A/N: Wow. Hi everyone. It's been some time. (Understatement of the decade).
This is not an update note. This is not me posting an outline. This is an actual chapter. An actual really long chapter. And one I know you've been waiting far too long for.
To those of you that have been interacting with me on tumblr (darthfrodophantom), the Discord servers, and AO3 (DarthFrodo) - hi again! Thanks for all your constant encouragement and support and thanks for welcoming me back into the Phandom. Thanks for putting up with me as I wrote other things and got myself back into the swing of things before I tackled this. And thank you SummersSixEcho for getting me back into this phandom and being an amazing friend.
To those of you who saw an email notification and were shocked to see an update - yeah, I feel you. I'd be shocked too! I'm sure a lot of you had written this off as abandoned or dead, and I don't blame you. In my heart, I always intended to finish it, but my intent and what time allows didn't seem to mesh. But thank you for coming back and for finishing this. And if you're out of the Phandom but are coming here to finish this, welcome back! The Phandom is still in full swing (there's an official canon graphic novel now!) and is amazing and we'd love to have you back!
To those of you who are just finding this now - welcome! I hope you've been enjoying what has probably been my greatest writing achievement, and I'm sure glad you didn't have to wait the 10 year gap between chapters!
I also need to give another huge thank you to SummersSixEcho for betaing this chapter, being my sounding board, and basically all your support and friendship through this chapter. This is here because of you! I cannot even give you enough love for helping me with this chapter.
For anyone who hasn't seen it, a remastered version of this story has been crossposted to AO3. The original will always live here, but the version on AO3 has some expanded scenes, updated writing style, and refreshed tone if you want to check it out.
I have a lot more I want to say, but I'll save it for the end because everyone's been waiting long enough. Don't worry, it's plenty long.
Chapter 25
Acceptance
He rocketed through the Ghost Zone in sheer determination, and woe to any ghost that would get in his way. The anger, the pain, the absolute heart-wrenching agony of it all radiated off him in waves. The normally active population of the Ghost Zone always pestered him when he ventured inside, but not this time. They could just tell something terrible had happened, and if they didn't want to be the second ghost that night that entered a permanent death...they knew to let him pass without interference.
But the lonely, single-minded path through the Ghost Zone only traumatized the young hero more because he didn't have anything to distract him from the pain. He almost welcomed a ghost so he could divert some of his pain onto them, but the Ghost Zone remained quiet and empty and dead.
The oppressive silence around him made the thoughts in his head sound louder, and try as he might he could not push their echoes out of his head.
"We're not stupid or reckless. We know what we're risking and what we're going up against."
No.
He squeezed his eyes tight as he pushed himself to fly faster.
"We're still there for you, one hundred percent. We'd never let you take him on alone."
NO.
He placed his hands over his ears and shook his head, as if that childish action would somehow stop the echoes of Jazz's voice in his head.
"Danny, I know there's a good chance that something will happen, but we're willing to risk it, and you should be too."
Stop it.
"We let you have the chance to risk your life to save the town and us, why can't we return the favor?"
Stop it. Stop it.
"STOP IT!"
He didn't even realize he screamed the last one out in a shaking, sobbing roar. He curled into a ball and buried his head into his knees as unrelenting tears poured down his face and raspy sobs shook his floating form. He couldn't stop his mind from opening himself up to his grief and now it paralyzed him.
Because even though he held her cold and still body in his hands not ten minutes ago, he still couldn't process the idea that his sister, the person he counted on more than he even knew, was dead. He always thought of her as such a constant in his life. He always expected her to be there nagging him or trying to parent him or cover and lie for him. He never thought he'd need to imagine a world in which she wouldn't be there, where those events didn't hold constant, and yet he now found himself in that unfathomable world.
No. No, he wouldn't. He refused to let himself live in that world. He was going to fix this. He came here to fix this. And floating here curled into a ball while his shaking body sobbed and choked on his cries didn't fix anything. He had to stop crying over this. He was alone in the Ghost Zone for a reason. He had ghosts to visit and mistakes to fix. He couldn't afford to keep bursting out in tears or he would never get this done. Then she really would be dead.
Being a hero meant ignoring his own needs for the safety of others. He'd always been good at that. Ignoring his sleep, his schoolwork, and on occasion his friends. Ignoring his exhaustion or his pain or his fear. And now…now he had to ignore his grief. Someone was counting on him. And not just a random person…this was his sister. The sister who was always there for him, even when he hadn't realized it. The sister who supported him and comforted him and cheered for him when he couldn't find the strength to cheer for himself. Jazz was always so selfless when it came to him, always willing to take the time to help him. Well, now she needed his help. He needed to focus. He needed to concentrate. He needed to stomp all these feelings down and dry his eyes and help her.
He uncurled from his ball and wiped his eyes on the sleeve of his jumpsuit. He couldn't promise himself those would be the last tears he shed, and he knew it, but they'd be the last ones he let delay his mission. He wiped his eyes again, slapped his cheeks, and shook his bangs out of his face. He fixed his gaze on his destination, clenched his jaw, and flew off deeper into the Ghost Zone.
"I'll save you, Jazz. I will," he swore under his breath. Despite his overwhelming exhaustion and despite the agony of his heart tearing itself to shreds in his chest, he pushed on with only one thought in his mind: to get to his destination.
Clockwork's tower stood out against the swirling green of the Ghost Zone, as imposing as ever. A testament to time and a symbol for the weight and gravity behind that concept.
Despite always being in the same general area, Danny usually had to keep a close watch on the horizon for the exact place, like if he turned too quickly he would miss it. Or he'd see it just out of the corner of his eye, but it would be gone again when he turned. Not this time. This time he found it right where he expected it to be, and the doors were flung wide open, almost as if they were waiting for him. Maybe it would make other intruders feel uneasy, but it only strengthened his determination further that he was doing the right thing.
He flew into the tower like a tired stormcloud on its last legs: still full of anger and devastation, but also teetering on the edge of an exhaustion so complete it threatened to overwhelm him. "Clockwork!" he called out into the lair and he heard his voice echo amongst the giant cogs that clicked and whirred. Strangely enough, none of the cogwheels showed any scenes or visions of the past or future like they had the other times he ventured inside. "Clockwork!" he called again.
"You need not shout, Danny Phantom," the wizened voice spoke up from behind him. "The sands of time saw you coming."
Danny spun around in the air to face the older and more frail appearance of the ghost. He knew him to be anything but frail. And yet at the same time, he didn't seem to care about respect or impudence or anything as he bristled at being chastised. "Yeah, yeah, save it. I need you to reverse time." He didn't have time for pleasantries.
Clockwork frowned. "I do not exist to be at your every beck and call, Danny Phantom," he warned him as he shifted his appearance to that of a young ghost. "I am not here to fix everything that goes wrong in your life."
Danny shook his head. No, he did not fly all the way out here to be turned away. That door was open for a reason. He refused to believe otherwise and he refused to back down. "No…no, you will fix this," he threatened. Clockwork had been too strong last time he tried to fight him, but he didn't care about that. He'd fight Clockwork as long as he needed if it let him go back in time.
"I will, will I? And why would I do that?" he challenged.
"Because you owe me."
"Owe you?" Clockwork repeated, and he almost sounded amused; it grated Danny to his core. "What do I owe you for?"
"Defeating Dan," he said simply. "Solving this little problem of yours." Was he really going to challenge him on this? Surely he wouldn't have to explain what happened to the Master of Time.
