Chapter 19: Mystery at Lake Eerie
Danny and Natasha were having a lunch date at a fancy restaurant in Amity Park. "The meal here is excellent, Danny." Natasha commented.
"The house appreciates your compliment, Your Highness." A nearby waiter stated.
"My Princess, may I order some dessert for you?" Danny asked with a hint of humor.
"I appreciate your offer, Danny." Natasha replied.
Danny ordered some ice cream for the both of them. After they ate the ice cream and Danny paid the bill, they left the restaurant and were approached by Jack and Maddie Fenton in their ghost assault vehicle. "Son, we're investigating a mystery at Lake Eerie!" Jack eagerly said. "Will you come with us?"
"Jack!" Maddie scolded her husband. "Danny's in the middle of a date."
"Sorry." Jack replied. "Anyway, we're going there because some witnesses claim to have seen a ghost girl that resembles you."
Danny was shocked and that didn't go unnoticed by his girlfriend. "Danny, what's wrong?" Natasha asked.
"I'm sorry, Natasha, but I'm afraid I must go with my parents in this case." Danny regretfully said.
"We already had lunch anyway, Danny." Natasha replied in understanding. "May I go with you?"
As Jack drove them to Lake Eerie, Danny explained about the girl he believed to be the one to be at the lake. "Let me get this right." Maddie said. "Vlad Plasmius eventually decided that, if you wouldn't become his son, he'd make a clone of you and instead he got a girl version of you?"
"He made some other clones but the others were too unstable to last and didn't have the brains to say anything other than "obey father", Mom." Danny explained.
"And are you sure that girl version of you remains stable enough to be the girl sighted at Lake Eerie, son?" Jack asked.
"Yes, Dad." Danny answered. "I've used some ecto-dejecto on her."
"Danny, we'll have a long talk about it." Jack somberly replied as they arrived at their destination. "Son, you know ecto-dejecto does the opposite of what your mother and I had in mind when we made it, right?" Jack asked Danny.
"Uh, yes." Danny answered.
"And had it never occurred to you the effects wouldn't last?" Maddie asked, deciding to add some input of her own. "You knew ecto-dejecto was in an experimental phase, didn't you?"
"So, if she's not here, you'd better tell us where she is so we could help her." Jack added.
"Unfortunately, Dani didn't leave a forwarding address." Danny replied in worry.
"Are you talking in third person, Danny?" Natasha asked in confusion.
"No, Natasha." Danny answered. "Plasmius named my clone "Danielle". Dani with an I."
"Are we looking for a one-eyed ghost?" Jack asked.
"Don't worry, kids." Maddie reassured Danny and Natasha. "I'll tell him."
"Danny, aside from us and Plasmius, who knows about this clone of yours?" Natasha asked her boyfriend.
"Tucker and Sam, Natasha." Danny answered.
"And your sister doesn't?" Natasha asked in surprise.
"She doesn't even suspect." Danny replied.
Meanwhile, Tucker and Sam were visiting Fentonworks. "Guys, Danny's not here." Jazz Fenton said.
"I know." Tucker replied. "We're here because Sam saw your parents pick up Danny and Natasha at the restaurant and they were in some hurry."
Sam then noticed Jazz staring at her. "My parents took me to the same restaurant. They said it was for 'family bonding' but I'm sure they just wanted some excuse to show off their wealth." The goth explained. "Anyway, we're worried about Danny."
"My parents must've taken them to Lake Eerie." Jazz commented. "They've heard stories about a ghost girl living there who resembles Danny." The aspiring psychologist didn't overlook Tucker's and Sam's worried glances. "What?"
Back at the area near Lake Eerie, a girl who was nearby was surprised at hearing footsteps. Looking around, she saw Danny, his parents, and a girl in a fancy dress. "What're they doing here?" She asked and then felt something oozing from her feet. "Not again." She moaned in frustration. "Why couldn't Danny come alone? Then I'd feel comfortable asking for his help. Maybe I could…" She unwittingly stomped on a twig. "Uh-oh."
Having heard the broken twig's sound, Jack Fenton rushed on the girl's direction. "Danielle Fenton, I presume." Jack said.
