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cleanlenins · 3 years

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Ectober Day 6: Witching Hour

Words Spoken at the Witching Hour

Chapter 2

Jack and Maddie disproved Ouija boards in College, but why not give them another try? However, fixing their mistakes will take more than just an old board and some candles.

AO3

While her violent outburst had been cathartic, Maddie was regretting her rash decision to destroy the ancient spirit board. She sifted through the ashes, pulling larger pieces of charred wood from the pile and dumping them into the bin. Her gloves were covered in soot and charcoal, the dusty particles sliding over the rubbery texture. She grabbed the planchet, and examined it. The dark ash seemed grey next to the impossible black of the little cursor. She clenched her fist around it and started to toss it into the trash can. But hesitated.

“Mom? Oh my God, what happened here?” Maddie whipped around to see Jazz standing at the door to the kitchen. She had one hand covering her mouth as she gaped at the mess. The table, while still standing, had a huge whole burned into the center. Maddie knew that she must look a sight as well, eyes puffy and red from lack of sleep and soot stains on her cheek.

“We had a bit of an accident with our experiment last night,” Maddie said smoothly. It was what she and Jack had decided to tell the kids until they had a chance to sort through their thoughts. Before they had a chance to figure out if there was any validity to Phantom’s claim.

When Maddie had bought the spirit board, the lady had told her that spirits could not lie while communicating through the object. Maddie had never expected the blasted thing to work, so she hadn’t set up any more trustworthy methods for determining if a ghost was lying or not. An oversight on her part based on her own hubris.

“I thought you guys agreed that you would keep all of your experiments in the lab from now on?” Jazz crossed her arms.

“I’m sorry sweetie. We didn’t realize it was something that would turn...explosive. We will be sure to keep things downstairs from now on,” Maddie assured Jazz. Jazz looked skeptical, but did not press the point. Instead, she skirted around the stains on the linoleum and began to make her some breakfast. Maddie glanced at the planchet still held in her hand, and stashed it in her pocket.

Maddie removed her gloves and tossed them in the special tub she and Jack kept for their hazmat suits. She quickly washed her hands before putting on a clean pair. She rubbed her tired eyes, moving around Jazz to get to the coffee pot. How did she get through so many sleepless nights in college? She already felt dead on her feet. She must be getting old.

She reached to flick on the coffee pot, before jerking away as the coffee pot shocked her. Not hard, nothing more than simple static electricity. But it startled her.

“Mom? Are you okay?” Jazz asked.

“Fine, Jazzy,” Maddie stared at the machine in shock and reached out to touch it again. No shock occurred. “I think I might need to change the filtrator in the coffee machine battery. It just shocked me a bit.”

“Through rubber gloves?” Jazz raised an eyebrow. Maddie’s mind buffered, looking down at her hands.

“Maybe a more serious issue,” Maddie muttered. Jazz sighed.

“And I was really looking forward to coffee,” The teen slumped, still scrambling eggs. Loud steps were coming from the stairs, and Maddie turned to see Danny walking into the kitchen.

Well, walking probably wasn’t the best word. He was slumped over, backpack hanging from one shoulder. His eyes were rimmed in red and heavy bags laid under his eyes. He slumped into a dining chair, not even commenting on the hole in the table before laying his head in his hands.

“Danny, are you okay?” Jazz asked. Mother and Daughter wore matching looks of concern. The black haired teenager mumbled something incomprehensible. Maddie hesitantly walked over, putting her hand on his shoulder.

He was freezing. Cold enough that she could feel his temperature even through the thick gloves. Maddie swallowed thickly.

“Honey, did you not sleep well?” Maddie asked. Danny sat up, blearily looking up at his Mom.

“Weird dreams,” He mumbled, blinking up at his mom. Maddie rubbed his arm

“What kind of dreams?” She pressed. Danny grunted.

“Just...bad memories. Mistakes.”

“Was it...about the CATs?” Maddie startled, Jazz was suddenly by her side putting a plate of eggs in front of Danny. He looked down at his plate, but didn’t reach for them.

“No. The other thing. The first thing,” Danny said.

“What thing are you talking about?” Maddie asked. Dany didn’t react, but Jazz looked sheepish.

“Danny has had a lot of test anxiety over the last few years. I have been helping him work through it,” Jazz said quickly. She avoided Maddie’s eye and turned on heel to go back and grab another plate. “You don’t need to worry, Mom.”

Maddie looked at Danny, who was pushing his food around on his plate and slumping closer and closer to the table. And knew she was very worried.

~~~

Once the kids had left for school, Maddie unplugged the coffee maker and carried it down into the lab. Jazz had to nearly drag Danny out of his chair, her brother stumbling into her before catching his balance. Jazz had continuously uttered assurances that Danny was fine and did not need to go to the doctor. Jazz had chattered continuously, Maddie unable to get a word in as they slammed the front door behind her.

With a sigh, she set the coffee pot on the table. Jack was already in the lab, looking just as ragged as she. He was pouring over security footage from the lab, trying to find any evidence of Danny being Phantom.

“How’s it going?” Maddie asked. She massaged her hand.

“We really should have labelled these tapes,” Jack frowned. “We didn’t even order them. I keep switching between tapes from the last few months, to one before Danny was even born. This could take days. Weeks, even.”

Maddie nodded. She had been afraid of something like that. Instead of joining her husband by the small tv, she walked over to where she had kept the notes on the spirit board. She rubbed her hands together, before reaching to pick up the top page.

And dropped it immediately. Her hand trembled. Part of her didn’t want to know the truth. Because if all of this was true. If she and Jack had-

“Mads, come look,” Jack said, more chipper than before. Maddie turned away from the papers, holding her hand close to her chest. Jack had a video paused on the screen. He let it play.

It was Danny, when he was five or six. Jack and Maddie were working on a project in the corner, while Danny was running around. He had a toy rocket in hand, making zooming noises as he sent the little astronauts on a space exploration. He prattled on, making up ridiculous plots where aliens attacked, where wormholes opened to other galaxies, where he had to be a superhero to save the earth from a meteor. Maddie smiled at the memory. Until she watched Danny trip over a spare bit of wire and faceplant into the floor. He started wailing, past Maddie and Jack whirling around and scooping him into a big hug. Maddie felt tears in her eyes. She removed one of her gloves to wipe them away.

“What if we failed him, Jack?” Maddie’s voice trembled. Jack turned a baleful look up at his wife before stopping. An expression of shock on his face.

“Maddie. Your hand,” He jumped out of his seat to get closer. Maddie looked down at her hand.

A circular burn sat in the middle of her palm. Small Lichtenberg figures scattered from the center. But the most striking thing was that the figures were pulsing a bright green. Maddie stared at the mark in horror. Once more she felt a jolt in her hands, her fingers twitching, and the mark grew.

“Jack,” Maddie whispered in fright. Jack took her hand in his, examining it closely. “What is it?”

Jack let go of Maddie’s hand, before running over to the notes himself. He rummaged through them quickly. Maddie felt herself shaking, looking down at the unnatural mark on her hand. Jack let out a noise of triumph as he held up a piece of paper.

“Make sure to end your contact with the spirit when you are finished conversing. If not, you may attach the spirit to yourself. This can have many consequences, depending on the power of the spirit. It can result in something as mundane as constant bad luck or-” Jack faltered, gaping at the page.

“What? What is it Jack?”

“-or as severe as dying the same death,” Jack gulped. “Maddie. Maddie we didn’t do any of the things to close the ritual. You’re still connected.”

I just wanted to look inside. I tripped over a wire. I hit the button on the inside. The portal turned on. And I died.

“ He was electrocuted,” Maddie sobbed, hand spasming. “It’s true, isn’t it? We killed our baby?”

Jack had tears streaming down his face as he rushed forward and crushed Maddie into a hug. She sobbed into his chest. In grief. In guilt. In exhaustion. In fear. Her whole body shook with the force of her tears. Had Jack not been holding her, she would have collapsed onto the ground in a puddle of tears.

“We have to find a way to stop this. To stop the connection,” Jack said. He rushed over to the papers, fanning them out so he could see more than one of them at a time. Maddie joined him, her hand occasionally spasming.

The two of them poured over the notes, double checking them with the Nightingale notebook to see if they could find any correlation to the spirit board. But the notebook only condemned the use of such objects, and did nothing at all to say how to counter their effects. Burning it was briefly mentioned on an online source, but considering it was already a pile of ash that seemed unlikely. Maddie and Jack started to comb through more and more sources, each less reputable than the last. As time crept on, the spasms became more painful. The lighting marks spread up her forearm, up her shoulder, nearly touching her neck. Tears were constantly pouring from her eyes as she barely contained herself from screaming in agony.

The two started when they heard the door upstairs slam. Maddie looked up, sweat pouring down her face. Jack slapped his forehead.

“Of course. We should ask Danny. Maybe he knows something,” The man said, sprinting up the stairs. Maddie hobbled after him, leaning heavily into the wall as she made her way up the stairs. She slowly made her ascent, and opened the lab door.

Jazz was talking to Jack, but she was not alone. Sam and Tucker were standing in the kitchen, Danny’s unconscious body held between them. Maddie gasped at the sight.

“So he is like this because you and Mom did some hairbrained ritual that literally blew up in your faces?” Jazz was angry. Her face was nearly the color of her hair, red with the force of her rage.

“Jazz, we didn’t know,” Maddie whispered. Jazz finally noticed her mom entering the room and gasped in horror. Both Tucker and Sam wore similar expressions.

“Mom, what’s wrong?” Jazz rushed over to Maddie, offering her shoulder. Jack filled the teens in on what they had discovered, how Danny was now attached to Maddie, and how it was slowly killing her.

“Please, if you know any way to undo this,” Jack pleaded. This was their last chance.

“I do,” Sam said. Jack beamed, eyes brightened with hope. “But we will have to work fast. Things like this have a time limit.”

“How long?”

“We have to separate them before the Witching Hour of the next day, or else there is nothing that we can do,” Sam said confidently. Jack glanced at the clock. It was already six pm.

“That gives us nine hours, right? We should be able to do that,” Jazz said. But Sam frowned.

“I have to go to my house and get a lot of supplies, and it will take time to set it all up. And I can’t guarantee it will work. It’s not like I have ever actually had to do this,” Sam said.

“Please,” Maddie begged, as she looked at Danny’s slumped body. “Try.”

~~~

The setup had taken them the better part of six hours. Every ingredient had to be burned for a specific amount of time. Every line painted on the floor had to be at the perfect angle. The candles could only burn for so long, with certain herbs mixed in. The remains of the spirit board had to be collected into one space. It was time consuming. It was tedious. And there was no guarantee it would work.

Maddie and Danny were not able to help with the preparations. Danny because he had not woken up since Sam and Tucker had brought him home. He was resting on the couch, completely out of touch with the world. Maddie, however, was not in such a peaceful state.

It was taking all of her effort not to simply curl up and scream. It felt like both fire and ice had poured into her veins, both trying to kill her from the heat and the cold. Her skin looked ashen and pale, sweat and tears constantly pouring down her face. She shook and seized from the volts of electricity that started at her hand and burst through her whole body. She couldn’t stop the whimpers that escaped, causing the others in the room to look over at her with concern.

When the preparations were complete, Jack helped Maddie into the middle of the setup. The electric lights in the room were turned off, with only the candles glow illuminating the room. Maddie nearly crawled to the spot she was supposed to be. She pulled out the little planchet and placed it within arms reach.

Sam had done everything she could, but Maddie had made the connection. Maddie had to sever it.

Maddie took the sterile knife and cut the inside of her arm. She let the blood pour into a basin that held the remains of the spirit bored. Her quivering hands spilled some blood onto the floor and not just in the bowl. But not enough to ruin the painted words. Maddie used her fingers to mix the blood with the ash, creating a paint. With trembling hands, she reached one finger onto the floor and began to draw the Ogham script she remembered from the spirit board. Slowly, as she could afford no mistakes, she drew a new board on the floor. Each one had to be in the exact order as the board had been and she had never been so grateful to Jack for taking a picture of the thing before they used it. Inch by inch, she recreated the board on her kitchen floor.

Now, she had to wait. Wait until the blood had dried enough that she could roll the planchet across the words without smudging. Every second was an eternity of pain, every moment a new level of agony even higher than the last. It might have been five minutes. It might have been an hour. But eventually, she could tell that the bright red of her blood had faded to a sickly brown. She risked touching it, and found it completely dry. She grabbed the planchet, and place a single bloody finger on it.

“Phantom, I would like to speak to you today. Please, I beg you, talk to me,” Maddie’s voice cracked. She waited a breathless moment, before the cursor began to move.

Mom?

“Yes, it’s me,” Maddie bit her lip hard as her body was wracked with pain.

You’re hurt

“ I’m fine sweetie,” Maddie lied. She had to finish this. She didn’t know how much time she had. “Phantom, I have said all that I have to say. My questions are complete. I close this doorway. I close this connection. Your spirit is not bound here.”

Maddie thought she heard a gasp, but she didn’t know where. Suddenly, all the candles turned once more into the strange corona glow. The planchet moved once more.

Goodbye

Maddie watched in fascination as the planchet dissolved into dust. The candles snuffed themselves out and the room was filled with darkness. Maddie slumped in relief as the pain seemed to melt away.

“Mom?” Danny groaned, the light flickering on. Danny stood by the switch, rubbing his eyes as he took in the state of the kitchen.

Jack and Maddie rushed him, crushing him in a hug they hoped expressed everything they couldn’t bring themselves to say.

#Ectober Month 2021 #Ectoberhaunt 2021 #Ectoberhaunt trick #danny phantom #My writing #Cartoons #Ritual

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dp-marvel94 · 3 years

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Face to Face- Chapter 32

Summary: When Danny went through the ghost catcher, he expected to be cured of the ghostliness that had haunted him since the accident, not to wake up on the lab floor with his parents saying he’d been overshadowed but everything’s back to normal now. But why does Danny Fenton cry himself to sleep to then dream of flying? Why does Phantom, the ghost who was supposedly possessing Danny remember a life that wasn’t his? Most of all, why do both the human and the ghost feel that something vital is missing, in their very soul? Or: Trying to cure himself of his powers one month after the accident, Danny accidentally splits himself but neither his ghost nor his human half know that that is what they did

First -> Last -> Next

Word Count: 6,098

Also on AO3 and Fanfiction.net

Note:What is this?! Another Face to Face update. I'm still struggling through my first phic phight story and hoping some comments on this will encourage me. Thanks for reading as always!

Phantom stayed still for a long moment, looking out over the Ghost Zone. He took a deep breath and watched the floating rocks, the swirling clouds, and the purple doors. He braced himself and slowly floated to his feet. He needed to head out there. Tentatively, he reached out with his mind and plucked at the line. Like Fenton said, it was there, the link between him and his other half. And….a moment later, he received a tug in kind. His confidence grew. Yes, he could do this. He could find his way home.

With that, the ghost flew. He carefully followed the line, over islands and past doors. He slipped between rocks and paused, looking upward to what looked like a river suspended in mid-air and flowing downward. Phantom’s eyes widened in awe at the sight but he kept going. All the while, he looked around with keen attention. It wouldn’t do, to be attacked by another ghost again. Luckily, he didn’t see or sense anything large or notable. Instead, his brow wrinkled as he flew past a small group of what looked like globs of ectoplasm with eyes. One of the little ghosts (at least he thought they were ghosts) looked at Danny. It blinked slowly before letting out a chirp and darting away with the others.

Phantom watched for a moment as the small creatures flew away. Then He sloped downward, below a tree covered island. He gaped at the sight. Trees?! There were actually trees here, even though there didn’t appear to be any sun, moon, or stars. So...wait...where did the light come from? And were those the ghosts of dead trees or-

The ghost shook his head, clearing the questions about his surroundings from his mind. It really was incredible being here, even if the circumstances were...not so great. He might just have to come back, after everything was sorted...assuming that things could be fixed with Mom. The boy bit his lip. He couldn’t worry about that, not right now.

“Focus, Phantom.” He chided himself. He had to follow the line, get back to the real world.

The ghost boy’s brow then furrowed, eyes falling on something in the distance. A rectangular shape. White, standing out in stark contrast against the green atmosphere. And…. he tugged the line again….the way home was in that direction.

Less than five minutes later, the object became clear in his view. “It’s...Casper High?” Phantom muttered.

There in front of him was a black and white version of the school, complete with the American flag and the name plastered above the door in big letters. It was strange, bizarre. Why would there be a version of his high school in the ghost zone? And….he frowned, feeling his tether. Why did the path he was following back to Fenton lead him here? Phantom furrowed his brow. He hadn’t come this way before; he would have remembered seeing this weird building. But…. yep, the line was leading him here and...he could feel he was really close.

The ghost straightened, bracing himself. Cautiously but with forced confidence, he floated up to the doors and slowly pushed them open to find…. an empty hallway, identical to the front hall at Casper, even if it was in monochrome.

“Hello?” He called quietly as he crossed the threshold.

No reply came as Phantom continued onward. His core pulsed nervously at the silence of the eerily familiar space. It was strange, seeing it so empty and quiet. And it was fittingly haunting for a ghostly double of his school. But why was this here? Why did it look like Casper High? And why was it in black and white?

The ghost boy swallowed, pushing the questions away and floating down the hallways. He looked side to side, watching for any movement. His ghost sense hadn’t gone off, but being in an enclosed space was making him anxious. But at the same time….he was so close to….something. Something that would lead him home. But what?

Suddenly, the doors he’d come through slammed shut, earning a gasp from Phantom. “Who’s...who’s there?”

Something flickered at the edge of his vision. Head jerking to the side, he turned to find...nothing. The boy frowned, opening his mouth to call out. Then there was a bang behind him. Startled, Phantom wiped back around to find locker doors banging open and closed on their own.

“I don’t want any trouble.” The ghost boy started, voice wavering with fear.

Again, something flickered beside him. There was a staticy laugh. Phantom turned again and…. His heart would have skipped a beat, if it was in his chest. There was a monochrome teenager, a buff looking guy with slicked back hair and a leather jacket. He reminded Ghost Danny uncanningly of Dash. The figure opened his mouth, static exiting. Then he pushed the ghost boy.

Phantom stumbled, letting out a surprised cry as his back hit something solid. He turned, looking up at a scowling girl in a poodle shirt. She turned up her nose, pushing the ghost boy away. “Wait! Stop!” His eyes widened as he fell forward again, this time hitting another jock. “I don’t wanna fight!” The other teen, in a letterman, grabbed Phantom’s arm and shoved him to the floor.

The ghost boy hit the ground with a start, the impact knocking the air from his only semi-illusionary lungs. He rolled onto his back, paling at what was around him. A crowd of black-and-white teenagers, all wearing retro clothing, maybe from the fifties? They towered over him, scowling and jeering down at him.

“Stop! Please!” Phantom covered his ears, wincing in pain at the sound. It was static, hundreds of voices speaking over each other. And they were laughing, mocking. It was years of insults. Freak, coward, geek, nerd, weak, worthless, dead, wrong, unnatural, monster.

The ghost boy curled in on himself. “Please! I’m lost...I’m sorry I…”

Don’t belong here...Don’t belong. Invader.

“I don’t….”

Trespasser. Invader. Leave! Leave, freak!

“I… I know I’m not supposed to be here. I’m lost..I…”

Leave! Dead! Go! The voices hissed. Don’t belong, monster!

“Please! Stop!” Phantom begged.

The words pressed down on him and his chest heaved with panic. He whimpered as the volume rose, growing into a roar. Phantom bit back a cry as he pressed his hands to his ears, like he could block out the noise, keep out the words. He wanted to move, like the voices were demanding but he couldn’t, too frozen in fear. Instead he sobbed. “I just wanna go home.”

“Enough!” A single voice shouted. There was a whirl, a sound like gall forces winds. And then silence. “You can’t just barge into someone’s lair!”

“I...I..I’m sorry.” Phantom fixed his head down, whole body shaking. “I just...I got lost and was trying to get home but I ended up here ‘cause-” His words cut off as his ghost sense billowed out of his mouth and he coughed.

The ghost boy paled, looking cross eyed at the mist. He slowly looked up, eyes falling on the speaker. Like the other teens, he was monochrome but looked like a stereotypical nerd, with coke bottle glasses, a bowler haircut, a polo, and a bowtie. He fit the same fifties aesthetic yet somehow...there was something different about him compared to the other. He was more vivid, more solid than the others, almost like….

“Are you gonna say anything buster?” The crowd around them was still and silent even as the nerd floated half a foot closer, his fists balled.

“Yeah..Umm...Sorry, I..” Phantom stuttered. His eyes then widened as his ghost sense billowed out of his mouth again. That had only happened once this singular figure showed up, not before and not by the others. The others that had stopped when the nerd told them too. “You’re a ghost.” Ghost Danny whispered, meeting the glasses-covered eyes.

The other ghost scowled. “You don’t say.”

Phantom averted his eyes again, blushing. “No...sorry...I..I mean..you’re not...you’re not like…whatever these are.” The ghost boy motioned to the crowd around them, shivering. “You’re an actual ghost.” He whispered the last part, before glancing up, at the other, now confused looking ghost.

The other ghost’s brow furrowed behind his glasses. He raised his hand, making Phantom flinch. But instead of swinging his arm to punch or lighting his fist with ectoenergy like Ghost Danny expected, the nerd snapped his fingers and commanded. “Leave us.”

With that, the teenagers around the ghost boy seemed to flicker, their outlines wavering. Without any movement, the crowd disappeared, leaving Phantom and the other ghost alone. The nerd lowered his arm, his fist relaxing.

That did little to comfort Phantom. His pulse pounded in his head as he wrung his hands. “So...okay...we’re alone now. And...you said this was your lair? I...uh...don’t know what that means but...I can leave...I can leave now since those guys didn’t seem to want me here-”

“Sorry about that.” The quiet words interrupted the ramble.

“What?” Phantom blinked, looking up at the other ghost.

The nerd didn’t look angry anymore but instead almost….bashful, holding his hand out. “My shadows got out of hand. They aren’t supposed to be that cruel.”

The ghost boy just gapped, looking between the offered hand and the other ghost’s face. His mind raced, wondering what was going on. What was with the sudden change in attitude? He bit his lip. The other ghost wasn’t attacking him or...using those not-ghosts (he called them shadows?) to attack him. Maybe that apology was authentic.

Phantom took a deep breath and chose to be brave. Tentatively, he took the offered hand and allowed the other ghost to pull him up.

Then there was silence. The ghost Danny shifted nervously in the air as he studied the other ghost. And the other ghost studied him, his expression curious yet vaguely sad.

Phantom finally coughed, pointing back the way he came. “I’ll just...I’ll leave now. Sorry again for barraging in. And uh…bye.” Slowly, he floated backward, keeping one eye on the other ghost.

“Wait.” The nerd reached forward. “You’re new, aren’t ya?” The ghost boy stopped, turning more fully towards the other ghost as he continued. “You haven’t been a ghost for a long time.”

Phantom’s eyes widened, his mouth opening and closing. “Um..uhh...yeah… I haven’t been...like this very long.” He swallowed. “How did you...how did you know?”

The other ghost’s expression softened. “You’re still trying to breath.” At the words, Phantom reflectively stopped, holding his breath with wide eyes. “It’s alright. That’s a tough habit to break.” The other ghost held out of hand, as if to shake. “I’m Sidney Pointdexter, by the way.”

The other ghost blinked at the hand. After a long pause, he grasped it. “I’m Danny….Danny Phantom.”

“Phantom.” The nerd nodded. “So you already picked a name.”

“Yeah?” So apparently, that was a thing? Phantom rubbed the back of his neck. “You can call me Danny though.”

“Danny.” The other ghost half-smile. “You can call me Sidney then.” Sidney’s expression then turned more serious. “Obviously you didn’t know but... if you want to go inside someone’s lair, you need to announce yourself and ask permission to enter.”

“Oh, okay. Sorry” Phantom blushed. “I’ll...I’ll do that next time.”

“Good.” Sidney crossed his arms. “You’re lucky you barged in on me, mister. If it’d been Skulker, he would have skinned you.”

The ghost boy swallowed, suddenly anxious. His eyes bulged. “Really?!”

