10/24/24: This one is short, and a bit filler before the next big part kicks off, but we're going to be exploring some different points of view in this chapter. Things will begin to pick back up in the next chapter in terms of plot.

Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom.

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Chapter 15: Thoughts

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Meanwhile, at the Fenton household, a very confused couple was standing with two very confused men. The short man turned to the Fenton's. "I am very sorry for intruding like this. Danny and Sam saved me from that place. I'm afraid I am not quite sure where to go."

Maddie stepped forward, a kind smile on her face. "Are you the doctor who helped Danny while he was stuck in that God awful place?"

Dr. Tanning nodded. "I wish I could have done more to help him, but my hands were tied. May I ask about your relationship with him?"

"We're his parents," Jack answered.

"Really?" the man said excitedly before donning a worried look. "You are not angry over the things I did to him?"

The redhead motioned towards the couch. The four adults all took a seat, Jack and Maddie on the loveseat, while Dr. Tanning and Dash sat on opposite ends of the couch.

"From what Danny told us, you had no choice," she said kindly. "He said you were the one person who treated him like a human being."

"I'm sorry to interrupt this…chat," Dash started, before looking at the man. "But…Dad?"

The man blinked a few times, pushing up his glasses. "Yes, Dash, it is me."

"I thought…" the former jock paused. "I thought you were dead."

Dr. Tanning made a sad and sympathetic face. "I was abducted about the same time Danny was a little over 5 years ago now. They made you think I was dead so you and your mother wouldn't come looking for me," he explained.

"You…you did all those things to Danny?" Dash asked softly.

His father gave him a guilty look. "I did. I really have no excuses."

But the blonde was smarter than his jock status would've let on. "They used me to keep you in line, didn't they? That's why Sam and Danny came for me."

His father pulled his glasses off and began cleaning them, trying to distract himself from the emotions. "It is. They seemed quite surprised that you are my son."

Dash looked down at his hands. "I didn't tell anyone except Kwon when it happened. I wasn't sure how to deal with my emotions back then, so I hid it. Even after I became friends with Sam and Danny, I didn't tell them," He looked up at his father. "It's not really something you just sprinkle into conversation."

"No, I don't believe it is," the doctor responded. He took a deep breath before returning Dash's look, and gave his son a fond smile. "I can't imagine how hard it was on you, but I've missed you so."

Maddie patted Jack's leg and indicated with her head towards the kitchen. "Would you two like something to drink?"

"Water, please," Dr. Tanning answered.

"Same."

The redhead nodded before she and Jack went to the kitchen to get the water and give the men a little privacy for personal matters.

Dash stood and sat a little closer to his father. "It was hard, especially on mom–mom!" he said, straightening up. "We need to let her know."

Dash had always wondered about his parent's relationship. The two were married, though many didn't know it because his mother had kept her maiden name. She was a damn good lawyer and had earned a reputation, so she kept her last name to remain recognizable. Dash was given her last name as a result.

He got his looks from his mother, who was a bombshell blue-eyed blonde who worked as an executive at her law firm. His father was a squat balding man, with poor eyesight and no athletic ability at all. While he loved both his parents, he often mused about how a man like him could get a woman like her. He'd asked his mother that very thing once, before they were told his dad was dead. She'd said, "Bruce is the kindest man you'll ever meet, with a shy smile and a determination to save anyone he can. With him, love isn't stale or stagnant; he treats me the same now as when we were dating: bringing me flowers, taking me on dates, making me feel like I'm the only woman in the world. You'll find out later that that's all that matters in a relationship, and I hope one day that you'll do the same."

She'd gone on to tell him that she had dated very good looking men in her youth, but looks were all they had going for them. She hoped that Dash would see how his father treated her and would go on to do the same, as there weren't enough men like that in the world.

It's not like Dash didn't understand what she said, he'd always been proud of the man his father was. It's what made losing him that much harder. The day the cops came to their door his mother had fallen apart, and really couldn't take care of him after that, so Dash grew up and became responsible. It had a big hand in changing his bullying ways in school as well.

Bruce looked at his son with a small smile. "I believe that can wait until a more reasonable hour," he said, putting his glasses back on.

Dash hadn't realized how much he'd missed seeing his father obsessively clean his glasses, and before he realized it, he was hugging the man, a small jolt of surprise going through Bruce at the sudden show of affection. His son had never been the affectionate type. But the doctor soaked it up and returned the hug, happy to finally see his only child after so long.

–

Maddie was putting ice in cups for water while Jack sat at the table. "Did you uh…did you see that coming?" he asked.

His wife shook her head with a heavy sigh. "I did not. I don't think any of us knew Dash thought his father was dead."

"He hid it really well."

Maddie nodded, putting the cups on the table and opening the fridge to grab the pitcher of water. "To think he went through that almost completely alone," she commented softly.

The large man fiddled with his hands a little before sighing. "Did you see the look on Sam's face when they showed up?"

Maddie paused in her water pouring and looked at him. "I thought I was the only one who noticed."

"She looked like she was mad but trying to hide it."

His wife nodded absently, finishing getting the drinks ready. "She did, and that's not exactly the response you would expect after being rescued from someone who wants to kill you."

"No, it's not. Something must have happened," he said.

"I agree," she started, putting the pitcher back in the fridge. "But that is for them to tell."

