Me: I haven't been feeling good, so I'm gonna be writing slowly for a while.
Also me: -writes the longest chapter to date in less than a month-
...yeah please don't expect me to keep updating this fast, this was one of those "been hyped for actual years" chapters fjfnxnxncncn
Anyway though, this chapter is over 8500 words long. I wanted to split it up, but literally the only decent place to break it up was too early in the chapter to matter, so I left it as-is. But the majority of y'all seem to be binge readers so it's fiiiiiiine
I sprinkled in a few old jokes and memes, For The Flavor. See if you can spot them!
"ROARGH!"
"Phantom, look out!"
At Wes's warning, Danny swerved, narrowly avoiding what would have been a pretty painful bear hug from Riesenross. The ghost spun, thick spikes sprouting from his elbows as he made another lunge.
But Wes was there to distract him, blinking an array of colors and twirling around his head. Riesenross snarled, jumping and swiping with his freshly bladed joints. Wes evaded their dangerous tips, but one snagged him by the waistband, flinging him off to the side.
"Wes!" Sam and Tucker ran forwards, the former to help the Halfa to his feet and the latter with a wrist ray trained on Riesenross. Before either of them could get close, however, the ghost in question leaped, planting himself between the humans and half-ghost.
"Stay away," he warned, grabbing Wes by the back of his jersey to throw him at Danny's approaching form. They both flew into a decorative fountain, which shattered on impact. "These two are very dangerous!"
Neither Sam nor Tucker had the guts to point out that he was doing far more damage than Danny and Wes combined.
It should have been a normal Tuesday, with a normal group of normal teenagers doing normal teenager things after school. They'd stopped at Nasty Burger, then gone to the park to enjoy their food on the first warm spring day of the year.
Unfortunately for them, however, a familiar rhino-man had also been there, crowding a terrified couple like a giant, ghostly mother hen. Danny and Wes had found a safe place to transform, and when Riesenross noticed them, he'd gone into a mad frenzy. The couple was long gone by then, but Riesenross had convinced himself that Sam and Tucker were helpless bystanders, endangered by the very people they'd come to the park with of their own volition, and was determined to "protect" them.
A noble goal, but unfortunately not enough reasoning skills to support it.
Danny and Wes both recovered quickly; Riesenross wasn't fully powered up yet, so his attacks still weren't (very) catastrophic. Danny went on the attack first, employing his previously successful strategy of freezing Riesenross to the ground. Then came Wes, using his tail to pin his arms to his sides. This time around, he expected the enormous force behind those biceps, and was able to use his own augmented strength to keep the larger ghost at bay at each flex.
"We've got him!" Danny cheered, flying in close with a glowing orb between his hands. Wes darted well out of range, pulling Sam and Tucker with him as he went, and then Danny fired point-blank.
It was a valiant effort, but the gang knew it wasn't going to be enough to keep Riesenross down. And sure enough, the rhino ghost burst out of the smoke with a roar, now fully bulked up.
"There goes our best shot at taking him down," Tucker groaned.
"That just means it's time to wear him out," said Wes, releasing both him and Sam. He tossed the pair his thermos, with Tucker being the one who scrambled to catch it. "Danny and I will distract him. You guys catch him when he least expects it."
Tucker saluted, while Sam replied, "Got it!"
Satisfied, Wes dove back into the fray, where Danny was kept busy by a Riesenross determined to close the distance. The Halfa was evading him well so far, but they both knew it would only take one mistake to take him out of the fight.
Wes charged, getting in close before summoning his legs, using Riesenross's back as a springboard and delivering a shock as he went. It wasn't painful, but it did its job, grabbing the enraged ghost's attention.
Riesenross snarled, turning on his heel. As focused as he'd been on Danny before, Wes didn't expect such a quick reaction, and thus wasn't able to get away before Riesenross grabbed him by the ankle, slamming him into the ground hard enough to crater it.
Danny came to his rescue, knowing that Riesenross wouldn't stop there if someone didn't redirect him. Danny dove forwards, grabbing him by the horn of his hair and pulling back with all the force he could muster.
It wasn't nearly enough to physically drag Riesenross away, but it was a sufficient distraction. He roared, trying to grab the Halfa, but his muscles only got in the way. Instead, he bucked and thrashed, fighting with all his might to shake Danny off.
"Nice, now I can kick 'rodeo clown' off the bucket list," Danny joked.
Riesenross threw his head forward, causing Danny to vault over him. With a surprised yelp, Danny hit the ground, rolling over to witness Riesenross's approach.
Danny knew well what those fists felt like. Oh, he knew all too well, his shoulder throbbing at the memory. Wes had protected him last time, but he was still down for the count, having not yet mustered the strength to stand. And there would be no getting away on his own, either; Riesenross was practically on top of him already.
There wasn't time to get up. He wasn't strong enough to block the attack. All he could do was raise his hands and shut his eyes, bracing for the blow.
A blow that never came.
Slowly, Danny dared to open his eyes, surprised to find that Riesenross hadn't taken another step. Or, rather, he was currently taking several steps, but he wasn't getting any closer to his target. His feet skated across the ground, miraculously unable to find purchase.
"Bwuh?" he asked.
Danny felt the same. But he didn't waste another second. He leapt to his feet, and Riesenross stepped back easily, nostrils flaring. He scuffed one foot, bowed his head, and charged.
But at a scant five feet away, he once again remained in place, his momentum halting almost completely. He struggled against the invisible force keeping him at bay, but to no avail.
"...Oh. Oh I see what's happening now," Danny said, marveling at his hands. "This has to be a new ghost power. I think this means you can't get close to me now, but can I still get close to you?"
