Author's Note: This is my first ever fanfiction, I'm excited! Timeline-wise this takes place in season 2 of DP, shortly after 'Secret Weapons', and after the end Teen Titans series.
And in this fic, superheroes are not super (haha) well known to be real, a lot of people think they're hoaxes or street performers.
This turned out way angstier than I originally intended but I guess it makes sense with Dan being the way he is/was. I also hope the ratio of narration to dialogue is ok; everything except the conversation between Danny and the Titans fought me hard.
Three days. Three days of being stuck in the Fenton Family Ghost Assault Vehicle. Because his parents were dragging him and his sister all the way to California, to some place called Jump City, for a ghost hunting convention. Because his parents didn't want them 'wasting their spring break doing nothing back in Amity Park'. Three days of Danny being stuck having to listen to his parents blather on about ghosts. Specifically, about the lectures that would be given at the three day long event. Lectures about all the new ways people had come up with to mutilate ghosts and 'rip them apart molecule by molecule'.
He was very grateful to his sister, Jazz, for trying very hard to change the subject as frequently as she could. 'Trying' because Jack and Maddie Fenton had a one track mind when it came to anything ghost related and this whole trip was something ghost related.
When they finally made it to the hotel they'd be staying at in Jump City, Danny could only bring himself to throw his bags into the room before taking off to go 'exploring'. He felt slightly guilty for leaving Jazz to organize his stuff but he just really needed to get out of there, get away from them.
Danny loves his parents. He really does. It just hurt to know that he could never tell them about all the good he tried to do by fighting ghosts because they would hate him for it. No, that's not quite right. They would hate him just for being a ghost, before they gave any thought to what he did or didn't try to do. Especially once they found out about his potential to turn evil. Sure, Danny had established his truce with Vlad using the argument that they would love him no matter what because he's their son, but even at the time doubt had been niggling the back of his mind. And now, after everything Clockwork showed him, the doubts only grew louder.
He speed-walked his way down the blocks, eventually slowing down to meander and admire the sights. But he was still close to the hotel and didn't want to even see it anymore. Not for a while at least, so Danny ducked into the next alley as inconspicuously as possible and transformed. He had resisted using his powers as long as he could, because you know ghost HUNTERS convention, but he needed to get away now. So he did the next best thing: he turned invisible and stayed that way for a while as he flew off in a random direction.
Danny was very impressed by the atmosphere of this city. It was huge and there were a lot of people going about their business, some rushing to get where they needed to be, others out for a stroll doing some shopping. However, it surprisingly didn't feel crowded. Back in Amity, there were times where Danny felt crowded, even when he was flying above everyone. But this place was nice. Not home, but nice. The air felt and smelled great, probably from the spray coming off the very nearby ocean. If it wasn't for the reason they came here, Danny would absolutely love vacationing in this city. He even started contemplating what type of souvenirs to get, and what he could/should bring home for Sam and Tucker.
Eventually, Danny found a skyscraper to land on top of and drop invisibility to lay down, relax and cloud gaze. The sun was halfway past the horizon; it wouldn't be long until his cloud watching turned to stargazing. Well, what few stars he'd be able to make out. His powers included enhanced sight, which meant he could pick up light and make out details from farther away than a normal human, so he could actually see more stars than other people, but light pollution was still an issue. Even so, he loved watching the sky every chance he got and was looking forward to seeing if there were any stars he could pick up out here that he couldn't in Amity Park. Their latitude hadn't changed much but their elevation had so that might make a difference.
Suddenly, a blaring alarm started going off somewhere nearby interrupting Danny's thoughts. He tried to ignore it. This wasn't his place to protect and it wasn't his area of expertise since his ghost sense hadn't been set off. And also: ghost hunters everywhere. The police could handle it. But the alarm kept going with no sign of sirens coming.
Danny sighed. 'Fine,' he thought. He would just check out what was going on. Just for a second. And if no one was hurt then he would leave again and let the police handle it. Whenever they showed up.
It didn't take long for Danny Phantom to trace the alarm back to a jewelry store two blocks over. It was small for this part of the city, only two stories, with a few skyscrapers and a small assortment of other buildings all around it. From what he could see from the outside, there wasn't much going on inside the shop, no one was running around screaming. But that didn't mean no one was inside or that they weren't hurt.
So, taking a steadying breath, Danny turned invisible once more, phased into the ground floor and started looking around. The display cases were all shattered and the jewels they held were nowhere to be seen. Danny still didn't see any people though, so that was probably a good sign. But there was still another floor. Danny bit his lip in thought briefly then decided to check the next level.
