Portal Panic

by Weshney

When young ghosts seem struck by a mystery ailment, Danny is called in to help. Only to have his attention split as an unexpected visitor is dumped in his lap. Now, with even more problems cropping up close to home and a series of portals opening to the MHA world, Danny Phantom must figure out just who—or what—is causing them. Not Phantom Planet Complaint.

20. And A Partridge In A Pear Tree

Audiobook version can be found on YouTube by searching weshney.

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Shout Outs this Week-

Cruden- Dani is a troll. But so is everyone else, lol. Hoping you enjoy all the jokes I fit into this chap. XD

Death Fury- Thanks for the kudos!

Fandumo2468- Everything is starting to come together! Very much so. This and the next chapter especially.

Up to 161 favs and 225 follows!

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THIS CHAPTER WAS A TIMETM. Thanks everyone for being patient. I got swept away in Invisobang after being paired with one of my favorite authors on one of my favorite kinds of stories, sooooo. Thank you so much to the Dream Tream for all the fun! (Foxyteah and DreamTrance)
Also. This chapter was just. Everything important, all at once, and mostly things I struggle with. So I had to spend a lot of effort to get the dialogue right. I owed it to you guys. Honestly, I love how the chapter turned out, though. Had a lot of fun with this one. Well. Love-hate. XD

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All scenes with only MHA characters will be written in English, for ease of reading, but the characters are actually speaking Japanese to each other.

If a scene is being translated the entire time, and there are no language issues anywhere in an entire scene because of a translation device, the scene will just be written as normal. But you know who speaks what. I believe in you.

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And a Partridge in a Pear Tree

Tuesday, September 18th

7:01 am

"Kiddo, breakfast is ready! Get your ass down here before it gets cold!"

Katsuki Bakugo pulled on his socks, willfully ignoring an untucked, white dress shirt and the scent of baked salmon wafting up the stairs.

Double-checking a calendar—crowded with gym appointments, self-inflicted reading assignments and online classes—that hung on the wall above his bed, the blonde huffed at the door.

He still had to get through at least one chapter of Common Mistakes of the Novice Hero AND Basic Electrical Engineering before he could even think of leaving this room. No way in hell would he half-ass his studies.

Pushing off his mattress, the teen sauntered over to a small desk to grab a highlighter and the first of the aforementioned books.

He hated that his plan already relied too much on luck; he had to out-nerd the nerds or he'd never get hired on at a hero agency as an in-house repair mechanic. And if he couldn't prove his worth there, he could kiss all chances of an apprenticeship goodbye.

There were just too many black dots on his record for anyone to take on that kind of liability without knowing him personally.

Flipping open a bookmarked page, Katsuki's eyes started to scan.

At least the government sucked at removing outdated laws. The stuff for grandfathering in first-gen-hero was just janky enough to exploit.

"KATSUKI! COME ON!" his mom's voice bellowed from below.

"Just eat without me! I got shit to do!" Bakugo yelled back, then bit the cap off his highlighter and put ink to paper.

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Tuesday, September 18th

7:48 am

Lost in thought and strapped into an elaborately plush child's safety seat, a dog-mouse-bear glanced up from a tablet. Briefly taking in the suburbs of Musutafu through the car's tinted back window, he rocked his head in a stretch before pressing play on the device with one thick paw pad.

On screen was a video, viewing the baby blue walls of UA's visitor center from ceiling height and giving full surveillance to a door in the corner. It didn't take long before a young ginger wearing a lavender t-shirt, a middle-aged greenette in a pale yellow blouse and a curvy, black-haired woman in full-body, dungeon-play attire pushed through.

When Kayama ushered towards the lounge area's light beige chairs, Midoriya and Jazz took a seat and the R-rated hero exited with a bow. In the lull, the two guests chatted idly about the differences between trans and polyunsaturated fats.

So far, nothing too out of the ordinary.

Continuing to watch the video from beginning to end—paying extra attention to when Katsuki's last name was mentioned (Jazz's initial lack of recognition was strangely genuine), how the girl had said Hagakure's name (her suffix use in prior interactions all but confirmed the "chan" to be intentional, so how could she not know what Bakugo looked like?), the details she'd dropped about her brother and the name of the person in her nightmare—Nezu frowned.

Something was bothering him that he couldn't quite place his claw on—beyond just the girl's unconventional techniques.

And it wasn't until the second watch-through that he figured out what it was.

—"I got dropped from the course. I'm just a fucking gen ed student now," Bakugo's voice choked and the boy crumpled.

In response, Jazz made a soft noise of understanding, before acknowledging, "The heart of the problem."

It wasn't what the therapist said next that had Nezu pausing the tablet and changing to a camera embedded in the coffee table. It was what she did just after.

Because there, in full view of the much closer lens, Jazz Smith rotated a bracelet with a miniature silver and green thermos charm attached. One that tinkled as her thumb brushed it against a very familiar, mechanized belt.

Oh Kami-sama.

He'd been right.

Heart rate increasing until it was little more than a hum in his chest, the mammal's vision tunneled onto the headrest in front of him as he gulped for air.

He finally had a lead. A real, tangible way to proceed.

"Kocho-sensei, are you all right?" a deep voice cut into his panicked elation and the principal's gaze darted to the scraggle of golden hair behind the leather, then up to the rear view mirror beyond.

Stark blue in a sea of black stared back from within. Toshinori Yagi's expression betrayed worry as his left hand lowered uncertainly from readjusting the glass. "Do you need me to pull over?"

"No, no. That won't be necessary. But we need to call Tsuragamae-san. Jazz Smith has Fenton Works technology."

"WHAT?!" All Might coughed, red spraying the front windshield as he slammed on the brakes. Nezu flew forward against his harness with a sharp "Yagi-san!", the shout joining a chorus of horns echoing around the black Totoya.

The driver frantically wiped up his blood with a kerchief, simultaneously pressing on the gas to rejoin traffic.

"Kocho, you can't just say something like that!" he pleaded. "We need to get a hold of the police immediately! If we don't detain her right now she might get away! Or—Oh my god." All Might's skeletal hands turned white-knuckled against the steering wheel and his voice filled with rage. "She's living with Midoriya-san."

"I agree, which is why I was warning you that I would be calling Tsuragamae-san. I wanted to get your reaction out of the way before we got on speakerphone. If I had known you'd try and get us rear-ended I would have agreed to have you pull over."

Yagi's eyes burned like blue giant stars as he dipped his head in a silent, agitated apology. Sighing, but commenting no further, Nezu fished out his cell and speed-dialed the chief's number.

Hello Nezu-san! How can I help you-woof? a deep, cheerful voice barked from the speakers.

"Tsuragamae-san, I'm sorry to get straight to business but we need a warrant. Jazz Smith is involved with the girl's kidnappings somehow. Whether she's a victim or an accomplice, I'm unsure, but we must apprehend her before we lose our chance."

The voice on the other line lost its carefree tone, dropping into serious intensity. I'll get my men on it-woof. It shouldn't be too hard; I doubt she has a passport. But it may not come through until tomorrow-woof. We only have myself and one other person in-house today; most of the force is up in the mountains with Gran Torino looking into sightings of Kurogiri.

"Kurogiri?!" Toshinori exclaimed under his breath as he turned left at a light. "This just gets better and better."

As if he didn't hear All Might's grumble, Kenji continued without skipping a beat, I should be able to get stake-out paperwork approved much faster, though. I''ll send it over before I get off work tonight. And I'll keep you posted on how today's investigation goes as well-woof."

"Thank you, Tsuragamae-san. As always, I appreciate your help. I'll create a task force as soon as I get back to UA." The car slowed to a stop just as Yagi turned on his blinker, angling backward into a parallel park. "Until then, I trust All Might to start making calls—none of which are to Young Midoriya," Nezu leveled, watching from the back seat as the retired hero flinched and the steering wheel creaked under excessive pressure.

"We'll be in touch soon. Thanks again."

Of course-woof.

"Bye."

Click.

"What do you mean I can't tell Midoriya-kun?! His mother is in danger!" Toshinori burst, swinging around in his seat.

"You know the answer to that just as much as I do. Don't let personal feelings distort your judgment, Yagi-kun." Nezu fixed the older man with an unblinking stare until the Symbol of Peace looked away. "Besides. I'm not entirely convinced she is in danger just yet. Everything we've found—all the evidence, and that interview have given me clues I can't ignore. I don't think Jazz is the threat."

Unbuckling himself with a sigh, the principal scooted out of the plastic toddler seat and hopped down to the floor of the Totoya, snatching a glove and mechanical pencil off the nearby leather as he went. A second later, the door swung outward under Yagi-san's tense hand and Nezu exited the vehicle. Walking past the rigid giant with both objects in paw, the principal squinted up at a red-and-white faced skyscraper.

Musutafu Fire and Rescue, district eleven.

Knowing all too well that he'd left his friend reeling, Nezu strode toward the beveled glass doors of the building's entrance.

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Tuesday, September 18th

7:48 am

Nezu hopped out of the Totoya for the second time that day. Only this time it was with slightly less enthusiasm.

The trip to the Fire and Rescue hadn't taught him much. Backdraft happened to be in-office at the time and had led Nezu straight to his appointment with Seek—a rescue specialist he'd been in communication with through the hero network.

With the help of Hagakure-san's glove and Kamada-san's pencil, the psychic had told him that neither girl was within five hundred miles of Japan. Now whether that was because they were across an ocean or trapped somewhere inaccessible due to a quirk, he didn't know. But considering that UA seemed to be dealing with Americans, it did give Nezu some hope—it had been almost ten days since he'd last talked to Tafuta, after all, so things may have changed since then.

Maybe his next stop would shed more light on the situation.

Stretching down to touch his toes after the cramped car ride, Nezu straightened and bobbed his head at Toshinori. The tall man nodded back, then bent at the waist, offering an arm for the rodent hybrid to climb aboard.

Tucking himself into the space between All Might's thin neck and the man's baggy t-shirt collar, Nezu wrapped his tail around his ride's arm and pointed towards a mostly rectangular building a hundred meters away.

Forcing cheer into his voice, he proclaimed, "Come on, All Might! Things will go better this time; I'm sure of it!"

"I've got to hand it to you, Kocho-sensei. You're just as good at faking a smile as I am," Yagi responded as the two passed rows of faculty cars crammed into the small lot where they'd parked.

"It's not entirely fake; I really do feel as if we've made progress." Nezu inhaled deeply as they got onto a path that pinched between covered bicycle stands and a virulent flowerbed—it was nice to be able to enjoy something as simple as the peppery-smooth scent of chrysanthemums again. "We've already gotten the preliminary task force set up for tomorrow's capture and I still have one more resource we haven't tapped into yet. With Isamu Academy right in front of us, it's hard not to feel at least a little optimistic."

Nezu watched as Toshinori's head turned slightly and regarded him out of the corner of one blue-black eye. Doubts seemed to weigh heavy both in the older man's face and in the droop of his shoulders beneath Nezu's paws; but the Symbol of Peace remained silent, allowing the principal his temporary delusion as they took the stairs two at a time up to the building's entryway landing.

Pushing open one of the high school's metal and glass doors, Yagi made his way over to a row of guest cubbies along the left wall and switched his shoes for indoor slippers. That done, he headed down a yellow hall bottomed by wainscoting, passing first one, then two, then three doors before stopping in front one labeled by the sign above as the principal's office. Knocking twice, the blonde awkwardly shuffled himself and his living cargo inside when a thin, reedy voice called for them to, "Come in!"

