Remember when I said this would be a two-shot? It's a three-shot now.

"A lot of people are only alive because I shed too much hair to ever get away with murder." - Unknown

Hutch

Phantom and I briefly debate on whether or not we should stay together while the government is on the prowl. Ultimately, we decide that it would be better to split up. Phantom is going to keep his eyes on the Guys in White and delay them however he can. Meanwhile, I search for Vlad.

It doesn't take long to find him, but I am unprepared for the state he's in.

Vlad is still in human-form and is curled up beside the arcade. Luckily, the place is closed for repairs - from what I've heard, it's Technus's fault - so no one is around to see Vlad have a panic attack.

It's a new and scary sight for me. Even after his reckoning - or "halfa puberty," as some might call it - ended in so much bloodshed, Vlad was more…despondent, for lack of a better word. When his ecto-acne flared up, he was sad and frustrated in the hospital. When he had those back to back fixations after the Fentons returned to his life… Well, fixations are their own brand.

Now, Vlad's breaths are too quick and too shallow, and his deep blue eyes are unfocused and darting this way and that.

I am 72 years old, yet I've somehow avoided a situation like this until now. Why did the first time have to be with someone I hold so dear?

You're supposed to speak gently when someone's having a panic attack, right? Let's try that. "Vlad? Are you okay?" I mentally kick myself for asking such a stupid question.

Apparently, just talking was a mistake. Vlad shoots to his feet with a shout but stops himself from fleeing when he sees who spoke. "Hutch." My name is breathy and shaky on his lips. (Now that man has some lips. Take notes, Phantom.) "I'm sorry. I-I don't know why I-"

"It's okay!" I say desperately. I run toward him but stop when this only makes him jump and throw his hand over his heart/core. "It's okay," I say more quietly.

Tears well in his eyes. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry! I-I don't- I don't know what's happening-"

"Easy," I urge as gently as I can when I'm on the brink of having my own panic attack. "Let's, um…" I take a risk and lightly wrap my fingers around his quaking shoulders. His breathing is still out of whack, but his eyes stay on mine. I take that as a good sign. "Let's…sit down."

"They… Th-they…"

"They won't hurt you. I'll keep you safe."

I must have finally said the right thing. Vlad lets out a sob and rests his trembling form against me. I lower us down against the wall and hold him while he dampens my boa with his tears. He throws his arms around me and holds me tightly enough that I seriously question whether or not I have bones.

My fear for my boyfriend slowly morphs into rage at the Guys in White. I have no idea what they did to him, but for someone normally so strong and confident to be reduced to this…

I'll destroy them. I'll destroy every one of them. That's probably not feasible, but at the moment, all I can think about is burning their headquarters to the ground.

After far too long, Vlad stops trembling and his breathing evens out. When he pulls back, his face is red and his eyes are glassy and swollen, but there's a threat in his voice. "You will never breathe a word of this to anyone."

"Glad to have you back, Vladimir," I quip.

He stops himself from smiling. "I'm serious, Hutch."

I tap my lips to his. "So am I."

He softens for just a moment before turning away and smacking his hand to the ground. "How humiliating. God, what on Earth was that? What did they do to me?"

"That's what I'd like to know." I take his hand in both of mine. He glances at me but otherwise doesn't react. "Phantom told me that they did something to you." Now Vlad's head swerves toward me. "He didn't tell me what they did," I assure, "but he implied that it was pretty awful."

Vlad's serious demeanor wavers, and I watch him struggle to keep it from collapsing. "Hutch…"

"Vlad," I counter through the knot in my throat. "You really scared me. I've never seen you have a panic attack before!"

"Panic attack?" Vlad repeats, recoiling in shock. "I had- I've never had-" He rakes a hand through his hair, loosening the strands of his ponytail. "Is that how he felt?" Vlad whispers.

"He?" I ask.

Vlad realizes he said that out loud and shakes his head. "Uh, it's not important." He stands up and cautiously inches toward the end of the wall and peers around the side. "Are they following us?"

"Phantom's keeping them busy." I join Vlad by the corner. "Vlad, whatever happened, you can tell me."

