12/21/24: A tiny bit of down time for this one, but it does further the plot. Though, I use the term 'down time' a little loosely.

Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom.

–

Chapter 35: Under Scrutiny

–

Danny stirred at the sound of an unhappy infant. He awoke with a start, realizing quickly that he must have fallen asleep with the twins still on his lap. He looked down, blinking a few times to clear his vision, to find both of his children awake and angrily demanding food.

"I think they're hungry."

The ghost's eyes shot to the bed, brows raised in shock as he took in Sam sitting up. "Sam! You're awake."

"Mmhmm," she hummed with a gentle smile. "If you give me Jackson, I'll feed him."

Danny carefully situated his kids so he could hold them properly and stood, going over to the bed. "How long have you been up?"

"About an hour," she answered, to which he gave her an incredulous look.

"You didn't tell anyone you were awake?"

The goth shrugged as her fiance put Jackson in the bed next to her, briefly placing Aurora down as well so he could get bottles. "You looked so tired; I didn't want to wake you."

Danny paused in his mission for bottles, turning back to her. "You should have woken me," he admonished lightly before going back to getting the bottles.

He quickly made two bottles with practiced hands before heading back over to the bed. "How are you feeling?"

"Very sore and my chest hurts," she answered with a frown.

"If that's all you feel, count yourself lucky. I wasn't sure we were going to find you in time," he said, sitting on the edge of the bed and handing one bottle to Sam before picking up Aurora to feed her.

He contemplated a moment before finally asking, "What the hell happened in there?"

The goth looked ashamed as she settled Jackson and began to feed him. "I know, I told you to trust me and then I ended up almost getting myself killed."

"Was it your fault?" He asked.

Her amethyst eyes glanced at him. "No."

"Then don't blame yourself. I trusted you then, and I trust you now. So, what happened?" He repeated gently, pointedly looking at her.

She sighed. "I thought I would use that little trick you used on me, the one where you send out this wave of energy, but I needed a little time to build enough energy." Sam softly brushed her thumb through her son's hair. "There were so many of them. I held my own pretty well, but I did get hurt." Her eyes flicked to him at his nod. "I guess I built up too much energy and the roof caved, but when I was going to teleport out to you, Mira suddenly showed up, grabbed me and teleported to a different part of the building."

"So that's how she got you," he interjected, tone dark. He was obviously pissed at Mira.

Sam nodded. "We fought–and I was winning, by the way–but she pinned me to the wall and injected her toxin before teleporting us out to the middle of nowhere."

The ghost set his daughter on the bed and shifted Jackson up so he could scoot himself next to Sam. He then reached over and pulled the goth to him, enveloping her in his strong arms. He laid his head on hers and simply closed his eyes, allowing the grief to finally wash away. "I thought I was going to lose you," he said softly, his deep voice vibrating against her.

Sam reached a hand up, placing it on his arm that wrapped around the front of her. "I wasn't scared," she said with a gentle smile. "I knew you would find me."

Danny pulled back and gave her his own smile. "I'm glad at least you had faith in me."

The twins started fussing then, missing the bottles that had been pulled when their father hugged their mother. The ghost chuckled lightly, the parents giving the bottles back.

"Who didn't have faith in you? Skulker?" Sam asked, curious.

"I didn't have faith in myself," he admitted quietly. "I was just terrified. And in the end, I'm not even the one who found you, Skulker is."

Sam shrugged. "So it was a team effort. Doesn't change the fact that I knew you'd find me."

Danny didn't comment further, still feeling wholly inadequate. They sat in silence until the twins were fed and changed before DJ came in the room, entire body wagging at seeing his favorite humans awake. He hopped up on the bed, doing his best to be a good boy and not wiggle too much near the infants.

Sam grinned. "Hey boy." She reached out and pet the excited collie, the dog rolling over to expose his belly and nearly rolling off the bed. The pair laughed at the dog's antics, and again when Jackson giggled as the heavy fur on DJ's tail tickled his face as it wagged.

Danny watched his little family, wanting to be content, but there was at least one thing still bothering him. "What did you mean when you said you were Shade?"

"There it is," the goth responded, knowing he had been holding back on something.

He frowned. "You have to know how much that affected me."

Sam took a deep breath, calming her nerves. Part of her, the part that was still Sam, understood his concern and what it did to him, but the other part, the part that was Shade, was angry. She carefully schooled her features. "You thought I might kill you; I saw how you were watching me."

Danny watched her reactions. "Can you blame me? You said you were Shade, and other than actually trying to kill me, you were acting like her, too."