Nezu held tight as the shoulder beneath him dipped forward in a bow, then greeted the other two people in the room with, "Kobayashi-sensei, Sekigai-san. Thank you so much for agreeing to meet with us! I wish it was under better circumstances but your hospitality is much appreciated."

Under Nezu, Toshinori angled his head more towards the plain-faced girl in a blue blazer, bifocal lenses and an off-white skirt before adding, "Good to see you again, Young Sekigai. It's been a while."

"Likewi—"

The plastic wrrrr of rolling office-chair wheels and "Of course! It's a pleasure to have you!" drowned out the rest of the word as Isamu's principal flew from his seat on her left. Hook nose nearly smacking the metal and laminate desk at his front, Kobayashi enthusiastically returned All Might's bow. The same motion disturbed his comb-over, flopping thinning brown hair to the side and exposing two little nubbed horns.

Smiling at the educator's less than graceful greeting, Nezu scaled down Yagi's string-bean body and scampered the few steps across the room to Kashiko. Turning bipedal just to offer his own bow to the white-haired teen, he reiterated, "Thank you for taking time off class for this, Sekigai-san."

"Don't worry about it," the tracer replied, using a hand to wave off the serious air even as her grey eyes flicked concerned glances toward her companion. "This is way more important than Art History and I can always catch up later."

"Besides!" Kobayashi broke in, all but shouting, "A chance to help All Might after all he's done for us is practically a dream come true!" Springing around the desk on light hooves, he pranced into Toshinori's personal bubble and grabbed the younger man's hands. "It's an honor to have the Symbol of Peace here, at my school. Thank you so much for coming!"

Sekigai covered her face with a hand and groaned "Oh no…" while Nezu hid a chuckle and Yagi tried to take a step back, only managing to trap himself against the door. Sweat beading on his forehead, the bedraggled blonde held a hand between himself and the advancing administrator (half to wave the comment off and half to create space). "Uuuh. Y-you're welcome?"

"Kobayashi-sensei!" Sekigai reprimanded, tugging her principal back by the shoulder before exasperation filled her next whisper, "You said you'd control yourself if I let you come."

The dik-dik hybrid recoiled, eyes sliding to the side. "Ah, yes. Sorry..." Barking a cough into his suit sleeve he offered a weak, "Big fan."

"Kocho-sensei!" Sekigai redirected. "How about we get started! There's no time like the present to get some answers, right?" Laughing nervously, the girl crouched down and held out a hand for Nezu to take, keeping her eyes firmly on Kobayashi like an attentive mother.

Nezu took pity and grasped the proffered limb.

"Now I want you to focus on Hagakure-san. I know she's invisible, but try to build a mental picture of what she means to you. The more detailed you get, the better my trace will be. Even small things like smell, personality traits and favorite foods help."

Closing his eyes, Nezu delved into his photographic memory, locating and constructing an in-depth profile of everything he'd ever known about Hagakure—all the way down to her shoe size and mother's maiden name. After a full minute, where he made sure that not even a single scrap of knowledge slipped away, he finally nodded.

"Okay, let me just activate my sensors and—oh. Oh wow!" Silver eyes springing open, Sekigai regarded Nezu with unfiltered awe.

"What!?" All Might demanded, daring to take a step nearer to the floor-bound duo, even though it brought him closer to Kobayashi.

Gaze darting up to the retired hero, then back down to his boss, Sekigai breathed, "This might be the clearest trace I've ever done. I can feel her so strongly! You're really something, Kocho-sensei."

"You can feel her?!" Nezu demanded as Toshinori croaked, "So she's alive?!"

"She's not just alive, she's vibrant."

Forcing his tone to be less jagged and frayed, the rodent affirmed, "So you can find her."

At the statement, the highschooler quailed and glanced nervously around the ring of expectant eyes, dropping Nezu's stomach.

"Uh-uhm. Well. About that…"

---

Tuesday, September 18th

9:12 am

"Irasshaimase!" and a bell greeted Tomura Shigaraki as he shouldered open a glass door pervaded by advertisement graphics. Head sinking lower in a "nod" to the check-out clerk, the teen hid his dry, cracked face even deeper inside a dark-blue polyester hood and started toward the back of the store.

As much as the girl's chipper, carefree attitude buzzed like a gnat trying to steal moisture from his eyes, he'd have plenty of time for wanton violence after he'd created his utopia. Besides, his thoughts were consumed with something far more infuriating.

A tickle stung Shigaraki's neck and the aggravated teen reached up, scratching at it with short, chewed-off fingernails.

The green Nomu.

It'd come gallivanting out of nowhere—just like that damned hero killer—and taken the spotlight from him again. Sure he'd assumed credit for the attack on UA and no one had come forward to contradict him, but what the hell.

Nomu were his thing.

Where had she even come from?

Was this Master's doing or someone new? He could hardly ask with All For One in jail.

Clawing harder at the skin beneath his chin with one hand, the criminal walked up and down the Splendid Potato's aisles, running just three fingers of his other over shelves packed tight with colorful video games and bright, overpriced merchandise. Thoughts warring inside his head, he stopped to snag a plastic case off the wall, glaring down at the newest Heaven's Edge remake—how many was that now? Thirty? And they still hadn't released Oldest Tombs VI?—before putting it back in disgust.

Shuffling to the next bay over, he picked up Mammal Crossing and pocketed it. (Just because he wasn't planning to kill anyone today didn't mean he was above shoplifting. And besides, his last copy disintegrated before he could settle his beef with Eloise.)

And then there was that damn Chisaki. Just the icing on this shit cake. If the Shie Hassakai expected the League to bow down and lick the dirt from their boots, they had another thing coming.

While it was obvious the yakuza were on to something big—whatever they'd shot Compress with was definitely worth stealing—there had to be a way to take advantage of that beaked bastard without ceding power.

Shigaraki's red eyes passed unseeing over another row of games, until they suddenly sharpened on a dramatic cover art. Protagonists from several different franchises stood together, working to battle against a sea of Nohearts.

A wide smile pulled at cracked lips, splitting one and causing it to bleed; but he barely noticed.

Of course.

Why didn't he think of it before?

A crossover.

---

Tuesday, September 18th

10:05 am

"Hey, Kamada, careful when you pull that Handa in!" an aging man in stained blue coveralls yelled from in front of a wide open garage door, hands directing inward. Grey eyes rolling, Hideaki obliged, driving exactly as he had been to pull the tiny M-box into the tool-cramped bay before turning off the engine.

Today was a pretty average day at Chugoku Auto, with one notable exception.

Hideaki knew his girl was alive.

Finally. After over a week of no word, the principal of UA High had personally let him and his family know.

It was a miracle. One that lifted the oppressive grief that'd hung over them. Because somehow, Nezu assured, Haru was doing well, wherever she was.

The change to his home was immediate and tangible. Especially in little Aiko, who still blamed herself for her sister's disappearance. Having the news come early in the day was such a boon, too. It'd given them a chance to cry and had allowed his wife and daughter to call in sick. (Hideaki couldn't afford to miss any more work, or he would have been right there with them.)

He just felt so light. He could barely stand it.

Grinning broadly, he scratched at the black stubble that ran along his square jaw before opening the door to the Handa, careful not to hit the portable air compressor just outside.

A phone blared in Hideaki's pocket and the mechanic jumped, hitting his elbow against the steering wheel with a curse before pulling out his cell to answer it. Thankfully he hadn't dinged the customer's door.

Unknown number.

Frowning hard, he ground out, "What?"

Oh, uhm. Do I have the wrong number? Is this not Kamada-san?

Hideaki's heart sped up and his tone eased up considerably, "Yes, this is him. What do you need?"

I saw someone who looked like your daughter yesterday at Takoba Beach. She seemed really scared and was hanging out with a couple of shady looking men. I think one of them may have been—

Unless Haru had made it to safety between yesterday and today, she shouldn't have been scared. And the chances of her having moved from more than five hundred miles away to Japan overnight seemed unlikely too.

Unease and anger prickled at the base of Hideaki's spine as suspicion rose and the explanation continued.

Maybe this person had seen another girl in trouble, but…

—so how do I go about claiming the reward? Is it like a check you send in the mail, oooor…

Goddamnit. He was sick to death of these people.

"You piece of human trash!" He exploded. "How can you stand to look at yourself in the mirror, knowing you're preying on innocents?! I outta turn you over to the police for fraud!"

E-excuse me? The voice on the other end sounded nervous. Probably expecting to be met with blubbering thank-yous, the prick.

"Your information is fake and you know it," Hideaki growled. "If you ever call here again I will hunt you down and beat the shit out of you myself for trying to destroy a family over a couple of yen!"

The line clicked off and Hideaki's stormy eyes rose, freezing when they caught sight of his anxious boss.

"Are you okay, Kamada-san? Did you need to go home?"

"Yes! I mean, no. I just—" Hideaki forced himself to stop his sputtered panic, took a deep breath, lowered his shoulders and offered a shaky smile. "Sorry, Miyake-san. I'll be fine. Besides, we have to get this oil leak repaired soon or we won't have time to switch out the fuel pump."

---

Tuesday, September 18th

11:29 am

"Okay, Inko-san! Just breathe. If you start feeling sick again, I have the bowl right here. You're doing great!"

The forty-one year old's stomach rolled like an overturned slug and Inko spared a half-melted look Jazz's way. Body sweating beneath the strain of her psychic power and muscles already weak from yesterday, Inko's respect for her son multiplied. Poor Izuku had to do this every day.

"Don't worry, Inko-san. You've got this. Just three more! A quirk is like a muscle. Every time you push against your wall, it gets stronger!" Inko's thoughts jellified into Konnyaku as she lifted a little stuffed All Might off the coffee table and mentally dragged it toward herself. "Two more." She dropped and started to raise the doll again, the strain increasing until it broke up and scritch-scratched across her yam cake brain like a rake. "One more." The half-kilo doll trembled and Inko's vision swam. "Aaaaandddd. Done! Egg salad! Amazing work. See? I knew you could may hit to a hundred if you pudyer mind—ha!—to it."

Inko leaned forward on her lavender couch, shallow inhales laboring through white teeth and green eyes screwed shut. That is, until a tickling along her scalp popped them back open. The drape of damp hair that encircled her face parted under a blue mixing bowl; while smooth fingers traced foreign calligraphy atop her spine.

Nausea ebbing in record time, Inko forced a grateful smile and offered it to her trainer. "Thank you, Sensei."

"Sensei?" The American snorted, grinning back, before picking up the discarded doll that was halfway through a swan dive off the table. "Ah yes." As her free hand swung up to stroke an imaginary beard, the polyester-filled one gestured at a butterflied textbook. "A testament to my infinite sagely knowledge acquired over many, many minutes."

"I'm serious!" Inko tucked some of her sweaty hair behind an ear. "You're a great teacher! Speaking of. Where'd you learn how to stop nausea like that? Was that really in the book?" Grabbing the bowl in her lap, Inko set it aside on the table, then twisted right to study the open page nearby.

This really was worth the nineteen hundred yen if it had tricks like that in it.

"Oh, uh, nope. Just something I picked up. My brother has a—uuh—support item that allows him to travel really far really fast. It's super useful but feels like riding an alcoholic bumblebee."