Emerging from the floor, Danny immediately noticed someone wearing a tuxedo and cape who appeared to be vacuuming the last of the jewelry into a top hat. 'How is that all fitting in there?' he wondered. But that wasn't the strangest thing about the guy: he had blue skin! 'Wait, is he a ghost?'. No, Danny concluded, he wasn't glowing like a ghost would and, as he noted before, the man didn't trigger his ghost sense. So then what was going on?
The man was still stealing and it still didn't seem like anyone was coming to help. It also didn't seem like there was anyone hurt or being held hostage so Danny should really just leave. The guy was easy to recognize and the store more than likely had security cameras that the police could look at later. And, again, this wasn't his city to protect. Still, Danny felt like he should stay, like he should do something to right this wrong.
"Dude, if you don't know what kind of jewelry your girlfriend likes, maybe you should stick to chocolate," Danny started to taunt. The man startled and turned to look at Danny, who had become visible. His look of surprise with a smidge of fear soon turned to confusion.
"You're not the Titans," he noted in a nasally voice as he placed his hat on his head. "If you're here to stop me you'll have to do better than a lecture. Mumbo Jumbo!"
The man pulled out a magician's wand and waved it in Danny's direction. A string of handkerchiefs shot out and wrapped around the ghost boy. He wasn't trapped though, he just turned intangible and phased through to escape.
"Oh, I can do better alright," Danny announced. The man was startled again as Danny flew in to punch him in the face. He ducked just in time for Danny to only hit the hat. It was surprisingly sturdy and went flying halfway across the room. When it hit the ground the jewels all erupted from it, a lot of them landing on Danny himself, as he was now in between the blue man and his hat.
"Oh shoot! I guess that's my cue to exit stage right! Mumbo Jumbo!" he announced. Waving his wand around, a plume of smoke shot from the end enveloping him and then the man was gone.
"What the-"
"Freeze!"
Realizing how familiar this situation felt, Danny whipped around throwing his hands up and yelled, "I can explain!" He then got a look at the people that had come in. They were a strange assortment of teenagers, all wearing colorful costumes and in battle stances.."You're not the police," he said, confused. They could be ghost hunters, similar to the Groovy Gang, he thought "I don't have to explain anything to you. Bye!"
Danny once more turned intangible and flew up through the roof, leaving the jewelry behind, and headed straight back to the hotel.
That didn't really go as planned, Danny thought to himself. Another part of him asked, There was a plan? but he dismissed it. It seemed like it worked out though, those teenagers weren't just the man's helpers. Right? They would have been there from the beginning if they were with him. Yeah, it was fine.
And he was back to the hotel before anyone could get worried. After transforming in an alley beside the hotel building he made his way to the elevator.
"I'm back," he called as he entered the too-small-for-four-people room. Jazz was sitting on a bed reading a book she had brought with them (of course), and mom and dad seemed to be fiddling with something at the desk.
"Hi sweetie! Did you enjoy the city?" his mom asked cheerfully.
"Yeah, it's so cool to be right beside the ocean."
"Too bad we won't have a chance to go to any beaches though. We'll be too busy having fun at the Ghost Hunter's convention!" his dad boomed.
"You guys may want to be at the convention activities all day, everyday but that doesn't mean Danny and I can't go to the beach or do something else, right?" Jazz asked, hopeful.
"Come on, kids," Maddie scolded, "with how frequently ghosts attack back home, it would be really good for you to know how to defend yourselves and how to use all of the technology we'll be bringing back."
"I'm not saying we won't attend anything,"she argued, (no matter how much she and Danny very much don't want to attend anything). "I just don't think it's necessary to go to absolutely every lecture. If you try to learn too much all at one time you'll barely remember anything. Studies show that students who just cram for tests the night before don't benefit from it long term."
"Don't be silly Jazzy-pants, that's just a myth," Jack jumped back into the conversation, causing Jazz to deflate a bit. "I crammed all the time in college and still remember everything."
Their mom, however, sighed. "I know you two aren't as enthusiastic about ghost fighting as we are. Fine, as long as you go to some lectures each day and make an effort to learn something new, you can also do some activities around the town."
"Yes! Thanks Mom," Danny cheered.
"You're welcome honey," Maddie said, and gave a slight sigh of disappointment. "Now, should we go out for dinner or get room service?"
