A/N: Another update? How come? Well...
1. Summer break is almost over and I want to update as much as I can since I haven't been productive this summer tsk tsk.
2. It's my birthday today!! :) I wanna feel accomplished lmao. Anyways, enjoy this chapter that I'm not completely satisfied with!
Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom, I simply only own the plots.
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Danny lay on his bed tiredly late at night, different thoughts running through his head. He was absolutely exhausted, especially after fighting over twenty-six ghosts yesterday, and fourteen today. He so badly wanted to dive into a deep slumber, but sleep just wouldn't come.
He decided to go to sleep early today, at 8 pm. But instead, he spent two whole hours rolling around in bed and just feeling overall jittery. He didn't know what, but he had a gut feeling that today wasn't going to end as quickly as it usually did.
He tried everything; he drank two cups of warm milk, counted fifty sheep, stayed still in one position for ten minutes and even read an astronomic encyclopedia. But nothing seemed to work. It's as if his body was tired, but his brain didn't share the same view. He wondered why he couldn't stay awake like this during Mr. Lancer's class. The boy chuckled, already knowing the answer. Might as well bring his teacher here and ramble about some story to help him fall asleep easily.
Danny then decided to get up after the clock struck 11 o'clock. There was no use in staying in bed if he wasn't going to sleep. He slipped into his bunny slippers and quietly opened the door before walking downstairs.
He knew his parents were probably busy in the lab, inventing who knows what. It seemed really important... but Danny wasn't too interested. He'll ask his dad about it tomorrow morning, that is, if he got any sleep.
However, his parents decided to take a break and give Jazz a goodbye. Today, she was going to a sleepover with her friends although Danny knew it wouldn't be any normal sleepover. From what she had explained to them, it was going to be a study night with some snacks and nerd talk.
'Pretty boring if you ask me,' Danny thought to himself. 'Who would go visit their friends just to study?'
But of course, this was Jazz he was talking about.
"So how long are you going to stay there for?" Danny asked as he entered the kitchen where Jazz was holding onto her suitcase and talking to her parents.
"Two days, don't miss me too much," she said, smirking as their mother chuckled and kissed her daughter on the head.
"Okay sweetie, see you on Sunday. Good night," she said before leaving the kitchen.
"I'm glad I'll be free of your psychology talk this weekend," he teased with a grin as his sister rolled her eyes.
"Oh don't worry, I'll be back soon. But in the meantime, don't get into serious trouble, hmm?" she warned, her eyebrows raised as the boy nodded with a mischievous glint in his eyes.
"You sound as if I'm going to blow the house up. I'll be careful Jazz, jeez you worry too much," he joked as his sister laughed, shaking her head.
"I don't know... but please do take care of yourself," she said seriously as she walked out the kitchen door, giving a short wave.
Danny sighed as he watched his sister leave from behind the window. The wind was pretty strong today and there were rustled leaves everywhere in the garden. For some reason, that bothered him. He didn't know why but he just wasn't a fan of autumn. Maybe because school started around that time, or maybe because it reminded him that winter was coming soon. Either way, he didn't really care right now. What he really wanted to do was just sleep.
Danny went back to his room, not before wishing his parents goodnight. He noticed that they didn't look like they were going to sleep either. He shrugged uninterested. It was no surprise they were working on another invention so he didn't bother asking them. He knew that if he did, his father would destroy any drowsiness still left in him.
The half-ghost hybrid jumped back into bed but still didn't give in to sleep. Somehow, his brain wouldn't just shut off. Like it was begging him to get out of the room and do something that would keep his body active, or in other words, something dangerous. He couldn't describe the feeling... it reminded him of someone who had just consumed five cups of coffee. Not that he would know how that felt like.
Danny groaned, realizing that this wasn't going to work so he decided on the only thing he could think of. Ghost patrol.
He usually patrolled the area with his two best friends, but he knew they were fast asleep by now. Plus, even if they weren't, it was a Friday. He wouldn't bother them by going out just so he could have some company. It was also pretty cold and Danny noticed that as soon as he opened his window and let the chilly air pool in the room.
But before going out, he made sure to hide some pillows under the blanket so that if his parents ended up checking on him for any reason, it wouldn't appear that he had disappeared (or kidnapped by ghosts because that seemed like the most obvious scenario to them).
