Alright I started this one 12/2/14 mainly because I cut and pasted the end of last chapter :) In this one, you don't really get a whole lot of Danny's past yet, but he does explain a little more about the mysterious Headmaster. Don't worry, the juicy details will come in time!

7/25/2024: Sorry SamXDanny, this one isn't quite as long (though it's not the shortest), but it does begin to close the first arc. And there's a SLIGHT bit of fluff. But I decided to post this chapter a little more quickly just for you!

Disclaimer: This time again. Let's see, I don't own DP but the storyline is my own and I finally got a treadmill!

–

Chapter Eight: Flight

–

Sam's eyes widened slightly. She hadn't expected him to explain at all. She had expected him to shut her out again, to refuse help, but still, she wanted to ask.

She nodded and got up to get the scalpel and the first aid kit. She came back and sat down closer to him. He pointed to the spot on the right side of his neck where he could feel the small metallic object under the skin. She brought the scalpel up and placed it on his skin, using her other hand to steady his head. "This isn't going to feel good."

Danny rolled his eyes. "I've been through a lot worse."

Worry flitted across her face, but she tramped it down. That was a discussion for another time.

She pressed into his skin and barely received a twitch in response. The object was easy to find, just under the skin. She plucked it out and swabbed the wound with antiseptic. It was small enough that a Band-Aid was all that was needed.

She examined the small rice-shaped device in her hand. "That was easy. How come you didn't just take it out yourself?"

A soft chuckle. "I'm a lot of things, Sam, but a masochist isn't one of them. I couldn't phase it out and I'm not partial to cutting myself, especially when I can't really see what I'm doing. I wasn't crazy about the idea of potentially cutting my jugular. Not to mention, in the early days, they had ways to dissuade that."

She nodded absently, still studying the object. However, she didn't glean much from it and set it aside for Tucker to look at later. She returned her attention to Danny expectantly while carefully considering the wounds on his chest and shoulder. She went to lift his shirt and was surprised when a strong, firm hand grabbed hers. "Do it through the shirt." Sam tried to meet Danny's eyes but he never turned his head towards her.

He sighed, let go of her hand, and ran his own hand through his white locks, his bangs sticking up in odd places after the action. "Okay, well, first off, the Headmaster has two types of goons. The first type is soldiers. Four of the five guys lying around here are of that type," he gestured with his hand to the remaining men who were out cold. "Speaking of which, we need to get this cleaned up." Sam nodded in acknowledgment and poked a little around the chest wound. Her brow knitted.

"There's no bullet…" she remarked. Danny's eye flicked to her.

"No, it dissolves. That way it doesn't leave a trace."

The goth shook her head and went back to her inspection. Her best friend continued.

"They've been brainwashed, in a way, and not just mentally, either. They've been injected with a chemical that completely inhibits their pain response. This makes them dangerous because it can take a lot to stop them. Unless a bullet hits an area that kills instantly, or they're incapacitated somehow, they'll keep coming as if nothing happened," he paused and Sam nodded again reaching for the gauze and sutures.

"Now the brainwashing part of it takes away their ability to think for themselves. They live to serve the Headmaster and nothing else. Essentially, they have no free will. If she told them to kill me, they wouldn't stop unless incapacitated or killed."

A shiver ran down the goth's spine. This Headmaster person turned those men into monsters; killing machines with no sense of self preservation. In a way, she pitied them.

Danny continued, "The second group is a lot smaller, but a lot more dangerous. The man who went after Jazz is of that group." His eyes flared a brighter green at the mention of the man. "They are called the Jing Zu, or elite, in English. They are men who are very good at what they do. Most are ex-military, but some are rogues with a knack for fighting. The particularly dangerous ones are ex-military. Many been trained since childhood to kill."

