Jazz and Danny made dinner together and Dani quietly watched.

"Get the peas out of the freezer, please." The red-head asked her brother.

"You can't put peas in the mac and cheese." He complained.

"I'm not just feeding us mac and cheese for dinner, Danny." Jazz put her hands on her hips. "You need to eat a vegetable."

"But peas?" Danny whined.

"Yes." The word was flat, uncompromising. Jazz opened the fridge. "Come on. It will go well with the ham." She pulled the meat out of a drawer in the fridge.

The half ghost narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "Please tell me that isn't Dad's emergency ham."

"Of course not." The older teen rolled her eyes. "It's my emergency ham."

Danny blinked at her skeptically. "Seriously?"

"I double wrapped it, put it in a plastic container, taped that up, and hid it in the back. I was saving it to make a quiche tomorrow but…" Jazz shrugged. "We've got some of the good cheese I was going to use too. This will be really good. "

"Not if you put peas in it!" The boy spread his arms.

The siblings bantered back and forth like that all the while. And the clone watched, a knot in her stomach. There was so much familiarity, so much ease in the casual interaction. Danny and Jazz were so comfortable with each other; they'd known each other their entire lives. And Dani…. She felt even more like an outsider. She didn't fit with them. (Why were they even bothering being nice to her?)

"See. I put peas in it." The boy waved a hand.

"Danny. That's three individual peas." Jazz let out a long suffering sigh.

"That's one for each of us." That shit-eating grin…

The red-head shook her head, again sighing. But humor sparkled in her eyes.

Dani's core felt so heavy. She'd never had sibling interactions like that. Or…

A large ghost, covered with scars, tickled her. The girl's high giggles were a delightful harmony with his deeper laughter.

Playing hide and go seek with a skeletal ghost. He loved hiding in the curtains.

Talking to her newest brother, still in his tube. She taught him how to play Rock, Paper, Scissors.

Lying on the floor, coloring. "Here, hold the crayon like this." Teaching her smallest brother to color too.

Maybe she had. (They were all gone now.)

"Dani, wanna help me make some cheesy toast?"

The question stirred the clone girl out of her thoughts. She blinked. "What?"

"Cheesy toast." Danny repeated. "I'll spread on the butter and you put on the cheese?"

"Oh. Uh. Sure." Dani stood up, shaking her head. She stood, walking to stand beside her original. "Where's the cheese?"

Danny pointed to the bag on the counter, busily spreading butter on the first slice. He handed over the piece and the clone girl grabbed a hand-full of shredded cheddar, spreading it liberally.

"Looks great." Her original congratulated, surveying her work.

Six slices later and the toast was placed in the heated oven. Dani watched the cheese melt with a bit of wonder. It smelled so good….

Ten minutes later, Dani was seated at the table.

"Here you go." Jazz presented her a bowl of mac and cheese.

The clone girl studied the dish. The curved noodles, the creamy little yellow sauce. Melted cheese and bread crumbs on top. Pink cubes of ham underneath. Little round, green peas. Smoke wafted off of it, the heat and smell swirling in the air. It looked and smelled so good….

With encouraging nods from Danny and Jazz, the girl picked up the spoon. She scooped up a bit, blew on it, and-

"You look half starved. Come here, doll." A slimy, yellowed teethed smile. "I've got some food for you."

The sudden memory hit her, muscles locking up. Her second week free….. She'd been so hungry. A man in a white van offered her a much wanted bowl of mac and cheese. Can't let a pretty little thing like you go hungry, can I? She gobbled it up without question. It tasted so good, the best food she'd ever eaten. But after…. I…I don't feel so good. What- Sleepy and confused, her head swam. Dani had passed out. And she woke up later, gagged and tied up in the trunk of a car. Eyes wide with panic. Her cries muffled. Her core sparked and-

Luckily her powers were working enough for her to transform and to fly out. But…

Back at the table, she shivered. (What if… what if they hadn't-)

"What is it?" Danny's wide, worried eyes fixed on her.

Her eyes flicked to him, mind jerked out of the memory. "Oh. Oh. Nothing." Instantly, she felt guilty. She'd watched Jazz and Danny make the food. Of course, the boy wouldn't do anything to hurt her, not after saving her life. And now she'd just made him worried again. "It's just still too hot to eat." She made an excuse, blowing on the food again.

Her original traded a subtle look with his sister, doubt flickering on both teens' faces. But to Dani's relief, neither pressed.