"I'm going ghost!" the boy whispered excitedly, commanding the white rings to wash over him, transforming him into Phantom. Although the lab was a long way from his room, he wasn't risking his parents hearing him. They would either get suspicious or send him to a mental hospital! Or perhaps attempt to 'scare-the-spooks' out of him as referred to his dad. He mentally cringed at that memory and shook his head, wanting to forget it.
The half-ghost flew out of the window, facing the dark soothing sky. The only source of light came from the bright full moon illuminating up high. Danny made sure to close his window so that his room wouldn't be freezing when he got back later at night. Satisfied, he flew over the window and onto the streets, smiling.
Flying was one of the few abilities he enjoyed. He liked the feeling of glistening in the sky, like one of the stars. He felt so... free. He forgot all of his troubles when he was flying carelessly through the sky, not a care in the world.
The boy felt himself get a bit tired. But not completely. He still had some leftover energy stored in his body that was begging to be let out. So Danny decided to scan the empty streets so that he could have something to focus on. Maybe if his mind got bored with the oddly silent city, he might finally get some rest.
But Danny didn't really expect the place to be so... quiet. It was an eerie quiet that made him grow suspicious and force him to be on alert. There was always something going on, so why was there not a single peep? Danny shrugged the odd feeling but soon regretted jinxing it when his ghost sense went off.
'Of course. I knew I couldn't have one peaceful night without a ghost interrupting it,' he grumbled to himself but sighed. 'But then again, I was the one who insisted on the idea of ghost patrol.'
He followed his ghostly senses that led him to the dog park. And that's where he spotted his target.
"Haven't seen you for a while. Back to attack me again, after your two failed attacks?" he asked with amusement although he knew the ghost couldn't understand him. The giant snake hissed which made Danny raise an eyebrow.
'So it does understand me. Well, what do you know?'
The cobra was paper white with a green underbelly and spiky tail. It's blood-red eyes bore into Danny's soul, his fangs pulled out, ready to strike its venom.
Luckily, the half-ghost moved away right on time before the snake could strike, missing by a few inches. Danny flew back, holding his arm carefully. He looked to find two cuts already leaking with both ectoplasm and blood through his body suit. The boy quickly fired a shot, not wanting to waste any more time so he could bandage his injury. He ended up knocking the snake but not quite as it quickly got up, its fangs hissing menacingly at it's enemy. But before he could deliver his second blow, the snake was suddenly sucked into... a thermos.
Danny gaped, wondering what his parents were doing here. At first, he thought it was either Sam or Tucker since both owned a Fenton thermos of their own. But when he looked over his shoulder, he saw both his parents with serious looks on their faces. However, most of their attention seemed to be on him rather than on the dangerous cobra.
The half-ghost watched Maddie tighten the lid on the thermos as she looked at him. But before Danny could even react, he was suddenly shot with something from behind his back. He panickily glanced back to find a dart, and before he could question what, he felt himself get drowsy. His eyes were beginning to drop and suddenly the world was spinning around him. He forced himself to stay awake, for the sake of staying alive. Five minutes before, he would have been begging for this moment.
But if he closed his eyes... Who knew what his parents would do to him? To his misfortune, he ended up slowly dropping to the ground and landed on the grass, eyes fully closed. However, he remained in his ghost form as he hadn't willed himself to de-transform yet. He couldn't let his parents see him like that. The depressant that had been inserted in him did make him feel sleepy, but his powers didn't die... yet.
Despite the circumstances, Danny felt quite comfortable. He finally got to sleep. Wasn't that why he came here in the first place?
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*Before Danny went unconscious*
The Fenton parents got out late at night. They didn't feel tired and wanted to test out their new invention on any nearby ghost to see if it would work.
Their newest invention was supposed to not kill the ghost, but have it sleep for a while. It usually worked for 9-10 hours from what they had estimated.
Maddie and Jack drove around their neighbourhood before deciding to step out of their vehicle when suddenly, something caught Jack's eyes.
"Hey, Mads... do you see that?" Jack asked, frowning at the bright light coming from the dog park that wasn't too far from their home. Maddie turned to look at the same direction her husband was staring at and also broke into the same expression.
What was happening over there? It looked like a fight was going on with clashing green light...
"Should we investigate?" Maddie asked with a glint of excitement in her eyes as her husband shook his head in disagreement.
"I don't know. It looks like some teens may be having a small party or something," he sighed as he turned to walk away.
"Or it could be a ghost," the woman added, getting the attention of the man as he stopped.
