Hello all you beautiful people! :D (props for those who know that reference lol)
Wow look! I'm back after only 2 months with a super long filler! :'D Amazing right? I didn't intend for it to be this long, and sorry if it bores you to sleep but... I got a lot of stuff/characters up to date now in terms of their opinions about stuff. So that's good. Yay.
If you didn't notice I did go though and edit the earliest chapters, just to make them sound a bit better. Not much else changed beside rewording and fixing some minor plot holes, so you don't have to reread them unless you want to...
Thanks for these people for faving/following since last chapter: DanixDP213, Starlow321, sabri10chase, Twisted Mystique, battle manga, AstroGravity Phan, Novus Maximus, Fullmetal spike97, MargarethMidori chan, Urufu Fire, Allcoolnamesaretaken, Sonozaki Mion, Bookworm5556, CheesyBlueberry, Sally B. Mcgill, YokaiAngel, AsRiver, Roxy Emeralds, TerrorofDeathHaseo666, Dekei, Poosa-ard, DaringDinkyDo, Silvercoal, cassjo, obsessive360, catfire5, ThePaintedHand, candydemon124, Shiyuki791, EzLMG15, movielover9, ANONIMO JR, ZackiBrownie, Lennex MacDuff, Star-The-Writer, KatharinetheQuene, myfanfictionemail0, Lulupatacrepon, and redrovaredrova. JESUS THAT WAS A LOT! THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH! :D I apologize if I missed anyone, at this point I'm only relying on the alert emails, instead of checking the list...
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And lastly special thanks to those who followed/faved me as an author: Bookworm5556, animaldoctor, catfire5, and EzLMG15! I don't even know the total now but it doesn't matter, thanks so much! :)
Anyway let's get into it! This is based off of Secret Weapons (hence the stupid title) but barely anything's the same. Pretty much just the first scene and a few references here and there. Anyway enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters from the show Danny Phantom; I only own my portion of the plot! (even though this chapter barely has any plot lol). Also I don't own the quote used later, which belongs to Joseph Addison.
Secret Confessions
Sam yawned as she exited the movie theater, her mind swimming with thoughts about the three movie marathon she had just watched. The sky had already darkened to a navy blue, the girl noticed, contrasting with the light blue hue it had been before entering the building.
It hadn't been as much as a week since the Nasty Burger exploded, and things were finally getting back to normal in the town of Amity Park. Well, only as normal as possible in a town infested with ghosts could get, of course.
Her friend Tucker was on her right side smiling contently, and while there appeared to be no one to her left, she knew that Danny was there invisibly, hiding from his overprotective, psychology-loving sister. Yes, invisibly; her best friend was half-ghost, one of the only two in the world, in fact.
Ah, Danny. He was so selfless, and funny, and kind, and-
Sam blinked and internally shook her head. She was getting too ahead of herself... she and the hero/public enemy of Amity Park were just friends. That was it. Nothing else to it. And Danny was so clueless anyway, that he had to be the only one who didn't notice her true feelings.
"I can't believe we sat through all three Cyber-Zombie Commando movies." The goth stated, expertly masking the other thoughts in her head as she had done for years.
"I coulda used a little less zombie and a little more cyber," the techno-geek said with a shrug, "but that's me. I'm all about the cyber." He grinned at the thought of his precious technology.
Sam looked around, and upon seeing no bright orange head of hair (and also no other witnesses in sight), she called out, "Coast is clear, Danny."
"Sweet." A voice echoed in her left ear, and the black-haired teenage halfa became visible in the blink of an eye. "No sign of Jazz?" He questioned cautiously, referring to his annoying older sister.
"No sign of Jazz." The goth repeated back, smiling knowingly at her friend.
"Good." Danny breathed a sigh of relief, looking around briefly for any listeners before continuing. "Ever since Jazz found out I've been fighting ghosts, she's been kinda-"
He was interrupted by a loud engine, and a red convertible screeched up beside the movie theatre with no other than the aqua-eyed girl inside.
Before the youngest Fenton could do as much as move, he was tackled into the nearest brick wall by his sister.
