Hello, welcome back! I'm kind of experiencing some writer's block right now, in the sense that nothing I write seems to work. If you have any advice, I'd appreciate it.
The Life We Fight For
Chapter 17: Something to Lose
When Vlad suggested Danny's friends and sister come over, Danny jumped at the idea. It had been so long since they'd hung out normally, as regular teenagers do.
Vlad had first suggested it when Danny had aced a test in math, something he never would have been able to do without Vlad's help. As a reward, Vlad had given him the option of having the rest of Team Phantom over for the afternoon after school. Of course, Danny was thrilled.
He felt a bit awkward when the three teens first arrived however. He'd been living with Vlad for almost two months, but this was the first time he'd really acted like the manor was his home. Godfrey opened the door and Danny ran out from the foyer to greet them.
"Hey guys!" Danny exclaimed, standing next to the butler as the group entered.
"Dude, I'll never get used to walking into this place, even Sam's mansion is smaller." Tucker said in awe. "Take away the green and gold and it's Buckingham Palace."
Sam snorted. "I'm just surprised you've paid enough attention in History class to know what Buckingham Palace is!"
"Hey!"
Tucker pouted and Jazz simply rolled her eyes at the younger teenagers' antics. She walked up to a chuckling Danny and caught him in a hug. Danny tensed in embarrassment.
"Nice to see you alive and kicking little brother." Jazz managed to say before she let him go.
"Y-you too." Danny replied.
There were so many questions he wanted to ask her. What was 'mom' doing? When did Jazz start looking so tired? Did his dad ever question why he was doing what he's doing? What was it like living in a house with spellbound versions of their parents?
But Danny bit his tongue. Now was not the time. He was sure his sister would find him later, if just to ask how he really was, then he could vent and also get information on Ivix's scheme. But for now...
"Let's go upstairs," Danny suggested. "It's more distant from the staff. Plus, my room is Vlad-proof."
Sam tilted her head in confusion and followed after the others as Danny led them up a grand marble staircase to the second floor. Danny hesitated before opening the door, insecurity taking hold.
He'd never been a rich kid, his parents had invested a lot of their earnings into their ghost hunting and research since day one. He was getting used to living in an over-the-top house with designer clothes, a full team of staff, and a bedroom other kids would dream to have. But still, a small part of him felt...out of place and unwilling to call this stuff his. Vlad provided him with everything he needed and more, without even asking. He really didn't work much, he didn't even do chores (the cleaning staff took care of that) and getting a steady job outside of the mansion was totally out of the question in his current situation.
In the end Danny had to accept that this was his life now. He didn't know how long he was going to be here, living it up at Vlad's. He might as well take advantage of what he had while he had it.
Danny opened the door and let the others take in his space-themed room while he unbuttoned the first few buttons on his long-sleeved Oxford. Vlad was particular about Danny keeping neat and always made him button his shirts much to Danny's chagrin. Danny had once come down to breakfast in his pajamas and Vlad had nearly had an OCD panic attack. He had marched Danny right back upstairs and the teen ended up wearing a suit the rest of the day. The fruitloop had even made him wear a tie.
The teens made their way over to the bean bags and armchairs in front of the large television on the far wall while Danny shit the door behind them. Vlad had said he would most likely be in the lab all day, but Danny wasn't talking any chances. The man had a knack for showing up at the worst times.
"Man, this thing is awesome!" Tucker gushed, messing around with the televisions settings. "It's got a touch screen? Jeez, when can Vlad adopt me?!"
Danny was laughing at his friend's amazement. Was. But the techno-geek's last statement had sent shockwaves of insecurity through Danny's thoughts.
Vlad was not his father, yet he spared no expense spoiling him. Vlad was not his father, yet he protected and helped him when he was in danger.
Vlad wasn't his father, not at all. But lately, he'd been acting as if he was.
And Danny wasn't objecting to it.
Danny pursed his lips together tightly, remembering all the times Vlad had saved him from the brink of death. And all in a matter of months. What could have caused him to change?
Sam immediately recognized Danny's awkward posture and eagerly jumped to his defense.
"If this is how he treats his house guests, I'm sure his family would be swimming in money everyday." Sam said, emphasizing the term 'houseguest'. Tucker seemed to get the hint, because he stammered out,
"Yeah, right." He said. "I-I was just kidding, sorry dude."