Clockwork's youthful face still carried a wry smile as it shifted to that of a middle-aged man. "I don't see how you did that for me," he pointed out. "It looks more like something you did for you."
Anger rushed through Danny's veins, hot and turbulent. It was almost a relief to feel something as pure as anger in the wake of his devastation and he gave himself over to it. "No, he was your responsibility and he escaped under your watch. And I handled him, just like I handled him the first time! And you didn't—"
He stopped as his eyes grew wide. Clockwork didn't do anything. He had the power to see everything, to see what would happen, and he didn't do anything. The deep stings of betrayal tore at his insides and stoked a dangerous fire inside him. "You let him escape," he growled. "You let him escape and look what he did! And you didn't do anything to stop him. You just watched it happen! You let him do all of this behind your back!"
Clockwork held a hand up, though it looked more placating than defensive. "Now Danny–"
"No! I don't want to hear your excuses!" Danny yelled. Tears clouded his eyes and he couldn't even understand why he was crying right now. He was supposed to be angry! "I don't want to hear about how 'this needed to happen' or 'he exists outside of time,'" he mocked. "I know how that all works. You may not be able to see him, but you could see Skulker. You could see me. You could see Jazz."
He choked on her name because it tore at his heart to say it aloud. He grabbed at his suit over his chest because something deep inside him hurt and he held onto that spandex tightly as he willed away that pain. His face softened for the briefest of moments before he glared once again at Clockwork. "You knew what was going to happen to all of us and you did nothing to stop it. You were supposed to look after him and you didn't!"
The silence after Danny's outburst echoed through the tower and it hung there until Clockwork spoke again. "You're starting to understand time quite well," he complimented, but to Danny it felt patronizing and disingenuous.
"I wonder why," Danny bit back sarcastically.
"You're right that I let it happen, but you seem to misunderstand the reason." Clockwork shifted to his older form, and Danny had to wonder if he did it intentionally because he wanted to sound wiser and more profound. He wasn't falling for that, not this time.
"Oh no, I think I understand just fine," Danny snapped as he pointed an accusatory finger at the ghost of time. "You messed up. You let Dan exist outside of time and you got in trouble for it. And since you seem to be incapable of taking care of anything without involving me, you made me get rid of him for you!"
Clockwork shook his head in disappointment. "You think that because part of what you said is true that all of that must be true, but that's not the case."
"But part of it is true," Danny pointed out as he latched on to the piece of information that confirmed his theory.
"Yes, but only part," the old ghost admitted.
Danny opened his mouth to retort, but Clockwork held his hand up and for some reason Danny stopped talking. He didn't want to listen. He wanted to rant and scream and yell at Clockwork and blame him for everything, and yet for some reason he stopped talking and let the other ghost speak his piece.
"Danny, I'm old," Clockwork continued. "Ever since time became a concept I have existed. So if I let this happen, I did it for a reason. And despite your accusations, I have your best interests at heart. I always have."
"If you had my best interests at heart you'd let me do this," Danny snapped.
"Think, Danny," Clockwork implored as he shifted to his younger form. "Think about how this was beneficial. Think about how this route led to Dan being eliminated for good. Feel the relief that should bring at not having that threat over your shoulder."
"Relief is the last thing I'm feeling right now," he spat. "He revealed my secret! He ruined my life! He killed my sister! And I'm supposed to be, what, happy about that?!"
"No, not happy, but feelings of relief are not predicated upon happiness," Clockwork advised him. "I allowed this to happen because this had the best outcome for the timelines. It remedied an anomaly in time that we were both responsible for. This is the best solution."
Danny shook his head as darkness shrouded over his features. "No, no, this can't be the best. Who gives you the right to decide that? It's my life after all."
"The Infinite Realms," Clockwork replied simply.
"You think I care what they say? I've never cared about any of that!" Danny scowled. "This is my life that's being messed with in the human world. I think I have the right to decide what's best for that life!"
Clockwork shook his head. "You do have the right to decide that, when you make choices in your life. But this is not something you can meddle with whenever you want. I have already bent the rules for you more times than you know."
"So bend them one more time," Danny reasoned. "If you've already done it before, then what harm is doing it again?"
Clockwork shifted to his adult form as his shoulders drooped. "The fact that you say that shows the harm that can be done," he sighed. "You have come to rely too much on time manipulation as a solution to your problems instead of learning to live with them as we should."
Danny ground his teeth at the ghost's resistance. Why was he being so difficult? He never expected Clockwork to put up this much of a fight! "Look, I admit, asking if I could go back in time to stop Vlad's accident was a mistake - I get that. But you knew I wasn't actually going to permanently change anything and you did it to teach me a lesson, so I don't really think that one counts. And the first time, you sought me out. This is the only time I've actually begged you to do this with the real, honest intention to change something. So just let me do it!"
Clockwork remained silent for a moment, and Danny had to fight the urge to say something more. Sam would always say he talked too much in an argument and would talk himself out of his good points. He needed to take her advice for once and shut up until Clockwork came back with a retort and then he could offer up more arguments.
Clockwork sighed again. He sat in silence for a moment, and Danny had to tamp down the urge to speak up again. He cocked his head slightly to the right before he straightened up and regarded Danny, his face resolute. "Very well. If you refuse to see it…then I will give you permission to go back in time."
"How dare you–wait, what?" Danny stammered midway through his prepared verbal flaying for Clockwork. He had been so sure he was going to deny him his request like he'd done so many others during this conversation, but he said he could go? Something seemed wrong. "You said permission? Just like that? You're going to change your mind just like that?"
"Yes. What can I say? You convinced me," Clockwork replied as a slight smile graced his lips. Something played along the edges of that smile that made Danny's stomach churn in a way he couldn't explain.
He raised a skeptical eyebrow as he crossed his arms over his chest. "Okay, well now I know something is up because we all know I'm not that convincing. Just ask literally any of my teachers." He gave in far too easily for his measly attempts at an argument, and it just didn't sit right.
An obscure meaning glimmered deep in the ghost's ancient red eyes that tickled the back of Danny's brain and set him on edge. "You might be more convincing than you know…when the cause is just. Now do you want this opportunity or not Danny Phantom?" he asked, his voice terse and impatient.
"Yes!" he all but yelled. His affirmation echoed ominously through the empty palace of time. It may have been a little too enthusiastic, but he wasn't going to miss this opportunity. He pushed aside all the warning bells in his mind. He got what he wanted, so why wouldn't he say yes?
"Very well. But I must warn you…this opportunity will not come without a cost," Clockwork intoned, and the seriousness of his words deepened his brow on his now elderly features.
"Yeah, yeah, I know," Danny dismissed. Nothing ever came without a cost as far as Clockwork was concerned and he expected this.
Clockwork raised a curious eyebrow. "Do you? Do you really know?"
The heaviness of his words…it settled uncomfortably inside Danny's gut and caused his first bit of indecision. Why was he trying to throw so much caution to the wind? Surely the cost would be the same as it had always been every other time he'd been allowed to mess with time. "I remember what you taught me the last time," he spoke up, hoping to dismiss Clockwork's unnecessary concerns.
"And I'm glad to hear that," he said patiently (almost as patronizing as before, Danny noted). "But I'm not just talking about unintended consequences. Yes, there are plenty of ways you could change the timeline and you should be aware of those, but there may be other costs that you may not yet see. And if your meddling does not produce the desired effect, know this: I will not help you fix it. No aid, no guidance, no do-overs." He let that threat linger in the air for a moment before continuing. "Now, do you still believe this is the right course of action?"
