This is the first of this Badger Cereal one-shot series. This one was posted on my tumblr and people seemed to enjoy it, so here ya go! This is based from my favourite headcanon that Vlad is Danny's biological Dad. This is also my first Danny Phantom fanfic EVER, so with that in mind, enjoy!

"I'm your father, Daniel." That one revelation made the boy's blood run cold.

"N-no…" Danny felt his heart constrict and his throat turn dry as he staggered back a few steps. This couldn't be happening!

"Yes. It's true, my boy." All the boy wanted to do then was to blast that smug smile off of the man's-no, his father's face. How could his own mother betray him like this?! She'd kept something as big as this from him for fifteen years? Why? And why make Vlad stay quiet about it? He wanted to deny the whole possibility of Vlad ever being his Dad, but inside, he realized that it actually did make sense. After all, the man had never wanted him simply as an 'ally'. No, from the very beginning, the guy had wanted him as his son. It also explained why Vlad still had a thing for his Mum after 21 years. So…did that mean that all the time he'd been fighting and attacking Plasmius…he'd actually been hurting his own biological Dad? This was just too much…

"I-I-I…d-don't understand," the teen managed to croak out, shock and terror colouring his face as he finally found his voice. "Y-you're...NOT my D-D-Dad! If you were..you w-wouldn't always…try to…w-w-waste me!"

Vlad's smirking face dropped and he sighed.

"You honestly thought I wanted to KILL you?" he began, crossing his arms. "I have been indirectly training you with your powers. It was not as if you would willingly accept my help, after all. A father has to do what a father has to do."

''Yeah, right!'' Danny exclaimed stubbornly. ''As if I'll believe something like THAT!''

Vlad sighed again, an almost upset look on his face. ''Daniel, come over here,'' he told him quietly. Danny, curious as to what the man was going to say, complied and stood next to the man, looking evermore anxious. What was he doing?

''Take a look in the mirror, Daniel,'' Vlad told him, gesturing towards the fancy full length mirror right in front of them that Danny had yet to notice.

''Look at us, dear boy,'' he told him wistfully, placing a proud hand on the teen's shoulder. ''We both posses ghost powers, yes. However, we also have our fair share of visual differences. Back straight, boy.'' Danny did as he was told and gasped. He really did look a lot like Vlad. He's never realized it before, but the both of them shared the exact same icy blue eye colour. Their physical builds weren't actually that different when he compared them either.

''Dad...'' Danny muttered in shock, staring at Vlad's reflection. As much as he hated to admit it, the guy...actually was telling the truth.

Why was did his life always have to be so complicated? It seemed that he didn't know what was going on anymore. One thing he did know though, once he'd come out of his shocked state, was that there, standing in front of him and sporting a proud smile, was his real father, whether the man had been secretly looking out for him or not. Looking into the tired blue eyes of the billionaire, Danny saw fondness, affection and worry simultaneously flash in the man's icy orbs as he stared back at the boy. The teen, quite honestly, nearly did a double take. He didn't think he'd ever seen any of those expressions being expressed by that man before, least of all directed towards him. Yet, it was unmistakable. This man really was his father, whether he liked it or not.

"So Daniel, now that you know the truth, will you finally join me?"

That question completely knocked Danny out of his shocked stupor and he shrugged the man's hand off of his shoulder angrily.

"No,'' he told him firmly, turning to face the billionaire and taking a step back. ''As much as you…really are my...Dad, I'm NOT going to renounce Da…uh…Jack."

It just didn't feel right to call Jack by anything but his first name now.

"But he's not even your father," Vlad pointed out bitterly, secretly reveling in the fact that Daniel had started referring to Jack by his first name.

"You think I don't KNOW that? Of course I do. But, believe it or not, Jack was there when you weren't. Even though we aren't biologically related, he's still my Dad and I won't let you hurt him." There was a warning tone in the young hero's voice as he defended Jack, which told Vlad that 'I won't let you hurt him' was no idle threat. He meant every word, every syllable and every sentence in that small speech of his and he would follow it through to the very end of his half-life. Vlad narrowed his eyes at that. Why must Jack ruin EVERYTHING? Noticing Vlad's anger, the boy continued, hands on his hips and a green glare on his face.

"I mean it, Vlad. You may actually be my…real father, but it changes nothing. NOTHING. As long as you still plan on making your stupid revenge schemes and trying to flirt with my MARRIED Mum, I will NEVER join you and I will ALWAYS fight to help those that I care about, regardless if I have to hurt my own Dad to do it."

Meanwhile, Vlad was furious. Even after finding out that he was his real father, the boy was still just as stubborn as ever! What could he do to get the teen to trust him and treat him like his father? It was impossible! No…nothing was impossible for Vladimir Masters. He WOULD bring the boy to his side sooner or later. The only thing was, he was out of ideas on how to do so. He had even contemplated mind control, but no. He wanted Daniel to join him willingly. He wanted a son, not a mindless zombie. Then what? How do you get through the thick head of a teenage boy? After all, he couldn't force Daniel to love him.

''Could you at least give me a hug before you jet off and abandon your old man?'' The man asked, seeing if he could use the hero's childish morals to his question was rhetorical, but the young hero still shook his head.

"Don't push it."

Vlad frowned. "Honestly, if you won't join me, the least you can do is give me a hug that isn't part of a plot to escape."

Danny sighed and sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. Oh yeah…he'd forgotten about what he'd said at the Rockies that time. Mumbling something incoherent under his breath, the boy walked closer to the man and hesitantly wrapped his arms around him. it was weird but…he'd never actually hugged Vlad before. Now that he was hugging him though, he couldn't say that he regretted it. Vlad was really warm, due to his heat core and he had started stroking the teen's hair in a soothing gesture. Normally, the boy would have pulled himself away at this point, but somehow, he couldn't bring himself to do so. There was something really comforting about hugging his birth Dad, even if said Dad ended up being Vlad of all people. Danny let out a contented sigh and Vlad smiled as he heard it, feeling the young hybrid relax his tense stance as he continued to hug him. Despite what the boy may later say, he was actually enjoying hugging his biological father, which was more proof that he belonged at his side. However, making the young hybrid realize that was the difficult part. As they continued to hug, Danny felt his eyes start to droop. But no! He couldn't fall asleep. He had to get out of here. Letting off a short yawn, Danny let go of Vlad, mentally regretting it and stepped away from the man.

"Right, well…I'd better go. My…uh…parent's are gonna get worried," Danny told the older hybrid awkwardly, before muttering a quick 'Goin' ghost!' and letting the cool rings traverse around his form to transform him into Phantom.

Before either of them could say anything else, Danny was gone.