could see Poindexter and Ghostwriter looking over a nook he was working on and Ghostwriter had his lips pursed but patiently listened to Poindexter's opinion.

"We did good, bro." Dan said, sitting next to him.

Danny nodded, smiling. "Now if only we could get the humans and ghosts to get along and look past their differences…"

"That's wishful-thinking, Danny." Dan nudged him gently. "Good thinking, but wishful."

Danny sighed. "I guess you're right. Right now, at least."

"In the future, who knows?" Sam put in, smiling.

Danny nodded. "Someday, we'll have an eternal Christmas Truce. With both humans and ghosts together, hand in hand."

Sam smiled and took his hand, nodding. "Someday."

.

The house was silent. Jack, Maddie and Jazz all sat together in the living room, a picture of Danny on the table between them. Maddie had chosen not to do their usual fight this year, or the previous one, considering how upset it always made Danny.

Last year they had been able to be distracted by the party and the crowd. This year, they only had their thoughts.

Jazz set down a wrapped package next to the picture. "I ended up buying him a present…even if he's gone." She said softly.

Maddie nodded. "So did I…I just can't believe that he's never coming back." She set a wrapped present next to the picture. "I never spent enough time with him…"

Jack was silent, staring at the picture. Those blue eyes seemed to be accusing him, sending guilt through his body. He had been hiding the truth, and would keep hiding it as long as he lived. No one would ever know, and that was better. He turned his gaze away, instead looking out the window at the falling snow.

Maddie didn't need to know what her son had become. Jazz didn't need to know her brother was an inhuman monster. Sure he'd treated him badly, even used his affection for him against him, but the fact remained that that wasn't Danny. Not anymore. Not the Danny he knew and loved. Maddie and Jazz would be destroyed if they knew the truth. If they knew what the Ghost Portal had done…

A ghost had taken his little cousin, and the Ghost Zone stole his son from him. He'd surely set him free, by letting him die. He can't have been truly happy with Phantom's shadow always on him, in him, taking over his body. And now Phantom's shadow was over Jack, harassing him with phone calls, attacking him, stealing from him, and no doubt planning to kill him in the end.

He turned his gaze back to the picture and saw those blue eyes flash toxic-green. He blinked and they were blue again. He sighed and placed a hand on his head, looking down.

Phantom was making him lose his mind.

At least he hasn't made you lose your pants, Jack. Though when that happened to Mr. Lancer it was actually TUCKER Phantom, not DANNY Phantom. Hehe.
Anyways, we got a look at more of Daniel's issues (he has SO many) and little Lucretius being a selfish little baby prat who thinks it's all about him.
It must be SO hard for Jazz, being unable to at least tell her mother about Danny not being gone. Think he'll get that gift sent to "James"? Oh well, not important.
Where is Dani in all this? Hmmm, where indeed... ~ Zone