The next morning saw the Fenton family making their way towards the convention center a few blocks away. Coincidentally, it was in the opposite direction Danny had flown the previous night. It wasn't far so they decided to walk. Along the way, they passed a store front with a lot of people crowding around it. Danny let himself be distracted and slowed down a bit.
"Mom, I want a Beast Boy!" he heard a little kid say. Hanging in the window were a bunch of stuffed toys that seemed to be modeled after the teenagers from the jewelry store. That meant they weren't bad guys, right?
"Danny, come on!" Jazz's voice broke him out of his investigation. He sighed and caught up with his family. "Please don't make me listen to all of this by myself. I know it hurts you more, but it still upsets me, too," she whispered to him. He sighed and nodded. After abandoning her last night he couldn't leave her again so soon.
Danny tried to get through the first lecture how he normally dealt with unpleasant things: with a lot of snark and jokes. His parents didn't like that, as they were trying to take notes (well their mom was, they weren't too sure what their dad was doing), and threatened to ground him. Jazz wrapped an arm around his shoulder comfortingly for a minute and went back to her own half-hearted notes. She may not want to be there at all but she did want to know about all the different things she might have to sabotage or rescue her brother from in the future.
The next lecture, Danny tried to employ a technique he (unintentionally) learned at school: sleeping. Except he wasn't really tired because he had actually been able to sleep through the night this whole trip without constant ghost attacks. About halfway through he decided to switch back to his previous technique. Only quieter. Instead of saying all his remarks out loud he chose to use the notebook his parents gave him to write all his comments and show Jazz. She was very good at hiding her amusement but Danny was proud to say he got a couple chuckles, and even one snort, out of her. She lightly elbowed him in the side after the snort.
Finally it was time for the lunch break, provided in one of the lecture halls. The food was decent and Jazz and Danny were able to hide away in a corner to talk quietly.
"Sorry about ditching you yesterday," Danny said.
"It's ok, I understand. Where'd you go anyway?" she asked.
"Just flew around on the other side of the city," he shrugged, looking away slightly.
"Did you get into any trouble?"
"No," he answered automatically. "Well, there was something happening at a jewelry store. I scared the dude away but then some kids showed up and I got a bit scared so I came back."
"Kids?" she looked thoughtful. "Could it have been the Teen Titans?"
"The what?"
"Teen Titans. There was a news story about them. Although it didn't seem like the reporters knew much about them. They're superpowered teenagers and I think they were some kind of special forces branch of the local police."
Danny's eyes had gone wide in fear. "It could have been them. Do you think they're going to arrest me? What if they think I was trying to rob the place? What-"
"Danny!" Jazz whisper-yelled, putting her hands on his shoulders. "Breathe. It's ok, maybe it wasn't them. Or if it was, maybe they'll just want to talk. As long as you don't have anything it'll be fine. I promise, I won't let anything happen here."
Danny nodded as he tried to even out his breathing. He hadn't noticed that he started hyperventilating.
"Are you ok?"
"Yeah, sorry."
"Don't apologize little brother," she told him gently, removing her hands. "This is a very stressful situation for you. It's normal to freak out. It's ok."
"Thanks. You're right. It probably wasn't them. They weren't wearing any uniforms so they can't be with the police."
"Actually the Teen Titans don't wear police uniforms. They have, like, superhero costumes and don't match each other."
"Ok. It still could not be them. What do they look like?" Danny asked, trying not to panic again.
"Hmm," she began thinking and put a finger to her chin. "One was all green and pretty short, another wore a purple robe that covered their whole body. There was a red-headed girl that wore a kind of skimpy purple outfit. An… android? I think that's the right word. He was half-robot anyway. And the leader had black hair, a mask over his eyes, a cape and a green and red outfit."
Danny's eyes had gone wide again. But he wasn't panicking! Not yet. Not completely anyway. "It was them!"
"Hey, it's ok l, we'll figure this out," Jazz tried to reassure him.
"There you are! Alright, kiddos, time for the next lecture!" Jack announced as he found them. "Let's go!"
Jazz wrapped an arm around Danny's shoulders and gently guided him after their dad. "It'll be ok," she whispered one more time.
After another two hours of torture, their parents let them leave the convention for the day. They walked back in the direction of their hotel, passing next to the shop with the crowd from before. The crowd had thinned a lot so they were able to see what exactly this place was about. It was a toy store that was announcing a new line of plushies. Almost everything in the whole store was Teen Titans themed.