He took a massive step, thrusting his hands forwards. Riesenross didn't stand a chance. He was thrown backwards as if hit by a train, skipping across the sidewalk and leaving grooves as he went. He skidded to a stop a fair distance away, and then just laid there, hardly winded, but too surprised to do much else.
Tucker took his chance. He ran as fast as his legs could carry him, uncapping the thermos once he was in range. Riesenross tried to get up, but he was already caught in the beam, and was sucked inside with only an incredulous shout in farewell.
"Phew. Glad he's gone," Tucker huffed, wiping his brow.
"You and me both," wheezed Wes, who'd finally gotten an elbow under himself.
Danny and Sam went to his aid, with Danny offering a hand up. Wes gratefully reached for it, only for the gloved hand to pull back at his approach.
Wes's expression soured, and he took Sam's hand instead. "Gee, thanks."
"Hey, it wasn't me," Danny argued, pointing at the offending appendage. "I think I got a new power just now. It's like I've got some sort of invisible force field. But, uh, I guess I haven't figured out how to stop yet."
"Ha, I knew you were overdue!" Tucker cheered.
"How long ago was the last one again?" Wes asked, his mood having much improved now that he knew Danny wasn't just being mean. "That was the ice powers, right?"
"Yeah, and that was a couple months before he chucked you in the portal," Sam replied. She turned to Danny, smiling. "That's amazing! You've finally got a defensive power now!"
"I mean, I could make shields before," said Danny, blushing at the praise. "But I've always had to concentrate to make those work. This one kind of just... happens."
"Yeah, and it's a force field!" added Tucker. "Wait, no, it's like the Force! Talk about the coolest superpower ever!" He raised his hand for a high five, to which Danny gladly returned the favor. Only, instead of their hands making contact, Tucker was thrown backwards, falling on his rear. "Ouch! Never mind, not cool at all!"
Danny cringed. "Oops, sorry. Maybe... Maybe it'll go away on its own?"
({O})
It didn't.
Danny got home not long after the fight, landing in front of the porch steps. He reached into his pocket for his keys, only to see them rocket out and into the nearby shrubs instead.
"...Fine. I'll just pick those up later."
He phased his head through the door, and after determining the coast was clear, the rest of his body followed suit. Once inside, he could hear the sounds of someone rummaging in the kitchen.
"Danno, is that you?" Jack called, peeking through the threshold.
Danny sighed, relieved that his dad was the one making dinner. His mom made food look nicer, but it was his dad who knew how to make it taste good. Relatively speaking.
He didn't have to speak for Jack to notice him, lighting up like a Christmas tree. "Hey, welcome home, son! You're just in time, I've been figuring out your granny's lasagna recipe! It's almost done!"
"Figuring out?" Danny gulped. Craning his neck to peer into the kitchen, he found everything from stovetop to cupboards covered in what he had to hope was meat sauce. The countertops were littered with flour, massacred tomatoes, and several ingredients that Danny was pretty sure weren't normal for lasagna.
Experimental dinner. Awesome.
Overhearing the commotion and correctly assuming dinner was nearly ready, Maddie emerged from the living room to begin setting up silverware. The table hadn't been spared from Jack's sauce-flinging, but she didn't seem to mind.
"Hi, sweetie!" she called. "Why don't you take a seat? It should only be a few more minutes now!"
Danny groaned, but he didn't protest; food was food, and seeing as his late lunch at the park was so rudely interrupted, he was famished.
Of course, though, even a pasta dinner with family couldn't be simple. He reached for his usual seat, but the chair scooted before he could even touch it. He frowned, but mentally shrugged, opting to lead with his rear instead. The chair backed away milliseconds before impact, leaving him to fall helplessly to the floor butt first.
His parents stared.
"...I. Um. Uh. You know what?" Danny quickly rose to his feet. "I think I'll just stand."
Jack chuckled, eyes twinkling with nostalgic mirth. "Aw, Mads. He's finally at that stage where he refuses to sit in a chair."
Maddie chuckled along. "Oh, you, don't tease! We didn't like sitting properly in chairs at his age either, remember?"
"I still don't!"
The two of them laughed at what must have been a fond memory, or maybe an inside joke. Danny felt like he was missing some context.
Luckily, they weren't laughing at his presumed expense for long. The oven beeped, and Jack went to grab his mitts, withdrawing a lasagna that looked, for all intents and purposes, perfectly intact. And, most importantly, edible.
Or at least Danny hoped so.
Maddie sat while Jack got to work cutting portions, perching on the end of her seat. After a brief pause, she smiled, and opted to turn sideways, sitting perpendicular to the back rest. She crossed her legs, and after another moment of thought, she propped her elbow on the table, leaning comically far to do so. She radiated false nonchalance.
"...Mom."
"Yes honey?"
"What are you doing?"
"Oh, you know," she lilted. "I'm just sitting in my seat. Being perfectly comfortable."
Danny cringed. "You're being weird."
"Whatever do you mean by that?" Danny looked her up and down. She'd scooched her chair so far back, it was a miracle she hadn't fallen yet, with the way she was almost desperately reaching for the table.
"...Danny, sweetie," she continued, "you do know your father and I will always support you, no matter what, don't you?"
Oookay, this "inside joke" was getting way too bizarre for Danny's liking.
He didn't have to endure for long. Jack finally arrived at the table, juggling heaping plates of lasagna, and when he did, Maddie mercifully corrected her posture, sitting primly in her seat.
Danny sagged with relief.