"So, you don't actually trust me," she responded, her annoyance showing through.

The ghost looked at her like she was losing it. "I'm not saying these things to fight, Sam. I just almost lost you–fighting is the last thing I want. And I trust you, but I had no idea in that moment if you were Sam or Shade. Also, I left, didn't I? Even though I wasn't sure if you were Sam or Shade, I still left like you asked."

She took a calming breath. "I'm sorry," she said, trying to force the annoyance from her tone. She focused on her kids, using their bright eyes and smiles to ground her.

"I wasn't wrong," she started. "At that moment, I was Shade. But it's…difficult to explain. It's like when you guys wiped the brainwashing, a wall that was there to separate Sam from Shade came down and now I'm both. I often find myself thinking and feeling two things at once; like one is Sam and the other is Shade," she explained.

Danny nodded, accepting the explanation, as he reached for some toys and then handed one to Sam. "That would explain a lot of what happened during the fight."

"You mean killing all those people," she responded, reading the words between the lines. She took his silence as confirmation. "I would be lying if I said I didn't feel any guilt over it, but the Shade part really thinks they deserved it," she admitted, unashamed.

"Honestly," Danny started, "part of me was really impressed. You reminded me of, well, me, while I was in China. But I also know the kind of pain that comes with it, so I'm also worried."

The goth waved a toy around at Jackson, letting him reach for it and try to grasp it. "If this was before Shade, I would've been a mess. But she's given me a darker side. Whether or not that's a good thing, I'm not sure yet."

Her fiance nodded, smiling when Aurora grabbed her toy. He then glanced in her direction. "So…no random impulses to rip my core out?"

She chuckled, the Sam part of her finally taking over. "No impulses to rip your core out," she confirmed.

He breathed a sigh of relief. "Good, because that would suck."

They looked up at a knock on the door to see Bruce with a gentle smile. "I see you're awake this morning. How are you feeling?"

Sam gave him a smile in return. "Sore, with a little sharp pain when I move around in my side and upper back."

The doctor entered the room with a raised brow. "Probably has something to do with you getting slashed by several swords," he responded, going over to the side Danny wasn't on. "May I?" he asked, indicating he wanted to check her bandages.

She nodded. "Yeah…there were a lot of half ghosts. I lost count of how many I took out, but when they surround you, you tend to take a few hits."

"I can imagine," he replied before his gaze flicked to Danny. "I know she's just woken up, but your presence is being requested."

"My parents?"

"The mayor, actually. He's waiting for you in the living room."

Danny's brow drew down in concern. Sam looked at him with a questioning gaze. "Why does he want to talk to you?" she asked.

He set his jaw. "I am assuming it has something to do with our battle being televised to the public. Remember that news helicopter?"

Her eyes widened. "It was on the news?"

Danny nodded, before standing. "It was. Everyone in the house saw it, which means a lot of people in Amity saw it."

The goth reached out as the ghost went to leave, grabbing his wrist. "School your face," she told him, a line he often told her when her thoughts were clearly written on her face.

He gave her a small smile in thanks, before putting on a slightly more friendly look and leaving the bedroom.

Danny spotted the mayor as he entered the living room talking with Maddie, who was making friendly small talk. He was about the same height as his mother. He had thinning brown hair with shocks of grey, as well as brown eyes and glasses. He was round, but not overly so, and dressed in a sharp navy blue business suit.

The man quickly looked over when the tall imposing ghost entered and donned what Danny called the 'mayor smile', where he grinned to show he was friendly, but there was more lurking beneath the surface. The ghost could also detect a bit of fear in the man's eyes.

He didn't exactly need Amity's government to fear him, so he smiled back and extended his hand once he reached the shorter man. The mayor readily took it, trying his best to hide his surprise at how cool Danny's hand felt.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Phantom. I'm Mayor Roswell," the man said.

"It's good to meet you," Danny said, keeping his expression neutral. "What brings you here?"

The mayor released the ghost's hand. "I'm sure you know by now that the battle you had yesterday at the shipping port has caused quite a ruckus with the media and Amity's residents."

Danny nodded. "That was not my intention."

Mayor Roswell waved a hand. "I am sure it wasn't. However, it does have people on edge. Despite your status as town hero, there's been some speculation as to the dragon ghost you were seen with, especially as she seems to be the very same you were fighting with not long ago," he explained.

The mayor saw when Danny's demeanor changed. It wasn't unfriendly, but a wall had certainly been erected. "The identity of the dragon ghost isn't something I am comfortable with revealing. However, I can assure you that she is not a threat to the public, not anymore. She was under the control of someone else, but is no longer."