Danny shook his head, a shy and weak smile on his face. He was tired of the awkwardness, the uncertainty, the 'What if's. He just wanted to save his parents, and go home. Normalcy was all he would ask for right now.
"I've been living here for over a month, away from my parents, and relying on the fruitloop. I think I know what our relationship looks like." Danny said good-naturedly. "But he hasn't done anything to break our truce, or to hurt me, so..."
Jazz stood and went over to Danny, putting a sympathetic hand on his shoulder.
"It's only natural that being together all the time for this long has caused you guys too get closer." She said. "In fact, I think it's probably the one good thing that's come out of this. If you both can walk away allies after this is all over, maybe it will be worth it."
Sam smiled at her friend. "She's right, there's always a bright side to everything."
"I thought you were supposed to be a creature of the night?" Danny teased before he sobered up at Sam's glare. "But seriously, thanks guys."
The goth girl nodded and stood up, something on Danny's nightstand catching her eye. It looked like a small, plain box, but Sam saw Danny tense when he followed her line of vision to the object and knew it was more than that.
"What is this?" She asked, picking it up.
Danny stood up as well as hurried over to her. Why did she have to notice the ectosignature projector of all things? He'd already told the girls about his nightmares, but admitting he couldn't sleep without the adult halfa's signature surrounding him would be completely embarrassing!
"I-It's just a decoration, nothing important at all, nope!" Danny said, holding out his hand to take the box back.
By this time Jazz and Tucker were also suspicious and joined them on the other side of the room. Sam handed the box to Tucker.
"Explain, techno-geek." She commanded.
Tucker glared at her tone but examined the device anyway while Danny anxiously watched. Tucker pressed the button on the side and Danny gasped as a blue wisp of air flew out of his mouth. The three teens stared at the half-ghost in confusion.
"Dude, this is one high-tech box for just activating your ghost sense..." Tucker said with a raised eyebrow.
"Can't we just ignore it?" Danny all but whined. "It's just a box, that's all."
Jazz put her hands on her hips and grabbed the piece of tech from Tucker. She backed away towards far wall and held up the object. Big sister mode had just been activated!
"Tell me what this does." She ordered. Danny just raised an eyebrow, amused. Jazz shrugged. "Alright then..."
She popped open the window lock and stuck out her right hand, turning her palm face down with the box in-hand, letting it dangle from her fingers.
"Jazz, no!" Danny cried. "That's so not fair!"
Sam and Tucker looked at each other in awe. "She is good." They said in unison.
Danny glanced between his precious projector and his sister's smug face. Finally, he sighed and realized he must admit defeat this time.
"Alright, alright, it's Vlad's ectosignature." He said honestly. Jazz drew her hand back halfway and Danny's shoulders slumped. "I don't have nightmares when I can sense him close by."
Jazz nodded moved away, closing the window. She handed the box back to Danny who sighed in relief.
"You guys are relentless." Danny muttered, putting the object back on his nightstand where it belonged.
"I don't get it." Tucker said. "How does having Plasmius' ectosignature around help you sleep? Shouldn't it be the opposite?"
Danny internally cringed. The last thing he wanted to do was explain why he needed Vlad's signature. When the man had explained it to him he'd been embarrassed enough. He couldn't even bring himself to say it out loud.
He was a superhero that needed an adult around to chase away the bad dreams. How humiliating was that?!
Luckily, Clockwork must have been on his side that moment because the loud, echoing doorbell could be heard ringing downstairs. Danny's eyebrows creased in confusion. Vlad hadn't said anything about expecting company today...
"You expecting someone?" Sam wondered, looking towards the door. Danny shook his head.
"Vlad's in his lab, he probably didn't hear the bell..." Danny thought out loud. "I'm going to go check who it is."
As he walked out of the room his friends shrugged and followed suit Jazz came up to his side and spoke softly.
"Vlad is famous worldwide, isn't it normal to get visitors, at least for business?" She said, thinking it over in her head.
"Maybe under normal circumstances, but Vlad has kept us almost completely isolated since we got here." Danny explained. "He would have told me if he'd been expecting someone."
Suddenly, Danny's ghost sense made a reappearance and he shivered at the force of it. Had Vlad changed into his ghost half? No, Danny would have senses if it was Plasmius. This signature wasn't familiar.
The teens reached the balcony connected to the staircase to the first floor and looked on as Godfrey went to the door and opened it, giving a welcoming bow to whoever he was greeting.
"I'm here to see Vlad." A feminine voice called out as a blue jumpsuit caught Danny's eye.