"It wouldn't hurt to check it out, actually," he abruptly changed his mind with an excited grin on his face as he rushed to the scene, Maddie following directly behind him. She rolled her eyes at her husband. He really did have an obsession with ghosts sometimes. But then again, so did she.
The two ghosthunters raced to the source of the light and were stunned by the view that stood behold them. There he was, Danny Phantom, in flesh. The ghost boy was fighting what seemed to be a snake ghost. Maddie was about to interfere when the slithery ghost suddenly struck the boy using its fangs and then the other started... bleeding.
"Jack! Did you see that?" she frantically whispered, staring in shock at the scene. Jack nodded slowly, having seen it as well and was surprised by the sudden revelation. Ghosts can't bleed. So why was Phantom?
The two focused carefully on the injury and noticed how the boy winced when he made movement using his arm.
"But ghosts can't feel pain! It's impossible!" Jack exclaimed as Maddie hushed him but didn't say anything else after that. What was she supposed to say? All the research they had done on ghosts couldn't compare to this. That is, if he really turned out to be a ghost.
The thought crossed Maddie's mind. Could it be? Could he be a hybrid? It was very unlikely, and they didn't have enough proof. But she was willing to do whatever it took to find out what exactly this ghost was.
"Jack! I have an idea," Maddie whispered to Jack as she explained to him that how maybe they'll be able to take him to their lab and ask him some questions. But they both knew the ghost wouldn't come willingly. From what they had seen in real life and on tv, the boy seemed to hold his secrets dear and would never disclose any personal information on camera.
"Mads! This is the perfect tool! We can finally test it on him!" Jack shared his idea as Maddie looked at him a bit unsure.
"Hmm, I don't know Jack. I may not have cared to hurt him badly in the past, but we just discovered something very unusual about him. What if it does serious damage?" she said, her voice laced with worry.
"Oh, don't worry. This doesn't harm them! Now, you stay here and capture that spooky snake while I circle the ghost boy from behind," he explained the plan as Maddie nodded hesitantly but complied, opening the Fenton thermos that was hanging from her belt and sucked the cobra right into it.
The half-ghost looked at the woman in shock, clearly not expecting her to help. But before he could say anything, the woman watched as the boy slowly drifted to the ground. She looked over at Jack who was holding the gadget, happy to see it working. Maddie also smiled a bit, knowing that it shouldn't cause serious harm to the hybrid.
The two carried the surprisingly light boy in their arms and into their vehicle, straight home.
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Danny was uncomfortable. He knew he was sleeping, but it just didn't feel right. He could tell that something was wrong but he couldn't bring himself to wake up. After all, the boy was exhausted after those two restless nights.
The boy turned to his right, hoping to get a bit more comfortable, but it was no use. He frowned, but didn't really care at the moment. He was tired, and all that mattered was getting some sleep. He didn't remember the last time he got this many sleep hours. He was usually lucky if he got 5 hours of sleep, and that's speaking on weekends. As for school days, the most he had gotten since receiving his ghost powers were 3 hours and a half, which was extremely unhealthy for a boy his age.
The teen turned to the other side again, but this time winced in pain. He felt something sting him on his unmoving arm. 'Why was his arm in pain?' When he couldn't take it anymore, he turned back to sleeping on his right. Still uncomfortable, but bearable. However, the pain didn't end there. He unconsciously moved his right hand to touch his arm but felt something gooey and crusty on the edges.
Was it honey? No, that couldn't be. Honey was more viscous. But its consistency didn't resemble either water or juice. Plus, why would he be bathing in juice anyway?
At that, Danny knew he had to do something. Sure, he wanted to sleep for a bit longer, but he felt that there was something he had to address. He forced himself to slowly flutter his eyes open, only to be met by bright light. He instantly regretted his actions and hissed while shielding his eyes using his right hand. But he then realized what it was covered in.
Blood. Blood and ectoplasm. The boy instantly got up, not fully awake but enough to inspect his surroundings. At first, the place seemed very bright, and the scent resembled what seemed to be a hospital. But as he inspected the familiar room more, he realized that he wasn't in a hospital.
He was in his parent's laboratory.
'What am I doing here?!' The boy asked himself frantically, clearly shocked and uneasy. How'd he get here? Did his powers start acting up again and made him turn intangible while he was sleeping? But he would've felt the pain of the fall if that were the case.
But... he didn't remember going back to bed. In fact, he couldn't sleep and he decided to go on ghost patrol and...