"Pushy," he grumbled, grimacing as a bruise from an earlier ghost fight started throbbing.
"Danny, are you okay?!" The orange-haired girl demanded, shoving a metallic thermos with green highlights into her brother's arms. "You know you should never leave the house without a Fenton Thermos!" She lowered her voice, looking around suspiciously. "What if there's a ghost around?"
"You mean other than Danny?" Tucker asked smartly, earning a kick from the purple-eyed girl next to him.
"There's no ghost around!" The halfa assured his sister in annoyance, ignoring the last comment. "And if there was, my ghost sense would go off!" Just as usual, irony decided to make an appearance as a breath of icy air dissolved into the evening air.
"Like that?" Jazz asked, crossing her arms confidently when she realized that she was right. The siblings shared a glare before their gazes were drawn to a glowing form flying through the sky, lit up with a Mohawk of green flames.
"Skulker? He's hunting you again?" The techno-geek exclaimed, reaching a hand into his pocket for his trusty PDA in case the hunter needed to pay another visit to a purple-backed gorilla.
"Again?! As in more than once?" The oldest teenager gasped, shooting a deeply concerned look to her brother.
"Jazz, take it easy. There's a rhythm to these things!" Danny rolled his eyes knowingly, raising a hand in preparation to count the steps he was about to list. "The ghost attacks, we exchange witty banter, I kick ghost butt, and we all go home having learned a valuable lesson about honesty or some such nonsense..." He explained with a smirk, raising an eyebrow when his sister whipped out a notepad.
"Attack, banter, kick butt, lesson. Got it." She muttered, furiously scribbling on the paper, just in time for the ghost to approach the group with a sneer.
Danny looked up just in time to see a glowing net fly straight towards him and his friends, and thinking fast, he shot a quick ecto-beam to knock it aside. "I gotta go. You guys get to safety, I've got this."
"Are you sure you don't need Britney and I to-"
"No, Tucker, I think I'll be fine." The blue-eyed boy said and smiled in thanks, looking around one more time for onlookers before taking off at a run, transforming in mid-air into Phantom.
Sam and the two others watched their friend shoot up into the air, expertly dodging a few attacks before sending his own rays of green light in return, and muffled banter from both ghosts echoing down from the sky.
Without a word, the remaining three got into Jazz's car and began heading after the two glowing forms, their fight moving further and further across the sky as it went on.
"Jazz, did it ever occur to you that Danny's been doing just fine on his own, without your help?" Sam asked, raising an eyebrow at the determined driver.
"Exactly, so imagine how much better he'll do with it!" She exclaimed, stepping firmly on the gas pedal and making a dangerously sharp turn to follow Danny and the other ghost.
The two freshmen looked at each other in annoyance, not knowing how to persuade the girl that their friend really could do better when fighting alone, without anyone around that he had to worry about protecting.
Suddenly, the car roughly jerked to a stop, and Jazz's eyes widened as her brother was blasted back dozens of feet through the night sky.
"You just earned a one-way ticket to Thermos-Land, ghost!" The young adult screamed, jumping out of the car and shakily aiming the thermos's light blue beam up at the sky, as Tucker and Sam face-palmed and exited the vehicle as well.
Skulked smirked at the action, easily flying around the Thermos's beam, but the half-ghost wasn't so lucky. Yelling in surprise, he found himself being suctioned back to the ground and crammed into the prison he commonly trapped his enemies in.
The hunter laughed aloud, earning the glares of all three humans. "I can always collect Phantom's pelt another day, but this-" he motioned to the metal thermos giddily. "Seeing him trapped in his own invention? That was worth the loss!" The ghost's rockets lit up, and he zoomed off into the night sky, still cackling to himself as flew off into the night.
Jazz turned around to see her brother's two friends sending her identical accusing glares.
"Think I should work on my banter?" The older teen asked sheepishly, still holding the slightly smoking thermos.
"Start with your aim." Tucker suggested firmly, and Sam grabbed the metal invention out of the other girl's grip to free her friend.