That warning that never really left his gut churned again as a reminder of its presence, but Danny dismissed it again. He couldn't let something like worry or fear of an unforeseen cost stop him. Not when he'd come so far, and not when the reward was so great. He lost his smirk and dropped his arms at his side. He stared down Clockwork as determination drew familiar creases along his face. "If it brings my sister back…then it's not really much of a choice."
"Very well." Clockwork floated slowly over to a nearby wall of the palace. His words still echoed in his place and brought a serious, solemn tone to the room. He reached for one of the time medallions that had become oh-so familiar to Danny and brought it back over to the ghost boy. Again he moved slowly, almost like he was trying to make the seriousness of the moment last. With great reverence, he placed the medallion around Danny's neck. "Unlike your prior experiences with time travel, I will not create a portal to a specific time. I will give you my staff."
That caught Danny's attention further and he jerked his head back in shock that he would just be handed such a powerful artifact. Now that feeling of foreboding reached around his heart and squeezed, insistent that he listen, but he stubbornly refused. Clockwork seemed pleased by his reaction and nodded slowly. "I'm glad you understand the seriousness of what I am giving you. You will use my staff and decide when and where you want to appear. You may travel as much as you want to explore. But in exchange for this freedom, you are only allowed to change one thing."
Normally he'd be frustrated by the rules. Only being allowed to change one thing? That could be difficult in any other circumstance, but if he could go anywhere and that change could impact anything…Clockwork actually gave him an even greater solution to all of his problems than he thought… "One thing, sure. I already know what that is."
Clockwork's young face raised an amused eyebrow. "So sure are you?"
"Uh, yeah. It's pretty obvious," Danny pointed out. Honestly, he was a C student and even he could see the opportunity and the answers Clockwork just gave him. Whether by design or not, Clockwork was about to give him the answer to all of his problems, including returning Jazz to him.
"Well, then this should be an easy task for you," Clockwork said, and that patronizing smile was back again. "You'll find the use of the staff to be quite intuitive," he instructed as he handed the staff over to Danny. Immediately he could feel the sheer power of this relic tingle in his hands. It shot up through his arms and spread throughout his body causing pleasant goosebumps along his skin. The only other time he could remember feeling this much power was when he held the royal artifacts of the Ghost Zone when he imprisoned Pariah Dark. He enjoyed that tingle of power…and feared it all the same.
"Good luck, Danny Phantom," Clockwork bade him, and he sounded sincere. "I hope for all our sakes you make the right decision."
Even though he didn't raise his voice, those last words echoed through the palace as Clockwork disappeared. That foreboding feeling returned as his instincts screamed that he might have made a mistake in meddling with the affairs of time, but that had to be wrong. Saving his sister couldn't be a bad, ominous thing. He'd just have to be smart about this, and if he took his time and thought it through, then he'd have his sister back plus some. Whether Clockwork knew it or not…he was giving him the chance to fix everything, and Danny intended to take advantage of that.
He knew exactly what he wanted to do. He could fix everything. All his problems. Jazz's death. Andrew's death. The fight with Dan. His secret being uncovered to the world. He could fix it all. With Clockwork's staff in hand, his face narrowed in determination as he flew outside of Clockwork's lair. He gave the knob on the top an experimental turn, and he watched time rewind around him. He stopped when he saw his own trembling form approach and fly into the lair, and he felt his heart clench because he didn't realize how terrible he looked. Swollen, pained eyes pierced out of a worn face. His torn suit exposed an angry burn in his abdomen. Bruises spotted his body and red and green blood from numerous injuries smeared and speckled his suit and skin. His body shook with the effort it took to hold itself together long enough to fly in there. No wonder Clockwork took pity on him.
"Don't worry," he assured himself as he watched his past self fly by him. "It'll all be fixed soon." He held the staff up and teleported himself out of the Ghost Zone and into the streets of Amity. But it wasn't the street with the fated battle. No, he landed right on top of a manhole cover next to buildings that still bore scorch marks and cracked pavement from a ghost fight that took place not that long ago. He grabbed the knob on top of the staff and turned it counter-clockwise, triggering time to reverse. He watched as cars and people sped past him backwards. The sun traveled backwards across the sky as it set behind him and rose in front of him. Back and back he let time pass until he saw a glimpse of a giant hydra ghost loom over the street and then disappear.
"Shoot!" Danny cursed, realizing he'd gone too far. He grabbed the knob and turned it the other way. The ghost appeared and then seemed to disappear again. "Ugh, come on!" he screamed as he rewound time again, but this time slower so he didn't miss it. He watched himself battle the ghost in reverse, grateful he missed the part of the battle where Jazz was present. He couldn't handle seeing her again, not until he knew he'd saved her. He finally stopped time as soon as the hydra ghost appeared on the scene. Andrew had to be set up by now, which meant he could stop him from recording him and stop him from outing his secret to the world.
He flew up to the building and looked through the windows until sure enough, he found Andrew sitting in front of a window with a camera trained on the street below. He flew into the room and thought closely about the best way to do this. Take away his camera? No, then he could still watch the transformation he just wouldn't have proof. Give him a distraction in the apartment that would divert his attention? Risky, especially if the distraction didn't work. Knock him out? A little harsh, but it was the only thing guaranteed to work, and Clockwork said he could only change one thing…
So this was it. This was the action that would reverse everything. This action would give him his secret identity back. As far as the world was concerned, he'd go back to being plain, normal Danny Fenton. He could go to school like a normal kid again. Sure he'd still be failing his classes without those new special policies, and Dash would still be shoving him into lockers, and he'd be facing detention more days than not, but he could just pass by unnoticed by everyone else. He would no longer be the cause of the rift between his immediate and extended families. Of course Valerie would still be hunting him, but if she took the news well this time she could probably handle it again right? Especially if he was the one to tell her. His parents too. He could probably tell them. They hadn't rejected him or treated him like some kind of undead freak and his relationship with them had actually improved. He'd probably lose some of the city-wide approval he'd been building since the press conference, but he didn't actually care about that anyways, right?
Okay so maybe it wasn't all bad, but it was bad enough that he needed to reverse it. This was his only chance to go back to his old life. He had to do this.
He transferred the staff to one hand and made a fist, ready to knock him out, but he hesitated. Why was he hesitating? This was what he wanted...right? To get his life back. To save Jazz. To stop Dan's plan.
Except...would it really stop Dan's plan? At this point Skulker was already working for Dan. If Andrew didn't reveal his secret today...Dan would just give him another time and location, or give the tip to another reporter. And if he gave it to another reporter, would that reporter be as cooperative and risk unveiling Dan as the mastermind? Would they automatically destroy the message? His family could end up in even worse shape. He could end up in even worse shape. Stopping Andrew here and now...it wouldn't fix anything.
He dropped his fist and buried his exhausted head in his hands as he took deep breaths - not because he actually needed to breathe, but to help calm himself down. God, he almost messed this up so badly. He'd focused so much of his attention on fixing this exact moment for so long it was the first place he thought of, and it would have been wrong. A small voice in the back of his mind reminded him that maybe this was a sign he was playing with a force that shouldn't be messed with by anyone, let alone a fifteen year old boy, but he ignored it. He couldn't walk out of here without stopping Dan and saving Jazz.