Vlad doesn't turn around. He hesitates a moment too long before speaking. "Nothing happened. They captured me, and I escaped. End of story."

"I don't think-"

He whirls on me. "Will you just drop it?" Guilt flashes over his features before he touches his fingers to his forehead and takes a deep breath. "Hutch, I don't want to talk about this."

"Maybe you should," I plead. "Clearly not talking about it isn't doing you any favors."

I think he's going to give in until-

"Ouch!"

-something shiny appears out of nowhere and bonks Vlad in the back of the head. He rubs the sore spot with a face pinched in pain and irritation.

Now is an acceptable time for me to ask, "Are you okay?"

"Yes," he says curtly. He spots the rogue object on the ground and picks it up. It appears to be some sort of mechanical boomerang. "Thankfully, it's one of the Fentons' more harmless inventions."

As if he heard that, Jack calls Vlad's name at a volume that could wake a corpse. That man has no sense of stealth.

Jack and Maddie race over to us. Jack nearly bowls Vlad over in a hug, while Maddie scans the area with a small ray gun clutched in both hands.

"Vladdy, are you alright?" Jack asks, pulling back but keeping his huge hands on Vlad's arms.

Vlad wiggles himself loose. "I'm fine. Sorry to rush out on you two but, well, I trust you understand."

"We do," Maddie says. "You might have to lie low until they leave. Maybe stay in the Ghost Zone for a while."

I turn to Vlad. "That's a good idea. I'll carry you home so you don't have to transform."

"I'll do you one better," Jack offers. "Maddie and I have a Ghost Portal in our lab. You can use that."

"Better yet," Maddie pulls out her phone, a ghost-made one, "I'll call Danny. He can open a portal to wherever you want."

"Thank you, Maddie," Vlad says while trying to hide his relief. "I think that would be best."

Maddie calls her son-

-and is immediately interrupted by Jack pulling her out of the way of a green blast of energy.

Maddie ends the call early with, "We're at the arcade. Please hurry."

Before we know it, four well-dressed government agents are surrounding us and pointing anti-ghost weapons at us. Jack curses under his breath. Maddie aims her ray gun this way and that, unsure of which agent is the most dangerous. I feel like I'm going to be the first ghost in history to throw up.

And, poor Vlad has forced his face into an unreadable expression, but it shakes as much as the rest of him. I cuddle up to him, and he responds by pulling me into his arms and angling me back like he's trying to protect me.

I admit it. The fact that he's thinking about my safety at a time like this leaves me feeling all gooey inside.

"Get out of here," he whispers.

"Not again," I argue.

I won't leave him with the Guys in White again. Not now that I know how bad it really is.

He glares at me but sees that I'm not moving. He scoffs and turns back to the agents, tightening his grip on me when all of their eyes are on him. I'm not sure which of us is being comforted right now.

"Hand over Vlad Plasmius," one of the agents demands, "and we'll leave you in peace." He nods at me, and Vlad pulls me behind him completely. "Might even let you keep the other ghost for your troubles."

A low growl rumbles in Vlad's throat, and I hope none of the agents can hear it. Vlad's Obsession is love, and I'm starting to think that has more to do with his trembling than fear for himself.

That gooey feeling needs to stop. Now's not the time.

Jack spreads out his arms. "I don't see Plasmius here. Do you, Maddie?"

"Negative." Maddie doesn't lower her weapon, not that she could do much against these guys. "Just a bunch of assholes who need to hit the road."

"Leave the clever quips to me, Maddie."

We look up, and I sigh in relief. Phantom swoops down and stands between us and the agents, who now have all their weapons trained on him. Jack balls his fists, and Maddie tenses up further. Those two want to protect their son, but they don't want to reveal his identity. I don't envy them.

"Enough is enough!" Phantom snarls. "Leave Mayor Masters alone! He's as human as you are!"

"Save it, Phantom," another agent snaps. An irritatingly smug grin pulls at his lips. "You may have helped him escape, but we at least got something out of that dissection."

A loud gasp escapes me, and my vision goes fuzzy for a moment.

Dissection. They dissected Vlad. Cut him open like a frog in science class. No, not like that at all. Frogs in science class are corpses, not ghosts who can feel pain.