"Oh, hey Phantom!" Valerie greeted, slowing her hover-board to a stop in midair right above Casper High's football stadium. It was the next night, and Danny was lucky enough to get out of the house without Jazz noticing. For the past day, his sister had interfered with every ghost fight, and her presence hadn't exactly helped things. The younger half-ghost was unfortunately starting to become familiar with the tight, uncomfortable thermos that he was now constantly caught in. He was even beginning to regret sucking his enemies into there, even if they were only trapped for a few hours at most...
Danny brought his attention back to the girl clad in red and black. The two teenage ghost hunters had gotten more friendly with each other over the past few weeks, since Valerie trusted the ghost boy more after the Pariah Dark incident. They even worked out a schedule for who would patrol the town at what time, which proved especially useful for managing a double life like they both had to do.
"Hi, Valerie." Phantom responded, smiling at the huntress and floating up beside her. "So, how have things been for you?"
"Fine." The girl sighed tiredly. "But things aren't getting any easier, especially at school."
"I know what you mean." The ghost boy responded, careful to not say too much about the topic. After all, the girl didn't know that he went to her school (but he was viewed as a normal ghost, so no one knew that he went to school at all), not to mention the crazy coincidence that the two were in the same class.
"You're lucky, Phantom. Ghosts don't have to go to the hell that is high school." The Red Huntress jealously crossed her arms. The green-eyed ghost chuckled and opened his mouth to respond, but the two teenagers were startled out of their conversation when they heard a familiar feminine shout from below.
"Oh no, Danny! It's a ghost hunter!" A certain teenage psychiatrist yelled in panic from the sidewalk, whipping out her favorite ghost weapon. "Don't worry, I'll protect you!"
The ghost boy shot an expression of complete and utter annoyance at the girl floating next to him as he was forcibly sucked into the Fenton Thermos... for the fifth time in twenty-four hours.
Valerie stared in surprise at the shocked orange-haired girl standing below.
"Oh... whoops! Don't worry, I'll get you out of there... eventually!" Jazz said sheepishly to the invention in her hands.
"Hey, be careful where you're aiming that thing! Let Phantom go!" The Red Huntress demanded, maneuvering her hover-board to sink through the air, closer to the young adult on the ground. "Wait... aren't you Danny Fenton's sister? Did you just catch Phantom so he could be ripped apart by your parents?! Give him back!" She demanded furiously, barely resisting the urge to get out a weapon to look more intimidating.
"No, it's you who wants to hurt him, ghost hunter!" The orange-haired girl declared and clutched the thermos to her chest protectively.
Valerie rolled unseen teal eyes and forcibly grabbed the thermos out of the older teenager's grip, firmly pressing the release button. Phantom materialized in a flash of blue light, still wearing a cross expression.
"That was the fifth. Dang. Time. You've caught me in that thing." He growled to his sister, his eyes glowing menacingly.
"Ehehe... Sorry..." Jazz apologized sheepishly.
"You two know each other?" Valerie questioned, raising an eyebrow at the other two under her black tinted visor.
"Yes." "No." The two looked at each other and said simultaneously.
"No?" "Yes?"
"Sorta?" The two Fentons finally (and quite awkwardly) agreed on an answer.
The Huntress simply looked on in confusion at the exchange, oblivious to the truth. After a few seconds, she shrugged it off. "Whatever. Here, Ghost Boy." She handed him the thermos, reluctant to give it back to the Fenton who had caught him. "I've gotta get back to my dad before he freaks out at me for being out so late. See you later?"
"Sure. Bye!" The ghost responded with a wave as the red and black hover-board rose higher into the air,
Once Valerie was gone, the half-ghost crossed his arms and glared at his sister once again.
Before the girl could say anything, the glowing boy sighed in an effort to calm down. "Look, Jazz, I know you're trying to help."
"Trying?" The orange-haired teenager questioned, looking slightly offended.
Her brother shot her an apologetic look. "Please don't be offended... but I have it under control. I've been dealing with all these ghosts for months now! And I've never been alone. Sam and Tucker have been with me from the beginning, and Vlad helps me out a lot with learning my powers, and Val-The Red Huntress helps out too..." The boy motioned to the disappearing form of the Huntress, and then continued. "What I'm trying to say is, I appreciate that you want to help, but... I just don't want you to get hurt."
