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daydreamsandcrashingwaves · 4 months

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Keeping It Close To The Chest Pt 1

Edited 12/25/23 ~~ Here's Part Two ~~

Part Three Part Four

I devoured the Damian Wayne and Danny Fenton are Twins tags and had to make something of my own to add. This is my first fanfic I've decided to post. I'm much more familiar with the DP side of things but I gave it my best shot. Hope this brings joy anyway. If I decide to post this on A03 I will have it beta'd since I made this in like four parts and then wove them together so the flow may not always be there whoopps.. but for now I just wanted to share this with all you!

TW/CW: Medical experimentation and trauma, parental abuse/neglect, wound description, blood-ectoplasm and human, death (it's danny, he's the culprit lol will apply to Jason too if I add to this), body horror (to be safe), PTSD and flashbacks, childhood trauma and abuse, dehumanization

If I missed a tag/warning please let me know! I've never been an extensive tagger so i tried real hard to get everything, but I am human and could've missed something. Much love, stay safe.

~Ren

He had to keep moving. He could still hear their screams of rage ringing in his ears. Faster, he had to be faster. His blind panic had created an opportunity, a sliver of hope Danyal was determined to twist to his advantage. He was limping forward on uncertain legs. His vision swayed with the movement, and he fought to keep upright. His chest was on fire, Danny pressed his hands tightly to the wound there in a desperate attempt to keep his organs from spilling out like confetti. He kept his arms tucked close and rounded his shoulders to try and keep his torso still while he moved quickly through the empty streets of his once home. His chest was by far injured the worst, but he had paid no mind to the others. If he dared to stop, he would fully die.

Even in his human form, Danny just knows he's leaving a glowing blood trail behind him, the ectoplasm burning into the ground behind him. Whatever side of his transformation his body was currently showing it didn't matter, he was simultaneously both, always. The trail was evidence he transformed due to necessity, he became so durable after dying that it took a lot to hurt him. Danny risked a glance down and paled further. The green he spilled as Phantom mixed with red. A fucked up corrosive bread trail right to him. He was sure he truly was in deep shit. He just had to get to his go bag. Over time with his parent's inventions getting more dangerous the more Danny had to think about putting into motion The Great Escape.

Anything important he had always kept hidden, but Danny had taken everything out of his room once he had died the second time, and Danny was grateful for the convenience to be able to phase things into walls, floors, ceilings. It made his things pretty secure; no human could find it and any ghost that came through was too focused on their obsession or fighting him to go on a treasure hunt for his hidden things.

Danny's willful ignorance of his body as he stumbles farther from FentonWorks doesn’t stop the slight burn of his ectoplasm against the edges of his wounds and the tatters of his hazmat suit pulling on the scabbing blood or the smell. Ancients the smell. It’s rancid, he hasn’t been able to cycle it properly without his normal supply of fresh ectoplasm from the Zone. Only provided in small bursts when his parents wanted to see how his body healed with and without ectoplasm. He can feel the whispers of his terror, anger, grief that’s flowing through his blood.

He had been overconfident way back when he had threatened Vlad with exposing his secret. He had thought they'd love him despite having kept his halfa status from them, he hadn't been prepared for the distrust, the hatred, the way they moved farther and farther from thought out experiments to revenge. Danny knows Maddie and Jack still see him as the quiet, shaken child so desperate to be good, craving acceptance by the eccentric family that took him in when they look at him. If Danny had to guess they had been so blinded in their rage to even realized it was their machine, their failure that made him this way. Now they really did want him dead.

He’s whole somehow, despite their best effort, he just needs time. Ancients, He’s not exactly the monster they pictured, but He's not human... He’s whole.

The thought tastes bitter and Danny strangles it before it can expand. He must be focused. Taking a measured breath Danny turns down a familiar alley, he goes intangible with a slight twinge in his core, slipping into the bathroom of Nasty Burger. He’s done this so many times the familiar path brings comfort, reassurance. Like maybe things will start to turn for the better. Making his way over to the stall Danny debated whether it was worth climbing the toilet or floating up there. No, it was better to grit his teeth and bare it. There were only three containers of ectoplasm in his bag, he needed to preserve what strength he had. He would soon have no way to access the Zone for a refill.

Danny took one hand and placed it on the wall before careful stepping up. Lifting his leg had sent waves of pain across his nerves but with a grunt he leveraged himself up. His vision went black at the edges, he was dizzy, and bile clawed at the back of his throat. Danny took a few breaths, while he might not need to breathe, he’s been human longer than not, and well.. he’s only half ghost so the habit carried over to when he's Phantom. Danny was immensely grateful for his time in the League, the training was brutal, he still has nightmares about dying the first time but.. he did learn how to survive in situations that if he was truly a Fenton, would've killed him many times over. As Danny was Danyal Al Ghul Fenton, he always had back up plans. His Mother had been heavy handed with those lessons.

It was painful to think about Talia. She had been Grandfather’s favored child and the weight of his expectations of his grandsons was enforced by her. Lessons or punishment, very rarely praise was given to Danny by his Mother's hand. Each milestone was meticulously observed and reported back, doubly so for their failures. Tiny bodies with too big of weapons, green and blue eyes, a face mirroring his own but twisted in determination, competition. His older brother, his twin. They were inseparable, until they weren't.

Danny's core throbs in his chest, he wanted to shy away from the thought, yet the inconsolable part of him screams at the injustice of being the only one to escape their Grandfather. If only Danny could've proven himself, perhaps his brother would've had a chance to leave in his stead, but Danny knows just how much he was lacking in comparison to his brother, and it was their skill, or lack thereof in Danny's case, that sealed their fates. Danny was able to avoid Ra's overseeing eyes when they moved off the failure of a Spare and homed in on his true Heir. The grandson who took to their lessons like a duck in water. Deathly beautiful, Danny used to think as he watched his brother dance and fly through his training. Talia couldn't defy Ra's orders but if she just.. misplaced.. the Spare that was abandoned, well, no one has come for him yet.

Danny knows she loved him, somewhere hidden, deep inside his Grandfather's perfect pet assassin. She loved him enough to send him away when it became clear Ra’s saw no need in the Spare that was no longer needed, she had loved him when she had beaten him and left mortal wounds-their only chance to fool Grandfather, she loved him when she had given him his packed bag and left him outside that orphanage in Chicago with lazarus water raging in his veins, and she loved him when she told him to forget.

Forget about the League her and his brother, his family.

With brief tight squeeze to his small shoulder her she told him if he was in danger to find Bruce Wayne and then Talia Al Ghul was gone and Danyal-just Danyal now- was left truly on his own for the first time ever.

Danny was definitely in danger now; his situation was grave and despite everything the pun brought a small smile to his face. He couldn’t go back home to the Fenton's. He tries to forget how he froze in his surprise when he realized his parents didn’t take his reveal as Phantom as well as they had let on. They had smiled and stalled until they had found a way to contain him. By then it was too late, he had gotten too complacent in his run on a normal life.

Only after Ancients knows how long he had been resisting, pleading, screaming-I’m still Danny, it hurts mom please, I’m still me, Dad I’m alive- did Maddie find his core. Too tired to move it away from her gaze any longer and when her fingers brushed it the wave of mind-numbing terror exploded out of him. Something must've been on her gloves because his core burned. It ripped a wail from his throat while he writhed on the table. Ice responded like it never was taken from him by the anti-ghost restraints.

Danny could still distantly feel the ghostly ice that had trapped them in place and shattered his restraints under the pressure the frozen water bursting into existence. Even trapped in his ghost ice they were steadily working on getting out and would be on the hunt for him again soon. He wouldn't allow them to catch him again.

The mere idea they’d be on their way already spurred Danny back into action. Slipping his hand into the wall he grabbed the strap and pulled his bag out, careful to keep it weightless, and slid off the toilet and back down to the floor. He hasn't seen his dagger in months, it hurt too much to practice without Dami, his other half. Here it is though, innocently tied to his bag and his gaze traced it lovingly, before searching inside the biggest pocket for his first aid kit. He didn't have time for stiches, so he reaches for the butterfly bandages and starts to pull the skin together before securing it. It's really the first proper look he gets, it's... unsettling at the very least, horrifying, to see a wound reserved for autopsies on his chest.

The Y incision is inflamed and still bleeding so he carefully follows its path until he's done. Grabbing gauze, he starts to reinforce pad, wrapping a roll of bandages around to hold everything in place. Danny bites his lip and thinks for a moment, he will need stitches, he's been wounded enough in this half-life to know that. The likelihood for his work to stay in place while he flies is less than he'd like. Making a decision and with a mental shrug he takes an ectoshot from the smaller pocket and stabbed it into his thigh before pressing the depressor. Pure energy zapped through his system hard, angerly surges to settle in his chest. Feeling a bit better but more.. wired Danny takes a second to calm. Steeling himself he tries to nudge his core, it responds in a weak pulse.

Danny's body protests, he can feel his muscles shred and reform, his bones twist like taffy, his organs melt together before settling to form his ectobody. It's all over in a flash of bright light, yet the pain felt endless. Overwhelming in its intensity but gone just as quickly as it came leaving Danny sweaty and panting. Transforming injured was tricky, he had to carefully picture where the bandages were, so he didn't lose all his hard work.

Confusion settled as a fog, clinging to his thoughts, making them murky. His hands were covered in blood, his body hurt, and he couldn't quite remember why, there was a siren coming closer. Everything in him screamed to run, to escape, but his hunters were too close now, freed from his ice to kill him fully. On instinct Danny's nails grew to claws, ripping into space to create a portal. He was weak, always had been, but he was good at running, hiding away in the shadows. Ghost was once a name of his, a proud title, not just what he is now.

Just as the doors burst open in a teal and orange blur Danny dove into the swirling green and hoped Clockwork was watching so at least someone knew things had exploded here in Amity. He hasn't needed to be on his own like this since after Jazz first saw him and demanded that her parents bring Danny home with them. He misses her now as the path out of Nasty Burger closes behind him. Danny's falling, dropping towards the ground too fast for eyes to track but his impact had definitely shaken the room. With a pained whine and a flash Danny was back to being human again, his landing had pulled at whatever scab was able to form in the twentyish minutes it took him to drag himself away from the basement. Danny was going to be sick, the sticky cool liquid that had his clothes clinging to him, was going to be very alarming when he finally could give himself a proper once over. He could feel the new bruises as he tried to roll off the pallets he had crushed.

"Oh! Someone decided to drop by! " A man called out with glee as he sauntered in his direction. "Shall we see who our special guest is?" Danny could feel the rotten soul as he got closer. Too close. Forgoing moving Danny tensed in anticipation. He was hurt, yes, but he would go down fighting. He could do that much to make his brother proud, even if he never realized Danny lived to 15 not 5. Before he could uncurl to swing at the man there was the soft sound of fabric rustling and a blade being drawn. Curling tighter Danny hoped he had enough juice to go intangible.

"You will not reach your goal Joker; Do you not get sick of trying?" The voice was smooth, deeper than he remembered but it's been 10 years, it's understandable that puberty changed his brother's voice. Danny would recognize it anywhere. Danny jinxed himself, somehow. How he ended up in the same room as the brother he hadn't seen in a decade, Danny wasn't sure. He was terrified though. Where Damian was the League and their Grandfather wasn't far behind. Damian had carefully hidden away his care as a child but would shower Danny in it in the darkness of their room. After years apart and Grandfather's continued influence Danny was uncertain how much of Damian truly remained.

There was a burst of noise, of movement and a struggle then silence covered the room. Danny's hands were shaking. "Nightwing, first aid is required inside, bring the kit." His brother paused, "No, a civilian, a metahuman if his unusually colored blood is to be taken into account."

Danny could feel his brother's scrutiny, his gaze held weight as it scanned over his collapsed form, he tried to curl more but a hand brushing his shoulder had Danny screaming and scrambling away.

Damian's hands twitched at his side, an aborted motion to draw his sword. He seemed to pause then they flew up empty, placating- it didn't bring Danny any comfort.

An assassin's greatest tool was always their hands. Green eyes tracked him, narrowing at the way Danny was shrinking into the shadows. Dread swam down his spine to settle hard in his gut. Of all the ways to meet his brother again, it had to be when he was dying, for a third time. Danny reached blindly for whatever was next to him to pull himself up, his knees wobbled precariously but he would be standing for this. He had to be. Black spots were now in his vision, but he forced a smirk onto his face. Danny was sure he was a sight to see, torn clothes, skin riddled with bruises, green and red blood splattered all over like a kindergartener's messy painting of Christmas, limp dirty hair.

Danny knows Damian is assessing him, taking in what he can see in front of him to efficiently deal with it as they were trained to do. potential strengths and weaknesses. Behind both the domino mask and his calm exterior Damian is taking in a snapshot. Danny wonders what he sees, if his brother recognizes the boy he’s grown into, Danny’s core thrums wildly and he tries not to fidget. The slight frown that pulls at Damian’s mouth means he caught the aborted motion.

"Damn, green, yellow and red... You look like a traffic light!" He gets one giggle in before he chokes on it. Danny can't breathe. His brother had gone deathly still when Danny spoke. He could see the war of emotions fighting through his brother, suspicion was quickly doused with rage. "How dare she." The Arabic was an unexpected comfort, but Danny felt confusion at the words. He's severely out of practice, he thought he understood but doubt settled in. He wasn't sure.

Damian had always stood firm next to him in the League, calm, driven and decisive, the perfect heir for their Grandfather. He was always warm to Danny though, would allow traces of his true feelings to be visible when Damian would inevitably catch Danny sneaking out of his bed to stargaze. Danny would get scolded, every time. Grandfather would punish him harshly for such indulgences, he knew it. Attachments were weaknesses and Grandfather would not grow weakness in the League, in his heirs. Danny may be weak and the Spare but he was smart. He knows what the looks of distaste meant from his Grandfather. He knew how his failures would catch up to him and how Grandfather disapproved of his influence on Damian. Yet Danny kept going back, hiding in the shadows to gaze at the stars and wait for his brother to come find him.

Danny had braced for Damian to be mad when he realizes Danny didn’t truly die that day and has stayed away from his brother, but Danny couldn’t have expected this.

Pure hatred lights up in Damian’s eyes when he finally realizes what is in front of him. It's Danny’s undoing. Everything else that has happened seemed like a cakewalk compared to being rejected by the person who had always understood him most. Ghosts are the manifestation of their emotions. Frostbite had explained once how injuries can manifest in a ghost's form on their own. Emotional pain could make them unravel down to their cores, until even that disappeared.

For Danny, there was uncertainty, halfas were so rare that there wasn’t much off hand knowledge, but Danny has always known from the second he died. There was no separation between his human and ghost halves. He just was. What fancy wrapping he showed off hardly mattered. Things bleed so easily between them, Danny Fenton and Phantom.

"I'll kill her painfully for this, but you abomination it will be swift." Damian has balanced on his toes, ready for a quick burst of speed. His sword now clenched so tightly in his hands it almost shakes.

An abomination the words looped through Danny's mind. The wounded sob that came forth when he opened his mouth to reply was unexpected. Danny took halting steps back from his twin. The hitching breath brought his attention back to his chest. This wasn't how Danny had pictured this moment, all those years of stolen daydreams. His core felt wrong in his chest. He felt cold, cold and brittle but his chest was on fire-and wet. The surgical cut seeping like its minutes fresh, this was by far Danny’s worst idea, to believe to ever hope, his brother would ever keep a monster by his side Danny was a fool to hope even for a moment-hands hands reaching for him to bring him back, grabbing his arm-

“No! I don't know! No please” Danny gasps as he flails weakly “I’m sorry I’m sorry!”