Certainly not ghosts who are still alive.

Vivisection is the word they're looking for. Ancients, I really might throw up.

I can't see Jack or Maddie's expressions, but I know they must be as horrified as I am. And, Phantom… Phantom already knew.

The first agent smirks at my reaction. "That's right, spook. Our agents had a nice time with your fellow ghost. And, they could have fun with you, too."

All traces of fear leave Vlad suddenly, and he steps forward. "Over my dead body!" A faint growl rumbles through his words, and I know the agents heard it.

"Too late for that, Plasmius," a third agent says. "Phantom may have destroyed our lab with that Ghostly Wail of his, but we managed to keep just enough of your DNA to know who you really are."

The barrels of their guns light up an ominous green. They'll shoot all of us if they have to.

"No, you didn't!" Phantom shouts. "Because…because I changed it!" I don't know what Phantom's doing - I don't even think he knows what he's doing - but it makes the agents hesitate. "Yeah! I-I snuck back in and…tampered with the samples! To keep you from learning anything."

A tense moment passes before the agents start laughing. Refreshed terror runs through me. Phantom continues to be a bad liar, but I was hoping that the agents would be dumb enough to believe it.

Unless…they are.

"I've got an idea," I whisper.

Vlad gives me the tiniest nod in response.

I huddle behind him as much as I can. Vlad has a leaner build than I do, but he's also roughly a head taller than me. Fingers crossed it's enough that no one will see me turn invisible.

Phantom stomps his foot in desperation. "It's true!"

"If it is," the fourth agent says, "then explain why our sensors are picking up on the 'mayor' here."

Phantom hesitates then throws his hands in the air. "How should I know?"

I creep toward the agents as quickly as I dare, my skin prickling with dread all the way. If this doesn't work, Vlad isn't the only one in trouble.

"Perhaps your sensors simply picked up on the closest thing to match whatever Phantom changed the makeup to," Maddie suggests, playing along.

Jack throws in his two cents. "Makes sense to me!"

I leap into the closest agent. Like most human minds, this one takes no effort to latch on to. You would think these guys would have some defenses against overshadowing, but I'm not complaining.

With the agent's mind and body under my command, I lower the gun and say, "You know, Phantom could be telling the truth." His colleagues turn to "me" in confusion. I shrug and say, "We all know what Phantom is like. I wouldn't put it past him to tamper with our work."

The agents consider my argument. Vlad sends me a very brief grin but is smart enough not to let his guard down yet. All three Fentons stare at me in suspicion, so I send them a wink. Then, I remember that the man I've possessed is wearing dark sunglasses.

"But," one Guy counters, "there were traces of both ghost and human DNA in those samples."

Well, that's an easy fix! I jump out of my puppet, but not before ensuring that he thinks the argument was entirely his own, and dive into a different agent. It's more convincing if more than one person agrees.

"He has a point, though," I say with my new puppet's voice. I lower his weapon as well. "Besides, what were we expecting? A ghost/human hybrid? That doesn't make any sense."

"I suppose not," says one of his colleagues. That man turns to the fourth. "What do you think?"

Rinse and repeat, now I'm in lucky number four. "I think we should head back to base and dump out our Plasmius samples. It sounds to me like we've been had."

The only Guy I didn't overshadow concedes. "Honestly, I'm leaning that way, too."

With pure relief coursing through me, I jump out of this body and land behind Vlad. I almost drop the invisibility but decide that it's better if the agents think I left.

Three out of four agents are a little disoriented - I had to pull some rush jobs, okay? - but the remaining Guy finally lowers his gun and says, "Sorry for the misunderstanding, folks. We'll just be on our way."

He sends Vlad one final glare before leading his colleagues back to their car. I don't know how convinced they truly are, but at least Vlad's off the hook for the time being.

Nobody moves until the car is out of sight. Only then do I regain visibility.

Vlad whirls on me. "Hutch, you utter buffoon!"

So not what I was expecting. "I- What-"

"When you said you had an idea, I didn't think it was something so reckless as to overshadow a bunch of government agents! Do you realize what could have happened to you?"