A laugh startled out of Inko and she forced herself to stand, then wobbled as her legs threatened to seize into goo. Looking down at them with a quavery expression, she echoed, "Like riding an alcoholic bumblebee. I like that."

---

Tuesday, September 18th

11:39 am

Out of sight, a hunched Jazz walked to Izuku's room, once again cringing for Inko. The poor woman had just hobbled off to the other end of the hall for a well-deserved bath—after a proper shower, of course (tubs in Japan were for soaking—not cleaning).

Today was supposed to have been relaxing. But apparently Inko's quirk drew from the same stamina pool as her muscles. It was both helpful and frustrating that it didn't just harness and direct nearby energy like Jazz initially believed. On one hand, that made it function a lot like a ghost power, so it was familiar and had the potential to affect larger objects with practice; but on the other, Inko's diet and recovery days would have to be totally reworked. Her mind was burning through calories at an exorbitant rate to fuel her telekinesis and would require just as much (if not more) time than her muscles to rest.

Leg day really had nothing on brain day.

Jazz chuckled weakly to herself as she pushed into Izuku's room, ignoring the door plaque that wore All Might's bangs so proudly. She was already getting well used to the superhero's invasive presence.

Heading for the right-hand wall where a monitor sat tucked into the wooden cave of a secretary desk, she opened the side cupboard and turned on the computer. Plopping down into the ultramarine rolling chair to wait, she plucked her phone out of her pocket and placed it next to a black keyboard before eyeing the computer screen. It had to be an older model; it would have fit right in on a new release shelf in Amity.

Even so, the pc booted fast as lightning and it wasn't long before Jazz had opened first Moogle Chrome and then Bookmarks. Misclicking with a "Son of a Banshee'', Jazz watched as the page directed to Yotube, auto-playing a video filled with flaming urban wreckage and injured people. Even changing bookmarks in record time, a Japanese businessman still managed to get out, "Mieru ka? O hyakunin wa tsukuridashite iru—!".

"Did you see that? He's already saved a hundred people!" echoed from Jazz's phone as she started scrolling through the correct website, brows furrowing subconsciously. Dozens of news articles quickly overtook the top of the browser, each food or mischief related incident populating its own tab.

Roughly a half hour and several websites later, Jazz paused in her weeding, lips tugging up at the corners.

Gotcha.

Mysterious Benefactor Stocks Local Food Bank.

Yuikitada ward experienced quite the head scratcher yesterday night. An unknown donor filled every shelf of Helping Neighbors near to breaking, leaving authorities perplexed. Between one and three am an estimated five tons of food appeared inside the locked building without a single witness. So far, nothing appears tampered with and everything that's been tested is unnaturally fortified with nutrients. Investigations continue, but with the food's questionable origin, it likely won't be distributed.

Hmm. Yuikitada ward was a little far. But she'd finished Inko's training early enough that it was doable.

Mind made up, Jazz opened Moogle Maps and zoomed in on Yuikitada. By taking pictures of the monitor and moving the screen over and over, she cobbled together a working map between Inko's and the ward. It was extra work, but if she searched for Helping Neighbors directly and anyone reviewed her browsing history they might be able to find Lunch Lady.

Actually.

Tapping a finger to her chin, Jazz switched to one of her other tabs and copied the name of a random business mentioned in the article. Red herring ready, she pasted it into Moogle and clicked on "get directions" before counting to fifteen in her head and closing the browser.

Better safe than sorry.

Opening the drawer above the computer cupboard to fish for a pen and pad of sticky notes, Jazz got out her Gabber app. Correct glyphs at the ready, she scribbled, Heading out for a couple hours. Feel free to take a nap and eat whatever you want today. You've earned it. :)

PS: Don't forget to drink lots of water and take something for the pain!

Peeling off the paper and pushing out of her chair, Jazz strode to the end of her temporary bed and grabbed a pink coat before exiting the room. Backtracking down the hall, she slapped the note to the kitchen door on her way out of the apartment.

---

Tuesday, September 18th

12:04 pm

Jack and Maddie shuffled into their house, their son holding open the front door. Behind them wheeled the clatter-thrum-clop of suitcases as they bumped over the threshold.

"Girls! We're home!" Jack called, face lined with both exhaustion and excitement.

It only took a second of seeing his expression before Danny shriveled. Looked like he'd have to face the music sooner than expected.

"Dad. Please. At least put your stuff away first," Danny half-whined, eyes darting around the different entrances to the living room until they settled on the upper landing.

"Nonsense! They're just bags! They don't care which floor they're on." Jack slapped Danny's shoulder good-naturedly and kicked out, sending his four-wheeled suitcase further out into the living room. The halfa's superhuman strength and abnormal physics kept him from staggering but instinctive adrenaline still shot through his system at the strength of the blow.

So he watched in what felt like slow-motion as the baggage slowed, then promptly toppled into an errant green hole in the floor.

"Pilfering portals!" Jack sprinted towards the dimensional rift, reaching it just as the mist swept inward and closed. "My favorite pair of socks were in there!"

"CRUD!" Danny blurted, eyes wide. "Dad, I'm so sorry!"

The massive man just whimper-groaned in response as Maddie's lips twitched and she offered, "Well, Honey. At least the bag doesn't care which floor it's on."

"Maaaadie." Jack's arms spread, twitching between his wife and the floor in disjointed dismay.

"You'll live. It's not like your passport or inventions were in there. You'll be fine."

"Now let's go shower. It'd be nice to freshen up before we talk with the girls." Maddie walked over to her husband, standing on tiptoes to wipe at the tall male's forehead before pulling an oil-slicked hand back down, nose wrinkled. "We're greasy. Your face'll break out if we don't get cleaned up."

The tump-tump-tumping of socked feet and "Okaeri!" came from above while Jack's face turned even more sour and the orange man pouted at the wall.

Hopefully his dad's mood wouldn't attract too much attention; Danny didn't want to have to start early. (Although honestly, with how much the suspense was killing him the rest of the way, maybe ripping off the bandaid would be better.)

Forcing a smile, the guilt-ridden male tilted his cheerful mask at Hagakure as she crested the landing and started down the stairs.

"How was your trip? Did you figure anything else out?" Toru peppered while Haru was only still just appearing, following the other girl at a much slower pace.

"It was stressful, of course; but we did make some promising discoveries! We'll tell you all about them in a bit," Maddie assured, offering a one-armed hug to Hagakure when the teen started to bounce in place nearby.

Finally topping the stairs, Kamada glanced at Jack's empty hands with a puzzled frown. "...Would you like help getting your bag from the car?"

When a smile broke his dad's glum state, Danny felt his hair stand on end.

"Nope! I don't got one; it's—!"

"On its way to New York!" Danny exploded. "It got put on the wrong plane; it didn't make the connection."

"Actually!" Jack refuted, "We—!" Maddie elbowed her husband's side and he oof'ed as she finished, "—have to go freshen up. When we're done we'll come right back down and explain everything about our trip and what we've found! Danny, Sweetie," she redirected, "can you and the girls make something to eat? We're starving."

"Oh, uh, sure," Danny answered as his inner voice screamed the opposite.

She wanted him to watch the girls and pretend to be normal while they waited together? That was way worse than just having the talk now.

Danny's parents ascended the stairs and he rubbed at his nape, free hand gesturing toward the kitchen with, "Shall we?"

"Sure…?" Kamada looked over at Hagakure's jumpsuit before the UA teen shrugged and led the way into the other room.

"So what are you guys feeling?"

"I'm fine with whatever. Kamada-chan?" Toru deflected.

"Oh, uhm. Something light? We had a pretty big breakfast."

Danny's head nodded its jerky agreement and he quickly opened the fridge to duck behind the door in a way that was most definitely not hiding.

Hmm. It seemed they only had some sad looking vegetables and lettuce that needed to be eaten. Well. That and ham. There was always ham…Wait. Did they have….? "How about some Cobb salads?" he asked into the air, refusing to pull his head out of the fridge until absolutely necessary.

"Corn? On Salad?" Kamada's voice piped at his back. "How very…American."

Danny couldn't help the short burst of laughter that startled out of him, glancing over a hunched shoulder to take in Kamada's scrunched face. "Cobb salads aren't made with corn. Although corn off the cob would be a pretty good topping...It just means the salad has turkey and cheese and stuff. We don't actually have turkey but we do have plenty of ham."

"Oh, sure then. Sounds good." Kamada acknowledged, accepting the Tupperware full of ham and a carton of eggs from the ghost boy. Shortly after, Toru stepped into Haru's place and held out her arms. Danny passed a log of fresh mozzarella and cherry tomatoes, before standing with a red onion, lettuce and a bag of bacon bits in his own hands. Swinging the door closed with a hip, he approached the table and put down the burden, gaze staying more or less fixed on the ingredients. Without looking up, he asked, "Kamada-san, can you grab a mixing bowl and cutting board?"

Feeling eyes on his back, Danny stiffened slightly.

"Hey Danny-kun, you okay?" Hagakure asked and his heart stuttered.

Focus Fenton. She doesn't know. Just give a believable lie for now and—

"Yeah, of course! Why wouldn't I be?" Voice coming out a little too high, he dialed it back and cleared his throat. "I'm…I'm doing great. Mom and Dad are home so we'll get everything figured out in no time, I'm sure! Jazz is gonna be fine, so…!" Waving vaguely at the air like it would finish his sentence for him, Danny peeked over at Toru. But her hood was tilted, sending his stomach into a round of gymnastics.

Ugh. Did she buy it? It was so hard to tell when he couldn't see her face!

"Danny-san." Danny compelled his body not to flinch as Kamada's soothing voice suddenly spoke at his shoulder and a small bit of green flashed near the ceiling. Fastidiously trying to will the tiny portal away, he turned to the girl and avoided looking up. "You don't have to act brave for us. It's okay to be worried for Jazz. You know we aren't going to be upset with you for it."

Maybe a little too breathily, he refuted, "I'm not. I'm fine. Jazz is fine."

If only they knew just how well off she was. It was him he was worried about.

Forcing his shoulders to relax, he grabbed a Santoku knife from the sharps drawer and the cutting board from Haru's outstretched hand. "Can someone wash the lettuce and cherry tomatoes? Oh, and the eggs need boiling, too."

"All of them?"

"Yes, please."

The room fell into silence as Haru left to the far end of the kitchen and Toru started on washing and pulling apart the romaine. Danny was relieved, until, of course, he noticed that not only were the girls observing him, the portal was still there.

Resolutely holding onto his silence and feeling sweat build on his spine, Danny chopped the onion, ham and mozzarella into cubes.

Task done, he had no other choice but to turn around or risk looking even more suspicious.

Double checking that his expression wouldn't give him away, Danny swiveled on his foot and caught sight of Haru pressing the start button on the Fenton Egg-o-matic.

"NO, DON'T—!"

KABLAM!

Too late.

Dang. How did Kamada even know they had that thing? His family had barely touched it in years.

Seeing just how splattered the inside of the cousin to the frankenweenie cooker was, he half-stated,"...That was all the eggs, wasn't it?"

Toru started laughing and Haru went bright red, her gaze dropping back down to the appliance with a soft, "Sorry."

"That's fine. I'll clean it up later."

Haru started to open the lid to a burst of steam and he amended, "It'll burn you if we don't let it cool first."

Pausing in her chuckles as Kamada put down the machine with a dejected sigh, Toru approached Danny and passed off the salad, already topped with glistening cherry tomatoes. He picked up his cutting board and tipped it over in response, ushering his own toppings into the damp bowl with the knife.