"I am glad to hear that," Mayor Roswell said. "However, the public will need more assurance on what was happening and why. I have come to request you attend a press briefing later today on the matter."

"I don't–"

"He'll do it," Maddie interrupted.

"Mom," the ghost said disapprovingly.

"He's right sweetie. The public needs to know they are safe, and the government needs to understand that you are not a threat," she said with raised brows.

Danny could read between the lines: the government needed assurances, or there was likely to be trouble. He sighed before he finally nodded. "Alright, you'll have your press briefing. When and where?"

The man smiled kindly. "Thank you. It'll be at City Hall at noon."

"I'll be there," Danny said. "I just have one question."

"Anything," Mayor Roswell said with an earnest expression.

"How did you find me? We've been keeping our location a secret."

"Ah," the mayor had the decency to look bashful, cheeks going slightly red. "As Mayor, I have easy access to public records, such as the name on the deed's to residences. When I couldn't find you at your usual known locations, I discovered this place had been purchased by one Vladimir Masters, a known close acquaintance of yours. I took a chance that you might be here."

A look of annoyance crossed Danny's face before he could stop it. "Then you should know we're in hiding for a reason. I suggest you make sure you aren't tailed, and I request that next time, you please call. I can give you my number."

"Of course, Mr. Phantom. My apologies," he inclined his head. "I will take my leave now. I will see you in a few hours."

–

Danny stood out of the line of sight from the crowd of press reporters. From the way the mayor was talking, it didn't seem like anyone knew he was supposed to be answering questions.

The ghost was nervous; he wasn't one who liked being in front of a crowd, nor did he like the idea that this was being televised to the city. But his mother was right; the government was likely going to be watching this closely and he needed to make sure he didn't add them to the list of things he needed to worry about right now.

Mayor Roswell had answered several questions himself so far, and fairly accurately from what Danny could understand. But at one point the man smiled and said, "That's a question I cannot answer because I do not have first hand knowledge. However, there is someone who does." He turned in the direction Danny was behind the scenes and held an arm out. "Mr. Phantom, would you please?"

The crowd of press erupted, completely taken aback by this turn of events. Phantom had never been in the public eye before, being somewhat mysterious and almost a creature of myth, as many didn't even believe he was real. At least, not until Danny Fenton's death when his family revealed his identity.

Danny ascended the stairs and walked over to the podium, making a show of shaking the mayor's hand before turning to the crowd. He swallowed and steeled himself, instantly hating the myriad of eyes directly on him. He forced himself to stand at his full height and look composed as he knew his family would be watching from home. He was so tall that the podium looked like a miniature prop.

As he scanned the crowd, every reporter had their hand up just dying to ask their questions. Danny pointed at one. "I'll start with you."

"Is it true that you were once Daniel James Fenton?" the man asked, pen poised on his notepad.

The ghost's brow furrowed. "I thought this was a press briefing on the attack at the shipping port?"

The reporter nodded. "It is, sir, but there is a lot of uncertainty among city residents, and it may go a long way to putting them at ease if they knew more about the ghost they believe is protecting them."

Danny regarded the man for a moment, mulling over his words. He decided to answer the question, but also to use it as an opportunity to teach the public about ghost etiquette. "Alright, I will give you some of my history, but please understand that for most ghosts, questions like this are not okay to ask. I have a unique situation in that I remember my first life, but that's not the case for pretty much any other ghost. Most don't remember who they were and asking one besides me might mean you make an unintentional enemy." He paused to make sure his point was understood.

When it seemed he was understood, he continued. "Yes, I was born Daniel James Fenton, to Jack and Maddie Fenton. When I was fourteen, I had an accident in the Fenton Ghost Portal which turned me half ghost. I hid my powers from my family and used them to try and protect the town from the ghost's who haunted Amity."

As soon as he finished, more hands went up. Danny pointed to a well dressed woman in the back. She stood, "You disappeared some years ago, leaving the town unprotected. Did you leave because you were unappreciated?"

Danny did his best to keep the annoyed look off his face. "I wouldn't leave under such petty circumstances. I never wanted to be a hero, nor did I want to be recognized; I just wanted to help people."

"Then why did you leave?" she asked quickly, earning glares from other reporters for asking a second question.

The ghost sighed and gripped the podium tighter. "I am only answering this question because it ties in to the battle at the shipping port. Someone discovered my half ghost status and I was kidnapped by a woman who wanted to use me as her weapon. I was gone for four years before my family found me. Once I returned, I did my best to stay in hiding because I was being hunted. I am sure the news must have reported on the kidnapping of Danny Fenton when it happened."