"It's Dani with an I but, how did you hear about me?" Dani asked Jack.
"When Maddie and I told Danny about a ghost girl who was spotted here and resembles him, he decided the best idea was to tell us." Jack answered and then noticed the oozing ectoplasm. "And I see was right about ecto-dejecto not having permanent effects."
"You knew it would happen?" Dani fearfully asked.
"With something experimental like ecto-dejecto, I couldn't be sure of anything without a proper analysis." Jack explained. "Would you come with us?"
"You're not dissecting me, are you?" Dani asked.
"Jack!" Maddie called her husband. "Are you okay? Oh, you must be Danielle."
"Did you tell her as well, cuz?" Dani asked Danny, who shrugged.
"They know about me as well, Dani." Danny replied.
"And who's she?" Dani asked.
"I'm Danny's girlfriend Natasha." Natasha introduced herself.
"What happened to the goth?" Dani asked.
"Sam and I are just friends, Dani." Danny answered.
"At least Vlad didn't copy his cluelessness." Jack commented. "But there's no time to discuss this! She needs help!"
All of them entered the Fentons' ghost assault vehicle and started a journey back to Fentonworks. "So, are you the Crown Princess of an Eastern European nation?" Dani asked.
"Yes, Dani." Natasha answered. "In fact, that you didn't know about Danny and me being a couple suggests you've been isolated from civilization for a while."
"I have to stay hidden from Plasmius." Dani explained. "Speaking of him, is he still the Mayor of Amity Park?"
"Unfortunately yes." Natasha answered.
As Jack was driving, he noticed another car coming from the opposite direction and recognized it as Jazz's. Given his own vehicle's unique looks, Jazz easily recognized it as well. Both cars stopped. "Jazzypants, what're you doing here?" Jack asked.
"Uh, Dad, did you really find a girl that resembles Danny?" Jazz nervously asked.
Upon noticing Tucker and Sam next to Jazz, Jack Fenton connected the dots. "They told you about Danny's clone, didn't they?"
"We had no choice, Mr. Fenton." Tucker answered and Sam elbowed him for that. "I mean, which clone? If Danny had any, they'd be boys, right?"
"They already know." Danny nonchalantly said. "And she's in the RV."
"Fenton Ghost Assault Vehicle, son." Jack corrected Danny. "But there's no time for that. We must return to Fentonworks."
At home, Jack was examining Dani while Maddie made a new batch of ecto-dejecto to restabilize Danny's clone. "Will she be okay?" Danny asked in desperation.
"Don't worry, son." Jack said. "Your Mom will finish making the new ecto-dejecto batch on time, albeit a more permanent solution might be required later on."
"What do you mean, Dad?" Danny asked.
"Based on what I'm reading from Dani's sample in comparison to yours, I'm afraid my earlier hypothesis was right." Jack gravely stated. "Not only ecto-dejecto's effects are temporary but it may be a matter of time until her organism starts rejecting it."
"Is there nothing you and Mom can do?" Danny asked. He was even more desperate than before.
"I'll see if she has some other idea but all I can think is getting a sample of your mid-morph DNA." Jack sadly replied.
"That's what Plasmius said." Dani intervened.
"I'm afraid I have no better idea but let's hope Maddie has some." Jack commented.
"If you don't, Natasha could ask her father to send some Zoravian scientist." Tucker said and noticed the others glaring at him. "What? Better him than the Guys in White."
"Honestly, I'm afraid of trusting any Governments with this." Maddie said as she showed up with ecto-dejecto. "Without any laws regarding how to treat sapient clones since nobody thought it possible to make one until now, it's anyone's guess how Governments and the scientific community would react."
"Really?" Dani asked while Maddie injected ecto-dejecto on her. "Ouch. Couldn't you just spray it on me?"
"This way works better." Maddie explained. "Now, I believe we were discussing a better solution for your stability."
End chapter.
Author's Note: I'm intentionally leaving it vague regarding if they'll use Danny's mid-morph DNA or not.
Answer to Leonardo (Guest): Eu pretendo fazer um capítulo pra cada episódio de "Princess Natasha" inclusive aqueles que não foram postados no Youtube.