The other ghost nodded. “That hunter can be very possessive and mean.” Sidney then scowled. “But I’d never do that. I’m not a bully.” The other ghost then shook his head. “Anyway...why did you come here?”

Phantom’s core pulsed awkwardly at the question. “I..uh…” It wasn’t said with any anger or accusation, but innocently curious. But still, the ghost boy struggled to explain why he’d come inside. The line connecting him to his other self had led here but...how could he explain that? He swallowed. “This looks like my school, Casper High.”

Sidney blinked, eyes widening. “You went to Casper?” The corner of his lip turned up.

“Yeah.” The ghost boy bit his lip, not knowing what to say. Instead, he turned towards the door and pointed. “Yeah...thanks for the advice but...I should go so…”

“You don’t have to yet.” The other ghost’s eyes were slightly pleading. “Why don’t you rest for a bit? And I get you something to eat and drink? You look like you need it.”

Phantom blinked. “Ghosts eat?”

Sidney frowned, slightly alarmed. “Yes? Come on.” He grabbed the other boy’s arm. “That’s it. I’m making you some tea and a sandwich. I think I still have some cookies too.”

The ghost boy didn’t resist, instead gawking as the other ghost pulled him down the hallway and towards the cafeteria. His mind sputtered, trying to overcome the emotional whiplash. Seconds later, the pair floated in the cafeteria’s kitchen. Sidney grabbed a tea kettle off the stove, filled it with what looked like water from the sink, and placed it on the burner. Then he opened the fridge and pulled out what looked like slices of cheese and luncheon meat.

Phantom just stared in disbelief. Sidney turned back towards him. “I have some tiger fruit too. I grow it in the courtyard. Do you want to try some?” He held up a round, stripped fruit, the orange and black standing out in bright contrast to the monochrome environment.

The ghost boy wrinkled his nose. “What is it?”

Sidney looked down at the fruit. “It kind of tastes like an apple. It’s native to the Infinite Realms though. I don’t think it has a Material World counterpart.” He smiled. “It’s really delicious.”

“Alright?” Phantom shook his head. There was a lot of information there. Then he shrugged. “Sure.”

The other ghost nodded, quickly preparing a plate and two cups of tea. He turned back to ghost Danny. “Let’s sit in the cafeteria.”

Without question, Phantom followed. Nervously tapping his hand on his leg, he sat down and took the steaming cup offered to him. The ghost blinked, studying the liquid. It actually felt warm in his hands. He moved the cup, closing watching the liquid sloshing in the cup like water. It did actually look like tea. Tentatively, Phantom looked up, glancing at the other ghost who was sitting across from him. Sidney was blowing his own cup before taking a small sip.

It was only then that where he was and what he was doing actually hit the boy. He was sitting in a ghostly version of his school cafeteria, with the ghost of a teenage boy who died in the fifties, based on his appearance. Phantom looked down at his plate again. And there was weird, slightly glowing ghost-food in front of him.

Sidney’s words drew his attention. “Go ahead. Try the tea. It’s not poison” The nerd half smiled at Danny with a nod.

Phantom looked down at his cup again, doubtfully. His stomach flopped as he considered. He was wary of trying the beverage. What actually was it? It couldn’t be actually tea, like his sister liked to drink. Could it hurt him? Weren’t there myths or something about how if you eat something in the land of the dead you can’t leave? Or was that fairies? Or...wait...did that only apply to humans? He wasn’t exactly human right now; he was a ghost. And this was food meant for ghosts. And….

“It won’t hurt you. And it’s good. I promise you’ll love it.” The other ghost encouraged patiently.

Phantom picked up the cup, again noticing the comforting warmth. It was still softly billowing steam. And it smelled so good, sweet and citrusy. Tentatively, he blew on the cup to cool it. He really did want to try it. Ignoring his doubts, ghost Danny finally took a small sip.

Phantom blinked rapidly, taking another sip. “I can taste this.” He muttered numbly before taking another sip of the fresh, lemony liquid.

Excitement grew at the realization. He then looked down at his sandwich. Putting the cup down, he took a small bit. The savory taste of bread, cheese, ham. He took a larger bit. “I can taste this!”

“Of course you can.” Across from him, Sidney said in disbelief.

Phantom looked up, talking through his full mouth. “No I...I haven’t eaten in weeks.” He swallowed. “I mean...I tried but I couldn’t taste anything so I gave up.”

“Gave… up?” The other ghost blinked.

“Yeah. But-” Phantom stuffed a cookie in his mouth, groaning in pleasure at the taste. “But how?”

“How?” Sidney held out his hands. “It’s just lair made food.”

“Lair made?”

“Yeah, as in the lair made it?” The other ghost’s mouth fell open at the lack of recognition. “The lair basically took free ectoplasm and shaped it into food that we can eat.”

Phantom dropped the sandwich. “Ectoplasm?”

“Yes. Everything here is made of ectoplasm, even us.” Sidney answered like it was obvious. “Why wouldn’t the food be?”

At that, the ghost boy looked down at the meal with new realization. “That makes sense.”

The ghostly nerd nodded. “Yes. How don’t you know that? And why couldn’t you taste anything earlier?” His brow furrowed in deep confusion. “You said you tried food. But….you didn’t know that ghosts can eat….or need to eat?”

Phantom picked up the sandwich again, taking a few more bits to finish it. His mind whirled. “We need to eat? But we’re dead so….” He took another cookie, smiling at the taste.

Sidney gapped. “Of course we need to eat! Haven’t you been hungry?”

“Hungry?” Phantom put a hand over his stomach. No, he hadn’t been hungry in that way but...he moved his hand over his core. He’d gotten tired from overusing his powers and...he’d felt the Zone calling to him, like...like he needed to go to it for nourishment. “I have been.” He whispered.

“But you hadn’t realized?” The nerd face palmed. “No wonder you look so sickly.”

The other ghost looked up, mouth falling open. “What?”

“You’re barely glowing. And you’re so pale. They’re no color in your skin.”

Phantom pointed. “You’re likely in black and white?!”

Sidney raised a brow, motioning down his body. “This is an intentional aesthetic.” His image wavered briefly, before the other ghost was in full color. His skin was a pale green and his eyes a glowing silver.

“Oh.” The ghost boy muttered.

“Yes.” The other boy nodded, motioning to the plate. “Go ahead and finish. You’re lookin’ better already.”

Phantom didn’t need to be told twice. He finished the sandwich and the cookies.

Sidney crossed his arms. “I don’t understand how you didn’t realize. You should have at least been passively absorbing ectoplasm through your skin.” So apparently, that was something else ghosts could do.

The ghost boy shrugged, taking a bite of the fruit. He paused, staring down at it. “This is really good.”

The other ghost smiled. “Isn’t it? I can give you some seeds. The bushes grow very well in lairs, if you want to plant some.” He tapped his chin. “Is your lair near here? You were trying to get back there, right? You did say that you were lost earlier.”

“I did say I was lost.” Phantom said, swallowing a bit of his tiger fruit. He then bit his lip nervously. “But...I’m not trying to get back to my….lair? I don’t have one of those, I don’t think…..Not that I’m that clear on what exactly a lair is.”

Sidney again furrowed his brow, looking bewildered. “This is a lair.” He motioned around them.

“No, I get that.” Phantom sighed. “But...what is this? Why does it look like a high school? Where did that food come from? And those people...you called them, shadows? What are those?” The other ghost was still looking at him in confusion as an idea suddenly hit the ghost Danny. “Wait...is this like your house? Like you live here. Or...err...I guess that’s not the right word. Afterlive?” His speech quickened. “If it is, I’m so sorry for barging into your house. I get why you’d be mad about that but I swear I didn’t mean-”

“Danny.” The other ghost said pointedly, making Phantom’s mouth snap shut. “It’s fine. I understand. Just…” Sidney pinched the bridge of his nose. “Let me explain?”

Phantom nodded, blushing in embarrassment.

“A lair is like a ghost’s house but...It’s more personalized. It might reflect somewhere from your life or a place you’ve always wanted to see. It’s different for every ghost but based on your subconscious desires and your obsession.”

“Alright.” The ghost boy glanced around. “So this is your school from when you were alive. But still...who were those people that...attacked me?”

“Those weren’t people. They were shadows. They’re part of the lair.”

“So you do control them.”

“Somewhat?” Sidney waved his hand in a so-so motion. “As I said, your subconscious is what molds the lair.” He balled his fists. “So those shadows are reflections of people, bullies, I knew when I was alive.”

Phantom bit his lip, nervous at the anger in the statement. And he wondered. Obviously the shadows were something of a security system. But there must be more as well. There was the anger that the other ghost had shown twice now when talking about bullies. And what was that he said about obsessions having a role?

“Alright, okay.” Ghost Danny bit his lip. “But...what about your obsession? How does that-”

“Don’t.” Sidney suddenly snapped, his eyes flashing. “Never, ever ask another ghost about their obsession.”

Phantom shrunk in on himself, his shoulders falling. “Sorry.”

The other ghost’s expression softened. “You didn’t know. It’s okay. But...that’s personal to me. I don’t like to think about it, much less talk about it to someone I just met. So...don’t ask unless someone brings it up first, okay? Other ghosts aren’t as nice as me. If you asked Ember, she would fry you.”

“Okay.” The ghost boy paled, nodding furiously.

Sidney also nodded, taking a sip of his tea. Phantom finished his fruit, while his mind struggled to process all he’d learned. About how ghosts had to eat and about ghostly food. About lairs and shadows and not asking about obsessions. It was a lot, and there were so many more questions he could ask. But he had no idea what to ask now.

And again, the reality hit Phantom. He was sitting in a ghost’s lair, having a genial conversation like he was just a new neighbor. Not one half of a human-ghost hybrid who was trying to get back to his other half in the real world. With that, there was a small push in the back of Phantom’s mind. Yes, right. He needed to get back to following his tether to Fenton. But again...why had the line led him here?

The ghost boy put down the core of his tiger fruit once he’d finished. That got Sidney’s attention. “You’re done. Do you want anything else to eat?”

“No, thank you.” Phantom shook his head. “Actually...I need to go home.”

“Back to your lair?” Sidney questioned.

“No, I don’t have one of those.”

“Oh that’s right.” The other ghost said, frowning. “So where are you going?”

Ghost Danny bit his lip, considering. “The...the human world or...err...I think you called it the Material Realm?”

Sidney blinked, a strange mixture of shock, confusion, and worry on his face. “What? Why?”

Phantom sighed, rubbing his head. How to explain this. Guess he’d have to start at the beginning...and keep it simple. “That’s where I’ve been ever since I…..you know…” He motioned up and down his body. “About a month and a half.”

The other ghost’s mouth fell open, his eyes bulging. “You’ve been...In the living realm?”

“Yep.” Ghost Danny nodded.

“In the living realm?” Sidney put his hands on his head. “The material realm? Really, the living realm? And….” His voice pitched up in disbelief. “For a month and a half? Since you died? Wait...you’ve only been dead for a month and a half? And...that’s where you were...the whole time...but...how? And…” He waved his arms. “No wonder you look so starved!”

“Starved?” Phantom muttered, even as the other ghost continued.

“And how did you even form in the material realm?” Sidney exclaimed. “That just doesn’t happen, ever! And then how did you get here? Portals are so rare!”

“Sidney!” Ghost Danny interrupted, causing the other ghost’s mouth to snap shut. Knowing he’d gotten his host's attention, he continued. “So...long story short. My parents are ghosts hunters and researchers. They’re scientists who made a portal to...this place. They call it the Ghost Zone. And well...I went inside their portal, turned it on, and...umm...it..well...it killed me.” Phantom looked down, his core clenching at the words and the pitying look on the other ghost’s face.

“But...I walked out of the portal. I’m still here...even if I’m different now.” He paused for a moment, considering the words. He’d said as much to Mom earlier. And he believed them. But…

“I did...I did try to act like nothing was different for a month after that accident, like I hadn’t changed. But….it’s really obvious now. Mom and Dad know what happened and…” He shivered, recent memories hitting him. ��Mom and I had a fight. I wanted to talk to her about...some very hurtful stuff she’d said but….”

Phantom bit his lip. “It went bad. We were both yelling and Mom got really upset and said...she said…” The words sputtered to a stop as what Mom had said repeated in his head. He was supposed to be normal, human, alive. He wasn’t supposed to be a ghost. He swallowed. “I started crying….and…” Mom’s shocked and distressed face flashed in his mind, her desperate expression as she reached towards him. “I ran away. I didn’t even think. I just flew through the portal ‘cause I just couldn’t be in the same room as her. I just had to get away but…” He put his head in his hands.

“Now I’m lost somewhere in the Ghost Zone and Mom is probably freaking out. Dad and Jazz too if she told them.” Phantom then shivered, looking up. “I need to get back to them.” He balled his fists in determination. “I need to get back to my parents, my sister, my friends, and my hum-”

Phantom snapped his mouth shut on the last word as doubt suddenly flickered through him. Human half, he was going to say. But...he hadn’t mentioned that little fact at all. And the idea of explaining was daunting. His insides squirmed. What would a real, actual proper ghost think of that, of him? Both human and a ghost, living and dead, at the same time. Or...half of each, somewhere in the middle. Or maybe even neither, something else entirely. He didn’t know and he was suddenly terrified to find out.

So instead, ghost Danny kept his mouth shut as he slowly looked up. He blushed. “I can’t believe I told you all that.” His shoulders fell. “I must sound so pathetic.”

“No, of course not.” Sidney said kindly. He was studying Phantom curiously, yet also oddly sad. He raised a brow, looking like he still wanted to ask about the other’s near slip up. But he didn’t. Maybe he sensed it was personal, maybe he thought Phantom would refuse to answer if asked. Either way, Sidney didn’t press. Instead, after a long pause he finally said. “But I know why you came here now.”

Phantom blinked in surprise. “What?”

“You’re looking for a portal to the living world.” The other ghost stood. “I might have something to help you. Follow me.”

Ghost Danny’s eyes widened at the statement but he obeyed without question. He floated out of his seat and took his place behind Sidney as he flew out of the cafeteria. The pair hovered down a familiar hallway. Soon enough, they stopped in front of a rusty looking locker numbered 724. Phantom looked at the door curiously.

Across from him, Sidney asked. “Did another ghost tell you about my portal?”

Ghost Danny turned to face the other ghost, brow furrowing. “Your portal?” He shook his head. “No one told me.” He blushed. “You’re actually the first ghost I’ve ever talked to.”

The other ghost frowned. “Then how did you know this was here?”

“I didn’t.” Phantom glanced at the door again, reaching out with his mind. He tugged on the tether connecting him to Fenton and the line grew taunt. His eyes widened. There, behind the door, he sensed...something. “But...I sensed something. It...the line...it was leading me here.”

“Line?” Sidney asked.

The ghost boy glanced back at his host, eyes widening. “Yeah..I’m...uh..I’m” He bit his lip nervously. “I’m….connected to someone in the material world...like mentally.”

The other ghost raised a brow, clearly wanting to know more.

Phantom coughed, changing the subject. “So...uh...how does this work? How do I get through?”

Sidney frowned but answered the question anyway as he opened the locker door. “The mirror is the portal. It leads to the real Casper High.”

Ghost Danny blinked, studying the mirror. “That? But it’s so small and… where’s the swirling green light?” His brow furrowed as he remembered his parents’ portal.

The ghostly nerd shook his head. “It’s not always active. It’s only open for a few minutes during the witching hour of the full moon...and on the equinoxes and solstices. But” He raised a finger seriously. “There is a full moon tonight.”

Phantom raised a brow, wondering how exactly the other ghost knew that. But he didn’t ask. Instead, he looked at the mirror again. Was it really through there, his way home? Closing his eyes, the ghost boy reached out with his mind once again. Yep, yes. He was sensing something. Fenton...Fenton was through there but…. He glanced back down the hallway, towards the way he’d come. Theoretically, he could try to find his parents’ portal or he could stay here and go through when the portal opened in a little over 12 hours….and leave his loved ones worrying for longer.

Then there was a gentle tug on the line. Something tickled in the back of his mind. The corner of Phantom’s lip turned up. He could feel Fenton’s keen interest on him. Oh yeah, he could tell or show Fenton what was happening and ask him to tell their family and friends that he was okay.

Finally, Phantom sighed. “I guess I’m waiting then.”

Sidney nodded. Then his expression turned more serious. “Make sure you’re sure you want to do this, though.”

The other ghost blinked. “Of course, I want to do this. Why wouldn’t I?”

The nerd bit his lip. “Well...I should tell you not to go through the portal. You could get trapped on the other side and ghosts that get trapped in the material realm...they starve. They get weak and desperate and angry.” He shivered. “It’s a horrible way to exist but…” He looked up. “If you think you need to do this, I’ll help you.” His eyes flickered to the floor. “If I had another chance to talk to my parents, I’d take it.”

“Your...parents?” Phantom asked quietly.

Sidney wrapped his arms around himself. “They moved away from Amity Park after I….you know.” His voice quieted. “By the time I found this portal, it was too late. They’d already moved.” He shivered. “I know it would have hurt them to see me like this but...I still wish I could have. I should have told them how much I loved them, how sorry I was that all this happened.”

That sobered Phantom. For a long moment, he stared at the other ghost and it really hit him. This was a dead teenager, a dead kid who’d had family and friends. Hopes, dreams, memories. A life...just like him. “We’re not...we’re not that different.” Ghost Danny muttered.

Sidney finally looked up. “No, I don’t think that we are. So…” The other ghost shifted nervously in the air. “I don’t know what all happened with your mom but….talk to her.” His voice pitched up, hopeful yet sad. Not demanding but a kind suggestion from someone with experience...and regrets. “Try to make things right with her if you can. Don’t give up yet.”

Phantom swallowed, considering. He didn’t really know what to think of the other ghost’s advice. Earlier, right after the fight, he might have been angry at the suggestion. He’d tried to make things right and had failed; it wasn’t his responsibility to try again if there was no fixing things but...Mom’s face flashed in his mind again. Her guilt, her desperation as he darted through the portal. And it was simple. She was his mom and he loved her, damnit. He couldn’t just turn that off, couldn’t stop wanting her to love and accept him. He couldn’t stop hoping that she would.

“Alright.” Ghost Danny wrung his hands. “I’ll...keep that in mind.” The way he saw it, another conversation was inevitable. Knowing his sister and dad, they would insist on talking about everything as a family. But he had a choice about how he would approach that conversation. Maybe he could approach it with the hope that things would get better, even if he’d be wary to trust again.

With that, Phantom pushed the thought away, focusing on the ghost in front of him, “Thank you for the advice. And for telling me stuff. I’ve learned a lot.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Man, I knew I didn’t know much but...I don’t seem actually to know anything at all.”

Sidney nodded. “No sweat, pal.” He half-smiled. “This is the most exciting day I’ve had in years. We can hang out ‘til the portal opens and I can answer more questions.”

“That would be awesome.” Phantom finally smiled. “You’re actually a really cool dude, Sidney.”

The other ghost beamed and ghost Danny was happy he’d managed to wander into this ghost’s lair. He’d be in big...err...bigger trouble if he hadn’t. He’d learned a ton about ghosts, gotten a much needed meal, and would be home in a few...hours. His thoughts trailed off at the end as he felt an excited mental nudge.

In the lair, Sidney physically nudged him. “Danny?” He questioned, pointing towards the mirror. His voice turned sad. “Is that what you looked like when you were alive?”

“When I was….alive?” Phantom turned and his eyes widened, taking in his reflection. In the mirror, he had black hair, blue eyes, and was wearing a white and red t-shirt.

Phantom! There was an excited exclamation in his head. At the same time, his reflection’s eyes widened.

“That’s not my reflection.” The ghost’s mouth stretched into a grin. He placed both hands on the mirror. “I’m here! I’m right here! I can see you.”

Across the mirror, Fenton smiled. You’re okay. The words were mouthed through the mirror and communicated in the ghost’s head.

“Yeah! I’m fine. I’m-” Phantom cut himself off as Fenton placed his own hands on the mirror, directly opposite his other half’s. Instantly, a warmth coursed into the ghost boy. His eyes widened as a wave of green passed over the mirror. “It’s open.” He muttered, sounding awed.

Phantom didn’t quite understand how but the portal was opened. And he needed to be on the other side of it, now. With little effort, he pressed his fingers out of the mirror. He curled them around the back of Fenton’s hand as if he and his other self were holding hands.

Fenton grinned and he pulled.

Behind Phantom, Sidney called. “What are you-”

Without resistance, Phantom slipped through the mirror and right into his other self’s arms.

#Danny Phantom #My fic #Face To Face #split danny #sidney poindexter #Ghost Catcher #double danny

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mischiefandspirits · 3 years

Text

Doppelgänger (11/?)

Previously on Doppelgänger ~ Masterlist ~ Next time on Doppelgänger

Danny, Sam, and Tucker were just 14 when they took a look inside the portal Danny’s parents had built. From there, everything changed. They woke up with white hair, green skin, and powers they could learn to control. They were hybrids, halfas.

They were the hero Doppelgänger.

{Life Lessons, Part 3}

The two ghosts led Valerie through the Ghost Zone in a weaving path. They were going at a pace slower than she was used to when dealing with them, but still fast enough that Danny had to hold on to keep from falling off.

“You okay?” she asked when his grip tightened during a turn.

“Yeah, just not used to it.”

“Maybe I should take you flying with me some time,” she said, glancing back at him and was pleased to see his smile.

“Sounds fun.”

The trip was thankfully short and soon enough Valerie was following the ghosts through a swirling vortex, coming out in the Fentons’ lab.

“Last stop, home,” Danny joked as he hopped down.

“What was that?”

All four teens froze at the voice before the ghosts darted through the walls and Valerie retracted her suit. A moment later, Danny’s parents came running down the stairs.

“Danny!” his mom shrieked when she saw them and the two adults swooped in to hug him. “We’ve been so worried! Are you okay? Did that awful ghost hurt you?”

“I’m-Mom, I’m-I’m okay! I-Dad, I can’t breath!”

The two pulled away and his mom held him at arm’s length to look him over. “You’re sure you’re okay?”

“I’m fine, mom. Really.”

She didn’t look convinced, but turned to the other teen. “Valerie Gray, right? Are you okay?”

“Uh, yes ma’am,” she said, blinking. “Um, how did you know…”

“Your boss saw you and Danny get attacked and called it in,” Mrs. Fenton explained. “We tried to track it, but we found out this morning that it managed to get back to the zone somehow without using our portal. We were just preparing the speeder so we could come find you.”

“But you managed to escape on your own,” Mr. Fenton said, slapping Danny on the back hard enough that he stumbled forward. “That’s our boy!”

“The ghost didn’t hurt you?” Mrs. Fenton asked, looking Valerie over as she’d done Danny.

“No. He was some sort of collector or something. He just stuck us in a cage, like zoo animals,” Danny said.

“Well, I suppose that’s better than the alternative. I still want to be sure, though. Jack, why don’t you call Damon and the police and tell them the kids are back.”

“Yes, dear.” Mr. Fenton ruffled Danny’s hair then ran upstairs.

Mrs. Fenton checked them both thoroughly for injuries then grabbed what she referred to as a first aid kit, but turned out to be a large toolbox full of medical equipment. She used it to check their eyes, lungs, and heart before measuring any ectoplasmic radiation they were giving off.

“A 0.3er,” she read off after scanning Valerie. When she saw the girl’s curious expression, she explained, “Lower than I would have thought, which is good. It’s a completely healthy reading. It also means the atmospheric ecto-rad level of the Ghost Zone might be lower than we were expecting.” She then turned to Danny and scanned him. “A 1.18er.”

“Is that bad?” Valerie asked, worried.

Danny shook his head. “I run hotter than most. My whole family does, really, but I got into an accident a few months back so I run even hotter. That’s not much higher than my usual.”

“We don’t start worrying until a person’s ecto-rad level reaches 1.5er,” Mrs. Fenton added. “That’s when ectoplasm starts to negatively affect a human’s body.”

“Mom, Mr. Gray is here,” Danny’s sister said, poking her head in. Her eyes widened. “Danny!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Danny gave a pleased sigh as he cuddled up between his partners.

“Sorry it took us so long to find you,” Sam said, squeezing him.

He kissed her cheek. “It’s not your fault. Besides, it was kind of fun tormenting Skulker. I think he was actually tempted to send us back towards the end there.”