Thinking quickly, Danny grabbed Jazz's forearm and turned her invisible. If Maddie saw her here, it would cause major problems in their plan. Sam and Tucker realized who it was that had just entered and each put a hand on Jazz's back, causing themselves to turn invisible also. The only one who was not invisible was Danny, who was too panicked to concentrate on focusing his power to shield them all.
Jazz elbowed him, trying to get him to notice her was exposed, but he didn't so much as flinch. Danny's bright blue eyes stared unblinking at the one ghost that had haunted his dreams, literally.
"Danny!" Jazz hissed, finally getting his attention. Sadly, she also got someone else's attention as well.
Maddie and Godfrey both looked up at the only visible teen in confusion. Danny's eyes widened, and Maddie's narrowed.
"You!" She growled.
Danny was frozen on the spot. He couldn't afford to bolt and leave Jazz and his friends to be exposed as well. Though every instinct in his body was telling him to either run or attack, he kept still and stared into a pair of angry, lavender irises.
Before another word could be spoken, Vlad Master's voice was heard throughout the room.
"Maddie! Wonderful to see you!" The man said, entering the room from the door to Maddie's left. Danny deduced that the man had been in the lab judging by the direction he'd come from. If that was true, Danny could assume that the billionaire hadn't been expecting Maddie's visit, either.
"I demand to know why you are harboring a criminal in your own home!" She ordered, her stance dangerously tense. "You both ought to be brought to justice!"
Danny finally found his voice and shouted over the railing at his mother. "I'm not a criminal, I help people!"
Danny used all his strength to create a duplicate invisibly and have it hold on to Jazz so the real Danny could walk a little closer. He could feel Jazz's hand brush his shoulder in comfort as he moved away.
"You are nothing but a boy with powers beyond his own control. You should never have become what you are in the first place." Maddie snapped, her tone patronizing and authoritative.
Danny flinched but otherwise remained strong. He kept reminding himself that this was not his mother, this was a monster, using her, and hurting her. Danny moved slowly down the stairs, not even realizing it until he had reached the last steps.
"I think we've had about enough of your games, Ivix." Vlad said. He looked to the butler standing behind her. "If you please."
Godfrey thrust his hand forward and a blue rope of ectoplasmic energy burst forth, wrapping tightly around Maddie and keeping her restrained in place. This only seemed to amuse the ghost possessing her, for it smiled an unnatural smile directed at Vlad. The man just smirked back at it, unfazed.
"You may be more powerful than me in combat, manipulative half ghost," Maddie said, turning to stare at Danny. "But I am no ordinary opponent. I've been both waiting for this moment, and preparing my champion with which to seal your fate."
Maddie turned and stared into Danny's wide, blue eyes and smiled. Danny mind clouded, his vision blurred, and for some reason, he desperately wanted to move. He wanted to fight, to hurt, to defeat. His eyes changed to a bright magenta that alarmed the other adults close enough to see. His muscles tensed and he looked away from his 'mother's eyes and stared at a confused Vlad.
"How will you defeat me," Maddie wondered, as Fenton changed into Phantom. "When you're too busy fighting him?"
Right as the last word was spoken, many things happened at once. Maddie broke free of her bonds and turned to attack Godfrey. Danny shot forward and tackled Vlad, who changed into Plasmius as he wrestled Danny on the ground. Seeing this, the three teenage spectators suddenly turned and realized they were visible. Jazz looked behind her and Danny's clone was smirking at her.
Jazz gasped and managed to dodge out of the way of an ectoblast that sailed over her head and smashed into and shattered a window on the other side of the room. Sam and Tucker pulled out their wrist rays and began to fend off the clone while Jazz recovered and brought out a lipstick blaster.
As the teenagers fought above Danny and Vlad hashed it out on the lower level, mainly keeping it hand to hand as each threw punches and tried to outwit eachother and win. Vlad blocked a harsh kick aimed at his side and used the pause to push Danny backwards. Any other time Danny might have been thrown off, but he'd learned a great deal since coming to Vlad's, and he wasn't so easily defeated as he might once have been.
Danny twisted and spun around with the momentum keeping his leg out and smashing it into Vlad's opposite side. The man was shoved a few feet away and rolled to a halt on the ground. He quickly pushed himself up and looked at Danny with an impressed raise of his eyebrows.
