Pete fluffed up the pillows on the couch then glanced over at the clock.
"Sorry it's so late." Pete said as Danny stood there looking drugged.
"No, s'ok." Danny said with a yawn. Pete nodded then went into the other room and returned with a blanket. Danny in the meantime kicked off his shoes by and stood by the couch awkwardly.
"I could probably get a bigger house but…" Pete looked around, "I'm like my niece in the way that I'm not going to bask in luxury just because I have it. I still have a job and stuff, my brother is the one who squanders his money to keep up his prestigious appearance." Pete said.
"Sounds like a friend of mine." Danny said with another yawn. Pete nodded then handed Danny the blanket before disappearing down the hall. Danny stood there not quite sure what to do before he spread the blanket out on the couch and flipped back the corner so he could crawl in. After that Danny just sat on the couch-bed blinking not quite sure if he should sleep or not. He looked over at the clock that read 3:00 a.m. Pete was a very thorough police officer and though he apologized profusely for it he wouldn't take Danny to his house until his shift was over. Danny heard footfalls in the hall and looked up as Pete walked in in his pajamas with a tank top and shorts on.
"Are you good?" Pete asked. Danny stared at him and raised his eyebrows.
"You still have your hat on." He commented. Pete looked up.
"Oh." He said before pulling his hat off, "My wife and daughter get up pretty early some mornings, about seven or so even on weekends so they might wake you up." Pete said.
"I don't sleep much anyway." Danny said. Pete nodded.
"Well… goodnight." Pete said walking to the wall and flicking off the lights.
"Goodnight… and thanks." Danny said laid down and crawled under the blankets.
"Don't worry about." Pete, now just a black blob, said moving back to his room where presumably his wife slept. Danny closed his eyes and sunk into a dreamless sleep.
Danny opened his emerald green eyes to find a small girl staring at him. She wore black pajamas with a white girlish DP on the breast pocket and had a small stuffed Danny Phantom clutched to her chest. She had short black hair and kind of reminded Danny of Sam when they were younger complete with the strange purple eyes, though this girl's eyes were a deeper purple. The girl stared at Danny intensely her eyes narrowed before she stood up walking to the kitchen doorway and yelling.
"MOOMMY! HE'S AWAKE!" She yelled. Danny sat up holding his head still tired.
"Shhhh Lydia." Policeman Pete's wife said coming in to the living room and wiping off her hands on a towel. She had brown hair unlike her daughter and husband with soft hazel eyes. She was tall and was neither fat nor skinny.
"Good morning, I'm making pancakes. Would you like some?" She smiled, "I'm Sarah by the way." Sarah smiled. Danny disentangled himself from the blankets and stood up holding out his hand.
"Danny. Pleased to meet you." Danny smiled. The little girl, Lydia grabbed Danny's pant leg she was about six years old.
"You really are Danny?" Lydia asked eyes wide. Danny nodded.
"Danny I am." He smiled. Lydia smiled then began hugging Danny's leg.
"Excuse her, she's been saying 'Danny Phantom is sleeping on our couch' all morning. My husband told me he brought you home but didn't tell me much else." Sarah smiled. Danny let Lydia hug his leg and nodded to Sarah.
"Don't worry about it. She's mostly right anyway." Danny said as Lydia beamed up at Danny. Sarah gave Danny a strange look.
"It's hard to explain… the Fentons…" Danny said, Sarah's face turned to one of recognition, "Well there was this experiment of theirs and… well I'm not so Phantomish anymore." Danny said. Sarah nodded.
"Well I've heard of undead poultry from the Fenton house so this doesn't surprise me." Sarah said.
"Undead poultry?" Danny blinked, "How do you know about the thanksgiving fiasco?" Danny asked. Sarah looked at Danny.
"Sam, Pete's niece, how do you?" Sarah asked. Danny turned bright red.
"Well… I uh… I kind of use the Fenton's portal… a lot." Danny blushed. Sarah smiled.