"It was, but it's always best to get the correct information from the source." She sat down and more hands flew into the air.

The ghost found himself annoyed at her words. Her first question had been intentionally misleading, meant to sow the seeds of doubt, and it pissed him off. It was exactly why he wanted to stay out of the news.

Danny pointed to a dark-skinned man in the front, who stood. "Is this woman the dragon ghost we've seen you fighting on occasion, and, if so, why did you seem to be working with her at the shipping port?"

This time, the ghost was unable to hide his disdain for the question. "No. The dragon ghost is not the same woman. The dragon ghost was under the influence of another, which is why I was fighting her. But she is no longer and is not a threat to the public."

He pointed to a woman in the front. "Was the woman who kidnapped you at the shipping port and is that why you were fighting?"

"The woman who kidnapped me is dead," he stated plainly, earning a few shocked glances. "Her daughter is the one who was at the port, and she's even more deadly and dangerous than her mother."

Danny pointed to a short, squat man on the right. "Who is the dragon ghost and does she come from the Ghost Zone?"

"The identity of the dragon ghost will not be revealed. That's–"

"I am the dragon ghost."

Everyone looked up to see a woman dressed in black and a long black trench coat, dragon-like wings keeping her aloft. Danny had been so focused on the questions that he had never felt her signature. He glared at her as gasps went through the crowd and she flew down to land next to Danny.

"What are you doing?" he whispered in anger. "You aren't even healed yet and you certainly shouldn't be flying with the way your wings were torn up."

Sam raised a brow at him as if daring him to defy her. "You didn't leave me alone to take the hits. This may be a different arena, but the same applies here as well: I am not leaving you to take the hits from the public."

The ghost sighed heavily, giving her a disapproving stare, before backing away from the podium and allowing her to answer the question. "I hope you know what you're doing," he said softly.

She stepped up to the podium and looked out among the crowd noting she had their full attention. "I am Samantha Elizabeth Manson and I am the dragon ghost you've seen." She flared her wings behind her for emphasis. "I do not come from the Ghost Zone, but I am half ghost as Danny once was."

Sam pointed to a blonde man on the left. "Were you in the same portal accident as Mr. Phantom?"

She shook her head. "No, I was human until a few months ago. That woman Danny mentioned–the daughter of the one who originally kidnapped him–her name is Mira and she kidnapped me. She is creating an army of half ghosts and while most of them are willing participants, some of us were not. Danny saved me from that."

There were whispers in the crowd then, reporters giving each other uneasy looks. A taller man stood when Sam pointed at him. "Are they a threat to Amity?"

This time, Sam stepped to the side to let Danny join her and answer the question. "We aren't sure yet," the ghost said. "But if they're building an army, my guess is yes. What we do know is that they are a threat to ghost's as she's abducting them and using them to create the half ghosts."

"Some would argue that's not necessarily a bad thing, especially considering how hard ghost's can make life in Amity," the man said.

Sam felt Danny's mood shift as the temperature around him instantly dropped. She poked him in the side when she noticed the near snarl on his face and whispered. "School your face," before answering.

"The prevailing theory is that ghosts are just dead humans," Sam started. "And while most ghosts were indeed human before they died, ghosts are actually a separate species. Ghosts have relationships, they eat, they sleep, and they can even have children of their own. If a ghost was truly just an echo of a human's past life, they wouldn't be able to do that. A ghost, while they have powers and innate energy humans do not possess, are more like a race of humans than apparitions," she explained, looking out over the crowd. "This means they should have the same rights and protections as humans do.

"In order to create half ghosts, Mira has to kill a ghost and use their ghost core to change the human into a half ghost. She's killed countless ghost's so far and they deserve the same protection you do."

The reporters shared glances, unsure of this new information, before Danny spoke up. "Ghosts are a lot like humans in that not all of us are evil. I'm a good example of that, as well as the two full ghosts I'm sure you saw fighting alongside us at the shipping port. You report the news, so you can't tell me you haven't seen humans do some awful things."

Some in the crowd were still skeptical, but the pair could see some of them starting to come around.

One lady stood, the other reporters not even mad about it. "You said ghosts are like a race of humans. Are you equating ghost's to caucasians or asians? What you're saying implies that relationships could happen between the two, but that defies logic."

"But they've already had relationships, haven't they?" All eyes turned to one man in the crowd who then stood. "There's rumors of Samantha Manson having been pregnant with Danny Phantom by her side."