“Only you would think annoying the crud out of the homicidal ghost keeping you prisoner was a good idea,” Tucker chuckled, nuzzling into his neck.

“That’s why you love me!” Danny nuzzled him back. “How did you guys find us?”

“Someone found video footage of Skulker going through that random portal on their CCTV camera and turned it over to the police,” Sam explained. “Jazz told us when they were bringing in your parents to see the video so we were able to come along invisibly.”

“Weird as it is, Jazz is probably the hero this time,” Tucker said. “She also got you and Val an A on your baby assignment.”

“Wait, seriously?”

“Yeah, she came by that night and told us you were missing, then took both sacks with her. Said something about giving us time to process.”

“Which was good because we were up all night trying to find you.”

“Then the next morning after she gave us ours back she went to Tetslaff and explained what had happened. We don’t know what she said, but she turned in the sack and when Tetslaff handed out grades, she said you’d get As for trusting someone so responsible and mature to babysit for you.”

“Wow, score one for teacher’s pet Jazz. Maybe we should bring her in on the secret.”

“You’re kidding, right?” Sam snorted.

“She’s even more overprotective of you than you are of anyone. She’d never leave us alone,” Tucker huffed.

Danny’s nose scrunched up as he remembered how Jazz had hovered over him for two months after his parents had accidentally left him at the Christmas tree lot when he was six. “Yeah, okay, that’s fair. I’ll have to do something nice for Jazz, though. So how’d you guys do on the baby thing anyways?”

Sam smirked. “Well, I got an A.”

Tucker grumbled something and pressed further into Danny’s neck.

{The Million Dollar Ghost}

“Thanks for covering for me, Sam,” Danny said as he scrubbed ectoplasm off the lab’s floor. “There’s no way I’d have been able to get my chores done with all the extra work Lancer assigned me.”

“It’s fine. As long as we cover the next poetry night.”

“I will.”

“Did we charge the bazooka already?”

“Yes, Mom.”

“Did we change the ecto-filtrator?”

Danny paused then went to do just that.

“We’d be lost without us,” Sam chuckled. “Did we talk to our dad about showing up at school?”

“Jazz and Mom were taking care of it when -”

“GUYS!”

“Tuck?”

“Volume!”

“Did you hear?” Tucker said, thankfully quieter.

“Hear what?”

“Turn on the tv! Amity news!”

“We’re on patrol,” Sam said as Danny went to the lab’s tv.

“Switching to FaceTime.”

“-etent, non-Jack Fenton ghost hunters in Amity Park has never been more obvious,” the news anchor was saying while footage of his dad’s attack on Lancer played. It switched back to the anchor and she continued. “Luckily a mysterious benefactor has offered a million-dollar bounty on the head of Amity Park’s most famous ghost and invited the world’s best-known ghost hunters to track her down.”

Danny’s jaw dropped as a picture of Tucker in ghost form appeared onscreen. “What?”

“Who on earth would place a bounty on us?”

“Besides Valerie, but we know she doesn’t have that kind of money,” Tucker added.

“Valerie wants to hunt us down herself, same for my parents,” Danny said. Then laughed. “Oh man, my dad is going to go crazy when he hears about this.”

“Dude, this is serious.”

“Aren't we worried? These are the best-known ghost hunters in the world!”

“Sam, they’re the best-known, they’re not the best,” he scoffed. “Trust me, I grew up around these people so I have a pretty good idea who’s going to show up. It will be great.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“We’ll admit, they don’t look threatening,” the trio said, watching the gathering of ghost hunters from atop a nearby building. “It’s actually kind of sad.”

“Tell me about it.” The trio flinched and turned to Valerie as she landed next to them.

“Hey. Hi. You here for the bounty?”

“Lucky for you, no.” She sat down on the edge next to them. “I don’t trust this bounty thing. I’m here for the same reason as you, the show. Danny said his dad would be here to show up the out-of-towners.”

The four watched as the Fenton parents ran over a pair of ATVs.

“And that’s only half the show.”

“What do you mean?”

“SAVE DOPPELGÄNGER!”

The four turned to see a horde of teenagers marching into the Nasty Burger parking lot, all waving signs saying things like, “Protect the ghost boy!”, “Freedom for the ghost girl!”, and even just their name or picture. Paulina and Dash were at the head of the charge with fierce looks on their faces.

“I found out the popular kids at my school were organizing a protest against the bounty.”

“Well, don’t we feel special.”

“Apparently Paulina and Dash, the most popular sophomores, both have crushes on you.”

“Yikes. Wow. We don’t know if we should be flattered or creeped out.”

“You’re dead. It’s creepy.”

“Rude. Do they think we’re a guy or a girl?”

“Dash is adamant you’re a girl. Probably to soothe his poor straight heart. Paulina thought you were a guy, but I think my friend Star said something to her after I let it slip you might be non-binary because she’s been using they pronouns lately.”

“That’s… more forward-thinking than I assumed she could be. Given she’s the popular type.”

“She’s bi. As long as you weren’t femme, she would have been game.”

“Oh.”

“She’s still in the closet, so don’t say anything to anyone.”

“We won’t.”

Screams sounded over the arguing and the four looked back to the crowd to see a trio of bird ghosts dive-bombing the hunters.

“Those are Plasmius’s vultures. Should have known he was behind this whole thing.”

“Plasmius,” Valerie asked.

“A fruit loop of a ghost.”

“Let me guess, he hates you too?”

“Worse, he wants us as his kid. Tried to kill our dad and kidnapped our mom once.”

“Seriously?”

“Unfortunately. Do you mind taking care of this? The out-of-towners are idiots, but we’d rather not test the Fentons.”

She shrugged and climbed to her feet. They watched her drop down and start firing on the birds until a voice sounded behind them.

“Not going to lend your father a hand, Daniel?”

The trio turned to see Vlad floating behind them.

“Wow, you look even stupider than we sai-remember. You do realize the modern interpretation of vampires is a hot person, right?”

“I see you’ve been working on your duplication then,” he said with a scowl. “You do realize you don’t have to talk together, don’t you ?”

“You do realize there are better uses for your time than bothering a teenager, don’t you? Shouldn't you be getting home to the love of your life? Oh, that’s right! Our dad married the love of your life. We’re trying to watch the show, do you mind?”

Vlad scowled and fired on them.

“Should we really be teasing the older, stronger half-ghost? Well, we do outnumber him.”

Vlad split in three.

“Now we don’t.”

Sam raised a shield around her and Tucker while he grabbed onto the GAV’s controls and used it to fire on Vlad. Meanwhile, Danny put his speed to use diving around the three Vlad’s.

“You’ve gotten better,” one Vlad said as Danny curled around his blast, a bit of frustration leaking into his voice.

“And you’ve gotten worse,” they said.

Was it just Danny or were the Vlad’s slower and weaker than usual? Did duplication cut their power?

Interesting, and good to know for Sam.

A green blast flew by and Danny looked down to see they’d gotten the hunters’ attention.

Danny turned back to the Vlads and fired at the one closest to him. A pink blast joined his and the Vlad disappeared.

“Your stalker?” Valerie asked.

“Yup.”

“I believe that’s my cue to leave,” a Vlad said and they teleported away.

“And ours,” the trio said as a few more of the hunters’ blasts flew past them.

Valerie turned her blaster towards Danny, who raised his hands. “Thought you weren’t going for the bounty.”

“I’m not. This is for me.”

Sam and Tucker shot away as Danny flew down towards the crowd, distracting all the hunters and waving at their fans before he dove straight into the ground. He came up in an alley where his partners were waiting and all three transformed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“I knew there was something sketchy about this mess,” Valerie said as she looked over her pistol. “I didn’t think a ghost would be the one placing the bounty though.”

“Ghost?” Danny said, coming back over with a now-empty thermos.

“Yeah, some enemy of the ghost kid. They said he wants them as his kid, but I don’t even know how that works for ghosts.”

“No clue. Maybe he’s just insane.”

“Probably.”

Valerie’s phone went off and she pulled it out. “There’s an attack downtown.”

He leaned in as she brought up a live feed.

A large, t-rex-looking ghost was stomping through the street. Sam and Tucker were already there, firing on its head. The hunters, Danny’s parents included, could be seen chasing them in the background.

“You going to join them?” Danny asked, pulling back and grabbing Valerie’s grenade launcher. His partners looked like they had it and they’d give him a call if they didn’t.

“And risk getting into another ghost discussion with those pathetic excuses for hunters? Pass.”

“You should see them at one of the conventions.”

The two worked in silence until Danny’s ghost sense went off and a device on the counter next to them started beeping.

“Ghost?” Danny grabbed it and checked it. “It shouldn’t be picking up the fight from here.”

Valerie loaded the cartridge back into her pistol while Danny grabbed the only other operational weapons on the table, the thermos and Fenton Ghost Gloves.

The vultures flew through the ceiling, then froze. “You should not be here.”

Valerie blasted all three in the face.

Danny grabbed one in one hand and sucked the second into the thermos with the other before they could recover. The third dodged around another blast from Valerie, only for the Jack o' Nine Tails to come shooting out of the stairs and wrap around it.

Jazz slammed it into the floor as she came into the lab. “You guys okay?”

“We’re fine,” Danny said, sucking the last two into the thermos. “You?”

“Fine. I was just heading into the kitchen to grab a snack and saw them flying by.” She watched as Danny went to empty the thermos, then turned to Valerie. “What are you guys doing down here?”

“Well now, isn’t this a surprise?”

The teens looked up to see Vlad hovering over the lab.

“Great, another uninvited guest,” Danny groaned.

The ghost turned to him in shock. “Daniel?”

He raised an eyebrow. “Do I know you?”

Valerie shot Vlad before he could do anything else.

Jazz tried to grab him with the nine tails, but he caught it out of the air and yanked it away from her. Danny used the distraction to punch him in the back. He smirked down at the gauntlets when the older halfa was sent into the wall.

Valerie slid up to his side as Jazz grabbed the Fenton Foamer off a table and blasted Vlad. “Trade you.”

Knowing from personal -- bruising -- experience that Valerie was better at hand-to-hand, Danny passed her the gauntlets and took the pistol.

The kids didn’t give Vlad a chance to breathe, switching quickly between Valerie beating him into the ground and the Fentons shooting him out of the air. Soon enough, Danny was opening the portal so Valerie could toss him through.

“And don’t come back!” he yelled before shutting it. He turned and smiled at Valerie before meeting Jazz’s eyes. “Mom and Dad never hear of this?”

“Agreed.”

#danny phantom #danny fenton #valerie gray #sam manson #tucker foley #Doppelgänger au

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thebestbooksaround · 4 years

Note

Second ask because I didn't want to post both in the same one. Hope that's okay! Do you know any rare pair fics? I read a Stiles/Danny fic and loved it and would love to read more! Possibly Stiles and Parish or Derek and Parish???

Hello! I mostly read Steter and Sterek, but I have read a couple that doesn’t feature them as the main pair.

Elemental by Copperspecks

Stargent | 20k | Teen

Chris is a man driven by guilt and desperation. Stiles is a lost, stolen child who thrums with undeniable power. Chris knows he’ll do whatever it takes to save the only family he has left, no matter what he has to do to succeed. One more sin can’t destroy an irredeemable soul.

Stained Glass Windows by KouriArashi

Petopher | 85k | Mature

Peter survives the fire and suddenly finds himself trying to raise children with only a vague notion of what he's doing, while trying to cope with his own grief and find his family's murderer. He ends up turning to Chris Argent for help, and nothing goes as expected.

'll Dissolve When The Rain Pours In, When The Nightmares Take Me by clotpolesonly

Stackson | 38k | Teen

When Stiles finally managed to contort himself the right way without causing injury, he stared at the words on his inner thigh. And then he stared some more, long enough for the water to grow cold around him, wondering if this was part of the dream. Finally he decided that it had to be real only because his subconscious was not creative enough to come up with this.

There, in freckle-brown letters stark against pale skin, was the name Jackson Whittemore.

Possible Still by rosepetals42

Skittles | 10k | Mature

Stiles gets very good at putting himself back together. He learns which cuts just need butterfly bandages and which need actual stitches and he knows to keep a needle threaded because trying to get everything ready when you're shaking from blood loss is fucking hard. (Not impossible though, he learns that too. There's not much that is impossible when you don't have any other options.)

Post 5A - Stiles may not be in the pack anymore, but that doesn't mean he's going to stop fighting.

Dude, bro by rosepetals42

Skittles Friendship | 7k | Teen

“It’s Mister Stilinski,” Stiles repeats. “That- uh. There’s a mistake. On the paperwork. It’s Mister.” That was all it was. Just a mistake on the paperwork. On the school records and his birth certificate and his social security card. On all the paperwork. But still, just a mistake. That’s what his therapists said. His cells had made a little mistake but it isn’t disgusting or wrong or sick. He isn’t a mistake. Just the papers. His body.

And I realize now that my list isn’t half as long as I thought... So if anyone has some good recs, send them our way!

Also, I am a HUGE Stetopher fan, so I don’t know if they count as rare, but they aren’t common?

Chaos is my Companion by Bunnywest

Stetopher | 16k | Mature

Stiles is plenty organized when it comes to important stuff like his work okay? It's just little things like finding his wallet, charging his phone, and keeping track of who the hell he has a date with that he has trouble with. _____________________________________________________________ Both men spot him at the same time. “Stiles?” they say in unison, and then stare at each other, looking slightly put out. “This is your date?” Peter says, a crease appearing between his brows. “Well, yeah.” (Chris, the mechanic’s name is Chris, Stiles’ mind finally supplies.) Two sets of eyes turn to him, and Stiles has a sudden sinking feeling in his gut. He remembers arranging to meet Peter, sure, but what’s Chris doing here?

Bigfoot Told Me You Were Coming by twothumbsandnostakeincanon (somanyofthekids)

Stetopher | 25k | Teen

Peter and Chris are on the run when they stumble across Stiles' home in the woods.

The Rule of Three by DiscontentedWinter

Stetopher | 70k | Mature

In order to make their relationship legitimate in the eye of wider society, alphas Chris Argent and Peter Hale have to claim an omega. Stiles Stilinski, who should be the solution to their problems, instead turns out to be the first piece in a puzzle that some elements in society would prefer remain unsolved.

All My Stars Aligned by Green

Stetopher | 21k | Explicit

Stiles needs to find an alpha ASAP. Actually, the doctors say he really needs two. Damn biology.

Chris and Peter are two alphas in hopeless, doomed love with each other.

Also, this one is Sterek, But Derek doesn’t show up until like halfway, and we get to read the amazingness that is Cora Hale and Stiles Stilinski’s friendship.

Dirty Little Secret by isthatbloodonhisshirt (wasterella)

Sterek | 91k | Explicit

“Holy shit, this is a date!” he blurted out, turning back to Derek wide-eyed. “This is a date! You intended for this to be a date, this was supposed to be a date!” He figured if he said it enough times, maybe he would believe it, but so far, no dice.

Derek was scowling again—seriously, did he want wrinkles?—but he just reached into one of the bags and pulled out a burger, checking what was written on the foil in sharpie before handing it over to Stiles.

“Of course it’s a date, what did you think this was?”

#fics i love #teen wolf #petopher #stetopher #stargent #skittles #stackson #stiles stilinski #Peter Hale #chris argent #jackson whittemore #scott mccall

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fandomrewrites · 4 years

Text

Season 1; Episode 9: Wolf’s Bane

Hi everyone! I hope you all like this chapter and are enjoying the story so far. As always constructive criticism is appreciated!

Season 1; Episode 9: Wolf’s Bane

Pairings: Scott McCall x Twin Sister, Lydia Martin x Best Friend, Nate Wilson (OC) x Reader

Warnings: Mild violence, swearing

Word Count: 3,919

Season 1 Masterlist

I gripped the wheel of Derek’s black Camaro as I was speeding through side streets of Beacon Hills. Scott was beside me in the passenger seat and Stiles was in the back. Kate Argent and another hunter were in a black SUV behind us, thinking that we were Derek. Scott and Stiles keep glancing out the rear windshield.

“Faster?” I ask.

“Much faster,” the two boys say in unison.

I step on the gas to speed up. Finger still tightly wrapped around the steering wheel.

Stiles blurts out from the back seat, “I don’t think you’re grasping the concept of car chase.”

“If I go faster I’ll kill us.”

Scott then speaks, “If you don’t go faster-”

Stiles interrupts, “A lot faster.”

Scott continues, “They’ll kill us.”

I sigh but step harder on the gas, glancing in the rear view mirror to check how close the other car is.

I turn a corner and Stiles looks behind him once more then says, “They’re gone.” He looks down at the police scanner in his lap and raises the volume. “All units, suspect is on foot headed north, last seen on Hancock.”

I quickly change direction, making my way towards the area Derek was last seen. I speed the car into an alley, where Derek is trying to get away from Mr. Argent.

The car screeches to a stop. Scott throws the passenger door open and screams at the werewolf, “Get in!” He then climbs into the backseat beside Stiles as Derek pushes off the ground and throws his body into the car.

As soon as he is inside I slam my foot back onto the gas and speed away from Argent.

From the backseat Scott immediately starts scolding Derek, “What part of laying low don’t you understand?”

Derek ignores him and lightly hits the door with his fist, “I had him.”

“Who? The Alpha?” Stiles sticks his head between the front seats.

“He was right in front of me. And then the police showed up.”

“Hey, hey, hey, they’re just doing their jobs.” Stiles defends.

“Thanks to someone who decided to make me the most wanted fugitive in the state.”

Derek and I simultaneously glare at Scott as he finishes talking. Scott then gets annoyed, “Can we seriously get past that? Yes, I made a dumb ass mistake. I get it.”

“I told you it was stupid to blame him, it’s why I told Sheriff I never saw him.”

Stiles ignores our argument and asks Derek, “How’d you find him?”

The werewolf falls silent at the question. Scott sighs, “Can you try to trust us for half a second?”

“All three of us.” Stiles says, once again sticking his head between the seats. Derek glares and Stiles shrinks back allowing Scott to take his place.

Derek takes a breath before answering, “The last time I talked to my sister, she was close to figuring something out. She found two things. The first was a guy named Harris.”

“Our chemistry teacher?” Stiles asks as I knit my eyebrows together and frown.

Scott then asks, “Why him?”

“I don’t know.”

“What’s the second?” I prompt.

“Some king of symbol,” Derek then reaches into his jacket pocket and pulls our a folded piece of paper. When he opens it I glance over to see a simple photocopy. I hear Scott sigh as I suck in a breath.

Derek glances between us, “What? You know what this is?”

I nodded as my twin answers, “I’ve seen it. On a necklace.”

“Allison’s necklace,” I whisper as I slow the Camaro.

*_*_*_*_*_*

The next day Scott, Stiles and I arrive at school together. As we make our way through the double doors Scott speaks up, “This is going to be impossible, you know? Why can’t you just do it, (Y/N)?”

“Because I like seeing you sweat,” I smirk.

Stiles interrupts before Scott can start arguing, “Just ask her if you can borrow it.”

“How?”

“Simple. You ask. Hey Allison, can I borrow your necklace to see if there’s something on it or in it that will lead me to an Alpha werewolf I need to kill in order to get back together with you.”

I burst out laughing as Scott glares at us, “You’re not helping.”

“Just talk to her.” I answer when I stop laughing. “It’s about time you have a conversation anyway.”

“She won’t talk to me. And what if she only takes it off when she’s like in the shower?”

“That’s why you ease your way into it. Get back on her good side. Remind her of the good times. Then you ask for the necklace.” Stiles advises his best friend.

There’s a pause in conversation as we both turn to look at Scott, who has a dazed look on his face, “You’re thinking about her in the shower, aren’t you?”

I start shaking my head as Scott says yes. Stiles then snaps in his face, “Stay focused. Get the necklace, get the Alpha, get cured, get Allison back.”

“In that order.” I add on.

Scott nods, “Get the necklace.” We then separate as we make our way to class but before I make it to history I spot Lydia down the hall. I quickly make my way over to her and gently pull her into an empty room.

“Why did you kiss Scott?” I ask before she can speak.

She looks slightly taken back, “I never-”

“Don’t try that Lyds. You and I both know I’m great at telling when people are lying.”

She sighs and her shoulder’s slump, “I guess just knowing how well he’s been doing in lacrosse and knowing that you were right about him trying to protect us the other night...” She trails off.

“You just couldn’t help yourself?” I raise my eyebrow waiting for her to continue.

“I know that sounds horrible and I’m a total bitch.”

“You know I love you and that will never change, but for someone as smart as you, sometimes you’re really dumb.”

She purses her lips then links her arm with mine as we head out the room. Only separating when I get to my class.

*_*_*_*_*_*

After first period I stopped by my locker then went to find Nate. As I walked towards his locker I spotted Danny, “Hey, Danny.” I smiled, “Have you seen Nate?”

“Yeah, he was headed to the stairs about a minute ago.” He pointed in the direction he was talking about.

“Thanks,” I quickly made my way to where Danny pointed.

As I turned the corner something caught my eye in an empty classroom. I paused for a minute peering in. Inside the class were two people, a boy and a girl. I couldn't make out either of their faces but they were standing very close and had their arms wrapped around each other.

As I took the two teens in, I noticed a red backpack on the table beside them. It was then that I realized who the guy in the room was. I jumped when the warning bell rang, the two teens springing apart and fixing their clothes.

I stumble away from the door, my fingers wrapped tightly around the strap of my backpack. I abruptly turned and walked away before either person noticed I was there.

I walk into class a minute late and sit in the last available seat, the one right near Stiles. I mumble a quick apology to the teacher and she continues class.

Stiles leans over noticing my dazed look, “Are you alright?”

I stiffly nod keeping my eyes locked on the notebook in front of me.

*_*_*_*_*_*

As soon as class ends I quickly stand up and head out the door. Stiles chases after me and unfortunately catches up. He grabs my hand yanking me to a stop, “Hey, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing. Can you please let me go?” I answer emotionlessly.

“Something clearly happened. You look like you’re about to cry.”

I gulp then shake my arm loose. I run a hand through my hair and take a deep breath, “I don’t want to talk about it. At least not right now.”

Stiles nodded, face full of concern as I turned and walked away.

I opened my locker and shoved my books inside and quickly slammed the door shut. I headed to the cafeteria but when I see my friends sitting together, I couldn’t bring myself to sit with them. So instead I looked for Scott.

The minute I saw Scott I made my way to his table and sat down.

“Why aren’t you sitting with your friends?”

“You and Stiles are my friends too.”

Scott raised his eyebrows and opened his mouth to speak but before he could, Stiles dropped his tray on the table sitting beside me.

He quickly glanced at me but then turned to Scott, “Did you get her to give you the necklace?”

“Not exactly.”

“So no.” I deadpan.

At the same time Stiles asks, “What happened?”

“She told me not to talk to her. At all.”

“Great job.” I roll my eyes, both boys look at me, clearly wondering why I’m being so bitchy.

Instead of acknowledging me Stiles brings his attention back to Scott, “Did you find anything else?”

“Just that I know nothing about girls and they’re totally psychotic.”

I glare at Scott as he mumbles, “Sorry.”

Stiles sighs, stopping us from an argument he knew was bound to happen, “Okay. I came up with a Plan B in case something like this happened.”

“What’s Plan B?” Scott asks as his eyes fill with hope.

“Just steal the stupid thing.”

Before Scott can react his eyes drift behind us. I turn my head to see what he’s staring at to meet the gaze of Jackson.

“He’s watching us.” Stiles then turns his head to follow our eyes.

“Why is he watching is?” I question, clearly left out of the loop.

“He found out that Scott’s a werewolf.”

My eyes widen, “What? How?”

“We don’t know.”

“Just act normal,” Scott speaks up for the first time since catching Jackson’s eye.

Scott looks panicked as Stiles and I watch him, “What’s wrong?”

“Jackson’s talking to me. He knows I can hear him.” Stiles starts to turn around as I lightly slap his arm and Scott continues to talk, “Look at me. Talk to me. Pretend like nothing’s happening.”

Scott stares at his tray as he tries to concentrate on anything but Jackson’s voice.

It’s silent at our table as Scott clenches his teeth and look up at us, “Say something. Talk to me.”