Instead, Danny's face softened. "Oh, I think I can fix that." His lips turned up, humor sparking in his eyes. "Pass it over."

The clone girl shook her head. "No, really that's okay. I'll just wait."

"Come on." The boy insisted, smiling. "Let me try something."

Recognition lit Jazz's eyes. "Is this that thing Frostbite taught you last time?"

"Frostbite?" Dani raised a brow, curiosity starting to stir. "Who's that?"

"My mentor. He's the chief of a tribe of ice yetis in the GZ. They live in a place called the Far Frozen. It's really awesome!" The excitement radiating off of him was palpable, his smile big and bright. "I need to take you there to meet everyone soon."

The girl blinked. "You have a mentor… who's a yeti?" A hint of intrigue entered her voice. "And you want me to meet him? But-"

"I'll tell you more later." Her original interrupted, waving his hand. "You should eat. Hand it over."

More questions swirled in her mind, pushing previous dark thoughts away. And the most imminent… "Alright." What was he planning? "Here you go." With a slight eye roll, she pushed the bowl toward him.

Danny took the bowl. "Prepare to be amazed, Dani." He grinned, eyes flashing. Not green but-

The clone let out a small gasp. They flashed an icy blue, not the familiar electric green.

The boy noticed her reaction, giving a smirk. He breathed in deeply, then through rounded lips, blew out, and…

Dani's own mouth fell open. The other half ghost blew out, as if to cool the bowl of food. But the air… it was visible, a light blue cloud. It swirled, the space perfused with… an arctic cold?

"I think you overdid it, little brother." Jazz laughed.

Sure enough, ice crystal sprinkled the mac and cheese, as if it was left outside during a snow flurry.

"Oops." Danny smiled sheepishly. "I'll get you another bowl."

"That's probably a good idea." Dani poked the food with a spoon, letting out her own chuckle.

With a nod, the other half ghost stood. A few seconds later, the clone girl had a fresh, hot bowl of mac and cheese. This time, she didn't hesitate on the first bite.

"Wow." Her eyes widened with delight. "This is so good!" She beamed, quickly wolfing down another bite. And another. And another. Soon her bowl was empty. She must have been a whole lot hungrier than she thought.

"Slow down." Jazz gently chastised.

"Sorry." The girl blushed. "Can I have some more?"

"Of course." Danny said

He served her another bowl. This one Dani ate more slowly, savoring the flavor, the texture, the warmth. It was delicious. For the first time in weeks (months, maybe ever?), she felt full, the dinner a comforting weight in her belly.

As Dani finished eating, she tuned into the conversation happening at the table.

"I love this cheesy toast so much." Danny gushed, a dreamy look on his face as he ate his cheese covered bread.

"I thought you didn't like toast." Jazz poked her brother's shoulder.

"You know what, you don't get any more, just for that." The boy swiped the second piece right off her plate.

"Hey!" The red-head protested.

Danny ignored her. "Dani can have your piece." He shoved the piece of bread toward the younger half ghost. "She doesn't make fun of me for not eating normal toast."

"You don't like toast?" Dani raised a skeptical eyebrow. "How can you not like toast?"

"I'll take that back." The older girl swiped her toast back. "And right?!" Jazz elbowed the younger girl playfully. "How can he not like toast? It's just bread. Who doesn't like bread?"

"First off," Danny held up one finger. "It's not that I hate toast. I won't eat it for breakfast because the Fenton toaster always burns it."

"That's because you always put it on the highest setting." Jazz complained.

"Second." Danny pointedly held up a second finger, again ignoring his sister's comment. "This is bread, butter, and cheese. The best three foods human civilization ever invented! I'd have to be an idiot to hate it."

"I feel like chocolate needs to be on that list." The red-head added, raising an eyebrow.

"And cake!" Dani enthused. "And potato chips. And cotton candy!"

"Dani's right." Jazz gave a serious nod. "Cake, chips, and cotton candy need to be on the list."

"And ice cream!"

"And ice cream! How could we forget about ice cream?"

"And three!" Danny raised his voice slightly, pushing past the girls' banter. "You two are both traitors. I expect this kind of thing from Jazz. But you, Danielle? For shame!" He looked so offended. "My own ectoplasm, betraying me like this. You're my clone, yeah. But I thought we had more than that! You're my favorite little sibling. My precious baby sister. And I know I'm your favorite brother." A sheepish, vaguely sad shrug… "I mean, I am the only other clo-" The boy cut himself off, eyes wide and very guilty.