Damian hesitates again, before his resolve firms, "Danyal-" His name cracks over his brother's tongue. Danny isn't aware enough to unpack the way his brother's face twists in heartbreak the longer he watches Danny bleed. A warm body comes up behind him, blocking him in, he’s crying now, a weakness that he never could smother. "No!" Danny avoids his gaze scrambling to grip onto whatever fabric is in his hands. Danny wants the moment to last but he knows what’s coming. Damian won’t protect him now. His older brother had been steadfast by his side in their childhood, but now… now maybe it was better he’s bleeding out.

Danny vaguely registered the man behind him cutting off his shirt, kit at the ready besides him. Pressure on his wound forces a long high whine from his throat. He wants to shove it away, his hand swatting at it but he missed, and it thuds uselessly on the ground. He doesn't have the energy to try again.

The shock of a hot hand against his face brings everything into abrupt focus. Danny flinches but can’t move, the body unyielding behind him. He sees the room is covered in his frost and ice. Batman and Red Robin are farther back, their feet trapped in the ghostly ice, they had things in hand to try and hack away at the ice trapping them in place.

“Danyal” The pain in his twin's voice has him turning in that direction; his brother was there. For how well they could read each other in childhood Danny had no clue what his brother was thinking now. His twice dead brother, back to only die again at his feet. “Are you destabilizing? Why were you sent here? What does Mother want?”

“What?” Danny can’t help the laugh that bursts out of him, even if it hurts, it seems his ice kept his organs in place while he tumbled through his hastily made portal. He must've lost consciousness at some point though; his ice seems to have melted to leaving him fully exposed. “That bitch- She has nothing to do with this- wait. You think-” Danny laughs even harder until he can’t breathe and he’s hacking and spitting up more ectoplasm. He’s pulled more fully against the warm body behind him, his head lulls-oh it’s Nightwing, the blatant concern radiating from the man stings Danny’s eyes and a few tears scatter down his face.

“I’m not a clone Dami, I didn’t even know you weren’t with the League anymore." Danny's speech slurs more the harder he tries to piece sentences together, "I'm sorry I don't know how I ended up here.” Danny is growing quieter the longer he talks- can feel his life draining onto the floor and there’s panic in the air now, Batman had sprung up next to Damian's side. Seemed to say something to Damian before he retreated slightly. Batman was hovering ready to interfere but unsure in what actions needed to take place.

Damian is staring at him intently, looking to match his scars to the one's he remembers. He taps his fingers insistently on Danny's cheek and Danny doesn't fight looking back at him. The fingers linger against the scar hidden behind his hair next to his ear, traces the edges. Damian was the one to give it to him, a training error. He had looked at Danny similarly to how he was now. Fear, regret, panic. Words are being said, they blend together, warp, so Danny just hums in response. Everything is more distant now. Danny's own fear floating out of reach. He knows death intimately, he's not afraid to greet her a third time.

The words became frantic as he struggles to stay awake, and someone was talking again. “-ood to see you though- no tss okay no pain.. mma be cold soon-" Oh. That's Danny. The face he has ached to see for years fills his vision. The shade of green he could never replace. Danny was picked up and hustled out a door into the by Nightwing while a harsh discussion flew over his head. They were in some sort of vehicle now, the door shutting causes silence to blanket the group. His head is in Damian's lap, and it takes a second, but Danny realizes Damian is carting his fingers through his greasy hair. His other hand was holding Danny's, playing with his fingers like he did as children. Danny's vision fills with tears and spills down his face.

"Danyal? Can you hear me?" Damian calls his attention softly, his sweet, sweet brother tries to keep the concern out of his voice, off his face. Once he sees Danny focus on him a trembling smile makes its home on Damian's face. His domino mask is gone, Danny drinks in the unobscured view of his brother. "We'll be back to the Cave shortly, Alfred will attend to you, then you're going to tell me exactly how this happened so I can make sure it never does again." Danny can tell Damian is scared, the minute tremble in his petting only confirmed it. Danny let a smile tug at his lips too, "It's gonna be okay Dami" Danny slurred, he hears Damian insisting they were almost home.

Home with Damian. That was a fool's dream, just out of reach. Danny never indulged in the idea; he wouldn't put Dami in danger by reappearing. But- Danny was with him now, a twitch of his fingers against Damian's proves it. Danny went limp as the Batmobile skidded into the Cave, Damian was a silent statue watching Alfred take his brother away from him. Batman saddled up next to him- Damian should shower and change, whatever it was that changed his brother was making his skin itch- but he couldn't move. His baby brother was in there, dying, again.

"Damian, chum... what was all that?" Damian ignores his eyes itching as tears built, he clears his throat to report- reporting was vital with their nighttime activities, Father needed information to help Danny. He couldn't take his eyes of the little glowing red 'In Use' sign above the surgery door though.