A plate was enthusiastically thrust towards him, nearly sliding off the table in the process. Even up close, the pasta looked digestible enough. Surely at least one bite wouldn't hurt.
Danny reached for his fork, which then skittered across the table at blinding speeds before toppling off the edge.
"...Honey?" ventured Maddie.
"Oh! Uh. I'm just... so hungry, I guess I don't even wanna use a fork!" Danny tried with a nervous laugh. Neither parent looked convinced, so he doubled down, bringing his face down towards his lasagna. It shifted, moving just far enough away that he instead got a face full of table.
"Ow."
Maddie and Jack's eyes met, and it was the latter who piped up, voice laden with rare concern. "Is everything alright, kiddo?"
Well, at least the table hid Danny's embarrassment. But, he knew he needed to make a quick getaway. His new power was clearly intent on malfunctioning, and the longer he stayed in his parents' vicinity, the more likely they would be to realize that what was going on was paranormal, not just Danny being a moody teenager. He could be a decent liar when he wanted to be, but even he couldn't cover up blatant pseudo-telekinesis.
"I'm not hungry," he blurted, making a run for the stairs.
"Honey, why don't you take this up for... later..." Maddie called after him, holding up his plate. But he was already long gone, his door slamming so loudly that it shook the Fentons' silverware.
"...Huh. I wonder what's got his jeans in a twist," Jack hummed. "Is it just me, Mads, or did something feel... strange about him? The lasagna can't be that bad, can it?"
"I agree, Jack, but I don't think it had anything to do with the lasagna," replied Maddie. She tapped her chin in thought. "And I'm starting to suspect it isn't about how he chooses to sit, either. Did you see how he was throwing things? It felt almost..."
"Ghostly?"
Maddie nodded. "Ghostly."
({O})
"Your parents did what?!"
It was lunchtime the following day, with Danny looking even more half-dead than usual. He'd been in the middle of ranting about why— his newfound power had kept him from eating, and he hadn't slept well because he couldn't change into pajamas or crawl under his sheets— and he was explaining how he somehow woke up wearing a Specter Deflector when Wes had cut him off, outraged.
"They put it on you when you were sleeping?! How?! Why?! That's just... It's so...!"
"I don't know how," Danny grumped. "Maybe my power doesn't work unless I'm awake. Besides, they pull stuff like this any time they think ghost stuff is involved. Which is most of the time. This time they saw me moving things without touching them, so now they think there's a ghost following me. Which is way better than them knowing I am the ghost."
Wes crossed his arms, frowning. "Well, they could have at least asked first."
Danny grunted in agreement. "It isn't even doing me any good. I still can't touch anything, and I won't be much use if a real ghost attacks. The second I actually try to use any of my ghost powers, I'm fried."
"It sure is convenient that the one superpower you don't have the hang of yet is the only one the belt isn't stopping," commented Tucker.
"I don't think 'convenient' is the word I would use," Danny groaned.
"Fair enough."
"I mean, at least I'm here if a ghost does attack," said Wes. "I'll stop any ghost that thinks they can cause trouble."
"Knowing our luck? The one day Danny can't fight is when we're gonna get a really powerful ghost," groused Sam.
"Hey, no fair! Why are you allowed to jinx us?!" Tucker cried, pointing an accusing finger. "You're always telling me not to!"
"Because the jinxing only happens when you say something won't happen," Sam replied. "I'm saying it probably will. Which means it won't."
"That's just a jinx with extra steps!"
"Guys, it's fine," Danny said, interrupting them both. "Wes is right, he can handle whatever comes along."
Wes blinked, cheeks a flustered pink. "You really think so?"
Danny shrugged. "You've held your own this long. If you can tank a shot from Vortex and live, you'll be fine if we get an Ectopus or the Box Ghost or whatever. Besides, I won't be totally useless. I know my way around my parents' tech if we need it."
"Which, hopefully, we won't," said Tucker. "So why don't we move on from all this jinxy doom and gloom, and talk about something better instead? Like that new Bad Teacher movie coming out this weekend! I hear this one's gonna have dinosaurs in it."
"That sounds terrible," Wes snickered.
"Exactly! The bad is what makes it good!"
"I'll buy the snacks if everyone else is game," Sam chimed in.
"Oh I'm more than game," said Danny. "...You know, if I can get this repulsion thing under control."
"Hey, we agreed no doom and gloom!" Tucker complained.
Danny threw his hands up. "I can't help it! I'm exhausted and starving! If I don't figure this out soon I'll probably waste away, and it's stressing me out!"
"Hey." Wes made to clap a hand on his shoulder; it ended up resting on empty air a few inches above him, but the gesture was there all the same. "We'll figure it out somehow. It turns off sometimes, right, like when you're sleeping? We just need to figure out how to stop it on purpose. This can't last forever."
"I know, you're right," Danny sighed, deflating. He looked even more worn out with his shoulders down. "It sucks now, but it's gotta get better at some point, right?"
Wes could have imagined it, but it felt like his hand, just barely, sat lower, ever so slightly bridging the gap to Danny's shoulder. Maybe it was his sudden slump, but it really did feel like something had changed.
Not that Wes had a chance to comment on it. A jolt of electricity ran up his spine, alerting him to the presence of a nearby threat. Danny's breath fogged, but then he recoiled as he was struck with a jolt of his own, the Specter Deflector briefly lighting up as it punished its wearer for the involuntary release. Wes's hand was flung away in the same moment, tugging his shoulder harshly.
"Great, of course there'd actually be a ghost," Wes muttered, rolling the offending limb.
"See?! I told you you jinxed it!" Tucker declared.