“I... I don’t know what to say. My mind’s blank.” Stiles speaks, panic lacing his voice.

“Your mind’s blank? You can’t think of something to say?”

“Not under this kind of pressure! And FYI, he’s not sitting with them anymore.”

Scott and I both turn our heads to the table seeing that Jackson is no longer sitting there. My eyes drift and notice that Nate isn’t there anymore either.

Scott breaks me from my train of thought, “Where the hell is he?”

I can tell Scott is getting angry but before I can say anything a hand is place on my shoulder. I turn and follow the arm up to see Nate standing slightly behind me, “Hey babe, why aren’t you sitting with is?”

I knock his hand off my shoulder and stand up making my way out of the cafeteria, knowing that he was going to follow.

Once we are in the hall we turn to each other, “What’s wrong, baby?”

“Don’t play dumb.”

“Seriously, (Y/N/N). Why are you mad at me?” He knits his eyebrows together and tries to grab my hand.

Before he can touch me, I slightly back away and cross my arms, “I saw you” I say through clenched teeth.

“Saw me what? You’re going to have to be more clear babe.”

I hold out my hand, “Don’t,” I whisper, tears threatening to spill. I take a deep breath before I continue, “I saw you and Claire kissing.”

Nate’s mouth drops open, he quickly starts speaking, trying to defend his actions, “(Y/N), I...”

“Don’t try to come up with an excuse Nate. No one is going to treat me like that.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means I’m over this stupid relationship.”

“(Y/N), please. You don’t mean that, baby. I love you.”

“Don’t try.” I choke out, tears now falling freely down my cheeks. “We’re done.” I turn away from him quickly wiping at my face.

*_*_*_*_*_*

At the end of the day I find Stiles heading to his car, “Wait up!”

He turns at the sound of my voice. “Can I hang out with you? I don’t really want to be around anyone else at the moment.”

“Yeah of course. Hop in.” He opens the passenger side door for me and I smile as I step into his jeep.

As he pulls out of the parking space I can see him glancing at me from the corner of his eye. Finally he breaks the silence, “Are you-”

Before he can finish the sentence I interrupt, “I caught Nate cheating on me.”

“He what?”

“He was kissing Claire. I confronted him about it when he came up to our table at lunch and I broke up with him.”

There was a pause as Stiles took in the information, “I’ll punch him for you. Do you want me to punch him for you?”

I cracked a smile as I looked at him, “No, if anyone gets to punch him I want to.”

He gently smiled back, “Are you okay?”

I sighed, “I don’t know.”

He just nodded as he continued to his house.

When we finally got there, we quickly made our way to his room. Both of us throwing our bags to the floor as I go to sit on his bed and he goes on his computer. “Stiles?” We hear his dad call.

“Yes,” We both turn to face the door and see Derek.

“Derek?” We both ask, looking at him with wide eyes. We both then quickly shut our mouths just as Mr. Stilinski cracks the door open.

“What did you say?” He asks, “Hi (Y/N).”

“Hi Mr. Stilinski.”

“Yes, Dad?”

“Just headed back to work. But I’m coming tonight. Your first game.”

“Great.”

Mr. Stilinski doesn’t make any move to leave, “I’m so unbelievably proud of you.”

“So am I. Very proud. Of myself.”

The sheriff turns to leave then pauses and asks, “They’re really going to let you play this time?”

I nod my head and answer, “Yes, he made first line.”

Sheriff’s smile widens, “So proud.”

As soon as Mr. Stilinski shuts the door and walks away Derek speaks, “Scott didn’t get the necklace?”

“He’s still working on it. But there’s something else we can try. When we were trapped in the school that night Scott sent a text to Allison telling her to meet him there.” Stiles replies.

“So?”

“Scott didn’t send the text.” I answer.

“Can you find out who sent the text?”

Stiles shakes his head, “No. But we know someone who can.”

*_*_*_*_*_*

After waiting for a few minutes Danny walks into Stiles’ room with his bag hanging over his shoulder.

“You want me to do what?”

“Trace a text.” Stiles says like it’s no big deal.

“I came here to do lab work. That’s what lab partners do.”

“And we will. After you trace the text.”

“What makes you think I know how?”

“I saw your arrest report.” Stiles shrugs.

“I... That was... I was only thirteen. The charges were dropped. No. We’re doing lab work.”

Danny pulls up a chair to sit beside Stiles at his desk. I was casually laying on Stiles bed and Derek was sitting in a chair as far away from Stiles and Danny, reading a magazine trying to look inconspicuous.

Danny leans over to Stiles, “Who is he again?”

Before Stiles can answer I reply, remember the lie I told Nate, “His cousin...” I trail off not thinking of a name.

Stiles continues for me, “Miguel.”

Derek glares over the top of his magazine as Stiles cringes. “Is that blood on his shirt?” Danny asks.

“He gets horrible nosebleeds. Miguel, I thought I told you to just borrow one of my shirts?”

My lips immediately pull into a smile. Seeing Derek shirtless is just what I need today.

Derek’s glare hardens, he slowly stands up and puts the magazine down. He moves to Stiles’ closet, looking at his shirts.

Stiles starts talking to Danny but my attention stays focused on Derek.

“Stiles,” Derek grumbles. He is holding a shirt in his hands, “This... no fit.”

“Try something else.”

Derek pulls out another shirt and Stiles speaks, a smirk evident in his voice, “That looks good. What do you think, Danny?”

“Huh?”

“The shirt?”

“I think... I think it’s a nice shirt.”

“Think he should try something else?”

“I do,” I mumble, knowing that Derek would hear me. As he quickly fixes his glare on me I lick my lips but just as fast as he turns his attention on me he turns back to the boys.

Danny is having trouble speaking but manages to get out, “It’s... It’s not exactly his color.”

Annoyed, Derek pulls off the T-shirt, exposing his abs once again. I bite my lower lip raking my eyes up and down Derek’s body as I hear Stiles whisper something to Danny.

Derek looks over at the boys once more, “None of these fit.” And once again the t-shirt comes off and I get to sit back and admire his gorgeous stomach.

Derek finally picked out a shirt and y eyes move to Danny who is tracing the text. After a couple of minutes he speaks, “There. The text was sent from a computer. This one.”

Derek and I move to stand behind the two high school boys to look at the screen. Derek then asks, “Registered to that account name?”

“That can’t be right,” Stiles says. My mouth is hanging open in surprise. The name on the screen reads Beacon Hills Hospital - Melissa McCall.

Danny soon leaves and Stiles, Derek and I make our way to the hospital.

I sit in the back of the jeep staring down at my phone as Stiles speaks with Scott. He’s on speaker phone but the words aren’t registering. Nate keeps texting me and trying to call.

He’s apologizing and asking if I’m coming to the game tonight.

I close my eyes and take a breath, gripping my phone tightly. I finally open my eyes and shove my phone back into my pocket, tuning back into the conversation just as Derek asks, “Is there anything on the back of it? There has to be something. An inscription. An opening. Something.”

“No, the thing’s flat. And no it doesn’t open. There’s nothing in it, on it, around it, nothing. And where are you, Stiles? You’re supposed to be here. You’re first line.” There’s a pause then Scott continues, “You won’t play if you’re not here.”

“I know. If you see my dad, tell him... tell him I’ll be there. Just a little bit late.”

He hangs up. Derek begins speaking the moment Stiles’ phone is in his pocket, “You’re not going to make it.”

“I know.”

“And neither of you said anything about your mother,” Derek continues looking at me.

“Not until we know the truth.”

We all turned to look at the looming building that is Beacon Hills Hospital.

Stiles opens his door but Derek stops him before he can get out, “Wait.” Instead of saying anything else he punches Stiles’ shoulder.

“OW! What was that for?” Stiles grips his arm as he gapes at Derek in shock.

“You know what that was for. Now go.”

Stiles gets out and waits in front of the jeep for me to follow. I climb over the seats and into the drivers spot but once again Derek stops me before I can get fully out, “Was it really necessary for you to be drooling over me too?”

“Yeah, I’ve had a sucky day. I needed it.” I shrug then step out of the jeep, making my way to Stiles.

*_*_*_*_*_*

Stiles and I pace the empty hospital corridor looking for Derek’s uncle, Peter’s room. There is an eerie silence surrounding is. Stiles then picks up his phone talking to Derek, “We can’t find her.” There’s a pause as Derek answers. “Yeah well, he’s not here either.” Another pause as my mind races, oh no, “He’s not here. He’s gone.”

I turn to look down the hall when Stiles talks. My eyes land on a man with a half burned face and a long coat. He has a seemingly friendly smile on his face as his eyes meet mine.

Out of the corner of my eye I see Stiles lower his phone and turn his head to look in the direction of the man.

“You must be (Y/N) and Stiles.”

I suck in a big breath and quickly find Stiles hand to clutch onto. We both take a shaky step back then see Jennifer, Peter’s nurse, standing on the other end of the corridor.

“What are you doing here? Visiting hours are over.” She states.

Stiles and I look between the Alpha and his nurse. He starts nervously mumbling, “You... and him... you’re the one who... and he’s the one... Oh, my God. We’re going to die.”

Once the words tumble out of his mouth a hand presses to Jennifer’s cheek and slams her head into the wall making her crumble to the ground.

“That wasn’t nice. She’s my nurse.” Peter pouts mockingly.

“She’s a psychotic bitch helping you kill people.” Derek says to his uncle. He then turns to me and Stiles, “Get out of the way.”

Derek opens his mouth revealing sharpened fangs, he lowers in an attack pose. Stiles whispers. “Oh, damn.”

We both press ourselves to the wall as Derek launches himself at Peter. Peter however barely moves. His eyes flash red and he grabs Derek by the jacket, slamming into the wall. The wall cracks on impact. Peter then slams him into the opposite wall with the same result.

I stand shocked, frozen to my spot against the wall. Stiles pulls me down so we can avoid being hit by the wall plaster that crumbles around us.

Peter drops Derek and drags him towards the nurses body, “You think I killed Laura on purpose? One of my own family?” Peter pauses digging through his nurses unconscious body for her car keys. “My mind, my personality, was literally burned out of me. I was being driven by pure instinct.”

Stiles and I slowly start crawling away but we can still hear Peter and Derek. “You want forgiveness?”

“I want understanding. Do you have any idea what was happening to me in those years? Slowly healing cell by cell. Then even more slowly coming back to consciousness. Yes, becoming Alpha, taking that from Laura, it pushed me over the plateau in the healing process. I can’t help that. And I tried to tell you what was happening. I tried warning you.”

Stiles and I slowly inch ourselves towards the Morgue, where Derek and Peter last were. But when we peek around the corner, neither werewolf is in sight.

#sister mccall imagine #series rewrite #teen wolf imagine #lydia martin imagine

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lonely-bored-writer · 4 years

Text

Casper High Ch. 10

Danny never realized that there was a place in Amity Park he had never really experienced, and this one was one he knew he was going to make sure he went to even after the Winchesters left town. It was different and it was something he never realized he missed. Amity Park wasn't known for many things now, and it wasn't the most attractive place. It had its perks, of course, and Amity park will always be Danny's home. No matter what memories it held, every place has it's good and bad. This however, this was something he didn't really realize about Amity so it was something else.

"Wow." Danny trailed off, staring in awe. In the corner of his eye he could see Sam watching him with a grin. The sky was a beautiful bluish-purple color with splashes of orange and red streaking the atmosphere. However, that wasn't what took his breath away; the night sky was clear, showing the hundreds of stars that splattered the sky like paint splatters.

Even as a small town, Amity never had many stars in the night- the light from the buildings and the street lights helped to lessen the brightness of those stars so that they were barely noticeable. When Sam started driving towards the woods, Danny had expected a picnic but he didn't expect it to be under such clear stars. This spot was just far enough that the light pollution didn't fog the view of the sky, but not too far from the town that it wasn't worth the drive (or the fly in Danny's case if he ever wanted to take a spin as a ghost).

"You like it?" Sam asked, looking slightly nervous as he glanced around the clearing. Sam had Danny wait with his eyes closed for a few minutes as he rustled around. Once given the go ahead, Danny opened his eyes to a picnic. The kicker was the fact that the spread was not on the ground as you would expect, but rather everything was settled on the hood of the Impala.

"I love it." Danny turned back, giving Sam a big grin. The smile the taller teen gave brought a flutter all through Danny's stomach and chest. It was all so beautiful, and wonderful. However Danny couldn't help the nagging feeling in the back of his head that there was more to this than he was being told. He trusted Sam, whatever it was he knew Sam would tell him, so he shouldn't be worried. Swallowing down the knot that formed, Danny spoke. "You actually surprised me, how'd you find out about this? Does Dean approve of us sitting on top of his car and possibly scuffing the paint?" He asked, looking up at the sky and glancing among the trees.

"Well, one of Dean's co-workers mentioned it." Sam blushed, running a hand through his hair. Danny couldn't help but find the flustered Sam a little cute- this has to be the most nervous Danny has seen Sam, which only really adds to his worry, regardless of how adorable the youngest Winchester can be. "He went camping here a few times. And yes, Dean suggested it. But he made me promise I lay out the blanket first just in case." Sam continued, reaching for one of the bags.

"Aw, you know me too well." Danny laughed as Sam brandished a red sugar-free monster. The teen could recount the amount of times Sam made a comment about the amount of energy drinks Danny has consumed around him. It wasn't always for the caffeine- sometimes the flavor was just craved.

"I might not approve of your caffeine addiction," Sam joked, handing Danny his drink. "But having it only sometimes isn't all that bad." Danny grinned, cracking the can open and taking a sip. Sam really did think of everything; just the realization that Sam's focused enough to remember his favorites made his heart flutter.

"You really thought of everything." Danny smiled fondly, looking among the array of food laying out on the blanket covered hood. Their favorite meals from the Nasty Burger along with the few dessert options they had.

The night flowed easily for the two of them, each moment filled with laughter and conversation. Sharing stories from their time before the two met, and even recalling events that happened during their time knowing each other. Danny hadn't laughed this much since his best friends left. Life seemed to fall darker the months that followed their absence, the Winchester brothers were a nice distraction from it all, even if it was only temporary.

However Danny wasn't completely oblivious, he knew this was out of the blue. Something had to be up, and he could feel it. Sam was a little distracted through their time under the stars, occasionally falling slightly too far into his thoughts. Tonight felt special, different in all the ways that mattered, and maybe tonight was the time to say something.

"Sam."

"Danny." The halfa chuckled as the other spoke at the same time.

"Uh- you go first." Sam laughed along, causing Danny to shake his head.

"You can go first, it's not that important." Danny brushed off, waving his hand around, feeling his nerves growing stronger with each passing second.

"Danny, you know I really enjoy being here. More than the other schools I've been to, but..." Sam paused, taking a breath and meeting Danny's gaze. "But in my family, and my dad's job, we always move." Danny noted the sad look that Sam tried to mask, offering him his own sad smile.

"I know your dad isn't a mechanic." Danny spoke, watch Sam tense before quickly continuing, not wanting to make Sam more anxious than he had to. "But I won't ask you what the real reason is, because I trust you. Everyone has their thing, and I know you know I do as well. You are doing so to protect your family and I understand and I don't blame you." Danny chuckled, trying to lighten the mood.

"I'm sorry, I don't want to lie nor leave but I can't stay." Sam spoke, the sadness growing heavy. Danny turned, grabbing one of Sam's hands.

"I don't want you to, this has been the best time I've had in a long time, but life happens." Danny paused, swallowing down his emotions. As much as he'd like to demand the truth, get confirmation, and tell Sam he doesn't have to follow his father's footsteps, he knows it's not his place. "When do you leave?"

"Tomorrow." Sam answered. Danny felt his heart clinch, that why Sam did this. Tonight was the last time they were going to hang out.

"Let's not spoil tonight then?" Danny asked, watching Sam chuckled softly with a nod.

"Yea."

Danny tugged Sam down to lay down next to him with the hand he had yet to release. The two teens laid side by side, laced hands resting between them on the blanket-covered hood of the car as they watched the stars above them.

Danny couldn't shake the heavy feeling that weighed on him when Sam drove him home late that night, and as he pulled the taller teen into a hug before he left. The feeling sunk heavier and heavier with every step towards his home. The sounds of his parents tinkering in the lab rang loudly in the air as he made his way to the kitchen.

Through habit he put together a meal for his parents, mostly leftovers from the night prior. Heating it before stumbling down the stairs, Danny placed it on a table, wanting to be as unnoticed as possible. His eyes landed on the current experiment, a small ghostly bug laid huddled in the corner of a clear case, wire traveling the various different parts of the unfortunate ghost. Danny swallowed, feeling bad for the little guy, but he also knew better than to try and release it with his parents still working on it.

He placed the plate in the same place as usual, gathering the small pile of plates placed nearby. Danny stepped softly towards the stairs- he had made it this far and he didn't want to be caught now. All he really wanted to do was get to bed and let the events of the day hit him. However, life, and death, liked to hit him with a train repeatedly.

"Danny boy!" The sudden shout caused the teen to jump, turning to be met with his parents looking at him. Danny swallowed, offering a smile to his parents, but it came out shaky and queasy, but it wasn't like his parents cared enough about him to notice.

"Did you just get in?" Maddie asked, wiping ectoplasm onto a stained towel. Danny swallowed again, trying to ignore the nausea that waved over him. That was blood. Blood that took up half the volume of his own veins.

"Uh yea, I was out with Sam." Danny answered, taking a small step towards the exit. "I was just going to-"

"Do you want to see what we're working on?!" Jack exclaimed, waving towards a set of wires not connected to anything. Danny tensed, smiling nervously, alarms blared in his head and he needed out, like right now.

"I was actually thinking I'll head to bed early and catch up on sleep before school." Danny answered, hoping it was going to save him this time around.

"Nonsense." Maddie smiled, reaching towards her son and dragging him closer. "It will only take a moment."

"Yea kiddo." Jack slapped his back, cause Danny to hold back a wince.

"Uhh, sure." Danny smiled nervously, there was no way out and Sam and Dean weren't gonna be there tomorrow to help him bandage whatever his parents were going to do to him. Danny wasn't enthused that he would have to get used to throwing together care for his wounds himself until he could finally leave his parents behind.

Danny groaned softly, falling back into his bed. Eyes stared into the ceiling as various parts of him felt on fire. The plus side was that no skin was broken, but the downside was that he could feel it deep in his muscles, the grasping fingers of pain trying their best to reach past the limits of his muscles to dig its claws deep into his bones. He knew he was going to be ridiculously sore in the morning, but it really could be worse.

That's when it hit him, the news that was dropped on him today. Sam was leaving, which means so was Dean. The two people who were there for him, who cared for him in such a short time. Who he cared for. They were the only people who gave Danny the time of day since his friends moved and Jazz moved out for college, when Danny fell back to being invisible except to bullies.

Danny sighed, curling onto his side. He didn't want life to fall back into the lonely routine he had before the Winchesters. It's true he still had his two best friends, but they were miles away. It's different to have someone here for you, only a few minutes away... Sam was different, someone Danny was pretty sure he couldn't forget easily even if he wanted to.

He understood, he knows that life can be different and people have things they have to do to protect not only themselves but other loved ones. Sam has to go, his family has some type of job they have to complete. Maybe Danny doesn't know the details, doesn't know why the Winchesters have to travel around and find trouble. All he knows is that's what they do, and even if he hoped they didn't, he won't try to talk them out of anything. He gets doing anything you can for family, he's not angry or upset about them leaving.

He's just... sad.

Tears finally welled in his eyes, no longer being able to hold them back. The warm tears slide across his cheeks and Danny curled in on himself tighter. He's been able to keep his feelings generally in check over all this time, even with everything that happened. But sometimes things just got too much, and he couldn't hold it in anymore.

#supernatural #supernatural fanfiction #Supernatural fanfic #SUPERNATURAL AU #superphantom #superphantomau #superphantom au #fanfiction #fanfic #fanfiction.net #fanficiton #danny #Danny Phantom #danny fenton #danny phantom fanfiction #phandom #phandoms #casper high

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goliath-de-senfina-sango · 5 years

Link

Fight Fight Fight, Talk Things Out?

Danny gives a firm talking to to his best buds, has a fight with an old lady, and then a talk with said old lady.

A cow float, a stage, a ‘meat on a stick’ stand, kids in steak and hot dog costumes, a guy with a grill that couldn’t possibly be legal to just put on school property, and a sign that read “United we eat meat.” These were the first things Danny saw when he got to school. Then he looked over at the other side of the schoolyard. A replica of the Mystery Machine, the biggest fake sunflower he’d ever seen in his life, and yet another stage were set up with people that Danny could only identify as hippies surrounding that stage with picket signs with “It’s easy being green,” and “Tofu for you” written on them.

“Literally, how?” Danny groaned as his friends both approached him, looking furiously determined and holding megaphones. He could feel the cold burn of his eyes flashing brilliant green once they were both in front of him. “ No. I don’t give two shits about the pettiness of your arguments right now. No .” His voice echoed and the teen watched his friends stop in shock. “I have had frankly enough of this argument. Here’s how it is. Sam, we need vegetables, yeah, we need healthier food than the school was giving us. Strong-arming them into switching everyone onto your diet, however, is the wrong way to go about it. What about other people’s dietary needs? What about people who need as much protein out of the lunch they get here as possible?” Sam had no answer for that.

“You coulda just gotten a list from everyone on what they thought should go on the menu, compile it with what was most common, and then have them change the menu to the healthiest versions of that so that everyone’s needs are met.” Danny huffed. “Respect other people’s needs and wants before just deciding what you think is best for them Sam. Isn’t that what you hate having done to you?” Sam looked struck, then guilty, and sighed, nodding.

“Yeah, ok, I guess I went overboard.”

“And you .” Danny whirled around and pointed his finger in Tucker’s face. “This is going to ridiculous extremes. How did you even do this? Don’t answer that, I don’t wanna know. This is only a week long change, you know that. Parents would’ve complained to the school about their kids being forced into someone else’s diets and the school would never do this again. More importantly!”

Shiver, mist. The sky darkened, the wind whipped up, and Danny swore he could hear cackling from everywhere. He looked over at the truck that Tucker had brought in and grabbed his best friend’s shoulder. “I’m going to punch you later for bringing a stars damned meat truck when we’re fighting a ghost who’s focusing in on meat .”

“That was my b,” Tucker admitted meekly. As the meat ripped out of the truck and flew through the air, Tucker and Sam slipped their wrist rays on and Danny ran to and slid under Tucker’s stage. The sound of something huge hitting the ground shook it, and Danny reached inside of himself. That humming ball of cold and void and out of reach stars, he plunged into it, and light washed over his body. The world changed, colors turning vivid and bright, strange colors he had no names for other than non-visible light raced into his eyes. The shadows were no longer black but silvery grey, the vast emptiness between molten starmetal and the blazing suns. Sounds and smells and feelings hit him that were all too alien to process. He reeled, nearly dropping the form. But he had something to do, he had a job to do.

Danny phased into the ground and popped up in front of the meat monster. It towered over him, so large Danny could barely see anything else. A check of his wrist showed that his ray was now pretty much melded into his hazmat. “Weird, question later, ass kick now.” Tuck and Sam were firing off rays while everyone else ran, and Danny charged forward. He lashed out with his foot to the… head, he supposed, of the meat, and it staggered backward away from the student body. She swung at him with a hand that moved faster than he’d anticipated, and Danny went flying. The world faded into unreality and he passed through what he vaguely knew were trees and the ground before stopping and righting himself. He flew under the ground, legs merging into a tail - also to freak out over later - and he zoomed. He emerged right under her and missed his uppercut as she stumbled backward from the rays that Sam and Tucker fired. Another fist grabbed him and Danny was slammed into the ground.

After a failed kick to the hand, Danny concentrated on his wrist ray and lined up the trigger that was sitting comfortably under his glove. Pull and - Agatha screamed from within her monster host, and Danny flew free. His ray was clearly bigger than the others, but he also felt drained. “Reserve for bigger fights.”

Danny weaved around her next few blows, kicking and punching the construct of processed meat backward away from the fleeing students and his friends. Flying in circles to orbit the monster, Danny picked up speed and slammed his foot into the head of the meat pile and it toppled to the ground.

