A/N: Hey, sorry for the late posting of this. My schedule is pretty messed up at the moment. For those who don't read "Harry Potter and the Sphinx Club" (which is my other story), I've been a bit burned out on writing recently. I've just lost a bit of my spark and need to take a break to rest and recharge my passion. As such, once chapters 17 (thats this one) and 18 (the next one) are posted, if I haven't gotten my mojo back, I'll probably be taking a bit of a break. I know that the interlude chapters were supposed to stop this very thing from happening, but they just managed to burn me out more, even though I did enjoy writing them. Notably, this DOESN'T mean these fics are canceled. I WILL come back to them, probably before the end of the year. I just need a break, both to get my mojo back, and, for this story, do the pre-writing for 19, 20, and whatever happens between the Season 1 finale and the Season 2 opener. For now, just enjoy and review like always. Catch you in 2 weeks for Episode 18!
Madeline Fenton checked the mailbox as she walked passed, unsure if her husband had had the chance yet, inside she found more of the usual. Her subscription to Genius magazine (although at this point all that was hers about it was her name on the front, Jazz had been scooping them up as soon as they came in. Maddie didn't mind in the slightest.), a few bills, and a postcard Jack's brother Richie sent them from Costa Rica. All things Maddie would expect to find in her mailbox on a day like today. Yet, inside was something else as well. Maddie grabbed the letter, her hands rubbing over the expensive paper it was printed on, filigree and embossing giving the envelope a texture that made Maddie feel out of place for a moment. Looking, she saw it was addressed to her. She brought the stack of mail inside, her eyes flitting over the ornate letter as she turned it over in her hands. Popping open the wax seal, she found a page of incredibly expensive looking paper stock, that took on the appearance of marble.
"Dear Mrs. Fenton," It started, in text that was meant to look handwritten, but was obviously typed. "You have been formally invited to speak at the first ever DALV Group Mothers of Innovation Summit. This conference is designed to be a celebration of women in the science and technology fields, with an extra emphasis on those who manage to find time for family life alongside their successes. Please see the attached contact information to confirm or deny your interest in speaking at our function. We thank you for your consideration."
"A Women in Science conference? An emphasis on motherhood in it? That sounds… kind of nice actually." Maddie said to herself, reading over more of the information. "I bet Jazz would love to go to this too. We could have a mother-daughter weekend!"
"What's this about a Mother-Daughter weekend?" Jazz asked, catching the end of her statement as she came down the stairs.
"Here, read this." Maddie said, handing her the invitation.
"Wow, this is incredible!" Jazz said, excitedly reading over it, when she saw the date though, she stopped. "Unfortunately, I can't go."
"Why not?" Maddie asked, looking a little disappointed.
"The State Psychology Bowl finals are that weekend too. I'm feeling really good about our chances so I can't just dip out… maybe we can have another weekend?" Jazz suggested. "I'm really sorry, Mom."
Maddie looked at the invitation, sighing a bit. "It's not your fault, and the last thing I'd want to do is make you miss your Psych Bowl, I know how hard you've been working on it. I might just tell them I'm not interested in speaking then." Maddie said.
"No! You should go speak! It's a great honor, did you see the list of presenters? Nora Wakeman is doing the keynote! She's a legend!" Jazz said, pointing out the names on the list. "Oh, Dr. Possible is on this list too, see, you'll even have one of your best friends there!"
Maddie took a look over the list, seeing Nora and Ann on it. "Huh, I thought Dr. Wakeman didn't have any kids. Getting to work with Ann for a weekend would be nice though, it'd be just like college!"
"You know Dr. Wakeman?" Jazz asked, looking quizzically at her mother.
"Of course, she taught robotics and circuit design at college. She oversaw my doctoral thesis." Maddie said. "I haven't gotten to talk with her in a few years, she wasn't thrilled about me 'wasting my talents on ghosts'."
"Is she judgmental?" Jazz asked, worried that her vision of one of her heroes might be shattered.
"Only in the way that any older woman is. She saw potential, but since her expertise is in robotics, anyone who WASN'T doing robotics was wasting their talents in her eyes, even if she was proud of us regardless. She was at your father and I's wedding, you know. Left early when your great uncle Cletus started hitting on her." Maddie said with a smile at the memory.
"The great uncle Cletus who was missing all of his teeth?" Jazz asked. Cletus had died not too long after the wedding, complications with throat cancer due to years of chewing tobacco,
"The very same. I never said I blamed her." Maddie said, laughing a bit.
"But you should go Mom! You could see Dr. Wakeman again, and spend some time with Ann, it'd be like a little reunion!" Jazz called out.
"Well… I guess I could take Danny with me. He and Kim could have a little date while I catch up with Ann and Nora." Maddie thought.
"Yeah! You know Danny won't complain about more time with Kim, he's head over heels for those girls." Jazz said, rolling her eyes a bit at her brother.
"Don't be too harsh on him, you'll want a boy to look at you like Danny looks at them someday. Besides, he chose three good girls, he'll do fine." Maddie said.
"Four. Ember's decided she's dating him too." Jazz pointed out.
"I said what I said. Ember still has to work to make me approve of her. I'm giving her a chance because Danny wants me to, and she helped with the Fright Knight. I still haven't forgotten how she tried to take over the world, and turned you into a crazed fan." Maddie said, a stern look on her face.