Sam rolled her eyes. "Doesn't matter now. Come on, let's get Danny out of here and see if we can get that stupid belt off him."
"Oh, that won't be necessary," the approaching ghost cackled, revealing itself to be Vlad Plasmius. "I think I would actually prefer it be left on. It makes his struggles more entertaining."
At the sight of the infamous spirit, the cafeteria cleared out in record time, the cacophony of screams ending abruptly as the doors shut behind the crowd.
"It just had to be you, didn't it?" Sam growled, subtly edging between Vlad and Danny. Vlad was almost certainly here because he somehow knew Danny was powerless. Smuggling Danny away would be pointless with him as Vlad's target, and for Sam and Tucker, nearly impossible against the likes of such an influential ghost.
Vlad confirmed her suspicions a second later. "Three little birdies told me that my favorite little badger was having some trouble with his powers again. It really would be such a shame if someone were to bring him to my mansion for some proper tutelage while he was powerless to say no."
Danny wordlessly gestured to his Specter Deflector.
Vlad waved a dismissive hand. "Well, we can figure that out once I bring you home."
"He's not going anywhere with you," Tucker sneered, already rummaging through his pockets in the hopes of finding something to remove Danny's belt.
"I'm sorry, I don't think that's your decision to make."
"So, let me get this straight," said Danny, his lackadaisical tone cutting the growing tension like a knife. "You decided to come kidnap me because the Specter Deflector is blocking most of my powers, but you somehow want to train me on using powers I can't get to because of the Deflector, when you and I both know you aren't going to take it off first? Where's the sense in that? I think you're losing your touch, Vlad."
Vlad balled his hands into fists, steam visibly seeping from the gaps between his fingers. "That'll be enough gab out of you, Daniel. So, what's it going to be? The easy way, or the fun way?"
Sam and Tucker grit their teeth, taking on guarded stances and arming whatever covert weaponry they'd brought to school. They obscured Danny from Vlad's view, to the latter's mild amusement, but they were the only ones to do so. Wes hadn't budged an inch, and Danny finally chanced a glance to find out why.
Wes was glaring daggers at Vlad, the gleam of red visible in the backs of his eyes even in human form. Fingers dug grooves into the table, making light scratching sounds as his fingertips trembled with the tension stored there. His neck and shoulders visibly prickled with hackles he didn't have, and the agitated churning of his core was nearly audible. His entire body was taut, wound like a spring about to snap.
It wouldn't be the first time Wes reminded Danny of a dog. Usually his ex-stalker's frantic yapping and boundless energy was reminiscent of a small show dog, or maybe a purse chihuahua. Now, it was more like Wes was an angry mastiff waiting to strike, all tooth and muscle, kept in check only by a command not yet spoken.
Well, Danny supposed that having your dad's life held as ransom could inspire that sort of rage in a guy. It probably shouldn't have flustered him nearly as much as it did.
Still, while he wasn't sure what Wes was waiting for, Danny figured he should urge him on. "Sic 'em, Wes!"
Wes lunged, transforming and brandishing nonexistent claws in the same instant. Vlad wasn't prepared for such a hasty attack, and was easily bowled over by the much younger Halfa. With them both on the ground, Wes threw a fist once, twice, three times. Vlad caught the fourth, throwing Wes into a neighboring row of tables.
"My quarrel isn't with you, child," Vlad sneered, making a show of dusting off his shoulder. "Let me conduct my business and I won't need to beat you into the ground."
In reply, Wes snarled, mouth hanging open to bare his razor sharp fangs. Electricity audibly snapped at the corners. "I'm not letting you take him!"
"Oh no, how scary!" Vlad mocked, waving his hands at chest height. "What an alarming and pathetic display. What makes you think you have any chance of stopping me? You could barely harm me even with Daniel's help. With him out of the fight, what, in all the Infinite Realms, makes you think you can defeat me now?"
Wes didn't reply. Instead, he flashed, the sudden influx of light both brief and mild. Still, it was just enough to prompt Vlad to shield his eyes with his forearm. When he pulled it away a second later, it was to see a much smaller ball of light being flung in his direction. It compressed, then ruptured, resulting in a much, much more potent explosion of blindingly bright light.
"Gah!" It was enough to have Vlad seeing stars, floating backwards to gain some semblance of distance for an opportunity to recover. Wes took the chance to fly to the ceiling, raking his hands across the light fixtures there. He was charging at Vlad before the energy could fully assimilate, arms coated in arcing electricity as he threw an amplified fist that sent Vlad straight into the tile floor.
Tucker winced in sympathy. "Man, you know that's gotta hurt."
"Stop staring and help me get Danny out of here before Vlad remembers we exist," Sam hissed, reaching for Danny's arm. Naturally, she couldn't get closer than a handful of inches.
"Actually, I kinda wanna see how this pans out," Danny said. By then, Vlad and Wes were tussling like a pair of angry cats, yowling and shrieking in a flurry of limbs that did little to actually harm one another. "Who do you guys think wins this one? Vlad's sad desperation, or Wes's misplaced sense of vengeance?"
Sam groaned, ignoring the question. "Ugh, fine. If you won't go, then at least stay still while I figure out how to get this stupid thing off of you." She checked her pockets for something hopefully useful, eventually finding her knife. She hadn't had a chance to sharpen it properly since the fiasco at Oris's office, leaving the blade nicked in several places, but it was the best she had right then. "Right. So all I've got is something I can't get close enough to use."
Still, she had to try anyway. She reached forwards, hoping to loop her fingers inside the belt to create enough tension to start sawing on something. And, surprisingly, she succeeded. There was a strong sense of resistance, as if she were trying to force her hand against a localized wind tunnel, but she managed to snag the Deflector, fingers curling around the strap and gripping it tight.