Danny took a moment to breathe, glad to find he could if he didn’t think too hard about it. A fist came into view and Danny went soaring up and up and up. He saw a plane fast approaching and moved into that safe spot between the world and everything else. He passed through the plane like it was a thin cloud of smoke before managing to stop. Then he dove, turning solid again when Agatha was in sight from within her meat construction. “Not a lot of mass but anything with this kind of velocity should do the job.”

BOOM

With how deep in the ground Danny ended up it was a wonder he hadn’t splattered. Picking himself up, the teen rolled his shoulder until it ached a bit less and saw Agatha there, staring at him. “Oh dearie, are you ok?”

“Surprisingly.” Danny rolled his neck. When he focused in on Agatha - he really could just see everything couldn’t he? - her face was warped and stretched larger than the rest of her.

“Tough! You being ok isn’t part of my balanced breakfast of death!”

Smaller chunks of meat came together into constructs about three-quarters of Danny’s size, five of them in total, and they grinned at him. This was when Sam and Tucker caught up with everything, apparently. Danny spun, heel tearing through the creatures like a knife, and landed to see Agatha being pushed back by Sam and Tuck’s wrist rays. “Fuck yeah!”

Danny’s celebration was cut short by his grasp on that deathly cold void slipping in the excitement, light washing over him with the warmth of being alive again. “This is inconvenient.” The meat monsters grabbed onto Danny’s limbs, reminding him that they were mere extensions of Agatha’s will. “This is even less convenient, how about no?”

As Danny was dragged through the air, something smacked him in the face. Catching it before it could fall out of reach, Danny felt a minor bloom of relief. “The Thermos! Maybe I can get it to work!” Seeing his family below, Danny hoped to all the stars in the sky that he was just going for a ride.

The ride stopped. Danny was dropped. A scream flew from his lungs, and Danny reached deeper, desperately grasping, to pull himself into the chill of the grave. The abyss met his call at the same time that his family looked up at the blur fast approaching. “Thanks for the thermos!” He shouted as he dove into the ground. Not waiting to see how that was handled he resurfaced to find Sam and Tucker bound in mounds of meat. “Work. Please work.” Danny aimed the thermos, poured his own cold into the thing, and hit the button. A flash of blue light, a scream of defiance, and he capped the thermos. Gravity and heat washed over him again and Danny let out a sigh of relief, running over to pull Sam and Tucker out of the meat piles. “You guys ok?”

“I have meat and blood everywhere and I was nearly crushed to death.” Sam shuddered, even as Danny phased everything off of her. “I am the very definition of not ok.”

“My nightmares are scarred for life after that,” Tucker said. “That was freaky. What do we do with her?”

Before Danny could answer that he heard footsteps and turned the thermos invisible. As he thought, his parents thundered toward him with the Ghost Finder in hand. “Just missed em, guys.” Danny pointed behind him and was relieved when his mom and dad jogged off after a nonexistent ectosignature. “Well, that was a shitty start to the day. We should go inside before someone makes something out of the crater here.” Danny, Tucker, and Sam all headed off to the nearest entrance to the school, thoughts going south. “What if the security cameras caught all that?”

“Oh, no, that you don’t have to worry about,” Tucker said. “I’m all over that in like, a couple hours tops.”

“Good.” Danny waited until they’d gotten to their lockers, and stuffed the thermos into his bag before punching Tucker in the arm. “ That is for bringing a stars damned meat truck when there was a food obsessed ghost flying around!”

“Alright, yeah, that was stupid of me.” Tucker nodded. “I shouldn’t have done that. But uh, we all agreed not to do stuff that affects literally everyone without consulting each other?” Tucker and Danny both looked to Sam, who glared at them heatlessly.

The goth sighed and leaned heavily on Danny. “Alright, fine, ask people what they want first. Lesson learned. Can we talk about what we’re gonna do with Agatha though?”

“Well, I don’t think she’s a mindless monster or anything,” Danny started slowly as they walked toward their homeroom. “I think we can reason with her. Show her that change can be a good thing when it’s done right.”

“Alright, we can do that once we’re sure she’s not gonna try and kill us though, right? Tucker tried to go for a neutral, slightly teasing tone but Danny could hear - could feel a shakiness to him. “ We are meat if you didn’t notice Danny, and I don’t know if her control over food extends to a cannibal’s diet. I don’t wanna find out.”

“I’m horrified and grossed out,” Sam groaned. “I’m all for not getting cannibalized. That’s the wrong kind of macabre for me.”

Danny shook his head, made some crack about how bad either of them might taste, and promised to let Agatha cool down before releasing her.

That cooldown time happened to be the amount of time it took for the veggie week thing to run its course and be done with. The school was cleaned, though all the vegan students who’d showed up for the rally were questioned about any kind of explosives they may have tried to sabotage the meat truck with and the news settled in on a gas line story. Saturday arrived, and the trio all met up in the park. Away from all the dog walkers, readers and normal people having fun outside, Danny Tucker and Sam stood in a small clearing of trees, a few chipmunks shifting around above their heads and in the bushes.

“Tuck, you got the reports?”

“Roger. Sam, got your wrist ray ready?”

“Of course. Danny, remind me to tell your parents they’re awesome for making most of their stuff solar powered.”

“They hadn’t figured out how to tap the afterlife for energy yet, it’s the most efficient thing we got.” Danny shrugged. He pulled out the thermos, which hummed beneath his fingers with the contained energy of Agatha inside. Sam and Tucker couldn't feel it, so he chalked that up to another ghost thing. “Alright, Agatha, if you’re ready to talk to us, I’m gonna let you out now.” The thermos offered no response. Danny opened it anyway.

The bark on the trees darkened, the leaves turning grey and the branches and bushes rustling as birds and squirrels left in a hurry. The air turned colder and sharper, and the sunlight dimmed as green spilled out of the thermos and stained the air. Agatha took shape quickly, though her glow was dimmer than it had been before. Her eyes raked across all three of them and narrowed. “Well, children? You kept rambling on and on about talking whenever I tried to get out. What’s so important that you didn’t put me back in the astral plane?”

Tucking the name of the other side in the back of his mind, Danny offered his best-placating smile. It disarmed most teachers back when he wasn’t having as many problems, he was hoping it’d work here too. “Agatha, hi. I’m Danny, this is Tucker and Sam. I feel like we got off on the worst foot before, what with you trying to kill us and all.” Tucker elbowed him in the ribs and Danny shoved him back. The buzzing in the air grew louder, his skin tingled, and some small part of his brain kept screaming to shoot, to run, to do anything that could get this thing that did not belong away from him. “So, I understand why you were angry.”

“You, Sam, changed the menu to just one food group!” Agatha’s voice was rising to those terrible echoes in the mind, and the tiny voice got louder. Still it was ignored.

“I understand now that it was probably a bad idea. No one’s been going to the line in the cafeteria all week except fellow vegans,” Sam grumbled. “Still though, some change needed to happen. The cafeteria wasn’t giving us any healthy foods!” Sam was a good actress when it came to her voice. She sounded unafraid, ready to argue for hours. Danny could feel something off though, ripples of yellow in her night grey, black and purple self.

“And healthy diets aren’t exactly easy to come by if you don’t put a lot of effort into it nowadays.” Tucker held out a sheaf of papers. “This, Miss Reece, is a report on the various health crises around the country because of the food they’re feeding us.” The papers were taken and Tucker let out as subtle a breath as possible. “I don’t agree with changing the menu to just one food group, no one in their right mind would. But I think we should still change things up. Is there any way you can help us do that?”

There was a long beat of quiet, where all that Danny could hear was the sizzle of patties on a grill, the crunch of lettuce being pulled apart, the chopping of a knife on a cutting board the came with Agatha’s presence. It was in the background of everything unless he focused. It was still there though, and it was so distracting with everything else happening. Agatha read, frown deepening as she did before she handed the reports on obesity and diabetes increasing in children of their ages and lower back to Tucker. “Alright,” she started, then stopped. A superfluous breath. She looked to Danny. “Well, I suppose that I was a tad extreme about everything. How about this?” She held out her hand, and above her glove, the green light that seemed to shine in all directions from her coalesced into the form of a burger. “I’m not sure they’ll accept me in the school kitchens again but I’m certainly able to make a meal for everyone.”

“That’s amazing!” Tucker crowed. “I’ve already sent a few texts and set up some online polls to find out what most people actually want out of their lunch, maybe you can help us with finding ingredients around Amity? Do you have a food sense?”

“Even if they don’t let you into the school’s kitchen you could still probably find a soup kitchen that’d definitely let you in,” Sam offered. “If you can create food from basically nothing, then I see no reason for them to turn you away.”

“Plus, since ectoplasm draws energy from heat and electricity, you can probably just relax in the sun and be able to pull out a full course meal.” Danny took in his friends’ curious looks and scratched the back of his neck. “My parents are the world’s best ghost scientists. I just asked them.”

“I’ll certainly look into that soup kitchen idea dearies,” Agatha said with a bright smile on her face. “For now though, I should be getting back to the Astral Plane. Sunlight is a nice substitute but after all that fighting I need a quick break.”

“I can get you back there without my parents noticing,” Danny offered.

“I only need to be invisible for that, dear,” Agatha assured them and faded out of sight. The chill and fading of the clearing dissipated, and Tucker and Sam relaxed visibly.

“Well,” Danny said as he pulled his notebook out of his bag. “That’s one ghost down.” He hoped it wouldn’t be too many till he convinced his parents.

#Danny Phantom #Danny Fenton #Tucker Foley #Sam Manson #Jazz Fenton #Jack Fenton #The Lunch Lady Ghost #Agatha Reece (Lunch Lady)#Fanfiction #Phanfiction #Rexy Writes

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balshumetsbaragouin · 7 years

Text

Bittersweet Future: Chapter Nine

Summary:

Danny awakens to the future he’s created...

If the Nightmare Is Only Beginning...

Danny awoke with a start, sore and terrified from what had to be the worse dream of his life. Time-travel, jet fighter planes, a freakishly competent Guys in White, it was all too unreal. He wrapped his arms around his middle; cold, and shivering not just from the imagined chill. The errant time traveler stood up from his painful position on the floor, rubbing at the twinging pain in his lower back while doing so. Danny rubbed the sleep from his eyes and stumbled from in between the stacked boxes of his make-shift hiding place. After a few extra seconds to bring the minimum necessary higher brain functions online, he walked forward towards where his bedroom door should be…Jazz is going to get a kick out of this one. The sleep-addled teen thought while still wandering, eyes closed, for his bedroom door. He’d made a habit of telling his sister the more disturbing dreams, at her insistence. He stumbled over something lying haphazardly on his “bedroom” floor before grumpily kicking it out of the way and opening his eyes fully to avoid a repeat. For the second time in what was only a week, Danny awoke somewhere he not only didn’t expect, but didn’t immediately recognize. A dark windowless basement greeted his sight. The dim lightening did nothing to disguise the condensation soaked walls or the drooping stacks of cardboard boxes all around him. It especially didn’t stop the jolt of realization currently crackling through his system like a lightning bolt. Oh. God! It wasn’t a dream! A cold terror snaked up his spine as the blunt starkness of reality splashed through him like a bucket of ice water over his head. Danny slid his hands through his hair, willing himself to calm down and think the situation through. A few seconds of forced slow breathing later, the teenaged superhero was slumped in the center of the room, head resting precariously in his hands. Now more than fully awake, he set his mind on auto pilot as the memories came flooding back. A fight with Plasmius, a hasty decision, a family that was his but didn’t know it yet, crazy battles with the last involving a freaking pair of fighter jets; all of it crashed back into the fore of his mind. Ok great! I’m back in the future, without going 88 miles per hour, he thought with a roll of his eyes, but not one that I recognize. First thing I know for sure, my parents do not live in Amity Park. There’s just no way with it being ghost hunter central that I’d be safe, especially with halfa sensing equipment. Danny closed his eyes as a shudder coursed its way across his skin. It wasn’t as if his parent’s ghost sensing equipment never picked him up, it just never picked him out as half ghost. And how in the world do they know about halfas anyway? Danny shook his head, setting aside that mystery to continue his internal monologue. If they don’t live here, there is a chance they still live close by though, because this is the ghost capital of the world. As long as they could be sure I was safe, and being outside the dome-they built a freaking dome?- would do it. Secondly, Danny started before getting up to pace the room. He was restless. There’s a good chance Sam and Tucker would know where I live. If my parents moved, it must have been after I got my powers. It also completely explains why the Guys in White rejects know about half ghosts. I mean, I’m sure my parents were able to get actual funding from Vlad or something and so were actually connected to the rest of the ghost hunting community. So after I got powers, the world knew about halfas. Ok, lastly, Danny stopped pacing and crossed his arms in thought, if Sam and Tucker don’t know where I live, then I’m sure…Vlad does. In which case, if I find him in Wisconsin or wherever, I’ll find the rest of my family. Danny finished off his logical progression with a nod of his head. The first objective was to connect with his friends, and if that didn’t pay off, he could make a flight out to Vlad after his parents’ whereabouts. And considering he still had he’s friends’ phone numbers, it didn’t even require him to sneak back into Amity to find them. He had turned off his cell phone a little after he had arrived in the past. There was really no use for it, he couldn’t even get a signal, and everyone he’d want to call was either in the future, or didn’t know him yet. Danny reached in his pocket and flipped open his phone. A few seconds of startup music later, and he was browsing through his contacts list. He knew both Sam’s and Tucker’s phone numbers, cell and house, by heart. On the other hand, he was nervous as all get out, and the repetitive motion on the keypad was helping calm him down. Should I call Sam or Tucker first? Danny hesitated over the section of his phone with the speed dials, glancing quickly in between their names. His finger hovered over the number a second longer before he made his decision. Sam first. The curling fingers of nerves twisted inside his guts as he waited for Sam to pick up. I’m sorry. The number you have requested cannot be completed as dialed. Please hang up and try again. A voice droned from the other side of the line. The long beep of the dial tone rang out as the automated system hung up from the other end. Danny gripped the phone tighter and looked back at his contacts list again. He was sure he had dialed it correctly; he didn’t even have to check it against his list because he knew it by rote memory. He felt a cold sweat break out on his skin, and slick up his palms as he re-dialed the number. I’m sorry. The number- Danny hung up and tried again. I’m sorry.- No. No, no no. This can’t be happening. This is Sam’s cell phone number. It has to be. Danny tightened his grip on the cell phone to stop the fine tremble coursing through his limbs. He took another deep breath, and decided to try Tucker’s number instead. To his immense relief the cell phone actually connected and he could hear ringing on the other side. It rung once, twice, and thrice before he heard someone pick up on the other side. Hey this is Theo. I obviously can’t come to the phone right now, too busy rocking out, so sing your song at the beep, and I’ll maybe get back to you. A long beep issued from the phone as the voicemail clicked over to record mode. Danny nearly dropped the phone in shock. The voice on the other end wasn’t Tucker’s. At the very least he had gotten the voice mail, so he didn’t have to talk to whoever was on the other side of the phone. Danny resisted the compulsion to check the phone for the number again. It obviously wasn’t his friend’s so checking once more wasn’t going to help. The time traveling hero gathered the frayed edges of his nearly destroyed nerves and started thinking things through again. Alright, so their numbers aren’t exactly the same. Phone numbers are a simple thing, they can change really quickly. No reason to jump to conclusions. I’ll just call their home numbers, and if those aren’t the same, I’ll look up the numbers in a phone book or something. No big deal, don’t freak out over nothing. Danny re-steeled his nerves and looked up Sam and Tucker’s house numbers. He really didn’t have to, but once again, the repetitive clicking soothed his nerves. The decision about who to call first was a simple one. Sam’s parents hated him, so calling Tucker’s house was the obvious choice. He didn’t even bother looking at the phone screen this time, opting to instead dial it from rote memory. The other end rung twice before being picked up. A female voice from the other side announced the Foley residence and asked who was speaking. “Hey Mrs. Foley. This is Danny…is Tucker home?” Danny smiled into his side of the phone, excited to finally hear the voice of someone he knew. Angela Foley was a nice enough lady, and just knowing she was still local to Amity made him feel a lot more certain about his deductions from earlier. The other side of the line went quiet before someone said, “Who is this?” The voice on the other side of was angry, accusatory. Danny jumped on the other end of the phone. “It’s Danny, Danny Fenton. I…listen I accidentally deleted my contact’s list, and I can’t seem to remember Tucker’s number. Do you think-” “Well Mr. Fenton,” The voice on the other end sneered, “perhaps you could ask your father what Tucker’s number is. He should even know where he is. And tell that bastard that if anyone from your family calls again, I’ll have my lawyer on his ass faster than he can scream ‘ghost’.” Angela hung up the phone, slamming it down into the receiver. A few years ago, she might have just broken into tears, but now she was too strong for that. Maybe if the Fentons had any sense, they’d never call again. Danny stared into the phone, a beeping dial tone emanating from the receiver. “What the hell was that about?” He was beginning to get a bad feeling about this, but apparently he and Tucker weren’t friends anymore. Did the entire half ghost thing cause that much of a ripple? Danny thought as he reluctantly dialed up Sam’s house number. Mrs. Mason didn’t like him at all, and he could only imagine that if being half ghost put Tucker’s parents that far out, Sam’s probably had a restraining order against him. Still, he had to try. Maybe just contacting the house would get him somewhere. Sam could call him back, going against her parent’s wishes as usual, and maybe he could figure out where he lived. Anything was something at this point. The phone rang one time further at Sam’s house than Tucker’s, before Mrs. Mason picked up the line. “This is the Mason residence, Pamela Mason speaking.” She was in a good mood today. She and her husband had gotten a new measure through on the school board, creating a nice peppy dress code for Amity’s future at the local high school. To top it all off, they were going to a nice restaurant to celebrate. Danny took a deep breath before responding. At least she sounds like she’s in a good mood. “Hey Mrs. Manson, it’s Danny. I was wondering if Sam was home.” He held his breath while waiting for the response. If he didn’t, he was sure he would be panting from anxiety into the receiver. Pamela felt a jolt of heartache shoot through her, one she thought had been buried for years. “You…you have some nerve calling here young man. I don’t know who you are, but if you ever contact this house for some sick prank call like this again, I’ll have your parents ground you till you’re thirty-five! I’m the head of the PTA so don’t think I don’t know your mother!” “Prank call? No listen, I’m sorry Mrs. Manson, this is Danny Fenton, Sam’s best friend, and I know you don’t like me, but please don’t hang up, I just-” “You sick monster! You stay away from my family, and don’t you EVER call this house again.”

Once again a dial tone was the only thing that greeted Danny’s surprised and hurt stare. Admittedly, Pamela Manson had never liked him before, but that was way over the line. A sick monster? Wow. He shook his head and tucked the phone back into his pocket. He wanted to call his sister’s number, but with how bad it had just gone with his friends, Danny wasn’t sure he could risk it. He knew his own sister would never turn him away, but there was a chance it was a different number than the one in his phone, and he would either get the same automated prompt that he had gotten from dialing Sam’s number, or he would get another person entirely, and he wasn’t up to more rejection at the moment. Worse, it wasn’t like his friends’ parents would be forthcoming about his current residence, if they knew it at all. He’d never seen them, their respective mothers, so angry at him. Angry and hurt. It was like he had dredged up some bad memory or something. Still, if they the half ghost thing had gone over as bad as he thought, their reactions made sense. Not like Mrs. Mason needed an excuse, but being half ‘not human’ would be a good one from her conservative perspective. I don’t know what to say about Mrs. Foley though. Danny shrugged and swiveled his head left and right for the exit. He had come in here some way, a stairway if he remembered correctly, so the exit should be…-Ah- He thought catching the sparse light from the first floor shining down an opening. He silently worked his way through the boxes and across to the room and towards the softly falling light. Danny stole up the stairs and onto the ground floor of the building he’d slept in the night before. He hadn’t paid much attention to the layout when he arrived, only looking for somewhere to hid, so he took the opportunity now. It was nowhere near as stuffy and dank on the ground floor as the basement, the cross wind blowing through the gaps in the boarded up windows moving the late spring air. Still, it was dusty and relatively dark on the ground floor, and Danny didn’t want to stay here longer than necessary. It was likely the GSU was still looking for him, and since he’d slept here overnight, he needed to move on soon. Danny looked down at his cell, checking the time. It was nearly noon, and since he had passed out sometime around sunset the day before, sunset coming around 6pm at this time of year in Amity Park, that meant he’d been out nearly 18 hours. On the plus side, he was feeling fully refreshed, and he’d been laying low long enough for the initial search to blow over. On the negative, he could feel his stomach trying to burrow a hole through his abdomen at the moment, and there was nothing to eat. He gripped at the empty feeling in his gut, before something else came back to mind. His powers had been shorted out last night, and he didn’t know whether or not he was able to use them again. Well I better give it a try before I venture outside. Danny decided. He reached inside for the cool feeling of his ghost powers at the pool of energy that usually existed in his chest. A few tentative brushes past the area left him with a wide smirk. His powers were back! Now more calmed than before, Danny started towards the door to the building, confident he’d be able to defend himself. He held his hand over his eyes like a visor as the bright midday sun assaulted them. Off in the distance was the Amity Park city wide ghost shield, its bright blue glow visible even in the height of the day. It easily covered the entire small city and then some, bleeding into some of the surrounding boroughs and districts. The ghost powered teen frowned at the bright unnatural glow off into the distance. Everything he knew was inside that bubble. Ok. First order of business, I need a disguise. There is a good chance the Guys in White rejects saw what I looked like when I just walked up to their hid out. So I need a change of clothes. How much money do I have on me? Danny pondered as he moved away from the shelter of the abandoned building. He felt through his pockets for his wallet and pulled it out as he waited on the corner for the light to change. To his dismay, he only had 20 bucks on him. Enough for a few cheap fast food meals, but not enough for anything else, including a hotel or clothes. Great. So I’m broke too. Danny groused as he finished crossing the street and walked towards the coffee shop on the other side of it. He needed to either make some cash, or get some fast five finger discounts. The thought of stealing sat really badly with his system, a burning coal of guilt already settling into his stomach at the thought. But with no money to buy new clothes, no way to get money quickly and legally, and a real need to get out of town as fast as possible, it was looking like his only option. Danny sighed and leaned against a red brick wall, warm from the noon day sun, as he thought over his options again. If he could just figure out where his parents were, it would be easy. He’d thought about finding somewhere with internet and just looking them up. That would solve the problem easily, but there was a great chance any place like that would be crawling with the GSU. Public spaces like libraries, internet cafes, and most eateries were probably being canvassed as he thought about it. And speaking of, I need to stop standing here. Danny pushed away from the wall he was resting on and walked in a random direction. Staying still wasn’t the best decision at the moment. Since he couldn’t get access to the internet, whether he wanted to or not, that left him with trying more personable resources. Out of those, the only one left was…Vlad. He really didn’t want to end up at his doorstep asking for help again, but it seemed life hated him at the moment. It wasn’t as if I spent the last week in Vlad’s debt or anything. Danny rolled his eyes at the thought and stop against another wall. He needed to get his bearings. It was about noon now, so he couldn’t even tell which way was west or east, and he couldn’t tell from memory where he was exactly, he never ventured this far out of Amity on the regular. Whenever he could figure out which way was west, he’d be going that way. It was quite a flight to Vlad’s Wisconsin home from Amity, at least distance wise, but he’d be able to make it in about two hours if he flew fast. It was times like this Danny was happy he could fly. Even taking a car, if he could drive, would be at least a 6 hour drive. But first, lunch. Danny began walking towards the diner he’d seen just up the street. While he’d personally prefer Nasty Burger, it was inside the dome, which made it off limits to him. At least if he didn’t want to draw attention to himself. He sauntered up to the front of the diner, taking in the fading letters in gold announcing it as “Donna's Place”, before pushing the door open with a tingle of bells. A chocolate haired waitress walked over to the podium at the sound of the entrance bells. It should have been the middle of the lunch rush hour, but most everyone was huddled up inside after the ghost attack the night before. They weren’t common anymore, even in the famous Amity Park area, so it spooked people up a lot. On the other side of the podium was a dark haired young man. She quirked her lips at the boldness of youth these days. The only people who ever came out so soon after an attack were those adults who had to go to work, or the teens who thought they were invincible. Personally, she had thought her boss would have shut up house for the day, but he was almost as money hungry as he was daring. Nothing less than the ghost apocalypse is going to make this store close. Her boss had claimed. And so if the diner was open, she was working, and looking at stupid kids who didn’t know enough to be scared. “Hey, welcome to Donna’s Diner, table for one right?” Danny swept his eyes over the interior of the building. It was conspicuously empty. That surprised him a lot more than he thought it would. It was the middle of the day, so there should be people, and for the life of him he couldn’t figure out why it was empty. “Uh yeah…actually, I think I’ll just take a seat at the bar if you don’t mind. That way I don’t take up a whole table on my own.” The waitress scoffed and tossed a section of her long chocolate hair over one shoulder. “Don’t worry about that kid; no one’s coming in here today.” She picked up a menu and walked with him towards the bar. Danny felt his eyebrows move towards his hairline. “Why? It’s the middle of the day. Don’t most places have a lunch rush or something?” The waitress sneered. “Yeah usually, but were you living in a hole last night? There was a ghost attack, and you know, everyone’s scared stiff. If adults don’t have to be at their jobs to keep it, they’ll all huddle up in their houses, as if that’s going to protect them from something that can go through walls.” She shuddered and set the menu in front of the dark haired young man. “My name’s Debbie by the way,” she said while motioning to the bright white name tag pinned to her bosom. It had a heart over the ‘I’ the same way she’d done it since high school. “Oh, well I’m Danny, and well I’m not really from around here.” It’s not really a lie; I don’t live around here anymore, my parents moved or something. Danny rationalized as Debbie moved away to the kitchen. He heard her snap something at the cook to actually start up the stove to make something because they had a customer, before moving back towards him. “Oh yeah? What’s a kid like you doing in Amity area if you aren’t from around here?” Debbie leaned against the counter to take pressure off of her legs. Standing up the whole shift was the bad part of waitressing, but she loved meeting the people that just blew through town. “Well I’m on vacation with my family.” Danny shoved down the flutters of shock at how easy lying was getting, even on the spot. A short laugh escaped Debbie’s lips and she shifted her weight onto her left leg to rest her head in the hand on the same side. “And your family just let you wander off after last night’s attack?” She asked incredulous. The nerve of parents! It seemed like some of them didn’t care if their offspring lived or not. Danny pouted under the slight to his family’s honor as he paged through the menu. Plenty of cheap good looking food met his gaze. “Hey I’m not a little kid. I can watch myself. Plus they wanted to go somewhere else for lunch. Besides, we only got here this morning, so we missed all the excitement last night. Good thing too, or I would have never gotten any peace and quiet for myself.” Danny sent an annoyed tinged glance at his waitress’ mirth filled face. Oh he is cute. “Uh huh, and I’m sure you could fight off any ghost that came your way to hot stuff. Peace and quiet eh? Lots of siblings to drive you nuts on the road trip up here?” Debbie couldn’t place it, but she’d seen his baby face and big emotive eyes somewhere before. “No only one, but my parents spent the whole time fighting over what was the fastest way to get here, if we were lost, that they needed to stop for directions, that my mom was driving too fast, or my dad was driving too reckless. By the end of it my sister was even in it, telling them staying in such a closed area was bringing out latent hostile and invoking animal territorial instincts.” Danny chuckled as the last road trip the family took flitted across his mind. “She’s practically an amateur psychologist.” Debbie tapped her lip in thought as Danny’s ramblings washed over her. I know I’ve seen his face somewhere… She shrugged as a lull in conversation required her to respond back, she’d figure it out eventually, she never forgot a face. “Is she? Does she want to diagnose criminals and get inside their nutty heads, or listen to people complain about how much their mediocre life is not like the awesome movie rock star life they were promised by society?” Danny laughed as he came to a decision about his food. “I think she wants to listen to people complain. She wants to help people be better adjusted, or so she says. Er well, that’s why she keeps trying to practice on me. Oh can I get a coke, and a Donna’s special with extra fries? ” Danny closed the menu and handed it back to the waitress. “No problem hun. Earl! Wake up back there, don’t say you weren’t sleeping, I can hear you snoring from here. We have a DS with extra hash coming up, and don’t burn it this time, I like this kid.” Debbie stepped over to the fountain drink station and started to pour her new vacationing teen customer a drink. She heard Earl mumble something back about being worked to the bone, and snickered. Earl was a good worker and the best short order cook in town, but he worked two other jobs. Whenever he was awake, he could make anything greasy under the sun, but most of the time he was sleeping if there weren’t orders coming in, and there weren’t any today. The brunette walked back over to the bar, an extra tall coke in hand. She set it in front of the only customer of the day, and slid next to him on the bar, sick of standing. “Oh no, I only ordered a medium.” Debbie waved off his concerned with an achy dish pan wrinkled hand. “Don’t worry about it kid, we aren’t going to go bust giving you a tall coke with refills today. We’ll be lucky if this place gets back to normal by Friday.” Danny took a long swing from his drink and looked back over at the sitting waitress. “Why’s that?”