Jazz flushed a bit at the memory. She'd really fallen under Ember's control, and had spent all of her savings on Ember merch… the thousand dollar Fender Stratocaster with her logos on it had been most of it. "Yeah… I guess I can see why you'd be mad at that." Jazz didn't bother mentioning that she had asked Ember to sign all of them when Danny first brought her home after they got together. "But… she's trying at least. That's worth something, surely."
"It's worth quite a lot in my eyes, actually. She just has a lot to make up for." Maddie said. "I never thought Danny would have the complicated love life between the two of you though."
"What would make you think I would have one?" Jazz asked, curious.
"You're my daughter. I had boys tripping over me from the moment I… developed. You're turning into a beautiful young woman yourself." Maddie said, smiling at Jazz.
"I mean, I know about Dad and Vlad obviously… but there were others?" Jazz asked, now curious.
"Your father is the only one I really gave the time of day, I had my pick of boys, but your father was special. I won't say there was never a chance that Vlad could have been it, but your father really captured my attention. But there were others before him. Not many I actually bothered with mind you, but my mailbox was full of invites to my highschool prom when we had it. I think every boy in my grade and the one below me asked." Maddie said with a chuckle. "I ended up going alone. None of those boys really caught my interest."
"I think we might be more alike than you thought. Not exactly many boys I'm interested in at my school either." Jazz said, realizing how slim the actual good options at Casper High were, of the boys her age she could even fathom taking out… there was Spike and that's about it, and Spike wasn't her type.
"Then maybe you'll luck out like I did and meet your perfect guy in college. I love your father with all my heart, and even his faults make him all the better for me." Maddie said with a sweet smile.
"Even the forgetting your anniversary?" Jazz asked with a smirk.
"Honey, I'VE forgotten our anniversary a few times. We'll get excited about a project and realize we're a month late to celebrate. It's very useful to me that your father forgets sometimes." Maddie said, a sly grin on her face. "But him forgetting does other good things though. The genuine surprise when it's his birthday is lovely, he's like a kid and I love a man who still has that child-like sense of wonder."
"Not sure I need to hear that mom." Jazz said, her smile a little more forced now.
"You'll understand when you meet your man Jazz. He'll have his little quirks that even if you think they're supposed to itch you, they'll make you happy regardless." Maddie said with a smile. "I guess I better write back to this conference then. I'll call Ann and make sure she's going too, this might just be a proposed guest list."
Maddie filled out the form, before pulling out her phone and calling Ann Possible. "Hey Ann, are you busy?"
Ann Possible chuckled on the other end of the phone. "Just got out of surgery a few minutes ago, everything okay Mads?" She asked.
"Everything is great. I'll let you cool down, I just wanted to ask you something. Your name was on the guest list for this… DALV Mothers of Innovation Summit? Are you actually going?" Maddie asked, reading over the name of the event again.
"Oh, that thing. I had planned on it. I was free that weekend since James is taking the boys to their Uncle Slim's for some… Possible men bonding time. Why they're doing it on Mother's day I don't know." Ann said, rolling her eyes.
Maddie checked the calendar again. "That is Mother's day isn't it?. I guess that's fitting."
"Were you as surprised as I was to see Nora on the list of attendees? That woman is lovely, but I don't think she'll ever be a mother." Ann said, chuckling.
"She was kind of like a mother to us. I think that means something." Maddie said, a teasing tone in her voice.
"Fair enough. But yes, long story short I'm planning on going. Are you?" Ann asked.
"Yes, I think I will. We should take Danny and Kim with us. We can maybe get some bonding done, and they can have a little date while we're busy. I think that's a win-win." Maddie said.
"Good idea. I'll ask Kim, maybe telling her Danny is going might get her interested. I feel awful that she hasn't really figured out what she wants to do yet. I knew before I was out of elementary school." Ann said.
"I didn't figure it out until college, give her some time, she's still got 3 years of high school left, plus all of college to figure it out. It's not like she's lacking in brains or talent. What's that phrase your husband uses? Anything is possible for a Possible?" Maddie jokes.
"It's true, even if I have a sneaking suspicion she'll be a Fenton someday." Ann laughed.
"They're not there yet, Ann. They've got quite a lot of growing to do before they're ready." Maddie said.
"Your boy has it bad for my girl, Maddie. Thankfully, she's just as crazy about him. She's got a picture of him I keep finding lipstick stains on when I clean." Ann giggles.
"Danny keeps all of their pictures on his desk, taped to his monitor." Maddie said, leaving out the fact that Ember's picture was there too.
"How do you feel about your boy dating all those girls?" Ann asked, curious.
"I can't complain too much. It's not like you and I didn't do the same with Jack in college." Maddie said. "Besides, he's crazy about them, what kind of mother would I be if I was angry that he found his happiness?"
"A concerned one, but not a bad one. I get iffy thinking about Kim sometimes, because… well I wonder why Kimmy isn't enough for him." Ann said, a concern in her voice.
"You know it doesn't work like that." Maddie said, her voice neutral. "They're all… in it together. They chose it, and they're happy. I'm sure you've seen Kim's smiles when she comes home from one of their double or triple dates."
"Yeah… she talks about Star and Sam nearly as much as Danny, though not in the same way." Ann said, chuckling a bit. "I guess maybe I just need to sit down with her, let her know my concerns, and hear her tell me she's happy. I know she is, I can see it, but maybe hearing it from her will ease my worries a bit."