She knew something had changed. She wasn't sure how, or why, but Danny's apparent fawning had somehow made it so she could resist his repulsion. Not easily, but it was enough.
She didn't let herself dwell on it. There was no telling when Vlad would notice what she was doing, or how long she could maintain contact, so the more damage she could do to the Deflector, the better. She got to work, wedging the knife between plates in search of wiring she could sever, ignoring the tiny sparks that bit at her skin.
Meanwhile, Vlad had finally gained the upper hand as his temporary blindness wore off. He caught yet another attempted punch by the wrist, squeezing tight. Wes snarled, hair lifting with static as he prepared to use the moment of contact to shock. Such a tell was an obvious one, and Vlad delivered an uppercut to the gut before Wes could loose the building charge. The blow, much stronger than his own punches, had him spitting up bile, his concentration breaking. Vlad released him, then hammered him into the ground with both fists.
Wes's head bounced harshly upon contact with the ground, rattling his vision and leaving him gasping. Fleetingly, he surmised that, had he still been human, such an attack would have concussed him, or much worse. As it was, it was all he could do to pull his thoughts together, utterly stunned.
Vlad loomed over him, bending over with one hand outstretched. Wes summoned his tail, hoping to slither away from the grasping hand. Vlad simply grabbed the appendage before he could, then threw him at the spectating group of teenagers.
"Look out!" Tucker blurted the warning, then dove out of the way. Sam made to grab Danny to pull him out of Wes's path, only to be shoved back herself as his invisible shield shunted her away. Wes collided with the empty air around Danny, then rolled to a stop. He groaned in pain, barely stirring. Even his tail hardly moved.
"That should be enough out of you," said Vlad, taking a confident stride forward. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll be taking what I came here for."
Wes knew, then, that there was no winning. He'd lost the element of surprise, and without that, he was outmatched. Vlad was stronger, faster, and much more experienced, and Wes didn't have nearly enough charge to offset the difference. He couldn't use brute force, and his quick wit would only get him so far. He couldn't fight, and that meant he had to run.
Sam and Tucker had the same idea, frantically waving him along. "I weakened the Specter Deflector!" Sam called. "Take Danny and get him out of here!"
Vlad scoffed. "Do you think I'll let you?" The reply came in the form of two beams from a pair of lipstick lasers, forcing him to raise his cape to guard against the attack.
It wouldn't hold him for long. Danny braced himself, and in the same moment Wes darted forwards, rapidly scooping him up and propelling them both through the roof. Wes was surprised by the lack of resistance, but he certainly wasn't going to complain if it meant he had a chance to get Danny to safety.
"Get to FentonWorks," Danny instructed. "If we're quick, we might be able to get the shield up. And if we can't, there'll at least be weapons there."
Wes nodded, then shot off, weaving around houses and businesses as fast as he'd ever gone. He deftly navigated the high-rising buildings, hoping that, even if he couldn't outspeed Vlad, he might lose him in the architectural maze.
A pointless hope. Even if he'd succeeded in shaking Vlad off his tail, the older Halfa would have likely known where he was headed. Despite the distraction and head start, Vlad was upon him in seconds, firing blast after blast of hot pink ectoplasm.
"Hold still!" Vlad growled, trying and failing to hit his rapidly swerving target. When that didn't work, he threw his entire arm into the next blast, sending an ectoplasmic scythe flying Wes's way.
This, much like the rest, was handily dodged. But Wes was flagging, unable to maintain his urgent speed. He veered as his vision swam, and he shook his head in an attempt to clear the vertigo that came with it.
Maybe he'd been concussed after all.
Danny realized something was wrong the second Wes nearly dodged into one of Vlad's attacks. They were going to have to land. Luckily, there was no need to voice this aloud, as the familiar rooftop of FentonWorks was already in sight, with Wes descending towards it in uneven stops and starts.
When they did manage to land, Wes stumbled, nearly throwing Danny when he tripped over his own tail. He just barely managed to catch them both, holding himself stiff as if to reassure himself that he hadn't fallen after all, nor thrown the person he was supposed to be guarding.
Vlad was right behind him. He touched down with much more grace, gliding towards the pair. "It's pointless to keep avoiding me. Unless Daniel can somehow miraculously learn to control a power he doesn't understand all on his own, then it won't matter if you escape today. Jack and Maddie won't remove his Specter Deflector until he improves, and without me, he won't. I'll just keep coming back, again, and again, and again, until he realizes he has no choice but to do the right thing and submit."
Wes parked himself between Vlad and Danny, arm outstretched as a physical barrier between the two. "Get inside," he hissed. "Activate the security system and find some weapons."
"I can't leave you out here by yourself," Danny protested. "You're hurt."
"I'm fine, I'll get better," Wes dismissed. "It's you he wants, not me. You need to get yourself somewhere safe. He's too close for the shield, but you've got stuff inside that'll protect you, right?"
"Yeah, but I—"
Their bickering didn't get far. Vlad lunged, faster than either of them expected, reaching past Wes in a bid to grab Danny. Naturally, he wasn't able to make contact, his grasping claws coming just short. Wes didn't appreciate the attempt, and with Vlad's arm directly in his face, he sunk his fangs into the vulnerable bicep before him.
Vlad roared in pain, recoiling and grasping at Wes's hair to try to pry him off. Wes only dug deeper, ignoring the sharp, bitter tang of ozone that stung his nostrils.