Jazz thought it would be a good idea to talk to the employees about the Teen Titans to figure out if there was a chance they'd be fair to Danny. Subtly of course. Some of the customers also got in on the conversation. They learned that they were named Robin, Raven, Starfire, Cyborg and Beast Boy. Apparently, the Teen Titans were very popular, which just made Danny more anxious, even if most people just thought they were stuntmen or street performers. But if the Titans (as they were sometimes simply called) decided they didn't like him then his chances of a decent reputation anywhere were doomed.
Jazz seemed pretty optimistic though, so that was probably a good sign.
They spent the rest of the afternoon in a more touristy area they took a bus to. It was pretty nice just spending some time with his sister goofing around in souvenir shops. There was still a heavy Teen Titans theme.
Danny ended up getting a Raven and a Cyborg keychain for Sam and Tucker, respectively. His friends were pretty easy to shop for, at least when it came to small trinkets. He didn't notice anything he wanted for himself though.
The second day of the convention was more meant for vendors so their parents drove them in the GAV to the hall along with all of their merchandise and demos. Of course, Jazz and Danny were recruited to help bring everything to the stall. And also roped into helping make sales. Ugh. Danny didn't actually mind his parents' more defense focused inventions, even a lot of the weapons were fine if they were used only for self defense. Unfortunately, there were still a few very disturbing weapons that, when combined with his parents' very offense focused strategies, were utterly terrifying.
Luckily, Jack and Maddie let their kids leave at the lunch break. And today they decided to go to the beach which Danny was actually able to enjoy. The warm sun, the cool water, and the chatter of all the children and adults that had also gathered at the beach that day. It was enough to distract him from all of the anti-ghost nonsense he'd been subjected to for the last week. They both had a great time; Jazz even had fun when Danny decided to pretend to be a shark and grab her ankles from below. From that moment she took to splashing him every single time he got close enough.
Finally returning to the hotel as the sun was setting made reality crash back in again as they met up with their parents.
"Danny, Jazzy!" Jack shouted. "You'll never believe it!" Oh no, Danny thought, what now? "We sold our whole stock!"
"To who?" Danny asked.
"Well, a few people bought one or two things, mostly Specter Deflectors and wrist blasters-" their mom started to explain.
"But then this one guy wearing a white suit bought all of the guns!" Jack finished for her.
"A white suit? That doesn't seem very practical for fighting," Danny noted. Meanwhile he was trying to think of why someone in a white suit sounded suspicious. The only one that really came to mind was Walker. But why would he need to buy guns? And where would he get the money, ghosts don't have any currency?
"Oh, he was probably just wearing it for the convention," Maddie said. "To make a good impression, you know?" At this, Danny wanted to make a comment along the lines of 'Then why didn't you two change what you're wearing' but thought better than to encourage a lecture from them. "Now, how about we go out for dinner tonight? I've heard of a great pizza place downtown."
"Yeah, pizza sounds great," Danny agreed readily. Jazz agreed quickly, too.
The restaurant was called the Pizza Corner and Danny was right; the pizza was great. Unfortunately the Teen Titans were also there. And in full costume. They didn't seem to be working though, and from the information Danny and Jazz had gotten it seemed like they did most of their work at night. Did they not own other clothes?
Danny was nervous of course, but it didn't seem like they recognized him at all. Not that they should, he had been in his ghost form at the time and they would have only gotten a glimpse of him. However, his parents kept drawing their attention by loudly commenting on their clothes (As if you can talk, the children were both thinking).
At one point, their mom even went over to them to compliment their acrobatic and acting skills and tried to give them some money. Because the Titans were 'street performers'. They didn't look very happy to be patronized. When Maddie came back to their table Jazz, and especially Danny, tried to block their faces from them in embarrassment. But Jazz did give them a small apologetic wave.
When they made it back to the hotel Danny tried to relax and ignore his parents' continued excited rambling about the convention by watching the news. There was another report on the Teen Titans, and as Jazz had said the day before, the anchors didn't seem to know what to make of the team. They clearly weren't taking them seriously just because they were children. Danny found himself feeling bad for them. Even though people liked the Titans, it seemed like no one really trusted them because of their age. Danny also thought their powers were cool, and they definitely were powers and not some kind of special effects. Maybe normal people couldn't tell (or maybe they didn't want to realize) but he could.