Damian cuts a glance at the man next to him, more Bat than Father at the moment. "Once Danyal is stable, I will give you an explanation Father."

~~~~

I thought of a name, added it to the tags, I'll add a link to the next post if I write one, will tag future posts with 'Keeping It Close To The Chest' as well

much love

~Ren

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thebubblesareevil · 2 years

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Life on the farm pt 6 its pointless to resist

Jazz was PISSED! She left for a college tour and came home to her brother missing, Vlad having a breakdown because an object of his obsession is missing, Jack and Maddie ranting about phantom killed their son, and clockwork sitting on her bed.

“Care to explain what’s ACTUALLY going on. Because Vlad is in crisis and Jack and Maddie think Phantom killed Danny, which would be pretty hard to do considering he is phantom, Sam and tucker are no help, they haven’t really been on speaking terms since the break up.” She says with a glare.

Clockwork is a primordial being, the personification of time itself, he is no fool.

“Danny is safe in another universe, he has found parents that fully accept him for what he is… and he misses you very much.” He says with a soft smile stroking his beard. “The friends he makes in that world will help him become one of the greatest ghost kings of all time.” Jazz gave him a very unimpressed look.

“My brother already is the greatest ghost king you’ve ever had, the last one subjugated the residents of the infinite realms for years, try again.” Clockwork laughed.

“That may be so but there, he will be happy, and he will help others in ways that will prevent great tragedy from befalling that universe.” Clockwork grinned “would you like to join him. You can always return through the infinite realms once your brother masters portals. It’s shouldn’t be too long now”

Jazz weighed her options, on the one hand she would be with her little brother, on the other hand she would have to leave her entire life behind. She hears a crash from down stairs. “Let me pack my things. There are a few things I’ll need if I’m entering a new world.”

Clockwork shifted into his middle aged form, “but of course”

“New world or not I’m finishing my education, Danny may have all the tutor in the infinite realms to teach him what he needs to know but I’m going to be a psychiatrist not a ghost king. I’ll need records so I can go to school. Danny has a family all set up and that’s all well and good, I’ll be visiting him on holidays but I am going to college. I’ll need some college brochures, I’d like to find a tutor in that world as well so I can get up to date with any new practices from that world.” Clockwork gave her a wide grin and with a slight hum he said “I know the perfect person. It will all be handled.”

Jazz gave the primordial god of time a grin “alrighty then let’s get going. The sooner I get settled the sooner I get to go find my little brother!”

Clockwork grinned and thought to himself ‘this is going to be fun, perhaps I should introduce her to my granddaughter, that would be most amusing’

Jazz finished packing and the two headed into a whole new world after permanently decommissioning the portal.

Wouldn’t want any unwanted visitors

—————

Pamela Isley is a reasonable woman, true she was a little, Enthusiastic about her plants, but ever since she got together with Harley she can concede that she’s calmed down a reasonable amount. So when she walked into their living room to find her girlfriend staring at a red headed teen sitting on their couch with a man eating plant on one side and a hyena on the other, typing away without a care in the world, she didn’t immediately kill the girl. She did give an exasperated sigh when Harley asked if the girl was her secret love child, but no she didn’t kill the kid. When the girl looked up and gave the two a unexpectedly sharp grin, (were her eyes glowing?!) and introduced herself as Harley’s new student and how she wanted to learn psychiatry from the best Ivy turned around. She needed coffee for this.

When she returned Harley had all but adopted the girl. They decided they needed to get the girl supplies to be a proper protege. Ivy put up with the girl for weeks, asking probing questions, lurking about the apartment. She was fed up with it. The three of them are headed out to eat when Ivy decides to confront Harley about the girl. Unfortunately this was Gotham and dinner is never peaceful. Of course who would they run into but Harley’s disgusting ex Joker. Before the fight can even start however Joker is shot with a green blast. There’s the annoying red head holding a weird gun standing across the room.

“Yknow, repeated exposure to ectoplasm can have unforeseen side effect. I once saw a man who was hit with too many blasts grow a third arm from his forehead and lose another limb between his legs. I’d be interested to see how it affects you Mr. Joker, Ṣ̵̡̲̻͓̲́͌̕͜h̴̡͎̼̬̮̳̲̳̤͙͑ͅa̶̦̟̭̱̝͑̌͒̎͗͐̏̋͑͘͝ͅļ̴̡̗͕̲͎̞̩̚ͅͅḻ̵̛͆͒̌́̐͗̐͝͝ ̶̛̞͚̄̆̇͆̈́̃̈͆̽͐̓͠w̷̡̮͔͖͍͇̞̳͖͍̺͍̅̀͜͜e̷̻̠͕͕̲̼͔̫̲̓͐̉̈́͑̓͋̚̚?̷̨͖̝̥̙̮̪͚̺̦̫̫̺̝͌̈́̏̆̎̍̑͛͐̈́̇͋͗̊”

While he was distracted Harley knocked him over the head with her bat and the three ran out of the restaurant laughing.

Maybe having Jazz Fenton around might be fun after all.

———

The next morning she found what appeared to be a Wayne child sitting on her couch. She turned around, she needed coffee for this.

#danny phantom #ghost king danny #dc x dp #brain vomit #jazz Fenton #Harley Quinn #pamela isley #life on the farm #pt 6

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tanglepelt · 1 year

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If he is a Monster, what were they?

A03

Danny is used to nicknames after being exposed they changed for the worst.

Danny is used to nicknames. His parents had always been big on them.

Dan and Dan-o to start.

The normal ones. Nothing extreme nothing bad. Then high school came.

Fenturd, Fen-toenail, and Fentonowski

Dash’s insult we’re comical at best. His own way to attempt to humiliate Danny. Danny did that well on his own. Sleeping in class, the drooling. His pants falling off.

Then the ghost appeared all on their own.

Ghost boy

Ghost punk

Baby pop

Only to annoy him. Danny was just used to nicknames. New ones always seemed to take him by surprise, but names never really hit him hard in the end. That’s not to say they never bugged him but something he could live with.

Then they changed for the worst.

Freak

Abomination

And the one that hit the most.

Monster

All because he was a halfa. All because of an explosion gone wrong. A freak accident. Something he didn’t want. He shouldn’t have gone into the portal, but it should have had some safeguards. Becoming part ghost had never been a plan. He just wanted to be an astronaut and work for NASA. That would never happen now.

He just had to be exposed.

Skulker had to hunt him during school hours. Had to expose him with the silly nickname he gave Phantom. Called him ghost boy. Threatening to skin him. Danny left to transform only for Skulker to call Phantom ghost boy.

Something so simple. Such a minor detail had sent his life spiraling downwards.

Valerie was the one to piece it together. She was the one who outed him. All because she held a grudge against Cujo.

Jack and Maddie held no sympathy.

Grave robber

Body snatcher

MONSTER

Just an uncaring unfeeling ghost. One who stole the appearance of their son to hurt them. This had to be why Danny’s grades slipped. That had to be the reason he snuck out.

A monster had taken over their son.

He tried to explain it to them. Explain he was still him. That he was still alive. It wasn’t his fault that his molecules got all arranged.

They didn’t listen.

Just ecto blast and screams. Swearing they would hunt him down and make him release their son. That he had to just ruin everything. He was the one who brought the ghost into the town. He was the one causing problems for Amity.

Every event, every ghost was all Phantom's fault.

Danny. The main reason life in town still functioned. Did he accidentally suggest to Technus to take over the world? Technically yes. Danny still fixed his own problems. Even if he did have help. Imagine the damage that would be done without him. Spectra would have caused Jazz to go out with a bang, Box Ghost would have invaded every store to take their boxes, and the damage the ancients would have done.

Danny didn’t tear the hole in reality. He didn’t keep the portal open. Wasn’t injecting ecto-entities with experimental drugs. Danny wasn’t antagonizing a whole new dimension.

Well… he might… have you know antagonizing some people.

Mainly his rogues. They didn’t count.

If anyone was the problem. It was Jack and Maddie.

They opened the portal. They infected Vlad with ecto acne. Not properly confirming the results, Jack used soda rather than a purifier. The Doctor Fenton’s experiments should have failed. They had no reason to be successful in the one thing that endangered the world.

They let Jazz raise him.

Too consumed with their work, constantly going after ghosts. Almost every adventure ended with a ghost. Days used to be spent outdoors pr at parks now in a lab. Coming to his school to hunt ghosts to “protect” them. Neither he nor Jazz felt that was true. It was all to fulfill a sick twisted obsession to tear a being molecule by molecule. The lab, the OSHA not approved lab, was a perfect place for a subject.

The random explosions, blowing the power lines, once blowing up the town water supply, and so much more. There was no care for anything minus the lab or showing off to the public.

The lack of protocols killed him. Even if he had walked in of his own free will, they should have had a lock or anything. Not a basement just open to their children. They weren’t even a danger to just their so-called “family”. No, they endangered the town every day.

Destruction of buildings. Jack drives through walls, hits and runs, and the number of times they’ve nearly hit the citizens. Why did the people of Amity do nothing? Why weren’t zoning laws enforced? Why didn’t the town do anything?

Why was it excused?

The school had been infected. The parents were just okay with not seeing their kids. Those guards didn’t even look human. Even if they were contagious. They didn’t question why they couldn’t see their kids behind a glass window. Or even a photo. Nothing.

The only adult who seemed to care was Mr. Lancer. He pushed students to do their best. He cared about them. In his own way.

Despite everything Jack and Maddie have done the town trusted their words blindly. Anyone could see their research was biased, that their experiments were dangerous, and if anyone bothered to look the ghost coming into town always came in by FentonWorks.

The ones who opened the town to untold terrors. The ones who blew the power grid constantly. Causing blackouts. The two who caused more damage than those in the infinite realm. Minus Vortex and Undergrowth.

No one in town listened. Valerie only concurred with Jack and Maddie. Accusing Phantom of planning to ruin her life.

Monster

Sam and Tucker spoke up. They were ignored. The Fentons Claimed he was controlling them. Jazz spoke up, she was just caught in her grief.

Danny wasn’t wanted by anyone. Except for his friends and sister. Then those who hunted him.

If the town didn’t want him so, be it.

Packing wasn’t hard, the four already had bags. Getting out of town wasn’t hard, somehow the school boiler exploded. Everyone in town assumed the monster had started an attack.

No one would expect a vice principal with a key. Would they?

Leaving town was hard. They all grew up there it is always hard to leave memories behind. They’d have to flee the country as well. Seek asylum somewhere else. Somewhere without the GIW.

Amity would always see him as a monster.

If he was a monster, what were they?

#danny fenton #danny phantom #fanfic #phanfic #dannymay2023 #monster #day 13 #i did valerie dirty #she would realize her mistake quickly #she was just mad #angry and hurt #it is 3 minutes before midnight #that a win for me

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plutoshaunted · 6 months

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Something I think the first two seasons of Danny Phantom did very well was showing a natural progression of Danny's distrust and fear of his parents. It's also one of the most tragic things in the show imo.

At first, Danny believes his parents' love is unconditional. Of course they would love him no matter what. He even says to Vlad in Bitter Reunions "My parents will accept me no matter what."

It makes sense, Danny had always known his parents were obsessive about ghosts but with no ghosts to interact with, he didn't realize just how strong their bias was. Plus, as neglectful as the Fentons can be, they've always loved their children. Sure, he's apprehensive about their reaction, else he would have told them immediately, but he isn't very concerned about the possibility they would hurt him.

As season 1 progresses, Danny starts to have doubts. The first really visceral reaction I can remember him having to his parents is in My Brother's Keeper. Their glee in talking about hunting down the ghost at Jazz's school and ripping it apart molecule by molecule visibly distresses him.

Then, his parents start actively hunting him. And after Public Enemies and Control Freaks, it becomes more complicated with his reputation as Phantom is tanked.

In season 2, the conflict between Danny and his parents only escalates. I'm not going to list every instance, but there are numerous moments in season 2 where Danny reacts in fear, sadness, or anger to his parents' words and actions. I feel like Maddie and Jack also pull even further away from their kids this season too, which doesn't help. When they do express concern over his wellbeing, their help is often very misguided (like in Phantom Menace). But unlike season 1 we don't see them lament over how their kids are pulling away, they've become very focused on their ghost hunting.

In Reality Trip we get explicit confirmation that Danny is afraid of his parents hurting him if they found out what he was.

Sam: "Where are your parents?"

Danny: "Probably looking for me, or a scalpel to dissect me with."

and

Tucker: "We should contact your parents."

Danny: "And tell them what? I'm sorry I've been lying to you and please don't rip me apart molecule by molecule."

And really can you blame him? His parents have given no indication they would accept him as a ghost. He has been shot at, threatened, and insulted by his parents. Plus even if it was in an alternate universe, it's hard to forget Maddie strapping him down to a lab table and threatening him. This kid has major trauma that is not really touched on at all in the show.

I also find Jazz's reaction to Danny's secret interesting. She says its Danny's secret to tell, but it's putting him in danger not to tell them. Not once does she suggest telling their parents. Which really makes me believe Jazz isn't confident they would accept him either, and that she thinks it's safer to keep it from their parents.

In Reality Trip, Maddie and Jack do accept Danny, and Danny erases their memories. Which leads to a weird limbo in season 3. No longer are the Fentons portrayed as a real threat to Danny, in fact they barely interact with him as Phantom in this season. There's a lot of dynamics that suffer in S3, but it really feels like its just treading water. The only real highlight I can think of is the family bonding in Girl's Night Out. It makes me wish they'd let Jack and Maddie keep their memories and played out how this would impact their family dynamic. Or at the very least, have Danny reach out and try to make a truce with them and work on having them accept Phantom. Anything really would be preferable to what we got in S3.

And the reveal in Reality Trip was much more satisfying than the reveal in Phantom Planet, as Maddie and Jack are actually made to confront how they treated Danny and why he didn't trust them.

This is a kid's cartoon show, so at the end of the day, Jack and Maddie were always going to accept Danny. But in my opinion, the show was successful (until it wasn't) in playing up the horror of the situation and the fear that your parents will reject you for who you are.

Anyway, it'll be interesting to see how it plays out in the graphic novels.

#danny phantom #dp meta

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dannyphantom-justiceleauge · 2 years

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Prompt idea: Danny and Jazz are related to Barbara Gordon.

Maddie Fenton is Jim Gordon's wife's cousin, which makes her kids Barbara's second cousins. Jim doesn't want to alienate Babs from her maternal relatives so they paid a visit on Jim's day off... Or at least Jim wished it was a day off, Jim took one look at the safety hazard and child endangerment of a home and decided then and there his taking these kids home with him, batman be damned. (And he still hasn't heard about the holiday depression, hate crime and blantant war cry yet). There are day's where Jim wonder's if it was the right call to bring this kids to Gotham, the kids sure think it is!

hmm, so to start I'd say that similar with Vlad, Maddie and Jack kinda just ghosted their families. not intentionally but once they became a couple, brain cells kinda faded and they're either off inventing or being totally in love. you have to be the one to put an effort in to stay in their lives and not everyone has the time or energy for that. add that they're ghost obsessed and obnoxious, and were already skating the line of legal before they got together and the Fenton's aren't talked to much. actually that could explain why they so easily believed Dani was a cousin. they have extended family they just don't pay enough attention to it to know what going on in it. the only reason Aunt Alicia had Maddie present for her divorce was that Alicia called her. they tend to forget you exist until you remind them. likewise with Vlad contacting them. they probably just lost track of time until he reminded them ‘hey we used to be friends >:)’ and then it was like no time had passed to them even though it's literally been years.

Jim's wife didn't make an effort to stay in contact with the Fenton’s. that part of the family wasn't even aware that the Fenton had children. after Barbara Sr. walked out on them (on Christmas too) Jim made an effort to track her down and keep the family together. his effort lead to him contacting the Fenton's and eventually trying to have a relationship with Barbara Sr. extended family. the kids deserved to have a family after all and he didn't think he was being a sufficient enough father with how much he had to work. so he agrees to bring the kids and visit, and see the portal that Jack raved about for twenty minutes. note, at no point in this phone call did Jim learn that Maddie and Jack had kids. so the family arrives and that's a surprise. the first of many bad surprised. because, speaking as someone who's seen his fair share of them, the Fenton house is like a mad scientist's lair. the weapons, the glowing liquids, the invasion of Fenton tech in every room, the ops center, and worst of all the actual lab that has a whole as portal to another dimension in it. equally concerning is that when he offered cook he found almost no uncontaminated food in the cupboard and was attacked by possessed ham when he opened the fridge.

when he finally meets the kids, Jazz and Danny, he starts asking some definitely pointed 'is this child abuse' questions, ones he asks kids he meets at work. Danny isn't trusting enough to answer beyond what amounts to 'I love my parents, get out of my house'. but Jazz has 'a finally I've been validated' moment and brings out the psych file on all her parents bad behavior, somewhat naively not realizing this will effect her parents custody over them. she kinda thinks everything will be solved if her parents enter therapy and counselling and calm down on the ghost stuff. it didn't occur to her she was describing criminal behavior to a cop. yeah. Jim Gordan has encountered too many super villains to let these kids stay here.

and sadly for the kids the law is really on his side. it seems almost like the Amity Police were waiting for a charge to properly stick on the Fenton's and once they could throw the book at them, they throw it hard. it becomes a whole thing. Jazz is smacked with guilt and regret. Danny is pissed at everyone; Jazz, Gordan, his parents, the cops. Phantom might actually be spotted trying to destroy evidence and get the Fenton's off but there's too much evidence and too much bias, and the closest to freedom the Fenton parents are going to get is a trip to Arkham. especially because every attempt they make to prove their innocence reveals more illegal stuff they were obliviously doing. it's a losing battle and a mess for everyone involved.