Danny's eyes widened. 'Wait. I was fighting that snake ghost when...'
All the pieces started to click in, from when he had left his room to fighting a ghost, and then his parents unexpectedly showing up. He didn't remember past passing out, but he did remember feeling something pinch his shoulder blade, kind of like a needle, and losing consciousness. He didn't know what it was but luckily, it didn't look like it caused any major damage to him (for now anyway).
Of course, he had a minor headache, and he was forced into an uncomfortable position...
The boy looked up and realized one important thing. He was in a... cage?! That's why he couldn't sleep properly! Could things get any more bizarre than that?
'Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god, I'm trapped! What do I do?' Danny was internqally panicking when the realization hit him. 'Duh. Ghost powers!'
Danny mentally slapped himself for not having thought of it before scaring himself as he turned intangible. But when he tried phasing out of the glowing bars, they angrily pushed back and he was thrown on the cold floor once again.
'Okay, now it's time to panic,' Danny groaned and rested his head on his knees, hands nervously playing with his hair. But he immediately took his hands off when he realized what he covered his hair with. 'Oh wait, I'm still bleeding!'
The boy's eyes widened in fear as he used the right hand to cover his left arm so that it would prevent further blood from seeping through. He didn't know how long it was left exposed for, but he could've gotten an infection if he left it out for even a minute after that!
The boy sighed, realizing his situation. He wasn't locked in just any cage. But the one in his parent's lab! Even hanging out with Vlad while he ranted about his Packer's obsession seemed better than here. And that said a lot.
"Okay, so it can't be that bad. Maybe I'm dreaming. Yes! It has to be! This has to be a horrible nightmare and I'll wake up any second now," Danny tried convincing himself as he shut his eyes tightly and waited for himself to wake up in his warm bed, the sun softly hitting his face from his open window and the wind rustling in.
"I can assure you, you're not dreaming," a familiar female spoke as Danny opened his eyes in surprise and turned to face his mother, who had her arms crossed in a questioning manner. His father was also present, but he seemed busy with... stuff.
"Jack, can you eat later?" Maddie turned her attention away from the boy to the other person in the room, an exasperated look evident on her face as her husband tried finishing the last pieces of fudge that was left over.
"Okay, I'm done!" he declared, mouth still full of fudge. Danny chuckled quietly, completely forgetting he had an audience.
"So ghosts can laugh too? Did you see that Jack? He finds it funny! How is it possible?" Maddie exclaimed as she walked closer and inspected him like he was an organism under a microscope.
"You know it's rude to stare," Danny fired hotly, feeling uncomfortable by the way his parents were staring at him. Were they planning on tearing him apart? Dissecting him? Danny shivered thinking about the countless possibilities. 'Why was he making himself more worried anyway?'
"Hmm, and he speaks like any other human with quite a sarcastic tone. Reminds me of teenagers nowadays," Jack pointed as he shrugged and turned to Maddie who still had her eyes on the boy.
"Say, what are you?" she quietly asked as Danny shot her a confused look. 'Were they crazy now? What made them question him that-'
He turned to the direction his mother was studying him at and his eyes widened upon realization. His injured arm. Of course! They must've noticed he was bleeding and realized ghosts didn't have blood in their bodies!
"A ghost?" he replied a bit too quickly, playing dumb. There was no way he was revealing anything to them! He didn't want to be caged down here forever and have to go through whatever dangerous experiment they had in mind!
"I don't believe that. Let me ask this again, who are you? Like, we're sure you're not just an ordinary ghost," she repeated louder this time as she pulled a nearby chair and sat in front of the cage that the worried boy was currently crouched in.
"As if I would tell you," Danny shot back with a glare, deciding that there was no point in pretending he didn't know what they meant by the question. This was his mother they were talking about. Whether he was Fenton or Phantom, she would be able to see through his lies clearly.
"Well, I'm afraid you don't have a choice. Either you tell us or we'll have to resort to other... forceful ways," she said as the boy frowned, knowing what she was referring to. The examination table was only a few feet away...
"You can't force me here forever. As soon as you open this cage, I'll be long gone," he confidently stated but raised a confused eyebrow at his mother's unfazed look.
"We can just use the same gadget we used on you last night. It would save us the trouble of having to force you to talk," she said as Jack grinned.