"Maybe I am teaching you something." He muttered. Danny came at him again, his fist raised in a clear attempt to nail him in the nose, but Vlad was finished playing games.
He ducked and turned intangible, leaving Danny to stumble and try to reorient himself. Vlad didn't allow him time to do this however, and quickly grabbed Danny's arm and twisted it behind his back. He kept it high enough to restrain him, but not enough to break any bones.
"Think, Daniel, fight it." Vlad said. "He's just controlling you. You can fight it!"
He looked over and saw that Godfrey was holding off Maddie's attacks, but that he was starting to falter. Vlad would have to hurry this along.
"You're being controlled!" Danny shouted, struggling as hard as he could.
Danny growled in frustration and tried to kick Vlad in the kneecap. His arm was jerked tightly and he gasped, standing on his toes to relieve some of the pain. Vlad remembered that same tone as one Danny used when wanting to be defiant and test Vlad's patience. Vlad got an idea and leaned forward, bringing his face close to Danny's ear.
"If you aren't able to break free of Ivix's curse," Vlad let a few seconds pass, the boy's face beginning to pale. "I'll spank you."
Danny eyes widened for a short moment before going back to a calm level. He craned his neck to look at Vlad and frowned.
"You're bluffing." He stated. Vlad just smirked down at him challengingly.
Danny grit his teeth and scowled. The halfa went intangible and pried himself away from Vlad, turning around to face him a few feet away
"You. Can't." The controlled Danny said. Vlad shrugged.
"Why not?" Vlad said carelessly. "I shouldn't have to tell you that attacking me is against the rules, and you know what I do to naughty half ghosts that break my rules."
Danny gave a frustrated battle cry and lunged at Vlad. The two were a flurry of attacks and deflects. Danny was on heavy offense, while Vlad tried to time his movements carefully in order to not hurt the boy blindly attacking him. The man longed to point out obvious mistakes in the child's attack, but instead focused on getting Danny's mind where it should be.
"I mean it Daniel, stop fighting me!" Vlad said. Danny's attacks seemed weaker, but otherwise he kept going. The kid was going to burn himself out! "I don't want to hurt you!"
"Yeah? Well I wanna hurt you!"
Danny raised his arm to strike, his glowing purple eyes furious. Vlad had finally had enough and grabbed the boy's wrist, pulling him forward and grabbing him into a hug-like, restraining hold. Danny fought him and tried to pull away, but Vlad was stronger, and anytime Danny went intangible, Vlad followed suit, keeping his hold firm.
"Enough, quiet down and listen to me." Vlad said. "Fight the hold that ghost has over you. I'm serious Daniel, I will punish you if you don't."
Danny shifted uncomfortably and tried to pull his wrist out of Vlad's grip. He muttered quietly as he struggled. "Don't. Can't."
"I can and I will." Vlad replied, watching Godfrey get flung to the ground. Vlad winced as Maddie turned to look at him.
"Fight him, do it now Daniel!" Vlad ordered. "Or you're about to be in a world of trouble!"
Danny whimpered and finally snapped. He looked up at Vlad with two, bright green eyes and pleaded. "No! That's not fair!"
Vlad loosened his grip on Danny but kept his eyes glued to the now seething Maddie. Danny's clone had disappeared once he was back to normal and the three teenagers overlooking the scene were now panting and recovering from the fight, while watching the two half ghosts below.
"You useless child!" Maddie yelled in a voice that was not the ghost hunter's. "You'll pay for this! No one betrays me!"
Suddenly Danny's body glowed a bright purple. Danny's eyes widened dramatically as he began to feel burning hot. He pulled away from Vlad and put his hands to his chest in a blind effort to cool down his icy core. Vlad watched helplessly as Danny dropped to his knees in distress, sweat building up on his forehead and streaming down his face.
Vlad glared at the person responsible for his ward's pain. In order to end Danny's suffering, he would have to fight the love of his life. Figures.
Vlad charged his hands full of deadly electrical energy and plunged into battle. Maddie's attacks were uncoordinated and varied, but the power given to her by Ivix made it exceedingly difficult for Vlad to attack while preserving the body that was his Maddie's.
"You can't hurt me," Deus Ivix mocked. "I'm your precious Maddie. Oh how perfect this turned out to be!"
Vlad growled and tried to restrain his opponent but Maddie was quick and nimble, much more so than Vlad. He was forced to shoot blindly and try to deliver a non-fatal blow while the ghost-possessed woman dodged him expertly.