Danny ran a hand over his face and winced lightly as Sam applied the gauze to clean the ecto-bullet wound. "I didn't meet very many of them as she liked to keep most of their identities a secret. She said it was because she didn't want to compromise their missions, but I knew it was so I wouldn't recognize them if she felt so inclined to send one after me. She has a tendency to have one hunt another down when they are no longer of use to her. But I could tell," he nodded in the direction of the dead man, "from his attire that he was Jing Zu. Plus, the soldiers aren't of right mind to speak."

Sam nodded but furrowed her brow, her eyes briefly darting to meet his. "I'm glad you're sharing this with me, but what does it have to do with the tracker?" She set the dirtied gauze aside and began to stitch the wound with practiced ease.

"Remember that bit about sending them after each other?" Danny started. He continued after her nod, noting the look of recognition in her eyes. She had figured it out but he explained anyway, "It's how they track each other. When one gets out of line or she simply has no use for him she activates the tracker and sends another after him. It's how they found me. When I left she must have activated it. She…never had to use it on me before." He swallowed hard, refusing to look her in the eye.

He flinched slightly when her hand met his shoulder. "You had never disobeyed her."

Danny shut his eyes in shame at her words. It sounded so wrong, so…vile when she said it aloud. But she was right. He never disobeyed her, though he should have. All the things he did in her name…

His body shook with emotion and for the first time Sam wasn't sure what to do. He wasn't the Danny she knew before; this Danny was broken, tortured, withdrawn. Could she comfort him the way she used to? Would he accept it? He had shown some of his old self the night he fell asleep in her lap.

There was just such a huge gap now; four years of experiences they didn't share.

Noises from the hallway startled them. Danny cursed under his breath. Sam looked at him in alarm. "Of course, someone would have heard all that." He cursed again. "Tucker, can you distract them?"

The dark-skinned man nodded and darted out the doorway, dodging around the shattered remains of the door and carefully stepping over the unconscious men. Jazz frantically dashed into the other hotel room and began quickly and efficiently packing.

"Sam-"

"I'm on it." The raven-haired girl didn't need to be asked. She worked quickly to stitch the chest wound and then moved to his shoulder. It took barely a minute to stitch. Danny tried not to show just how impressed he was. Even after four years she was impeccable with a suture. Each graceful move of her delicate hands nearly mesmerized him.

"Done," she announced softly and clicked the lid in place on the kit. Without another word she moved quickly to pack her things. Danny didn't fault her; time was of the essence and words would only slow them down.

He kicked in his ghost powers and phased through the bedroom wall, gathering his meager belongings.

A soft whine made him pause. Pulling the bed skirt up he peeked under the bed. A shaking DJ greeted him with a shy lick on his hand. Danny sighed and rubbed a smooth, black ear. "It's alright, buddy. Come on out."

After another minute of coaxing the collie did indeed emerge from his hiding place shaking, but no worse for wear.

After a few more calming words to DJ, he stuffed the clothes the girls had gotten him into a bag and then flew to the bathroom to gather his items there. He was surprised to find when he emerged that Sam and Jazz were also ready and that, judging by the noise coming from the hallway, Tucker was beginning to lose the battle.

"I need everyone front and center." Sam raised a brow at the formal statement but brushed it off and did as she was told. Jazz stood next to her and DJ leaned his weight against his owner's leg.

"Alright, make sure some part of you is touching the other and your luggage." Checking to make sure his command was followed, he yelled for Tucker. The techno geek came streaking in and, at Danny's shout, held onto his wife. "Hold your breath!" Danny hissed.

The world spun. The three humans nearly let go of one another at the sheer force of the vertigo. Their chests felt instantly compressed and Sam blanched at the utter lack of air. It felt as if everything was zooming by in an instant and knocking the wind out of them.

And yet, despite the feeling of moving, it was completely calm. Sam wasn't sure what she should expect; a torrent of wind; the feel of cold air whipping by her face?

As soon as it began, it stopped. All three took deep, laborious breaths, sucking in all the air they could manage in a single gulp. It took several seconds before Sam could regain her sense of self and open her eyes. The sound of retching and coughing forced her gaze to her collie.