"Danny, Sweetie, we're ready when you are!" his mom called from the other room.

Oh Ancients. Moment of truth.

The knife he held felt like it was lodged in his gut, (okay, so maybe not that severe, since he actually knew what that felt like—thanks a lot, Skulker) and he set it down on the counter nearby.

Straightening his spine, the anxious man strode to a cupboard and pulled down plates, before grabbing silverware out of a drawer and stacking it on top. Walking stiffly through the living room and toward the dining table, he ignored his parents who were already in the room, shuffling towards their seats as he unloaded everything from his arms. Kamada and Toru trailed in just as Jack shoved back his chair with screeching strength and plopped down, a huge grin plastered on his freshly-shaven face.

It wasn't fair. He wasn't about to admit to the girls that he'd been lying to them and was the source of their problems. Ugh. Tucker was right. He should have just told them about Phantom from the start. This was gonna suck.

Danny's mom gave a reassuring nod as she, too, settled into a chair nearby (only with significantly less sound and way more decorum). Eyes flicking first to Kamada, then to Hagakure, Danny sighed.

"I have something I need to tell you guys. It's—it's about Jazz. And me…" Danny's voice cracked and his gaze veered down as he grabbed a pair of tongs and started to dish a small heap of salad (that he didn't plan on eating) out onto a plate. Every iota of his being screamed discomfort, and he had to force his next words out through sheer power of will, "I'm. I'm Phantom."

"What THE HECK!?" Hagakure screeched.

Danny blanched, his entire body stiffening.

He knew it. They were pissed. They were going to hate—

"That's what this is about?! WHY WOULD YOU SAY IT LIKE THAT?! JEEZE. You were being so cagey I thought Jazz was dead! Don't ever scare me like that again; I nearly had a heart attack!"

Wait.

"Wh-what?" Danny's mouth dropped open and he looked at Toru's jumpsuit in horror. "You aren't upset? I kept a huge secret from you. I—I—"

"E-to, Danny-san," Haru cut in, forcing his eyes over to the shy girl as she tried very hard to avoid his gaze. "You—uhm. You weren't very subtle about it."

A great booming laugh startled from his dad across the table followed by a much lighter chuckle from his mom.

He wasn't—he wasn't very—

Toru whipped around to grab at Kamada's shoulders. "You knew too?!" Danny's brain tumbled like a rock in a polisher. "Why didn't you say anything?! That would have saved me so much trouble! I—Oh. Oh wait. Unless~" Hagakure's voice grew sly, and Danny's spinning thoughts didn't even need to settle for him to hear her massive grin. "You finally figured it out, did you?"

"Figured what out?" Danny squeaked, throat unbearably dry. This conversation had u-turned so hard it was all he could manage.

"Oh nothing. Kamada just thinks you're—" In an uncharacteristic display of strength and speed, Haru lunged from her seat and tackled Hagakure, clattering them both to the floor with a yelp. Muffled sounds of laughter exploded from Toru's invisible face where a hand covered it.

Haru was jumping Toru? Just what alternate universe had he dropped into?!

Danny wracked his brain for an explanation. Kamada was embarrassed. That much was obvious. But what could have possibly pulled that level of reaction from her? She'd been fangirling all week, sure. But it wasn't like she'd said or done anything on Paulina or Dash's—Danny suppressed a shudder—level.

Rather than comment this train of thought, his befuddled brain redirected, "How long have you guys known?"

Keeping her hand firmly pressed to Toru's face, Kamada answered, "Since Jazz disappeared." At this, her eyes darted up then scurried away again. "You caught on fire, Danny. And froze the floor. I'd have to be blind not to notice."

"Mfffmfgh?" With a suspicious squint, the support student slightly lifted her hand, clearly ready to slam it back down if need be.

(Danny was honestly surprised the girls had stayed on the ground that long, it had to be super uncomfortable tangled up in Toru's chair.)

"You saw that? Crap! I thought I'd distracted you well enough." Toru's head flopped back and Kamada's hand twitched in response. "So I almost got iced in the kitchen for nothing!"

"'What do you mean 'iced in the kitchen'? He left frost under his shoes in the lab right after he let go of Tucker-san." Kamada frowned, finally leaning back. "What happened in the kitchen?"

"The panic attack? He was just about to freeze the whole room when I hugged him. I can't believe he didn't realize I knew then and there."

Oh Clockwork. Toru was right. He should have. How had Danny forgotten about that? Had he really been that out of it? And why did he ever think he could hide it from her? If anything, the UA girl was more perceptive than he was. "Hagakure-chan?" he floundered.

"Well, I didn't know-know until Jazz went missing. But I've been almost certain of it since before Kamada-chan even got here." The arm not supporting most of Toru's body weight shrugged despite her horizontal position.

Oh man. Haru had been here almost ten days. Danny locked eyes with his mom, whose raised brow and huge grin told him just what she thought of the development. He'd never live this down.

"I thought about telling you but I never found the right time. And then Jazz went missing and you got so stressed that I decided to just play dumb and run interference with Kamada-chan. I knew we were getting help from Phantom anyway, so it wasn't a big deal." Toru pushed forward and Kamada eased back, letting the shorter girl pull herself off the floor to right her chair. Voice gaining a teasing edge, Toru stated, "By the way. I haven't seen you touch needlepoint since I got here. Your dad sure seems to love it, though." Reaching down to help Kamada out from under the table she questioned, "Invisibility?"

What was she—? Oh. When they first met. He'd carelessly used his powers to drop into the living room and had tried to explain his presence away with embroidery.

Danny groaned at his own stupidity.

"Yeah… Invisibility, flight and intangibility. I was upstairs."

Wait.

Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.

That's right.

She said she'd known his secret nearly the whole ti—

"Did you call Phantom hot just to mess with me?!"

"You called him hot?!" Jack wheezed and slammed a palm down on his knee, his other hand lifting his son's way in a loose finger-point. Laughter building until he doubled over, he clutched at his thick stomach with tears streaming down his cheeks. Danny barely glanced at the antics, eyes magnetizing to his true tormentor and face imitating a grimacing fish.

Now that her own chair was upright, Toru plopped back down into it with gasping chortles. "It—" She struggled to breathe. "It was just too good. I couldn't—I couldn't help it. You were sweating so hard. And the way you slammed on the brakes. I barely kept it together."

"See, Danny?" His mom slipped in, smile coy as she gestured with a bite of salad stabbed through with a fork—she must have dished herself up while he'd been distracted. "You're such a worry-wart. I told you things would work out. Not only are they not mad, but they're better at keeping your secret than you are."

Humiliated, Danny flushed and tore his gaze away from Hagakure's self-satisfied posture.

Eyes landing on Kamada, he felt even more off-kilter.

Braced against the table as if she'd been struck a mortal blow, Haru shrunk in on herself at Danny's attention, face practically melting behind a mortified hand.

Why was she so embarrassed—?

Hagakure was the one who'd called him hot.

Danny fished around his brain until a small detail from the car ride tugged on the line.

"Very trim," Hagakure gushed, tone teasing and oh so chipper. "Like an underwear supermodel, track star and swimmer's body all mixed into one. His black and white jumpsuit's pretty form-fitting…"

At the time, Danny had been way too weirded out by Hagakure's words to pay much attention to Kamada's. But her voice had dropped and the car had heated slightly when she'd answered, "He sounds…nice."

That's why she was over there morphing into a puddle.

Poor Kamada. She was so shy she probably thought she'd all but shouted vulgar inuendos at him.

Hand gliding along the side of his face in a single motion to try and rub out the disconcertment, Danny sighed.

He needed to say something to make her feel better and—

"So what else gave Dann-o away?!"

"Daaaaad," Danny groaned, dropping his hand as his father leaned toward their guests like he was waiting for a punchline.

"I think you mean, 'what didn't?'" Egged on, Hagakure smugly propped an elbow on the table, settling her head onto one gloved hand and lifting a cherry tomato out of the main serving bowl with the other. The fruit disappeared into the air of her suit hood with a small pop and she continued, "The way you guys talked about Phantom, it was obvious you were hiding something about where he lived and who he was. I actually thought you might be Phantom-san at first with how strong you are—we've got plenty of transformation quirks back home, after all—but I ruled that out once I realized you don't have the right personality and you're too accident-prone."

"Hey!" Jack barked and Maddie patted his arm, suppressing a smirk.

At least the jab wasn't at Danny this time. And hopefully, if he was lucky, he'd be able to silence any "freshly ghosted" stories in his near future. Knowing literally everyone in his family, though, he doubted it.

"I think the main reason I really started to suspect Danny-san, though, was because of how graceful he is." Hagakure angled her head more directly at him and Danny fought the urge to look away. "It's only sometimes, but every once in a while you walk like you don't remember gravity exists. Kinda like, you know how actors lift a cup to drink from it, but you can tell there's no liquid inside because none of their muscles flex enough to be real? At first it was just a hunch that something was off. But then I saw more videos. And it became really obvious to me that not only do you look exactly like Phantom-san, but his voice is just your voice with an echo slapped on. I mean there were tons of other things that gave you away—you literally disappeared in a puff of smoke in the kitchen!—but I think your funniest slip up was when you basically admitted to being Phantom-san."

"Wait, I never said I was Phantom before now!"

He hadn't…Right?

Danny looked at his mom in askance but the older woman just shrugged, mouth full.

Seeing his doubt, a soft voice refuted, "Actually, you did." Danny felt like he was in a horror movie, eyes wide and head turning toward Kamada like she was a monster he'd only just noticed off-screen. "It was when we were hanging out in the living room with Tucker-san. Just after Jazz-san's disappearance." Ignoring his look, the still-pink teen pushed off the dining room table and wobbled back over to her chair. "Tucker-san had just suggested that Phantom-san talk to some kind of ghost wolf and you responded with, quote, 'I—er—Phantom was already going to meet up with him tomorrow.'"

"I remember your exact words because I felt like a total idiot for not figuring it out sooner."

"HA!" Jack shoved to his feet, sending his plate rocking when he turned towards Maddie and his gut bumped the table. "You guys thought I'd be the one to blab! But I didn't! He did!" Right hand sweeping out, Danny's dad gestured emphatically at him. "Score one for Jack Fenton! In your face, Danny-boy!"

Danny huffed, but for once, didn't have a good comeback.

"Oh! And don't forget the time Myway-san called you Sir Fenton," Hagakure teased, before lifting her head off her hand and tilting it towards Haru, abandoned fingers curling and going limp just below her face with nothing to support. "I'm honestly surprised you didn't figure it out then, Kamada-chan. You said something about how weird it was right after it happened, but then you never mentioned it again and I wanted to facepalm."

"Oh Kami, I forgot about that!" Kamada groaned, rubbing her eyes. "It really was so obvious."

"Right?!" Hagakure pushed her still-empty plate away and sagged across the table. "When you first got here I was dying inside every time you missed a clue!"

"I mean to be fair, Maddie-san said ghosts were souls of the dead," Toru continued. "But obviously that's a lie because Danny-san is right here." At this, Hagakure waved a hand towards the adult. "It was a good cover, but he's just a hybrid, right?"

Oh. So that's why Danny's Clark Kent glasses had failed.

"He…is…" Maddie started uneasily. "In a way." Looking over at Danny, she fixed him with a lightly prodding stare.