She snorted and swiveled to lean against the counter for support while still looking at Danny. “Has it really been that long? I guess most people, let alone kids your age, don’t remember how dangerous ghosts can be.” The chocolate haired woman shook her head and reached for the remote at the edge of the bar. The news and scenes from last night could explain it better than she ever could. “Listen kiddo, I know you aren’t from around here, but ghosts are kind a big deal. Every time the U.S. government thinks they are extinct or some other nonsense, and that the GSU isn’t needed, one or two strong ones they haven’t managed to catch shows up and wreak havoc, like last night.” Debbie paused to flip on the news station. The ring of the bell in the back told the waitress Earl was done with the food, so she moved back around to the other side of the bar. Danny took in this new information with a growing sense of apprehension. Ghost attacks happen so infrequently, that people are scared by them, because all the ghosts have been captured? He was stopped short in his musings as a steaming plate full of fries and a hulk of a burger was set down in front of him. “Woah! That’s a lot more than I thought I’d get.” “Aw, too much food for you kiddo?” Debbie teased while taking her seat back by Danny at the bar. “What? No way!” the hungry teen replied while stuffing a huge handful of fries into his mouth. “I just didn’t think five bucks would buy this much food.” He gulped down another mouthful of fries, before heading into burger territory. The brunette laughed at her customer’s food disappearing powers. “Hey take it easy kid, it’s not going anywhere. Hey look!” She turned back towards the back of the diner where the TV was set up and pointed. “Looks like the news has looped back around to last night’s ghost attack. Took it long enough, maybe if we’re lucky they’ll play the press release from the GSU leader of Amity Park again.” Agent Frank was pretty cute in her middle-aged opinion, and she had a right to a little eye candy every now and then. Danny paused, burger half way to his lips, and twisted around to look at the TV screen. Sure enough there was an overly peppy sunshine colored hair reporter talking about last night’s “ghost attack.” He had to stop himself from rolling his eyes at the phrase; he was the one who got attacked, not the other way around. Debbie grabbed her only customer’s half empty coke before snatching up the remote to turn up the volume. They usually kept it low, but with no one else around, it wouldn’t be too bad to turn it up. That’s right Lance, last night was a historic event. The voices from the television blared out as she leaned against the counter from the opposite side of her customer again. This marks the first time in four years that a ghost attack has taken place in Amity Park. Our protectors the GSU, have issued a warning to stay indoors unless absolutely necessary to go out. The camera zoomed out from the bright green eyed bottle blond face of the news anchor. As the ghost has yet to be found and apprehended, it is still at large and very much dangerous. You beat ya’ Tammy. Last night’s ghost attack cost the city thousands of dollars, with initial damage estimates in the hundreds of thousands. Luckily, the city will not be charged for the loss of the two fighter jets that were in pursuit of this new ghostly threat, lowering the bill significantly. Several of our viewers have called in to express concern and alarm over the apparent strength of the ghost that attacked last night. They want to know what our defenders and saviors the GSU are doing about it. Of course they do Lance. Naturally, many of our Amity area viewers missed the press release from last night and early this morning due to the chaos of the last 24 hours, so our station will be periodically rebroadcasting the GSU report on the top of every hour for the rest of the broadcasting day. The next broadcast is due in another 30 seconds or so, so stay tuned. The picture flickered over to commercial, with a promise that the press release would be the first thing back on air afterward. Danny finished off the last of his fries absentmindedly staring at the TV screen before grabbing up the newly refilled coke. “Wow, that fight must have been worse than I thought.” “Yeah it was kid, a whole apartment building got destroyed when the first plane crashed, and there are pieces of the second one all over the place. You know what’s weird?” Debbie leaned over closer to her customer conspiratorially. Danny shook his head and leaned over further himself, to play into the faux need for secrecy. “I saw the press release last night, and I know they are saying it wasn’t him, but I think it was.” Debbie leaned back and flicked her eyes over to the TV screen, checking to see if the commercial was over. “He who?” Danny asked, more confused than before she answered the question. “You know the teenaged ghost hybrid. They have pictures of the ghost from last night, and he looks a little different, you know different hair color and all, but the face is really similar, and the ghost looked really human. Only hybrids look that human.” Danny shifted nervously in his seat as the television switched back to the news station from commercial. “Oh? Well I don’t know, maybe we should trust the professionals?” The tired waitress shifted back to Danny’s side of the counter and sat back down next to him. “Yeah well, the government doesn’t always tell the truth, and even if it isn’t him, it has to be another hybrid, and there’s no press release on Earth that will convince me otherwise.” She picked up the remote and flicked the volume a notch higher as the press report from last night replayed. Agent F- Agent F!- Agent- A group of flurried hands shot up in front of the news podium at City Hall. Agent F calmly held a hand out to quiet the crowd before speaking. Gentlemen, please calm down. Save all of your questions until after the press release is finished, and I will answer as many as I can then. The group of reporters settled down as the government agent settled into his place in front of them. Gentlemen, I am here to confirm reports of a ghost attack on Amity Park earlier this evening. At 6:05pm, approximately three hours previous, a ghost set off the sensors outside of the GSU headquarters. Our initial team attempted to quarantine the entity, but underestimated the creatures flying speed leading to a breach of perimeter. In order to contain the entity the GSU Air Division was called in. These were the two fighter jets inhabitants saw flying over the area in the last few hours. The ghost was more powerful than initial estimates and was able to evade and destroy both aircraft before escaping. Neither pilot was injured, nor were there injuries to the GSU’s ground team. There have been scattered reports of minor civilian injuries, but as far as we know, the Amity area sustained no causalities from the encounter with the ghost a few hours ago. The people of Amity Park and its attendant areas are official advised to remain indoors as much as possible and to avoid travel. We are declaring a level orange emergency, and as such, allowing the full cancellation of business hours, at the owners’ discretion, and telling the working employees of the Amity area to call in due to ghost terrorism. It is of course our official recommendation that this not reflect badly on the employees that do take the next day for their own protection. This ends the official press release from the GSU, are there any questions? Agent F stepped away from the microphone and waited for the hands to shoot up. Agent F- Agent!- Amity GSU leader! An especially enthusiastic reporter dove forward with his microphone in hand at the government agent. Agent F nodded and leaned towards the mic. Yes? Agent F, can you give the people of Amity Park an explanation how the ghost got inside the shield and so close to your facility? I’m not at liberty to speculate, we are pursuing all avenues into the cause of the breach.- So you think the Amity Park ghost shield was breached somehow? Allow me to rephrase that, Gentlemen the Amity Park shield is ghost proof. Make no mistake about it, the shield is and was active at the time of the attack.- Then how do you explain the ghost just appearing inside Amity Park? The same reporter as before shoved the microphone back in Agent F’s direction. As I said before I am not at liberty to speculate, however there are several mechanisms that could be at work here. A- Then could you confirm or deny the reports of the ghost being a ghost hybrid of some kind? The same ardent reporter as the last time drew attention back his way. The main camera for the Channel Nine station swung around to capture both the reporter and Agent F in a single wide angle shot. Agent F slid off his government issue sunglasses and hung them off of his pocket. Taking them off made him seem more human, the test polls had said, and he needed the extra element to make this next line convincing. He smiled down into the flashing cameras and said, Gentlemen, I’m not at liberty to speak freely about many things. My line of work requires much secrecy for the good of Amity and the nation as a whole; often times national security is at stake when I decline your questions. However, this is something I can directly respond to. After looking over the data myself, I can deny the reports of there being a hybrid in the city. All known hybrids are closely monitored and this ghost does not match up to any of the GSU records for hybrids. I know it seems strange how this ghost just appeared inside the shield, and we promise we are looking into it, but now is not the time to jump to hurried, messy, and dangerous conclusions about the ghost attack a few hours ago. The ghost was not a hybrid, of this we are certain. Danny let out a breath he wasn’t sure he had been holding and leaned back against the bar. “Yeah thinking it was one of those ghost human mixed freaks worried me too, but I don’t buy their official line.” Debbie poked the diner’s only customer in the shoulder as the press release continued. Now I know many of our citizens reported seeing the ghost in our skies the last few hours and have pointed out how humanoid and even disturbingly life-like the creature appeared. There’s nothing to worry about. I know the creature looked human, even young, I saw it with my own eyes, but it is only a trick ghosts can use to hide themselves. Some are experts are changing their form and shape, like the female ghost Spectra who was caught several years back, or the morphing ghost who was caught just recently. Some ghosts are intelligent enough to exert control over their physical appearance to manipulate humans, so don’t take a ghost’s initial look as proof. Agent F finished his explanation and was about to flip his glasses back on when the nosy insistent reporter who started the Q&A session piped back up. The maybe you can explain this? The picture shifted as the station played an amateur video tape from last night. In it, the mysterious ghost from last night’s attack was seen flying for the Amity Park shield, bright green ball of ectoplasm in hand. Behind him are two ecto-energy seeking missiles, getting closer by the second. All of a sudden, the ball of energy is fired and there’s a bright flash of white light. The screen goes fuzzy for a few seconds and then focuses in again on the ghost on the other side of the shield. The reporter smirked triumphantly at the Amity Park GSU operations leader, waiting for his response. The video had been visible to those at the press conference by way of a monitor facing towards the crowd at the Hall. Agent F barely had time to cover the surprised look on his face before the camera zoomed back onto his face. He pursed his lips into a hard line before sliding his sunglasses safely into place. A cold confident smile erased the firm line previously occupying his face, before he leaned back towards the microphones. Gentlemen are you familiar with the ghost power of teleportation? The standing group of reporters quieted as the question filtered through the room. Agent F chuckled before continuing, I didn’t think so. Teleportation is one of the avenues we are pursuing to explain how the ghost got inside the shield. Now ordinarily, I wouldn’t be allowed to share this information, but the video tape allows me to give you a cursory explanation of this still being researched ability. To make a long story short, some ghosts are capable of moving over large distances nearly instantaneously. Agent F waited for the murmur of surprise to settle before starting again. They do this by transforming themselves into pure energy, spectral energy, and willing this collected energy form of themselves to another location. When in this form, they can disappear and reappear anywhere, being made of spectral energy, they move faster than the speed of light. Gentlemen, the ghost shield isn’t made of a solid energy wall, it would use far too much energy if it were. The shield is like a very fine meshed net. Ordinarily, it’s far too fine for any ghost to slip through, but in this form they can. Now now, He raised his hands to calm the rising terror in the crowd. The ghosts who have this ability number in the few dozen. It is a rare ability, even among the oddities that are the ghost creatures, so there is very little chance of a breach on a daily or even yearly basis, but the chance is still there. That is why there are GSU teams in every major city, just in case one of these powerful creatures gets past our shields and passive defense systems. Are there any other questions? Agent F leaned away from the podium and waited for the rest of their demanding inquiries to come crashing in. “He’s so full of shit.” Debbie moved back around to the other side of the counter to give her customer another refill. He was currently finishing off the last of his burger and gaping at the screen. Danny tore his eyes away from the television and swallowed down the last of his sandwich. “What’d mean? That sounds pretty cool to me, and likely. I mean he does do this for a living you know?” He silently hoped the press release didn’t go into any more detail. It looked like the GSU weren’t too keen on sharing information, and for that he was very grateful. The waitress rolled her eyes as she brought back another refill. “Because, well wait you weren’t around when the last attack happened. Well I don’t want to scare you kid, or ruin your vacation so I won’t give you too many particulars, but I can tell you this…” Debbie leaned over towards her teen customer again, not wanting this info to carry. “That flash of white light you saw and the grey static?” Danny nodded at her to continue and leaned in further. “Well, I was around when the last ghost attack happened and I was close enough to see one of those hybrid creatures transform. Ya see, they look human enough, and they even have human DNA, it’s how they can get past the ghost sensors and shields around most places, but they aren’t really human. When they transform into their true ghost form there’s this flash of light. Now I admit the flash I saw was…black. I know that sounds impossible, light can’t be black right? Well I’m telling you, I saw this guy go from as human looking as one of us, and then poof there was this black light and he was a ghost.” Debbie leaned back away from the counter and looked back up at the television screen. The press release replay was almost done. Danny felt of shiver go down his spine. From the looks of it Vlad attacked Amity Park four years ago, but for what reason he didn’t know. Worse, he had revealed the existence of half ghosts to everyone, what the hell was he thinking? “Oh wow! Um…that’s crazy…” The chocolate haired woman chuckled and slapped Danny on the back. “Take it easy kid, there’s nothing to worry about. The GSU keeps even the people outside of the Amity ghost shield safe. You and your family are in no danger here, even if you managed to come at an exciting time. Speaking of, won’t your parents be worried if you don’t get back soon? It’s already nearly 1:30.” Debbie picked up her customer’s cup and plate and walked it back towards the kitchen. The press release was just ending, and she didn’t want to miss the picture of the mystery ghost at the end. Nothing better to scare the cute teen with than claiming the ghost haunted around here or something. She walked over to ring the kid up, so he could get back to his family before they came to ring him up for worrying them. Debbie peered up over the top of the register as the Channel Nine news room came back on the screen. Well Lance, that was certainly informative. It sure was Tammy. Our boys at the GSU have given us a clear print out of the ghost’s picture to share with all our viewers. Remember if any of you see “someone”, the reporter paused to issue air quotes around the acknowledgment of the ghost’s personhood, who looks like this please report to the authorities immediately. This is not some new punk style or an ordinary teen; it’s a dangerous ecto-entity. Onto the screen flashed of picture of a young looking ghost. It had white hair and iridescent green eyes. The camera zoomed onto its young looking face and a large print warning: Powerful and Dangerous blinked across the screen. Debbie stopped punching the bill through, shocked into pausing mid-press of a button. The close up of the ghost was unmistakable; the ghost looked just like the kid sitting not ten feet from her. She stole a quickly terror filling glance towards her only customer and backed away from the counter. Danny grimaced as reporter put air quotes around the “someone” part of his sentence. Like I’m not even a person or something… He stared in alarm as the picture shifted to a very clear image of him flying through the skies over Amity Park last night. The image quickly zoomed into a picture perfect vision of his face, with a dire warning to stay away as he was powerful and dangerous. He squirmed uncomfortably in his seat as he felt the waitress, who had been nice so far, distance herself and stare at the back of his head. Danny took a deep breath and steeled himself; there was no avoiding this confrontation. While most people in his own, what is it future?, didn’t recognize him as Danny Phantom there was a good chance, now that the barrier of humans having ghost powers being impossible was destroyed, that someone here would. The wayward teen superhero swallowed past a lump in his throat and turned back towards Debbie. Until he had turned around, she had been convinced she was wrong. A trick of the light, a bad picture, a faulty memory, anything was more likely than the fact a ghost and likely ghost hybrid was sitting with her in the diner. Afterwards though, the pained fearful look in his eyes confirmed it for her. The brunette waitress worried the inside of her cheek indecision. She should call the authorities right this second and have this obviously dangerous creature hauled away somewhere the hell away from her, but…but, it’s so…What Debbie? Kind? Young? Innocent or something? Get a hold of yourself! This is a ruthless violent creature that destroyed two GSU fighter jets and threatened your town. You have to call the police. The decision made, Debbie reached for the phone hanging just a few inches to her left. “Wait!” She swung her eyes back towards the pleading and very young looking baby blues of the ghost currently sitting at her diner counter. She gripped the thick pink of the corded phone on the wall as the ghost shifted in its place at the bar. “Just um…I…owe you for lunch, at least let me pay you before you call the cops. Heh, you can’t get money from me after they run me out of town.” Debbie felt her heart leap into her throat. Here she was about to sic the dangerous GSU on this creature and he wanted to pay for lunch? Is this thing crazy? Wary over a trick to get close to her, she moved her hand away from the phone, and leaned against the door frame of the entrance to the kitchen next to it. “I don’t want your money, whoever you stole it from.” She watched as the ki-creature- winced across from her. She narrowed her eyes and cursed her kind heart. “You’re a nice, whatever you are; ghost, more like hybrid aren’t ya’?” She watched as his eyes widened and got the confirmation she was looking for. “Listen, I like you, I don’t know why, but I do. That’s why I’m going to give you a five minute head start before I call the cops.” Danny blinked at the offer of reprieve. He’d thought the brunette woman across from him would just call the cops and duck for cover. “I...um-” “Get out of here brat, you’re wasting time. I will call the authorities in five minutes whether you are sitting here or not, and don’t you dare leave any cash here neither.” Debbie turned away from the counter, daringly showing the ghost her back, before slipping back into the kitchen. If she didn’t know when he left exactly, the authorities couldn’t get it out of her, and she wouldn’t know what direction he ran off in either. She never told anyone but on the day of the last ghost attack, she knew why the older ghost hybrid had attacked, and it wasn’t the official story. If it had been her in that position, she’d have fought back too, and maybe that’s why she couldn’t believe that the hybrids, powerful as they were, were inhuman. Nothing inhuman cared enough to risk themselves for others. Danny jumped away from the bar and leaped for the door. He pushed it open and was about to sprint into the street, when he looked back into the quiet restaurant. He caught Debbie peering back into the main part of the diner from the kitchen and smiled the brightest nicest smile he could muster under the circumstances. “Thank you. I’ll never forget this, and I’ll pay you back some day.” The brunette rolled her eyes and pointed out of the door. “Scat ghost kid, four minutes and counting.” Danny nodded his head thankfully, and ran away from the bright glowing blue of the ghost shield. He rounded a few corners before resting against a wall to get his bearings. It was nearly 1:45 in the afternoon now and late enough for the sun to start slanting towards the west. All he had to do it look up and he’d know which way Wisconsin was. The sudden fugitive heard the whirling of sirens back towards the diner and shook his head. Debbie had been really nice to him, and even after hanging out with him, she still called the police. If someone as nice as Debbie could throw him under the bus like that, what would the rest of the world be like? Danny wasn’t sure, but he knew someone who could help him hide until he figured this crazy world out. He hadn’t been sure about going to Vlad before, but the last few minutes had clenched it for him. There’s a serious chance he isn’t at Wisconsin anymore, especially not at that huge castle, after the attack four years back, but that’s the closest place and I could get some clues from there. At least it’s out of Amity Park. Danny moved away from the wall and spied something to hide behind to transform. In a flash of bright light, he left the bonds of gravity behind and flew westward towards the Wisconsin area. Unbeknownst to him a digital signal was sent out when his ghost signature popped to life after transforming.