The next, and final, day of the convention was simultaneously the best and worst day for Danny. It was the worst because his parents decided they hadn't done enough 'learning' the previous couple days and were trying to force him and Jazz to attend all the lectures. It was also the worst because today's lectures seemed to be focused on him specifically. We'll, not him, Phantom, but he is Phantom so… Anyway, the day was saved slightly when it turned out one of his fans from Amity Park had come to the convention and was actively trying to defend him during a lecture being given by a guy in a white suit and sunglasses. It was slightly ruined again when Danny realized this was one of the crazy cultists that worshiped him. Sure they were one of the less crazy ones, but they were still pretty crazy. They ended up being escorted out for being disruptive.
By the end of the day Danny felt worse than he did when they first arrived in the city. And Jazz could tell so she told him to go 'exploring' again. Their parents didn't like that idea as it was already dark out but Jazz managed to convince them that the city had a very low crime rate and would be safe enough.
Once he was outside, Jazz texted Danny to be careful. He responded 'Thank you thank you thank you! I will'. He then ducked into the alley and transformed, taking flight while invisible.
He decided to fly over a completely different part of the city to avoid a repeat of that first day. Flying always helped him calm down and clear his head before but this time his mind kept wandering to the lectures. And also Dan. His potential to be evil.
His mind continued to wander as he flew. It wandered to Sam and Tucker and Jazz and how if anything happened to them (his parents too, but he was trying really hard not to think about them at the moment) he could/would break. It had happened once already so why not again? Clockwork had said he should give himself a second chance, and he was, but another chance didn't guarantee a better outcome. But Clockwork was the master of time, he knows everything. Shouldn't that be comforting? Shouldn't it mean that he has a really good possibility of not turning evil?
Danny eventually got tired of flying, feeling like his thoughts were weighing him down. He decided to land, sitting, on a streetlight, letting his ghostly tail wrap around the pole, becoming visible once more. They had noticed a large surprising amount of the hunters actually leaving the city as soon as the final lecture was finished, so the ghost boy figured he would be safe enough. He was kind of camouflaged up here with his slight glow and mostly black jumpsuit so as long as he didn't do anything to draw attention to himself everyone would just think he was a part of the light.
He stayed there for a while, maybe hours but he wasn't sure, watching the cars zoom past below him, his mind going in circles about Dan and his friends and family and Clockwork.
"Hey," he heard someone call out eventually. They wouldn't be talking to him though because he blended in well. So he ignored them and continued thinking.
"Hey, kid! Up on the light!" They called a bit louder. Confused, Danny turned around to face the voice. There, on the roof of the little shop behind him, were the five people he had fled from at the jewelry store. The kids he had found out were local superheroes shortly after. The Teen Titans.
His eyes widened as he lifted off the light post to fly away again, but as he turned to leave he heard the same voice, probably the leader of the group, call out one more time "I can explain!"
That really confused Danny so he turned back to them and asked, "What?"
"I said 'I can explain'. That's what you said when we saw you at the jewelry store the other day. We wanted to give you the chance to, especially since the store owner said no inventory was missing," the one he remembered was Robin, said.
"Oh. And why should I explain things to you? You aren't the police," Danny answered.
"Well, technically you're right," he answered, seemingly a bit reluctant. "We aren't the police, but we do work with them regularly. Especially on cases involving metas or aliens."
"'Medas'? Isn't that the story of the guy who could turn anything to gold?" Danny wondered, even more confused than before.
The girl in a purple cloak, he knew as Raven, spoke up next, "No, you're thinking of King Midas who was cursed to turn everything he touched to gold. What Robin said was 'metas'" she emphasized the 't' sound "which is short for metahumans. Humans with superpowers."
"Ok, I guess that makes sense," Danny nodded. "So, you're here to arrest me?" he asked as he started to drift backwards again.
Robin spoke again, shaking his head, "No, not necessarily. Like I said, I want to hear your side of what happened."
"What if you don't believe me? I'm a ghost after all," Danny asked skeptically.
"A ghost?" the green kid snorted.
"Beast Boy," Robin said with a slight warning tone. He continued, his attention back on Danny, "Do you think we won't believe you just because you're a ghost?"
"We'll yeah. All the scientists say ghosts are evil, don't feel pain or emotions, and only say things to manipulate people to benefit themselves. They are really smart when it comes to technology and chemistry, but they've completely neglected to try any kind of cultural research," Danny ranted. Then, slightly more curious, he asked, "Your city is hosting a whole ghost hunters' convention and you didn't look into it at all?"
"Ghost hunters? I thought it was some kinda sci-fi convention," the robot guy, Cyborg, said, mostly to himself.
The red-headed girl started floating towards Danny, stopping short when he flinched away, and said with a very eager voice "Whether you are a meta, an alien or a ghost, I promise that you will be treated exactly as we treat any other witness."