eventually the portal is properly shut down, their research was seized by the government, and Vlad comes around to gloat like an asshole even as he doesn't successfully get custody of the kids. because if Danny's parents are going to jail danny's going to make damn sure Vlad goes with them. which you know further complications. Danny doesn't directly reveal Vlad's secret, he just reveals the crimes, with Tucker's tech help and leads them towards the fact that Vlad's a meta and has a lab and a whole other portal in his basement. getting charges to stick to Vlad is a whole lot harder, and this time Danny is just flying around in the background, helping the police and making sure Vlad can't superpower his way out of the situation. the police end up concluding Vlad's powers are from ecto-contamination so anti-ecto weapons and shields work on him and are used to keep him contained. they don't know he's a halfa at least and he's not interested in revealing himself or Danny because that reveal would take him out of prison and onto a lab table. right now it's important that the government believe. he ends up in Arkham with the Fenton's wearing one of those belts that shorts out his powers and usually in a cell with a ghost shield. the guards have anti ghost tech added to their uniform. Jack spends a lot of time annoying him while there.

i know you said the kids are happy but i don't think they are. Jazz is wracked with guilt because she helped get her parents arrested and broke up their already broken family. Danny, as mentioned, is literally pissed at everyone. he was taken from his home and his job, he just lost his parents, his best friends are now a city away, he doesn't even have ghost to take out his aggression on. the government having his parent research is also going to be a major issue later, especially now that they know ecto-contamination can give people ghost powers. a lot of that is going on out of sight rn though. will a portal eventually be opened in Gotham? probably. will it effect the lazarus pit? absolutely. is both of these things going to be a problem for everyone? haha, yeah.

meanwhile you have Barbara dealing with the abandonment of her mother, and her father's abrupt adoption of two more kids. like she gets why they couldn't stay with their parents, she also saw that house. but adding two traumatized children to the mix isn't going to help keep their family together. especially when Jim is still working long hours and they're all just left alone in the house together. and James Jr. has sociopathic tendencies and was low key the reason his mom walked out. i think it's entirely safe to say they he doesn't want these two strangers in his house. Jim is still grieving about his wife leaving too and he is not in a good place to be taking care of kids. he's trying but he's not around enough and basically throwing himself into his work hoping things will be better when he gets home. he's trying to do right by them but he's also now a single parent supporting four kids. Jazz and barb do what they can to help by getting part time jobs but both want to go to college and leaving Danny and James alone in a house together doesn't bode well.

i definitely see Danny and James fighting hard and a lot. James basically just on principle and because they’re ages are close enough that he can get away with messing with Danny. Danny because he clocked James as a fruitloop from the beginning and doesn’t like being harassed. unfortunately James is manipulative enough that Danny ends up taking the blame for their fights and broken things a lot of the time. Danny receives the label troubled kid and it’s a whole thing, especially with his history of Problematic Behaviour at Casper. Jim tries to get Danny into counseling but the psych programs in Gotham are... yeah. it’s not super helpful.

i’m having a bit of trouble with the timeline because i don’t know when Barbara’s mother left or how old barb was. but canonically at least in the new fifty-two which is the timeline we’re using, Barb is the same age as Bruce. i’m kinda clocking her at 17 or 18 at the time they adopt Danny and jazz, making her and Jazz around the same age. they’re also adopted when Danny is around 15-16. i’m going to say James is a few years younger than Danny. Bruce adopts a 10 year old Dick Grayson when he’s 25, meaning Danny would be around 22-23 when batman gets his first robin. the age that Bruce became batman is a mixed number, most saying he was 26 in the new 52 beaning Dick was adopted before Bruce became batman? but the impression i got from most of the comics was he adopted robin after... unsure about that. we’ll say it happened the same year. Bruce was barely a year into superhero when he finds and adopts a child.

my point is, all the Robins are baby children to Danny. they’re tiny. they shouldn’t be doing hero work. even Dani looks around twenty now. infants. is it hypocritical of him to be treating these heroes as children when he himself was a child when he started fighting? yes and no. he is being that bitch about how young they are, but he doesn’t want these kids to have the kind of childhood he had. he doesn’t know how he survived being a fourteen year old super hero. technically he didn’t.

anyway i’m going to say Danny gets one quiet year where he gets to settle in with the Gordan's, read; hate everything and fight with James. then the government open a portal under Gotham (it’s the nearest major city to Amity and also pretty fucking haunted). so boom Danny is back to the hero biz, slightly rusty and in a new town with new rules. sneaking should be harder in Gotham, but Jim isn’t home enough to notice. Jazz and Barb are doing their best at college and worrying about the boys. Jazz despite her Ivy League dreams ended up sticking closer to Gotham just to look after her brother and to not fuck their budget all to hell. she dreams of maybe going to Harvard as a graduate student but that feels a long way off. the problem with sneaking out successfully is that James is a snitch and Danny has to make a deal with the devil so stop James from selling him out. James doesn’t realize Danny is Phantom but has noticed Danny’s scary eyes and basically concluded he has similar ecto-contamination to Vlad. he also recons Danny doesn’t want that secret out to anyone. note. this is very much a relationship where if Danny wasn’t a hero he could absolutely wreck James. like the only reason James gets away with so much bs is that Danny doesn’t use his powers on humans.

it should also be noted that a 16/17 year old Danny fighting ghosts means that Danny took to heroing in Gotham long before Bruce is. meaning Bruce has another role model. Danny's 'don’t use his powers on humans' rule, means that Danny isn’t doing as much to stop crime as the city needs. he’ll sometimes pop in and scare villains away from doing crimes. show up and spook would be muggers or rapist out of allies. occasionally possess and turn over bank robbers to the police. he’d prevent murders if he sees them. but he’s not really in control of the root causes and he’s rarely in the right warehouses, at the right time to see what’s going down or solve any major mysteries. he leaves the real crime investigation to the unfortunately corrupt police. he’s kinda too wrapped up in his own life to be super aware of the injustice around him. if he sees the problem he interferes but mostly it’s ghost fighting and high school for him

and boy howdy is he wrapped up in ghost stuff. the government wouldn’t just have a ghost portal. they’d have ecto-contaminated people they’ve been experimenting on. some very sick, some developing ghostly powers, sorta like the spectra hospital episode. so Danny would have to deal with those types of characters. there’d be issues with the lazarus pit and league of assassins and he’d probably have to uncover a bunch of stuff about that and possibly get temporarily recruited. new portal probably means new part of the zone, so Danny would be getting new rouges on top of the old ones who swing by for old times sake. the Fenton’s and Vlad have been getting to know the people in Arkham and are probably going to break out at some point. the Fenton’s purely because they want to see their kids/ hear there’s ghosts in Gotham. Vlad to get revenge. also the Fenton’s are going to be fully labeled as villains at this point despite their relative naive innocence. they’re not actively trying to hurt anyone but if they supply Mr. Freeze with ectoplasm to help his wife and if they supply ghost weapons and some regular weapons to their other friends and end up doing wild research with the other scientist in Arkham well they’re just stacking charges. i do want a plot where Mr. Freeze’s wife successfully returns from the dead but as a mostly ghost and a lot of her personality has been lost to obsession. she’s his wife but not the woman he fell in love with. a whole oof situation that’s gonna fuck Mr. Freeze up and probably make him the Fenton parents enemy because they ruined her body. he can’t even have a second chance at this,.Danny’s down to help the new ice halfa (3 quarters? 75 cents? Danny would work on a quippy name later) and he’s sympathetic to mr. freeze and pretty much immune to the whole ice attack thing. so they kinda end up friends who fight when the Fenton’s are involved. Danny is trying to get Mr. Freeze to Jazz for therapy.

will this be a jazz is an Arkham therapist route? maybe? will this be an Arkham guard Danny route? sure if Jazz is there. he’d remain a full time ghost hero on top of that though. and when Bruce finally gets around to being batman and solving crimes, Danny’s would have been the established hero in Gotham for at least seven years. he’s far from a perfect hero by anyone’s definition. he fucks up a lot. but he’s the hero that’s there and enough people have stories of being saved by phantom that his reputation isn’t terrible.it’s not what i would call good, but it’s not terrible. Danny and Bruce are going to overlap a lot and i’m torn on Bruce’s stance on the hero because on the one hand, Danny is a hero. he’s doing more than pretty much anyone else is to save and protect the citizens of Gotham. but he’s not doing enough. he’s not attacking the problem or corruption. he’s not scaring villains straight. he’s too busy fighting ghosts. the ghosts definitely need to be fought, Bruce appreciates it, but sighting ghosts wouldn’t save his parents. you know what, Bruce likes him. he still became a hero because the ‘not enough’ stuff but he’s genuinely glad to have phantom protecting Gotham and he looks up to Danny despite Danny being younger than him. Danny is more tenured. this will definitely be a Danny’s in the justice league story, he gets to be a founding member. they end up working together a lot, two sides of the crime fighting coin.

it also doesn’t take terribly long for Bruce to figure out that phantom is Gordan’s troubled son. he ends up seeing a lot of himself in Danny the person and tries to adopt him despite Danny already legally being an adult and still considering the Fenton’s his parents. after that they just kinda end up as friends. adult friends who just happen to be superheroes on top of everything. now i’m imagining Danny running in the gala circles and it’s funny to me. you know Sam and tuckers careers are going to take off and they’re going to manage to join those circles, ironically only showing up to parties if Danny is there. people tend to sneer at Danny because he’s just the son of a cop, and has a record on top of that. but Danny, Bruce, Sam, and tucker are chaotic together.i also see Alfred as being so proud that Bruce made an honest to got friend that in his mind Danny can do no wrong. Alfred will spoil Danny whenever Danny comes over and Danny’s living standards were already so low that he’d be amazed at anything Alfred offered. Alfred becomes determined to fatten Danny up.not that Gordan doesn’t feed his kids. but single dad cop budget is very different from billionaire budget. i didn’t know i needed Bruce to have an adult friend/ sorta mentor until this. i mean he has the other supers, but this feels a little more equal because Danny is already established and vetted before Bruce becomes a hero. just the fact that they live near each other makes is easier for Bruce to have consistent friendship with Danny.

now lets add big sister barb, except she and Danny don’t know each others secret identities. she gets the impression that phantom is familiar but initially writes it off as her hearing about phantom from jazz and Danny because that’s where the ghost was originally from. note: people assumed phantom followed the portal to Gotham. no one connects it to Danny, especially because the first year Danny is in town he doesn’t really advertise his superhero persona as being around. he still goes on late night flies, but even if someone spotted him they’d write it off as imagining things. but so it takes time for them to find out that they know each other as civilians and it becomes a whole thing. i could imagine both of them going to jazz for help and jazz looking at them, knowing full well who they are, and not realizing that they don’t know who the other is. and it’s a whole comedy of errors. barbs thinks phantom knows jazz because they were from the same town, Danny thinks Batwoman knows jazz because they’re both collage age and jazz is a genius. somehow they come out of this interaction still not knowing each others identity. Bruce also becoming friends with Babs and inviting her to galas, and Babs and Danny attending together as siblings unaware that both their connections to Bruce came from being superheroes and not from the fact that they’re Jim Gordan’s kids. sibling teasing ensues alongside some healthy suspicion and “Danny, please don’t embarrass me” “i’m going to do nothing but embarrass you because you said that.” i’m here for the chaos. i’m here to put off their secret identities being revealed for as long as possible just so when the reveal happens it’s as dramatic as possible.

is it going to be when Babs gets paralyzed? i think it’s going to be when Babs gets paralyzed. Danny will also go feral on the joker for hurting his sister. and it’s a whole different ball game then the joker is used to because Danny has powers. everyone got to used to Danny holding back. the joker isn’t prepared. so jokers hatred of Danny is going to become a thing for a while. joker teaming up with the Fenton’s because they still hate phantom could also be a thing. oof. nothing is easy ever. at some point James is also going to return to the plot knowing more about Danny’s secret than he should, possibly accompanied by Vlad. just a lot of potential drama and chaos to be had.

uncle Danny, being a thing with the Robins would also be cute, since he’s significantly older than all of them. i can see him solemnly giving each kid the “don’t be a teenage superhero speech” and all of them ignoring it and becoming heroes anyway only to years later realize, yeah Danny was right we shouldn’t have been teenage superheroes. Jason ends up fully adopted by Danny after he returns from the dead. like similar powers and this guy had my best interest in mind back before i knew what my best interest were. Danny probably being able to help cure the pit rage either through ghost zone stuff or contacting his villain parents. sounds like a plan. Danny being very anti murder but totally down with Jason just leaving his family after everything? a mood. Danny being a go between Jason and Bruce but not selling Jason’s location out. there’s some drama there. Danny and Jason vibing over trying to murder the joker. hell yeah. Dick trying to be the oldest sibling and use older sibling rights but being over ruled by cool uncle Danny. Steph and Danny bonding over villain parents. Dani visiting and being a cool older sister. Jim unaware that most his family are superheroes. Damian meeting and falling in love with Cujo and tolerating Danny because of this. Tim having an alarmingly large stalker file on Danny and just being a Phantom fanboy in general. the puns.

this got away from me - Hestia

#dpjl #Danny Phantom #batman #jim gordon #gordan adopts au #barbara gordon #danny fenton #the fact that i can keep going #goddamn #hestiawrites

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redrobin-detective · 3 years

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I have never watched DP and everything I know about it is what I saw on Tumblr but... are you telling me... that you have ANOTHER fandom where the villain wants to adopt the MC?

Oh hun, let me tell you about how absolutely delicious and messed up the relationship between Danny Fenton and Vlad Masters is. It’s a veritable mine of content, a fic writer could get lost in that sweet, sweet sauce.

Long story short is Vlad is also part human, part ghost from a lab accident also caused by Danny’s parents 20 years ago when they were in college. He used his powers for selfish gain, lying and cheating his way to billions of dollars. But he was still bitter, still alone, falling victim to the ghostly nature of his powers and becoming obsessive. He was in love with Danny’s mom, Maddie and is convinced he had a chance with her if only his accident hadn’t happened. He blames Danny’s dad, Jack and swears to kill him.

He puts his plan into motion for their 20 year college reunion, to kill Jack and woo Maddie and finally stop feeling so alone. Only he finds out that the Fenton’s youngest son, a shy boy he’d written off, is also a half ghost hybrid. And just like that Vlad isn’t totally alone in the world.

But does Vlad approach Danny like a normal person? Offer his understanding, help with his powers and generally act like someone with half a conscious? hell no. Instead he beats the child halfway to Sunday, demands that Danny forsake his home and family and become Vlad’s apprentice all the while actively trying to kill his Dad. Danny, predictably, says no dice.

And it spirals out of control from there. Vlad’s obsession with Maddie slowly shifts until he’s become obsessed with Danny. He says he wants love, he says he wants a family but he’s trying to get at it by scaring the child, by threatening him, by trying to get rid of every other place for Danny to turn so he has no where else to go but into Vlad’s welcoming arms. He wants a son but he has no idea how to be a decent person much less a father. At one point, he goes full blown nutso and tries to clone Danny to create “the perfect half ghost son”, it blows up in his face (literally) but it goes to show the lengths he’d go to.

Danny, meanwhile, is rightfully angry and upset about the whole situation. He’s scared to death of these ghost powers and he meets someone who finally understands and all he does is manipulate and hurt Danny. It really takes a blow to Danny’s trust in adults, Vlad instantly tries to control him once he learns about Danny’s powers so how can Danny trust anyone? He wants some guidance, he wants security and all he keeps getting is pain. He lashes out just as hard back as Vlad, mocking his loneliness and flaunting the loved ones he has in his life. He spits and curses the man as Fenton and tries to punch his smarmy face in as Phantom.

They’re two members of the world’s smallest species and they can’t stand each other. But it’s not as simple as that. Vlad has been isolated from people for 20 years, he’s conniving and manipulative as a human but his ghost powers make him 10x worse and his moral compass is perpetually broken. He does love, in his own twisted way, but things he had to force and painfully grip that love not realizing he’s driving people off. Danny is also just a kid and it’s not his job to help Vlad through his many, many issues. Vlad also exacerbates Danny’s paranoia and mistrust in general. I think some part of him still does look up to Vlad, hoping that one day he’ll turn around and become an actual mentor to Danny who really has no adult he can rely on. He’s willing to lend a hand to help his enemies but he always hesitates with Vlad, burned too many times. We see in a future AU that Vlad is capable of change and regret, Danny likewise is very compassionate and open but just can’t extend the same curtesy to Vlad.

Danny Phantom said “lets take this traumatized boy soldier with death powers who cant relate to anyone living and dead, give him an archenemy that 30 years older than him, more powerful in wealth and skills and smarts who is out to mentally break the child until he submits completely” and we fans just ate it up

#danny phantom #the relationship btw vlad and danny is so fascinating #its MESSED UP on a fundamental level #its so goddamn sad in its own way #but its interesting to see played out #S3 butchered Vlads character and made him out to be a stereotypical villain who wants to rule the world #not a laser focused manipulative asshole who just wants to own you #which is far far scarier #gentrychild #now that i think on it #there ARE a lot of parallels btw DFO and Vlad and Danny #dan obviously isnt his real son but the supposed love being felt? the manipulation? the lack of trsut on the child's part?? fab