The older Fenton's eyes softened. "Danny..."
"Come on, you know how dangerous this is, especially for humans-"
"You say that like you don't consider yourself human!" The girl snapped, tears rushing to her eyes.
"But I'm not! At least, not entirely." His green gaze dropped to the ground, and tense silence followed.
His sister looked at him sadly, guilt reflecting in her eyes.
"But aside from that... Could you try to give me some space? And trust that I can handle things like I have been?" Danny pleaded, frowning when his older sister still wore an unsure expression. "Please?"
"All right..." She responded after a few moments, smiling in return when the ghost shot her a thankful grin. "But please tell me if something's wrong. I want to help you as much as I can... even if fighting isn't my thing."
"Thanks, Jazz." The ghost boy wrapped an arm around her slim form, and the two siblings shared a hug for the first time in several days. "So, would ya like a ride home?"
"Why not-whoaaa!" The girl's response turned into a yell of fright when she was lifted up into the air, quickly ascending until the school was minuscule in the distance. Yellow and white lights shined from windows and headlights far below as the two flew back towards FentonWorks, the bright neon sign clearly visible among the other buildings.
Wide aqua eyes scanned the beautiful view, which was complete with the full moon and stars twinkling in the sky, not a cloud in sight.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" The ghost boy muttered into his sister's ear above the wind, his black ghostly tail smoothly rippling through the night air. He was careful not to fly too fast or too recklessly, not with his sister hanging down so precariously in his grasp.
The ghost boy saw the girl nod, not showing any fear or anxiety at being up so high in the hands of a ghost, the sole thing that her family was dedicated to hunting.
Before long they had reached their home, and the two siblings lightly touched down in front. They stood in silence for a few seconds, Jazz shivering in the chilly night breeze.
"I can see why you love flying so much..." She wistfully commented.
"Yeah..." The ghost responded, not knowing what else to say. He looked around briefly before turning back into his human form in a flash of light. "Let's go in."
"Hey, Jazz, I'm heading off to Vlad's." Danny announced to his sister's closed door, after a long day of school. "If Mom and Dad ask, I'm at Sam's house. Or, you can come along if you want."
The teenage girl quickly opened her door. "I'd like to come with, if it's okay with you. I already finished all my work."
"Only you would finish all your homework less than an hour after school ends..." The halfa rolled his eyes, smiling knowingly at his sister. "All right, come on then."
Jazz excitedly followed her brother down the stairs to the main level, and the two siblings left a note for their parents, falsely informing that they were out with Danny's friends.
The orange-haired girl looked on in confusion when the half-ghost headed for the basement door. "Where are you going?"
"To the portal..." The boy paused in front of the open door, looking around pointedly at his sister as if she had asked if the sky was green.
"We're going... into the Ghost Zone?!" His sister asked in shock, aqua eyes widening.
"Yeah...?" The boy walked down the stairs, followed by his confused sister. The two approached the closed portal, Danny pausing at the control panel to open it.
"But isn't it dangerous?"
"I'm a ghost, Jazz." He commented dryly at his sister's concern, and the portal's metal doors opened to reveal the usual swirl of green light. "Don't worry, I've been in there tons of times. And I'll protect you if anyone bothers us." Startling his sister, the ring of cold, bright light formed and split into two, turning him into his ghost persona and illuminating the dark lab with supernatural light. He held out a white gloved hand, and hesitantly his sister took it.
The two teenagers phased through the swirling green surface and emerged into the other dimension, Jazz staring in shock and wonder at the weightless atmosphere that was highlighted with hues of green and purple.
"Whoa... this place is amazing! And pretty spooky." The teenage girl shivered a little in the ghost's cold grip.
"Sorry, I know I'm cold." He apologized sheepishly, earning a forgiving smile from the orange-haired girl, and within seconds the two began their trip through the zone. "Fun fact, I made ghost ice a couple times a few months ago, but I haven't been able to since."
"Really?" Jazz reached a hand around to her purse and pulled out a notepad. "That's interesting..." She scribbled down something.