"Starfire is right," Robin jumped in again. "It wasn't too long ago that aliens were feared and assumed to be nothing but invaders. But here we are," he gestured to Starfire, "working side by side."
"You're an alien?" Danny asked the girl excitedly, momentarily forgetting the tense conversation.
"Indeed. I hail from the planet Tamaran."
"Cool! Is that in a nearby solar system or is it in a completely different galaxy? Is the atmosphere similar to Earth's?"
"You're a fan of aliens?" Robin asked, smirking.
Danny was shaken out of his excited fixation and sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. "Anything space related, really," he admitted.
"So, can we talk?" Robin asked, trying to get things back on track.
Danny glanced at Starfire then back at Robin. He sighed and settled back on the streetlight. "I guess so. What do you want to know?"
Robin nodded. "I'll start easy: who are you? And why are you here?"
"My name's Phantom. And do you mean why am I in this city or why am I on this streetlight?"
Robin's mask looked like it was raising its eyebrow as he said, "Both I guess, if you're willing to answer both. But I think the more important one is 'why are you in Jump City?'"
Danny thought for a moment then slowly said, "I'm traveling with some people who are attending the convention. As for this streetlight, I've gotten a good break from constantly fighting ghosts this road trip but my mind has been wandering a lot. I chose this spot at random and have just been thinking."
"Thinking about what?" Beast Boy asked.
Danny shrugged, "Life. Death. Everything in between."
"Why is a ghost traveling with people who are at least fans of ghost hunters, if not hunters themselves?" Cyborg asked.
Danny rubbed the back of his neck again. "It's… complicated. Technically they don't know I'm with them. They don't know who I really am."
"So you have a secret identity? Are you a hero, too?" Beast Boy asked excitedly, straight to the point.
Starfire was suddenly right in front of Danny's face speaking very quickly. He thought he caught something about a favorite colour and "be my friend?" at the end. Besides a surprised "Ack!" at her appearance he couldn't think of a response.
"Star, this may not be the best time," Cyborg jumped in.
Starfire looked between him and Danny a few times before realizing he was right and giving a quiet "Oh". She landed back on the roof beside her team with barely concealed disappointment.
Shaking his head to get back on track Danny answered Beast Boy, "I try to be, but lately… I've been having some doubts," he confessed.
"Because the stupid eggheads think you're evil?" Beast Boy guessed, making Danny chuckle.
"Nah, I've been dealing with that for almost a year, I'm used to the hate," he trailed off, Beast Boy gawking at his statement.
"What changed?" Robin prompted.
Danny thought for a bit, sending a mild glare (read: pout) at the black-haired boy, who was completely unaffected. He let his tail turn back into legs and pulled them up to his chest and wrapped his arms around them resting his chin on his knees. He stared off into the distance, contemplating what to say.
Finally he quietly said, "About four months ago, I met a ghost who could see the future. He let me see, and even experience, what's going to happen. But… it wasn't good. I wasn't good."
Raven spoke up again apparently trying to be supportive but her monotone made it hard to tell, "The future isn't set in stone. Things can be changed. Especially if you know what to avoid now."
Danny gave a small smile. "I know. That future has already been averted." He frowned again. "But who's to say that's the only future I turn evil? The circumstances that led to it could still happen, just at a different time, a different place, or in a different way." She hummed in acknowledgement.
"Perhaps if you make some friends then they would be able to help you avoid any such futures," Starfire suggested happily.
Danny sent her a small glare then looked away. "I already have friends," he said. "They help me out a lot. But they're humans. They can only do so much and have to stay to the side mostly, out of the way, you know. And… in that future…" Danny couldn't bring himself to say it.
"Something happened to them," Robin finished. Danny nodded.
An awkward silence fell over them all.
Robin cleared his throat to ask, "So, what were you doing at the jewelry store, and how did you end up covered in the merchandise?"
"Oh uh, we had just gotten settled into our hotel and I needed a break from the ghost hunters' blathering about how they wanted to rip me apart molecule by molecule," the Titans visibly winced, except the one in the cloak, "so I went for a fly around the city. I just wanted to do a bit of sightseeing and clear my head. But then I heard some kind of alarm going off and decided I would check it out. Make sure no one was hurt.
"I saw a blue-skinned weirdo in a tuxedo vacuuming the jewelry into his hat. I thought he was a ghost at first but my ghost sense hadn't gone off so I scrapped that thought. Anyway, the whole situation didn't seem too normal to me so I tried to stop him. I managed to knock his hat off his head and it regurgitated everything onto me and he disappeared in a puff of smoke. Then you guys showed up, and I knew how it would all look so I phased out of the building and left.