So if Dan relied on Skulker while he was in the thermos...then he needed to stop Skulker. His face shined with renewed determination as a new idea formed in his mind. Skulker had been in hiding so he didn't risk revealing Dan's master plan, but he knew exactly where he would be and when. He held the staff up into the air and teleported again.
Clockwork appeared behind the spot Danny had previously vacated, a pleased smile resting on his young face. "Well done, Danny Fenton," he complimented to the still air around him. "We can only hope you continue to choose wisely, for all our sakes."
He arrived in the Ghost Zone, floating once again outside of Clockwork's lair. It was still the day Andrew unveiled his secret to the world and Clockwork's lair was completely deserted.
"This teleporting stuff is pretty handy," Danny commented off-hand. "I could get used to-" He automatically turned to his right to look for Tucker and Sam's opinion on the merits of teleportation, but he stopped short when he remembered they weren't actually there. That's right, this was a solo mission. His friends and partners in crime were injured and on their way to the hospital. His chest constricted and his stomach knotted, but he tightened his hold on the staff. He had to focus on the mission. He would reverse this and they would all be fine. He just had to change time and everything would be fine.
He closed his eyes, took a deep, unnecessary breath in and out, and focused his attention on the large pendulum frozen in place on the tower. He knew if he flew into the deeper recesses of the lair Dan would be there, still in the thermos, celebrating the start of his plan. Maybe Skulker would be there, or maybe he was watching Andrew, but either way, this wasn't the time he wanted to change. He wanted to find Skulker before he met Dan, which meant going further into the past.
His hand hovered over the knob on the staff. How far back in time did he need to go? When would Skulker even arrive to find Dan? Had it been a day before they revealed his secret? A week? He honestly didn't know. He could probably reverse time slowly and watch for Skulker to enter or exit the lair, but that felt like it would take forever. Sure he had all the time to do it, but he wasn't sure he had the patience.
"Ugh, I could really use someone to bounce ideas off of right now," he grumbled to himself. Honestly the absolute silence of being frozen in time gnawed at him. He never realized how much ambient sound existed even within the Ghost Zone until everything just stopped, and only this oppressive silence around him remained. He needed to fix the timeline and fast.
"Okay think Danny, think," he said, just to have some kind of noise break the silence. "Much as you hate to admit it, you know Dan. You know how he works. You can figure this out." Dan wouldn't have sat on a resource like Skulker for long, just in case he changed his mind or couldn't keep his mouth shut. And he would need a couple days to set up the ghost attack (that hydra was probably one of Skulker's trophies, now that he thought about it) and give Andrew time to set up. He bit his lip and decided that three days seemed like a good shot. He turned the knob and watched the hands on the clock spin backwards while he kept an eye out for movement near the lair.
Finally he saw it - Skulker's large frame and flaming hair flying backwards at a quick pace into the large double-doors of Clockwork's lair. So if he was looking at time in reverse, that meant that he was actually watching Skulker leave, which also meant he should be entering shortly. He monitored the doors expectantly until finally Skulker emerged. He breathed a sigh of relief and flew closer to get a better look. Even watching Skulker move in reverse, he could tell something was off. Skulker's mechanical face was surprisingly expressive, and right now he looked apprehensive but determined and knew exactly where he was going. This wasn't his first time meeting Dan. This was a return trip. He had to go back further.
He groaned as he rewound time faster, waiting for another appearance of Skulker. He saw a few ghosts occasionally fly past the giant clock tower, but couldn't spot any additional appearances of Skulker until finally, around three days prior, he saw Skulker return and then emerge backwards through the double-doors again. This time Skulker approached slower, with more apprehension. He continued to check the displays on his arm, like he was looking for something, like a hunter navigating through foreign and potentially dangerous terrain while stalking his prey. This had to be Skulker's first trip here.
"Finally," he groaned as he slowed time to a stop. He flew up even with Skulker so he could look him in the face. "You're gonna regret going in there, I can promise you that," he told the frozen Skulker, even though he knew he couldn't hear him. "Don't worry, I'm gonna fix it. No, no, you can thank me later."
He floated back, hand on his chin as he stared at Skulker in thought. How did he stop him from coming here? Find a way to warn him? No, that would break the no contact rule. Wreck his suit? No, that would just delay him for now, but he'd come back later if he was on the hunt for something. Wipe out whatever signal he was tracking? A solid idea, but way above his skill level. He could think of a way to stop him this time...but he couldn't think of a way to permanently stop him from coming here again later. And then...what about all the other ghosts he saw fly past here? Could he stop all of them from ever contacting Dan? It seemed like far too impossible a feat to ensure with one edit in time. He was running into the same problem as last time! He could stop it for a moment, but he couldn't stop anyone from ever being a pawn in Dan's master plan. And if he couldn't stop his plan, then he couldn't save Jazz!
Unless...unless he just stopped Dan. He perked up at that thought and turned to face Clockwork's lair. Dan was inside there in a thermos. Frozen. Helpless. He could destroy him. He'd just done it, which meant he could do it again. Except now Dan wouldn't be fighting back. Sure it was a little underhanded and not very heroic, but it rid the world of a menace before he could harm anyone else. And once he was destroyed, then no one could ever find him. He could never orchestrate for his secret to be revealed. No one would have to fight him. Jazz would still be alive.
With renewed hope he flew inside and looked around for where Clockwork would keep a thermos containing the most dangerous ghost in the Ghost Zone. He didn't see Clockwork anywhere inside the building, but then again he never expected to. He had a feeling Clockwork would be conveniently absent until he worked this out on his own. He finally found it, the long, dark hallway that served as Dan's prison, and he felt a chill race up his spine as soon as he floated down it. He didn't know why he was so nervous. He was harmless right now. He couldn't do anything to him. So why did he feel so uncomfortable?
He approached the thermos and stopped, again hesitating. Why was he hesitating? Uncertainty? Fear? None of those feelings made any sense. He urged himself to fly closer when a chilling voice stopped him dead in his tracks.
"What are you looking for?" the deep, malicious voice asked, and Danny had to cover his mouth to prevent himself from crying out in surprise. The sound echoed down the hall and seemed incredibly loud after being surrounded by such silence for so long. "I can feel you. You're rewinding and stopping time. You're trying to find something. And if you're here now...that must mean it has to do with me." Danny couldn't see it, but he could hear the grin in the dangerous voice.
He backed up in the air as he shook his head. He checked the staff again, afraid he might have accidentally started time again, but no, it was still frozen. So how? How could Dan be talking to him? How did he know he was here?
He exits outside of time now. He remembered Clockwork's warnings in his head after that fateful battle. He didn't understand what it meant before...but now he did. Dan…his prison…it was outside of time, which meant that even if he stopped time…it didn't stop time for Dan. It was a terrifying realization, one he was very glad he hadn't really understood the meaning of until now. He always had this lingering worry that Dan would come back (or even worse, that he'd turn into him) but he'd always found comfort knowing he was under Clockwork's care. But the only protection he'd had this entire time had been the thermos. That sent a shiver down his back and made him even more grateful now that he was gone for good.
He must have lingered too long because he heard Dan chuckle, a menacing sound with the added echo of the thermos and the dark hallway. "You know it's only a matter of time. I will get out of this thermos. It's why you're here. You, the great Master of Time, are trying to subvert time once again for your little pet. Well, it won't work. I'm getting out, you'll see. And if you're spending so much time here...it must be soon."
