INT. FENTONWORKS-MIDDLE OF NIGHT
KITCHEN
JAZZ walks into the kitchen. JACK is already in there. A tea kettle sits on the stove.
JAZZ:
Dad? What are you doing up?
JACK:
Oh, I had a bad dream. What about you?
JAZZ:
Same. I've been having them a lot lately.
JACK:
Chamomile tea is good for bad dreams. Your granddad taught me that. Would you like some?
JAZZ nods. JACK prepares a cup for her. They sit at the table together.
JAZZ:
Did you leave a cup in my room a few days ago?
JACK:
What?
JAZZ:
Never mind. How often do you have bad dreams?
JACK:
Almost nightly. It's the Fenton curse. We are sensitive people.
JAZZ:
Dad, I'm not in the mood for the psychic stuff.
JACK: It's the truth.
JAZZ:
Thanks for the tea.
JAZZ picks up her cup and leaves.
INT. FENTONWORKS-MORNING
BASEMENT
MADDIE looks at a computer screen. JACK approaches from behind her.
JACK:
What 'cha looking at?
MADDIE:
Look at this.
She turns the screen to him. There are blurry images of DANNY.
MADDIE:
This ghost has been seen all over town. It even fought other ghosts.
JACK:
A helper ghost?
MADDIE:
Maybe this ghost has answers.
JACK:
I'll load up the packs.
ANGLE on the upper corner. A mechanical ghost hides in the shadows. It crawls along the ceiling out of the basement.
INT. MASTERS' PENTHOUSE
VLAD strolls around the den of his new penthouse. The penthouse is in a modern-minimalist style. There is expensive artwork in multiple styles from Roman classics to abstract expressionism.
The DEN has floor to ceiling windows that see over the outdoor pool and a skyline view of AMITY PARK.
VLAD sits in a chair. He holds his phone to his ear.
VLAD
Yes. I'd like it paid in full. Oh, I'm sorry. I'm getting another call. Go forward with the payment.
VLAD pushes some buttons on the phone.
VLAD
Hello?
WALKER (ON PHONE)
Vlad, it's been too long.
VLAD immediately gets tense. He straightens out his back and holds his head up high, like he is bracing for the worst.
VLAD
Walker. How are you?
CUT TO:
INT. BACKSEAT OF A CAR
ANGLE of WALKER from the mouth down. WALKER wears a white suit with a black tie. He has a laisser-faire aura.
WALKER
What's this I hear about you moving to Amity Park?
CUT BACK TO:
VLAD in his chair.
VLAD
I was going to call you. There's been so much commotion lately. My godson is in the hospital. It's severe and devastating. I need to be here for the children.
CUT TO:
WALKER drumming his finger on the car window.
WALKER
Yes. Danny and Jazz. You told me about them. You saw them when they were four and seven. When was that? Eight years ago?
CUT BACK TO:
VLAD
Ten. Ten years.
WALKER (ON PHONE)
Ten. (laughs) Well, you're here now. That's all that matters, isn't it? I'm offended you didn't tell me about this sudden change earlier.
VLAD
What do you want?
WALKER (ON PHONE)
I've never asked anything of you, Vlad.
VLAD
Oh, really? Never? Where are you?
CUT TO:
WALKER turns his head to the window.
WALKER
Relax. I'm on my way to my next assignment.
ANGLE to the view outside of the car window. The car passes by a billboard that reads "Amity Park."
WALKER
Okay, bye.
WALKER hangs up the phone.
INT. MANSON RESIDENCE-MORNING
GUEST ROOM
DANNY lies on the bed, watching a shuttle launch on the TV.
SAM enters the room.
SAM:
Hey, you want to go practice?
DANNY:
Sure, after this.
SAM:
It's a rocket launch. It'll be recorded.
DANNY:
It isn't the same.
SAM leaves the room.
DANNY continues watching. The images onscreen start to freeze.
SAM comes back in.
DANNY:
What did you do?
SAM:
I changed the Wi-Fi password.
DANNY:
I'm not winning this argument, am I?
SAM:
Not if you want the Internet back.
DANNY grumbles and gets up.
EXT. DUMP
DANNY fires at soup cans.
DANNY:
Yep. Clearly, this was a better use of my morning.
SAM:
Oh, cry me a river.
DANNY:
I've been practicing when you go to school. That's all I've been doing. Would taking a break when things are slow be that bad?