"Seriously?" Phantom muttered, shaking his head. "Stop taking notes on me, would ya?"
"But I need to understand the anomaly that is my half-ghost teenage brother!" Jazz exclaimed, continuing to write stuff down as the halfa scoffed at her response.
Within only a few minutes of flying through the strange world, they reached the only other permanent portal.
"Whoa, are we already here?" The girl said in surprise. "In Wisconsin?"
"Well, the Ghost Zone treats distance differently. Somehow our portals are much closer through the zone than on Earth." He shrugged. "I dunno, we never really questioned it."
The older sibling nodded and wrote down something else on her notepad.
"Oh, something else. Please spare Vlad from your invasive personal questions."
"But Danny-"
"And that includes psycho-analyzing him!" The ghost boy said forcefully, interrupting whatever excuse his sister had thought of.
"Okay, okay, I get it!" The older teenager muttered, rolling her eyes. "And I wasn't planning to do those things, for the record."
"Good." Content with his sister's assurance, Danny didn't even blink as he brought his sister through the swirling gateway once again, emerging into the familiar lab in Wisconsin. Jazz stiffened as a breath of icy air blew past her, not yet completely used to witnessing her brother's powers at work.
The half-ghost gently lowered the girl to the floor so she could stand on her own. The orange-haired teenager looked around in curiosity at the similar surroundings as the FentonWorks lab.
"I've never been down here before..." The girl commented, observing the clean, shiny lab tables and organized cabinets throughout the room.
"Yeah, it has a secret entrance so people don't wander down here on accident." The boy explained with a shrug, his ghostly tail fluidly reforming into legs.
"So, where is he?"
"Probably upstairs somewhere. He definitely knows I'm here." When the girl peered at him questioningly, he explained further. "He has a ghost sense, too. We have a lot of similar powers."
"Hmm..." She added to her notes, aqua eyes narrowing in concentration.
"Come on." The ghost held out a hand again, and once the other teenager took it, the pair floated up through the high ceiling intangibly. The teenage psychiatrist shuddered at the strange, tingling feeling, watching in a mix of fear and fascination as she was lifted up through a very much solid surface.
She noticed in surprise that a white cat stared curiously at the two teenagers as they rose up through the wooden floor.
"Oh hello there, kitty!" Jazz exclaimed in surprise once she stood on solid ground again, kneeling down and letting the animal sniff her hand. "Wait, is this cat a ghost?" She stiffened when she noticed the cat's clearly translucent form.
"Yep. Her name is Eleanor." The yellow-eyed feline meowed in response to her name and plodded over to rub up against Danny's legs. "We found her in the Ghost Zone once, and she followed us back."
Eleanor purred and let the human teenager stroke a hand down her back, her bright yellow eyes sparkling contently.
"Hey Fruitloop, where art thou?" The ghost boy called through the house. The older Fenton sibling stood back up as the ghost boy floated casually across the green and yellow room, disappearing from sight through an open doorway.
Just then, a glowing form phased through the wall next to Jazz, causing her to jump back at the unexpected entrance.
"Oh... hi, there!" She greeted awkwardly, automatically feeling more at ease when the ghost responded with a smile.
"Looks like my prediction was correct, you did come along." He didn't even flinch as the glowing cat jumped up into his arms, her purrs rising in volume. "Welcome back, and make yourself at home-"
Just then, Phantom phased through a wall holding a chocolate chip cookie, contently munching on another and not noticing the three pairs of eyes that had focused on him.
"These are really good." He commented, taking a big bite of the one in his hand and munching contently.
"How did you find them this time?" The older half ghost asked in amusement.
"What can I say? I guess I've learned a few things from Tucker when it comes to finding food." He finished the dessert and licked the crumbs off his lips and gloved fingers. "Plus, this is the one of the only places where I don't have to worry about being attacked by whatever failed ectoplasmic experiment is in the kitchen, so cut me some slack here."
The red-eyed ghost raised an inquiring eyebrow at the two teenagers, who both shook their heads, 'you don't want to know,' and 'it's a long story' both conveyed in two equally traumatized expressions.
"... All right then, I'm not even going to ask." The man muttered. "By now I've learned not to."