Meanwhile both Godfrey and team Phantom had recovered and raced to Danny. Sam brushed his windswept hair off of his sweaty forehead and frowned. She knew Danny Phantom didn't do well in the heat, but this wasn't exactly the same thing, was it? How on Earth could she help her friend?
Godfrey knelt in front of Danny gently grasped his wrists in one hand. Danny looked at him curiously as the butler pulled them away from his chest and raised his free hand. It began to glow a soft blue, and he moved it to Danny's torso, right over his core.
Danny sighed as his core felt as if it was coated in a healing, cooled blanket. The rest of his body was still painfully hot, but he wasn't in danger of any permanent damage now.
Godfrey let his spell settle a few seconds longer and pulled away, though the effect remained. He stood and straightened his uniform.
"Stay with him." He instructed the others, before moving around Danny to assist his employer.
Vlad was just beginning to lose his patience when his butler flew to his side, ecto-rope in hand. Vlad gave him a grateful glance, and watched as the panting Maddie grew apprehensive.
"Enough of this." Vlad proclaimed. "You're done for."
Suddenly, Maddie smiled. An insane, crazed sort of smile that unsettled the two ghosts in front of her. Her eyes were squinted in mock, and her chin tilted upwards to look down at them.
"I've lost, this time." It said, swirling tendrils of purple of black twisting around it. "But I'm not finished with you freaks just yet. Till we meet again, half ghost."
The smoky tendrils swallowed up the slouching figure just as Vlad shot an ectoblast. The blast burst through the smoke but struck nothing before slamming into the far wall. The smoke cleared and nothing remained.
Vlad growled in frustration and dropped his flight to stand on solid ground. Godfrey did the same.
Vlad suddenly remembered Daniel and walked over to where he sat, surrounded by his friends and sister. The purple glow from before had gone, and he seemed to be catching his breath, but otherwise alright.
Danny looked up at him and took the hand that Vlad offered to him once the man got close enough. Danny now shivered as the sweat dried on his body.
"Did you...?" Danny asked, looking to where he'd last seen his mother's body.
"They got away." Vlad explained. "Are you alright?"
Danny nodded, but his head instantly pounded at the action. "My arm is sore, but I can't really blame you for that." He confessed.
"Dude, you're telling me! your clone packs one heck of a punch!" Tucker complained, rubbing his arm close to the wrist ray he wore.
"Yeah, I thought we were toast for sure!" Jazz chimed in.
Danny chuckled. "Sorry about that, I wasn't in control of it, or myself for that matter."
Danny blushed and took a fidgety step back from them. It wasn't the best idea for as soon as he did so he stumbled. A massive wave of vertigo struck him and Vlad was forced to jerk forward and catch Danny before he could hit the ground.
"Daniel? Can you hear me?" Vlad called. "What's wrong?"
Danny blinked in confusion and shook his head, trying to clear it. His eyebrows creased in concern. "...Can't see you."
Vlad's muscles tensed in worry. Sam reached out and ran her fingers through her hair. Danny flinched, and Vlad was sure he hadn't seen her hand approach. Was this temporary? Was he now blind?
Danny's eyes fluttered closed and he went limp, fainting in Vlad's hold.
"Godfrey," Vlad said, standing and carrying Danny in his arms. "Bring ice to the infirmary. You three,"
Vlad turned his gaze to the younger ones in the room.
"You all need to go home, especially Jasmine, as your 'mother' will be suspicious before long." Vlad concluded, turning to walk away.
"No way!" Tucker said, jogging to catch up to Vlad. Sam and Jazz followed suit. "We can't leave Danny when he's like this!"
Vlad headed to the infirmary without pause.
"Then keep up." He tossed over his shoulder. The others rushed to comply, and the small party made their way to the desired area.
Once Danny was safely in bed with ice packs wrapped in towels settled on his chest and forehead, the teenagers and adults all breathed a sigh of relief. Vlad turned human and settled into a chair beside the white-washed bed and kept his eyes on his charge.
He couldn't remember how long it had been since he'd had so much stress in such a short amount of time, and all because of one person.
Two months ago, he would have beaten the hypnotized Danny to a pulp without giving his actions a second thought, but now...
Sam looked at the expression on the billionaire's face in thought. Danny had not told them much about living with Vlad these past weeks, but by the look on the man's face she could tell something had changed. There was genuine worry evident in the creases of Vlad's knitted brows and concern showing in the way his lips pursed together tightly.
