I started writing this story spontaneously. It's been nearly 15 years since I joined FFNET, and 13 since I last posted a story online. Other than a few story outlines that didn't go anywhere, I hadn't planned to write again.
However, I was inspired by seeing Chromatographic's fic, Surviving (Not Unchanged), on AO3 (where this story will be cross-posted). It isn't a Valerie/Jason story, but it got me thinking about Valerie in Gotham. It's been months of writing, research, reading comics, editing, and Danny Phantom re-watches to get here. I hope that I've done the characters justice.
Monday, April 23, 2018. Gotham City, Jason's Apartment (VALERIE GRAY)
Jason was burning up. Valerie gently dragged a damp cloth across his forehead, her apprehension growing at the heat radiating from the man. It was the first time she'd seen him in three weeks, and he looked horrible. His skin was pale and clammy, his scarlet red hair drenched with sweat. Worryingly, his cornflower blue eyes now glowed a vivid neon green. Jason's head was heavy in her lap, and he squirmed as another wave of pain wracked his body. Valerie's watch, which had been beeping steadily for the past two hours, was louder than ever before.
Valerie bit her lip in apprehension. The watch only reacted to the amount of ectoplasm present in the area. The louder it was, the more ectoplasm was present–which usually meant that a stronger ghost was near. Gotham was a veritable desert, as far as ghosts were concerned. If Jason was emitting more ecto all of a sudden, it couldn't possibly mean anything good. The air in Jason's apartment felt like the basement of Vlad's laboratory before they'd been able to stabilize Dani.
Before the previous weeks' incident, Jason had been reluctant to learn more about halfas. This was fine when he was healthy, but after the incident he'd been steadily deteriorating. Whatever happened during his emergency with the Outlaws had messed with his ectoplasm, and his condition had only worsened since she'd met up with him last night. Valerie didn't know of any doctor in Gotham that could do anything about ectoplasm.
Valerie had tailed the Red Hood last night, and she'd noticed the way the neon green glow of his eyes appeared to penetrate through his domino mask and the slits on his helmet. The Red Hood had been slower and clumsier last night, and it was only due to luck and a few discreet assists on her part that he hadn't appeared as impaired as he actually was. She'd even had to trip up Nightwing, who'd come to investigate one of the first sightings of the Red Hood in Gotham in weeks. Valerie knew that there was a chance that the other vigilante had noticed the glow of the Red Hood's helmet, but she desperately hoped he hadn't.
Aside from the Red Hood, whom she had met by accident, Valerie tended to avoid Gotham's rogues and vigilantes with equal fervor. The last thing that anyone in Gotham needed was the Joker or any of the other rogues trying to recruit ghosts or meddle with ecto-technology. Amity Park didn't need Batman or anyone from the Justice League looking into ghosts either.
Valerie dunked the washcloth back into the bowl of cold water that was sitting on the coffee table. Eyeing her phone, she spoke up. "Jay, I really think I need to call Phantom. You've been running a fever since I ran into you last night, and you've been setting off my ecto-sensor like crazy." Wringing the cloth of any excess water, she placed the cloth back on his forehead.
He groaned, lifting his head slightly from her lap, dislodging the cloth. "Val, you know I don't want anyone else knowing that I'm the Red Hood, especially after all of the shit that went down a few weeks ago."
"Phantom doesn't need to know that you're the Red Hood, Jason. He's powerful, but he can't sniff out secret identities…I can tell him that you got caught up in a rogue's plot a few times and it fucked you up. I won't even need to lie about how I met you." Valerie said.
"Val, you told me yourself that most ghosts can't hide their true identities from other ghosts, so if he ever came here and ran into me in the mask, he'd know who I am." Jason argued.
"Danny lives in Metropolis. He and most of the other powerful ghosts refuse to step foot in this city—I told you about the GIW, but I didn't get to tell you about Freakshow. He's another reason why most ghosts steer clear of Gotham; they don't want to get caught up in all of the nonsense that goes on here. Freakshow's a human that's obsessed with controlling ghosts. He actually succeeded once." She sighed. "...I see where you're coming from, but I'm just worried about you. The last time I saw a halfa leaking ecto like this, she was about to destabilize." Valerie explained.
Jason let out a pained huff. "I know that you care Val, and I trust you. It's just that I don't know Phantom…I'll be okay."