SAM:
You want to do this superhero thing? This is what you need.
The police scanner starts making noise.
SAM and DANNY stare at it intensely.
INT. GROCERY STORE
DANNY fights with a ghost. He gets the upper hand. DANNY grabs the thermos.
The mechanical GHOST drops in on top of the other ghost. The other GHOST splatters across the floor.
DANNY:
What the hell?
SKULKER:
So, you're the one that everyone is talking about.
DANNY looks scared. He starts running.
SKULKER starts counting quietly.
SKULKER:
That should do it for a HeadStart.
SKULKER chases after DANNY and catches up to him. He grabs the back of DANNY's jumpsuit.
SKULKER:
Oh, that wasn't much of a hunt.
A net flies toward them. It wraps around and knocks over SKULKER.
DANNY smiles and turns to the net's origin. MADDIE and JACK are clad in jumpsuits and ghost hunting equipment. JACK holds what looks like a grenade launcher.
JACK aims it at DANNY. He launches another net.
DANNY phases through the aisle. He ends up in the produce section and hides.
The FENTONS approach.
MADDIE:
There it is.
JACK:
I got it.
JACK aims a different weapon at DANNY. It blasts out an energy beam.
DANNY manages to dodge. He runs into another aisle.
DANNY is stopped by an invisible force. He looks down. He is standing in the middle of a salt circle.
JACK:
See? I told you rock salt was a good idea.
MADDIE:
Okay. I can admit when I was wrong.
SAM hides behind the grocery aisle. She pokes her head out and looks at the FENTONS.
SAM
Oh, those bastards.
ANGLE on MADDIE and JACK. They aim their weapons at DANNY.
SKULKER attacks the FENTONS. They manage to evade injury.
SKULKER:
The ghost boy was the only one on my radar, but you'll do nicely too.
MADDIE aims at SKULKER. SKULKER tosses a throwing star at her gun. It splits open.
SKULKER:
Hunting' humans? Ain't nothin' but nothin'. They all run like scared little rabbits. Run, rabbit, RUN!
MADDIE and JACK retreat. SKULKER goes after them.
SAM runs to DANNY. She brushes the salt circle with her foot.
DANNY is on his knees. SAM rushes to him. DANNY is breathing heavily and staring off into the distance.
SAM places his arm around her neck. She helps him stand up.
They walk away.
ALLEY BEHIND THE STORE
SAM sets DANNY down. He is still struggling. SAM grabs his hand.
SAM
Hey. Name five things you can see.
DANNY
What?
SAM
Just do it.
DANNY
That dumpster…the store…my hands, a bottle, you.
SAM
Good. What about four things you can hear.
DANNY
The wind, the cars, my voice, footsteps on the pavement.
SAM
Better?
DANNY
Yeah.
SAM
Let's get out of here.
DANNY
Wait. My parents.
SAM
They look like they can handle themselves. You're no good to them right now.
ROOFTOP
WALKER looks through a pair of binoculars.
WALKER:
Fascinating. This will be fun.
STORE
MADDIE and JACK fight with SKULKER. MADDIE finds a hidden weapon and fires it at SKULKER. It hits him. SKULKER's mechanical arm falls off.
SKULKER:
Interesting.
He picks up his arm.
SKULKER:
Clearly, I need to change my priorities.
SKULKER turns invisible.
MADDIE:
Is it gone?
JACK:
Yeah. I don't feel it anywhere.
INT. MANSON RESIDENCE
GUEST ROOM
DANNY sits on the bed. The TV plays. He is not paying attention.
SAM enters the room.
SAM:
Hey, I'm running to the convenience store. Do you want anything?
DANNY:
I'm good.
SAM:
If you need anything, I'm here.
DANNY:
I don't need anything. Can't you hear?
SAM:
I was talking about if you need to talk.
DANNY:
Talk? Fine. You should be over the moon. You went on about how I'm unprepared, and today proved it.
SAM:
Hey, you don't get to take out your anger on me.
She slams the door as she leaves.
EXT. STREET-LATE EVENING
SAM walks down the street with a cloth bag hanging off her shoulder.
The white car pulls up to her. WALKER rolls down the window.
WALKER:
It's dangerous out here, young lady.
SAM holds up her fist with her keys between her fingers.
SAM:
Back off, pervert.