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thesoulspulse · 2 years

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Danny Phantom Randomness (All By Myseeeelf...)

Maybe it’s because it’s that time of year, but while we know why Danny dislikes the holidays (or used to anyway) do we ever really talk about Vlad? Since we know so little about his background apart from his former friendship with Jack and obsession with Maddie, there’s no way to tell if he had a happy childhood let alone if he even celebrates Christmas or Valentines Day. Heck, we don’t even know if he has any living relatives left...

Originally this was going to be a post about Christmas specifically, but eh, I’ll combine it with Valentines Day since this is mainly a post talking about just how lonely our favorite fruitloop is. Someday I hope to change that by creating a character worthy of him who can help him through his problems and become a good influence on him. I’ve only seen this done once really well but maybe I just haven’t been looking hard enough. Because like I said, it’s kinda hard to write someone who could even get close enough to Vlad to hope to begin forming a real bond with the intimidating man.

I typically assume that Vlad was an only child growing up and I have a personal headcanon that Vlad has always had a deep respect for his father and that’s part of why he himself aspires to become the perfect father. As for his mother, Vlad has always loved her very much too and she’s the one who taught him how to cook, bake, and to use food swears to replace real ones whenever he gets angry to keep his emotions in check. I saw an adorable piece of fanart about that once but I’m not sure how to find it now sadly.

I’ve written this idea in several of my fanfics, but I feel bad that Vlad doesn’t really have any family left to curb his loneliness. Usually it’s hard to write them in since he’s such a selfish person so I typically say he lost his parents shortly before starting college which is why he took Jack’s apparent betrayal so hard. Near as I can tell, it was hard for Vlad, Jack, and Maddie to make friends given their interest in ghosts which I assume has been a lifelong passion for the trio. And if he ever does have family around, I assume they’re not on good terms since Vlad wants nothing to do with them or wants them asking him for money since he IS the richest man in the world.

That brings me to my next point.

Since Vlad is so rich, I tend to enjoy exploring that a lot more than we see in the show because the sky’s the limit, literally, when you’re the richest and most powerful man in the world. That could be another reason apart from his obsession with Maddie that prevents him from dating anyone. He’s not stupid, he knows most of them are only after his money and connections, they don’t love or care about him, they only care about the idea of him and what he can do for them. Same goes for random people showing up claiming to be his distant relatives or an old friend asking for a favor which he must have found some way to stop from happening.

Ironic given how it’s the same with Maddie. Vlad only loves the idea of her and having the perfect wife as we saw in “Masters of All Time” when he finally got what he wanted but was more worried about appearing to be the perfect happy couple than being honest with her and with himself, even lying about Jack hating them both for the accident since he doesn’t trust she’ll stay with him. We don’t know why he grew attached to Maddie in the first place or when. Was it a childhood crush? Or did he literally only meet her in college? And for the love of god, WHY does he have feelings for Maddie anyway?

It’s never actually stated why, just like how it isn’t with Sam and that bugs me to no end. All healthy relationships are about treating each other as individuals with their own thoughts and feelings, about give and take, about trust, loyalty, the willingness to accept both the good and the bad in a person, the restraint to set healthy boundaries and not try to control them or who their friends are, to give them space when they need it and be there to pick them up if they fall. Basically, the best relationships are friendships first, good ones where you understand each other and enjoy what you share in common as well as respect the differences.

That’s Vlad’s biggest flaw. He’s so wrapped up in himself, in his life being perfect with a loving wife and a son that adores him that he forgets to BE that person, to be that caring and loving friend, father, and husband/boyfriend. He says he wants love, but as we saw in “Kindred Spirits” when he actually had that love and loyalty from Dani and the other clones it wasn’t good enough. Vlad even went as far as to hurt Dani by angrily shouting that she only exists to serve him, proving he didn’t actually see her as a daughter, but as a means to an end even though unlike the other clones she’s half-human too. Even if it felt artificial, all of the clones genuinely loved Vlad, he’s all they had ever known, which what makes what happened to most of them all the more tragic.

All but one of the clones, aka Dani, perished without ever coming into their own which is why I’m doing my best to give Vlad another chance at parenthood in my fanfic “Ghost in the Machine” before it’s too late for him to turn back and choose to change for the better once the love he’s been longing for is within reach. Because personally, I think Vlad wants to be a father more than he does a husband. Part of that is because of his reactions in “Maternal Instinct” when Maddie pretends to flirt with him to get back home since he’s the only one with a phone and transport for miles around.

He seems shocked at the sudden change in her and goes along with it, eventually pleasantly pleased with the result. I hate how he takes no responsibility for being a jerk and says it was Maddie’s ‘mistake’ to marry Jack which is beyond creepy and manipulative. Especially given how he blatantly asked a MARRIED woman with two children to leave her husband to come live with him out of the blue, which is beyond stupid and downright arrogant which is the whole point. Not to mention he doesn’t so much as mention Jazz there which as you’ll recall he left with Jack who he had sent ghosts to go kill, meaning he has no interest in her as a daughter, only Danny as his ‘perfect half-ghost son.’

That’s why when Danny pretends to actually want him as his new dad...while Vlad understandably suspects it’s only a lie at first since he knows Danny better than that, once it seems like his hopes are confirmed, he literally tears up and the pure joy on his face is unmistakable. He wants it to be true so badly he leaps at the chance to get everything he wants, further proving what a selfish jerk he is who doesn’t care about what they want. I mean, did he really expect Danny to turn around and forgive him after he sent a HORDE of ghost monsters to kill him while he was powerless? That is, unless it was only a scare tactic and he had no intention of actually killing Danny and that, right there, is clearly more manipulation on Vlad’s part as he isolates him and his mother to try and make them both his by force.

As weird as it may sound, it was actually this reaction and the affection he showed towards the first Maddie-the-cat later in the series that gave me hope there was a small chance this fruitloop could turn things around, even back when I first watched the show. He might never be able to convince Maddie to leave Jack, but maybe he could finally let go of her and try to meet someone new that could love him for who he is (once he stops the evil schemes mind you or tones them down at least) and not his money. And for Danny, he could be a father-figure or a real uncle and a mentor instead of the villain.

But alas, it was not to be.

Still, while I still feel like Vlad is capable of love, he clearly does not remember HOW to genuinely love someone else. He doesn’t know how to put anyone else first, how to be honest with his feelings, how to accept disappointment, and most of all...how to love himself without it being in a narcissistic way. That’s what makes this all the more tragic. He’s constantly sabotaging himself, losing chances to be a part of their lives in a realistic and healthy way even if it’s not possible for his perfect life with them to exist. And the love he could have found raising Dani all went to waste when he rejected her for disobeying him.

So yeah, this is just my personal take on Vlad so take from that what you will. All I wanted to really say is I would love to see Vlad find REAL love from someone to help him come back from the brink before it’s too late. Despite the awful things he’s done, in the end, he is genuinely lonely and doesn’t have any friends or family that we know of. That’s probably why we love giving him adopted kids so much, because it gives them both a much needed second chance at a happy life with a new family.

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five-rivers · 3 years

Text

Like Kind

Prompt by @dp-marvel94: As soon as Maddie saw Phantom, she KNEW. It had happened, the thing that she dreaded and feared but in the back her mind knew would happen. Her Danny, her baby wasn’t human anymore….but then again he never had been completely human.

In retrospect, she should have seen this coming from miles away. Perhaps she had seen it, and her surprise now was the result of having willfully turned away. But now, it was being rubbed in her face, thrown up in front of her in gleaming neon letters, staring her in the eye.

The last was literal.

Phantom floated a few meters above the ground, eyes fixed on hers.

Phantom, who was undeniably Danny. Her son. Her baby boy.

He vanished from sight, flying up through the ceiling. Maddie waited ten minutes, frozen and holding her breath, before sitting down hard on the floor. She had thought—She had hoped—

(A memory plagued her. Out with Vlad and Jack after Vlad was discharged, Jazz with a sitter. Red eyes where there should be blue. Panicked apologies. Blood on the sheets and an ache radiating through her whole body.)

She had hoped.

Had hoped that a child born to someone who had been possessed would be entirely human.

(But even as a young child, something had been… not right about Danny. He’d stared at empty corners, spoken to thin air, had a bizarre fixation on clocks. There had been other signs. She’d dismissed them all. But then. Phantom.)

(She couldn’t ignore this.)

She went through the rest of the day, even the kidnapping of the mayor and a fight with a whole horde of ghosts in a daze. Danny was there. Fighting. Doing these… these things. And now she knew.

Did Jack realize? Had Jack put two and two together to realize that the boy he’d raised, the boy he’d taken as his own son, was now… this?

Was now a ghost?

“He’s our responsibility,” said Maddie, hands clasped under her chin. She couldn’t meet Jack’s eyes. “He’s our responsibility, and he’s giving in to his—to his nature. What he did last night…”

“Maddie,” said Jack, reaching across the table. “Just. Stop. Maybe… maybe there’s another way we can do this. Up until now, he’s been fighting the other ghosts, hasn’t he? Maybe we could encourage that part. Guide him to something less, less malevolent.”

“That’s what we thought we were doing from the beginning,” said Maddie. “It hasn’t worked, Jack.”

“That’s when we thought he was still human,” said Jack. “We can—We could invent something. To help him control his—”

“This isn’t a movie, Jack,” snapped Maddie. “He isn’t a vampire we can feed animal blood or a werewolf we can lock up during the full moon. He’s a ghost. This isn’t going to get better. It’s going to get worse.”

“We don’t know that,” protested Jack. “We could at least try, couldn’t we? Don’t we owe him that?”

“Jack…”

“He’s our boy, Maddie. We can’t just give up on him.”

“It’s already getting worse. You’ve seen his grades.”

“It might not be because of intellectual degeneration,” said Jack, urgently. “If you suddenly found out about—” he waved his hand vaguely “—wouldn’t you have some trouble focusing on schoolwork? I know I had enough trouble when I was in school…”

“This isn’t the same,” said Maddie.

“I know, that’s my point.”

Maddie covered her face and sighed. “Alright,” she said. She couldn’t let herself hope again. “We’ll… we’ll try it your way, first. What do we tell Jazz?”

“You already know?” asked Maddie, aghast.

“Yes, I saw him transform, once, but I thought it would be better to let him come to me, tell me on his own terms.” Jazz licked her lips. “Does this mean you’ll stop shooting at him? Maybe be more supportive of what he’s trying to do?”

“Jazz, he kidnapped the mayor.”

“I’m not sure he did. A lot of people were possessed this past week. The mayor could have been one of them.”

Maddie closed her eyes and swallowed, suppressing the feelings that rose in her at Jazz’s casual pronouncement.

“I mean, a lot of people at school were talking about how little they remember… Mom, are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” She collected herself. “Ghosts,” she said, “aren’t human. They don’t have a human psychology.”

“Danny’s still human.”

“Partially. For now. We don’t want to lose him to this. Will you help us?”

Jazz looked away, frowning. “Even if ghosts are different,” she stressed the word, “that doesn’t mean they’re evil. The wolf ghost helped Danny, didn’t it? And Danny’s doing good. I don’t think you should try to ‘fix’ him. It isn’t right.”

Jack jumped in. “That’s not what we’re doing,” he said, reassuringly. “We just want to make sure that he stays himself. That this doesn’t affect him negatively.”

“But you don’t want me to tell him that’s what you’re doing.”

“Based on recent events,” said Maddie, “we’re concerned that he’ll react poorly and run. We just don’t want that to happen. We can’t help him if he runs from us.”

Jazz bit her lip. “Okay,” she said, finally. “But you can’t do anything to Danny that he doesn’t want. No experiments. No tearing him apart molecule by molecule.”

“That isn’t—”

“Don’t tell me it didn’t cross your mind,” said Jazz, harshly. “You talked about it at the table at breakfast. More than once. I’m keeping an eye on everything you do.”

It was better than her running to the police or trying to free Danny right away because she couldn’t understand.

“Alright,” said Maddie.

It was a good thing Danny’s physiology hadn’t changed enough to give him a resistance to simple sedatives. Watching him nod off in the middle of dinner was as cute as it was tragic.

Jazz was… unhappy. Clearly. But she didn’t say anything.

Danny knew he was in lab as soon as he woke up. The buzz of the overhead lights and the hum of the portal made his hair stand on end and his mouth go dry.

This was bad. This was a nightmare made real.

He didn’t move. Maybe, if they thought he was asleep, they’d hold off on the dissection.

Although… he didn’t seem to be on the examination table. That was a good sign, right? IT had to be a good sign.

“Danny.”

His breath caught in his throat and his fingers curled on the surface beneath him. It wasn’t metal. Something… not quite soft. But not hard. Like… a thin air mattress.

“Danny, we know you’re awake.”

He screwed his eyes shut even tighter.

“Please don’t hurt me,” he said. “I’m me. I’m really me. I promise.”

“We know,” said Jack.

That made Danny open his eyes. “You do?” he asked, hopeful despite the fact he was in a box with thick, plastic walls. He pushed himself up on the bench. “Then why—” He was almost hyperventilating.

“Danny,” said Maddie, “Danny, calm down. We’re just- We know you’re Phantom, and we’re here to help you.”

“We know how hard it must have been for you, fighting those ghostly urges,” said Jack. “But we’ll find a way for you to beat ‘em back, son.”

“I don’t- I’m not—” He shook his head. “If you’re talking about the robberies—”

“That’s exactly what we’re talking about,” said Maddie. “But it’s okay. We’re going to keep anything like that from ever happening again.”

Danny bit his lip and felt despair clutch at his heart again. They weren’t going to listen to him. But—Jazz. Jazz would notice he was missing. She didn’t even believe in ghosts, not really. She’d save him. Or Sam and Tucker would look for him.

He just had to hold out. Even if they thought he was… succumbing to his ‘ghostly instincts,’ they wouldn’t hurt him.

Right?

“It isn’t working,” said Maddie, head in her hands, surrounded by crumpled by pieces of paper. “He’s getting worse.”

Jack had to admit that he was. It was tragic to watch his son fall to what could only be described as a ghostly Obsession. Just last night Danny had been reduced to clawing at the inside of the containment unit. Crying. Screaming to be let out to fight ghosts and ‘protect the town.’

He… didn’t know what to do about it. Any of it.

“Maybe…” said Maddie. “You remember what he said about the portal. What if he was right? What if he really…”

What if he really died?

“What if he did?” asked Jack. “What would it change?”

“He’s not really alive,” said Maddie. “If he isn’t… maybe we should… let him go.”

“W-what? You mean give up on him?” demanded Jack. “We can’t do that!”

“No! Not give up. Never give up. But- but maybe it would be better for him if he, if he was among like kind. If he was… We don’t have to destroy ghosts after all. We just have to… have to put them on the other side of the portal. Close it. Close it so no more ghosts can get through.”

“You can’t be saying what I think you’re saying,” said Jack.

“Like kind,” said Maddie. “You remember that one Grimm’s fairy tale. The little boy who couldn’t move on.”

“That’s not Danny,” said Jack.

“I know. I know it isn’t. But, still… We… Please, Jack. Just… Tell me, what can we do?”

Danny tumbled head over heels into the Ghost Zone. He stopped, turned around, sending a blast of ectoenergy from his foot to accelerate himself back towards the portal.

He was too late. The portal doors slammed shut, then winked out of existence.

They were gone. Danny was stuck here. In the Ghost Zone.

Fine.

You know what? Fine.

He was here. He was stuck here, because he didn’t know where or how to find natural portals. He didn’t know what was happening back home in Amity, and he was half out of his mind with worry about it.

Fine.

They thought he was a ghost. A terrible, evil ghost. Something to be cast off and thrown away.

Fine.

He was a ghost. And he’d be the best ghost. Ever.

#danny phantom #phic phight #phic phight 2021

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going-dead · 3 years

Text

Phasmophobia

Danny was very sick of tourists coming to explore Amity park. Like very sick of them, especially the ‘ghost hunter’ ones. In the end they just caused more problems than the actual ghosts, getting in the way of the fights causing Danny more stress and injuries than normal. Not to mention they sucked at their so called jobs. He was pretty sure even a single elementary schooler of Amity was a better ghost fighter than all of the tourists combined.

But at the moment it was the dead of winter and probably one of the coldest weeks of the year. So only the stupidest of self proclaimed ghost hunters would venture out to hunt ghosts in weather like this. While it was nice not having to worry about danger prone tourists Danny still was miserable, he could deal with the cold just fine in fact he preferred the cold. The problem was that It was the holiday season, the worst time of the year. At least the ghost attacks were less frequent as they all prepared for the Christmas truce party.

Still he supposed it could be worse. His parents weren’t fighting as much this year, though that was probably due to the fact they were still treating him like he was made of glass half of the time after he told them about the whole half dead thing. Danny figured that was due to the fact they blamed themselves for the portal incident, causing them to coddle him to an almost tortuous degree. It was as if they expected him to disappear if he was so much as bumped in the wrong way. It had gotten a bit better at this point at least, if things continued as it did at the beginning Danny was pretty sure he’d rather have them still be shooting at him. Now they only tensed up when he left the house instead of not so subtly stalking him all day.

At the moment Danny was sitting on the counter in the kitchen with his mom while she was cooking dinner. “Danny dear get off the counter that’s where the food goes not you.” Maddie said shooing him off the counter with a spatula.

Danny floated off in a huff, “This is ghostphobic mom. The counter is a perfect seat.”

Maddie rolled her eyes, “The term would be phasmophobic, and no it’s not it’s; I don’t want your butt all over where I’m making our dinner-phobic.”