I barely relax. He isn't mad at me; he's scared for me. That's not better, but it's a little less alarming. "Well, I-"

He pulls me up by the shirt collar and slams his lips into mine. This isn't one of the gentle kisses I've grown accustomed to. This kiss is one of relief and desperation. It is fierce and rough and sends blistering cold over me from the inside out.

Vlad pulls away far too soon, slightly breathless, reminding me that he needs to breathe in his current form. He cups my icy face in his hands and gazes at me like I'm the one who put the sun in the sky. "I love you, you insufferable moron."

Just as I'm getting lost in Vlad's presence, I am reminded that other people are here.

Phantom bends over and makes a loud and very fake retching noise. Maddie smacks him with a barely concealed laugh. "Behave," she scolds. Her son giggles in response.

Jack coughs into his fist. "So, uh, does anyone want to address the elephant in the room?"

We all turn to Vlad, who looks like he wants the earth to swallow him up. None of us know what to say. What can you say to someone who was…violated in such a way? Someone who just came face to face with the people who caused it?

I wish he would have told me.

Phantom is the first to find his voice. "Um, can I have a moment with Vlad?"

Jack pats Vlad's shoulder with the saddest smile in the world.

Maddie mutters, "I'm glad you're okay," to Vlad as she passes.

I wring my boa and don't move until Vlad places his hand on my back and says, "It's alright, Hutch. Stay with Jack and Maddie. They'll keep you safe. Which is something I never thought I'd say to a ghost," he adds with a sardonic chuckle.

He's still thinking about my safety.

I'm reluctant to leave Vlad's side, but I give his hand a squeeze and force my legs to move. Phantom nods to me as I pass. It's a silent promise that he'll look after Vlad, and it's good enough for me.

I follow Jack and Maddie back to their van, and they let me inside without a word. Jack is in the driver's seat, Maddie is shotgun, and that leaves me in one of the backseats. It's a very high-tech vehicle with metallic interior - though, the seats are quite comfortable - and buttons scattered about.

"I wouldn't press anything if I were you," Jack warns when he sees me looking around. "There's a reason I named this baby the 'Ghost Assault Vehicle.'"

I keep my arms firmly at my sides.

Maddie twists around in her seat to talk to me. "Hutch, did you know about this?"

Her tone isn't accusing, but tears spring to my eyes and I have a death grip on my boa, the thing Vlad crept around his vivisectors' place of business to get. "No. He never said anything." I shake my head. "I knew something happened, but…" I can't go on. If I do, I'll fall apart.

Jack sighs heavily and presses his hand to his forehead. "God…"

Maddie directs her attention to her husband. "Jack?"

Jack's hand falls into his lap. From my angle, I can see how devastated he is. "Remember the night of Danny's reckoning? When I was so happy," he spits out the words as if they were poisonous, "that the Guys in White captured Plasmius?" He makes a small noise and massages his forehead. "What if that's when it happened?"

Maddie hesitates then, "We don't know that."

"Maddie, think about it! Danny had every intention of staying in the Ghost Zone so he wouldn't attack Amity Park. Then, I called him to tell him about Plasmius. The next thing we knew, Danny was on Earth! We know he wouldn't have come back without a reason. What if he was trying to save Vlad?"

Maddie puts her hand on Jack's arm. "We don't know, Jack. But, if that is the case, it isn't your fault. You couldn't have known what would happen, and we didn't know about Vlad then."

The reckoning - a.k.a. that halfa puberty I mentioned - ends with the halfa in question going on a blind rampage. I wasn't there for Phantom's, but word gets around. Phantom assisted in making countless preparations on the off-chance that he would still be on Earth when his rampage started. They worked, and there was minimal damage, but nobody knew why Phantom was in Amity Park when he was supposed to have been in the Ghost Zone.

What if Jack is right? What if Phantom risked everything to save Vlad from the clutches of the Guys in White? Phantom looked so guilty when I asked what happened to Vlad. What if it's because he didn't get there in time to stop the vivisection? How much worse would it have been if Phantom had disregarded Jack's phone call like a lot of people would have done?

I made a slander film about that kid once.

The thought breaks me, and I can no longer fight the sobs building up inside of me.