"The next day, I saw some posters and heard people talking about 'Jump's protectors, the Teen Titans' and decided it would be best to lay low for the rest of our stay here."
"What do you mean you 'knew how it would look'?" Robin asked when Danny had finished.
Danny shifted awkwardly where he was seated as he said, "I've been framed for robberies and stuff before."
"What exactly made you think he was a ghost?" Cyborg asked.
"I'm with Cy. Mumbo Jumbo is definitely not a ghost. And, hey, earlier you said you fight ghosts constantly. Why do you do that if you are one?" Beast Boy followed up, sounding a bit agitated.
Danny raised an eyebrow. "'Mumbo Jumbo' was his name?" he asked quietly to himself then shook his head. "I thought he was a ghost because he had blue skin. It's pretty common for them to have either blue or green skin. But, like I said, my ghost sense didn't activate, he didn't feel like a ghost so I quickly dismissed that assumption.
"And why is it so weird that I fight other ghosts? Your police force is made up of humans. Right?" he actually wasn't so sure anymore. At Robin's nod he continued, "and they fight and arrest other humans. Do you think that's weird? Ghosts are no different. There's some really bad ones, some really good ones, and a whole bunch of neutral ones."
"That does make sense," Robin conceded, making Beast Boy deflate a bit.
"You're telling the truth," Raven suddenly said, startling Danny. It wasn't just what she said that startled him, but how it was said. It wasn't a question that would mean she was curious or unsure. It wasn't forceful, so it wasn't an accusation or sarcasm like he would expect from his parents or Valerie. It was just a simple statement of fact. And it kind of came out of nowhere.
"Um, uhh, what?" Danny finally got his brain working again. "Are you some kind of living lie detector?"
"In a sense," she said. "I'm an empath. I can feel the emotions of everyone around me. That includes being able to feel whether or not someone is being deceptive. It's more difficult if someone is prone to masking their emotions but you don't seem used to doing that. You've obviously been vague about some things but you haven't outright lied."
"Wow," was all Danny could manage. That was a lot to take in. He didn't know if he should be horrified by the implications or happy that she could feel, that she could acknowledge, his very real feelings. Sure, Danny knew his emotions didn't really change after his accident, and his friends never questioned it either, but to meet someone who could actually feel it… it was incredible. Was she feeling his shock right now? His curiosity? His… what else was he feeling?
"Thank you, Raven," Robin acknowledged. But before he could say anything else Danny's phone rang.
It was his sister who was probably worrying that he hadn't come back to the hotel yet so he answered, "Hey-"
"Danny! Where are you?! Are you hurt?! Did you get into trouble?! Do you need help?!" she rattled off quickly.
"No I'm fine," he glanced at the Titans and added, "No, I'm not in trouble and don't need any help. I'm just talking to some people."
He heard her breathe a sigh of relief. "That's good to hear. Mom and Dad were wondering where you went and have almost worked themselves up enough to go out looking for you. Fully armed, by the way," she said pointedly, then sighed again. "Also I could use your help finishing packing for tomorrow, little brother."
"Alright, alright," Danny sighed back. "I'll finish this up and be back soon."
"Alright, see you soon, bye."
"Bye," Danny hung up. "I've gotta go. Don't worry, we're leaving the city tomorrow so I'll be totally out of your hair from now on."
"What about that convention?" Cyborg asked.
Danny raised a questioning eyebrow, "Today was the final day," he answered simply.
"Where are you going?" Robin asked.
"Home," he answered simply again.
"And where's home?" Robin countered.
"Look, I don't think you're bad people but I'm skeptical of anyone involved with law enforcement. Sure, you can probably find that out easy enough, but I'm not eager to give you any shortcuts. Especially while I'm still in town along with a bunch of ghost hunters you could potentially hand me over to."
Robin frowned, "We wouldn't do that." Danny shrugged and started floating away. "Actually, I want to give you something," he said a bit louder.
Danny paused as Robin reached into a compartment on his belt and held something the size of his hand out to Danny.
"What is it?" he asked as he cautiously floated closer.
"A T-com. A communication device. I'd like to invite you to become a part of the Titan's global network," he explained, still holding the yellow device out. The rest of the Titans seemed shocked by the sudden announcement ("Already?!" Cyborg and Beast Boy asked).
"Why?" Danny asked, now floating a short distance from being able to grab it.