“Fine transphobic then.”

“How about asking you to set the table? What would that be?”

Danny mulled it over for a few seconds. “A reasonable request I suppose.” He phased his hands though the cabinets grabbing the plates. Honestly he could have just as easily grabbed them normally but he was still trying to get his parents used to him having powers. “Oh by the way Sam, Tucker, and I are hanging out tomorrow to celebrate winter break starting and school being out for two whole weeks.” “Alright sweetie, but be safe okay?”

“Of course I will be mom.”

“I mean it Danny, please.”

Danny sighed “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure to text you regularly to let you know I’m safe. I’ll be fine and stay out of trouble, I promise” Maddie nodded seemingly plated at least for the time being.

The next day Danny was really regretting making that promise. The day started out so well too. Danny, Sam, and Tucker were walking along the park trail. Danny was walking a few steps in front of the other two, subtly making the path easier with his powers. The only people out insane enough to bear the cold were people who had to go to work and teens who were bored out of their minds.

“All I’m saying Danny is that if you want to choose that class you should choose a race other than human for once. Hellspawn would be the best option in your case.” Tucker argued.

“Says the dude playing the race for furries.” Danny shot back turning his head to look back at his friend.

“Hey! The beastmen race is a perfect fit for my class, they have an exp boost for trickery and magic skills it’s the best for playing a character who mains in ambushing with traps.

“Boys boys stop arguing. Danny will be fine playing as a human he’s just gonna have to spend more time grinding. Also he’s right, beastmen are so the furry option.” Sam cut in.

“Whatever, I just don’t understand why he always plays the most boring race in every game he plays. I mean why would you want to play as a human when you could be a fantasy race like an elf or something.”

“Well that’s easy for you and Sam to say you both are still hum-,” Danny was cut off mid sentence by his ghost sense and a glowing red circle surrounding the group. He hardly had a chance to go ghost before being fully enveloped by the light.

When Danny was finally oriented enough to open his eyes he vowed to never complain about getting motion sick while his dad was driving again if it meant he would never have to go through that awful experience again. It felt like getting sucked into the Fenton Thermos if it was the size of a straw and being spun in a blender all at the same time. He looked around seeing if his friends were brought along with him. And just his luck, of course they got pulled through whatever the hell that was too.

“Ugh, you guys okay?” He closed his eyes again and focused on stabilizing his core and getting the last of the nausea to leave.

“Bleh I think I’m gonna hurl.” Sam groaned from beside him.

Danny heard Tucker shift beside him. “Yeah I’m good, I guess all that time staying up late playing VR games kinda helped against motion sickness. Landed on my arm though so definitely going to bruise later. Where are we anyway?”

That actually was a good question, Danny lifted himself off the ground literally, using legs to stand was lame anyway. The sight he was met with was both confusing and surprising. Looking down he saw that the three of them were in some sort of red magic circle or something, with candles lit around it. Looking past that was the part that was surprising. He was expecting this to be the work of a ghost but standing in a circle around the three of them were six humans in different colored robes. He couldn’t recognize any of them though, they must have been from out of town or just total shut ins. He was pretty sure he recognized where they were though, it was the basement of an abandoned building next to the mall, Sam was super into urban exploring the year before and it was one of the first places she dragged the two boys to.

“Haha uhh hey didn’t know there was a costume party going on, I would have dressed up, looks like you got all the colored robe thing going on though. Would my hazmat suit work instead of a robe?” Danny looked at the group around him and cracked an uneasy smile. Maybe it was some sort of accidental ghost summoning or something, it wouldn’t be the first time. Though the fact it brought his friends along pointed to it either being on purpose or something much more powerful, or both.

The man in the black robe turned to a woman in a white one. “Why did the spell bring two kids along with it .”

Danny tried to ignore being called an ‘it’ not like his parents didn’t do it before they knew about his identity. “I’m not the murder clown and I do have a name you know.” But his words seemed to fall onto deaf ears.

“I did the calculations right if that’s what you’re trying to imply, as you can see the subject did appear in the circle as planned. We probably just underestimated how much power the sacrifice would provide with the addition of the solstice.” White robe snapped. Great, this was totally just what Danny needed at the start of his winter break. Not only did they seem like ghost hunters they were the crazy obsessed culty ones.

“Either way the goal was achieved in the end, we have the ghost boy.” Black robe pointed to two men, one in yellow and one in blue robes. “Take care of the two bystanders, but don’t kill them. After all we shouldn’t kill our soon to be followers.” Yeah that wasn’t concerning at all Danny thought.

The one in the yellow grabbed Sam and the one in the blue grabbed Tucker at the black robed man's command. Danny assumed that probably meant the black robed one was the one in charge here. “Hey! Get your hands off me you freaks!” Sam yelled, struggling against the man’s grip.

But Danny’s friends didn’t have a chance against people twice their size. Before either of them could struggle more the two men slammed their heads to the ground in almost unison, knocking them out almost instantly. It happened so fast all Danny would do is watch on in horror. He felt like he watched their now limp bodies for ages, their chests shallowly rising at least giving him the relief of knowing they were still alive. But the sight of small puddles of blood forming around their heads snapped him out of his horror and into a rage.

Danny placed his feet to the ground turning to look at the two in the black and white robes. “Why?” He seethed, “You said they were accidentally brought along when you were trying to get me here. Technically in a way this falls onto me. So tell me, why?”

The man in the black robe seemed taken aback from being confronted so suddenly. The woman in white didn’t seem to have the same problem, maybe they both were in charge? Honestly though Danny didn’t care at this point. “We will take over the little town you haunt. After we do that we will find out where all the ghosts are originating from and then make them into our soldiers so we can take over the country and then the world. To do that we obviously needed you out of the way since you seem to be the only one capable of combating the other ghosts that come into this world. Or you would just defeat our pawns before they could take true action. So we found a way to summon and trap ghosts, then brought you here so we could get you out of our way.”

Honestly Danny was disappointed hearing that more than anything, his rage almost completely disappeared after hearing the plan. “Hold up that is the stupidest plan I have ever heard.” And that was saying something seeing as he dealt with Vlad's plans on a weekly basis. “First off you do realize it would be very hard to get or even force ghosts into your service if you don’t offer them, anything in return. Not to mention how some ghosts have almost godlike powers and you expect to overpower them? Also I am not even close to the only one who can fight ghosts. Everyone in Amity Park has at least some know how when it comes to ghost fighting. They sell basic ghost protection equipment at the supermarket. I just happen to be better suited than everyone else because I y’know can like fly and go intangible when chasing them. Using ghosts to take over the world is so stupid do you even know how to properly catch a ghost? Seriously this is like next level dumb, not to mention how did you even know the summoning would work if it didn't you’d just all be standing in a darkly lit room looking dumber than you already do.”

That seemed to anger the white one a lot. Apparently she didn’t like her intelligence questioned. “Why you little-.” She stomped her foot. “This plan was thought through down to the smallest detail. You want to know how it worked huh? How about asking your friend over there. I wonder what happens when the dead are killed? You will find out soon enough.”

Danny looked over to where we gestured and his refound taunting attitude vanished. Laying over in the corner inside a smaller less complex looking circle was a ghost or the ectoplasmic remains of one at least, the core was completely destroyed. Judging by the fact that the ectoplasm was red it probably had a fire core before it was destroyed. From the lingering ecto signature Danny doubted the ghost was even sapient. It was most likely the remains of something like a blob ghost or the ghost of an animal or even a weaker ectopus. Still all he could do was stare at the remains in horror.

“Of course summoning you was harder so we used that thing for its ghost energy to help power the circle. Instead of chalk we used it’s ectoplasm to ensure the strength and longevity of the seal to hold you in the circle.” The woman smiled as if she achieved something great. Achieve something she did indeed, but it certainly was not what she intended.

The rage Danny felt before came back in full force. Before with his friends he at least knew they would recover, all three of them got injured fighting ghosts more often than they should. But to injure a ghost to the point where not even their core remained was something so taboo that only the most despicable ghosts would do. Even Skulker kept the cores of his prey stable enough not to fade away completely. A ghost's form could be completely destroyed but as long as their core remained they would reform back where they first formed in the Ghost Zone. The only ghosts Danny could think of who would go out of their way to destroy a core were some of the ancients like Pariah Dark or Nocturne.

Danny finally managed to tear his eyes away from the ghost's remains to lock eyes with the woman. She and the black robed man took a step back out of instinct. Looking into his eyes they felt the feeling every animal of prey felt when it knew it was being watched, being hunted. The temperature in the room dropped and frost started to crawl across the walls. Danny took a step towards the two leaders before pausing to reconsider and turning and starting towards the two men standing above his friends.

Then men in yellow and blue robes looked to the man in black for guidance, unsure of what action to take. He looked uncertain as well but shook his head. “There’s no way it can pass through the seal, we tested it.”

Danny's eyes flicked over to the man then back to the two who hurt his friends and gave them a predatory grin, his teeth now looking slightly sharper than usual. He made no sound as he stepped over the circle with ease closer and closer to the two men. They both reached for their weapons, small bats, apparently they were the muscle of the group, and swung at the approaching ghost. Danny simply went intangible causing the two to overswing and hit each other instead, knocking the wind out of them both and causing them to drop their bats. While they were catching their breath Danny grabbed them by their hair and knocked their heads together. Their bodies crumbled to the floor just a few inches from the teens they did the same to just minutes before.

The one who had yet to say or do anything, dressed in red, made her way towards Danny while his back was towards her. Just as she got within arms reach of him she slipped and fell. The temperature had dropped even more at this point causing the ground surrounding Danny to ice over. Danny hardly acknowledged the large thud behind him simply trapping the fallen woman up to her neck in ice as he walked past and headed towards his final two targets.

When first summoned by the group Danny could, within reason, probably be passed off as a weirdish looking human excluding the glow around him. But now as he stalked towards his prey that was no longer the case. His chest no longer moved like it was breathing. His feet made no sound as they made contact with the ground. His eyes, non-blinking, no longer had pupils or even whites to them just a void of endless ectoplasmic green. His ears were pointed almost bat like. The tips of which, along with his lips, were tinted blue. His hair, normally white like snow, now was just the white that came from complete absence of any color. The hair was defying gravity almost as if it was underwater while smoke like wisps trailed off from his hair as he moved. His mouth was twisted into an emotionless smile splitting through his cheeks showing needle like teeth all the way back to where his molars would have been, there was no tongue or throat behind them, just another endless green void. The skin of his neck that was showing past the hazmat suit was marked with lightning like scars. The glow around him seemed to absorb all the light in the room.

The man in the black robe looked between the approaching horror and his partner before running towards the exit. Danny moved so fast it was almost as if he materialized right in front of the man. The man stumbled back falling down in shock but still tried to scramble away from him crossing his chest as he did so. Just as Danny started to raise his arm towards the man he paused and lurched back.

He looked down at his chest where an ornate knife was now lodged. Holding onto the hilt was the woman, she gave the knife a final twist before letting go and herding her partner into the corner farthest away from Danny. Danny showed no pain as he grabbed the knife and pulled it out, the blade was dripping with ectoplasm, and dropped it on the ground. The wound in his chest already healing, filling with more ectoplasm to replace what was lost.

The smile that was marring Danny’s face was replaced with a scowl as he made his way towards the corner where the two were cowering. Placing a hand on their necks he lifted them both up against the wall and started slowly burning their skin with an ectoblast. He let them go, letting them fall to the ground only when their screams of pain turned silent as crushed vocal cords and burnt throat muscles took their toll. Both cult leaders looked up at him in horror faces pale. "What's wrong?" Danny smiled, "It looks like you've seen a ghost."

The woman looked at him in fear as she grasped at the raw skin of her throat, which now was covered in blisters and charred in some of the worst places. “Wha-, what, what are you?” She managed to rasp out before coughing up some blood.

Danny let out a dark chuckle, his voice echoed over itself. “I-,” he snarled, “am a Phantom .”

After Danny sent an anonymous tip to the police about the cult, he brought his friends back to his house. Of course his mom freaked out after he stopped responding to her texts and even more when he phased into the living room with an unconscious Sam and Tucker. He was pretty sure she was about to break out the BOOmerang if she didn’t hear from him for much longer. She was more than willing to take the two of them to the hospital to get them checked out.

Danny made a quick stop into the ghost zone to tell Clockwork to spread the word to other ghosts to be on alert and that there were humans that were trying to summon and capture ghosts. After telling Clockwork what happened, in much more detail than the briefest summary he gave his mom, including how he probably went a bit overboard with dealing with the cultists. He also admitted he didn't regret it even if he did go overboard. They hurt his friends and caused a ghost to completely fade, and in Danny’s opinion they deserve whatever came to them. The whole story caused Clockwork to also start fretting over him making sure to let Danny know that his reaction was a completely normal response to someone threatening something that falls within his obsession especially since it happened in his haunt of all places. Danny swore that his ghostly mentor could be worse than his own parents sometimes especially when it came to reassuring him about his more ghostly tendencies.

Luckily after being released from the hospital it turned out the worst Sam and Tucker suffered were concussions that would heal in a decently short amount of time. That didn’t mean they weren’t complaining about it though.

“Stop laughing about my suffering Danny! I won’t be able to start playing Fantasy War Online VII until my two week tech restriction is lifted by my doctor. It was bad enough I had to go to a hospital but to be taken away from my lovely devices as well is just too much.” Tucker lamented.

“Quit complaining and suck it up. I’m on the restriction too Tucker.” Sam pointed out.

Tucker huffed. “Yeah well you’ll probably manage to catch up to all the people who are getting it on release day easily, since you’re scarily good at MMO’s.” He flopped back onto Danny’s bed. “Hey at least this gives us more time to convince Danny to play something other than a human for once in his life. Like I said before the hellspawn is the perfect race for the build you’re going for.”

Danny just rolled his eyes. “And like I said before, I like being a human.” “Whatever dude just don’t complain when I utterly beat you if we end up fighting because you wanted to be the lamest most boring race ever.”

Danny shrugged. “Somehow I’ll cope, I just think it’s nice to be seen as normal and not scary.”

Sam laughed. “Danny you are the least scary person like to ever exist. The only things scary about you are your grades and your wacky parents. I doubt you could be scary if you tried.”

Danny looked out the window watching the stars as they started to appear in the sky. “...Yeah I guess you’re right.”

#guess who back with the phics #danny phantom #phic #My fic #my phic

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lucifer-is-a-bag-of-dicks · 3 years

Text

I actually used my own experiences with grief and loss in this one, I could channel it better writing from Jazz's perspective

so yeah if you thought the last two were sad-

Part 3

Jazz had never gone ghost hunting with her mother before, at least never with just the two of them. It was uncomfortable, unfamiliar, like when her only friend at a party left her alone with someone she barely knew.

Her relationship with her mother had always been intellectual in nature, they would engage in philosophical debates over the ethics and morality of the ghost hunting profession while eating dinner, the discussions became far more intense after Jazz discovered Danny's secret. She was no longer debating simply for the sake of an interesting discussion, she was trying to introduce concepts that would smooth the way for when her brother was ready to reveal his other self to them.

It was a tactic she had used successfully many years before, albeit for a far more mundane reason.

Going ghost hunting with Maddie wasn't just uncomfortable because it was unfamiliar, it wasn't even because of her ethical disagreement with her mother's tactics.

It was because her father was supposed to be here.

Maddie rarely went hunting without Jack, not if she could help it, they had always been a team, they worked perfectly in synch with one another, but Jack wasn't here. Jazz was, and his shoes just didn't fit.

Jazz didn't have to go, technically, she wasn't even trying to help with the ghost hunting part, but... she couldn't let Maddie go alone.

Maddie was coping with Jack's death far worse than anyone.

From the moment they'd returned home from the hospital, after Jack had been declared dead, Maddie had been out every day and night hunting for the Wisconsin Ghost. It didn't matter to her that he hadn't been seen since that night, it didn't matter that he had always been too powerful for anyone to take on alone.

Maddie would drive around for hours, chasing any blip on her radar and ferociously ripping into any unfortunate ghost to cross her path.

Danny had been running damage control, warning the more agreeable ghosts to stay out of Amity, capturing the rest as covertly as possible, doing everything he could to stay away from Maddie while in his ghost form.

Jazz had been the only one left to do everything else. She had turned 18 just a few months before, so thankfully she had been legally able to sign all the documentation, to plan the funeral arrangements, the cremation, the obituary. All of it, by herself.