"I call it, the Fenton Sleeping Dart! Instead of sleeping pills, I changed it to a sleeping dart, ha! Clever, right?" the man exclaimed as Danny mentally rolled his eyes. But he was too nervous to act bored. Now, he'll have to answer every question. But that didn't mean they knew who he was exactly, right?
With a defeated sigh, the boy nodded.
"Fine, on two conditions. I tell you what you want to hear, but you don't inform a single soul of what you heard and you let me out after we're done. Deal?" he stated as the two nodded. They didn't really need him, at least for now, as they would be too busy studying the information given so the conditions weren't too bad.
"Deal," Maddie said as she extended her arm in between the bars and Danny shook hers, surprised at how she didn't seem worried that he could easily hurt her.
"Now, so that we know you're telling the truth..." the ghosthunter trailed off as she got up from her seat and scrummaged through her box of belongings, bringing back a metal box with a black screen and a fingerprint scanner beside it. "We'll be using this, our very own lie detector."
'How come I am unaware of this?' Danny pursed his lips in distaste. It could've helped him in many situations, especially in school! 'What crud luck!'
'Nobody said this thing actually works though so maybe luck really is on my side for today,' Danny mentally theorized. 'Just gotta control my breathing rate and act sure.'
The boy did what was ordered from the two ghost hunters. The box was placed in front of him, and Danny placed his left ring finger (since his right hand was covered in dried up blood).
"Now, first question. What are you?" she asked again as Danny rolled his eyes. He doubted the machine really worked so in a confident tone, he answered the question.
"Half ghost,half werewolf,' he answered naturally, half of it being the truth anyway and werewolves also had blood. Almost immediately, however, he felt a light zap course through his body. "Uh, what was that?"
"You're lying, try again," Maddie replied unimpressed. Even if the machine stopped working, did the boy really think he could fool her like that?
The boy cursed mentally. 'Of course it had to work properly.' He sighed again and realized there was no point in hiding it, they were going to find out anyway if they were going to ask for his blood sample.
"Half ghost and... half-human," he answered truthfully this time as he waited patiently for the zap, but it never came.
"So my suspicions were correct," she whispered, her eyes wide as she looked at her husband. He was also shocked by the new piece of information.
"Mads! We can now get charged with assault!" he exclaimed as Maddie quickly hushed him and turned to the quiet boy.
"Okay... how old are you exactly?" she asked, simply out of curious. If he was human, he had to have an age he could remember.
"Fourteen, almost fifteen," he replied and again, the machine blinked green. The questions went on like that, and Maddie and Jack found themselves enjoying the ghost's company rather than asking him the serious questions. He had interesting ambitions and turned out to be a smart and determined teenage boy. They also learned how he can 'go ghost', the ghost powers he had, and what he used them for. He also ended up telling them how he turned to a ghost in the first place, minus the ghost portal in his parents' labs. He laughed when they thought he had a parent who was a ghost and another one a human. But then, their relaxed looks quickly got replaced by looks of worry when he explained how he got electrocuted by getting into a lab accident. He quickly changed the topic to prevent them from prying any further and revealing sensitive information.
"Say, do you go to school?" she asked curiously as the boy answered with a 'yes'. "Which one?"
At this, Danny was hesitant to reply, and Maddie unfortunately noticed it too. 'Was it wise to tell two ghosthunters where he attended school?' The boy then sighed, deciding it couldn't be too bad... for now, they didn't seem to hold ill intentions.
"Casper High," he finally answered as the woman and her husband gasped.
"That's the same school both my children go to!" she exclaimed as Danny grinned, coming up with an idea.
"Your children's names are called Danny and Jazz, right?" he asked as the two parents nodded, shocked. "I must say, they are delightful kids! Especially Danny. He's such a good boy, very smart and liked by everyone, including the teachers in the school. Mr. Lancer absolutely adores him. You should totally buy him the new video game he told you about last week, he deserves it."
They stared quizzically at the boy, now confused. This ghost and their kid must be close, and that's what worried them.
"Okay..." Maddie trailed off. "But I have one last question for you," she said as Danny sighed out of relief.
'Yes, finally! That's it! All I have to do is answer this question and I'm out of here,' Danny thought excitedly to himself. He was so glad he would finally be able to get out of the cage and stretch, sitting on the ground for so long had proven to be terrible for his back.
"First off, we'd like to say sorry for hunting you too many times. It must be hard to be a teenager and manage these ghost powers while we're behind your back," Jack sincerely said as he smiled. "Please take this fudge as an apology."