He booked it out of the hallway and he didn't stop flying until he was far from Clockwork's lair. He couldn't release him now. Even with time stopped, if he released him he'd just have to fight him again and he…he couldn't. He couldn't fight him again. Not alone. Not weakened and injured and emotionally and physically exhausted. Even if he was doing it for Jazz, and even if he tried to use that as the motivation he needed to push through, he just knew he didn't have it in him.
He screamed out in frustration, resisting the urge to punch something in case Clockwork counted that as his one action. He curled up into a ball again around the staff, squeezing his eyes tight to shut out the resurgence of tears. He was at a loss. He was never the one to come up with the plans - he counted on the rest of Team Phantom for that. He had no more ideas on how to stop his secret from being revealed, from saving Jazz.
Except…maybe…
He uncurled from his ball, eyes clear and alert for the first time since he entered the Ghost Zone. He kept thinking that the only way he could save Jazz was to stop Dan's plan but it wasn't. Stopping the plan would save his secret and save him the pains of notoriety, but he didn't need to stop that to save Jazz.
"I get it now," he sighed. He knew Clockwork was watching him, even if he hadn't made himself known. "It's save my secret or save Jazz. I can't have both. You know, you could have just told me." He knew he wouldn't though. This was one of those 'had to figure it out on his own' lessons.
He raised the staff into the air again and teleported back to that cursed street. The one where his secret had been revealed and the one where, later, he would fight and destroy Dan…and lose his sister.
"Not this time," he swore, and he turned the knob so that time raced forward. He briefly saw the Hydra ghost again (wow, was he glad he didn't interfere with that one like he'd intended) as the days passed by until a streak of green light caught his attention. He quickly paused time and found himself at the beginning of the battle. He saw himself charging in, his ectoblast hitting Dan square in the chest.
Except, wait…Dan was here. Dan, who existed out of time. Dan who would still see him. He had not thought this through. This was why he needed Tucker and Sam here to tell him when his plans were dumb! They were always the ones who thought of things like this!
"Shoot!" he cried out as he raised the staff, ready to teleport literally anywhere else…except Dan didn't do anything. He floated in the air frozen…just like everything else. Danny lowered the staff slightly and peered around it in curiosity. Why was he frozen? Was it because he wasn't in the thermos? Was it because he was out of Clockwork's lair? Was Clockwork intervening? He quickly realized these were large metaphysical questions that he really didn't have the brain power to work through or solve. Instead, he decided to take it as a sign that he was doing the right thing. This was clearly the path Clockwork intended for him to walk, and he would continue to see it through.
He blindly reached for the knob on top of the staff again as he kept his gaze focused on Dan. He slowly turned the small piece of metal and the world moved forward in time. He watched the battle play out slowly, keeping his eyes on Dan to make sure he continued to move in time with Danny's manipulation of the staff. He had to make sure it wasn't just an act. But once Dan split himself four ways and all of them continued to respond to his sporadic stopping and fast-forwarding and rewinding, he accepted that he might legitimately be frozen like the rest of them. Now he just needed to find the moment to save Jazz.
He followed the duplicate that attacked Tucker, Sam, and Jazz. He tried so hard to ignore the rest of the battle surrounding him, but the green and pink lights from ecto-blasts and weapons flickered around the street and he couldn't stop himself from stealing glances to see where those blasts ended up. He honestly didn't know what happened to everyone else in the battle. He'd been so preoccupied fighting his own Dan with Valerie he hadn't even seen what everyone else endured. How many hits had they taken? Were there more injuries than what he'd seen on the brief inspection of his family and friends before he found Jazz's lifeless body? He watched as Dan charged up an ectoplasmic ball of energy and released it towards his mother, but then his father jumped in front and–
He wrenched his face away, forcing himself to focus on Jazz. Everyone else was okay. Regardless of what hits they took and their injuries, everyone else was still alive. But Jazz wasn't. He had to focus on her. He couldn't stop any of those injuries from happening, and he could almost hear Jazz's voice in his head warning him that torturing himself with watching his friends and family take hits he couldn't actually prevent didn't help anything. As hard as it was to ignore the need to protect everyone during the fight or at least know what they went through, he chose to trust that inside voice.
Dan flew towards Jazz and she fought. She fought so valiantly. Her determined face stared him down and she fired shot after shot at his advancing figure. Unfortunately they weren't enough to deter him, and he flew right up to her and grabbed the peeler. Danny winced as he watched her hand crumple along with the gun and chills ran down his back as he heard his sister scream in pain. Pain he should have prevented. Pain that may have been the last thing she remembered. Dan ripped the helmet off Jazz's suit, and now Danny could clearly see the agony stretched across her face.
Dan lifted up a fist, holding it above her head as he gave a chilling, foreboding farewell. Dan's arm came down with such force and–
Danny hit pause on the staff and closed his eyes. He couldn't look. He couldn't bear to advance time any further. He felt clammy and nauseous, an odd feeling in his ghost form. Tears blurred his vision and the world swam uncomfortably. He struggled to swallow around some lump lodged in his throat. He really didn't want to see this. He had been spared the memory of the killing blow and he didn't want to see it. But if this wasn't the one…if this was the wrong moment…he would regret it forever.
He opened his eyes and looked at Jazz, the sister he had to save. He raised his hand up to the staff to advance time once more. His hand hovered and trembled above the staff, just waiting for those last few inches. He bunched up his face into a grimace and clenched his jaw, willing himself to move his hand those couple inches more, but his hand didn't move. He wrenched his hand away and screamed out in frustration as he turned around in the air.
"Clockwork you sadistic jerk!" he yelled to the unmoving street. He knew he was watching him, and he knew he could hear him. "'Changing time comes with a cost,'" he mocked as he paced angrily in the air. "You're seriously going to make this the cost? I thought sacrificing my privacy would be the cost. Finding the right moment and giving up the chance to fix that instead. But no, it's this isn't it? Watching my sister die? Remembering my sister dying? Being the only one to remember mourning her wasn't bad enough for you huh? No, you're going to make me watch this!" he accused as he aggressively gestured towards Jazz's form, frozen in the air mere moments from death.
He paced in the air as he ran a hand through his hair. He waited for a response he knew wouldn't come. Clockwork had warned him: no help, no guidance, no do-overs, and there would be a cost. He held true to those promises. He cried out in frustration and kicked the air before turning to face Jazz again.
"You can do this Danny," he told himself as he stared at Jazz's pained face. "You can do this. You have to save her. This is your mess and your villain, and she paid the price. You have to fix this." He had no other choice. He had to make sure this was the right moment. He had to analyze it to figure out how to stop it. He had to do this. As much as he didn't want to, as much as it churned his stomach, as much as the memories of her death would haunt his nightmares, he had to do it. It was better than the alternative, because the alternative was her dead, and that was not an option.
He narrowed his brow in determination and with a deep breath he focused his attention on Jazz and pressed the button on the staff. Time started again…and he watched his sister die.
He knew this was the death blow as soon as Dan's fist connected with her head. Her head caved in around his fist with a sickening crackle of bone. The color drained from her face and her eyes went blank and unfeeling as her face and body just went limp. She fell to the floor, the dull red strands of her hair falling through Dan's white gloved fingers.