Danielle suddenly felt very uneasy, her stomach knotting. Her eyes flickered from him to Jazz.

At the same, the red-head gave him a questioning look. "Danny?" The name tilted up, a question. That tone, the significance tickled something in Dani's mind. "Did you not tell her about-"

The boy cut her off. "Not yet."

A chill settled in Dani's core. "Tell me what?"

Two pairs of guilty eyes met her and Danny blushed. "We need to talk about something important…" He trailed off, biting his lip.

Danielle's eyes widened. No. No. This sounded bad. Her heart hammered in her chest.

"No. It's not bad, I swear." The older halfa waved his hands, trying to soothe her panicked look. "It's not bad. It's… good?" He hesitated on the word, looking to Jazz.

The red-head's brow furrowed. For a moment, she hesitated but… eventually, she mildly shrugged.

"I think it's been good." Danny's cheeks darkened again as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Don't worry about it now, okay. I wasn't going to even bring it up 'til the morning." He slightly narrowed his eyes at Jazz, who flashed him an apologetic smile. "'Cause it'll be a long conversation and it's already been a long day."

Dani studied him with narrowed eyes, mind trying to put together what he'd said. He'd… called her his favorite sibling, his little sister. That had started in jest, but…

"I'm sure you're tired." The boy yawned, stretching. "I'm tired."

That sounded like an excuse if she'd even heard one. Suspicion, distrust poked at her core. "What were you going to say?" She asked quietly, almost dangerously.

"Danielle, please." He pleaded, eyes wide and…. painfully familiar. (Tiny's eyes, wide and innocent. Every expression achingly sincere, almost incapable of deception or malice). "I'll tell you, I swear. Just not tonight. Please. Just trust me."

That expression…. Dani didn't understand. It stabbed at her heart, an impossible likeness. (Was she just seeing what she wanted to see? Or….)

Despite her better judgment, the clone girl caved. "Alright. I am tired." She rubbed her head, then narrowed her eyes. "But in the morning, you better tell me everything." She pointed a hard finger at him. "Everything."

A sigh of relief. "Of course. I will." Danny took her bowl. "Alright. Let's get you some clean clothes. I'll show you the guest room."


In a clean set of clothes, Dani laid on the bed in the guest room. She'd taken a shower and accepted the hand-me-downs without complaint. With an almost contented sigh, she ran fingers through damp hair. It had been so long since she last felt clean. (Maybe the last time had been at…Vlad's, before she ran away?)

The thought sent an uncomfortable shiver through her but she pushed it down. She was away from Vlad, safe here with a warm meal in her stomach, a comfortable bed. The dirt and gunk were cleaned away, her hair washed, with her beloved hoodie in the washing machine. The clothes Jazz had given her were warm and comfy. Everything was okay, better than it had in months. (Better than it had ever been for her, really). And yet…

Disquiet still turned her stomach. Danny had been so concerned, almost clingy tonight. He kept asking if she needed anything, checking to make sure she was okay. And Jazz was so nice too. She had been so excited to meet her, taking her sudden appearance so well. She'd cooked a delicious dinner of Dani's choosing. She'd found these clothes while Danny gathered things for her to clean herself and showed her how to use the shower.

The two siblings were great. They had done so much for her but… it was all too much. The feeling weighed heavy on her core. This was all too much. And Dani didn't know what to make of it, of the worry, the concern. Danny and Jazz barely knew her. She was practically a stranger to them. (And she didn't deserve any of this, did she? Not after what she did to Danny…)

That hateful whisper…. Dani pushed it down. Yeah, Danny and Jazz helped her. It was great. And she was grateful, she really was. The two chose to help her out of the goodness of their heart. And as hard as that was to wrap her mind around… she should just be thankful and leave it at that. But…

He looked so offended. "My own ectoplasm, betraying me like this. You're my clone, yeah. But I thought we had more than that!"

Dani's brow furrowed. He'd joked so easily with her and she'd been taken in, completely comfortable.

"You're my favorite little sibling. My precious baby sister.

Danny…. He'd called her his sibling, his baby sister. And… her core twisted. She'd earlier claimed they were cousins and he'd reciprocated. Being family like that, in a distant, pretend way, she could handle. Being his cousin in name… that hadn't sounded so bad. But sister…. That… that was too much. Too close. And…

"And I know I'm your favorite brother."