"They're good kids, we've given them a good deal of freedom and they haven't abused it. They kiss and they hug, but they haven't gone any farther, despite the hormones I know they have." Maddie said, smiling a bit.
"Only a matter of time though." Ann said, mumbling a bit disconcertedly.
"Then when it happens, we'll trust them to be safe and open about it. I know Danny has condoms, not because he expects to use them, but because he'd rather be safe about it. I'm sure Kim, Star, and Sam are all on birth control too." Maddie said.
"I made sure she started after they officially said they were dating. She was embarrassed but didn't fight me about it." Ann said.
"They were good in Wisconsin, I know James checked on her three times that night to make sure she was in her room." Maddie said, smirking at James Possible's overprotectiveness.
"Four actually. He got really mad when she wasn't in there once, but then she came out of the bathroom and he calmed down. He was about to throttle Danny I think." Ann said, laughing.
"How did he handle the talk when he found out Danny was dating more than just Kim?" Maddie asked, curious how that conversation went.
"Poorly. I found him in the garage that night turning some of the boy's rockets into missiles. We had a very long talk where I told him that if Kim was happy it wasn't our place to interfere. It's not like Danny was being abusive or anything." Ann said. "I don't think I believed half of what I told him about it being okay, but it made him not kill Danny, at the very least."
"I raised my boy better than that." Maddie said.
"You've raised a good boy. Honestly if the other girls weren't in the picture I couldn't be happier for Kim, with them though I'm just nerves." Ann said.
"Danny will treat them right. When we're a year in with no pregnancy scares I'll call that a success." Maddie said with a smirk.
"Only a year? Don't you want that at least through high school?" Ann asked.
"One year would prove that they're willing to take it slow and be safe. I don't think any of the girls are at risk of being teen moms anyway, they're driven young ladies. The only one I could see even considering being a mom before she's 20 is Star." Maddie said.
"You've spent more time around them, Danny's terrified to bring them by the house because of James so I haven't even met them yet. What are they like?" Ann asked.
"Well, the Sam girl is very similar to you actually Ann. Top of their class, athletic, a small chip on her shoulder." Maddie said, teasing Ann with the last one.
"I resent that." Ann said, glaring down the phone, but there was no heat.
"She's doing a lot better than she did when I first met her. I know she was… not quite looking down but judging Kim and Star a bit for being cheerleaders. Something about them being a disgrace to female empowerment by showing off their bodies like that?" Maddie said, with a bit of a laugh. She had thought much the same when she was in high school.
"This sounds an awful like that Sam Manson girl. I thought Kim said she wasn't dating Danny?" Ann asked, now somewhat confused.
"She's not, this one is Sam Simpson. It was… confusing for us too, but we call her Sammy when they're both around. Unlike Sam Manson, this one is fine being called Samantha." Maddie said.
"How did that other Sam take it? I know Kimmy said that she had a huge crush on Danny as soon as she met her." Ann asked. "Now he is dating a Sam, and it's not her."
"Tears. Sam's been like a third child to us for years, she doesn't get along well with her parents, so we've always tried to treat her like one of ours. There was a long time we were pretty sure she was going to be our daughter-in-law, since both of them liked each other and were both too teenaged to do anything about it. When Danny started dating Kim and Star? There were tears, but she had accepted it a bit. She'd seen Danny and Kim be friends and be good for each other, and Star had fit into that dynamic. Sammy however… well that was harder. They didn't have anywhere near the same history, and hearing Danny say her name in that lovey way he calls them. She couldn't handle it." Maddie said, a touch of concern for her semi-adoptive daughter.
"Didn't she think about… well joining in? If Danny liked her like you said he did." Ann asked.
"From what I can tell, they did offer, but Sam said she was an all or nothing girl. Danny was either just hers, or he wasn't hers at all." Maddie said.
"That must have been hard on her." Ann said, memories of her own experiences flooding through her.
"Devastating actually. She was gone from the house for two weeks… that's the longest I'd ever gone without seeing her since they were 6 years old." Maddie said. "I talked to her grandmother Ida about it, they're much closer than she is with her parents. She said she hadn't seen the girl that upset in her life."
"Poor thing." Ann said.
"She's a tough one though, after two weeks we started seeing her again. Things weren't… back to the way they were, but they were improving. I think she's over it now. Still in love with Danny, but pushing those feelings aside. I care for her like she's my own still, so I wish her the best. I keep hoping she finds some other boy and fall in love with him. That Ron boy, he's been Kim's friend for a long time, do you think he had feelings for her?" Maddie asked.
"Probably, Kim definitely had thought about it a few times, but neither ever really wanted to push the issue. They were happy being friends, maybe if something big ever pushed them together more would have happened, but I'm not convinced it would without a catalyst." Ann said. "You trying to play matchmaker with him and Sam?"
"Maybe? I don't know. They seem like they'd do well together, at least in my eyes." Maddie said.
"I'll take your word, I haven't gotten to interact with any of Kim's new friends except Danny. I'm happy she made some more though, Ron's a very supportive friend, and Wade has been reliable since he came into the picture, but having some other girls to be with is really something Kim needed." Ann said, before a beep could be heard. "Looks like I'm needed on a consult, I have to go. We'll talk again soon… we'll see if we can play matchmaker for our adopted kids." Ann teased before hanging up.
Maddie chuckled, Ann was always a character, and she enjoyed that she got to have these conversations with her friend again. She was ecstatic that they'd get to spend a weekend at this conference.