His body shook. Bile rose up in his throat and he choked it down. His arms stiffened. He felt cold. He felt dizzy. He felt nauseous. He felt numb. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't think. He couldn't feel. He couldn't–
The staff almost slipped from his numb hands, and he reacted on instinct and wrapped it securely in his arms. Almost losing the ancient staff, the only thing that kept him in this timeline, forced him out of his shock. He gripped it tightly and shut his eyes as tears poured down his cheeks. Even if he wasn't looking, he could still see it. The fist sink into her skull. Her hair fall through white gloved fingers. Those images burned themselves behind his eyelids and no matter what he did, he couldn't be rid of them. The only thing he could think to do - no, the only thing he could do - was to make sure that the only place that scene existed was in his mind. If he couldn't be rid of that scene, he'd make sure that time was rid of it.
He stopped and rewound time without looking because he couldn't do it again. Even in reverse. He just couldn't see it again. He looked at shadows, their legs, anything to help give context clues without actually having to see his sister die in reverse. He finally found the right moment and stopped time as Dan raised his fist up to deliver the killing blow. He flew over to them and shifted Dan's fist so when it came down it would be a glancing blow. A non-fatal blow. It wouldn't save her from injury, but it would hopefully convince Dan to leave her alone and not try again.
He flew back, ready to start time again. He knew he should be nervous. He just used his one chance to change time and if he didn't get it right, then he'd blown everything. Every other time he'd thought to meddle, he was wracked with indecision. But this time…he just knew it was going to work. He bit his lip again in determination and started time.
The blow glanced off the side of Jazz's head and hit her in the shoulder. The force of the blow took her down to the ground and she bumped her head on the pavement. She was down and maybe disoriented or unconscious, but not dead.
Not dead.
"Jazz!" Sam cried and she shot a blast towards Dan, which caught his attention. He turned to face her and grabbed her hands. He used his own electrical powers to short the Specter Deflector, just like before. He left Jazz alone. He waited for Sam to scream in pain, and he winced at seeing yet another person take an injury he couldn't fix, but it caught the Danny in that timeline's attention and he flew over to attack, just like he remembered doing. Everything else seemed to be working the way he remembered in the battle. But now he could see Jazz breathing. She was still alive.
He watched her chest and shoulders move as a familiar battle raged on around him. In and out. Up and down. For minutes on end he watched her. She continued to breathe. It didn't sound labored. He didn't see any blood around her head. In and out. Up and down. She was still alive.
He finally let out a large breath he didn't realize he'd been holding. He dropped to the ground and leaned on the staff, physically exhausted and emotionally drained, but he finally let himself acknowledge that it had worked. He had done it.
He thought he'd be happier. He thought he'd be cheering in victory and punching the air and celebrating. And he was happy. He had his sister back. When he returned to his timeline…she'd be there. There couldn't be a happier thought than that. Just seeing her lying there, still breathing, made him glow and almost smile. Tears poured down his cheeks, but they weren't happy or sad, they were just…relief. His body's way of shedding all the burdens and stress and grief that Jazz's death had piled onto him. It all left along with his tears. He felt lighter. But as relieved as he was and as happy as he was, he just didn't feel much like celebrating. It still didn't feel like the victory he expected it to be.
"Most hard-won victories are bittersweet, once we take time to think about them," a wise voice said from behind him. "You'll find the desire to celebrate in time."
He should have been shocked to hear a strange voice behind him, especially after everything he'd seen, but he had been expecting Clockwork to appear now that his task was complete.
He didn't turn to address the ancient ghost. "How did you know I was– wait nevermind," Danny dismissed. "I know the answer." He continued to look at Jazz's shoulders as they moved. He didn't watch them with fear, like he was afraid they'd stop. He trusted Clockwork enough to know he'd saved her. He watched them because he couldn't think of a more reassuring sight than this proof that his sister was alive.
"You're catching on," Clockwork said with a slight smile. "For what it's worth, I'm proud of you Danny."
He ducked his head and bit his lip as more tears slipped down his cheeks. He'd heard it a lot since his secret had been revealed. His parents, Jazz, his friends…he'd heard it so many times, but he never grew tired of hearing it. And now hearing it from someone he considered a mentor, he felt warmth spread through his body from the praise. Hearing that from Clockwork, despite how irritated he was with him…it almost made him feel like the battle was finally over.
"I just gave you some very difficult choices," Clockwork acknowledged. Time still moved on around them as Dan and Danny engaged in battle above the street, but neither of the time traveling visitors paid it much attention. "Some very adult choices. I won't say if you made the right choice, because I don't believe there is ever a 'right' choice, but you made the choice I hoped you would make."
"Doesn't sound like much of a difference," Danny scoffed.
"Oh but there is a big difference, Danny." Clockwork floated closer, but still stayed behind him. "The choice I hope you make is swayed by knowing all the possible timelines of all the possible outcomes. It's the one I believe will make you the happiest, but I don't actually know what you're feeling. Only you know what your own right choice is."
"You're talking about free will, aren't you?" Danny guessed.
Clockwork hummed in approval. "Yes, actually. That's very astute of you."
"I just watch a lot of TV," Danny sighed as he finally turned around to face Clockwork's childish form. "So what now?"
"Now we put you back into the timeline," he explained as he held his hands out for the staff. "When you are ready: you are welcome to stay here as long as you need."
Danny willingly handed the staff over to Clockwork, glad to be rid of it and the responsibility it held. That rush of power left him through his fingers and they tingled in the aftermath, but he only felt relief to be rid of it. "What, no 'I've got all the time in the world' crack?" he asked as he tried to lighten his mood with jokes. Jazz always said inappropriate humor was his coping mechanism, and he needed it to not fail him now. "I'm disappointed."
Clockwork chuckled as he paused the world around them. "I felt like it would be in poor taste."
Danny shrugged. "Maybe, but that's never stopped me." He looked at the world around him, frozen in the midst of an exhausting battle he could still feel deep in his bones and muscles if he let himself think about it long enough. Not having to see that battle from an outsider's view brought so much relief because he really didn't think he could handle that right now. But seeing Dan's frozen form mid-strike reminded him of a curiosity he still couldn't place, and he bit his lip as he thought through it. "How come he's frozen now when he wasn't before?" he asked as he gestured to Dan.
"Now that is a very astute question," Clockwork acknowledged. "It also has a very complicated answer. Suffice it to say that I removed Dan from the timeline when I took him into captivity. By interfering with your life and interacting so directly with someone from your timeline, he inserted himself back into your timeline. Whether he did this knowingly or unknowingly, I cannot say, but at the moment of his defeat, he was back in your timeline."
Danny's eyes grew wide as so much of that explanation rushed over his head. Sure he watched a lot of science fiction, but understanding the complexities of this seemed far beyond his pay grade. He was sure Tucker and his parents would love to pick apart the finer details of what Clockwork truly meant by existing outside of time, or what situations would allow someone to reintegrate back into or fall out of the timeline, but he really didn't have the heart to find those explanations and answers right now. He liked to focus on the take-home points, and to him, it further emphasized he made the right choice. If allowing Dan's actions put him inside his own timeline again, then that had to be a sign that allowing it to happen had been the right call.
"Yeah, that is complicated," Danny groaned. "But I think I get what you're trying to say."