Valerie cupped his cheek. "Hey, look at it this way, yeah? The ghosts don't want humans all up in their business. If we go to them for help, they're not gonna snitch, because that would put a spotlight on them."
Jason's face relaxed as he thought it over. "You might hav–" He screamed. The air seemed to thicken, buzzing with ectoplasm. Valerie held onto him, fruitlessly trying to soothe him. After a minute or two, his body relaxed slightly.
"Jay, what the fuck was that?" Valerie asked frantically.
Panting, Jason spoke. "I think something is wrong with the Pit…it was so damn painful for no reason. Usually it just pisses me off, but everything hurts so bad, and I don't know…it's connected to the Pit somehow."
"Look, I'm calling Phantom. You're getting worse, and I don't think any human doctor can help you. I wasn't joking when I said I've seen a halfa nearly destabilize before." Valerie reached over him to pluck her smartphone from the coffee table.
"Fine. Call him Val, I feel like shit… and the Pit is acting up." Jason relented, closing his eyes slightly.
"Do you think that this has something to do with what happened when you were…gone? This hasn't happened before, right?" Valerie asked.
"It might. I've never been possessed by demons before…" For the first time since she'd met him, Jason appeared uncertain.
"Jay, you didn't tell me that demons were involved?! I thought that it was wizards or some shit like that."
Jason looked up at her, gaze wild and unfocused. "Ha, I wish it was wizards, Val."
"...it's only because you're about to fall off the couch that I'm not gonna tell you that I should've dragged you to the Ghost Zone as soon as you landed in Gotham." Valerie said after a long pause.
"Val, you just told me that you should?"
Valerie didn't respond, pulling up Danny Fenton's contact and hitting 'call'. For the first time in several hours, she checked the time. It was nearly 7PM on a Monday night. Danny had better answer his fucking phone for once, the last thing I want to do is try to call Sam or Tucker to try to persuade them to help me out, she thought. After three rings, he answered.
"Valerie? Are you okay?" Danny's deep voice floated through the speaker.
"Hey Danny, why wouldn't I be okay?" Valerie asked brightly, trying not to let her worry bleed into her tone.
"Well, you usually don't call me at 7PM on a Monday, especially this close to finals."
Valerie schooled herself before she blurted it all out. "Ha, about that. It is really close to finals, but there's an emergency…a Zone-type of emergency. I have a friend here in Gotham who I think might be like you and Dani, and he's really fucking sick. He told me that he got possessed by demons as a part of some rogue's plot, and now he's radiating ecto like a furnace," She paused for a moment to catch her breath. "I really need your help Danny. I know you don't fuck with Gotham, and I'll even try to get us across the bridge to Metropolis, but if you could get us to the Zone and maybe get Frostbite's help, I'll owe you so many favors for the rest of my fucking life."
"Valerie, what do you mean, Possessed by demons? How is he like me and Dani? My parents haven't even been to Gotham as far as I know, are you sure your friend's like us?" Danny sounded like he was in shock.
"Yes, demons are real, unfortunately," Valerie shifted uncomfortably, before twining her free hand with Jason's. "I think your parents aren't at fault for once, I guess there's more than one way to end up in your situation. I know it's rare, but I'm sure that he's like you and Dani. I met him nearly eight months ago, and he's been setting my sensors off ever since. They've just never spiked like this before—he's been feverish and in a lot of pain for the past three days. And before you ask, I didn't say anything to you about him before because he wasn't ready for anyone else to know."
Valerie paused, unsettled about how vulnerable she'd have to get with her former archnemesis. "I told him that there are others out there like him–and no, I didn't name names. I told him about Amity, the Zone, …but he wanted to wait to meet you and Dani, and I respected that. I'm only telling you now because he agreed…he's in really bad shape Danny, like how Dani was in Vlad's lab."
"Fuck, I get it Val–he probably joined the club because of something really fucked up, there's no easy way to end up like us. Your friend is probably still trying to process it. Okay, Metropolis is kind of far for you to take him on your board, if he's in bad shape...I'll come to you if that works?" Danny offered. Valerie slumped a bit, thankful that Danny offered to help them immediately.