Focusing instead on the hanging chandelier, Danny felt his body go unnaturally still. Hagakure suddenly went quiet, too, and his enhanced hearing could just pick up the scritch scritch of socked feet rubbing against each other under the table.

Everyone in Amity knew full well they dealt with the dead. But it'd be hard to believe if you grew up in a dimension where superpowers were the norm.

No one said anything and Danny knew he could drop the subject. No one would press him if he pushed it away.

"I died when I was fourteen." It was now so quiet Danny could have heard a rabbit breathe. "I messed with the Fenton Portal and paid for it with my life. But the Infinite Realms didn't just let me die for my mistakes. It brought me back to pay for them in full." Danny's gaze finally fell from the chandelier to Hagakure's petrified form, then Kamada's newly formed tears and finally his parent's solemn faces. "Sometimes I think it was just an accident. But sometimes I wonder."

Danny's eyes slid shut and he was no longer in the dining room. The dark walls of a decrepit castle closed in around him, the heat and exhaustion that ate at his limbs made worse by the metal coating his entire body. He stared down a tyrant of unimaginable power, fully expecting to die a second time.

Arms wrapped around him and Hagakure's quiet, "Danny-san?" pulled him back to himself. Exhaling the bite of smoke from his nostrils and swallowing past a copper tang in his mouth, blue eyes—not green—popped back open.

"I'm so sorry. I—I didn't mean. You didn't have to—"

"It's okay, Hagakure-chan. You didn't know." Danny returned the hug as sniffles started into his chest.

---

Tuesday, September 18th

1:15 pm

Danny-san was dead…

He'd died to get his quirks.

And Kamada'd been so excited to hear about them. How many he had. How each one functioned. She'd pestered him constantly about Phantom.

She'd even told the boy a few days ago that she wished that she could get powers like that. That it would be fun.

He'd flinched at the time. But since she'd accidentally said the forbidden words "I wish," she'd assumed the reaction had had to do with that weird genie ghost.

Kamada felt sick as she looked on from her chair, watching Danny slowly relax in Hagakure's grip as the pain in the room slunk from person to person with sharp claws.

More thoughts ran through her head, bumping and crowding each other until the compounding horror forced one from her lips, "Wait…You're Phantom-san. And your parents used to hunt him…" White appeared around Kamada's irises and her gaze zipped unbelieving from Danny's rigid posture to Jack and Maddie's newly-slouched shoulders. Their tight faces made her quail yet again, fire creeping up her ears and the shame making her vision swim.

How could she be so stupid?! She should have kept her worthless mouth shut.

"We aren't proud of what we did." Maddie's gaze dropped and she stared hard at a thin slice of onion sitting atop her abandoned meal.

Haru's mouth worked soundlessly, trying to formulate a response that would somehow erase how insensitive she'd just been.

Her stomach rolled instead and she snapped it shut, swallowing back the vomit threatening to crest her throat.

"But we've tried our best to make up for it in any way we could!" Jack assured, before she could bend her thoughts into anything coherent. "Danny has forgiven us. Whether we deserve it or not." Puffing out his chest, the orange man slammed a hand on it with a resounding thud. "And we're doing our best to be worthy of that!"

"Danny-san. You said earlier that your news had to do with Jazz-san," Hagakure broke in, and Haru could have kissed her. "Did you find something out? Is she safe?"

Kamada slumped as the attention finally directed away from her, little adrenaline shivers making her teeth chatter.

Danny took a shuddering breath and extracted himself from Hagakure, managing to somehow look even more broken than a second ago.

"It's all my fault." Danny dragged a hand backwards through his hair and bit at his lip, forcing a too-sharp canine to peek through. If it wasn't for the fact that Kamada could see Jack and Maddie brighten from her vantage point at the table, she really would have thrown up all over it.

"She's fine, but—"

Toru punched Danny hard in the arm and yelled, "DANNY-SAN! WHAT DID I JUST GET DONE TELLING YOU!?" Her hands flew high in the air. "Quit making things sound like bad news!"

Their host flinched, then his brows drew together, "Uuuugh. You're right. Sorry. I just feel so guilty. I'll do better." The man straightened and abruptly it was Phantom regarding them from behind blue eyes and black hair. "Sometime in the past few weeks I gained a new ability. The power to create portals. Only, I didn't know it, and I have zero control."

Haru drew in a sharp breath. Could it be—?

"We only found out early yesterday morning that Jazz is in your world staying with someone she befriended and I'm the one who kidnapped you guys." He sagged, once again returning to Fenton as Kamada's heart started beating furiously in her chest. "I wanted to tell you so bad, but I knew this talk was really important and I wanted my parents here for it."

"That's why your mom and dad sounded so happy on the phone!" Haru blurted. "They already knew Jazz was safe!" So many things were sliding into place. Why the only signatures at the portal sites were Phantom's. How things kept disappearing around the house—a place Danny spent most of his time. (Just how much stuff had disappeared from Danny's school besides his textbook, she wondered.)

Kamada's thoughts spiraled in less time than it took to blink and she came across another embarrassing thought.

Hagakure nor her were attacked when they got here.

There was no villain.

She'd spent so much time frozen in the parking lot after her fall, waiting for a bakemono that didn't exist.

"Yeah…" Danny admitted lamely.

"Wait. That's great! That means we just have to figure out how to get home!" Hagakure exclaimed exuberantly, her excitement sending her into several buoyant hops from foot to foot. "And you made contact with Jazz, so we can tell our parents we're safe! This is AWESOME! Danny-san, let's—"

"I'm so sorry I did this to you," Danny cut her off, his tone heavy and bleeding. "I got you both wrapped up in my problems and I know I owe you big time, but we can't tell them yet. The only way I can talk to Jazz is through a ghost named Alastor. And he uses the ecto-beacon in Jazz's bracelet to lock on to her mind for his telepathy. Until we find a way to communicate with your parents that doesn't risk Jazz's safety, we can't tell them."

"What do you mean, 'risk her safety?'" Kamada questioned, stealing the conversation from her co-kidnapee. "She can just go to a hero agency and explain the situation. Or talk to our schools directly. Then, with her bracelet, we can call and check in ourselves." Haru was surprised to hear a slight hint of anger threading her own words.

"It doesn't work like that, Sweetheart," Maddie soothed, but the tone prickled Haru's spine instead. "Alastor relays information in his own voice."

"So?" She shifted in her seat, gripping her pant leg and body tense. "Why would that matter?"

Toru's posture sagged next to Danny and it drew Haru's eyes over. Then the other teen started to approach, and the taller girl wished she was still standing—she felt too small, cornered, in her chair. "Danny-san's right. We need to be patient." A gloved hand reached out, settling lightly on her shoulder and putting her even more on edge. "There's no way for them to verify our story without talking to us directly; and we both know impersonation quirks are two bundles for the price of three mon back home. They might hurt or imprison Jazz-san if they don't want to believe that there's an extradimensional quirk going around accidentally ripping holes in reality. And even if they did, our government doesn't exactly have the best history. We need to make sure she can't be used as leverage against the Fentons before we tell them anything or she might end up as collateral damage. I want to tell everyone we're safe, too, but if my selfishness hurts Jazz-san, it's not worth it."

What was Hagakure-chan trying to say? That Haru wanting to take care of her friends and family was selfish?

They had a right to know and Jazz would be fine!

This was so stupid.

Brushing Toru's hand off, Kamada pushed to her feet and stalked past Danny. Crossing her arms tight in front of her chest, in more of a self-grapple than a true hug, she stormed back and forth behind him near the opening to the living room.

No one said a word, which just ratcheted her anxiety higher. Finally, she lifted a watery scowl towards Maddie and opened her mouth.

But then there were eyes.

So many eyes.

Not filled with resentment, or accusation.

But pleas. Worry. Ache.

Taking a deep breath and sighing it out, she came to a stop and demanded, "So what's the game plan, then?"

"That's easy!" Jack belted, jumping to his feet and receiving a scathing glare from his wife. "We just need to figure out how to generate enough electricity to power the portal! I don't think we can get away with taking out the entire state grid again! The insurance company and Ameren aren't gonna let us claim a 'faulty drop wire' a second time!"

Again? Second time?!

Did he just admit to insurance fraud? Proudly?

Kamada squinted suspiciously. If she hadn't already spent so much time with Jack-san, it might have been more surprising.

"Besides, with a dimension so far away, we'll need way more power!"

Unclenching one of her arms, Kamada pinched at a headache building near the bridge of her nose.

"...Maybe we could call in a few favors from some friends in the Ghost Zone." Maddie hazarded, watching Kamada closely. She squirmed, feeling like an egg in Maddie's microwave. "We're on good terms with at least a few electric cores."

"Mom, no. I'm not going to risk anyone's afterlife over speeding things up a little."

"Danny, give me some credit. I wasn't talking about hooking them up to anything. I meant I wanted to ask for advice. Maybe one of them knows a trick or two for decreasing the capacitive load. We might be able to shave down the amount of energy we need to punch the initial hole by refining how we do it."

"Oh." Danny's hand snaked back up to his neck and rubbed, his head turning away.

Dealing with the Fenton portal at all seemed like a lot of extra steps to Kamada. But she kept shoving her foot so far in her mouth that she'd started to digest it. The idea of voicing her thoughts now reminded her of the sour taste still on her tongue and she swallowed reflexively.

But as the adults continued to brainstorm ideas, Kamada's thoughts kept spiraling back to a singular image: being covered in goo and rolling around in an inflated jumpsuit.

The Fenton's weren't the kind of people to rub your face in a mistake. Even just now, they hadn't been mad at her.

She'd always been encouraged to speak her mind in this house. If her idea wasn't helpful, they'd give a polite explanation and move on.

Steeling herself, she asked, "Wouldn't it be faster to train Danny-san's quirk? That way you don't have to worry about getting a power source for the Fenton Portal and he gets some control sooner rather than later? Which would be—uh—" Kamada tried really hard to ignore everyone watching her again and lowered her eyes rather than look between herself and Hagakure like she wanted. "Safer."

Danny winced in her periphery, and she mirrored his expression.

She should have phrased it differently. It sounded like she was blaming him. Which she wasn't. She knew how hard it was for people to control complex quirks. But the reality was that they were dangerous. The sooner he got it figured out, the better it would be for everyone involved.

"I'll try;" he promised, "but honestly I don't even know what makes my portals work. They seem to open randomly."

"I'll say!" Jack beamed and walked over to his son. "Danny-boy here just lost my suitcase!"

"That's…uh…yeah," The superhero's skin, which had finally returned to its normal pale white, once again glowed like an akachouchin while his head dipped down. As his eyes met the floor, a small smirk suddenly tugged at the man's lips and he drawled, "It might not be in New York, but it definitely made a…connecting flight."

Jack threw back his head and laughed, "Just replace my favorite socks and we're square." Slapping Danny on the shoulder, he turned back toward the table.

And watched as a portal stole his salad.

---

Tuesday, September 18th

1:15 pm

Crackle, crick, scritch.

Using a broom to shove dry leaves out from under a bobtail cat statue, a slender man squinted at a run-down cannery. With his head of spiked, golden hair hidden beneath a takuhatsugasa and clothed in a traditional black yukata, he drew little attention.

And why would he?

As a practicing Buddhist, Hekiji Tengai fit right in at Myoeji temple.

It wasn't his main one. Not even close. But volunteering was by far the most rewarding way to watch over the food bank located inside and his intended target across the street. He didn't particularly care for this surveillance assignment, but at least he could do a good deed in the name of maintaining his disguise.