He fell silent for a long moment. His eyes fell on Jazz's body, still unconscious on the ground. But she was only unconscious. Not dead. He felt like he needed to keep reminding himself that her body only appeared frozen and still because she was frozen in time. She wasn't dead, even though he could still feel the chilling cold of her body in his hands. The way her limbs and head flopped around when he pulled her into his lap. The way her face disappeared from the world as he zipped the black bag over her. The sound her skull made as Dan's fist plunged into it–
He shook his head and blinked the tears from his eyes. Those memories would stick with him forever, and he would harbor them alone and in silence. No one else would ever remember what happened…except for him. He alone would carry that burden, and he wrapped his arms around his body as he felt the weight of that burden settle on his shoulders. "You know, as far as costs go, this was a pretty big one," he finally said.
Clockwork seemed to notice the shift in his demeanor and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Changing the future to bring someone back to life is a pretty big ask, no matter the circumstances around their death."
Danny nodded solemnly. "Yeah, I see that now." He felt so grateful Clockwork didn't take the chance to say "I told you so" because he could have. He warned Danny about a cost and he didn't want to hear it; he'd already decided he would pay the cost regardless. He hadn't expected this kind of a cost, but he also didn't regret it. His sister was worth it.
"This whole picking the right moment thing…that's why you let me do this, isn't it? You wanted me to learn this lesson," Danny pointed out.
Clockwork nodded as a fond smile graced his wizened old features. "I realized you would not understand until you experienced it for yourself. Some lessons are better learned by living them."
He hated to admit that Clockwork made a point. He remembered barging into Clockwork's lair demanding this change to the timeline. He refused to take no for an answer, and if Clockwork had granted it…he probably would have asked for it again and again. Or he would have asked for the wrong thing without taking the time to think things through. He knew Clockwork had given in too easily, and now at least he understood why.
"I think you've lingered here long enough," Clockwork decided. "I know you're feeling the burden of your decision, but I promise, you'll feel better about it once I return you to your timeline. So long as you remain here, you will only focus on the cost you paid. It's time to see the reason you paid for it."
Before he could really argue, Clockwork removed the necklace from around his neck. The world blurred around him as if moving on a fast-forward setting so quick he couldn't even make out the individual changes. And suddenly everything stopped. Dan was gone, replaced by a crater in the street. The previously empty street was full of useless onlookers and helpful people who crowded around the injured. Ambulances parked at the end of the street carrying stretchers.
"This is where your new timeline picks up," Clockwork informed him. "I hope you find it worth the price you paid, and I hope you remember the lesson you learned."
"I will," Danny promised. He also hoped it was worth the price, because now was the moment of truth. Did it actually work? He'd find out shortly, and it admittedly terrified him. If it didn't work…he honestly didn't know if he could handle that.
"We will meet again, Danny Fenton," Clockwork informed him, and while it could have sounded ominous, Danny could feel a fondness creeping into that sentiment. "And it will be under better circumstances."
"It had better be," Danny chuckled lightly, but it didn't have its usual mirth to it. "Thank you, Clockwork."
The wizened old figure of the ghost nodded his head before he hovered his hand over the staff. "Time in," he commanded.
A cacophony of sounds hit Danny as soon as time resumed, and after the complete silence of being outside of time, it was overwhelming. The flashing lights of the ambulances brought a chaotic panic to all the sounds that echoed through the street. The chatter of the onlookers, the barking orders from the paramedics, the shouts from people caring for the injured to the paramedics - had it been this loud before? He couldn't remember it being this overwhelming last time. Then again, last time he hadn't really been paying attention to anything but the signs of life he could feel from his friends and family.
He fell too easily back into that panic from before. The absolute terror as he approached each friend and family member, praying they would be okay. The exhaustion from the battle countered with the tingling thrill of victory. The stomach-churning guilt at seeing the most important people in his life injured because they decided to help him. The quick relief at finding a pulse only to fill again with heart-stopping panic and terror when he turned to face another family member. The way time seemed to freeze and his whole body shut down when he turned to check on his sister and saw Lancer's tear-stained face…
That's right. Jazz.
He pushed past all the sensory input and flew to her side. Lancer hovered over her as he held a handkerchief to the wound on her head. Tears on his cheeks glittered in the red and blue lights of the ambulances and fear gripped his heart once more. Oh, no… He messed up. He hadn't saved her. He thought he had, but somehow it hadn't worked. It had all been for nothing. It–
"Mr. Fenton, she's okay," Lancer announced as soon as he saw Danny next to him. And that's when Danny realized those weren't tears of sadness, but tears of relief. He let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding as tears traveled down his own cheeks. His hands shook and he couldn't really say why. The chaotic waves of anxiety that crashed around him receded, and the bright light of hope filled him. The world spun around him as that brilliance contrasted with the utter depths of loss and defeat that had been his constant companion for so long.
"Did you hear me? She's okay," Lancer repeated. "She's just unconscious. But I've got her. Go check on the others."
Danny burst out into tears as he cried into his hands, mostly because he didn't know what to do with all these emotions building up inside. The joy from hearing that everything actually worked out was too much. But through all the tears he couldn't fight the wide smile because he'd done it.
"Everyone's okay," he said through happy cries as he wiped his eyes on the backs of his gloved hands. He laughed in a way that probably made him sound like he'd finally lost it, but he was just so relieved he didn't quite know what to do with all of it. "We're all…we're all okay. I did it. I fixed it."
Lancer looked up at him with a raised eyebrow. "Not sure what you fixed, but I am relieved to hear everyone's okay," he said slowly. Clearly he thought Danny was acting strange, and honestly he probably would have thought the same, but he didn't understand. None of them did. None of them could. None of them had seen the alternate timeline where Lancer comforted him over the loss of his sister instead of questioning his sanity, and he'd make sure none of them ever did either.
"It could have been a lot worse," was the only thing Danny could think to say, his voice a little more controlled and sober.
Lancer's features softened as he nodded. "I'm sure it could have been. I'm glad it's not. But Mr. Fenton, I can take care of Jazz if–"
"No," he cut in sharply. "I want to help her." Even if he knew she was fine, he wanted to be near her. He wanted to revel in the fact that she was alive. And maybe someday these memories of helping her recover would replace the ones where he held her dead body and zipped her up in a body bag.
Paramedics finally came over to check on Jazz, and this time Danny didn't fight their presence. They gave her a once-over and after declaring she had no other injuries aside from her head wound, they gave permission for her to be moved onto a stretcher. Danny offered to lift her and no one fought him on that decision. He carried her with such a gentle bearing and set her down on the stretcher. He leaned over to kiss her forehead and whispered in her ear "I told you I'd save you" before he let the paramedics take her away for more tests.
Paramedics rushed Sam and the Red Huntress immediately to the hospital. Their critical condition necessitated a quick response, but at least their wounds weren't fatal. No one really knew what to do with Plasmius since he managed to remain in his ghost form, but once paramedics labeled Maddie as stable, he disappeared and Danny had a feeling he was off to treat his own wounds. Tucker woke up for a few moments, long enough for Danny to give him a hug and check on him before he passed out again.
And then his dad woke up, and then his mom. Maddie looked like she was in so much pain she would have preferred being unconscious, but when she saw Danny flying about checking on everyone she cried out to him with an overjoyed "Danny!" He heard his mom call his voice and he turned to see both of his parents awake. He immediately flew into her arms and then into the arms of his father. He was a mess of tears as he hugged his parents. After the battle and dealing with the loss of Jazz and going back in time to relive her death, it felt so good and cathartic to hug his parents. He felt like a little child seeking refuge in their arms and he didn't realize how much he needed that hug until he found himself inside it.