Jazz too saw the change. Her expression softened and she felt a bit of hope rise in her heart. It was a feeling she hadn't had in awhile. It had been hard, living with her parents as they were, but seeing her brother being taken care of, protected, like a child should, it made her smile in happiness.
Tucker noticed Danny's change more obviously than Vlad's. The teen he had known for years had a major hero complex, and that was something amazingly hard to crack. For a man like Vlad to get Danny to trust him enough to live with him was a feat that Tucker respected.
As the three teenagers looked on in wonder, they all agreed that if nothing else, this was something good that came out of their ordeal.
They all sat in silence in the infirmary, the only interruptions being Godfrey coming and going with the occasional refreshments and fresh ice. An hour passed, and Sam and Tucker were forced to leave, only going quietly when Jazz promised to text then when Danny was awake. Vlad wanted to get rid of her as well, but imagined that Danny wouldn't take it well to hear he'd kicked out his sister at this time.
"You should stay here." Vlad said suddenly. Jazz didn't seem to mind though. She straightened in her chair and nodded.
"They'll be suspicious, but I can convince them it's a college opportunity, let them think I left town." She said in reply.
Vlad crossed his arms and watched Danny's chest rise and fall. "The best course of action would be for you to leave to college anyway, as you'd be out of the line of fire if this goes poorly, but..."
Jazz shot him a look and Vlad nodded. "I didn't think so. Staying here it is then."
Danny twitched agitatedly and whimpered, his eyes squeezing tightly. Without a thought, Vlad changed to Plasmius. The nightmares were never ending, it seemed. The device Vlad had given the boy was not in the room, therefore the real thing would have to do.
The reaction was immediate. Danny relaxed visibly, and his muscles went limp once again. Vlad brushed back the child's bangs, relieved to feel his temperature had returned to normal. Jazz watched with a calculating stare.
"You love him?" She asked bluntly.
Vlad retracted his hand. He sat tall in his seat and looked at her squarely. He'd made the decision to have Daniel by his side since their meeting all those months ago, but now he did not wish to change the boy into his desired pawn.
"I promised Daniel I would give up my revenge plots against your father." Vlad told her. "In return, I get a second chance. I will not let this opportunity slip through my fingers."
"I can give him- and you, as well, a much better environment to live in than Jack Fenton can." Vlad continued. "I understand that for Daniel swallowing his pride enough to accept the help will be much more difficult for him than for you, but I know what I want. I want Daniel safe, and by my side, however he sees fit. If that's not love, I'll never know true love."
Jazz took precious moments to ponder over Vlad's words. For once, she could hear and understand the emotions Vlad was portraying in his words, with no sense of mischief or double meanings.
"You two are more alike than you realize." She said finally. "I'm already past the point of independence, but Danny still needs a father. Whether Jack Fenton is still that man or not, I will support him. You do right by him, I'll support you both."
Vlad's eyes remained on Danny. He gave a nod to Jazz and the two fell into silence once again.
The man gave great thought to the girl's words. If he was honest with himself, he would admit he was a bit nervous about the idea of Daniel eventually coming to live with him permanently. Not as an ally, but as a son.
But Vlad was at a disadvantage. He and Daniel had history, and none of it was fun to think about. Daniel couldn't trust him, but Vlad was convinced he could change that. Perhaps Jasmine living with them as well could help in that area.
As Vlad contemplated his next move, Danny slowly came to. He only moved his eyes, acutely aware that he was not alone in the room. When he saw Vlad sitting next to him, in ghost form, he surprised himself by remaining calm. A few weeks ago, he would've shot into the air, demanded to know where he was, and probably attacked the man.
He opened his eyes fully and brought a hand to his face with a sigh, rubbing the last remnants of sleep away. Danny heard a sudden intake of breath and watched as two pairs of eyes stared him down.
"I'm alive." Said Danny at their expectant looks. "I think."
Jazz let out a nervous laugh. "You scared us half to death."
Danny sat up, noticing how Vlad jerked for a moment, as if wanting to stop him but refraining from actually doing so.
"What happened?" Danny asked, running a hand through his hair. "Last thing I remember was fighting Vlad, and then...lots of pain."
"Sounds about right." Vlad said, changing into his human form. Danny noticed the action and became visibly uncomfortable knowing Vlad must have been in ghost form because of him.