"I'm not going to turn you in." Sarah said.
"Mr. Phantom." Lydia finally spoke up, "Why aren't you a ghost anymore?" Lydia asked. Danny looked down.
"Because… uh… well I'm human now." Danny said, "It was a magic spell." Danny said mysteriously. Lydia stared hard at Danny.
"Well I'm glad, because now you get to eat with us, and you get to be alive." Lydia said, then she let go of Danny's leg and sighed heavily, "But magic spells always break you know." Lydia said before running to her room embarrassed. Sarah smiled.
"I'm getting ready to start the pancakes do you want to help?" Sarah asked. Danny nodded and joined her in the kitchen mixing pancake mix and handing watching as Sarah scooped out pancake mix onto the stove.
"My mom used to make pancakes." Danny said watching with a slight smile, "they would always glow though." Danny frowned, "It was really weird actually. I fed them to my pet hamster." Danny joked. A zombie came into the kitchen headed straight for the coffee.
"Good morning." Danny said. Pete mumbled something then poured his coffee and sat at the table. Sarah just laughed.
"He's not really animate until about a half hour after his coffee." Sarah smiled. Danny nodded.
"I used to be like that, except it was Pepsi not coffee, I used to drink it every morning before school…" Danny said. Lydia came bouncing back into the kitchen black hair in pigtails. She was now wearing a small black skirt with black jeans underneath and white shoes. She also had on a black shirt with a DP symbol on it. Lydia then giggled at Danny before hiding behind her dad who jumped at being suddenly attacked by the miniature DP fanatic. Danny waved at her and Pete just sucked down more coffee. Danny chuckled then flipped the pancakes.
"Used to?" Sarah wondered. Danny froze then looked up at her with wide eyes looking somewhat childish.
"Before… before I was a ghost." Danny said. Sarah froze suddenly reminded that the human boy in her house had indeed once been a ghost but even before then he'd been alive before. Danny smiled trying to break the tension just as Lydia attack Danny with a sharpie.
"Sign my posters?" She eyes deep purple eyes wide and innocent. Danny smiled then looked over at Sarah who took the spatula from him as Lydia led him away by the hand to her room. Sarah looked over at Pete who was blinking into his coffee.
"Do you think… that his parents want him back now?" Sarah asked, "He is alive again." Sarah said looking back to where Danny had exited Pete looked over at Sarah.
"As far as I can gather his parents never even knew he died." Pete said leaving Sarah with this haunting feeling.
"And this one too." Sarah said Danny had nearly had a heart attack seeing his face all over.
"I really need to put a trademark on my name." Danny joked as he signed another poster. Lydia gripped her plushy to her chest looking at Danny with awe. Danny turned smiling back down at her.
"Mr. Phantom…" Lydia said bouncing on her black and white Danny Phantom bedspread, "How did you die?" she asked Danny froze, "You is alive now because of the magic spell but when you were dead how did you die?" Lydia asked.
"Well…" Danny finished signing the poster and sat down next to Lydia who stared up at him with her big purple eyes.
"I had an accident in my parent's lab." Danny said. Lydia's eyes got wider if possible.
"Did it hurt… does it hurt to die?" Lydia asked.
"Well for me it did, I got electrocuted." Danny said. Lydia nodded.
"So… did your parents miss you?" Lydia asked. Danny smiled then ruffled her hair a bit causing her to giggle.
"I don't know I kept it a secret." Danny said. Lydia frowned.
"How do you keep dying a secret, when somebody dies in my family everyone knows and they're always sad." Lydia said. Danny sighed Lydia frowned discontent with his answer, "You're parents must have seen you fighting as a ghost, everyone has!" Lydia said. Danny laughed a little at her expression.
"But I looked different as a human." Danny said. Lydia shook her head.