She was grateful, in a way. It gave her something to do, something to focus on that wasn't grief, that wasn't the cold empty hole in her life. Jack's presence had always been hard to ignore, his absence even more so.

Danny had tried to help with the preparations, when he wasn't in the ghost zone or cleaning up ghosts around town. He appeared to be holding himself together okay, but Jazz knew better, she knew that the guilt was eating him up from the inside. It didn't matter how many times she reassured him that he wasn't responsible for this, that he wasn't to blame, it made no difference.

It was only when Jazz had run out of tasks to do that she let herself cry.

She knew that sitting around was only going to make her feel worse, she couldn't let herself stew in her grief, she needed a purpose to pull her through. So she joined her mother on her feverish hours long hunts.

It was escapism, she knew that, for both of them. To Maddie, the hunting was something else to focus on so she could ignore her grief, it gave her a sense of control and purpose. Jazz was using looking out for her mother as her own distraction, her own grasp for purpose and control.

She knew these things, and she knew they were not entirely healthy, but she didn't know what else to do.

If this were anyone else she would have told them to seek out professional therapy, go to grief counselling, practice radical acceptance, to use visualisation exercises and grounding techniques to manage intrusive thoughts. Vengeance and fury weren't a healthy release, they would only build, they would only lead to more pain.

But her books hadn't prepared her for something like this, how could she seek help from someone she can't tell the whole truth? How could she grieve in peace when the justice system couldn't touch her father's murderer? He was still out there, he was still a threat. It was only a matter of time before he started working his way into Maddie's good graces, shamelessly emboldened by his successful assassination.

Jazz was furious when Danny insisted they keep Vlad's identity a secret. She understood where he was coming from. Her mother was struggling enough as it was, Jazz couldn't imagine what it would do to her to find out that it had been her husband's best friend all this time. That he had murdered Jack because he wanted her, the guilt alone would be soul crushing, and then there was the certainty that Vlad would reveal Danny's identity in return.

She couldn't even imagine...

Jazz was still angry, angry that Danny had to be the one to say it, angry that he was right, angry that he could be so rational while inside she was falling to pieces. She knew better, she knew how much he was hurting on the inside too, she knew that he was just good at hiding it, much better than she was.

She was still angry, but they both knew she wasn't angry at him.

When she got up that morning, her mother had been in the lab, her weaponry was getting more dangerous, less capture oriented and more destructive. Jazz wasn't sure if working down there was better than the hunting or worse, but at least no unsuspecting ghosts were getting torn to pieces.

Jazz had witnessed a few first-hand, it was bad enough seeing it happen to the formless, barely sentient poltergeists, she didn't want to know what a true spirit would look like, being eviscerated with such malice. She imagined a ghost like Johnny, laying on the ground with chunks ripped from his-

No, no that wasn't helpful, that was an intrusive thought, she needed to acknowledge its presence and move on, it didn't help her, let it go, like leaves on a string, let it go...

It would be back later, she knew.

Her breakfast was suddenly incredibly unappealing, not that that was anything new. She wouldn't be surprised if she'd lost weight over the last week, her clothes already felt just a little too loose.

A sudden and intense pang of longing hit her fast and hard, she missed him. It had only been a week and she already missed him so much. She just wanted him to wrap his big arms around her and hold her close and dig his chin into her hair in that way that annoyed her and tell her everything was okay Jazzypants and... and he was the only one who ever called her that. She hated it. She'd never hear it again...

She pushed her bowl of cereal away and stood, her eyes burning. She had to find something else to do, to keep her mind busy.

She went around the living room, clearing the coffee table and fluffing the pillows, there was a stain on the lounge, probably from a bit of fudge-

The curtains were looking dusty, they could probably use a clean, would they fit in the washing machine or would they need to be hand washed?

She'd started trying to unhook them from the curtain rod when the lab door banged open loudly, Jazz jumped, startled. She ran to the kitchen to find her mother in tears, hand over her mouth like she was trying to hold it all back. Jazz wrapped her arms around her and Maddie grasped onto her tight, like she was afraid she would be snatched away at a moment's notice.

Jazz rocked slightly and ran a hand up and down her mother's back comfortingly as they each cried into the other's shoulder. Maddie hadn't cried like this since the first night, Jazz recognised it as a good sign, she was letting herself feel again.

"Where is he?" Maddie stammered, "W-where'd he go, where'd he go?"

Jazz just squeezed tighter, it was a difficult question for someone who studied the dead for a living, to wonder what happened after. They were never a religious family, being raised by scientists there was never talk of a heaven or hell, just the ghost zone, what lay beyond that was a mystery to them all, even the ghosts.

She sniffed, she could feel tears clinging to her eyelashes, and an odd itch to her scalp.

"Jazz?" Danny's voice echoed down the stairs.

She heard Danny come into the room behind her, he made an odd sound, a quick and quiet intake of breath. Was he trying not to cry? Jazz hadn't seen him cry once, not since he was dragged off of Vlad that night, bruised knuckles dripping red. They were tears of fury then, she would never forget the sound of Danny's ragged screams as he pummelled Vlad into the ground, despite all the hands trying to pull him off the man.

Vlad had simply taken the beating, he'd use it later, she knew. He would forgive Danny, say it that he deserved it for failing to fight off that terrible awful Wisconsin Ghost when it overshadowed him. He would say it was all his fault, that he deserved all that pain and more, he was oh so sorry.

And Maddie would forgive him, because it wasn't his fault, it was that awful awful ghost. Vlad could never do something so terrible to his best friend. Vlad would always be welcome in their home, and welcome he would make himself. Jazz could see it all, and she could do nothing about it.

Danny placed a hand on his mother's shoulder. "Maybe you should do another lap around town, you might find something today." he pressed his head close to hers and spoke softly into her frazzled hair.

Jazz glanced at Danny with narrow eyes, annoyed and confused, their mother was finally making progress, and Danny was going to send her right back to her fruitless obsessive search for vengeance? He had to know it wasn't helpful, he had to.

He looked at her, wide eyed and thin lipped as he gave a quick jerk of the head and flick of the eyes to the front door. He wanted Maddie out of the house, for what reason Jazz didn't know and obviously couldn't ask, but she trusted her brother and did as she was told. Something was going on, but she would have to ask Danny about it later.

The day was warm and only a little humid, they drove with the windows down. Jazz enjoyed the wind on her face, she did not enjoy the silence.

It stretched on, unbroken by the radar as Danny's patrol earlier in the dawn had swept the town clean of ghost activity. It looked like Jazz wouldn't be watching another massacre today, she couldn't be more relieved.

"It's been quiet." Maddie said, out of the blue.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. Guess it has," Jazz paused, "maybe you scared them all off?"

"They should be scared." Maddie's tone was low, threatening. If Jazz were a ghost she would be terrified.

There was more quiet, they passed the local park, the sound of kids playing and birds singing were loud for a few moments, until the trees disappeared into the distance behind them and the quiet returned.

"Haven't seen much of Phantom either." Maddie spat. "I'm surprised he hasn't shown up to gloat."

Pain shot through Jazz like an arrow, she would have to warn Danny to make extra sure to stay out of their mother's way, she was very clearly ready to shift a whole lot of misplaced aggression directly onto him.

She considered challenging her mother's assumption, but thought it best not to provoke her right now. Instead she merely hummed an acknowledgment.

They drove past the school, empty for the summer. Jazz's final exams had only just ended before her father's birthday, but she had missed graduation. She didn't want to go without him there, she was supposed to give a speech, she was too busy writing a eulogy.

They passed a group of people she knew from school, they gave her a little wave. Despite Jack's notoriety, everyone had been sad to hear the news, they'd sent a giant card around the school and everyone she knew had signed it, including the teachers, and everyone in Danny's year too. Mr Lancer brought it to the house with an enormous bouquet, he couldn't convince the school to pay for one so he bought it out of his own pocket.

Jazz had gotten texts and private messages, all saying they were here for her if she ever needed to talk. She responded to most of them, but sometimes she just sent a heart emoji. It was easier than writing the same thank you message over and over. She didn't take any of them up on the offer.

The drive wasn't too bad honestly, without any ghosts showing up it was almost relaxing. Maddie hadn't said much else other than a few observations about the traffic or the weather. When Jazz suggested getting some lunch Maddie had opted to use the Nasty Burger drive through so they could eat in the van. Jazz was grateful, she didn't want to run into anyone else from school.

Her phone buzzed, it was Danny sending her a thumbs up, they were safe to go home.

"We should probably head home." Jazz suggested, slurping the last of her drink. "We've been all over town, there's nothing here."

Maddie grit her teeth but revved up the van and turned toward FentonWorks.

As soon as they were through the door Maddie headed to the lab, presumably to drown herself in more work. Jazz headed up the stairs where Danny waited for her.

"What's going on?" she asked.

Danny shushed her looking over her shoulder down the stairs.

"It's fine she's in the lab," Jazz reassured him, "what's going on?"

He didn't answer, just grabbed her wrist and pulled her toward his room, closing the door behind them and locking it.

"I'm going to try something," he said, crossing the room to stand before her, "But I think you should sit down first."

Jazz frowned but she sat down on the edge of the bed.

"Is this about Vlad? Did he come here?" A rush of heat spilled over her face, "If that son of a bitch tried anything I'll-"

"Jazz it's fine, it's not Vlad, it's fine." Danny breathed, running a hand through his hair nervously. "It's just, I'm trying something but I need you here to tell me if it works, okay?"

He nibbled his lip anxiously but he also seemed... almost excited about something. Had he developed a new power?

Jazz nodded and paid close attention as Danny took a few steps back and put a hand up, palm facing to the side and away from himself, his fingers curled slightly as if grabbing for something.

He took a deep breath and the heat of the summer air chilled, a trail of green mist flowed over his hand and began to form a shape in the air beside him.

Almost immediately as it began to form Jazz knew.

She leapt to her feet to stand before the large figure revealing itself gradually before her, when the mist crept over a square jaw and close cropped haircut she threw her hands over her mouth to stifle her gasping breaths.

"Dad." she breathed, she reached for him but didn't dare touch, afraid that she would ruin the illusion. Was he here? Was he real? She looked to Danny but his eyes were closed, face scrunched in concentration. He peeked at her for a moment, his grimace lifting into a strained smile.

"It's him." said Danny, through gritted teeth, "Say hi."

Jazz cried as Jack lifted a hand toward her face, he was still a translucent shimmering green, but she was certain she could see tears on his face. He mouthed words that she couldn't hear, but she knew them all the same.

Hey Jazzypants.

She was sobbing hard as she grasped the hand cupping her face, her fingers went right through it, but she could feel it, like she could feel his palm against her cheek. It was cold, and so light it almost tickled, but she could feel it.

She tried again, very gently feeling for that slight resistance to the air and holding her hand against it, she couldn't touch him for real, she couldn't hold him, but she could feel him. That was enough.

"I missed you dad." She smiled through her tears, "I missed you so much."

His features were still hard to make out, but it was clear he was smiling, he mouthed more words.

"Sorry, I can't hear you." said Jazz, sadly.

"He says he liked the obituary." Danny grunted, eyes still squeezed shut. "He knew you wrote it, he could tell."

Jazz laughed, it was only a little hysterical. Danny's hand trembled against Jack's arm. Jazz wanted to tell him he could stop now, but she didn't want her dad to go, not yet.

She raised her hands to cup his face, only just feeling the whisper of a few bristles on his chin. She didn't know what to say, what could she say?

"I'm so glad you're here," she said quietly with as much feeling as she could, "but, why are you here? You said you'd never... you'd never..."

Jack said nothing, but glanced over to Danny, whose hair had started streaking with white and glinting with crystalline shards of ice.

"Don't get to choose." He growled, his voice sounded distorted, his jaw clenched so hard Jazz could hear his teeth grinding, "Happens or it doesn't."

Danny's lips were pulled back in a pained snarl and were turning blue, his canines were sharpening as blinding flashes of green slipped from beneath his eyelids. A large puff of opaque mist rolled from his mouth upon each laboured exhale.

Jazz gave her father a careful hug, trying to lean into him without falling through.

"We're gonna figure this out dad I promise we're gonna figure it out."

She could feel his arms around her, the slight pressure reminding her of being buffeted by a strong gust of wind.

Danny took that as his cue, he pulled his hand back with a ragged cry and Jack's misty green form dissipated like smoke in a breeze.

Jazz stared into the empty space her dad's face had only just filled moments ago.

"Is he still here?" She asked, voice trembling.

"Yuh- yeah," Danny huffed, he was bent over, catching his breath. "I can suh- still see him, and hear him."

He stood straight as he pulled in a deep lungful of air. Then he laughed, a rough, exhausted laugh, but a laugh nonetheless.

"I'm so glad that worked, oh Ancients. I'm gonna need a minute." he crashed onto the bed face down.

"What exactly did you do?" Jazz asked, eyes still locked on the space where Jack had been, and presumably was still, standing.

"Dad only just formed a consciousness this morning," Danny grumbled into his bedding. "He's still warm, hasn't manifested a core yet. I just loaned him some energy."

"Still warm?" Jazz turned her nose up at the phrase.

"Yeah, it's uh, ghost slang. Means freshly dead, y'know like the body's still-"

"Yeah yeah I get it," Jazz waved a hand dismissively. "Gross."

"That's what dad said."

"Yeah! Because it's gross!"

Danny laughed, but it was barely more than a breathy huff. Jazz eyed him carefully, he was a little more pale than usual, there were bags beneath his eyes, his cheeks were a little hollow and his lips were still tinged with blue. All his usual signs of overexertion, but other than that he looked relatively okay.

"Why was it so exhausting?" Jazz asked. "I would've thought you'd have more than enough energy to share, especially for something as simple as visibility."

"Amount isn't the issue." Danny raised a finger pointedly, "Simple is the issue, imagine trying to fill a water balloon with a fire hose."

Jazz balked.

"Wait, that sounds unbelievably dangerous!" Jazz glared at Danny and then back at the empty room, "What happens to dad if you lose control?"

Danny groaned and flipped himself over onto his back, an arm flung over his eyes.

"Don't get mad at me it was his idea." Danny glared at the empty space for a beat before barking, "Was too!"

Jazz rolled her eyes, "Oh my god you are both children." She turned to Danny and pointed a thumb over her shoulder, "I can't hear him so you're going to have to tell me, what would happen to him if you lost control?"

Danny pressed his lips together and muttered guiltily, "He... could'a destabilised."

"He WHAT?!"

"I told you it was his idea!"

"I don't care whose idea it was!" Jazz alternated between glaring at Danny and at the space behind her. "You're both idiots for trying something so risky! There wasn't some way to practice?!"

"What do think we were doing while you were gone!" Danny exclaimed, "Also he's standing over there now, he moved so he wouldn't feel like you were yelling at him."

Jazz planted a hand over her face, and shook her head in disbelief, she didn't know whether to laugh or cry, her dad had been back for not even ten minutes and she was already yelling at him.

She spluttered a choked up giggle, wiping her eyes and sniffling.

"God I missed you dad." Jazz said, before she started bawling.

#lula's fanfics #danny phantom #tw death #tw loss #tw grief #yeah I really feel like I need these tags this time #danny phantom fanfiction #Bitter

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mymadmedleyw · 3 years

Text

Death

(ao3), belongs under Certain Moment of Time, could be read independently, just as each for the days will be shorts, but all together forming a whole picture

(As this is the last chapter within the 'Going Angst Week 2021', a little reminder about the right order in reading the chapters chronologically (I suggest CMOT link): 4, 6, 2, 5, 3, and 7, 1)

tw: miscarriage

---

Blood. One could say after seeing it many times, sensing its rusty, salty odour within the air might have lost the sensibility to it after a while. But it never ceased on the weight if it was about loss, about death.

Then it always changed to the horrible, suffocating disinfectant scent with the white surrounding and the sound of silent sobs. Just as this time. They didn't even dare to count for how many occasions they ended up here, broken and devastated.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry…" mumbled for like the thousand times the hollow voice. "It's all my fault, I shouldn't have- I shouldn't have-" the sentence trailed off by another chuckling, squeezing hard on his hand that was holding hers, never letting it go.

Every attempt, every hopeful try led back here and- and it just twisted his heart, seeing, again and again, the slightly greyishly paled skin that years ago was beaming. Years ago…

Suddenly the picture of the small child in her arms came back, like that could have been a mirage. Sadly, he was well aware it wasn't, that happened, but- what he had done wrong?

Vlad pressed his forehead on her, taking the same question that he was asking from himself during the past few years. Why he hadn't told her? It was the same damn question, but with a different meaning this time. Time… yes, that it was.

He clearly could remember the day in the hospital bed, staring at the black and white photograph, bringing for them good news again… and then he couldn't tell what had happened, but he had woken up with years of memories in his mind and- and then as he had sat up, holding his throbbing head someone put a hand on his shoulder, asking with the greatest concern if he was okay.

It had needed hours to understand it wasn't a dream, and by lunch – made by the most amazing woman on the Earth – his mind settled too.

As much weird it was, but this was the truth. Madeline Masters. His wife. Also aware of his state – that they, according to his new-old memories, together tried to keep at bay. He knew he lied to her about its seriousness. That she only was informed about the simply side-effects: floating, invisibility and intangibility, sometimes glowing hands – but she had no conscious about the rest, about the other form… (which learning from a memory surprised Vlad too).

He kept then on with that lie, just as with the other one too, that somehow, he remembered a time when everything was different.