"Lemme ask, hold on," Valerie tapped the mute button, turning to look down at Jason, who was still laying miserably across her lap. "Jay, Phantom asked if he could come to us, is that okay with you?"
"Not here. I know a place that's ten minutes away; nobody will notice any ghosts or whatever Phantom needs to do to get us to the Ghost Zone there." He then rattled off an address. "Tell him to use StreetView to know which building it is…I'm assuming he's not driving?"
"He'd have to open a portal to get us to the Zone…they're large, neon green swirls, so they're a bit noticeable. And he'll probably fly, last I heard, his top speed is 150 miles per hour," Valerie explained.
Jason whistled. "Damn. You think I'll be able to do that someday?"
"Eventually, hopefully," Valerie tapped her phone again to unmute the call. "Hey, Danny, so I'm gonna give you an address to meet us at, it's 10 minutes from us and has more space to open a portal than the living room of a one bedroom," She tapped her screen a few times. "I just sent you pictures of the building in Maps."
"Got it. I need to set up the Speeder first, because if your friend is in bad enough shape, the Speeder is safer, so it'll take me about twenty minutes to get there."
"Danny, thank you so much for doing this, we'll be on our way out in ten,"
"Hey, you're my friend Val, and I wouldn't turn down someone that needs help. See you in 20."
"See ya." Valerie ended the call.
Turning to Jason, she spoke quietly. "Danny should be there in 20 minutes, he needs to set up a ride in the Ghost Zone—it'll be easier than carrying you all the way to the Far Frozen,"
"Far Frozen? Carrying? I'm feeling a little bit better now." Jason groaned, pulling himself into a sitting position. Are his eyes glowing even more, or is that me? Valerie thought.
"Frostbite lives in the Far Frozen. He's a ghost that helped Danny out when he had issues with his powers…he's a yeti? It'll make more sense when we get there. And yeah, the Ghost Zone is a dark void filled with floating islands and portals; ghosts can fly, but as a human you need a ride…or a ghost willing to carry you, even if you are feeling better right now."
"Val, that sounds so…." Jason said.
"Yeah I know, it sounds crazy to people who aren't from Amity Park, but it's legit. What do you think I have the hoverboard for?" Valerie moved to help him stand from the couch, eyeing his sweat stained clothes. Without thinking, she pulled him into a quick hug. "Let's get going, it'll probably take us ten minutes to get there, and you probably don't want to be stuck with those sweaty clothes."
"Yeah, I feel pretty fucking gross right now, Val," Jason said.
Valerie helped him to the bedroom. Plucking a faded band tee, a hoodie, and a soft-looking pair of sweatpants from the dresser, she handed them over as Jason wiggled out of his clothes.
"Val, if we run into a fight, these clothes ain't gonna hold up," Jason complained, pulling the sweats on anyway.
She raised a brow, but packed one of his spare uniforms into a duffel for him.
"It's only ten minutes away. Either way, if we run into a fight, I'll finish it," She said confidently. As Jason slowly put on the hoodie, she realized that she'd have to come up with a cover story. She didn't know how long it would actually take. After stuffing a few more things in the bag, Valerie dropped it onto the floor.
Turning, she unlocked her phone, quickly penning an excuse to miss class for the next few days. I hope that he'll be fine and we can both be back in Gotham in time, she thought. Valerie then texted her best friend Alexis, telling her that Jason was back…and that she was staying with him for the next three days. Valerie cringed. Alexis is gonna think I've lost my mind, ditching class for nearly a week to 'hang out' with Jason. I never thought I'd have to make up lies like this since I graduated from Casper High.
Her phone started going off with a wave of notifications. But there was nothing sensible she could say without exposing the fact that Jason may be half-dead and definitely is the Red Hood, or talking about ghosts. If she told the truth, her roommate would actually think that she'd lost her mind.
Jason shuffled towards the door. He picked up the duffel bag, and Valerie pretended to not see him slide a few weapons into it.
"C'mon Val," Jason said, slightly grasping her right hand. She let him lead her back into the living room. The man stopped abruptly as Valerie was only halfway out of the door, causing her to bump into his back. A burst of cool air from the living room window danced around her head. Stepping back to look around Jason's bulk, she saw him.
In the middle of Jason's cozy apartment, was Batman.
Valerie couldn't believe her eyes. "Okay, what the fuck?!"