"DJ?" She knelt and rubbed the dog behind the ears as the poor animal expended the contents of his stomach.

"I'm sorry." Danny's baritone made her look up. "It's extremely disorienting for anyone who isn't used to it. Unfortunately, I can't tell him to hold his breath. It's a lot worse if you don't." He knelt beside her doing his best to comfort the collie as well.

Tucker took stock of their surroundings, his hand firmly holding onto his still gasping wife. Danny had teleported them outside the hotel in a nearby alley. It was his first experience with the power, as Danny hadn't possessed the power before he was taken.

It was certainly something he'd rather not repeat. "How do you do that, man? That sucked." He shook his head, still a little fuzzy.

"You get used to it," the hybrid answered. He gave DJ a good look over, receiving a tail wag for his efforts. Satisfied the dog would be okay, he stood, giving Sam a reassuring smile.

He turned towards the street, now serious. "We need to get moving. We're outside the hotel, but we need to get to the airport." He looked back at Tucker. "Any suggestions on where to go?"

"We should go to our parents," Jazz answered for her husband. Her brother could see the conviction in her eyes.

"No."

His flat, no-nonsense answer irritated Jazz. She uncharacteristically glared darkly at her brother. Tucker took a small step away from his now fuming wife, giving her a slightly disturbed look.

"What do you mean 'no'?! Our parents have been just as heartbroken as any of us! They have the right to know you're alive!"

Though frowning, the hybrid's eyes held a certain softness for his sibling. "The Headmaster is after me. She will use anything to get to me, anything. You guys are all in danger; I will be damned if I let anyone else come into her crosshairs."

Jazz shook her head, more than a little displeased with his answer. However, Jazz was very smart and wise beyond her years. She could see his logic and therefore, didn't dispute it. "I'll give you time, little brother. But one way or another, if this isn't resolved in a few weeks time, you will see our parents."

Danny considered her words before nodding. He didn't want to put more of his family in danger, but he knew this could likely kill him. He would like to see his parents at least one last time before that happens.

Sam, who had been silently stroking DJ's head, spoke up. "I have a suggestion, but I don't think you're going to like it."

Danny shrugged. "At this point, Sam, I'll take anything."

"Vlad."

The hybrid scoffed. "That fruitloop? You really think he'll help us?"

"Wow, he still uses fruitloop."

"Shut it, Tuck."

The dark-skinned boy saluted.

"He's changed, Danny."

Danny turned to Sam, a skeptical brow raised, and crossed his arms. "We are talking about the billionaire maniac who tried countless times to murder my dad, marry my mother and force me to be his half ghost son?"

"She's right, dude," Tucker spoke up. "She didn't want to ask for his help after you were taken, understandably. But after months had passed and we realized we were at a dead end we knew we didn't have a choice."

Danny sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I know you were desperate…but to go to him?" He shook his head, unable to understand their reasoning.

Jazz reached out, her hand lightly resting on her brothers' shoulder. When his eyes met hers she saw the fire dim just a little. Her heart clenched at remembering just how much she had missed him. "When he found out you were gone…something in him changed. I can't explain it, but he used all of the resources at his disposal to try and find you. I've never seen him so determined." She smiled lightly. "I had the chance to really talk to him. He does still see you as his son, but he no longer wants to force you to be by his side. After losing you…well, it changed all of our perspectives."

Jazz watched as her brother deflated, the anger draining from his muscles. The fire in his eyes was replaced with pain, sorrow and a deep agony she wished she could take away. The hand on his shoulder came up and cupped his cheek. Danny leaned into her touch, his eyes fluttering closed.

"What happened to you?" She whispered softly.

Danny's hand came up and took hers, his eyes opening to meet teal. He gave her a half smile. "I'm alright. If you think it's what's best, we'll go see Vlad."

Sam and Tucker's gazes met, their smiles matching.