Maddie rolled her eyes but nodded. "What he said. We hope that one day you'll forgive us and maybe even pay us a visit, that is, if you're interested in ghost gear."
The boy was stunned by their apologies. They looked so sincere and serious when they were talking. And their words- No! This must all be a trick! They could be fooling him. They've always hated ghosts and wouldn't hesitate to dissect him if given the chance, no matter how human he may seem to them.
But why didn't they do it right now? What do they get by tricking him? They have him right now, helplessly trapped in the stupid cage with every anti-ghost weapon to exist at their disposal. And the way they looked at him had been like they truly meant it. Even his father, who always joked in serious situations, seemed to actually care about his words.
The boy sighed, really just wanting to get out of here. This cage was surely driving him crazy. He'll think about what they said later when he's finally free and can get his arm treated before it gets infected.
Maddie noticed the half-ghost wincing when he moved his arm slightly and she looked at him with a sober expression.
"Do... do you want me to treat that?" she asked hesitantly, unsure whether the boy would accept her offer. Danny meanwhile looked at her baffled.
For a minute, he didn't believe that it was his mother, a ghost hunter, speaking to him. She sounded so... caring. Not that she didn't care for him, but he was in his ghost form right now. In her eyes, he was something she had despised for a long time. A menace. So why did she offer to help him? What did she get from doing this?
"N-no thanks. I'll get it cleaned later," he stuttered as Maddie shook her head and got up. Danny's eyes curiously followed her, wondering what she was going to do now. He watched as his parents started whispering about something, looking back at him every now and then, and despite his good hearing senses, he still couldn't hear them. It had to be the after effects of the drug they had inserted to him a while ago because he was still sleepy too.
Finally, after what seemed like an hour, the two returned holding a first aid kit.
Apparently, the cage was only ghost proof which explained why it glowed bright green. So it was easy for Jack to pass through it, just like how a ghost would phase through walls in the human world. Danny looked at him with an uneasy expression while the man unlocked the kit.
"Look. I don't like you spooks. But I heard from Danny's friends that one time that you saved my son from a ghost attack. I didn't believe that at first, but since you're friends with my son and seem to know almost everything about him, I'll help you," Jack explained, forcing a frown on his face as Danny raised an eyebrow. That was certainly unexpected.
"But just so we can make sure that what you're saying is true, answer this one question," Maddie said. "Why does Danny dislike Christmas?"
That had to be the easiest question known to mankind. Who didn't know themselves anyway?
"Because you and da- I mean, Jack, wouldn't stop fighting over whether Santa is real or fake. And something always seems to end up badly on that day," he answered simply as both parents looked at each other, now confirming that this boy really did know their son.
"Very well. Jack, try to treat his cut. It shouldn't be too hard as it doesn't appear to be far too deep," Maddie studied the ghostboy as Jack nodded and began cleaning his injury.
Danny hissed when the rubbing alcohol came in contact with his skin. Jack noticed this and tried applying less pressure on the cut. He still found it bizarre how this ghost got hurt but now that they knew he was also a human, it made sense.
After cleaning the cut and bandaging it, the man closed the kit and smiled. "Good as new!"
"Thanks," Danny murmured, looking down. He still found it weird how they acted so nicely when he was still in his ghost form. But before he could question it, he started to feel dizzy, and he immediately understood why. He had been in his ghost form for too long, and his body was starting to grow weaker. He felt his two rings threatening to switch him back to his human half, but he couldn't. He forced himself to stay in his tired form in order to get out of here safely.
"Now for the final question..." Maddie continued as Danny nodded, eager to answer the final question. He was beginning to feel even worse. Shouldn't he be feeling better now? He just got his cut cleaned up and bandaged. "Who are you?"
Danny was taken aback by the question. What did she mean by that? He remembered telling her he was a half-human and half-ghost from the beginning. So why was she asking again?
Maddie noticed the boy's confused expression and decided to explain further.
"What I mean is that we don't know who you are. What's your name? How do you look? Can we see you transform into your human half?" she questioned as Danny quickly got uncomfortable.
"U-uh I believe t-that's three questions," he stuttered as nervous beads of sweat began to drip from his forehead. He willed his leftover ice powers to cool him down while paying attention to what the woman said next.
"Then tell us your name. We already promised we wouldn't tell anyone," Maddie continued, even more desperate to hear his response. She didn't know why the boy was so nervous. Of course, anyone in his position would feel uncomfortable revealing who they are, but this boy looked like he was on the verge of fainting. His face had turned five shades paler, and he was beginning to sweat, scratching his hair every now and then.