The ghost stalled, looking at Sam and seeing the trepidation in her eyes. Still, she reached over and grabbed his hand, squeezing it and giving an almost imperceptible nod.

Sam hadn't hidden her pregnancy. She'd been in public with Danny–at the doctor's office, the park, the grocery store, taking DJ for a walk–and they had received a lot of stares. It's likely that even if Mira hadn't had a man watching them that she would've known about the twins.

Finally, Danny nodded, pulling his gaze from Sam and turning his attention to the man. "It's true."

Gasps went through the crowd at the information being confirmed.

"The human Daniel James Fenton died nearly a year ago, on March 23rd of last year. Sam was already pregnant at that time, but I was still half ghost when she conceived," he explained.

A few of the press who weren't convinced ghost's weren't dead people went green at the information, physically sick over the idea that a human could possibly procreate with a ghost.

"The very fact that humans can even be half ghost shows they're compatible. It's no different than being mixed race," Sam added.

When another reporter stood, Danny put his hand up. "We won't answer any more personal questions. This press briefing is supposed to be about the battle at the shipping port."

The woman sat down before others put their hands up. The ghost sighed. This was going to be a long briefing.

–

"Well that was a disaster," Danny said, weary, once it was over and the reporters left.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Phantom, but it was a lot of good information," Mayor Roswell said with a gentle smile.

The ghost still didn't care much for the politician, but he at least seemed genuine. "Once we got it back on track, anyway," he responded.

The mayor gave him a sympathetic look. "I know there were some who were quite put out on the idea of ghosts and humans having children, but I for one think it makes you more relatable. Nothing is as relatable to humans as a family man is."

The ghost nodded. "I hope so. But now you know why we're in hiding as I have two infants to protect. I won't be very forgiving if our location is leaked. Mira has already threatened my kids, she won't hesitate to kill them if she thinks it'll make me surrender."

Mayor Roswell nodded his understanding, looking the town hero over. "I don't doubt it. You were what, twenty one when you died? Yet you look like a man who's seen war and death. They may not have locked onto that," he said, head nodding in the direction the press had been, "but I served in the military and I would venture to guess that the woman who kidnapped you did some awful things to you, maybe even perhaps made you do awful things." He sighed and tried his best to look sincere. "What you did today was brave. Come what may, I will do whatever I can with what little power I have to protect you and your family, even from the higher levels of government. And trust me, their eyes are on you, now."

Danny was surprised at the man's words. "Thank you," he said sincerely, showing the mayor his softer side and giving him a genuine smile.

The mayor returned the smile, holding his hand out and shaking Danny's when it was offered. "You seem like a man capable of great violence, but who decided to help people. Anyone who is capable of it, but chooses to protect instead of destroy is someone I want on my side."

Danny let go of his hand. "I'll try to keep you in the loop on these things so there's fewer surprises, though I can't guarantee anything."

Mayor Roswell held a hand up. "I understand. Sometimes, things just happen. Just try to mitigate any collateral damage when it does."

"Will do," Sam answered this time.

"One day, I hope you can give the public a proper education on ghosts so that we may coexist in peace," the man added before turning and leaving.

The goth watched him go before glancing at the tall ghost next to her. "I don't think that went as badly as you think."

"One can hope," he responded almost absently, eyes still forward as he thought.

"Whatcha thinking?" she asked.

His gaze finally flicked to her and he tried to give her a reassuring smile, but he couldn't wipe the worry from his face. "He told me in confidence before the briefing that he wasn't given a choice on doing this by the state government, who had been pressured by the federal government."

Her eyes widened. "We really are on their radar, aren't we?"

He nodded. "Yeah, which means we'll need to be careful in how we handle Mira. What we do could not only affect our lives, but the lives of our children and of all ghosts."

"You don't think they would send the GIW after us, do you?" she asked, worried.

He pulled her to him, her head resting on his chest. "I won't pretend to know what the federal government will do, but we can be sure that the GIW are not on our side, and will likely try to pressure the government to let them get involved."

The goth clenched her eyes shut before taking a deep breath and pulling back some, looking up into his green eyes. "No matter what happens to us, the kids come first."

Danny nodded immediately. "The kids come first."

–

12/24/24: Christmas Eve! Got this one done earlier than I thought!

The whole country is getting involved now. Danny never wanted the spotlight, but he has it now.

Also, if it seems Sam recovered a little quickly, the worst wound she had was the toxin, but that was neutralized. Her other wounds, while they were many, aren't that bad. All in all, her fighting skills saved her from much worse than she received.