–

A short while later and all four were on a plane bound for the States as it prepared to take off. Tucker had come prepared with a forged passport for Danny.

Said half ghost was currently squirming in his seat.

"Calm down, Danny. We haven't even taken off yet," Sam tried to reassure the hybrid.

He scowled. "I hate planes," he grumbled, sinking further into his seat.

Tucker leaned across the aisle. "Dude…you can fly. Why do you hate planes?"

"They're screaming death traps."

Sam raised her brow, eyes meeting Tuckers'. "You do realize that if anything happens you can just phase through the plane and fly away?"

"That's not the point, Sam!" Danny glared at the back of the seat in front of him.

Sam opened her mouth to protest again but a look from Jazz on the other side of Tucker made her stop. It was probably something to do with what was done to him, so Jazz didn't want to push the issue.

"It's okay if you're afraid, Danny," Jazz tried to sooth. She received a glower in response.

"I'm not afraid of anything!"

At that moment the plane lurched forward, next in line to take the runway. Danny jumped at the movement and ignored his friends' and sisters' looks. The plane came to a stop on the runway waiting to be cleared. Danny took deep, even breaths to try and calm himself. 'It's just a plane, it's just a plane, it's just a plane,' he kept repeating to himself. He couldn't stand confined spaces even if he knew he could phase out of this one.

Sam watched him carefully, the concern on her face going unnoticed by him. He had wanted to be an astronaut since he could walk. As far as she knew, this fear was something he never had. You couldn't fear planes if you wanted to fly in a rocket to outer space…

A few minutes passed and he could vaguely hear his friends and sister talking. He didn't hear the words over his concentration on remaining calm, but he didn't really care.

The plane moved again, this time for takeoff. As it gained speed and bounced a little on the tarmac Danny's hand grabbed Sam's on the armrest between them. She gripped him back and he was thankful she didn't say a word and just held on.

Minutes later they were in the air and flying steady, slowly ascending at a smooth pace. Danny finally let go of Sam's hand and gave her a shy, grateful smile. She returned the smile, inwardly missing the contact.

–

It was several hours into the flight. So far it had been smooth with little to no turbulence, much to Danny's relief. He had managed to calm himself down quite a bit, mostly by stealing glances at the goth beside him. He raised his hand to his head wanting to run it through his hair, but the beanie prevented it. He sighed in annoyance. He hated hats of any kind, but stark white hair wasn't exactly being inconspicuous. He also had a scarf to hide the gauze covering the tracker wound. His green eyes had already attracted some attention since they left the hotel. With another sigh he lowered his arm, his sleeve riding up a little.

Meanwhile, Sam was listening to some music. She had tried to preoccupy herself by thinking about their situation and how to help Danny, but it not only gave her a headache, she was also unable to come up with any answers. She gave up after an hour.

Tucker and Jazz were asleep. She couldn't even bring herself to enjoy that luxury. She tried, oh had she tried. But her thoughts inevitably ended up on Danny again. It wasn't good for relaxing.

So, she decided to listen to some music. It allowed her mind to wander, but in a way that emptied your mind of thoughts. Quite useful, really.

Her gaze wandered around the cabin, her thoughts following along with the lyrics. She had just roamed her eyes over Danny when she spotted a line on his shoulder just barely visible under his short-sleeved shirt. She clicked her music off.

"What's that?" She asked. Danny followed her line of sight to his arm with a confused look. When he saw what she was asking about he pulled his sleeve down. "It's nothing."

"But-"

"Just drop it!"

His harsh tone made her flinch, but never being one to be intimidated she went to retaliate. She opened her mouth but before she could say anything a soft "I'm sorry" made her close her mouth with a click. "I just don't want to talk about it."

Sam watched him carefully, nodding when the regret was obvious in his eyes. She sat back to relax a little, but her eyes flew to her hand when she felt his fingers wrap around it. She stole a glance, but he was watching their hands intently.