Danny finally got a hold of reality and looked at his sister. Her presence at his side without Sam and Tucker was telling. Danny didn't want her to leave and go through the turmoil that was his home, but would Vlad allow it?
Danny barely had to think. As far as he could tell, he had Vlad wrapped around his half ghost fingers. Thanks to their deal, Danny was obligated to discontinue ignoring the man and Vlad was pretty needy when it came to attention. If Danny threatened to ignore him, Vlad would probably give him whatever he wanted.
"Jazz can't go home." Danny stated, looking directly into Vlad's darker blue eyes. "It can't be safe at this point.
Danny watched as Vlad raised an eyebrow at him and frowned. Seeing the potential argument, Jazz answered her brother.
"I'm not going back, Danny." Jazz said. "But now you two need to focus on other things. Waiting around here in hiding isn't going to work anymore with it knowing Danny's here."
Danny nodded, his muscles tense. The thought of going up against an enemy that had taken over his mind so easily wasn't a pleasant thought. He barely had the time to think of resisting when Ivix had attack his mind. If they met again, would the result be the same?
"Defeating this ghost needs to be our top priority right now." Danny agreed. "Ivix has to be stopped."
Vlad's eyes flashed red for a moment and he looked at Danny with a serious stare. Danny looked back in confusion.
"And what happens afterwards?" He snapped. "I keep telling you Daniel- think. Your family has serious issues, some of which could get you injured if not killed."
"Your mother sold her freedom to capture Phantom." Vlad continued. "You cannot ignore that this ghost is only here because Maddie allowed it to control her, willingly. Jack clearly isn't bright enough to know the difference between a ghost and his wife, how could he-"
"I get it!" Danny interrupted. He looked down at his hands and sighed. "Believe me, all I want is to forget everything that has put me in this situation. I want to believe that I'm on vacation or something, and Mom, Dad, and Jazz are all waiting for me at home, like a normal day."
Danny took and shaky breath and Jazz rested her hand gently on his arm. He smiled for a moment in gratitude before continuing.
"I just want my mom to be safe. Whether she accepts me or not, I'm still her son, I owe her that much."
When Danny looked back at Vlad he couldn't read the man's expression. He looked as if he was contemplating something while focusing on Danny's words. Vlad finally straightened and stood up, keeping his eyes on Danny.
"Whether you choose to go back to your father or not, you cannot deny that your time with me has made you different. I just hope you make the right decision when the time comes." Vlad turned and walked away, turning only to say over his shoulder, "I'm going to get the chef started on an early dinner. Both of you rest until then."
When Vlad exited the room silence reigned for all of a second before Jazz couldn't contain her curiosity any longer.
"What is up with you two?" She questioned. "One minute, you're best friends, the next you're back to being enemies!"
Danny shrugged, unsure of how to answer. He wanted Vlad to not get mad needlessly, but both halfas were incredibly hot headed and Vlad was sometimes more stubborn than a toddler at bath time. Not that Danny could judge, he was almost exactly the same.
"I'm just trying to make this work until I can save everyone." Danny muttered, staring at the door Vlad had walked out of.
"That's just it Danny," Jazz said, her tone a serious one. "What if you can't?"
Danny stayed quiet in thought. He was a hero, it was all he knew. His life revolved around ghosts and enemies on a daily basis. To think of changing all that, to imagine having someone to run to that understood you in the area of your life you need support in the most... could he do it?
Could he trust Vlad?
Danny put a hand to his chest, remembering the calming feeling of being ghost and having Vlad's ectosignature near him. It meant there was someone else who could be the protector, the vigilant one, the fighter. For so long, Danny had been under the stress of constant attack and abuse at the hands of his ghostly enemies, and now, he couldn't imagine being interrupted in the middle of the night by a ghost attack in Vlad's manor.
Maybe he could get used to living here. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad.
But was it the right thing to do?
Danny pursed his lips together. One way or another, something had to change between himself and Vlad. Vlad had put trust in him, just by letting him stay. It was time to return the favor.
It seems he had some decisions to make.
Next Chapter: Jazz watches Vlad and Danny interact, and tries to help.
Heyoo, so my birthday is in a few days, that's exciting. Also I'm glad this chapter is over cuz there will now be a reprieve in the drama and then dun dun dun the final chapters will be upon us. But let us not dwell on the sadness of this fic ending and instead be happy because Jazz gets to play psychologist in the next chapter and there shall be humor!
*If you are review-shy I accept "SPARKLE" as a good rating*
-P