A/N: Hey guys! I know I haven't been online for a long time, and I still didn't update my other fanfic I've been working on for months, sorry! Things have been pretty hectic these past few weeks due to the virus but thankfully, I'm well and so is my family :) I hope you guys are doing great too and I recommend you guys continue to stay home and eat healthy to boost your immune system!

It can be stressful staying at home for too long. I, personally, don't go out a lot because I spend time with my friends during lunch breaks :') And my dad hates restaurants and food from outside so we usually eat at home. But for those who aren't used to staying home for so long, stay strong! I know it can be difficult but your safety is a top priority and until doctors find the cure, take care of yourselves.

By the way, I just started online schooling this Monday and it's not bad actually.

I also have a surprise (as said in the title). New chapter! I know I said I won't be updating this book, but I just had this nagging feeling to add one more chapter to this book. Plus, hopefully, this could make you guys feel better in such a stressful month :') Again, I was never planning to continue this book but this unproductivity was annoying to no end!

Without further ado, I present to you, Reality Trip Aftermath! (Fun fact, this episode is one of my favourites ;)

Summary: After Danny saves his parents and his friends' parents by Freak-show, he's greeted by love and worry. He decides to not erase their memory and destroys the gauntlet. After all, he can deal with the GIW as they aren't much of a threat. How will everybody treat him now?

Name of Chapter: Post-Reality Trip Reveal

Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom.


Danny rose up and wore the gauntlet, raising his hand up. The device did its job and changed the world back to its original state, removing unnecessary damage.

He sighed of relief and slowly descended on the ground, changing back to his human half and smiling when he saw everything go back to normal. The sun was shining again, flowers blooming and the buildings back to their usual state. Freakshow really was creative when it came to decorating the entire planet in a Carnaval theme!

'Well, that takes care of it,' Danny said to himself in glee, completely forgetting that there was one more problem that needed to be fixed.

"Danny!" he heard his father yell from behind as he internally cringed, forgetting that his parents were still there. Oh, how was he supposed to explain to them now?

"Young man," he turned around and internally gulped when he saw both of his parents approaching him, wearing unimpressed expressions. Danny knew he would have to confront them sooner or later but he really hoped for the latter. He was exhausted from the trip and he knew his friends were too. He hadn't gotten proper sleep for days and he was about to collapse. Especially after Freakshow had thrown him not minutes ago. His whole body was aching!

"I'm... I'm sorry," Danny finally said, letting out a sigh as he prepared to receive a long lecture. Or maybe a ghost net thrown at him! He wasn't even sure if his parents accepted him yet, and after this whole trip incident, he knew that it must've made things worse.

But Danny was not expecting what happened next. His father engulfed him in a tight hug, almost crushing him as he struggled to breathe. He didn't think his ribs would last another minute! But despite the discomfort, the emotion swirling in his eyes was disbelief. Why was he hugging him? Weren't the mad? Weren't they going to dissect him now?

His father finally let go of him and with a large smile, beamed at the confused boy in front of him. "We're very proud of you, son."

But before the hybrid could respond to his father's surprising and sincere words, he was attacked by another hug, one less tight than before.

"Oh, my baby boy!" his mother exclaimed in happiness as she kissed her son's cheeks repeatedly. She was so relieved to see her boy alive and well with no major injuries. She thought that she'd almost lost him after he'd been run over by the rollercoaster!

As for Danny, he didn't know what to do or say so he just waited until they were finished to find out what was going on. Although he was smiling at the affection his parents were giving him, he still wasn't sure why they weren't mad like they were supposed to be. This wasn't what he expected, at all.

Danny pulled away from both of them and hesitantly turned to face them with guilt plastered on his face. And even though he tried to hide his fear by confusion, it was evident. However, the two adults didn't seem to notice his hidden expression by the worry consumed on their faces.

"But I lied to you, over and over again, for a really long time! If I were you guys, I'd be furious," the boy dishearteningly said, hanging his head down in shame as he struggled to meet their eyes. But when he finally decided to look up, expecting to see them now angry with him, the exact opposite was shown. The smiles still remained on their faces, pleased with their youngest child.

"Well, of course, you lied to us we never gave you a reason not to," his mother explained as she stood beside her husband, not at all fazed by the boy's comment.

"All this time we've been yammering about destroying and dissecting ghosts, I would've been terrified too if I were you," Jack exclaimed with a grin as he placed his hand comfortingly on his son's shoulder.