It worked for years. To tell the truth, Vlad forgot everything after their first positive test, even after the second, or the third, but-

Then he didn't dare to count. He couldn't recall anymore the days when she was happy – except in that other life. He slowly was destroying her, breaking the sweet image of his love… He tried to tell her several times to give up, but as much as stubborn she was, like feeling she should have been a mother, she never listened.

Then he eventually had run some tests (surprisingly facing with the result wasn't even his worst day, because his worst day was now…). The accident in the lab, five years ago ruined his biology. It was his fault. Vlad had been on to tell her, several times really, that they- that they wouldn't ever have a child, but- but he had been afraid. He still was afraid. He was a coward, fearing to lose her, so then he never told her, but now…

"Daniel…" a hollow, weak breath was formed into a name. "I thought- I chose- I really thought this time…"

"It's okay…" Vlad whispered, fighting against the suffocating guilt.

Daniel… he almost could imagine a view of a boy with her kindness, smartness and maybe with his steel bright eyes, and-

A soft sniffling broke the silence in the room, he knew it would take days and weeks to calm her down (or months, especially that this time she really had hoped…). But then she would return to her obsessed determines, again, not giving up until she would be able to fight for it…

But Vlad couldn't watch it, not again. This time, it had endangered her life too. He just couldn't let it happen, not anymore… especially as the date slipped into his mind. It was the same as on the letter, containing the black and white picture of their second child… she would have been expecting her second and-

He bit his lips as hard as it drew blood, rusty, salty and sinner. The sound of the woman, the so loved Maddie died away in a faint snuffling, undoubtedly dreaming about a great life he couldn't give her… Even though Vlad was conscious of their reality, he still wished to fulfil her dreams…

Wish… suddenly his eyes snapped open, remembering word-to-word to his half-mumbled sentence before everything had changed and he had woken up in this dream (nightmare…).

Would it be that easy? –Vlad wondered, sceptical about such childish way, but then he grabbed on it, tight, as ridiculous it sounded, and he'd have literally killed to make her happy. So then, he opened his mouth, already putting together what he wanted to say, and then-

"Won't work." stopped him an abrupt voice, then the owner cleared it. "I set the rules with Desiree. She is not allowed to grant any timeline-altering wishes, unless I allow it." Vlad blinked at the sudden presence of someone else, searching with his eyes immediately to catch the person, but there was no sign of anyone, just a quiet ticking sound was telling someone was definitely there.

A moment passed in silence, making Vlad wondering about if he hallucinated the voice, but then it spoke again. "Clockwork, by the way, Master of Time – though it's rather a given title than a name. Theatrical, isn't it?" Vlad scoffed at the unmistakable enjoying waving of the words, whoever this ghost was – because, based on the invisibility it was undoubtedly an unearthly creature from the other realm –, he clearly was amused by this scenario.

"What do you-?" Vlad started, frustrated by the spectre's presence and mocking.

"Want?" was Vlad interrupted. "From you? Nothing… albeit your stubborn wish created a glitch that didn't suppose to exist. A knot, that tangled the flow of events, blinding me. In short," the ghost took a break. "you scarred the time." well, that definitely sounded like a lecture… but then, the title slipped into his mind, along with the accounting for: Master of Time.

"You can make it back…" Vlad pieced together. "You can change on the time, change on this all." he couldn't tell if it scared him or filled with him hope, but definitely that drew out a way – more like an alternative – after the wish-one. For a short time, the ticking skipped a beat, like the ghost would have been stuck on a thought, but then talked again.

"Yes, I can change on this all." was Vlad's sentence, almost exactly repeated. He didn't have to be a genius, to feel it wasn't an admitting. "But I won't." was it added, not even a second later. "I might be responsible to watch over the timelines, and every single outcome, but on this, I am afraid, I can't do anything. You created it, it's your duty to fix it, and decide." Vlad stunned. Decide what exactly? This or- that? It wasn't an actual question, he could give the answer easily, but-

Suddenly he averted his gaze from the space where he suspected the ghost was floating invisibly – getting on his nerves by that – then he looked back to the woman, gazing at his wife, and gently got out a long curly lock of hair that fell into her face. She seemed so calm, pale, yes, shattered by the tired wrinkles under her closed eyes, and…

"I see you already made your decision." Vlad heard the cursed voice again. He didn't have to guess to know his eyes were burning red, clenching his jaw and fighting inside to not lash out at the ghost, transforming to his other outlook and end the ghost, it that was even possible in case of a timeless existence. Was it really counted as entertainment for him? This?!

"It's not a decision." Vlad spitted.

"No, it really isn't." said the ghost sternly, accompanied by a sound that gave an impression like an old clock would have been adjusted, bored by the current discussion as if it had been something obvious, or expected. "But I am seeing no future over this certain moment, neither in this time or your original one. Just imagine, how it could be to be blind after millennia. Curious, I was for centuries to learn what it caused. Well, it turned out it was just a desperate hybrid's wish, fighting against his true nature, cornering himself to endless suffering than accepting the new him… comical, isn't it?"

It felt harder and harder to hold back and stay unmoved listen to the words, but as much as he loathed hearing it, if this Clockwork could mean the solution from this, then-

"Besides, what happens now, how you decide, is beyond me, I can't see through it, until it happens." defined the being, at the same time out of nowhere a swirling green-ness formed in the air. It was similar to the Proto-Portal, which Vlad had seen many years ago, but this was enough big for anyone to walk through it. "It's either this time or the other one, the knot you created still makes the connection available. But it has to end. Only one could remain."

Vlad swallowed, lost in the neon colour, like an unescapable doom that followed him everywhere. He remembered his time, his muscles still could recall the seizures, the endless days in that hospital room, and reading about his friends' perfect life against his… the ghost was right, he had been desperate, now he could control his other side, but it could be only thanked to Maddie, this Maddie… in that other world, he was nothing but- he was literally nothing… here, now, on the other hand, he had the love of his life, but still-

Suddenly, he put together no matter how he'd choose, what path he'd take, it would turn his heart a stone, destroying by the ghost's words the other time. But then, he took a glimpse at the resting woman, at his Maddie, silently sleeping unaware of another being's presence in the room, only lost in a dream-world her mind created. For a moment, he wondered about the possibilities, about the alternatives, but then, hard, Vlad realised it was out of the question.

He never felt his limbs as heavy as he stood up from the chair, earlier placed beside the hospital bed, to mean support Maddie after the loss... And he never felt more hatred towards anyone – even towards Jack – that now took over his entire body about the ghost.

"I really hope, you are able to see your so cherished future now." Vlad cursed, the sourness and hurt suffocated him from inside as he took a step towards the greenness.

"I do." acknowledged the Master of Time, but not spilling anything else, what it would mean or how things would turn out. But Vlad knew even if the ghost was aware of some outcome, he wouldn't be informed about those. As Vlad disappeared behind the gate between the two realities, he took himself a promise, to somehow, when everything had settled, whatever it would take, he would find Clockwork and claim justice.

#going angst week 2021 #going angst week #danny phantom #vlad masters #clockwork

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playedcrowd5610 · 3 years

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Obsessions DP universe

(This was an essay idea I had started writing for a school project. I didn't end up using it but I loved it so much that I thought I would post it. This is an essay I had written about how I believe ghost obsession's work in the Danny Phantom series. All from my headcannons and observations from the show.)

What do you think of when you think of ghosts? Do you think of haunted mansions? Maybe possession? Maybe even a person with a white sheet on their head? Well I’m going to talk about Ghosts today. But not just any ghosts, I am going to be talking about a certain kind of ghost. These, ghosts were thought up of by Butch Heartman, for the fictional Danny Phantom universe.

I have done a lot of research into this, (way too much for a kids show... but whatever) And have come up with multiple theories based on how the ghosts reacted in certain situations and other things that happened during the show. Before I go on I should describe the certain kind of ghost I am talking about here. Lots of people call them Ecto entities. They are beings formed up of people's souls after they die. If they had a strong obsession in life, or a very good reason to keep on living. These people will often become these beings for their afterlife.

Their personality or soul after they die forms into a core that is an energy source for a ghost. Ectoplasm forms around the core to create a ghost. The core of a ghost works as the heart, brain, lungs, and nearly every other needed origin except for the stomach (as they do not need to eat). Ghosts need this because the ectoplasm that makes up their bodies is just that, ectoplasm. It creates a shell, a body for the ghost to ‘live’ in, if you would. Depending on how powerful the ghost is they can change the appearance of their ectoplasm to give them different looking bodies.

There are only two types of ghosts you can get. Fire core ghosts and Ice core ghosts. One core is not more powerful than the other, all of the ghosts range on a 1-10 level on the ecto scale. Fire core ghosts are extremely common, nearly every ghost you will see in the show is a fire core ghost. Whereas there are extremely few Ice core ghosts. The most well known in the series are Kelmper, who was known for his Lonely obsession. And Danny Phantom, the main character of the story. All of the residents of the Far frozen also had ice cores, and they were the only other ghosts known to possess them.

But the thing I want to talk about is obsessions. Obsession is a thing that ghosts can't control. The thing that drove them in life. Or the last thing they thought about when they died. The most noticeable ones have been. Box Ghost (Who was obsessed with boxes) Skulker (Who was obsessed with hunting) and Ember (Who was obsessed with music and attention from others)

All ghosts have an obsession, most are just really hard to tell. Like Walker (was obsessed with order, and the need to be in control) Bertrand (Who wanted to be accepted) And one of the hardest ones to figure out during the series was Danny Phantom himself (He is Obsessed with Protection.)

Danny Phantom is the only ghost you see in the series who actually dies. The reason he got his obsession is when he died it was in an explosion in his parents lab. His friends were also in the same room as the explosion and as Danny was dieing all he could think about was protecting them, making sure they were okay. So now. With Danny as a ghost. The first thing he thinks about in every situation is how he can protect every person there even at the cost of himself. That is the main reason he became a hero. Whereas a ghost with a Power obsession would find it much harder as their core itself is trying to force them to go in the direction of power.

Every ghost will think about their obsession first, it is like it is hard wired into their core. All ghosts have a moral compass. And can choose between right and wrong. But if something is in the way of their obsession they will mostly stop at nothing to get it.

That is why in season 1 in the time travel episode, Danny tries to give up his human emotions after his family and friends die. He blames himself for their deaths, and because his obsession is protection it hits him 100 times as hard as it would without it. Danny would probably break every bone in his body before he would see someone get hurt (and he has).

Something interesting with this is the fact that there are Halfa’s in this universe. A halfa is a half human half ghost. Someone who was half dead. Both of the deaths that resulted in halfa’s were created by an interdimensional portal created by the Fenton family. There are three Halfa’s in this universe. Danny Phantom aka Danny Fenton. Vlad Plasmius aka Vlad Masters. And Dani Phantom aka Dani Fenton. I don't often count Dani, because she was a female clone created to match Danny Phantom made by Vlad, therefore she did not die in the first place and started her afterlife as a halfa.

When it comes to halfa’s they can hold back on their obsessions more than a normal ghost can. Seeing as they also have blood and ectoplasm in their veins. So when they have their obsessions it is rooted more towards a smaller group of people that makes it stronger. With Vlad Plasmius he has a Power obsession. That is often directed to Danny and Maddie Fenton. He used his ghostly abilities to steal and gain wealth, get power in the world. He will get extremely mad if someone goes against him and will most likely lash out. He will constantly be trying non stop to gain the power his core craves. He ends up letting powerful and evil beings loose on the world (on multiple occasions) that always end up going against him. And he is constantly doing the moves for power instead of smarts. He's a really smart man, but if he is choosing between instant power or continuing with a plan he will jump at the power because of his obsession.

Obsessions can also boost your power. Mostly physically noticeable is the box ghost. He can use telekinesis on any object, but he is 10 times as powerful if he uses it on boxes. Same thing with Lunch Lady and their future daughter Box Lunch.

Danny has the same thing. In the battle of Pariah, Danny would have lost that fight, but he didn't. If he was fighting for himself that would be a different story but he was fighting for the world and his friends and family. Forcing him to push himself, effectively beating one of the most powerful beings in all of the universe.

This was my easy on Danny Phantom and ghost obsessions. I think this is mostly head cannons on my part. But this is what I think of when it comes to most ghosts in the show.

#Danny Phantom #obsessions #ghosts #dp #danny phantom universe #danny fenton #vlad masters #headcanon #phandom

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dani-halfa · 4 years

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Things i would like to see in a Danny Phantom reboot:

1) A more detailed explanation about the nature of the ghosts. Are they human souls who never got to rest in peace? Are they supernatural entities? Where they came from?

Who's the ruler of the ghost zone? Are there any laws that prevent ghosts for hurting each other? Do they lack rules?

Who are the observants? How old are they? Are they just ghosts or something else?

2) Give the characters proper character arcs:

Danny: I wouldn't change him so much, one i would like to see is how the ghosts fight affect his mind. I want angst. I want this boy to express how traumatic some fights are for him. I want him to think about how difficult is for him being a halfa and how he has to hide his ghost half from his family.

Sam: Give this girl a proper character arc. Make her have arguments with her parents because she doesn't aprove their company's desicions. I want her to use to her rich status to troll Vlad and gain secret information. She could also have an arc about how she's into paranormal and ghosts.

Tucker: As he is a geek, he's arc could be learning more about the nature of ghosts. At the beginning he wouldn't care too much about them but he later gains a better understanding of ghosts.I also want to know more about Tucker's family: Do they approve of his hobby? Are they overprotective?

The Fentons: I think it would be great for them to be seen as the crazy of the Amity Park at the beginning,but, as ghosts start appearing more and more in Amity Park, the people start to respect them and take them more seriously.

Jack Fenton: I like his character, the only thing i would change is make him more mature and less childish. Let him take things seriously every once in a while. I also i would like to see what he thinks of his kids and if his a good father for them.

Maddie Fenton: She's doesn't need to change too much. I would like to see more episodes about her bonding with Jazz and Danny.

Jazz fenton: I wouldn't change her so much. She's fine the way she is.

Valerie: This girl is great as she is. One thing to improve her character arc would be giving her more episodes to develop and don't make her break up with Danny the same episode they start dating. She could also have a few episodes as protagonist to explore more about her family and personal life.

Vlad Masters: He's already a fantastic villain, however there a few things i would like to see are:

Flashbacks about his past: What happened to him after he was infected? How many years he spent on the hospital after that? How he gained his ghosts powers?

Give him a proper villain arc: Make him go crazier each time he fights Danny, make him become desperate for getting revenge on Jack. I want him to snap after he loses his clone, i want to see his relationship with Danielle.

And also.. may be make him less of a fruitloop? Like, he probably only wants to get revenge on Jack and he later becomes obsessed with making Danny his son.

Students of Casper school: I would like them to be more than simple stereotypes. I want them to develop a bit during the story, to be more than the bully or the popular girl. I don't need too much, just give them a personality.

As for the ghosts: Give backstories to some them, make a few of them become friends with Danny. Some ghosts can be evil while others could be just misguided and don't want to hurt anyone.

3)The story: For the story to be good it would need to have better continuity than the series has. Make story arcs. Conflicts don't need to be solved in one episode, change the status quo often, take risks.

The main story could be about the observants or about an ancient mystery that hides in the Ghost zone and it's very hard to find.

Season 1 could be about the Ghost King and Reign Storm could serve as season finale.

Season 2 could be about Dark Danny/Dan. Instead of one long episode, there could be a few episodes building up to his debut. Dark Danny could be a more tragic character, who lost all his humanity. In this season Danny would ask himself if he's really a bad person and if he's going to become Dark Danny.

As for Danny and Valerie dating, make their relationship last more than one episode before the break up. I want to see Valerie fight alongside the fentons, to doubt if she's putting Danny in danger by dating him.

I would really like for Danielle to make her debut in this season.. but i would like first to see her relationship with Vlad before she betrays him. She would need a few episodes before she decides to leave Vlad.

In Season 3 i would like for Danny to reveal his secret to his parents and the Fentons to adopt Dani. They could start going together on missions and a few episodes focused on Jack and Maddie getting used to have a halfa as their son.

4)As for the themes: I would need for this series to be darker than the original, not edgy, but to give the writers more freedom to write their stories. To tackle themes in ways that the original couldn't. Like trauma, death, the ghost world, cloning, what's like to be a halfa and ton of other stuff.

It doesn't need to be depressing, i just would like the series to have a proper story with continuity and character arcs.

#danny phantom #danny fenton #vlad masters #sam manson #valerie gray #tucker foley #dani phantom #dp reboot fan ideas #DP fanconcepts #ghost zone #amity park DP #long post

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