"We started recruiting metas and other heroes from around the world a few months ago because we were dealing with an organization that called themselves the Brotherhood of Evil. They were targeting every hero they could to try and destroy them. We thought it would be best to all work together to protect each other and bring them down. We've beaten them since but I see no reason to disband the network or stop recruiting others."
Danny nodded and hesitantly took the communicator, examining it. "What's the catch?" he asked. "Do I need to move here permanently?"
Robin chucked, "No. Requiring you to move closer would defeat the purpose of a global network. All we ask is that if we or any other Titan need help and think you'd be best to do the job, you go and help. That goes for you, too." Danny looked up from the device. "If you ever need help from one, or more, of us then we'll come help you," he promised.
"You… just want… help? MY help?" he asked, shocked.
"Yes," was Robin's simple response.
Just then, Danny's text tone sounded. It was Jazz checking he really was on his way. Danny muttered, "Geez Jazz, I'm coming." He put his phone away without sending a reply. Turning back to Robin and the others he said louder, "I-ok-sure. I don't think you'll really be able to help with ghost stuff, but I guess I can help out. Yeah I'll be a part of this."
"Great. Thank you," Robin said. "To program it as yours, just press the button on the side three times and say your name." Danny did so, only saying 'Phantom'. "Good. And now to use it, hold the button down and say 'Phantom to' and then the name of who you're trying to get a hold of."
"Ok, easy enough. Oh, uh, am I allowed to tell my friends about this?" he asked, gesturing between all of them.
"If they're as involved as you make it seem, then I don't see why not."
"Thanks. Can I… go now?" Danny asked.
Robin nodded and Danny took off.
(Line break)
Danny flew back to the hotel, transformed in an alley about a block away and texted Jazz that he was close. He ended up meeting his parents in the lobby. They were, as Jazz had warned, armed to the teeth going out to look for him. His dad scooped him up in a bear hug in relief and his mom started coddling him. They ushered him to the elevator and back to the room they all shared.
Once there they started lecturing him about how dangerous it was to go out at night in an unfamiliar place, especially a city this big, while they removed their gear. Jazz clearly looked like she wanted to talk about who he was speaking with but since he didn't mention it to their parents she guessed it wasn't really something he could talk about. She did notice the yellow thing he had in his hand while they were packing, but when she got his attention and raised her eyebrow at it he just shook his head slightly and put it in his jeans pocket. The message was clear: not now.
That night, Danny felt happier and a lot more hopeful about the future than he had in a while. Not everyone hates him automatically. Some people even trusted him and wanted his help. They thought he could be good and stay that way.
And it didn't hurt that they could prove his parents wrong about ghosts not having feelings.
In the GAV the next day, Danny kept feeling the T-com in his pocket to reassure himself that the meeting had actually happened, and comfort himself from his parents' ghost ramblings. He also took it out of his pocket every once in a while to examine it some more.
"Oh, what do you have there, honey?" Maddie's voice snapped him out of his little world.
"Uh, um, uh," Danny stuttered. He tried to think of a good lie but couldn't. He looked to Jazz for help but she didn't know yet so couldn't come up with anything either. Would it hurt to tell the truth? "It's a, uh, T-teen Titans communicator."
"Aw, that's a cute souvenir. The characters those kids play are pretty good role models," she said. Much better than Phantom at any rate." Danny felt his eye twitch. "And whoever coordinates their stunts does an amazing job. I can barely tell where the wires and pyrotechnics are."
Danny could feel himself getting mad on the Titans' behalf. They weren't actors, they were real superheroes and deserved that recognition! Being young didn't make them illegitimate!
"I need more water," Danny said as he got up and headed to the back of the RV.
"Me, too," he heard Jazz say. She followed him to the sleeping area of the vehicle and whispered, "Was that true? Is it real?" She pointed to the object in his hand.
He could see the excitement in her eyes and felt his anger melt mostly away. He nodded, giving her a small smile. "Yep," he said, his smile growing.
"Oh, Danny, that's wonderful," she hugged him, practically squealing in her attempt to hide her reaction from their parents. "This is amazing, I'm so proud of you. Didn't I say everything would be ok while we were here?" she asked smugly.
Danny rolled his eyes fondly at her, "yes you did," he admitted, giving an exaggerated sigh.
"And everything will keep being ok. We know that people are ok with you now, so just keep trying and everyone else will come around eventually."
Danny doubted the broadness of that statement, he didn't think everyone would come around, but he didn't have hope that things would get better.