"We love you, sweetie," his mother finally said, both adults meaning every word they said. "Whether you're ghost boy or something in between," his father continued, their eyes showing anything but hate.

They were not at all mad at their son for keeping it a secret of them. Even though they were worried about him fighting ghosts all this time, and they believed in always telling the truth, they really couldn't blame him. The stuff they said about ghosts was atrocious, and they were even horrified that their son might not feel comfortable living with them again!

"And I appreciate that, more than you guys will ever know," Danny finally said as he hugged both his parents, soon turning to a group hug. He really wasn't expecting such a reaction from his parents, but he didn't know what to say to express the happiness that swelled within him.

He remembered how hesitant he had been to talk to them a few days back when his identity had been revealed. Although he had been busy with finding the gems for Freakshow, they were on his mind all day long. In the beginning, he had to rely on the comfort of his friends to think straight and not make any rash decisions. He was even planning on running away!

But here he was, hugging both his parents like his life depended on it, fighting back the few tears of happening threatening to spill. After all, he didn't want to cry in front of them and have them get worried, again.

At this point, he didn't care if h got grounded after they get back home, even if it's for the whole summer break. Their acceptance was enough. They even stated that they weren't mad at him for keeping his ghost powers a secret and that he had every right to.

He suddenly froze, carefully pulling back from the group hug with a frown. He almost forgot the reason why he had left his home in the first place. His secret identity! Everybody now knew who he was, it was spread all over the news channel! And in less than a week, it travelled to Hollywood and around the entire planet. They were even fanfics and comics being written about him!

He was still not over how those books he crashed into weren't approved by him first. But that was the least of his worries at the moment.

The G.i.W would be here any minute now along with the police and the rest of the government. DHe predicted that they are currently searching for him and his friends at this exact moment. Not that they knew where he was, there was no way of stopping them from hurting him in Amity Park, his school... even his home! His family and the people he cared about could be in danger just by talking to him!

And he was not about to let that happen.

"Danny? Are you okay sweetie?" his mother asked in worry, caressing his raven hair while studying his perplexed face. Just minutes ago, he was beaming with happiness and now he looked like someone had died.

Maddie did not like the look Danny was wearing one bit and looked over to her husband to see him concerned as well. They both shared a look, silently exchanging thoughts. They wanted to go home right now and get some rest, maybe even talk about this further. But right now, they knew their son was tired and needed to sleep. Who knew how long he was awake and the problems he faced without their supervision.

"Mom, dad, I.." Danny stammered, interrupting the tense silence as he slowly lifted the gauntlet up, struggling to maintain composure. He had to erase everybody's memories (except for Sam, Tucker and Jazz). He'd be putting them all in danger if he didn't.

He knew he had to do the right thing, no matter how much he disliked it. He really didn't want to erase his parent's memories, especially after they had just accepted him. It was like a dream come true! But then again, it will bring no good to have the G.i.W hunt him every minute of his life. Not to mention the crazy fans and unwanted attention he'll be getting. If he had a social life before, he surely wouldn't now.

It really was better this way.

But there was this nagging feeling inside of him that just wouldn't let him. That little voice that told him he was making a mistake, that he shouldn't. He hated the voice. It made him look guilty in front of his parents and slightly change his mind.

But he should. And to make sure he wouldn't regret it, it'll have to be quick.

'Get a grip of yourself,' Danny angrily thought to himself as he closed his eyes and lifted the gauntlet a little higher, ready to deliver the blow...

"Danny!" he heard his name, causing him to gasp and open his eyes, breaking him out of his trance. He couldn't focus anymore. He turned to his right to see both of his best-friends, soaked in water, running towards him. The two engulfed him in a group hug, clutching tightly onto the poor boy who had no idea what was going on.

"I don't know if it's me or you guys who have been grabbed the most these few days," Danny joked, startled by the sudden force but hugged them back wearing a warm smile. He had been busy worrying about his parents that he hadn't realized his friends were watching him the whole time.

The two friends finally pulled back, relieved to see their friend okay and well from the impact of the fight with Freakshow. What he did back there sure gave them a heart attack!

"Man, I'm so glad to see you okay!" Tucker exclaimed with a grin, relieved that his friend didn't sustain any major damage. This trip was turning out to be the craziest one yet!