"That's probably for the best." Danny agreed with a snicker, and the two floated down a hallway like they'd done it a hundred times before. Jazz blinked and followed behind, eyes scanning around curiously.
"Whoa..." The girl gaped upon seeing a tall, door-less entrance leading into a massive library. "Look at all these books!" She borderline sprinted to the closest bookcase, fervently scanning through the titles. "How did I not notice this before?!"
"Oh boy, she'll be in here for hours now." The white-haired ghost rolled his eyes and cast an annoyed look towards the other halfa.
"You know what they say. 'Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body.'"
"... That's the cheesiest thing I've ever heard you say. And you've said some pretty weird things."
"Why, thank you." The man smirked, and Danny rolled his green eyes at the sarcastic response.
"So, we could go do something while Little Miss Bookworm here reads to her heart's content." The white-haired ghost motioned to her sister, who looked up from a book to mock-glare at the nickname.
The older hybrid paused uneasily before responding, "Well, after what happened last week I thought you might want a break from the usual, but we can do whatever you want."
"Actually," the boy spoke up, one hand raising to rub the back of his neck, "a break would be nice, now that I think about it." Vlad just then noticed the poorly masked exhaustion in the younger halfa's expression.
"Of course." The man answered sympathetically and let the black rings change his form to human, Phantom following in suit. The two continued down the hall, leaving the curious psychiatrist behind in the library, until they emerged into the main room. A matching group of brown, puffy leather couches and armchairs sat angled in front of a large flatscreen TV, which was left turned on from earlier in the day.
"So... things sizzled down after last week?" The man asked cautiously after sitting down. Quiet commercials sounded in the background, the bright colors flashing distractingly.
Danny plopped down beside, gaze boredly fixated on the television as he nodded. His arms were crossed across his chest in a self-hug, showing reluctance to elaborate.
A few moments of comfortable silence passed, as two similar sets of eyes were drawn to the TV.
"There's something that you need to know..."
Vlad peered over silently at the boy beside him, feeling an odd combination of concern and curiosity. The pair of haunted ice blue eyes shifted down from the screen, focusing tiredly on the carpet.
"You don't have to say anything if you don't want to."
"I need to." The younger hybrid responded to the man's gentle statement and took a deep breath.
Before he could lose his nerve, the story began spilling out, starting with when he and his friends had been attacked by Box Lunch, the future kid of the Lunch Lady and Box Ghost (who, unknown to Danny at the time, had actually been sent by Clockwork). How he had accidentally acquired the answers to the C.A.T. from his teacher's briefcase by going intangible through it, and then shamefully telling how he had actually considered cheating on the big test. How Danny and his friends had later been mistakenly teleported to the Time Ghost's lair, and how the trio had seen Dan for the first time through a screen that showed the future, and witnessed his newfound Ghostly Wail that had the potential to bring down buildings. Then the first time meeting Clockwork, and getting clobbered by the Master of Time in a one-sided fight. And then how the three teenagers were forced into a portal that took them to the future, soon finding themselves surrounded by what remained of Amity, and meeting the future Valerie who still remained faithfully protecting her city.
The black-haired teenager's voice trembled as he described his first confrontation with his future self, and his fear when Sam and Tucker had almost been killed, and finally his overwhelming relief when they had escaped just in time by taking off their time medallions.
The story continued with how Dark Dan had then also learned of the loophole, and the future ghost had fused Danny's own medallion inside of him, rendering him unable to return to the past. The younger halfa explained getting cast into the future Ghost Zone, and being assaulted by his future enemies as revenge for things he had never done, eventually forcing him to use the Wail for the first time, ten years ahead of schedule.
The tale went on with receiving the message from Jazz, and seeking out future-Vlad for help. And soon after, learning what caused the horrible future to happen in the first place, which led to the younger hybrid's meek revelation of how Dan had actually come to be. Then shakily explaining that the boy's own human self had been the first victim of the ghost fusion, and many more had followed in the ten years that succeeded. The narrative quietly drew to a close with how he had finally gotten back to his own time with the future-billionaire's help, just in time to join the fight against Dan in the present.