"Let go, you annoying! Little! Eel!" Each pained word was accentuated by an elbow directly to the cranium. Wes did his best to hang on, but he only lasted three strikes before he was too incoherent to keep his jaw locked, the edges of his vision fuzzy and dark.
Vlad forcibly removed his arm with a painful squelch, the jarring motion sending Wes to the floor. Vlad grasped at his wound, though the effort did little to stem the thick flow of ectoplasm, rapidly staining his sleeve a vivid neon pink.
"You slimy... little... brat!" Vlad kicked Wes in the ribs, grinning with satisfaction at the agonized shout that followed. "You've been nothing but vermin since the moment you invaded my press conference all those months ago! I've had enough of you being a thorn in my side! And unlike your dear, precious friend Daniel, I have no reason to keep you around beyond my own amusement, and you've long since exhausted that. So say farewell, boy!"
Vlad raised his hand, palm out, energy swimming at his fingertips before coalescing into a singular pink orb. It glowed brighter and brighter, until its radiance leeched all other colors from its vicinity. Wes didn't have the energy to move. All he could do was watch his upcoming demise with unsteady, uncomprehending eyes.
Danny charged, running at Vlad shoulder-first. He couldn't get close, but he didn't need to. Vlad's attack was interrupted as he was promptly repelled, skating towards the edge of the rooftop. Danny kept running, pushing a protesting Vlad farther and farther away until he fell over the edge, yelling the whole way down.
Danny skidded to a halt before he could follow, panting. He didn't realize he was shaking until he stopped.
With Vlad out of the way, Danny ran to Wes's side, kneeling to offer him a hand up. "Phew, that was close. Are you okay?"
Wes groaned, taking the hand, but unable to raise himself beyond that on his own. Danny had to haul him the rest of the way up, with Wes's tail coiling tightly as a makeshift cushion to hold himself upright.
"Ugh, my everything hurts," he moaned. He cradled his head, then pulled his hand away when it felt sticky. He inspected it, and found traces of ectoplasm there, the semi-fluid already flaky and congealing as the reprieve gave him a chance to regenerate.
He wouldn't be in decent shape for a while yet, but it was a start. He would be fine.
"We should get back to school," he continued. "You already get into enough trouble with the teachers."
"You can barely fly," Danny protested. "At least let me call Sam and Tucker and tell them where we are first. Sam can patch you up, and then we can go. Promise."
"I can too fly," Wes grouched, but he knew Danny was right. Though his condition was rapidly improving, there was still a lingering dizziness if he moved too suddenly. Even if he could technically fly, it wouldn't be safe to do so.
"...Okay, fine," he conceded. "And while you're doing that, maybe I can break the Deflector the rest of the way. Then we can figure out your whole, uh, can't-touch-things thing."
Danny refrained from pointing out that they were, in fact, still very much still holding hands. It was probably better not to draw attention to it.
But that still left him one question: how?
"Not so fast!"
Danny and Wes both flinched as Vlad made his appearance on the roof once more, even more disgruntled than when he'd fallen off.
"Oh. Right. I forgot you could fly," Danny groaned.
Wes looked at him. "You forgot he could fly."
"It's a high-pressure situation!"
"Enough!" Vlad was done with theatrics. He aimed and fired, the ectoblast striking Wes square in the solar plexus. He was sent skidding, and Danny, who was still holding his hand tight, was thrown straight over the edge of the rooftop.
"Oops," Vlad said dumbly.
Danny flailed, scrabbling for purchase on the side of the building as he fell. But he found none, pushing himself farther away for his efforts. He tried to fly, and only received a painful bout of sparks for the trouble. FentonWorks was, relatively speaking, not very tall. There was no time to recover, no time to adjust to the freefall. There was nothing he could do except plummet to his death.
Everything happened in slow motion. Wes vaulted after him, his own descent more tumble than flight. His arms were outstretched, reaching desperately for Danny. But he was too far, and not gaining nearly enough ground. He was shouting something that Danny couldn't hear over the whistle in his ears, and he couldn't see almost anything beyond wet blots of orange and green through wind-gusted tears. Still, he reached, struggling to bridge the too-wide gap between them, trying desperately to meet him halfway.
It wasn't nearly enough. But through the ever-present force that kept him isolated, he felt something new.
Tension.
Something was pushing against his repulsion, and it was winning.
Danny forced his eyes open as wide as he could make them, blinking the tears away. Wes was still reaching for him, no closer than he was moments before. But there was something between them, something that hummed and thrummed with an energy both foreign and familiar. Danny could almost hear it, a non-sound at the edges of both his ears and his core. It was unseen, but nonetheless it called for him, its presence undeniable.
This. This was what was forcing its way through his involuntary barrier. Breaking through what couldn't be penetrated, just for him. Defying his understanding of his newfound power, making itself the exception to the rule, just for him.
And break it did, Wes's energy brushing aside the very thing keeping the barrier in place. To Danny's utter astonishment, his descent slowed, then abruptly stopped, suspending him barely a story up from the ground. And then, suddenly, he shot up, at nearly the same speed at which he'd fallen, and barreled straight up into Wes.
The momentum sent them both cartwheeling, further delaying the collision with the ground as they clung to each other for dear life. When they did strike the ground, it was at much less catastrophic speeds, Wes protectively curling around Danny to take the brunt of the fall. He bounced, and he rolled, but when he came to a stop, he'd sustained little more than a few extra scrapes and bruises for the trouble. Danny, meanwhile, escaped the experience no worse for wear, if shaken up.
The two of them laid there for what felt like an hour, but what was really only a few seconds. They sat up in unison, both looking at each other with wide eyes.