If you light a lamp for someone else it will also brighten your path.

Tengai nodded and reached down to grab a particularly stubborn leaf that had curled tight around one of the statue's legs, not even flinching when a new figure appeared just in front of the path's main street entrance.

"Those idiots. Dull knives, the lot of 'em! How could anyone waste perfectly good food like that!?"

He didn't engage, listening to the woman's foreign grumbles as he reached into the cotton lining of his yukata and pressed a button. Smoothly rotating his wrist, he pulled a small notepad and pen from the robes as if retrieving the items had been his intention all along. Then, marking a check next to "sweep the courtyard", his eyes finished perusing a short list of chores.

Until the Nomu actually started something, he would merely observe.

Flipping to the next sheet of lined paper, he jotted, Subject has returned to point of fixation and is displeased with withheld donation, as predicted. The whole place was bugged, so he didn't bother recording her exact words.

Stretching his back like any other temple employee might, he walked his broom to the tiny tool shed at the far side of the artfully paved yard, stepping around the small pools of river rock interspersed in the path. Ninety percent of the way there, a tiny electric shock tapped hard at the nerve in his ankle; and, faltering not at all, he reached for the handle to the kamidana-esque building.

Nine. Eight. Seven. Six.

Pulling it open, he stepped farther than necessary out of the door's swinging path, lining his vision up perfectly with the green being just as she'd started to float, arm raised, towards the temple's ski-sloped roof.

Two. One.

The woman plummeted from the sky, landing hard on her feet with a curse as mushrooms appeared from nothing to sway around her body, two of them expanding in size and a third one catching fire before growing a mouth to screech.

Dipping his hat, he hid a small smile beneath its rim, then deposited his broom inside and shut the door.

Considering the increase in volume and stomping rage that headed towards the temple, he wouldn't have time for any more chores.

An image of a barrier floated in his mind, waiting to be released.

"Lunch Lady!"

Startled, Hekiji jumped around the side of the shed, squatting down next to a short pagoda lantern. Even if someone saw, it's not like they'd question a civilian, let alone a Buddhist ducking out of a fight.

Forcing his face into a mask of meek terror and vibrating his body to imitate shivering, he tapped the button inside his robe three times.

Stand down.

There was a new variable in play and he needed to know why.

"WHO DARES TO—! Oh, hello Dearie. You look famished. I was about to serve up some doom, would you like some?"

Obvious familiarity with newcomer; but mental impairment remains intact.

"No thank you," the young redhead replied, looking only slightly anxious in her puffy pink coat.

The thick Nomu, "Lunch Lady" he assumed, simply nodded and turned away, starting up the three-meter-wide, wooden stairs to the temple.

"I would like a…uh, sandwich though, if you can! I haven't had lunch yet."

The ascending woman tipped slightly off balance, foot only just catching the next step. "I'm a little busy right now. But help yourself to a mushroom." Without looking back, the old lady waved at the fungi. "There's jumbo and roasted existential crisis. Take your pick."

Reaching the porch landing, she drew back her fist, ready to punch out the latticed glass window that made up the top half of the door.

"Thank you! But—uh—please don't punch that! If you draw any more attention to us, we might not be able to make it home!"

A laugh startled out of the Nomu and her hand dropped momentarily. "Wait a minute…You're trapped too?! HA! That'll teach your egghead brother not to abuse his power!"

The two were definitely involved with each other.

But how? And who was the brother?

Bridge of nose and eyebrows scrunching slightly, Hekiji began to scribble out notes.

Nomu dislikes redhead, but isn't directly hostile. Use of "please" implies Nomu has free will. Both trapped. Brother involved. Abuse of power? Quirk or social?

"He didn't mean to send us here. It was an accident!"

Quirk gone awry? Retaliation at brother for disobeying orders?

"Sure it was. And now he wants me to behave until he can fix things because it'll be easier for him." Rolling her shoulders with a devilish grin, the ectoplasmic being smirked and one yellow glove combusted with green flames. "Maybe I'll pay the fish market a visit, too, just for him. I've been wanting to go there."

"If you lay low, I'll give you the recipe to my mom's famous spectre-doodles!"

Attempted bribery with "speck-ter-doodle". Support item? Weapon? "Recipe"?

"Tempting, but—" The Nomu swung.

"Boxy misses you!"

And her blazing fist stopped just shy of the glass. Whipping around, "Lunch Lady" glared hard at the pale girl standing defiant near the base of the stairs.

Who is "Boxy"?

Roaring in frustration, the Nomu stepped back and looked away, fist extinguished.

Hekiji's eyes narrowed as he circled that last note.

---

Tuesday, September 18th

2:37 pm

A knoll just outside Amity Park was way busier than normal. The wildlife had fled in response to a group of HAZMAT invaders and tarps that covered the ground at uneven intervals, protecting various ecto-machines from the melted, early morning frost that still dampened the grass.

Sam Manson cracked her neck, first one way, then the other, enjoying the heating elements that interwove the Kevlar-spandex-rubber abomination that was her Team Phantom uniform. It was nice she'd been able to sleep in until a reasonable time this morning—ei, noon. Meeting Danny at nine before class yesterday really threw off her circadian rhythm.

Still. It'd been worth the trouble. Especially after hearing about how things had gone with the girls. Being exposed to the full state of his worry before the TalkTM really gave her some choice ammunition.

The right side of Sam's lips upturned, exposing a mischievous dimple as she side-eyed Phantom.

"Hey, Clueless one! Careful with that portal! If you nab any more people smarter than you, we'll be obligated to mutiny!"

"Portal?! Danny yelped. "Where?!"

There wasn't one, but he didn't need to know—

Swinging around, Danny anxiously surveyed the entire research site.

Oh hey. Now there was.

Sam's eyebrows pulled together as Phantom tensed, grabbing Kamada (the only person in range) under her jumpsuit's arms. Flying her ten feet away, he glared hard at the green swirl that did no more than float in the air passively nearby.

"I don't know, Sam. He might be smarter than we give him credit for. He can lift a bus, and yet we're still doing the minion work," Tuck countered, hobbling awkwardly past her with a stabbily antenna'd device in arms. Reaching a new tarp, he crinkled across the top of it until he carefully set down the small base of the ecto-amplifier, crab walking away for several steps to avoid a face full of the pointy, branching metal top.

A white shape suddenly zipped from the portal, and it was barely a second before Danny's own monochrome blur overtook it. A series of barked coos, loose feathers and panicked flapping exploded from Danny's hands as he held onto the mysterious creature. Frowning, a miniature ecto-shield formed around the open portal, effectively closing its door. It didn't matter though, because not a moment later, the rift evaporated.

"What'cha got there, Danny-boy?" Mr. Fenton chirped, stepping away from a laptop that was connected via USB to a monstrous server beneath it.

"Uh—smoothie?" Danny bit his lip, but then Tucker belted a laugh from across the camp and Sam snorted. He broke, allowing himself the derpy grin.

"What?" Peeking up from beneath a raised eyebrow, Mrs. Fenton plugged an extension cord into a green-tinged generator sitting over by the Fenton Family Ghost Assault Vehicle.

"Nothing. It's just—eh, never mind. It's some kind of bird."

"Really?!" Mr. Fenton pranced across the grass like a delighted buffalo, shoulders drawing in excitedly as he got close to his son. "Which one?!"

"How would I know? I'm not a—uh—bird scientist," Danny griped.

"An ornithologist," his mother supplied.

"Yeah, that."

"MADDIE! It's a Rock Ptarmigan!"

The last time Sam had seen Mr. F this thrilled, the town had been invaded by Keebler elves. (To be fair, their ninja stars were fudge-striped. And dough-based.)

"That's great, Jack!" Despite the dark rings around her eyes, his wife sounded genuine. "That was the last one you needed for Swiss bird bingo, right?"

"Yep!" he exclaimed.

"I hate to ruin Dad's party, but, uh. What do we do with it?" Danny held up the out-of-sorts avian that had finally stopped flapping. Poor thing was probably going into a mild state of shock. It's tiny, red-crested head was barely moving, drawn in close to its sleek, little body.

"Well, the Rock Ptarmigan is also known as the Snow Chicken, soooo…" Mr. Fenton grinned and winked.

"Don't you DARE!" Sam shoved forward, getting up into Jack's space and stabbing his thick chest with a finger. "This beautiful creature deserves to go home! Not be eaten by some overzealous oaf with a curious palate!"

Stepping back, Sam grabbed her cell out of her suit, and held the "3". Breath puffing out in an agitated mist, she waited for the line to connect.

Amity Park Fish and Wildlife Department, how may I direct your call?"

"Hi, Rosie, can I talk to Arnold?"

Oh, sure Sam! The voice on the other end got just a little bit nervous. Right away.

Elevator music played until Arnold's scratchy voice goaded, Samantha.

"Arnold," she shot back. "I need a pick up. I found a wild Rock Ptarmigan out near Highway 57."

How the fu—You know what. No. The man sighed. I'm not doing this today. There was a crinkle in the background and what sounded like office chair wheels rolling across plastic before the receiver muffled and she could just make out the defeated, Rosie, just send a van. Then, the sound got clear again he griped, Text Rosie your location.

The call ended before she could say another word and Sam felt a swell of pride that paired well with her coprophagous grin. Sending a quick Google pin, she turned around to see Kamada's startled face and Hagakure's tilted head.

"What just happened?" The second teen asked.

"Sam just happened," Tuck chimed, walking over to join the circle that had formed around the bird. "She's a force of nature and she has the Fish and Wildlife Department on speed dial. They never stood a chance."

"Damn straight," Sam agreed. "Now, where were we? Oh, yeah. Danny, just put it in one of the emergency cages for now." Sam's heart twinged. She hated cages. "Expandable metal, not ectoplasm, obviously; and line the bottom with some clean napkins. I know the GAV's always full of them." Mr. Fenton shared a gloating look his wife's way and the woman groaned. "It should be fine with the weather since it came from somewhere way colder."

"Awesome." Phantom nodded and soared over to the RV.

"Right. So are we done setting things up?" Tucker asked, rolling his left shoulder in its socket and rubbing at it with his other hand.

"Just about," Mrs. Fenton replied. "I just need to finish calibrating the EMG, then we can hook Danny up to some leads and get started."

"Sweet. So I can sit down." Tucker walked over to the tarp under the snack cooler and held up his arms, freefalling backward to the ground. But rather than hit hard, his golden, mechanized armor charged green and he started to float, reclining in the air like he was lying on a bed. "Just let me know when you guys need me."

Kamada walked over to Tucker, eyes practically sparkling as she took in the boy's suit and started peppering him with questions. Sam was mildly surprised that Tucker didn't brush her off, but then again, he was being asked by a Japanese schoolgirl about his tech. He was probably basking.

Shaking her head with a fond smile, Sam looked over at Hagakure, and even though she couldn't see the invisible teen's face, she knew a mirrored grin looked back from within that empty hood.

Squeezing Toru's shoulder, Sam turned toward the family's ("not"-a-)tank and said, "C'mon. Let's get this idiot started. He's gonna need all of us if he expects to make any progress."

"I heard that!" yelled from behind the GAV.

"You were supposed to!" She teased back.

"Jerk." Danny whispered right next to her ear and she rolled her eyes.

"You forgot intangibility. I felt the air move."