"I-I can't," the boy answered nervously as Jack sighed.
"Look ghostboy. We know this is hard for you, but we need to know who you are to ensure that we can trust you. Plus, this could benefit you too. We now know where you get our tools, from our son Danny, and we can now offer you even more. You're now a ghost hunter, and a unique one at that," the man grinned as Danny crossed his arms.
"And why can't you just trust me without knowing my identity? Did all those questions not prove myself at all?" he glared, growing frustrated every second. The parents were taking aback by the sudden outburst but stood their ground.
"It certainly did reveal a lot of information than we expected, but even all that couldn't 100% confirm your human identity and we need to see for ourselves," Maddie explained.
The boy sighed, knowing there was no way to convince them otherwise.
"My name is B-bill," he answered and felt an instant zap. The two ghosthunters watched, now worried and confused. Why wouldn't he just tell them?
However, Danny was unaware that this small zap had also caused his body to grow weaker. It wasn't because the machine was designed to weaken him, but because his body couldn't handle much more pressure. He needed to rest, NOW. Or else, he could risk revealing his biggest secret. But then, what else could he answer with? It was clear that his parents weren't going to let him leave until he answered their question, and he didn't exactly have much time to spare.
"My name is Danny," he finally answered as Maddie smiled, a bit surprised.
"Oh, you have the same name as our son. Isn't that cool?" she turned to Jack as he nodded. "That's great Mads! Now we know two Danny's! What's your last name kiddo?"
"Danny... D-Danny Fenton," the boy answered out of breath. He really needed to give in. He tried forcing his ghost half to remain, but he was too weak. He had to transform back to his human half.
"D-Danny?" his mother stuttered, her eyes glossed with tears that were beginning to form. His dad was also shocked upon hearing the full name and when they didn't hear the zap, they knew that what the boy had said was true.
"B-but that's impossible! How..." Jack exclaimed but soon realized he was wrong when the exhausted boy finally transformed to his human half. They watched their son lay on the floor, half-conscious.
"J-Jack! Close the ghost shield, now!" she demanded as her husband quickly obliged. As soon as the glowing bars disappeared, Maddie raced in and picked up her son who was focusing on taking controlled gulps of air
"Oh Danny..." she choked as she pulled her son close to her, her knees on the floor. Jack soon joined her, all three of them silently weeping.
"M-mom, dad," Danny whispered hoping that this wasn't true. So did they know his secret now? Was this it?
"I... I don't even know what to say. But I'm so sorry sweetie!" his mother exclaimed as Danny sighed out of relief. He hugged both his parents as tight as he could, happy that they weren't mad. Or at least, mad that he wasn't a ghost.
Finally, after what seemed like an hour of comforting words and the poor boy finally relaxing, Danny pulled away, smiling. "So, what're we going to tell Jazz?"
"I have a great idea, son. But before that, let's get you to bed," Jack grinned as both Maddie and Danny raised an eyebrow. What plan did he have in mind this time?
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Jazz was happy to finally return home. Sure, studying with her friends was fun (at least to her), but she had started to miss her parents and little brother. And she wanted to know what Danny had been dealing with this weekend and if he was doing okay. Or maybe he fought with a new ghost to add to her collection?
However, her eyes bulged out of her sockets and her jaw almost dropped to the ground when she was met by the shocking scene as soon as she had entered the living room.
There sat her brother, in his ghost form, with both their parents cuddling him as they watched a movie. Jazz rubbed her eyes, thinking that she was hallucinating.
'Maybe drinking too much coffee wasn't such a good idea,' she thought to herself as she blinked multiple times, but nothing changed.
Danny was the first to notice her presence, and he gave her a sly grin as if there was nothing out of the ordinary happening.
"Oh hey, Jazz! Didn't notice you there, heh. There's leftover steak if you're hungry, right dad?" he greeted as he turned to look at Jack who was also wearing a similar grin.
"Of course, son. Join us after, alright Jazz?" he said to his daughter as Jazz continued to gape at them. Maddie giggled silently in the background.
"I- What- How- Okay, WHAT?!" she exclaimed, completely lost. The three laughed at the girl's expected behavior.
"I'll explain later. Now eat something before you pass out," Danny teased.
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Published: August 26, 2019
Edited: September 10, 2021