Deathly quiet silence followed, broken only by the softly purring white cat snuggling up against the teenage halfa's side in an attempt to comfort him, and the muted sounds from the TV, which hadn't ceased flickering between ads.
The boy didn't even realize that he was crying until a gentle finger brushed across his cheek, catching an escaping tear.
"Oh jeez..." He scrubbed a knuckle across his eyes. "And here I am crying like a baby." The boy made a sound somewhere between a sob and a laugh. "I'm sorry."
"There's nothing to apologize for." The man responded, carefully disguising the whirling emotions inside his head. A tissue box floated over, surrounded by purplish-pink light. "Here."
"Thanks." Danny hoped his face wasn't as red as it felt as he gratefully grabbed hold of the box.
"You've been through so much." The older half-ghost sighed, shaking his head sadly. "More than any full-grown adult should have to experience... much less someone as young as you."
The teenager shrugged, not meeting the older male's eyes as he wiped his eyes. He turned his attention to the vibrating cat that had moved to lay across his lap, stroking a hand through the silky white fur.
They sat in silence again, the TV continuing into regularly scheduled programming, which was some reality show that neither cared for.
It wasn't long before the bored billionaire felt a weight against his shoulder, and his eyes darted over to see a very exhausted Danny.
"Looks like someone's getting tired." The man teased.
The youngest Fenton hummed in agreement, his shoulders twitching slightly in a half-shrug. "I guess I haven't gotten much sleep lately."
"Oh, you poor thing." Vlad commented, only a hint of sarcasm in his voice.
"I appreciate your overwhelming concern for my well-being."
The man chuckled, delicately shifting his arm to wrap around the other halfa in a loose embrace. "You're very welcome."
"Mmhmm." The teenager drowsily let his eyes close, comforting warmth concealing the usual coldness that always burdened him, and for the first time in months he felt truly safe.
Finally... he was alone with his thoughts.
Well, not completely alone, he was reminded by the cold presence nestled up beside him, and the painstakingly slow, steady breathing that was distinctly picked up by his enhanced hearing.
But no matter. Vlad had learned to appreciate any company he had, after being completely and utterly alone for so long.
He couldn't help feeling incredibly mixed emotions about the terrible, but luckily no-longer-likely future. Danny may have been powerful, and quite mature for his age (at least most of the time) but that didn't change the fact that he was still a kid. A kid that had never asked to be thrust into a world of dangerous supernatural beings, violence, and deception. A kid that was constantly burdened with the responsibility of protecting a whole town of people from malevolent creatures that most didn't even believe existed. And above all, a kid that definitely didn't deserve anything as horrible as what he had experienced a few days before.
And the boy's parents were completely oblivious to what they had done, to both their own son and Vlad himself.
However, he knew deep down that the Fentons could never have foreseen the effect of their inventions, which happened to be the creation of not one, but two half-ghost-half-human hybrids. Even Vlad could admit that it wasn't entirely their fault.
But if anyone was to blame, it would definitely be Jack.
The man blew out a breath of air, forcing his thoughts back to the future timeline. If such an idea was proposed a few weeks before, the halfa would have considered the very idea ridiculous. Young, innocent Danny unintentionally causing the death of everyone he loved, and then brutally terrorizing the world for fun and laughs? It sounded completely insane.
But it had happened. For some messed up reason, reality had decided to ruthlessly punish the most undeserving person it could find.
And there was also Vlad's own involvement to blame. Indirectly, he had caused the whole thing by simply being there. Would the younger halfa still have become Dan if the two ghost halves hadn't... fused (as disturbing as that still sounded...)?
Among ghosts, "fusing" was rare, though not unheard of. Thanks to the lack of definite physical properties in ghosts, things like overshadowing, intangibility, and even an unusual kind of fusion was an option. A major downside of the latter action was the irreversible effects, which happened to be the permanent binding-together of two beings. The circumstances were rarely bad enough for it to happen, but obviously it was still possible, if only slightly.