Danny spoke first. "Wes. Did you just do what I think you just did?"
Wes grinned, even though his heart was still hammering after such a close call. "I think I did."
"Look out!" Wes got no further warning than that before Danny repelled him, launching him across the street. Vlad came down in a three-point landing, striking the ground where Wes had been just a second before.
"While I'm thankful you didn't die, Daniel," he said, rising to his feet, "surely doing what I ask would be preferable to the stunt you just pulled."
Danny scowled. "What stunt? You're the one who threw me off!"
Vlad shrugged. "We all make mistakes in the heat of battle, little badger."
With that, he made a grab for Danny with both hands. Wes reached out in the same moment, and Danny was pulled towards him, as if by a bungee cord. They collided, and Wes had to twirl to keep them both standing.
"What is this?" Vlad growled, advancing on the both of them. "A new party trick? Just another annoyance, only serving to delay the inevitable."
Danny and Wes broke apart, getting into ready stances as they awaited Vlad's approach. But at the peculiar sound of a rather pathetic hum, Danny looked down, his expression lighting up.
The buckle of the Specter Deflector was flickering weakly, tiny wires exposed throughout the length of the belt. Sam's efforts had definitely gotten some mileage; the constant jostling, with likely contributions from both the persistence of Danny's shield and Wes's natural interference, had left the belt in miserable shape. Testing the waters, Danny dared to transform, beaming when he didn't get electrocuted in response. That confirmed, he simply ripped the Deflector off his waist, dropping its remains on the ground.
Vlad stopped, frowning. "Oh, pumpkin muffins."
Danny shot Wes a look, smirking. "Hey, you thinking what I'm thinking?"
Wes looked back, and upon seeing Phantom in all his glory, he sported what had to be his most sadistic grin yet, flashing his mouth full of razors for all to see. "Maybe. You thinking we make Vlad regret ever coming to Amity Park?"
"You know it."
Vlad shook off his disappointment, baring his own fangs. "This little development of yours doesn't matter. Your friend is still weak, and in the end you'll still be in my custody."
Wes growled, features lit up by his signature blue light. "I'll show you weak!"
He lunged, which Vlad easily sidestepped. The older Halfa raised a fist for a blow, but Danny was there to stop it, getting between them and pushing. Vlad kept upright, the obnoxious squeal of rubber permeating the air as his boots skated across the asphalt.
Instead of going for a close-range assault, Vlad shifted gears, putting more distance between them. He fired off a volley of ectoblasts, each of them arcing to ultimately land where Danny was.
But Wes came to his rescue, tugging him backwards just in time to avoid the barrage. He then pushed through the resulting smokescreen, striking Vlad's chest with the flat of his palm to unleash a pulse of electricity.
"Gah!" Vlad stepped back, hair sizzling, but more irritated than injured. He curled a fist, but Danny was in his face before he could even think about throwing a punch. Vlad was forced to block as Danny threw a barrage of his own, the two meeting with punch after kick after punch.
While the two kept each other busy, Wes perched on a nearby streetlight, which flickered as he sapped it of its power. When the process didn't go fast enough for his liking, he sunk his hands inside, soaking up more and more until he was absolutely bristling with it, the rapid influx of energy chasing away the last of his fatigue to bring him to full alertness.
Vlad wasn't clueless to the tactic. He brought forth his shield, putting distance between himself and Danny. While one hand maintained the shield, the other readied a beam and fired.
Wes saw the attack coming a mile away, and quickly darted out of range. While Vlad's focus was on him, Danny sidestepped the shield, then extended one hand towards his ally.
Once again, Wes grinned when he saw the gesture. Without missing a beat, he flew, grasping Danny firmly by the forearm as he sailed past.
But rather than going on by, Danny pivoted, holding on tight as Wes's momentum spun him around. He twirled once, twice, and then released Wes, repelling him in the same moment that he launched him towards Vlad.
Wes soared, traveling at speeds that could barely be tracked by the naked eye. But that wasn't enough to satisfy him. He gave a harsh mental tug, and Vlad was yanked towards him, helpless to stop it. All he could do was cover his face as Wes reeled back a fist, radiating frenetic energy as everything was funneled into it, and then threw it.
There was a resounding BOOM as the blow landed, launching Vlad into a nearby building hard enough to leave a Plasmius-shaped crater in the brick wall. He slowly peeled away from it, falling flat on his face, human and unconscious before he even hit the ground.
Wes skipped and tumbled in a similar fashion, entirely unable to slow his flight. He hit the ground hard, skating and rolling the last few feet before finally coming to a stop.
"Uh-oh." Danny was by his side in an instant, helping Wes to his feet. Surprisingly, he was still conscious. Bloody and battered, certainly, but far more worn out than injured, save for his right hand, which he held close to himself.
"Are you okay?" Danny asked. "I, um. I could have planned that last attack better."
"I'm fine," Wes insisted, though the declaration was immediately followed by a pained whimper. "I'm pretty sure my hand is broken, though."
Danny glanced at it, then gave a sympathetic hiss at the sight, one best not described. "Ouch, sorry. I forgot you aren't as durable as I am."
Wes snorted. "True. But come on, that was probably the coolest tag team attack ever. I bet we can perfect that into a super secret signature move. Was it enough?"
Danny nodded, smirking smugly. "Oh, I think it was more than enough." He snickered at the sight of Vlad's slumped form a block away from them, still out for the count. "I think he's gonna remember that one for a while."
"Good. Maybe he'll remember to leave us alone this time, too." Danny was going to voice his doubts, but then Wes's arm spasmed, followed by a pained gasp as the movement jarred his hand. "So hey, um, about you calling Sam. You think you can go ahead and do that? This really freaking hurts."