Making her way to Danny's room, she knocked on his door, and when he gave her permission she stepped inside. "Hey sweetie. I got an invitation for something I want you to read over it." Maddie said, handing him the page.
"Mothers of Innovation? I get they want you to speak, but why are you showing it to me?" Danny asked, reading over the paper with a bit of confusion.
"Well, since it's about combining our innovation with our family lives, I wanted you to come with me. I know this is more Jazz's thing, but she's busy that weekend. I want you to come with me, we haven't really been able to be as close as we used to when you were younger. You used to come to me with everything, like the first time you had a crush on a girl, to scraping your knee… I miss that. I miss when you were my little boy. Now you're… well you're growing up so fast. A year ago you were a normal preteen, crushing secretly on your best friend and more excited about building robots than almost anything else… and now you're a superhero gathering a gaggle of girls who love you. It's… well it's a bit hard seeing the distance between us now." Maddie said, her eyes tearing up towards the end of her speech.
"There's not as much distance as you think Mom." Danny said, looking up to her with a smile. "Honestly, it's because of you and dad that I can even do what I do. Not just in the literal sense, your portal did give me my powers, but because of what you taught me. You taught me that it was important to do what is right, and not what is easy. You gave me that guidance, and I put that into doing what I do. I'm only a superhero, because you gave me the moral compass to do so, without you… well I'd probably be spending more time sneaking into the girls locker room than fighting ghosts." Danny finished, blushing a bit.
"And there's those teenage hormones." Maddie said with a smile. "Thanks Danny. It means a lot. I just… it's not that long ago to me that I remember you crying if I left you alone too long. You're so much like Jack now that… well I miss you being mommy's boy."
"I still think I'm more like you than I am Dad, even if I do look more like him." Danny said, smiling at her.
"You're probably right… I guess Jazz took all of the looks you would have gotten from me. She's a splitting image of what I looked like at her age." Maddie said with a smile.
"I've seen the pictures, she's a bit taller, but I guess that's dad's influence." Danny said.
"Honestly, I'm surprised you two aren't even taller. My father was a taller man, and everyone in Jack's family has always been massive. The fact that you are average height now, makes me worry we're due for you to shoot up six inches over the summer or something." Maddie said, laughing at herself.
"Come on, I don't think it'd be that bad, right?" Danny asked.
"It'll be very amusing watching Kim, Star, and Sammy have to get on their tiptoes to kiss you… assuming even that's enough." Maddie smiled in mirth.
"Still not a fan of Ember I take it?" Danny asked, his face flushing red.
"Not yet… she has a lot to make up for. I trust your judgment, but forgiveness is earned. Beyond that… well she can just fly to make up the difference… and she's always wearing those platform boots." Maddie said, sighing. "I love you dearly sweetie, but your love life is weird."
"Says the woman who was in a poly relationship with her best friend and my dad?" Danny quirked an eyebrow.
"At least it was only three of us. You're working with five." Maddie teased back at him, no anger in her voice.
"We'll have a nice time at the conference mom. I'll go with you." Danny said, smiling at her.
"Thank you sweetie, it won't be all bad. Ann Possible is speaking too, and I told her to take Kim so you two could have a little date while we worked." Maddie said teasing him a bit.
"And you're okay with that on your Mother-Son trip?" Danny asked.
"Of course, she's probably going to be my daughter-in-law after all." Maddie poked. "Wonder if she'll take the Fenton name, or let one of the other girls do it so she can stay as a Possible."
"MOOOOOM!" Danny groaned in embarrassment, but hugged his mother anyway.
Maddie and Ann had to do some set-up for their talks, and told Danny and Kim to go and explore the tables set up in the main hall, where many attendees were showing off their projects. "I feel grossly underqualified to be here." Danny said, looking around at everyone in the hall. The equipment and research that these people were presenting was breathtaking, and he couldn't help but feel out of place.
"Same here. I know Mom has always wanted me to follow her lead in this kind of thing, the tweebs certainly look like they'll be following after Dad… I just don't think it's me though." Kim said, Danny seeing a bit of uncertainty in her eyes.
That was weird, Kim had never been anything but totally certain about everything. She internalized the motto 'anything is possible for a Possible' to the highest degree, and yet here she was… lost.
Boyfriend time.
"You'll find what your place is." Danny said, facing her head on and holding her hands in his. "You're an amazing hero, a girlfriend infinitely better than I deserve, and one of the best students in our class, only behind Sammy and Mikey. It's not like you have to have your future planned out already. We're high school freshmen, we've got time."
"Thanks Danny. I just… Mom's a super-genius. I'm smart, I know that, but I'm not crazy smart like she is." Kim said.
"I get it. Mom's like that too. But we aren't our parents. You mom didn't go on world saving adventures while keeping up with cheer practice. My mom wasn't fighting ghosts when she needed to study for exams. We're working with what we've got. I understand you probably feel worse about it because you have your brothers and Wade you're comparing yourself against, but you have to remember something Kim. You aren't them, you're Kim Possible. You're a martial artist without peer in our age group, part of a superhero team that has saved the world a few times, and you've saved the world yourself probably a good dozen or so times now. You're incredible, and I feel so privileged that I get to know you… and confused how an amazing girl like you settled for some dolt like I am." Danny said, trying to get Kim to believe her own hype.