"Crap!"

"Now go get your electrodes, ghoulie, your mom's waiting."

Phantom grumbled, sulking his way over to Mrs. Fenton and peeling off the top portion of his jumpsuit to expose his chest.

"EEEEP!"

Whipping around, his toxic eyes zeroed in on the source of the noise. Kamada was in a squat ball, hugging her legs tight to herself and hands pressed hard to her face. Bright green spread like virulent slime mold over Phantom's exposed skin and with a strangled noise, the ghost promptly disappeared, leaving only a tiny portal behind on the floor.

Jack, Tucker and Hagakure burst out laughing with Sam soon to follow. Hand lifting, she was not at all surprised when another one slapped it in a high-five.

Toru had such a solid sense of humor. They got on like wildfire.

"Sorry Kamada-san!" Danny floundered. "I wasn't thinking!"

"Nothing new there," Tuck quipped, then, "But to be fair, you do spend most of your time as Phantom around family. Well, and us." The lounging man waved a flippant hand between Sam and himself. "Which is, like, the same thing."

"Hey Maddie, I'm gonna make all the equipment anti-gravity. I know it will burn through our juice faster, but I'm worried we might lose some stuff." Mr. Fenton nodded pointedly to the little portal on the ground and it disappeared like a startled lizard.

The man walked from machine to machine, activating a green glow across the equipment not unlike the one coating Tucker's suit.

"Kamada-san. Danny's not going to be able to maintain invisibility while working. If you like, I can take you home for this round of testing? I could really use a nap, anyway." Seeing Maddie's compulsive yawn, Sam couldn't help but echo it.

"Eh—ah—ano—" Haru babbled, looking from the spot Danny had disappeared, to the equipment spread around the camp, and then to Mrs. Fenton's exhaustion-lined face. Shoulders collapsing downward, she flinched and nodded. "If you don't mind. Thank you. I…don't want to be a bother."

"Uuuuh—Hagakure-chan! Don't you want to—" Danny's voice got hoarse and he coughed. "Would you like to go home too?"

"Nope!" came the cheeky response. "It's way too nice out to be inside. I'd rather stay here and enjoy the view." Toru gestured beyond their small hill to include a dead corn field, a vast meadow, and the cloudless sky, but her eyes stayed fixed to where they'd last heard Danny.

"Why are you like this?" he croaked, shocking a laugh from everyone—even Kamada—this time.

"C'mon, Kiddo. Let's get you home." Mrs. Fenton waved Haru over to the GAV and climbed in. A second later, a hiss exploded from the back, and a baby ATV was birthed from the trunk.

As the two left on the small four-wheeler, Sam declared, "Okay, Weenie. Strip. I'm not gonna let this take forever because of your delicate sensibilities."

"Hey!"

Sam raised an eyebrow and a groan preceded Phantom's fully-clothed reappearance. Gliding over to his dad like a perturbed cat, back hunched and eyes repeatedly darting to Toru, he formed legs and crossed them. Grabbing his ankles as he sat in midair, Danny exhaled a deep breath; then the top half of his jumpsuit phased off in one quick go, like plunging into a cold pool.

"Oh, quit being so mopey. Hagakure-san's right. It's a boo-tiful day; it'd be Ghastly not to enjoy it."

"I hate you."

Sam just smirked as Jack got to work applying sensors to Danny's body.

After setting the dials on the bastard electromyography-washing-machine, he proclaimed, "Okay, now make a portal!" Danny frowned, eyeing his dad in a way that had the man ducking with a guilty smile. "Don't look at me like that. You know there's a reason your mom walks you through this kinda stuff," he deflected. "Uhhh—just try focusing really hard on making one? Build some energy from your core and push it to a single point."

Danny let out a huge sigh.

"So every time you've made a portal before, what was going on?" Tucker stepped in. "Maybe that'll give us a clue as to how they're triggered. Or at least remind you what it felt like to make 'em."

"Oh—Uhhhhm."

"Danny, this isn't a pop quiz," Sam gently reminded, sure his mind was blanking at the sudden question. "Just go chronologically from the first one you noticed. If we miss some by accident, we'll circle back."

"Don't forget I fell through a portal, so that's at least one easy one!" Hagakure latched on, taking Sam's lead. "What were you doing that day?"

"It was the day after our first day of class," Tucker supplied.

"Oh yeah. I was training with Val in the woods. Kinda by where Hagakure got snagged." At this, Danny's mouth formed a little "o" and he smacked his forehead with the palm of his hand. "I don't remember feeling any different. Well, except when my flight gave out for a few seconds early on in the fight. But otherwise it was a fairly normal training session. Valerie was just as determined to kick my butt as usual."

"Hey, Mr. F, you writing this down?" Tuck prodded, and Jack straightened as if zapped, opening up a text document so he could start taking notes.

"Then the next portal would've been Kamada-san's, yeah?" Sam reminded, absently extending and flexing her right leg—standing in one spot for too long pulled at an old ghost fighting injury. "Didn't you say you fought a scarecrow ghost near where she fell through? Maybe the trigger has something to do with fighting."

"If that was true, why did he spawn the partridge?" Tuck chuckled.

"Or swipe my socks!" Mr. Fenton added.

"Socks?" Sam's eyes zipped to Jack and they narrowed in thought. She'd seen the bird scenario go down and was starting to get a hunch. But she hadn't heard about the socks.

"He opened a portal under my suitcase when we got home from the airport. All I did was give him a friendly pat, then, bam, my luggage was gone!"

Sam looked out at the horizon and chewed her lip as the group joked their way through other portal appearances.

Schooling her features into frustration, she complained, "You're right. It's totally random!"

"Right?!" Danny whined.

Forcing herself to sigh, she requested, "Danny, can you make us some clones? We'll split into smaller groups and just throw everything at the wall until something sticks."

"Oh, uh, sure. Give me a sec." Phantom pursed his brows and a divot appeared on the top of his head. Spreading down his face, it formed a crack between his eyes and split his nose, pinching his body into two separate entities as it made its way past his neck, to his chest and down. Then each half started to grow, filling in the missing organs with no more difficulty than a tree might make branches. His eyes divided, leaving behind four blinking orbs. His skull ballooned outward where it'd flattened. For once, she even got to watch in macabre fascination as ribs regrew under well-defined pectorals. (He rarely duplicated with his chest so exposed.)

It made her strangely nostalgic for ninth grade science.

The horrifying mitosis began again, and soon three Dannys floated cross legged in front of her, only one of which remained hooked up to the leads.

"Wow, that was so freaking cool!" Toru exclaimed. "Kamada's gonna be so upset that she missed it!"

"I'll do it again later, if she wants." Real Danny ran a hand through his hair. "I really owe her one after today," he grimaced.

"Try one million," Tucker mocked. "As far as screw ups go, you'll never top kidnapping her, Danny."

Sam snickered and stepped forward, grabbing the duplicate on the left and tugging him along behind her. "I'll take this clone. Tuck can have the other one. Hagakure-san, Jack, you stay with the original. Just shout if you figure anything out."

The double let himself be towed across the camp and down the hill without a word, only his face betraying his intense curiosity. When she was fairly certain she was far enough away, she whispered as quietly as she dared, "Can you still hear what they're saying at camp?"

The clone's eyes lit up and he took the lead, merging his legs together and pulling her even farther away until they passed through tall husks of dried cornstalk.

Finally stopping ten feet in, he remarked, "What's the plan?" tail whipping around itself in gleeful anticipation.

"I'm not positive, but I think adrenaline is the key. Or at least a combination of anxiety and surprise."

The double's smile grew until it literally stretched ear to ear and his body started to thrum.

Sam smacked his shoulder.

"Quit it, or you're gonna get curious and check in on us!"

"Right! Sorry!" The clone gathered himself, suddenly looking distinctly less ghostly. "Okay, so what do you need? I can't exactly be the one to scare me, so I assume you've got that covered."

"Oh yeah," she grinned, pulling out her wallet. "But I need you to make a trip to the store…"

---

Tuesday, September 18th

3:02 pm

BOOM!

Tucker stood next to his copy of Danny. The duplicate was green in the face, forcing controlled breaths into vestigial lungs. If Tucker had to guess, it was probably a nausea thing. Absorbing Tucker's ecto-cannon with a shield couldn't have been easy while split three ways.

Looking around, he didn't see any portals.

"Aaaah Maaaan. How is it that you can only make portals when you aren't trying."

"No idea, but it freakin' sucks," the clone bit out. "I vote the next thing we try is a nap."

Tucker snorted and raised his arm. "Here, here."

Something pushed into his outstretched hand and as he flinched the appendage back, an invisible glove pressed against his mouth to smother a girly squeak.

Holy Hel. Danny was gonna pay for that!

Except when Tucker glanced up the hill, the original was still there.

This was Sam's clone.

He thought it was weird how she'd recommended the "everything and the kitchen sink" method. Normally she was too impatient for chaos testing. Unlike Tucker. It was his favorite.

His Danny approached, expression inquisitive, and the technophile held out his hand for the other boy to see.

Little white balls of paper, complete with twisted tails, filled his palm.

Better known as Pop-Its.

The pressure disappeared from Tucker's mouth and the clone suddenly perked up, looking significantly less haggard.

Sam's voice called up from the other side of the hill. "Danny! I think I found something!"

"Really?!"

"Yep!"

Tucker's duplicate patted his back and gestured toward the main camp with a wink. But when the human started to smile, the ghost held up a finger in the universal sign for "shhh".

Something was deeefinitely up.

Tucker plodded up the knoll until they reconvened at the top with Sam, her clone suspiciously absent.

"So what is it?" Danny's voice came out slightly desperate and was shortly followed by Hagakure's "Yeah, what'd you find?" Clearly the original had had just as little luck as Tucker's copy.

Speaking of, the duplicate ghosted past Tucker toward the Fenton Barometer and two light taps prodded his TNT-filled hand.

"I think that maybe—What was that?!" Sam pointed behind Real Danny in a way that kept Tucker out of the other boy's sight.

"What was—?"

Two things happened simultaneously. The clone whipped across the hill after "something" and Tucker threw his Pop-Its at the grass below Danny as hard as he could, praying they'd actually go off.

They did.

And disappeared into a massive portal a second later.

Ohhhhhh.

"HA! I knew it!" Sam fistpumped.

"Sam what the heck!? What are you—" The goth pointed down and Danny's eye followed his friend's finger.

"Oh."

"Neat!" Jack exclaimed, "So we just have to jump-scare him?"

"Yeah, pretty much," Sam affirmed.

"But he's a ghost," Hagakure groaned. "How are we supposed to scare him? Especially now that he knows it's coming!"

"Easy!" Sam's grin grew positively satanic and Danny shuddered. "My plan is Perfection~!"

The clone chose this moment to return, shoving something at the original before swiftly forcing a remerge. By the time Danny's eyes dropped to the board game in his hands it was with new clarity and he hissed, "NO! I will not! Youcan't make me!"

"Last time wasn't that bad."

"It was. We played. For three hours. This is a hill I will die on."

"Oh, don't be so melodramatic."

"I can't help it." Danny's transformation rings started over his eyes, one flashing up towards his brows and the other going down to his nose before they stopped and reversed back together. Flaring his irises even brighter green, he gestured to the ground below and deadpanned, "Every hill is a hill I will die on."