Danny wasted no time after that. Luckily, Sam and Tucker came only a few minutes later, finding the pair sitting huddled up on the sidewalk, their sides pressed together as they held each other up.
"Okay, so what I'm hearing is Vlad kicked Wes's butt," Tucker said as Danny and Wes recounted their tale. "Like, he was totally outmatched. No contest. Completely wiped the floor with him."
"I mean I'd say there was some contest," protested Wes, wincing as Sam wrapped his hand up.
"No there wasn't. Anyway though, how did you guys end up beating him? Danny was still belted up, right?"
"I was," Danny confirmed. "But Vlad threw us off the roof, and Wes had a new power kick in just in time to save me."
"A new power?" Sam repeated. "Funny you guys would get one at the same time."
"But wait, it gets better," said Wes, taking over the story. "It's basically the same power... but the opposite."
"I push things away," Danny added, "and he pulls things closer."
Tucker whistled. "Dang. Talk about a lucky coincidence."
"I'll say!" Wes agreed. "So I ended up saving him and all that, right? And ever since then, his power hasn't acted up at all. So hey, that's the original problem solved!"
Sam quirked a brow. She gave one last tug on the gauze, eliciting a yelp from Wes. "So this whole time, Wes just had to save you from certain doom?"
"I mean, it helped, I guess," Danny replied with a nonchalant shrug. "But I think there's more to it than that. When my power first showed up, it was because the rhino guy was about to attack me. And that guy hurts. I held my hands out, and suddenly he couldn't get to me anymore. Since then, the shield has been up whenever I've been scared or stressed, but it gets weaker when I've got people around to help me. I think it reacts to whether or not I feel safe."
"And for me," Wes continued, "it started when I wanted to save Danny. He couldn't save himself because he was too far away from everything, so I knew I had to save him by having him close to me. So he kind of just, uh, got closer. I'm still figuring out how it works because, you know, it just happened. But I think it works kind of like Danny's power does."
Sam hummed. "So you guys have complimentary powers. Which kind of makes sense for Danny, but that seems like a weird one for you, Wes."
"It can't be that weird," Tucker chimed in. "Danny's got himself a nifty shield to go with his hero stuff, and Wes can turn himself into a magnet to go with his shocky stuff!" the group nodded; the logic, thought a bit crude, was fairly sound.
Tucker waggled his eyebrows, shooting Sam a knowing look. "Even the complimentary part makes sense. Danny and Wes are close friends, right? So of course their powers would be close, too."
Danny and Wes both blushed with matching squawks of indignation.
"We're not that close," Wes denied, his voice a note higher than usual.
"Yeah, c'mon, Tuck," Danny whined.
Tucker held his hands up in a gesture of innocence. "Okay, okay, fine, you aren't close friends. Just regular friends, I get it." But despite his words, he was fighting a smirk. Even Sam was covering her mouth, suppressing a snort.
Danny made to stand. "I'm leaving."
But as he rose, Wes was pulled up with him.
They looked at each other.
Danny took a step, and Wes was made to follow.
They then physically pushed each other, but they couldn't part.
"Oh. Great. Now mine is acting up," Wes squeaked.
"Oh my god," said Sam.
"You know, I know you guys said you weren't 'that close,'" Tucker said with air quotes, "but this really isn't helping your case."
Danny and Wes looked at each other again.
"Run?" asked Danny.
Wes nodded. "Run."
And so they booked it down the street like they were running the world's most awkward three-legged race.
"Hey," Sam cried, angrily shaking her first aid kit, "I wasn't done!" But despite the boys' predicament, they were already much too far away to chase. Sam huffed and gave up, dropping the kit.
"...Hey Sam," said Tucker. "Is it just me, or were they acting really weird just now?"
"Weird isn't the word I'd personally use," Sam replied. "But I do know what you mean."
Tucker snickered. "They so have the hots for each other."
"Hey, don't go around saying stuff like that out loud!" Sam snapped. "You don't know who might hear you!"
"What? There's nobody here," Tucker argued. "Besides, you know I'm right." Sam didn't say anything, which he took as agreement. "And what am I supposed to say when my gaydar goes off?"
"Your gaydar, huh?" Sam parroted. "Is it based on preconceived notions of what being gay looks like, or is this a new gadget I don't know about?"
Tucker gave her a light shove. "Come on, I know you've noticed it too."
She had. And she really hoped they were wrong.
SAM HOMOPHOBIC NOT CLICKBAIT?!1! (Lmao no I promise she isn't. Two guesses as to why she really doesn't want Danny and Wes to be gay for each other in particular lol)
But yeah haha SIKE y'all thought it was gonna be a Danny power chapter. And I mean, it was, yeah. But you guys have no idea how long I've been waiting to give Wes magnet powers. The main struggle was figuring out how to put Danny in a situation where Wes could save him with it, but where Danny couldn't save himself. Because yanno, Danny is in a constant state of God Mode. Specter Deflector and repulsion power was the best combo I could think of, and considering how it ended up being the yin to Wes's yang, AND made me go "heh, gay" out loud, I think it was meant to be.
Speaking of gay, for those who were as confused as Danny, the "Fentons and chairs" scene was a big "gay people can't sit" joke. I headcanon that both Jack and Maddie were exploring their sexualities in high school and college. Jack is Hella Pan, whereas Maddie initially suspected she was bi, but eventually learned she was straight. (Source: me, who also cannot sit.)
Currently deciding between a couple chapter plots for the next one, so I'll see you when I see you!