"Nuh uh, you just don't really glow, you still look like you did when you were a ghost." Lydia said. Danny smiled at the girl, she definitely reminding him of Sam when she was younger. Sam was forever arguing and she was quite good at it for her age, made her parents red in the face.
"Well you see, when I became human this time they turned my ghost body human they didn't put me back into my body that I had when I was human." Danny said. Lydia's eyes went wide.
"They can do that?" She wondered. Danny shrugged.
"I guess so because here I am." Danny said. Lydia sat on the edge of her bed gripping her stuffed Phantom close before looking at Danny and throwing herself on him wrapping her arms around him. She let go quickly then blushed.
"What was that for?" Danny asked causing Lydia to blush deeper.
"I'm not really supposed to hug boys but… you looked sad." Lydia said. Danny touched his face.
"Did I?" Danny asked, Lydia nodded.
"Lydia?" Sarah opened the door Lydia hopped off the bed, "time to eat." Sarah said. Danny stood up and followed the mother and daughter out of the room taking a seat at the table where Pete was slightly more awake. Lydia ran up to her dad.
"Daddy! Wake up!" Lydia said Pete smiled down at Lydia.
"Hey Pumpkin." Pete smiled pulling the happy six year old onto his lap and tickling her while she squirmed and giggled till she was released and climbed into her seat. Danny sat down in the extra chair Sarah putting pancakes in front of him and then placing butter and syrup on the table along with napkins and juice. Pete yawned causing Danny then Lydia to yawn. Lydia giggled while waiting for Sarah to sit down.
"Looks delicious." Pete smiled. Danny inhaled.
"Smells amazing." He complimented.
"Looks great mom!" Lydia added.
"Thanks, all of you." Sarah smiled as Lydia dug into her pancake, Pete cutting his up and Danny cutting as he went practically breathing syrup and pancakes.
"Do you want to go to the park with me?" Lydia asked eating and swinging her little legs back and forth while Danny stared at his now empty plate.
"Umm…. I guess." Danny said. Lydia smiled pancake in her teeth while Sarah got after her for chewing with her mouth open or talking with food in her mouth. Pete finished eating then placed his plate in the dishwasher, he then headed, presumably, back to bed. Danny couldn't blame him, he had a late shift, it was nice that he spent time with his family before they left or before he went back to sleep. Danny looked at his empty plate and followed in suit before rinsing his hands off and going to the living room to fold the blankets on the couch.
A few minutes later he was struck with a sudden, though not totally uncommon urge.
"Um… where is the bathroom?" Danny asked shifting from foot to foot as he peeked his head into the kitchen. Sarah looked up.
"Oh, down the hall, it's the first door on the right." Sarah said. Danny nodded then proceeded to find the rest room. Finishing up his business Danny washed his hands and looked into the mirror jumping at his reflection a bit then staring it a while. With a sigh Danny turned off the sink then pausing a minute turned it back on filling his hand with water and rinsing out his mouth. With another sigh Danny realized he didn't have a toothbrush and he would probably have to go home sooner rather than later.
Danny exited the bathroom Sarah having taken care of the folded blankets since they were absent from the couch where he had slept. Danny fished his shoes out from under the couch a couple dust bunnies clinging to them. Lydia was coming out of her room with her jacket on and a big smile. Danny chuckled a little to himself as Sarah came out and ushered Lydia into the bathroom.
Danny sat on the couch till a smiling Lydia came bouncing down the hall and to the door waiting for her mom and Danny. Danny followed out the door as Lydia smiled taking both his and her mom's hand rushing out the door to the car where Sarah unlocked the doors and Lydia climbed in and then climbed up into her car seat buckling in. Danny got in the passenger side door noting how much cleaner Sarah's car was than Pete's. Pulling out of the drive way Sarah turned on the radio and Lydia started demanding Morbid Antisocial Youth much to Sarah's dismay and Danny was reminded how this little girl was related to Sam, which made him wonder why Sam hated babysitting her so much, or maybe it was her other cousins. Danny personally had never met any of them.