Brother. Her brother. Oh, how anger rose at the thought. Danny called himself her brother. As if… as if… Her core buzzed, hot and simmering. As if she didn't already have enough brothers. All the other clones were her brothers. They'd been through so much together, things Danny couldn't even imagine. And… she glared at the ceiling. How dare he?! How dare he equate himself with them? Insert himself in that position?

He couldn't be her brother. He couldn't be because… because….

Her brothers were all dead. The thought washed over her as a wave, dousing the anger. Her brothers were all gone. It was only her left. She was the only clone still alive. And… tears bubbled in her eyes with the memory.

The night that she'd escaped from Vlad, she flew until she couldn't stay in the air anymore. She crashed in a nondescript field. The starry sky hung above her, flowers at her head, their sweet smells wafting around her. Muscles, Bones, Tiny, Daniel… They would have loved this but … a sob rose in her throat. Her brothers would have loved this but… they were gone and she was alone. Dani cried. Her brothers were all dead and she… she had no one now. She wept until she had no more breath, no more tears. Until the sky started to lighten and sleep took her.

The day Danielle was finally free was the day she lost her brothers.

That night was the first and the last time she'd cried over them. After, she'd spent so long on the run. All her energy was absorbed in just trying to survive. It almost pushed the grief away, to the back of her mind; she couldn't afford to let herself break. But now…

In this warm bed, finally safe and clean, that grief throbbed, an excruciating stab at her heart. Her body ached with it, the tears finally spilling out of her eyes.

Dani angrily whipped them away. It wasn't fair! Danny just had to open his dumb mouth and remind her. She wanted to get up and yell at him over it, now that the awkwardness of the situation had passed and she realized what he had said. But….

That sheepish, sad shrug… Danny's nervous, guilty eyes. "We need to talk about something important…" He trailed off, biting his lip.

She couldn't talk to him tonight. Not with his big, dumb worried eyes. Not with his soft voice, how he would try to tell her everything was okay. (It would never be okay again. Not when her brothers were all gone and she was still here).

Dani rolled over, huffing as the hall light turned off and the house settled. Thirty minutes, an hour of stewing in so many feelings. Frustration, annoyance, confusion, hurt, grief. (No, not grief. Push it down. Push it down. She couldn't let herself feel that. Not tonight. Not… not ever.)

Dani rolled over again, annoyance flaring. The bed was too damn soft. After months of sleeping on the ground (random patches of leaves, cardboard, park benches)….. It felt like she was sinking, like the plush top was going to swallow her. There was no way she'd be sleeping like this.

With a groan, the girl took her blanket and pillow and flopped onto the floor. Barely two minutes of shifting position and….. She jerked up, frowning. The hardwood was awful too.

Maybe she could get some water from downstairs? With her blanket and pillow, Dani padded down the hallway and stair, her practiced feet light, hardly making a sound.

A glass of cold water later and….

Her body felt so heavy and sluggish. Her eyes flickered to the stairs and she groaned softly. Nope. No. Way. Her sleepy legs couldn't handle it but her mind…. A quiet grumble. Sharp, prickly, stewing in exacerbation (Confusion, hurt, pain, sorrow). She just wanted to sleep, for it to be morning already.

She blinked at the TV. Maybe she could watch some to get to sleep. That's a thing that people did, right? It happened in that one movie she snuck into.

Decision made, she fumbled for the remote. Flopping onto the floor, pressing buttons. Her fingers jabbed, the little round sections depressing. But. Nothing. Was. Working!

With a muffled yell, Dani face-planted into the carpet. Fine. Whatever. She'd just lay here all night then.

Her brain hurt, mind swimming. The ticking of the clock, the humming of the fridge, the buzzing of the ceiling fan. All of it wafted in and out of her perception. She just wanted to sleep….

"I mean, I am the only other clo-" The boy cut himself off.

Clo…. What did he mean…. eyes wide and very guilty.

Tiny's face, brow furrowed in innocent confusion. His excitement, holding up his drawing. She'd finally got him to understand….

(Oh how her heart hurt at the memory…)

Danny's excited grin, proud at his display of ice powers.

Another flare of anger at the older half ghost. (How could he be happy when she felt so… so… horrible.) But, there was something else there too. Danny and Tiny, those two expressions (Somehow, impossibly…. The… same…).

There, on the living room floor, sleep took her.