Kim looked at him with affection, a smile on her lips as she looked in his eyes for signs of dishonesty. There weren't any. "I guess you're right about the mom thing. You're wrong about the dolt part. Need I remind you that your grades are almost as good as mine? Or that you know more about ghost tech than anyone but the people who actively designed it? That's nothing to be said for those robots you built in middle school. Wade showed me videos of you guys in competition, you crushed everything." Kim said, squeezing his hands.
"Tucker did all the hard work on that stuff…" Danny said, deflecting her praise as he flushed.
"I talked to Tucker. He said he did the coding and helped with the design. YOU are the one who put it together piece by piece. Do you realize how much my brothers look up to you? They used to tease me about my boyfriends all the time… they've never done that with you. You're a superhero in their eyes and they don't even know about your powers." Kim said, leaning in and kissing him. "You might not be a super-genius like your mom, or a tech wiz like Tucker and Wade. But you are a very smart guy. It also helps you're incredibly handsome." Kim added with a flush.
"Coming from someone as gorgeous as you? I'll take that as a very good compliment." Danny said, flushing himself. He leaned in and kissed her as well, wrapping his arms around her waist and simply holding her for a second. They pulled apart with wide smiles and red cheeks. "Probably save anymore PDA for the hotel later." Danny coughed.
"You don't mean…" Kim asked, a little worried.
"No! No, not that." Danny said, flushed. "Not ready for that. It'd be nice I'm sure… but not ready for that."
"Yeah… me neither." Kim said, letting the anxiety wash away. "What did you mean then?"
"Cuddle on the bed and watch a movie? Make-out session since your dad isn't here to kill me?" Danny suggested.
"Dad won't kill you… he might WANT to, but he won't. Aside from the thrashing I'd give him if he did that, Mom would be on my side. She likes you a lot Danny." Kim said, smiling at him.
"Probably not thrilled I'm dating three other girls along with you." Danny said with a sigh.
"Yeah, she's not thrilled about that, but I'm happy, and that's what matters. I love that I have Star and Sammy that I get to share you with, it means I have two girls I can go to and talk about the cute or dumb things you do and they get it." Kim said with a smirk.
"Can't help but notice you left Ember out of that." Danny said, his tone neutral and understanding.
"She broke my heart, Danny. Seeing you kiss her then… when we were still figuring everything out… it's hard to forgive that." Kim said, looking away for a moment. "I know she's… different. You changed her, for the better, but… it takes time."
"I know, and I know about getting your heart broken. Lest you forget, you got taken over by a ghost and told me you hated me." Danny said, chuckling a bit at the… admittedly traumatic memory.
"I'm still beyond sorry about that, and I'm doing everything I can to make up for it. It's been almost 6 months, but I'm still trying." Kim said, looking at him again with a determined look.
"And I keep telling you you don't have anything to make up for. That was the ghost. Not you." Danny said, looking at her.
"Don't care, still my mouth that said those things. The only thing it should tell you is that it loves you." Kim said, her eyes shifting to her teasing affectionate look.
"I love you too, Kim. But that statement could be taken some… specific ways." Danny said, his flush returning deeper. Kim mirrored that.
"You've got your head in the gutter." Kim said, playfully smacking him.
"I've got four gorgeous girlfriends, two of which seem to specifically choose outfits to show off their midriff all the time. One of the others keeps sending me pictures of her in her mission catsuit that shows off every curve she has, and the other one keeps threatening to send lingerie pics. I'm a teenager with hormones. Of COURSE my mind is in the gutter." Danny said, laughing.
"As long as it's just us in those thoughts I can deal… I wonder if I can get one of those catsuits if you like them so much." Kim wondered idly, teasing Danny.
Danny's phone goes off and he checks it. "Mom wants us by the main stage for the introductory presentation. Apparently the speaker is one of her college professors and she wants us to hear it."
"Best get going then." Kim said, kissing Danny on the cheek before leading him to the main stage.
Maddie, Ann, and several women Danny doesn't recognize are sitting in chairs on the main stage, awaiting the start of the presentation. Danny and Kim sit in the front row, getting small waves from their mothers as they are spotted. As the clock strikes 10 AM, a small woman with wild white hair and large circular glasses stands on a stool behind the podium, before speaking into the microphone. "Welcome everyone to the first ever DALV Group Mothers of Innovation conference. I am beyond honored to be speaking to you all for this event. For those of you who may not know me, allow me to introduce myself. I am Dr. Nora Wakeman. I am most well known for my robotics work, although I imagine many of you know me as the head of the robotics departments at several colleges throughout my career. University of Upperton, Tremorton University, Malibu University. All institutions I have been proud to call home in my tenure, and places I have seen many bright young people graduate from to begin their paths. While I have never been a mother, my body unable and my romantic interest limited, I feel as though I have had many children. Those who have graduated under me, whose lives I have helped shape and mold. They are my legacy, one I am happy to have. Many years ago, I toyed with the idea of building a robot daughter, someone who would fill that void that opened when I stopped teaching, and after finalizing my design… I wondered if it was really what I wanted. If bringing that creation to life was what the world needed, what I needed. I do not have the answer to that question yet, but it does tell me one thing. Sometimes we may lose sight of why we create. We create, we build, we improve, to provide a better world for those who come after us. You as inventors, as well as mothers, work to create better lives for your children, and the children of others than you yourselves had, and as a mother to many of you in my own mind, I am beyond proud of what you all have accomplished, and what you will continue to accomplish. I now leave you in the hands of the organizer and primary donor for today's event: Vlad Masters!" Nora said, gesturing off to the side as Vlad stepped out from behind the curtain, his suit clean pressed and himself as well presented as always.