---

Tuesday, September 18th

9:30 pm

Jazz curled into the light purple couch across from Inko, her knees drawn up and feet on the middle cushion between them. Bursts of quiet, giddy Japanese murmured from the TV to her left, followed by the occasional bright, scattered laughter of a group. It was some kind of game show where people with niche quirks gathered, and, based on personality and looks alone, guessed each other's powers. It seemed funny, if her roommate's delighted giggles were anything to go by.

Jazz wasn't paying much attention, too busy studying for Thursday's lesson plan. Expanding the Boundaries of Your Quirk: A Self-Help Guide for Pushing Your Growth to its Limits had been so helpful earlier that she'd decided to get a jump start on chapter four. The bit about strength versus endurance training was exceptionally interesting.

But then static crackled through her mind and her thoughts derailed.

Come in, Jasmine Fenton. This is Alastor Williams. Over.

This is Jasmine Fenton, QSL. Over.

Stand by for transmission from Daniel Phantom.

Memorizing where she was at, Jazz turned to the next page and let her eyes rove over a diagram covered in arrows, their sharp points depicting the energy pathways in an emitter-type's body.

She could always come back later, but she should at least pretend to read with Inko right next to her.

Jazz! I finally made progress! Danny's inflection proclaimed in Alastor's voice, and she stifled a chuckle. Hearing her brother's words in a southern accent was kind of fun. If she managed enough suspension of disbelief, she could just picture a middle aged, cowboy version of him talking. Today suuuucked, but I've got a feel for the power now!

Oh! Already? That was expedited in Danny-time. Jazz wanted to praise him, but without the "Over," she couldn't.

Sam made me play Perfection for four and a half hours. Alastor's tone wavered and she could easily picture her brother's disgust. Apparently my fight or flight response was setting off the portals. But not reliably. That's why it was so hard to figure out.

At least I can make one on command, now, though.

…Well, sometimes.

Still, it's a big load off my mind since I actually have a starting point. But if I ever see that stupid game again, I will blow it up. Over.

Great job, Danny! I take it things went well with the girls, then? Since you haven't mentioned them yet? Over.

There was just enough of a delay that Jazz started to question whether or not she'd remembered to end the transmission before, Yeah, things went okay. Better than I expected, buuuut…..theyalreadyknewandwerekeepingitasecretfromme. Over.

What was that? I think you had some QRM on your last transmission. Over. Jazz had more or less understood Danny's jumbled words, but she just wanted to make him repeat it. Lifting her book more, she hid her smirk.

What's QRM? Over.

Jazz waited, sure that Alastor would jump at the chance to explain the lingo. He'd been a very enthusiastic teacher thus far.

Oh. Interference…Uuuugh. I said, "They already knew and were keeping it a secret from me," he enunciated. There; you heard me that time, right? Danny grumbled. Over.

Loud and clear. I'd interrogate you, but it sounds like you've had about as much as you can stand today. I'll leave my teasing till later. Preferably in person. Over.

Great. Something to look forward to. There was a short pause, then, taunting, Maybe I'll struggle just a tiny bit more to get you home.

Ha ha, Danny, Jazz monotoned, then winced a second later. This was as good a segway as any. But—uh. I'm not…the only one who needs a ticket home. Lunch Lady's here. And she has been for a week. Over.

WHAT?! Why didn't you tell me?!

….Er…Over.

I wanted to, but I only just tracked her down today. She promised not to cause any more trouble until we head home, though! Over.

No, I mean—Why didn't you tell me she was there as soon as you found out? I could have called her through Alastor! Over.

…

Are you still there? Over.

I'm here. Just feeling the Fenton genes down to my toes. Over.

Jazz expected Danny to give her so much crap over the mistake, especially after she'd just poked fun at his own, but instead Alastor sighed and said, Mood. Then, Don't feel too bad. I'm not sure how well she would have listened if I'd been the one to talk to her, anyways. She's not super fond of me and I'm not really in a position to lord over her.

…So how much damage did she cause? Are you guys safe? Over.

Sometimes Danny's maturity really floored Jazz. Not only had his empathy taken a turn for the better in the past few years—fourteen year old Danny would have mopped the floor with her—here he was, reading between the lines to ask the right questions. Jazz had just talked to Lunch Lady, unimpeded, today, so he knew the ghost must still be roaming free despite stirring things up. (He definitely hadn't missed the "more" preceding Jazz's "trouble".) And he'd already extrapolated that Lunch Lady's actions would have consequences extending beyond herself.

She attacked UA during their lockdown. Twice. Apparently the school chef is Lunch Rush. And he specializes in healthy, low-calorie meals.She couldn't see or hear Danny, but Jazz knew his hand had just hit his face. She also tore up a food court in a town sixty miles away.

As you can imagine, the heroes, media, and public are up in arms over this new, intelligent "Nomu". We've lucked out, though, because she's managed to avoid getting caught and has more or less laid low since then. I'm pretty sure no one has made any connection between us, either, so as long as she keeps her promise, I think we'll be okay. Over.

Ignoring the fact that you just jinxed us six ways to Sunday, Danny groaned, if she attacked three, high-profile places in one week, you guys are definitely targets. Don't visit Lunch Lady again, and watch your back, Jazz. If you catch anyone eyeing you, and I mean anyone, tell me right away. I don't care if it's some twelve year old neighbor kid with a crush. Someone shows interest in you, I want to know. Over.

She was doing just fine on her own, but she could hardly fault his brooding, Sure, I can do that.

Oh and Danny? Can you check on Boxy? He should have been all over you the second she went missing. I'm worried. Over.

Yeah, he has been suspiciously quiet. I'll look into it. Over.

Thanks, Little Brother. Over.

Yep! A yawn echoed in Jazz's mind, leaving her amused that Alastor had bothered to relay it. If that's it can I hit the hay? I'm exhausted. Over.

Yeah, we can talk more later. Get some sleep. Over.

Bye, Jazz. Another yawn. Danny, over and out.

Jazz grinned to herself and waited for the final transmission she knew was coming.

Pure Tommyrot! Alastor grumped. What is wrong with this generation? Radio Ghost, jumping off.

---

Chapter Notes:

-Bakugo goes to the support course because if he gets hired on as the "support specialist" at a hero association after graduation he has the potential to get picked by a mentor. If he does well learning under this mentor, the agency can then choose to sponsor him and help him get a hero license in exchange for a certain number of years worked at their agency. (like how companies pay for employees' trade-related classes). It ends up working out more like a journeyman/apprenticeship position instead of direct schooling in this case. It's a grandfathered law from when quirks were new and there were no schools. A lot of the established heroes were trained in this fashion, so the government had to have a fast track to get them certified if they wanted their new system to work.

-totoya means friend or companion. Yes. I added more offbrand shit. XD

-the hero that can sense things up to 500 miles away would have actually been able to sense the girls if they had been closer lol.

-chrysanthemums are a fall-blooming flower well-loved in japan. And yes I sniffed one just to remember what they smelled like to write that. XD

-kashiko sekigai is the student that Hagakure mentioned in chapter 13 with the sensor quirk. She's the girl from Isamu Academy in the zombie ova episode. I set it up in this where there's two parts to her quirk. She can look for people in a specific area near her or she can look for a specific person. The more knowledge and familiarity she has with the people she's looking for, the better her trace works. That was how the ua students were able to hide under a special blanket to block her sensors in the zombie episode. She'd only met them briefly and didn't know much about them, meaning the trace was easily fooled. Because hers is a psychic type quirk, she can also "borrow" other people's mental images to perform better traces.

-Super Potato is a chain of gaming stores in Japan. So the off-brand here is Splendid Potato. Mammal Crossing is Animal Crossing and Heaven's Edge is Skyrim. The joke for skyrim is that even hundreds of years in the future, bethesda still keeps just rereleasing skyrim rather than putting out elder scrolls 6 LOL. In case you were wondering, there are SEVEN skyrim remakes currently. XD The Nohearts is the clue to tell you the last game is Kingdom Hearts. Or in this case, Hearts of the Kingdom. XD

-Handa is the rip off of Honda. Which is funny because Honda is a surname that means origin-ricefield but Handa is a surname that means half-a-rice-patty. Like my car name is only half as good as the original. XD

-Miyake is a name popular in Okayama, which is near chugoku.

-yuikitada ward in shizuoka is where inaba foods actually is

-bakemono means monster

-two bundles for the price of three mon is the japanese idiom Nisoku-sanmon which means dirt-cheap or a dime a dozen essentially in english.

-ameren is a major power company in illinois

-Akachōchin is the red, paper Japanese lanterns that often adorn shops or festivals. Aka literally means red.

-So, to figure out where I wanted to do the setting for the food bank, I decided to click on random street views in yuikitada ward until I settled on architecture that seemed acceptable. Like 6 clicks in, I landed on a street where I was like "this, this is the place". And then proceeded to turn the camera all the way around to see all parts of the street. Turns out my perfect spot is in the fucking inaba foods parking lot. Fsld;jflajdf. LOL. Totally unintentional. Also. The building I scouted was actually a tiny buddhist temple. Which is literally perfect for a building that would stay around through time AND have people inside it who would make a food bank. Myoeji temple is the one, if you're interested to know exactly where lol. Also. I found this out AFTER I had already decided on which character's pov i was going to use for the scene.

-a yukata is a summer robe that looks like a fancy bathrobe. A takuhatsugasa is a buddhist monk hat, characterized by lacking a point at the top, and often covering more of the face.

-"If you light a lamp for someone else it will also brighten your path." is a buddhist quote about good karma

/maps/awccWn6crwHp4abv7

-kamidana are the little tiny shrines/alters for shinto gods. Basically i was just saying the architecture of the shed matched the main building.

-inaba foods is located in yuikitada ward, shizuoka

-The whatcha got there/Smoothie is an iCarly meme reference

-the gloating look Jack gives Maddie during the napkin GAV bit is a reference to how there is always one person in every family that hoards clean napkins and tissues from restaurants to keep in the car because "they might be useful some day". Maddie is upset because Jack now has validation for years to come about it was good that they had some on hand. lol

-Sam called Danny "ghoulie" in an obscure reference to the monster mash lol. "The ghouls all came from their humble abodes to get a jolt from my electrodes!" If you didn't know, you'd think she was just referencing that he's a ghost lol.

-the boo-tiful joke is actually a big nod to DreamTrace's new Invisobang story that I've had the pleasure of being an artist for.

-electromyographies don't actually use electrodes like EKGs do. They're supposed to have needles that go directly into the muscle, but I just pulled some "Fenton tech is built different" deus ex machina bullshit XD

-Sam wanted a clone because she knew it would be really excited to harass Danny and give him shit. Basically Sam's plan was: get her clone to buy pop-its fireworks and Perfection from the store. After stashing the board game behind the campsite, it silently alerts Tucker to the fact that he's needed. Then, it invisibly re-merges with Tucker's clone so that Tuck's clone is on board and shares memories with the first clone. After Sam creates the distraction, she points in the direction of the hidden board game, which is the merged clone's cue to frantically retrieve it so that the danger seems more real and Tucker can figure out his cue to throw the pop-its.

-one of my best friends was actually the one to suggest the Perfection board game. I've never actually played it but it's supposed to be highly stressful. Lol. that joke has been sitting in the outline for over a year.

-"Every hill is a hill I will die on." Brought to you by a conversation I had with Anarchy while editing their one-shot. LOL

-Japanese gameshows are notoriously ridiculous. But I feel like I'd actually have fun watching this one.