Luckily for the two halfas (and the whole world, really), Clockwork had stepped in. He probably wasn't supposed to directly interfere, and his chosen method to change Danny's course of action may have not been the quickest or most convenient, but the Ancient had successfully found a peaceful way to prevent Dan from being created.
Except for the Dan that existed out of time, of course, who was still locked in a Fenton Thermos that was guarded by Clockwork himself. But he was still there. He still existed. And there was no good way to change that.
Surely that fact didn't help things for Danny. Though the timeline was fixed, his evil future self would continue to exist, waiting for the right moment to exact his revenge.
The whole situation was also a painful reminder of Pariah Dark, who's reign had been temporarily halted by a similar prison... the Sarcophagus.
What were the chances that Dan would eventually escape, much like the former Ghost King did? Would Danny inevitably have to face the whole situation again?
Vlad sure hoped not, though he admittedly had a bad feeling.
The man stifled a yawn, and he carefully shifted into a more comfortable position, trying his hardest not to wake Danny. He hadn't gotten too much sleep, either, since the whole fiasco. He may have been more used to living on less sleep than the boy was, but that didn't make him any less exhausted after several days of little rest.
With a sigh, he let his eyes close and slowly began to drift, only comforted by the knowledge that Danny was there with him, and out of harm's way.
Jazz giddily skipped down the hall, carrying a hefty stack of books she had found. She had meticulously scoured the whole library, and there were so many things she had never read before!
Out of the large selection, she was especially drawn to a small shelf of hardback covers that, after further investigation, ever-so-dimly glowed. And every one had to do with ghosts, and was written by a ghost ironically named "the Ghost Writer". Finally, something to help her better understand and assist Danny!
So, she picked out a few in hopes of being allowed to borrow some. She would have to be careful to not let her parents get a hold of them... Things could get dangerous if the two ghost hunters found books from the Ghost Zone in their house, with no good explanation of how they got there...
Shaking herself from her thoughts, Jazz curiously stepped into the room that the two males had gone into.
"Hey Mr. Masters, I was wondering-" The older Fenton sibling halted in the doorway, absently observing the matching furniture and flatscreen, but primarily seeing the two half-ghosts, fast asleep on one of the couches, basically using each other as a pillow.
How long had she been in the library? A glance at a window informed her that it was still daytime, so not much time has passed... it couldn't have even been an hour since the girl had first arrived to the mansion with Phantom.
Jazz silently backed out of the room, secretly relieved that her brother was finally getting some sleep. She didn't know exactly what he had gone through the past week, but it obviously hadn't been pleasant. The orange-haired girl was just glad that his future self was out of the picture, hopefully for good.
Her thoughts shifted to Vlad. At first she had been unsure of his true intentions, but it was obvious that he did sincerely care about her little brother. And since Danny trusted him so intimately, Jazz was positive that she could too.
As she settled back down in the room full of bookshelves to begin scanning "The Ghost Zone: A History," the aqua-eyed girl discovered a new reason to read; to better understand the wondrous, unknown world that her brother was now a part of.
Whew, I'm glad that's over.. For some reason it was really hard for me to figure out how to write the end part. I hope it turned out better than I think it did... xD
Anyway, I'd like to say a huge thank you to whoever is reading this right now, whether you've been with me since chapter 1 or are brand new, whether you review after every chapter or are a silent guest reader, THANK YOU! I would have never gotten this far without so much support. It really kept me going... even though updates have been horrendous... xD I'll try to be better this year, I promise.
ANYWAY i have a little poll for commenters! Two things:
1) Would you like a version of the main Freakshow episode, with Vlad in it somehow? I've been debating writing it for a while, and I haven't started much on it yet, but if it's something people would be interested in I'm happy to do what I can with it! I'm kind of mad about the out-of-order thing, and I'm reluctant to mess around with it since it would mess up the comments... But if enough people would be interested I'd be glad to write it soon!
2) Do you have any other original episode ideas for me? Like situations that would be cool/interesting, or even just little plot bunnies you have? I can always use new ideas for inspiration and such, so please let me know if you think of anything! :) I'll give credit if I use anything!
That's about it folks, next up should be an original chapter I've been working on for a while, then I'll continue with the episode progression. Thanks so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed! :)