Danny, Kim, and Maddie tensed up at his presence. It was the first they had seen of him since the incident in Wisconsin nearly 8 months ago, and while Kim and Maddie hadn't been entirely aware that Vlad and Plasmius were the same at the time, they knew now, and both were very, very angry at him. Kim's anger was pure, unbridled and solid in focus. She'd had no time to truly develop any positive feelings towards Vlad. At best she might have viewed him as her mother's eccentric college friend turned billionaire. Learning that not only had he abused his powers to earn his money, but that he had attacked Danny and tried to kill his dad. Kim viewed him as no better than the villains she fought.
Honestly, she probably thought he was worse. All of them at least did their dastardly schemes with their own ingenuity.
Maddie was much more… conflicted on Vlad. While she knew that Vlad had taken over her husband's body in Wisconsin, Danny had never told her of his actual plans to kill him. Only that his ultimate goal was to separate them and marry her, taking in Jazz and Danny as his own kids. She briefly thought back to college, how she had briefly thought of choosing him over Jack. There was a world it was possible certainly, although not one Maddie wished she was in. Vlad to her would have been perhaps a decent match, but not anywhere near as good as Jack. Learning of his megalomania? That certainly made sure that even if something ever happened to Jack, she'd never view him as an option.
"Esteemed innovators and guests, it is my pleasure to put on this event for you. I know that it likely isn't my place to stand up here and speak to you all, you have accomplishments in your fields far greater than anything I could possibly dream of, and for this to be a women's conference, I doubt you want to hear the opinion of some other stuffy white man. I instead will simply thank you all for coming, and hope you won't mind if I come by your booths and ask some questions about your work… the DALV group does provide research funding after all." Vlad said, and if Danny didn't know everything he did about the man, he would have almost said he was charming.
Vlad was making his way off of the stage when there was a great rumble, and a wall bust open to reveal an army of chimeric creatures, the largest of which being a combination rhinoceros-gorilla that was larger than an elephant, which had an overweight woman with freckles and glasses riding on its shoulders. "I must say I am quite peeved at you all for not inviting me to this gathering. All my work in the fields of genetic engineering, biosciences, and biotechnology and I'm left aside because my 'babies' aren't human? That's just SO MEAN." The woman said, as Danny noticed Kim glaring at her with familiarity.
"You know her?" Danny whispered to her as she was standing up.
"Amy Hall, also called DNAmy. Makes hybrid creatures to expand her 'Cuddle Buddy' collection." Kim explained, getting ready to pounce.
"The stuffed toys? Those stopped being cool before we were even born." Danny said, getting up to help.
"Hey, don't be mean. I love my pandaroo." Kim said, looking to him with faux anger.
"And I find that adorable. Anyway, less chatter, more butt-kicking. I'll go let your super powered boy toy you're cheating on me with know you need him." Danny said with a wink, running off to find a place to transform.
Kim runs in front of the horde of chimeras, glaring at DNAmy. "Amy, give it up! You need to stop with this hybridization, it's unethical!"
"Kim Possible! I should have known you would show up just to ruin my day. Oh well, what better way to show my babies off? Get her my Porcoyotes!" Amy said as a swarm of the smaller creatures began to crowd around Kim, as more started flooding into the convention hall causing a panic.
Kim started fighting off the Porcoyotes as Amy called them, which were coyotes with the quills of porcupines on their backs. Her kicks and punches were well placed to make sure the quills didn't catch her, but she was losing ground to the swarm unable to keep up against the sheer numbers they had.
"See! My babies are far better than human children. They're cuter, more effective, mature faster, and I made them all on my own! No man required." Amy said, smirking at her triumph.
"That's a weird way to compensate for being unable to find a boyfriend!" Danny quips as he flies in and pushes the Rhinorilla back, causing it and Amy to stumble.
"Just because I haven't found a man who appreciates my genius yet doesn't mean I can't find a boyfriend!" Amy called, red in the face with anger and embarrassment. She hopped down off of the Rhinorilla "Get him my baby!"
The Rhinorilla charged at Danny hitting him with the back of one of his large gorilla hands slamming him into a wall on the other side of the conference hall. Danny pulled himself up, wiping away the ectoplasm that bled from his nose. That hurt… more than it should have. Danny shook his head, flying back in to take on the beast.
Kim was getting more and more overwhelmed by the Porcoyotes. There were simply too many of them coming from too many angles. They weren't that tough, but numbers really mattered here. A buzzing sound caught her attention as she felt someone land next to her, two glowing blades in her hands as she glared at the creatures. "No one lays a hand on my future daughter-in-law!" Maddie called out as her Fenton Ecto-blades lashed out, the woman's skills as a martial artist coming through as she managed to take on as many of the creatures as Kim had.
"Counting your chickens before they hatch, aren't you Mrs. Fenton?" Kim asked, as she got her second wind, Maddie's appearance taking enough pressure off of her to help her push back against the beasts.
"Oh please, I see how you look at my boy. You've got it bad!" Maddie said, laughing as she pressed her advantage on more of the creatures.
"You're not wrong!" Kim said, as she pushed her advantage as well.
That worked out well… until the Porcoyotes revealed a new ability. They began firing their quills at them, Maddie having to use her ecto-blades as a constantly rotating shield to deflect them, clicking the two handles together to form a bo staff.