Washington D.C. 12:45pm EST Pentagon debriefing room

He tugged at the uncomfortable tie currently wrapped around his neck. He hated it almost as much as the polyester lined cotton monkey suit he forced to wear to these meetings. He much preferred the field operative issued suits to the bureaucratic nightmare wear he was suffering through at the moment. However, he was the leader of the Government Spectral Unit now, so he had to suffer small indignities like this to keep his organization running smoothly. The general in front of him blathered on in the slow drawl common to old entitled bureaucrats used to their own power and in love with their own voice. He resisted the urge to sneer and settled for shifting the cuff of his suit again, the itchy nightmare. When it looked like the general was winding down, he quickly interrupted, not wanting to sit through another moment of this waste of his precious time. “I completely understand your concerns General Birch and I will gladly implement all the recommendations you’ve made within reason,” which means none of them, “however, my report address all of your, and in fact, all of the other Chiefs of Staff’s objections and problems, so forgive me, but I fail to see the point of this meeting. I have an organization to run and a dangerous ecto-entity to capture, so you’ll understand my urgency to leave.” “Commander, maybe you don’t see the reasons for this meeting, but I do. Your organization, one that you are so keen to get back to, failed to apprehend a dangerous ghost. The GSU costs millions of dollars a year to keep operating, and has been hemorrhaging funds for years. It’s a money sink, and worse it doesn’t even seem capable of defending the US citizens as commissioned.” “With all due respect Secretary, the ghost we faced yesterday was no ordinary creature. My initial reports and analysis of the situation indicates that creature was a hybrid. Hybrids are amazingly powerful and versatile beings and something incredibly difficult to capture and control.” “Yes,” Secretary of State Fitzgerald started, “I am well aware of the agency’s failures to capture of the ghost hybrids, this country’s greatest threat. In fact, the continued failure to do so is one of the reasons I am so unconvinced about the legitimacy of the continued operation of the GSU.” “Secretary, perhaps I need to remind you of the state of America before my organization’s current incarnation under my leadership. Anarchy. Ghosts haunted every town in America, and hot spots, like Amity Park, were attacked weekly, tri-weekly even, by powerful and dangerous ecto-entities. They terrorized the citizens of these United States and the local and even national ghost hunters could do absolutely nothing to stop them. No professional in the world could stem the seemingly never-ending tide of ghosts flowing into our world. My leadership, and my organization has done what no other has before it, stop the ghost threat. The number of ghost attacks around the world number in the dozens yearly instead of the hundreds of thousands. Similar organizations around the world are modeled after our own, and yearly attend a conference we host, for plenty of money, to stay abreast of the current findings in the ghost community. The scientific community has never seen greater output, America has never had a greater input on the world scene, and we’ve done it all while destroying the ghosts and making our country a safer place on a balanced budget.” “That’s a wonderful speech Commander, but one that has yet to be corroborated. I’ve had my assistants look into the financials for the GSU and the preliminary findings have it underwater by a long shot.” Secretary Fitzgerald leaned against the table on his palms. The current administration he served didn’t like the GSU, not at all familiar with the time ghost attacks were regular. Personally, he’d never seen the need to eliminate all those weak ghosts while the real threat, the hybrids, roamed free. “I respectfully disagree.” The GSU’s Head Commander leafed through the papers sitting in front of him. He hated bureaucracy. Jill usually took care of things like this for him, tackling the intricate questions while he made the inspiring fund grabbing speeches. She watched over the regular everyday operations while he attended to the grand vision of things. It was what he was best at; the long creative view had always been his strong point. The mundane details like this just didn’t interest him and he expected his second in command, who wasn’t here at the moment, to know them and be able to spit them out at a moment’s notice. “Well if your word is all we have to go on-” “Not at all Secretary Fitzgerald.” A new smooth voice preened from the other side of the room. The click of determined set steps in heels echoed throughout the room. “If I recall correctly, the annual international gala pulled in a record breaking 500 million dollars, easily covering the operation costs of the GSU for the first half of the year. The second 500 million was partially kindly donated by several captains of industry and partially made by local fundraisers by the grateful citizens of our great nation. After all of that was said and done, the patents for the GSU’s work and the Commander’s personal inventions, whose revenue he has so generously donated to the budget of the GSU, lead us to a 250 million windfall that was immediately reinvested in the organization in the R&D department, scholarships for the bright and upcoming in the next generation, and holiday bonuses for our hardworking employees. We balanced the budget netting a solid neutral after all of that, and we are in line to once again have a positive budget for this coming year. If the Chiefs of Staff would be so kind as to turn to pages 156, 203, and 315 of the GSU’s mid-year report, you’ll find the information yourself.” The speaker finished, turning in a prim tight business suit towards the rest of the room. A warm smug smirk tugged at the edges of the Head Commander’s face that he quickly suppressed. “Thank you Ms. Castle. As you can see Gentlemen, my organization is in fantastic financial shape.” “Well what about your failings to capture of the ghost hybrids?” This time Secretary of Defense Dirk Muller called the organization’s merit and ability into question. The Head Commander swiftly turned to face the newest opponent. “Failings? Yes I admit I have failed in the past to capture the ghost hybrids, but my opponent is cunning, and unlike the other hybrids in the record started out not only human, but one I was intimately familiar with. It and I were in social contact with each other at one time, and the creature uses this to his advantage. Nevertheless, the last capture was aborted purposefully.” He watched as the Joint Chiefs of Staff murmured in unease around him. “Easy Gentlemen, there’s a good reason for this. I need him to be a good scout for us and lead us to the nest.” “The…nest Commander?” “Yes Secretary Muller, the ant’s nest with the rest of his kind. You see, their leader is much too intelligent, much too calculating to reveal himself or the location of the rest of the traitors to democracy. However, a scout, like any good soldier, goes out into the world to test the waters. It forages for food or a safe place to make a new nest for the rest of the colony. This scout comes and goes, but is as weak as link as it is expendable. Gentlemen, do you know how to kill an ant colony?” He paused to look over his impromptu speech’s audience.

The room’s occupants, generals and the Cabinet combined, shook their heads not catching onto the GSU Commander’s meaning. “Why, you poison it of course. Oh but you must be careful, if your poison is too swift, it will kill only the scout who brought it in, or those who taste the food for their queen. Too slow and the entire colony will develop an immunity to it. You must make a poison strong and slow enough for it to reach the queen, once there, she must consume it before the first scout falls, and then by that time it’ll be much too late to stop her inevitable death. You see Gentlemen...” the Commander rounded the table and began walking to the head of the room. “This latest incident has afforded us a unique opportunity. It seems one of Plasmius’ scouts has wandered too far from the nest and right into our trap. But instead of making a play right this moment, a poison much too fast, I have decided to use a much deadlier method. We will monitor the little creature, and watch it carry us, the deadly toxin, back into the folds of its own colony. There we will disseminate among all of its members until even their leader Plasmius finds our influence too late and widespread to do anything about. Then, we would have finally caught them.” He finished the ant poisoning analogy with a wide sweeping glance of the room. “Gentlemen we are at a crossroads. As we speak, I have reports of the hybrid traveling outside of Amity, Michigan, and towards the Wisconsin area, the last known hiding spot of Plasmius. If we intercede now, capture it, we might lose this chance forever. With the creature in our grasp, it may appear as if we have the upper hand, but don’t be fooled, we’ve been in this position before. Whenever we capture one of its scouts, Plasmius sends out a,” the Commander paused to chuckle, “valiant and powerful rescue team, whose attempts have yet to fail. If we have the hybrid with us, we leave ourselves at the mercy of Plasmius’ never-ending conniving and shrewd planning. That is not a position I want to be in again. If we let the creature pass, there’s a good chance it will go right back to its leader, and back to the vulnerable nest where we can do real damage. Even if it doesn’t, we have the hybrid’s signature in the data base and being tracked by satellite. It will not escape.” The room was silent in the wake of the Commander’s stirring recommendation. He offered a chance to rid the country of their worrying menace forever. “What about the public?” This time it was the Sectary of the Interior that spook up. “No need to worry about that Secretary. The public has been informed of nothing, and all reports of hybrids have been denied and silenced. The creature is flying over and towards uninhabited areas. The public has nothing to fear, and if there is any threat no matter how small, we will not hesitate to intervene immediately. You have my word on the matter.” The Commander crossed his arms over his chest and waited for their answer. There was no doubt in his mind they would agree, they were easily control and manipulated, and his years as head of the GSU through 3 Administrations had taught him well. “Well Commander, you drive a hard bargain, but it’s a solid plan, one without any foreseeable pitfalls for public safety. Because of this I will allow this strategy to continue, however I want periodic updates as the creature’s whereabouts and the status of the mission as a whole.” The Secretary of Defense finished up, gathering his things into his hands. This meeting was basically over. The Head Commander smirked and held out his hand to the first general preparing to exit the room. “Thank you for your support Secretary Muller and I promise you will not be disappointed.” The Commander took the Secretary’s hand into a fierce shake, a testament to his physical strength undiminished by years in the upper echelons of the bureaucracy. “Yeah well, you just make sure you don’t screw this up, and I’ll look into convincing the president to approve those forays into the Ghost World your people are always clamoring for.” The Secretary wasn’t of the same opinion as that of Ronan Fitzgerald, the Secretary of State. He was old enough to remember how much the GSU had done to stem and stop the ghost threat. Muller shuffled a few more items off onto one of his many aids and headed for the door with the rest of the Cabinet. “Oh Muller?” the Commander called out just as he met the threshold for the meeting room. “Yeah?” It was well past the scheduled lunch hour, the meeting had run over by a long time, and he was ready for something to eat. “When I put Plasmius’ head onto a pike, you’ll be the first to find out about it. I’m sure your son would…appreciate the gesture of that monster’s death.” Dirk Muller grimaced before turning around for the door. “I’d rather you send me the creature’s heart just to prove your anatomy team correct, because as far as I’m concerned it doesn’t have one.” He said over his shoulder walking quickly down the hall. The Head Commander of the GSU sighed and slumped against the meeting room table. That had been a long and annoying emergency meeting. He pulled the tie straining around his neck into a looser arrangement and fiddled with the cuffs of his suit some more. I hate this dumb three piece of shit. He thought before he felt calloused slender hands begin working the knot back tighter on his tie. “Damn it Jill, I’m off duty for a few minutes, leave the tie be.” He felt more than heard Jill’s snickering. The only evidence of it was held in her warm honey brown eyes. “Forgive me Commander, but until we are safely back in GSU headquarters, you are required to at least look the part of the Head Commander of the GSU.” She re-rolled the cuffs of his suit into a reasonable looking fold, and finished tightening his tie. Her commanding officer never did like anything but the regulation issued spandex suits the GSU underlings wore. Not that she blamed him, business suits weren’t really her style either. “Oh come on Jill,” he half whined, “no one’s watching. If I lose the tie for a few minutes no one will be the wiser. Besides I just spent the last few hours dealing with the F.B. I at least deserve a little reprieve because of that.” He crossed his arms as the tie was firmly re-tighten once more on his large frame and threw up his hands. There was really no arguing with Jillian when she got her mind made up about something, it was why she made such a good second-in-command. “Stop fussing about it. The sooner you get presentable, the sooner we can leave and get back to headquarters where it’s safe.” Jillian Castle stepped away from her superior and began strutting towards the door, knowing he’d follow. “I have a few new reports for you.” “Is that why you were late?” He grabbed a thick and bulging folder from his second, a secretary, scientist, and military leader combined into one. “Partially. I was delayed from departing by Agent’s F’s incompetence. He can read a speech well enough, but he can’t write it. If it wasn’t best he deliver the message as the spokesperson for the GSU in Amity Park, I would have done it to save time. Secondly, I was gathering all of that for you. That’s the latest analysis of the hybrid’s data. I’m not sure who the fuck this is Commander, but it’s not 2nd Priority that’s for sure. Sure its energy signature is close, and the techies down in Amity Park, the miserable shits, couldn’t tell the difference when handed a line up, but I know this creature like the back of my hand. It didn’t fight like it, or think like it. It didn’t look like the hybrid we know, and whether or not ghosts can change their appearance, hybrids aren’t known to, so that’s makes it even more unlikely. Finally, the creature walked right up to GSU central in Amity and acted surprised the sensors went off. Either that hybrid’s stupider than can be imagined, or it was honestly surprised we were there. I’m sure it’s not the former, from how it fought, so it must be the latter, not matter how ridiculous that is. There’s also the question of where this ‘bogey’ came from. You know as well as I the number of hybrids out there, and there’s only one this creature’s age, so your guess is as good as mine about the creature’s appearance.” Jill shrugged up one shoulder as they turned the final corner to exit the pentagon. The Commander frowned as he took in his second’s comments. They mirrored his nearly exactly with the missing sections being the thoughts on its fighting style. “So if this isn’t 2nd Priority, then who are you little ghostling?” He mused out loud as they slid into the limo waiting out from to take them back to GSU headquarters. He had no idea. It was obviously not a ghost, he concluded as he finished flipping through the rest of the highlighted paper his second had given him. At least it wasn’t purely ghost, so that precluded it just being a very good copy cat. That meant it was a legitimate hybrid, and with the only other hybrid its age ruled out, it made it a new one all together, something he couldn’t even begin to fathom. Where had it even come from? He settled into the seat for the hour drive back to his domain. Jillian kicked off her heels next to the Commander, happy to settle in as well. “So Commander, when we get back, what do you thinking about changing back into spandex and grabbing a nice big deli sandwich for lunch?” She spared a tired glance in his direction. She’d gotten on the next flight from Amity to DC after she he finished the preparations in Michigan. She’d arrived late last night into her house, but didn’t sleep. She had realms of data to go through in order to prepare for the meeting today. The Commander had had a much shorter meeting the day before to explain to situation in Amity, but the one today she needed to be prepared for. If she hadn’t gotten stuck in traffic on the way over, she’d been on time. Luckily, the Commander never held it against her as long as she got her job done and made him look good in front of the F.B. She snickered lightly as the meaning of that particular nickname of theirs came back to her. Fucking Bureaucracy indeed. “Oh no I was thinking several chili cheese dogs, but I’ll take deli sandwiches if you buy my favorite dessert Ms. Castle.” He licked his lips at the thought of chocolate and closed his eyes, head falling back into the soft leather cushions of the limousine. “Sir, for Spumoni’s deli delights I’ll buy you dessert any day.” Jillian retorted as the car pulled into DC’s formidable traffic. Looks like it’ll be some time yet before we get anything to eat. Something on her wrist beeped and got her attention. The GSU second-in-command glanced down at her wrist communicator. She’d tied it to the GSU global positioning satellites only this morning to keep track of the ghost hybrid’s travels. The beep told her the hybrid was currently crossing Lake Michigan half way to Wisconsin. Fly fast little ghostling, and bring us closer to ‘Daddy’ Plasmius.

Danny gazed down at the seemingly endless expanse of water below him stretching in all directions. He was flying directly into the sun, and at this time of day, that made it due west. Amity was a lot closer to the Lake Huron side of Michigan than Lake Michigan he was currently crossing, but with how fast he was flying, it didn’t matter. In any case, he’d be into Wisconsin in only 45 more minutes.

Danny sighed as his hair flipped in the wind behind a small ghost shield he’d made to stop the bugs and other assorted debris from smacking in the face at high speed. On the way out of town, he’d picked up a few new sets of clothes. 20 dollars or not, he’d had no choice but to shoplift. That’s when he learned most places in Amity area had a ghost alarm and sensors. As soon as he’d used his ghost powers to try and shoplift something a big red alarm had dropped out of the ceiling and cried Ghost Alert as loud as possible. He’d been forced to turn whatever else he needed invisible and slip out through the floor before the ghost shield on the place turned on. Outside, he’d blended in well enough, items still invisible on his person. He’d stuffed the clothes and the few other items he’d stolen, snacks, toiletries and the like, into an also stolen duffle bag. He didn’t know how long he’d be on the run or the move, but he’d picked up enough stuff to last for two weeks. At the moment, he was flying over the last part of the lake, the opposite shore coming into view. He’d had a fair amount of time to think about everything at had happened in the last few hours, and he’d come to some conclusions. First conclusion: I should be dead. This future is so obviously different from my own, that I should be really dead. I mean I guess Clockwork’s warning said ‘irreparable damage’ to the timeline, and I also guess that this isn’t irreparable damage level yet, and maybe this is how it’s supposed to be after the changes I made in the past, but plenty just isn’t right. All of the ghost security, Vlad attacking Amity Park, since when is he so stupid, and the public knowing about halfas. It’s all so surreal, and if Vlad attacked Amity four years back, and he was a family friend like I wanted to happen, then there’s no way I got powers. I mean my parents must have known how it happened, so there would be a lot more precautions in the lab to prevent another accident from happening. Which if that’s true, doesn’t explain the press report from that GSU guy talking about “hybrids” plural. Or maybe I do still have ghost powers, and I got them sooner because the portal got built faster with Vlad’s help? Ah…Christ man. This shouldn’t be so complicated. Second conclusion: I wish Clockwork wouldn’t be so damn cryptic. I’m getting the sense that Clockwork knew about all of this shit, and has been giving me clues that can be used multiple times. As if telling me to trust Vlad, as much as I hate the guy, hasn’t panned out multiple times. If only his warning about a time limit was more obvious, stupid time ghost. Danny paused in his internal monologue and shook his head in exasperation. Clockwork was a subject that both confused and irritated him. I’m also still wearing his Medallion, which leads me to the next point. Third Conclusion: He wants me to visit him. There’s no other reason I can think of for his time piece to still be around except him wanting a reason to talk to me again, as if he couldn’t just pop up himself. Obviously, he wants me to come to him, which is annoying. The landscape swiftly changed from the soft blues of Lake Michigan to the deep greens and browns of land. Several small lakeside towns passed underneath Danny’s nearly frantic flight before giving way to the rural countryside. This part of the country was mostly “Southern Canada”, a combination of small rural towns separated by large expanses of untouched wilderness. Danny slipped back into his pensive state as the land beneath him changed into forest. Well this is the first time in like a week I’ve had time to myself to think, and I’m not even sure what to think about. The last week was crazy, my own adventures in being hunted not included. I’m not sure what to make of my parents honestly getting along with Vlad so well, or Vlad being not as big of a dick as normal. I didn’t think he could actually be nice, and care about someone. Most of the time he’s so manipulative, and a jerk. If he was that nice all the time in the future…well ignoring his offers for “apprenticeship” or something would be a lot harder. I’m both glad and upset he isn’t so nice in the future. And I’m not sure what makes me more uncomfortable with the “Vlad can nice too!” revelation from this time traveling mess. Is it the fact Vlad can be nice, but just chooses to act like a dick or that people can change so completely as to be nearly unrecognizable? Sometimes I like to think that people never change, good people are good just because they are, and evil people are bad because they are. It’s like an inherent quality or something, but if…But if that’s not really the case, what’s to stop me from becoming…I mean even now… Danny shuddered as the forest close to Vlad’s Wisconsin residence came into view. He was only a few minutes from the castle of the former Wisconsin Dairy King now, so he slowed his flight to a moderate pace. He didn’t want to zoom past it. Danny pulled up to the western edge of what should be Vlad’s grounds, only to find them in total disarray. In fact, even the castle itself was basically falling apart. Some of it looked like the result of years of disrepair and disuse, but some other parts…Why is there a black scotched hole in the side of the building? Danny wondered as he hovered near the blackened opening. In his humble opinion it looked like an energy burn, one made either by a large ecto-blast or an especially powerful spectral weapon of some sort. The ghost powered teen landed just inside the hole on the western wall and peered inside into the dark interior. “Um…Hello?” Danny’s voice echoed off the empty barren walls of the castle. The room he had landed in was an old living room. Upturned tables still lay, though swollen and beginning to rot in the elements, in the room next to broken vases and shattered glass mirrors. The shadows of opulence still hung over the room, with expensive looking tapestries hung from the wall, torn and burnt in odd places, caught in the signs of a struggle. There was a pervasive feeling of emptiness in the whole space, and Danny realized with a start, there wasn’t even the ambient ghost energy he always sensed when around Vlad’s house. He stepped further into the space, carefully picking through and stepping over the remains of the destroyed room. The door on the other side of the space hung precariously off its hinges and Danny had to gently pull it to the side to prevent it from falling in. Whoever had lived here, however long it ago it was, is definitely long gone. Danny thought as he walked into the main hall of the Castle’s western side. Noticeably absent were the bright gold and green decorations, testaments to Vlad’s unerring devotion to the Greenbay Packer’s. The marble tile floors were covered in dust and a mysterious fine power. The walls were nearly crumbling on the exterior facing portions, or had more scorches and large dents on the interior facing sections. The carpeted areas were ripped to shreds, burnt, or stained with something so close in color to dried blood that it gave Danny shivers. There were no light fixtures throughout the whole of the areas of the castle he’d so far explored, and Danny was thankful for ghost’s enhanced night vision. He finally came to main part of the castle, the grand staircase, or where he remembered it being in any case. Instead of the thick marble banisters of his memory and the shining gold tinted marble steps, there was nothing but a gaping hole. It went straight down from the second floor, where he had entered, to the first, where there was even more extreme damage. The first floor was an indistinct hodgepodge of destroyed furniture, blackened floor and walls, and violent splatters of dark brown, that in Danny’s opinion shouldn’t still be so clear or there at all. He peered down the edge of the broken stairway, contemplating whether or not to head downstairs, when a crash came from off to the left. Danny turned his head at the sound that echoed from towards the original entrance to the castle. Well that came from downstairs, so I guess that’s where I’m going. He still couldn’t sense any ghosts, looks like they got the Dairy King too, so it was likely it was someone human. That only brought up more questions. Vlad’s castle was in the middle of nowhere basically, with any close city at least an hour’s drive away. That ruled out random local kids wanting to explore. It was also surrounded by a lot of woods, but obviously abandoned. So that ruled out campers looking to stock up on supplies or get out of the “camping experience”. There were no cars when he came in, and the roads weren’t well tended to this far out because no one lived here. All in all, who could be making the banging noises coming only feet away from him were a small list of beings, none of whom made sense at the moment to be here. It only made Danny more curious as he rounded the last corner, having turned invisible a few feet back, to sneak a peek into the next room. What the teen hero saw shocked him. Inside were two kids, no older than twelve, shifting through some boxes under what would have been the sink in the kitchen had the building been still intact. One of the kids tossed a piece of pipe out of the way, and the repetitive clanging sound suddenly had a source. Danny shifted back around the edge of the corner and held back the urge to sigh in relief. They obviously weren’t dangerous, but it didn’t explain how they got there. One thing’s for sure though, they were definitely human. He moved away from the corner near the kitchen and transformed. He hadn’t wanted the light from the transformation to carry into the other room and spook the other kids. Danny took a deep calming breath, ignoring the tickle of the dust floating in the air, and walked around the corner. He was wearing stolen duds at the moment, the most obvious being a new hooded jacket with the symbol for Abercrombie and Fitch on the breast pocket. If you’re going to steal, at least get something good right? He refocused himself on the pair in front of him. At the very least they can tell me what happened around here. No way a fight as big as this one didn’t cause stories with the locals. And they were locals, Danny had decided, they had to be. Maybe some kids from a Boy Scout troop got lost and wandered off. “Hey…” He said as he waved at the kids seated a few feet from him. The two of them turned around quickly, almost fast enough to blow the tops of their hoodie jackets back and away from their faces. Two pairs of bright purple eyes stared at the sudden addition to the room with growing worry, before turning back to one another. “Uh oh.” They said in unison, before swiftly standing to their feet and backing up towards the hole where the kitchen sink should have been. “No wait! It’s ok, I’m not going to hurt you. I’m uh…my name’s Danny-” He hadn’t pulled the top of his own jacket hood down yet. “Danny huh? That’s a cool name.” One of the kids answered. “Quiet Nate, we aren’t supposed to talk to strangers.” “Yeah well, we aren’t supposed to be here either. So there.” The left child retorted. “So you’re Nate are you?” Danny crossed part-way over to the two pre-teens. “Oh yeah!” Nate, the one on the left, answered before getting smacked by the other kid in the room. “Why are you answering that? We aren’t supposed to give out our names either!” “Ah, don’t be such a worry wart Nick. Besides you said my name first.” “He is right you know.” Danny commented before crouching down next to them. “So could either of you two-” Danny started before he was cut off by something hot and painful slamming into his left side. He simultaneously held his stinging side and spinning head, trying to re-gather his bearings on the floor. Before he could make much headway, he noticed something silver and black with a high pitched whine pointing directly at his head. “Wah is-…” “Stay right where you are! If you so much as wiggle a pinky finger ghost, I’ll splatter your ectoplasmic brains across the far wall.” Danny felt ice settle into his being as his vision cleared enough to see his attacker. It can’t be… “Jazz?”

…then Danny might want to stay asleep.