WALKER:
(laughs) Cute. Special Agent Walker. I just have some questions.
SAM:
I don't know what you want to ask.
WALKER:
Well, the ghost boy to start.
SAM:
Ghost boy? What are you talking about?
WALKER:
You're a good actress. I'll give you that. This is what I'm talking about.
WALKER shows her an image on his phone. It shows SAM and DANNY from earlier in the day.
WALKER:
Do you still want to play dumb? I could just raid your house and grab him.
SAM:
If you hurt him-
WALKER:
You'll what?
SAM:
You have no idea what I'm capable of.
WALKER:
Before putting on this big show, why don't you get in the car and hear me out?
WALKER opens the door. He grabs her arm and pulls her into the car while SAM tries to get away.
INT. CAR
WALKER searches through SAM's grocery bag. He pulls out a package.
WALKER:
Green tea ice cream mochi? I'm partial to mango myself.
SAM:
What do you want to know?
WALKER:
Well, where did he come from?
SAM:
Don't know.
WALKER:
We already established that you're a good actress, but you have a tell. You fiddle your pointer finger when you're lying.
SAM:
I really don't know.
WALKER:
There are other ways, then.
SAM: What?
INT. MANSON RESIDENCE
GUEST ROOM
DANNY sits on the bed. His leg shakes.
A series of quick cuts involving DANNY in the GUEST ROOM:
…DANNY looks in the mirror.
…DANNY paces around the room.
…DANNY sits on the bed with his hands over his face.
HALLWAY
DANNY stands outside SAM's room. He knocks.
DANNY:
Sam, are you in there? I wanted to apologize. You don't have to say anything. Whenever you're ready, I can come back.
DANNY notices the door is not closed completely. He pushes it open. DANNY looks in the crack and sees that no one is there.
DANNY hears a car peeling out. DANNY looks out the closest window. He sees SAM on the curb.
EXT. STREET
SAM tries to stand up. DANNY rushes to her.
DANNY:
Sam? What happened? You've been gone for hours.
SAM:
(slurring)
I'm okay. Everything feels fuzzy though.
DANNY:
Let's get you to bed.
DANNY helps her into the house.
INT. SAM'S ROOM-MORNING
SAM wakes up. DANNY is at the foot of the bed.
SAM:
What the hell?
DANNY:
What happened to you last night?
SAM:
What?
DANNY:
You didn't come home for hours, then a car dumped you at the curb.
SAM looks around the room. Her eyes widen.
SAM:
Somebody stopped me when I was walking home. He said his name is Walker.
DANNY:
Did he hurt you?
SAM:
I don't think so.
DANNY breathes a sigh of relief.
SAM:
Wait, did you watch me all night?
DANNY:
I tried looking for your parents, but they must have been out. I was worried, but I didn't know what to do.
SAM:
I thought you were mad at me.
DANNY:
(struggling)
I'm sorry for what I said. I don't know why I do that.
SAM:
I have school today. Could you give me some space?
DANNY leaves.
EXT. JUNKYARD
DANNY practices. The scanner sits on a band around his back.
There are footsteps behind him.
DANNY turns around. WALKER smiles at him.
WALKER:
May we talk?
DANNY:
Walker, I presume?
WALKER:
Clever boy.
DANNY rushes over to WALKER and grabs his collar.
DANNY:
What did you do to my friend last night?
WALKER:
I just gave her something to make her more talkative. Also, I would put big air quotes around "friend," considering how you talk to her.
DANNY lets go of WALKER.
WALKER:
That girl is very interesting. She's way out of your league, though.
DANNY:
Will you just get to the point?
WALKER:
Fine. I'm here to offer you a job.
DANNY
Excuse me?
WALKER:
I'm very hush-hush ops. As far as ninety-nine-point-nine percent of this country knows, my division doesn't exist. The Guys in White. We handle things that shouldn't exist. It's a losing battle, though. We are dealing with creatures that are beyond comprehension. I am so tired of being at a draw. You, however, can fight back. Do you have any idea how valuable you are?
DANNY:
Not interested.
WALKER:
Not even if we help you get your life back, Danny?
DANNY freezes.
WALKER:
I could be your best friend or your worst enemy. It is all up to you.
DANNY:
You know who I am?
WALKER:
I ran your image through an AI program and compared that to Casper High yearbook logs. I could have just saved myself some time by seeing that Danny Fenton went into a coma at the same time the ghost boy showed up.