"You know, I almost thought these things were cute until they started shooting quills at us!" Kim said, doing what she could to deflect some of the quills, but without a weapon like Maddie had, she wasn't much help in that regard.
"Let me take care of that then Kimmie!" Ann Possible said, as she blasted a few porcupines with tennis balls. On her back was an exhibit Kim recognized as a high-speed air compressor, and it was attached to a tennis ball launcher that had been used to demonstrate a projectile tracking algorithm.
"Way to go Mom!" Kim said as she watched her mother continue to shoot the projectiles at the chimera creatures.
Danny however was having slightly less luck with his opponent. Danny was pushing his physical strength to the limit, and since he could pick up a car, it was considerable, but this Rhinorilla seemed able to keep up with him. Danny flew around, delivering an ax kick to the back of the creature's head, and while it still fell, it got back up as though Danny hadn't just hit it hard enough to shatter concrete. "Come on! What does it take to put this thing down?!" Danny called out in annoyance.
"You can't put down my baby! He's the pinnacle of modern genetic engineering! And he's also just the cutest! Yes he is, yes he is!" Amy said, flipping from mad scientist to freaky dog mother in an instant.
The Rhinorilla roared again, as Danny caught it's fists, trying to figure out why he wasn't strong enough to knock this thing out.
"How do you handle Kim doing this?" Maddie asked as she continued knocking out more of Amy's Porcoyotes, her double bladed ecto-saber a whirl of light around her as she delivered more and more punishment to the creatures. The ecto-sabers thankfully had a 'non-lethal' mode, which meant that Maddie wasn't cutting these creatures up, merely knocking them out.
"With lots of worry and anxiety!" Ann responded, firing more tennis balls into the crowd of porcoyotes. She wasn't able to knock them out, but she was disabling them, her tennis balls stopping the quills from being able to be used offensively. "Every time I'm in the ER I worry Kim's going to come rolling in, but I know my little girl can handle herself. Even if I'm worried about it, I know James and I taught her all the right lessons. I help people as a brain surgeon, she helps as a superhero. You don't need to worry about Danny, he's doing great as Phantom."
"What do you mean? Danny's not Phantom." Maddie called out, thankful that in the commotion there was noone to overhear.
"Don't play dumb, I figured it out months ago. Phantom shows up in Wisconsin when we're there, despite having never been seen outside of Amity before then? Phantom going on missions after Danny got permission? It's obvious. Even now, why wouldn't Danny have hopped in to fight these things with us? It's because he's too busy handling the bigger one." Ann said.
"What do you intend to do if you're right?" Kim asked, tossing another Porcoyote away.
"Congratulate you on your superpowered boyfriend, tell you I think you did good, and ask you to help me understand your relationship with him and the other two girls." Ann said, firing more tennis balls into the crowd.
"Three, Phantom has a ghost girlfriend too." Kim said as she didn't see the point in denying anything anymore.
"Well now I'm more concerned." Ann said as she shot a tennis ball at a porcoyote who was lunging at Kim from behind.
"I'm not thrilled about the ghost girl either, but Danny says she's changed from who she was, and I trust my boy to be a good judge of character." Maddie said, knocking more of the porcoyotes aside with her ecto-blades.
"Sammy believes her too, she spent some time in her head. That's a long story. I'm giving her a shot because even if I personally am not totally okay with her yet, there's no denying she loves Danny." Kim said as she delivered a kick to another porcoyote. "Do you guys find it weird we can talk so casually while dealing with these things?"
"Ghosts can fly at over 100 miles per hour. These things are moving like snails in comparison." Maddie called out, swiping more of them away with ease.
"Gotta be cool under pressure to be a brain surgeon, Kimmie. If I got nervous I'd have a great deal of blood on my hands, literally and metaphorically." Ann said as she continued firing, her air rifle pelting the creatures in rapid succession.
"We need a way to capture them… any ideas?" Kim asked, scanning the convention floor.
"Someone had a hologram display didn't they? I could focus that through the ecto-sabers to make a hard light cage that could hold these small-fries in." Maddie called out.
"You two make your way there then, I'll cover you." Ann said, as she flicked a switch on the tennis ball launcher, the speed increasing as she began knocking more and more of the creatures away.
Maddie got to work right away, partially dismantling the hologram emitter and attaching the ectoblade as a focus. Soon there was a large hard-light cage in the middle of the convention floor, and Kim began tossing the porcoyotes inside. Once the last one was in, she high-fived the two other red-haired women. Her mother and mother-in-l… Kim flushed as she thought that, briefly picturing herself in a white dress as Danny held her hands. Fantasy for later.
Danny was getting very tired of the Rhinorilla, who kept knocking him through the walls of the convention center. Danny was good at taking hits, but this was getting ridiculous. Seeing Kim put all the smaller ones in a cage gave Danny a good idea though, as he grabbed a guardrail from the nearby street, using it like a hyper-strong lasso to contain the gargantuan creature. "You know… should have thought of that twenty minutes ago." Danny said to himself, he landed in front of DNAmy, as Kim, Maddie, and Ann moved beside him. "Well, you can give up, or I can let one of them beat you up." Danny said, gesturing to the women beside him, Kim cracking her knuckles.
"I surrender!" DNAmy said.