Returning her attention to their hands she marveled at how much larger his was than hers. He had certainly grown a lot the last four years. He was at least a foot taller and muscular—not wrestler big, but well defined. She grabbed his hand and placed it flat matching her hand in his. The tips of her fingers only came to his second knuckles and she watched as the tips of his fingers folded over her own.

She had always suspected he'd be the tallest of the three, but he even out-paced Tucker by a lot. Tucker was only a few inches taller than her.

"You've grown a lot too."

She was brought out of her thoughts by Danny's quiet, but deep, voice. She scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Yeah, like three inches! Not like your growth spurt."

He chuckled lightly, the deep vibrations of his baritone sinking into her shoulder that was touching him. "You were taller than me, come on I had to catch up. Besides, you're fairly tall for a girl. I'd say 5'7, 5'8?"

"5'8," she pouted. "But you're what, seven foot? It's ridiculous!"

His full, hearty, genuine laugh made her heart race. "I'm 6'4, but good guess."

"See!" Her hands flailed in front of her. "You've got a good eight inches on me!"

Danny grinned. "Alright, fine. I guess I'll call you shorty from now on."

She glared. "That's not even nice."

"You're the one who keeps insisting that you're short."

The raven-haired girl huffed and situated herself back in her seat properly before crossing her arms. Danny shook his head, grin still on his face and pushed his head back against the seat in the hopes of getting some sleep like his sister and Tucker.

Wisconsin was just hours away.

–

Hours later and Danny practically ran from the plane. His friends and sister followed after him shaking their heads. Jazz chuckled as 'I'm free!' floated back to them. "Some things, I guess, will never change."

Sam and Tucker nodded in agreement, smiles on their faces. Sam was simply glad some of the old Danny was showing through. He had been acting so unlike himself lately that she was beginning to forget her wild and carefree childhood friend. "Come on, we need to catch him before he forgets we're here and bolts out the door. We need to get our luggage, get DJ, and a rental car as well."

Coming to an agreement they made their way to baggage claim. They were weaving their way in and out of the crowds when a lime green beanie was seen bobbing in the distance coming closer.

"Danny!" Tucker shouted, arms flailing in the air above his head. The crowd began to thin a little and Danny came into view. Tucker laughed and Jazz shook her head. Sam smacked her forehead.

The half ghost was walking through the terminal loaded down with all their bags. Other passengers were giving him odd looks while it was clear others were simply trying not to stare. He carried and dragged them all without seemingly any effort.

"Dude, what are you doing?" Tucker managed to get out between snickers.

Danny stopped in front of them. "I got our luggage!"

"I see that. Happy to be off the plane?"

A fervent nod was his answer. Then Danny deflated a little. "Not so happy to see Vlad, though."

Sam shook her head. "It's not as bad as you think, Danny. You'll see. Now let's get DJ and get to the kiosk and get a rental car. We still have an hour's drive ahead of us and I'm exhausted." She took her bag from Danny, the others doing the same, and headed for the rental car kiosk.

Danny followed slowly behind them. While he wasn't keen on seeing Vlad, there were other reasons he didn't want to go. He wanted to find out why he couldn't switch back to human, but he was afraid; not only of the answer, but afraid he'd have to reveal what he'd done the last four years. He sighed, admitting to himself that Vlad was likely the best place to go in order to figure out what was wrong with him, as well as lay low for a while.

Also, he really didn't want to tell them just yet. After all, he didn't have an explanation for it, either. But it made him frightened; made him feel closer to Dark Dan than he'd ever been.

He could no longer feel his human half.

–

Okay so from what I read up top I started this 12/4/14…..it is now 8/9/15! Severe writers block people. Again, why I waited to post until chapters were done and why it's now like 9 years in the making!

I have other scenes already written on an office app on my phone (and post its!) (7/25/2024: it's 10 years later and I STILL have those post its, even though I've finally written out those scenes XD), but they're small scenes and spread out. I just need to fill in the spaces!

Alright…on to the next chapter!