"Danny! Oh, Danny you did it!" Maddie cried out. Her voice shuddered with pain, but she ignored it in favor of celebrating with her son. "You beat him! Oh, I knew you could!"
"We're so proud of you Danny," Jack told him, voice cracking with emotion. "You saved all of us Danny. You saved the town."
"No, we saved it. All of us. I couldn't have done it without all of you." And he meant that too. He almost caused a timeline where maybe he didn't have all their support to beat Dan, and while he didn't know how that timeline turned out, Clockwork's reaction gave him a feeling it would have been bad. "Maybe I had the last blow, but I never could have done it alone."
"Danny, take it from a professional ghost hunter: we wouldn't have gotten close without you," Jack said solemnly as he placed a hand on Danny's shoulder. "You did good today, son. I know how hard that was for you, but you did it."
"Your father's right," Maddie agreed. Her quiet voice still sounded pained, and Danny wanted to beg her not to talk or strain herself, but he knew she wouldn't listen. "That was a physical and emotional battle, and you came out on top. You conquered your demons today."
Tears fell down Danny's cheeks as he cried into his mother's uninjured leg. Her fingers corded weakly through his hair and his father placed a hand on his back. She didn't even know how much of an emotional battle he just endured. He watched Dan pick off his family one by one during the battle until only he remained as the last one standing. He survived the verbal and physical onslaught of Dan's attacks and came out victorious, only to find that victory dashed as he beheld the dead body of his sister and faced the thoughts of a life without his sister by his side.
Thankfully he'd been able to reverse that, so no one else would ever need to deal with grieving Jazz for a very long time. He wouldn't have to watch his parents come to the same realization they'd outlived their daughter, or watch his dad sob over the body of his precious Jazzerincess. They'd never have to live with that knowledge, and so they could never understand that even in his victory, he was silently doomed to bear the burden of his sister's death.
He heard a movement nearby and a soft groan, different from the sharp one his mother made. He pulled himself away from his mother's comforting form and saw Jazz moving on her cot as her eyes opened. She really was alive...he really had done it. If there had been any doubt of his success, it disappeared the moment he saw her eyes open and full of life.
"Jazz!" he cried out as he wrapped his arms desperately around her torso. Her arms wrapped around him in response and just feeling her move and respond filled him with such happiness and relief that he burst out into sobs against her stomach. He could tell it seemed like an extreme reaction and he could feel the concerned eyes of his parents and his sister on him, but he didn't care. They didn't understand how much he needed to see this and what he'd gone through to get to this point.
"...Danny?" Jazz asked, concern in her voice even as she still recovered from an injury. More tears erupted from his eyes as she spoke to him. "I'm...Danny, I'm fine," she tried to reason.
He could hear her suspicion, but he also refused to stop or explain the real reason for his relief. He swore she would never know what her fate could have been – what it was supposed to have been – because she didn't deserve that burden. "I know, I just...thought I lost you," he finally sputtered out. "You took such a hard hit." And she would never know how hard.
She gingerly touched her head and the wrap that the paramedics applied, but she pulled her hand away quickly with a wince. "Yeah, I did...but I'm fine. See, just like I promised."
Danny's heart tightened at the reminder of the promise she'd unintentionally broken and he held onto her tighter. She came back to him, just like everyone else did, because they won. They won with everyone still alive. He just felt so happy he couldn't help but smile.
Was this...what victory actually felt like? He almost felt afraid to touch it again. He had such a brief peek of it before when he realized he defeated Dan and basked in the joy and relief of being free of that threat, only to have it snatched away from him when he saw his sister's body. Could he risk feeling that again? Would he touch that peak only to have it ripped away from him again by some other consequence? But it also felt much harder to ignore the teasing glimpses of victory the more time he spent with his family.
So he finally gave himself over to it and let the weight of Dan and his shadow fall away from him. He'd carried it around for so long, ever since he learned about his horrible future, but finally he could be free of it. Of course the fear he could turn into him would still remain, but it almost served as a good reminder to him to keep himself in check. So long as he kept on this same path, he would never have to worry about Dan's threat again and he wouldn't have to watch him injure or kill his family ever again.
"It's really done," he finally breathed out. "He's really gone." And despite all the pain and grief and exhaustion he had to laugh because he'd done it. He'd done it and everyone came out of it okay. Even with this new burden he just felt so light, and that juxtaposition of emotions over such a short period of time left him giddy and all he really could do was laugh.
"You did, little brother," Jazz smiled at him, and the fact that she took the time to comfort and support him even while she had to be in horrendous amounts of pain was one of the many reasons why he loved his sister and why he was so grateful to have her back. "I'm so happy that you don't have this constantly over your shoulder anymore. You're finally free from him."
He hugged her tight again before he felt his father's arms wrap around him. His mother's hand rested on his back in the best hug she could manage with her injuries. And as he sat wrapped up in his family's love...he realized this was where his happiness lived. He hadn't seen it before, but he could now. He could see his happiness and his need to celebrate his victory here with his family.
He could vaguely hear cameras clicking and news reporters mumbling on the scene. He knew this picture of him with his family would be on the front covers of the newspapers tomorrow. He could have been rid of all that with a different decision. He had the chance to get rid of the media attention, rid of the constant looks and the lack of privacy. He could have had his privacy back. He could have still had what passed as a regular day for him and wouldn't have every single thing he did blasted across the media or have to worry about crowds of people interfering with his enjoyment of everyday things. He wouldn't have to worry about people ostracizing him because they couldn't see past the ghostly side of him.
But as he held his family, as he held Jazz...he didn't regret any of it. Restoring his anonymity, getting his extended family back, it all seemed so important in the moment but this – his family and friends – this was actually what brought meaning and purpose to his life. If he had to choose between his privacy and his sister...it still wasn't a decision. As long as he could still have her by his side, he could handle whatever his newfound celebrity status could throw at him.
Because this...it just felt right.
"Hey Danny, are you okay?" Jazz asked as she looked down at him, ever so perceptive of how he felt.
"Yeah...yeah, I am." And he realized with a happy smile that for the first time since before the accident...he actually was.
A/N: What's this? Do I owe you more? I probably do. So how do people feel about an epilogue?
I hope you want one, because I actually already have one written! It will be posted in 6 days! (And look, this chapter just started to get too long, and who needs a nice round 25 anyways?)
I really see this chapter as the true, official ending, but the epilogue will be a little more slice of life. It'll be a great peak into how Danny's doing after the trauma of the past day (gosh, did so much of that really just happen in one day?)
I hope this chapter served as a satisfactory ending (well, until the epilogue at least!). I spent a lot of time on this over the past 10 years, and I really hope that work paid off. I hope none of you feel cheated about me reversing Jazz's death. I know I sometimes get irritated when shows do that, and I literally just did it, but it had always been my intention to reverse it. I always wanted to pit Danny against the choice to save his sister or save his secret, and he would only get one.
And for anyone who was scared I was gonna pull a Reality Trip and reverse everything, I definitely couldn't do that. That always irritated me so much, so that was never a risk. I wanted Danny to learn that he'd actually be okay with his secret being revealed, and I hope that came across.
Also, please ignore my attempt at timey-wimey stuff. I don't know why I decided to mess with it, but I was too committed so I tried to justify what I could.
I really hope you enjoyed it. Thank you so much for this journey over the 17 years since I first published this fic. Thank you for bearing with me. And I hope you enjoy your little surprise epilogue coming soon!