#Danny Phantom #Danny Phantom Fanfiction #Phandom #Bittersweet Future #Balshumet's Fanfiction #Balshumet's Baragouin #Chapter Nine

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filmsforthought-us-blog · 6 years

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Lady Bird

Lady Bird , 2017, is a film that will truly stand the test of time, by viewing high school in a new light. Those of us who did grow up in the 90’s and graduated in the early 2000’s only had stereotypical high school movies to watch. They taught us to fear the meathead football jocks, to steer clear of the catty cheerleaders, and to not get caught dead talking to anyone involved in the science club. Unfortunately, this did not prepare us for what high school was really like, the way it’s so accurately portrayed in Greta Gerwig’s Lady Bird. From the struggle of getting accepted into an out of state college, to the journey of finding one’s self, Lady Bird is without a doubt one of the most telling coming of age stories of the decade

Lady Bird was written and directed by Greta Gerwig, conveying a semi-autobiographical documentation of her early adolescence. While Gerwig herself never jumped from a moving vehicle or vandalized a nun’s car, she developed the main character around how she viewed herself internally during her late teen years. Gerwig grew up in Sacramento, California. She never actually went to film school, rather she studied philosophy at Barnard College. She got her feet wet in film studies by making observations while on set during various productions as a self made actress and writer.

Lady Bird showcases amazing talent from Saoirse Ronan, who stars as the main character, Christine “Lady Bird” McPherson. Ronan is a well-credited actress, performing in several other extraordinary films such as, Atonement , 2007, Lovely Bones , 2009, and my personal favorite, Hanna , 2013. The role as Lady Bird is easily one of the first semi-comedic roles Ronan has accepted, being mostly known to portray rather serious characters in consequently serious films. Ronan does an exceptional job depicting a senior in high school, whose journey is a true coming of age story, stumbling along life’s path in efforts to discover who she is. Alongside her is her mother, Marion, striving for her daughter’s best, played by Laurie Metcalf, and her best friend, ride or die until the end, Julie, played by Beanie Feldstein. The trio of actresses put on an astounding performance.

Marion works in the medical field, which any of us who have parents in the medical field know require long hours and late nights. With her husband unemployed and two children in their young adult stages of life, she has a lot on her plate being the primary bread winner to the family. Marion’s struggle is to remain afloat within the middle class, but the ebb and flow of everyday life seem to be dragging her down. A.O. Scott of the New York Times agrees, “ The McPhersons are hardly poor, but the daily toll of holding onto the ragged middle of the middle class is evident in Larry’s melancholy and Marion’s ill humor.” Although Marion appears difficult through Lady Bird’s eyes, others can see her for who she truly is. When discussing whether someone can be scary and warm at the same time, Danny tells Ladybird, “I think you can, your mom is.” We also hear approval from her brother’s girlfriend, who throughout the film doesn’t have much to say before or beyond this point, “She has a big heart, your mom.” This helps the viewer understand that Marion, while appearing bitter and unsympathetic, actual has positive motives.

Lady Bird wants nothing more than to go to college out of state, get away from her embarrassingly middle class family, and venture somewhere new where she can finally feel the independence she’s been striving for. While chasing this dream, Lady Bird, a young lady without a filter, tends to say hurtful things without the intentions of causing such pain.

A devastating point in the film is when her boyfriend, Danny, comes to pick up Lady Bird from her house. He’s given the ritualistic, awkward, living room talk with her parents when he says to Marion, “Lady Bird always says that she lives in on the wrong side of the tracks, but I always thought that that was like a metaphor, but there are actual train tracks.” Upon this one, simple, seemingly innocent comment, Marion’s heart drops into her gut and we can see it. Before this, Marion has always known in the back of her mind that Lady Bird wasn’t content with her living status, but at this moment there’s a heavy weight of dread heaped onto Marion’s already troubled mind. Her thoughts flutter with disarray. How many people has Lady Bird said this to? Does she even notice the struggle Marion goes through day-to-day to support her family? Is it not enough? This is just skimming the surface of what a mother must think when her daughter trash talks her own home.

They say distance makes the heart grow fonder, and this theme rings true when analyzing the first and last scene of the film. We begin with Lady Bird and her mother driving home through Sacramento after looking at colleges. Lady Bird can hardly listen to another word her mother has to say and abruptly ejects herself from the moving vehicle. Although the scene wasn’t realistic in the way that Lady Bird resurfaced with nothing but a broken arm, it served it’s comedic goal well. The last scene we’re shown Lady Bird driving through Sacramento again, after having moved to New York for college. She’s shown driving under a voiceover, a message to her mother. She finally sees the beauty in Sacramento after all, and although she doesn’t ever say it, we can feel that she finally understands all that her mother did for her.

Lady Bird also goes through a transition in this film between friends. She dumps her faithful, non judgmental best friend, Julie, for a cooler, more rich, popular girl, Jenna. Julie and Lady Bird’s friendship is thick as molasses. They have the type of relationship that doesn’t require much work to uphold. They know each other better than they know themselves, and love one another as deeply as they would if they were biological sisters. Feeling unfulfilled, Lady Bird befriends Jenna, someone who needs a little sweet talk and impressing to get in good with. Lady Bird finds herself acting out more than usual, and putting up a front in order to seem cool for her newly found friends. The entire act of losing Julie and gaining Jenna is cringe worthy to watch, especially for those of us who went through similar situations. We pray Lady Bird will make smarter decisions than we did in high school and make amends with her true best friend, Julie. Fortunately, this transition is short lived when Lady Bird realizes where her heart and friendship truly belong.

In conclusion, I don’t think it’s fair to call Lady Bird perfection, in the way perfection is defined. The world within the film is a chaotic mess. From the offbeat relationship between Lady Bird and her mother, to the indecisive jumping between friends. However, perhaps Lady Bird could be categorized as perfect in the way that it’s not perfect at all. It’s disorganized entirely, quite similar to our real lives. It’s overwhelmingly relatable, and that alone can leave a lasting impression.

#LadyBird

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triteicerecords-blog · 7 years

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"Shauny's very sad...": A momentary glance into the life of Shaun Hathaway.

About a year ago, I had found myself stumbling upon what would be my partner label, Cavern Brew Records. Of the many oddities that was the label's discography, few truly stood out to me more than Shaun Hathaway. With bassy, underlying drones, harrowing, dark sampling, and loose, yet oddly intricate orchestration, Shaun is one small dark ambient artist, bound to make big leaps in the near future. The following is an interview between the two of us.

What made you want to become a musician, and make ambient music? Have you considered experimenting in other genres?

Well, when I was a kid I used to draw a lot and write stories/small books, then when I was beginning to become a pre-teen I used to act in plays and write scripts for plays and even came in second place in a playwriting contest in 6th grade, then when I was a teenager (high school age) I used to make short films and sketches with my friend at the time, and then after I was about to turn 17 I was starting to write, near-feverishly, lyrics down into various notebooks and I probably have about 4 or so notebooks filled with bars I wrote. My ex-girlfriend actually gave me my first "official" notebook that I used to write rhymes in because I was so convinced that I was going to rap and she was the only person at the time that actually believed in me, so I wanted to make her proud. Soon after I dropped out of high school and we broke up, I recorded a few songs with my close friend and I kind of sort of really cringe looking back at it because it could be a lot better. Don't bother looking for them, though, because I made sure they were taken off of soundcloud. Anyways, the continuation in the storyline I am trying to create is that I was fascinated by how my friend could produce his beats so fast while still being funky as hell. So, he used to try to show me how to use FL Studio and every time I would try to create something, I ended up accidentally creating something hellish so I eventually decided that there was clearly something to it. I think it was a culmination of all of the noise music I was listening to and my generally manic state I was constantly in at that time period, but I very specifically remember hunching over my laptop and making my very first full-length song "Adjustment" in a non-stop 6 to 9 hour production "marathon" and immediately uploaded it to SoundCloud. After I made that song, I was incredibly proud of myself for what I had created and decided to continue making more and more of it and eventually released my first EP "Shaun's Dark Place EP" and was almost immediately contacted by the founder of what became Cavern Brew Records who asked me to release stuff on his new net-label and I said yes. As for the second part of the question, yes, I have considered and have already experimented in hip-hop primarily. I very much plan on creating more and more hip-hop frequently and my end goal to my musical career would be to create experimental R&B and hip-hop, along the lines of artists like FLANCH, JPEGMAFIA, and basically everything Arca has had a hand in producing.

Who are your influences? Or people who you frequently listen to?

My influences for my dark ambient and noise music would definitely be Kylie Minoise first, he has probably had the most direct and notable influence on my harsh noise releases, and others would be Jason Crumer (mainly just Ottoman Black), The Gerogerigegege, and Sissy Spacek, so decently entry level stuff, however I should give a salute/shout out to PURGIST. The people I frequently listen to would most notably be LIL UGLY MANE who is my ultimate production and generally musical idol, Death Grips, Clipping., JPEGMAFIA, Danny Brown, Arca, SOPHIE, another huge production idol of mine, Ratking (and Wiki's solo career too), Machine Girl (mainly just WLFGRL, not gonna lie), ANTWON, Watkin Tudor Jones and his various projects, I know they only have one album, but I fucking love FLANCH so far, Memphis Hip-Hop as a whole has been a huge musical awakening/love for me, especially albums like The World Of A Psycho by Maniac and Demons Takin' Over Me by Nigga Creep, and the whole DJ Sound and Frayser Clique sound, not to downplay Three Six Mafia at all, Giles Corey, and fucking fight me, but I love Spooky Black/Lil Spook/Corbin. I've also really been getting into Xiu Xiu lately.

What are you listening to right now? What would you personally recommend?

I personally try not to listen to music while doing most things except driving and, well obviously, listening to new music because I feel like I'm not giving it my fullest attention and that it deserves better than that. However, I will admit that I will play the albums BBNG by BADBADNOTGOOD, ABSENCE OF SHITPERSON by LIL UGLY MANE, Swing Rocket by Swing Rocket (good friends of mine), and Fashion Week by Death Grips while I am driving in the car with new people or just people I am musically incompatible with, like my mother, most of my friends, or my 7 year old niece. People I HIGHLY recommend would be literally any of the artists I mentioned for the last question, but severely underrated people or projects I would really like to double down my love for would be FLANCH, ANTWON, and JPEGMAFIA. FLANCH for the reasons being that they managed to essentially bring to life a lot of hazy-ish/ballparked ideas I have had in my head for things I would love to both create and hear in a very clear, but by all means strange vision and it is absolutely phenomenal. FLANCH is easily one of my favorite albums of the year. ANTWON being another huge recommendation because of his always incredibly entertaining lyrics, energy, voice, flow, ability to do his thing on just about any beat he is handed, no matter how strange, and his very clear love for punk and black metal which heavily translates into both his aesthetic and lyricism on darker songs. Him and Wiki also put on a 10/10 concert when I saw them both live. And finally, JPEGMAFIA is everything that both music and politics need at this time. He is the best provocateur, both musically and personality wise, of 2016. He has openly admitted to being contrarian for the sake of being contrarian because he believes people should be pushed in the way he pushes him. His albums BLACK BEN CARSON and his collaborative EP The 2nd Amendment with artist Freaky should both be immediate listens for anybody reading this. He is a genuinely amazing glitch-hop, industrial-hop, and just generalized experimental hip-hop artist. Easily one of my favorite newer artists by far.

You chose your real name as a moniker, and many of your albums give a slight description of your personal life in of itself. Do you feel this transparency is a key factor to what makes your music interesting?

I absolutely believe transparency is very key for my releases under my real name, however I would very much like to believe that people would find the music itself entertaining or interesting regardless of personal backstories connected to the albums.

And what possesses you to put out your own personal life? Contextual reasons or catharsis or?

I think it just has to go hand in hand with the transparency I offer by using my real name. I have multiple songs under probably around 20 different aliases out that have no real need for my name to be attached to them, so I leave them segregated from the message, sound, emotion, or point across I am trying to make to people, unlike with my "main" musical releases. But yes, catharsis is very much a great deal to do with it. Like how I used a text message my ex sent me as I was boarding a bus in Boston after we broke up as one of the cassette covers for the album Suicidal Ideation. I am also using the same text message picture to press onto some shirts that should be going on sale relatively soon/before the year is over. My good friend MC 469 and I both are currently the only owners of said shirts. It just works as a grieving method where if I include my personal life into my artistic ventures I just look at it as a part of my art now. Like that text message picture, I barely even look at it and want to cry anymore, I usually just immediately connect it to the aesthetic that I have been trying to hone since I started releasing my dark ambient music rather than the incredibly upsetting amount of personal turmoil it would usually stir up.

Say I’m a new listener. I want to know a short summary of the context that leads you to create these albums. What would you say?

Shaun's Dark Place / thesunshinedieswithoutme: At the time I had just been released after spending a 10 day stay at a mental hospital in Brattleboro, Vermont after being placed in a psychiatric ward for 6 days because I was put on suicide watch for the second time that year (2015), and I had a lot of emotions, feelings, and anxiety to release somehow and the medicine I was on made me feel slightly numb and I was scared of becoming, I guess, normal, so I discovered during that 6 to 9 hour production marathon of the song "Adjustment" was that what I was doing was incredibly therapeutic and I had just discovered a new way to voice my anxieties. Return to Shaun (split album with artist Return to Sender): I had discovered that as helpful as it was to express very morose emotions, it also gave me a pathway to be able to create "fun" harsh noise and just to enjoy myself while still giving my small fanbase what they asked for. Suicidal Ideation: This album began production a little after the previous two projects and I was experimenting in doing much longer, dronier, and more entrancing soundscapes when everything took a really sharp turn for the worst at that time in my life. To sum it all up, I broke up with my current girlfriend at the time because of the multiple unresolved problems and emotions I never settled with my ex, so I went into a full-blown mental breakdown which lasted for about 4 days until my ex, the one I was missing very much at the time, called the police and told them that I was probably going to kill myself that night, which I guess I never thought I would admit it publicly, but I was. I was planning on pulling over somewhere isolated after talking to my ex one last time and just letting the car exhaust fumes kill me. So, the police apparently showed up at my mom's door, while I wasn't home, basically saying "Where is your son?" "He's a danger to himself" "He might have killed himself" and horrible shit like that so I had to stop at the local police station to tell them to stop harassing my mom until they eventually led me under false pretenses and put me on suicide watch for the third fucking time that year where I was held against my will in a psychiatric ward for about 36 hours. In a manic state, I tried to call my ex who called the cops on me and the last words she said to me were "You belong in a mental hospital" and I still haven't been able to contact her since considering she blocked me from her entire life after that, but do not get me wrong, she was entirely within the right to do what she did, I just kind of wish it was perhaps done a little less harshly, but I cannot pinpoint her as "the bad guy". One last "fun fact" about that album was that the song September 22nd was actually made for my mom for her birthday because at the time I couldn't afford to buy her one, so I thought I would try to "make something happy for once" as she would always try to tell me. Cold (single for Stocking Stuffer): I wanted to create an ambient piece that gave the listener a very unsettled and distant feeling of an icy and strangely familiar, but foreign state of mind and or mood. they found him in the forest: I accidentally stumbled upon footage of my father walking through various job sites (he was a forester/logger) and I thought to myself how heartbreaking this was that all the video and audio recordings I had left of my dead father were some 5 to 30 second snippets of him walking through leaves and occasionally mumbling under his breath. October: It's a very self-explanatory project once fully listened to and is easily my most directly personal, and possibly horrifying, album/project to date. It's kind of a hard listen because of the subject matter itself, but I would like to think that it is a very essential listen for any fans of mine who are interested in learning more about my own "backstory". Halloween Split Series 16.2 (Shaun Hathaway x Subversive Intentions): I like to describe my side of the split as a Halloween sound effects/scary stories CD or cassette found in a Goodwill or a similar thrift store, with something incredibly sinister lurking beneath the surface of it all. I'm very proud of this split because it was born out of the most absolute passion and love for my favorite holiday and the collection of old Halloween story and sound effects cassettes and CDs I "used to" listen to in abundance for almost the entire month of October.

When I had a previous had a discussion with you, you stated you would most likely have difficulty having a call as you are “in the middle of nowhere”. Do you think such adds to that isolated feel of your music?

Absolutely. Isolation and alienation are very far from foreign feelings living in New Hampshire, which, in turn, translates heavily into my music. I always had a "joke" that the only ways to die in New Hampshire are suicide, overdose or car accident. Unfortunately the "joke" becomes much more morbid when you start to live here longer and people you used to know start to die faster and younger every year.

If I wanted to show people an accurate depiction of depression through music, you would probably be the first. You do such in a primal and blunt way, something that’s often difficult for your average joe to comprehend. It’s quite an amazing thing to accomplish. I give you praise for such.

Thank you very much! I appreciate the compliment very much! I always think it's amazing when a fan or new listener sends me an email and says almost exactly that, that my music is an accurate translation of depression into music and I take the compliment very to heart because that was exactly the goal I tried to achieve the entire time. It's also kind of a sad awakening in one regard, however. I find it amazing that somebody else out there can empathize and connect with my music the same way I did while creating it, but at the same time it depresses me a lot to know somebody actually has the same feelings as I did while creating it. Nobody should ever have to feel the ways I feel and have felt in the past and it's sad, but on an upturn of it all, I hope it will at least help some people realize they aren't alone as they think they are, as cliche as that may sound.

Do you have a certain thought process to your music? Some of your own songs hit the thirty-minute mark, and it makes me wonder do you have a certain method as to how you develop your drones?

For most of my discography my thought process just consisted of trying to capture the exact feelings I was having right then and there in the most accurate way possible and which samples could really amplify which emotion and etc. However, for a fair chunk of my other stuff, especially on my new album I'm working on (which is easily becoming my favorite album yet. No I don't have a specific release date for it. Probably 2017, though.), I find a main, usually spoken word/vocal sample, that I absolutely fall in love with and I build an entire soundscape and environment around the sample to amplify it. For the second part of your question, yes, I do have some semblance of a method to my madness. As stated a few questions back, when I started working on Suicidal Ideation, I wanted to focus a lot more on the entrancing factor of drone music and in doing so I would develop main, monolithic in size usually, and try to let it seep in and then start tacking on other large and thick layers of loops and generalized ambient sounds. Another must have for me with a lot of my music if you haven't noticed, is thunderous bass lines which, in my opinion, both enhance and add a very unsettling and overpowering feeling to each track it appears on, or at least that is certainly the goal of mine.

Any specific instruments that are key/essential to you?

If vocals count, then absolutely, yes. If not, then not really. In fact, the more I think about it, the more I realize that there is barely any actual instruments, sampled or otherwise, that are in my discography. The only real examples I can think of would be the highly manipulated samples of me playing with my keyboard that appear throughout Suicidal Ideation. However, I will reveal this much, the afformentioned possibly upcoming in 2017 album is going to change that. That is all I can really reveal about it.

I notice you like to use religious songs in your sampling. Some instances, it even sounds like they’re crying or something is bothering them as they sing. Are these personal recordings, or samples you happened to stumble upon?

Oh god, I know exactly which song you're talking about too, 'finalities' off of Suicidal Ideation. That was easily one of the most horrifying samples, in my opinion, that I have ever used. The whole song, especially that intro, was to basically replicate a panic attack I was having while making that song. Almost all of my religious samples actually all come from one place, which I refuse to identify because of how much long it took to stumble upon it and in the vain of not giving away one of my most treasured secrets. But no, none of the religious samples are of my creation, "unfortunately".

Are you yourself religious? And what kind of “weight” does this add to your song, at least in your opinion?

My father was semi-catholic, but his whole side of the family seemed to be relatively devout catholics and my mother and her side of the family all seemed to identify as "spiritual" so I mainly seemed to empathize with my father's religious side for a while when I was a kid. Eventually I just began to lose interest and faith in religion and ever since I was 11 I have been stuck with a strange feeling of loss that I have never been able to fully recover from. I feel like the "weight" that it adds to my music and art as a whole would be that it really envokes a feeling within every once-religious person that can't be fully realized or explained, but is merely a phenomenon that really seems to pique my emotions. Essentially, the samples, themes, etc. are all just attempts to reconnect with a part of my life that has been forever lost. It's basically my equivalent of nostalgiacally looking through old scrapbooks and photos of a dead loved one where the memories you shared with them are both very vivid but also slightly hazy, but the overwhelming feelings of sadness and nostalgia are very clear and direct.

What would you say distinguishes you from other ambient/dark ambient artists?

I would probably have to say my emotional vulnerability. I feel like a lot of (specifically dark) ambient and noise artists are completely obsessed with becoming as anonymous and enigmatic as possible for their whole gimmick, which I completely can understand and respect as a fellow artist and musician, but I feel like the farther they stray from their own identities, the further they distance themselves from their emotions and humanity. In my opinion, a majority of music is created and intended to be an artform in which artists can express their emotions in a very abstract or direct way and when people try to make themselves as unrelatable as possible, it becomes more apparent that the mask they wear they feel is more interesting than themselves which I feel is just being unfair to one's self. Another thing that sort of frustrates me about it is the fact that very rarely do those types of ambient and noise producers ever have fun with it. It's the reason why artists like Death Grips and LIL UGLY MANE will always stay entertaining to me, they play heavily with the elusive act that their fanbases has essentially labeled them as and they seem to enjoy themselves very much doing so. Another thing that would probably be a distinguishable feature of my certain style of ambient/dark ambient is the lack of instrumentation, pedals, etc. and is almost entirely plunderphonics based. I know a lot of ambient artists seem to rely heavily on (albeit distorted and manipulated) synths keyboards, etc. but almost all of my music is 100% sample based. I mean some of it is definitely recorded by me, but more often than not without specific intentions for specific songs and more just recorded for the sake of possible digital mutilations. All of my stuff is just made entirely on my laptop. However, things are going to be slightly changing with that possibly 2017 album I'm working on, but don't worry, it will still be 100% Shaun.

What is the order you recommend your new listeners check out your discography?

Honestly, I don't mean to sound like "that guy", but honestly, I think that chronologically is probably the best bet, except maybe postponing the monolithic Suicidal Ideation until you've listened to everything else, but for certain, you should really start out at Shaun's Dark Place EP or Shaun's Dark Place / thesunshinedieswithoutme.

What albums do you especially recommend, or not recommend, people listen to from you?

Definitely Shaun's Dark Place / thesunshinedieswithoutme, Suicidal Ideation, and October. If listened to in that order, you will probably get a very firm understanding on what it is that I create and who I am. Especially if listened to in that order. The rest of my discography are mainly just considered side projects and experimentations to me. That doesn't mean they should be swept under the rug at all, but they definitely were made more for me to try something new or were for a split or single. However, a huge bonus one for me would be to listen to my split album with Subversive Intentions Halloween Split Series 16.2 (Shaun Hathaway x Subversive Intentions) on Halloween day or Eve or both because that was definitely a passion project that was made entirely out of love, respect, admiration, and general adoration of Halloween sound effects/stories CDs and cassettes I grew up listening to over and over again as a child well before, well after and certainly during Halloween. I was just absolutely obsessed with them and still am.

Have you considered live performances?

Absolutely. Karma Bus and I have been in on and off again serious talks with the idea of a mini CBR/Cavern Brew Records concert with as many local artists signed and or associated with the label to come down and perform at whatever local venue they allow us to book. Another possibility we have talked about is just a dual performance with just ourselves that would possibly feature performance arts and there's even been talks about "distorted reality happenings", as I would like to refer to the ideas as, occuring throughout performances. Nothing set in stone yet, though. It's also very hard to plan concerts for my sort of music because it's not exactly something you can really dance to or even really enjoy in a traditional sense.

What do you think is in store for you in the future?

Well, I am making a lot more hip-hop beats as of lately and have been trying to polish off my skills as a hip-hop producer in order for me to be able to sell my beats or even just give out a few beats for exposure's sake to my favorite active rappers or just ones that I highly enjoy. I feel like I have to be more realistic about being able to make a living off of my music and my art in general and I feel like for me, hip-hop is going to be my way in to a livable career off of my music. I am confident that I have the ability to continue to polish off and work harder on my beats to hopefully make my way into a dream of mine and hopefully meet my idols while doing it. This doesn't mean by any stretch of the imagination that I even plan on retiring from my dark ambient or heavily experimental music as a whole, but if I succeed, it would basically just give me more means to create it.

What is an odd quirky fact about you?

The very first album I ever bought for myself was Jackpot by Chingy when I was about 6 or 7 years old. I would probably cry out of joy if I found my copy of it.

#artist interview #shaun hathaway #dark ambient #noise #small interview #music interview #trite ice records #cavern brew records

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