DANNY:
What's the catch?
WALKER:
You'd have a handler who answers to me. You are an independent actor with way too much power. One wrong move, and you're done for. I'm not unreasonable. You have until the end of the week to make your choice.
DANNY:
Do I actually have a choice?
WALKER:
Of course. Join me or die. Before I forget, here.
WALKER pulls a small device out of his pocket. He throws it to DANNY.
DANNY:
What's this?
WALKER:
It's a monitor. We can find the energy signatures of every ghost in the continental U.S. Just plug it into your phone. Consider it an advance on your work benefits. You can use it to find the ghost that's trying to kill you and your parents.
WALKER turns around and walks away.
WALKER:
Oh, a little advice. You should wear a mask. The palette swap probably isn't enough to hide your identity.
DANNY:
Prick.
DANNY plugs the device into his phone. A GPS screen comes up.
ANGLE on DANNY's face. He looks frightened.
INT. FENTONWORKS
JAZZ'S ROOM
JAZZ sits on her bed. DANNY phases through the door. He wears a black face mask.
JAZZ scooches across the bed to create more distance.
JAZZ:
Who are you?
DANNY:
Listen to me. Get out of the house now.
JAZZ:
What?
DANNY:
Just trust me.
DANNY phases through the floor. SKULKER waits patiently in the upper corner.
BASEMENT
MADDIE and JACK sit at their desks.
MADDIE:
I can't find a trace of either ghost. Did you get a feeling?
JACK:
Not yet. They must be hiding in a very secure place.
DANNY falls into the basement. He crashes into a table.
DANNY:
Ow!
MADDIE glares at JACK. JACK shrugs his shoulders. They approach DANNY. They stare down at him.
DANNY fires a blast at SKULKER.
MADDIE and JACK grab their weapons and aim at DANNY. DANNY points to the ceiling.
DANNY:
Not me! Up there!
They both look at the ceiling and see SKULKER. They aim and fire.
SKULKER scurries along the ceiling. DANNY fires energy blasts at him, but the blasts keep missing SKULKER.
MADDIE backs away in the confusion. She grabs the bag of rock salt.
MADDIE draws a circle around DANNY.
DANNY:
Are you kidding me right now? I'm trying to help you.
DANNY tries to leave the circle with no success.
MADDIE:
You'll help me a lot more soon.
JACK tries to catch SKULKER. SKULKER knocks over JACK and pins him down.
DANNY:
Mo-Maddie! That ghost is going to kill all of us if you don't let me out.
MADDIE:
You know my name?
DANNY:
Will you listen to me for once in your life?
MADDIE looks at JACK for a second. She wipes away part of the circle with her foot.
DANNY fires at SKULKER. The blast breaks open SKULKER'S mechanical suit. A small green blob-like creature sits inside the suit.
DANNY rushes to SKULKER. He grabs SKULKER'S true form and rips him out of the suit.
DANNY:
Ew.
He throws the ghost in the portal.
DANNY sits on the ground.
MADDIE comes close to him and gets on her knees.
MADDIE:
What did you mean earlier?
DANNY:
Oh. Sorry. You reminded me of someone else. That's all. Ta-ta for now.
DANNY turns invisible.
JACK:
Mads, What was that about? Maddie?
MADDIE stares at the spot where DANNY was just standing. She is deep in thought.
INT. MANSON RESIDENCE
HALLWAY
SAM walks down the hallway to her room. DANNY comes out of the guest room. They look into each other's eyes.
SAM and DANNY apologize at the same time.
DANNY:
Sorry. You first.
SAM:
I get it. You're angry at your situation. I can't imagine what it would be like to have someone you love hunt you down. How are you doing?
DANNY sits down on the floor. SAM joins him.
DANNY:
I took care of that ghost and saved my parents today.
SAM:
No, emotionally. How often do you have panic attacks?
DANNY:
What?
SAM:
When you froze and couldn't move, that was a panic attack.
DANNY:
Huh. So that has a name?
SAM:
You are way too nonchalant about this. Here, do you remember that technique I taught you?
DANNY:
I appreciate everything you've done for me. I don't want to be this person forever.
SAM
Baby steps, buddy. I would say this is a good one.
SAM places her hand on DANNY'S shoulder.
FADE OUT