She paused when she noted her husband looked dejected. "Are you okay, honey?"

He gave her a soft smile. "Just worried, is all. I was hoping life would give poor Danny-boy a break, but I have this bad feeling that it won't let go of him just yet."

"I know what you mean," she said, patting his hand.

–

Vlad was up late; his worry over Daniel kept him from sleeping. He was standing in his bedroom looking out the window and hoping everything worked out okay. A smile slipped onto his face as he thought about the young man and what he meant to him. Memories from years ago, before they'd set aside their differences, surfaced, and he chuckled at the pranks they had sometimes played on each other back then.

He sighed then. "Maybe Daniel was right. Maybe I should get a cat."

–

Tucker left the bedroom and went to the living room where Jazz was. His wife was sitting on the couch petting DJ and looked up when he came in. "How is she?"

"Furious," he answered before sighing. He plopped himself down next to her. "Where's Danny?"

Jazz pointed up indicating the roof and Tucker made an 'ah' sound.

They were silent for a while, listening to a clock on the wall tick away. Finally, "This is hard," the redhead broke the silence.

Tucker nodded in agreement. "It's so hard because we can understand both sides. Danny didn't intentionally lie to her at first because he didn't remember."

"And then he was in such shock and unable to process it himself, so he didn't tell her," Jazz continued.

"I understand why he didn't tell her then. It probably freaked him the heck out, but at the same time, I completely understand why she's angry."

"Yeah," Jazz replied, hand scratching DJ behind the ears. "And I have no idea how to help either. Danny is so torn up over it, not just that he lied and Sam is mad, but that it happened at all." She looked at her husband. "I really think he hates himself for doing that with Mira."

Tucker made a sympathetic face. "I get why. From what he's said, she's nuts."

"Were you able to help Sam?"

He nodded. "I think so, at least a little. She might not break his shins now, but she's still really mad."

Jazz sighed. "She found out in the worst possible way."

Tucker leaned forward, elbows on his knees and shook his head. "I can't imagine finding out that way."

"What are we going to do about her ghost powers?" she asked, voice barely above a whisper.

"I don't know," her husband replied, running a hand over his head. "She's scared of it, mostly because she's afraid of what Danny thinks. You've heard him call them abominations, and now she thinks she's one."

Jazz gave him a sad look. "None of us think that."

He smiled sadly at her. "Of course not, but that won't make her feel much better. Not unless it comes directly from Danny."

Jazz regarded him stoically. "I really hope this doesn't tear them apart."

–

Danny was on the roof, one knee to his chest, the other leg hanging over the edge, and with one arm resting on his knee. He watched the skyline for any sign of danger or if they were followed. He was concerned now that it was clear Mira knew where they lived; they would probably need to move.

He pulsed his core to see if he could detect any signatures further away, but the only signature that responded was Sam's. He scrunched his eyes shut in sadness and worry as he once again felt her gnarled and perverted signature. The ghost was angry at himself for not being vigilant enough. If he had been, she wouldn't have been kidnapped and she wouldn't be an artificial half ghost. He opened his eyes again, he could never think of her as an abomination, especially as it was done against her will.

He sighed, rubbing his face with his hand in a frustrated way. He thought back to the look she gave him when he all but confirmed what Mira had obviously told her. She looked so stricken, hurt and angry, and he hated himself for making her feel that way.

He should have told her, but when he first found out he was trying to come to terms with it himself. Then he was absolutely terrified of her reaction. Then his kids were born. His delay was backfiring in the worst way, and he couldn't imagine how she felt when Mira told her.

Danny looked out over the skyline again before looking down at his hands and sighing heavily. He didn't know how he could fix this, and he was worried that he wouldn't be able to. She was so angry…

They were fire and ice, always had been. They fought with the best of them, had knock down, drag out fights, but always came back together. He feared she was far too furious this time.

And, honestly, he couldn't blame her.

–

Sam was feeding her children. She looked down at them, one on each side, and smiled at their beautiful faces. They were her comfort now, as she felt completely lost.

She found herself doubting her relationship with Danny and wondering if she could truly trust him. The goth hated that she felt this way, but she couldn't help it.

It was obvious that what Mira said was true; Danny's look of guilt confirmed as much. He'd been hiding it for months and it absolutely crushed her.

Part of her was getting worried. Her anger over this was so fierce that it was becoming hard to contain. While she knew she had always been a bit of a hothead, this seemed out of character, and the fact that she was struggling to control it was unsettling.

Even now, as she fed her babies and soaked up their presence and peace, she could feel it boiling beneath the surface. It was all she could do to keep her powers under control while her children were so close. Perhaps talking about it with Danny would help? She hoped it would, but there was a voice telling her that it would only make things worse.

The goth sighed, completely lost as to what to do.

–

10/28/24: This did take me a few days, despite its length. I haven't been feeling the best. I've been around my father who has a really bad upper respiratory infection and each day my body feels like it might be getting it. I wish it would decide if I'm going to be sick or not, because getting up feels like death, but I feel fine in the evening. This may slow down writing and updates.

I threw in that little bit with Vlad in the hopes it might make someone smile or chuckle. :)

So yeah, not a whole lot in this chapter other than peoples thoughts on the matter. I won't do this a lot (as a standalone chapter), but we didn't explore other POV's much in Taken, so I thought it would be nice to see 'behind the scenes' so to speak.