Danny smiled at the girl in the back seat.
"What's your favorite song?" Danny asked.
"My Parents Reek!" Lydia exclaimed. Danny laughed.
"Yeah, I like that one too." Danny answered. Sarah sighed and Lydia beamed. Sarah sighed.
"She gets her tastes from her cousin, she idolizes her." Sarah said, "As long as she doesn't start trying to raise the dead I guess we'll give her the freedom of expression, but since Sam knows so much about ghosts Lydia wants to be like her." Sarah said. Danny could see where a mother might be worried but Danny was also pretty sure Sam had never tried raising the dead again since sixth grade.
"Well… I guess it's good that she at least has a role model." Danny shrugged. Sarah nodded.
"That's true." Sarah turned the steering wheel rounding the corner and turning down a busier street. Lydia was rocking out in the back seat to M.A.Y. while Danny kept an eye out of the Fenton Family Ghost Assault Vehicle. Thankfully there was no sign of it and they continued to the park that Danny was familiar with. Pulling into the parking lot Lydia shot out of the car and headed straight for the play equipment her Danny Phantom plushy stuck into her waist band as she ran. Danny and Sarah followed behind at a slower pace Danny ignoring the strange looks he got from the parents of the children that were running rampant around the playground. Danny sat down next to Sarah but Lydia had other plans and she pulled him over to meet with her friends.
"This is Robbie and this is Andy." Lydia said. Danny waved and Robbie who was a little African boy shook his head.
"No way. He's not Danny Phantom." Robbie said his batman shirt covered in dirt and wood chips his tan cargo pants ripped open at the knees. Andy who was wearing a plan white shirt with blue shorts stared at Danny.
"I don't know Rob… it really does look like him." Andy said to Robbie. Lydia put her hands on her hips.
"It is Danny Phantom. He told me himself." Lydia said while Danny was wondering if he should be offended by being called an "it."
"He could be lying!" Robbie said, "Plus he doesn't glow like a ghost!" Robbie said. Lydia frowned.
"I told you, there was a magic spell that made him human." Lydia glared. Robbie stuck his hands up and Andy interfered.
"Well magic is sort of hard to believe." Andy spoke up. Lydia turned her glare on him.
"But it's true." Lydia said. Robbie scoffed and turned to Danny.
"You're not really Danny Phantom are you?" Robbie said. Danny crouched down so he was approximately eye level with Robbie.
"I'll tell you a secret." Danny said, Robbie looked unimpressed.
"What?" Robbie asked. Danny smiled.
"I am Danny Phantom." Danny said, "I got turned human by the Fentons." Danny said. Robbie's eyebrows raised.
"Prove it." Robbie said. Danny stared at the boy.
"How? I don't have my ghost powers right now." Danny said. Robbie frowned.
"Then you're not Danny Phantom anymore you're just a normal Danny." Robbie said. Lydia hit Robbie causing him to cry out.
"But it's true!" Robbie yelled in his defense. Andy tried to hold Sam back.
"Even if he isn't a ghost anymore he's still Danny Phantom and he will still protect us!" Lydia shouted angrily at Robbie. Andy was trying to drag her away. Danny frowned… he if wasn't a ghost did that really mean he wasn't Danny Phantom anymore.
"Lydia." Sarah said sternly and Lydia stopped struggling. Danny sighed then looked at Lydia.
"You have to be good ok, or I think a lot of angry parents will be after me." Danny said looking around at the parents who had annoyed expressions and were all glaring at Danny thinking: "who does he think he is dressing up like that?" Lydia looked around the nodded.
"Alright." Lydia said.
"Now go play." Danny said. Lydia nodded and Andy let her go Robbie following behind a bit angry that he hadn't really won or lost the argument. Danny started back toward Sarah when a familiar face made him freeze.
"There you are!" Maddie said rushing to him.
"Uh…" was all Danny could really say.