After a brief phone call, the police came to take away DNAmy, with Kim reporting her in to Global Justice since she is technically a supervillian. As the other attendees packed up what was left of their displays, Danny, Kim, Maddie, and Ann sat in an otherwise empty conference room.
"Figures one of Vlad's events would end like this." Danny said rolling his eyes. Maddie and Kim nodded in agreement.
"What does Vlad have to do with this?" Ann asked, wondering why she seemed to be the only one not in agreement with that.
"Bad blood after the reunion… I wouldn't imagine you'd understand." Danny said, trying to catch himself. With his mother and Kim in the room, he'd half-forgotten Ann didn't know he was Phantom.
"She knows Danny, might as well come clean." Maddie said. Nevermind.
"You know the ghost that Phantom, I, fought in Wisconsin?" Danny asked, looking to Ann Possible.
"Yeah, the one that looked like Dracula and possessed Jack." Ann said, remembering the event. Seeing a man she at one point was in love with suddenly attack his college friends, in front of his wife and children no less, had certainly left an impression. Thankfully he had been possessed, or Ann wouldn't know what to think.
"We usually use the word 'overshadow' but yeah. That's Vlad. Vlad Plasmius in that form, Vlad Masters in his human form." Danny said, realizing how silly it was for Vlad to keep his first name between his forms. What if someone found out or started making a connection? That'd be like if he started calling himself Danny Phantom, ridiculous! "How did you know about me being Phantom though?"
"Anyone who knows both halves can make the connection pretty easily. I imagine me being present in Wisconsin made it much easier. The first time Phantom shows up outside of Amity Park and it happens to be when the boy my teenaged superhero daughter is dating is where he showed up? Not hard to put together." Ann said, causing Danny to cringe a bit.
"I guess I need to start being more careful with that." Danny said, thinking of ways to hide his identity better.
"Actually, that brings up a question, Danny… Why are you hiding it?" Kim asked, reaching out to take his hand. "Your family knows, your friends know, Global Justice knows, heck, even your bad guys know!"
"Because… well if it gets out that I'm Phantom… everything changes." Danny said, sighing a bit. "Suddenly the A-List is going to try and recruit me because Dash and Paulina worship the ground Phantom walks on. The government… they might start trying to replicate my powers if they have any idea where they came from. Global Justice is keeping everything under wraps, and Dr. Director told me that she's officially ordered research into my powers to not be done, but someone like the CIA might not have the same restraint. At best I'll be watched for the rest of my life, at worst I'll be strapped to a vivisection table."
"Don't you mean a dissection table?" Kim asked.
"No." He and Ann said at the same time. "Vivisection is much worse, dissection at least means they let him die or killed him first. Vivisection means he's still alive while they're doing it… and probably not being very gentle about the research." Ann added.
"So yeah… I'm glad my family and friends know, and even my bad guys wouldn't threaten to reveal me to the world." Danny said, grateful his rogues weren't willing to do that.
"Why wouldn't they do that?" Ann asked. "Like, if they hate you, why wouldn't they do everything they could to stop you from getting in their way?"
"Most of them don't hate me. Probably only… two of them do." Danny said nonchalantly.
"Which two? And why don't the others hate you?" Maddie asked, now curious.
"Spectra and Walker hate me, I guess Walker's minions too, but I'll just lump them under Walker. Skulker respects me, I'm a challenge for him. He won't fight dirty, he wants to beat me at my best, which I can at least respect. Vlad wants me to be his son, and if he ever revealed my secret, I'd reveal his. People would be a lot more interested in the billionaire with ghost powers than the kid from a nothing town in Illinois." Danny said.
"Your other bad guys?" Maddie asked.
"Lunch Lady doesn't really care anymore, I think she's just happy cooking in the ghost zone now. Box Ghost treats our encounters as a rivalry. Fright Knight is sealed in the pumpkin again. Desiree was more just circumstance as opposed to malice I think. Then Ember fell in love with me so…" Danny shrugged at the last bit. "Everyone else is a small fry or actively one of our friends. Ember, Johnny, Kitty, Technus, Sidney, and Box Ghost keep them mostly in line from the other side. Mostly by threatening to tell Skulker about them."
"I see." Ann said, sighing. "Well I can't say I understand all this ghost talk, but I can say this. Your secret is safe with me Danny. I won't even tell James or the boys. Although, if you told the boys that'd probably make them super happy. They look up to you, and they really like Phantom."
"Maybe when they're a bit older. I know Kim says they're still at that age they tell on themselves sometimes because they get too excited." Danny said with a smile. "I appreciate it, and I'm sorry you can't tell your husband."
"Maddie, do you have your ecto-blade handy?" Ann asked.
"Uh, yeah, why?" Maddie said, pulling it out.
"Would you give Danny a small cut please?" Ann asked her.
Maddie and Danny looked at each other strangely but Danny transformed and allowed his mother to give him a small cut on his arm. "Okay?" Danny asked confused.
Ann pulled out a bandage and put it over it. "Congrats, this is now under HIPPA. I'd be in violation if I informed my husband about a patient who I provided care for." Ann said with a wink.
Everyone chuckled at that as Danny turned back.
Elsewhere, as a police car was driving down the interstate, a pair of intangible hands lifted DNAmy out of the backseat, before dropping her into a limousine a few cars back. "Hello, Amy Hall… I'm glad my associate was able to free you from your binds… you see I have need of someone with your… brilliance." Vlad said, looking into DNAmy's eyes with an evil smirk.