"Don't you dare do that ever again," Sam growled as she glared at the half-ghost in front of her, causing him to scratch the back of his neck nervously. Danny totally forgot that his friends were very protective of him, and that stunt Freakshow pulled, turning him into Jello while the rollercoaster ran over him surely got his friends worried.

"Chillax guys, I'm fine, see?" he said, stretching his arms and legs to prove to them that he really was okay before standing up again and giving a toothy grin. "Plus, I've been through worse before."

Danny made sure to say the last statement in a quieter tone, acknowledging that his parents were not that far from them. He didn't want to worry his parents again and cause them to put new rules for his ghosthunting. That would reek! Not that it would matter a few minutes from now...

Sam sighed of relief, glad to see that her friend really was okay. She then turned to face Danny's parents with a sweet smile on her face. "Mr. and Mrs. Fenton, can we borrow Danny for a few minutes? We'd like to talk to him for a few minutes and make sure he's well."

"No problem, kiddo," Jack said with a smile and shrugged, turning to his wife who gave a slight nod. "We'll be talking to your parents on some things and we'd prefer that you kids don't get yourselves involved in such boring adult talks."

"You three go get some air, we'll come to get you when we're finished," Maddie continued as the trio nodded, taking this as the perfect chance to talk about what they were meaning to say from the beginning.

Maddie smiled and kissed her son's forehead one more time before leaving the teenagers alone, Jack following behind her. When the trio was sure that they had a good amount of space between them, Tucker was the first to speak.

"Well, what an interesting and hectic day! All this action has made me hungry, I say we go grab some ribs and-"

"What the heck were you thinking, Danny?" Sam yelled as the two boys flinched at her tone, clearly not expecting the sudden outburst. Their female friend can be sometimes scary when she's mad.

"What are you talking about?" the confused hybrid asked, frowning. Why did she get so angry all of a sudden? She was smiling just minutes ago!

"That," she said pointing at the gauntlet the boy was still wearing. "Don't tell me you were gonna use it! We're all aware of its power and knowing you, I'm sure you'd like to change reality with the current state of things."

"That's exactly what I was going to do," he replied firmly, clutching his fists. "You know what happened when my identity got revealed! In case you hadn't noticed, we were being bombarded by people wherever we went. And the G.i.W tried to blast us! Or have you forgotten?!" he angrily exclaimed as Sam sighed, crossing her arms.

"Yes, I do remember Danny. I was there and I saw what happened to all three of us. But I also saw that," she said, pointing to the group of adults talking near the stadium. Specifically, his parents.

"Your main problem was your parents, correct? You kept muttering about how angry they must be and the possibility of them hunting you down. But look, they did the exact opposite! They accepted you, Danny, just like us, and your sister. They didn't care who or what you are, because they love you. And you know that" the female pointed out as Danny's angry expression faltered, making him look away.

"Y-yeah I know! And I really appreciate it, more than they can imagine..." he softly said as Tucker smiled at his friend.

"Wouldn't it be better now? I mean, I'm sure they have the right to know that their son is half-ghost! The only thing that was preventing you from telling them the truth in the past was the fact that they might reject you. And now, they'll be careful with the ghost equipment they invent with you around. Not to mention the extra help you'll get. No more stressing over curfews and strict chores; you'll be able to use ghosthunting as an excuse," Tucker mentioned with a smirk as Danny stood silently, pondering over what his friends had just said.

His parents weren't the problem, no. In fact, it was a good thing that they knew about his secret and that he didn't need to hide it from them anymore. No, no it wasn't that.

But it wasn't the fans or the attention either. They liked him, and if things got extreme, he knew his best friends will be there for him. Plus, it was summer break and he wouldn't be back to school for another two months. By then, he hoped they would've calmed down and maybe forgotten. So it wasn't that either. He could handle a few fans then and there.

It wasn't any of those. It was them.

The G.i.W

Everything seems to be their fault, Danny angrily thought to himself, recalling the many times they had prevented him from doing his job. Even on the day Freakshow appeared, they managed to let him get away, hell they were the ones who accidentally freed him! And it was all their fault he was in this situation in the first place.

But then, he wouldn't have been able to find out his parents loved him for who he was.

"Danny?" Sam asked hesitantly. She was unsure as to why the boy had suddenly turned silent. She thought he would've argued more, or maybe added a sarcastic remark. But he was just quiet. She wanted to know why.

"What are you thinking about?" Tucker asked, reading Sam's mind as Danny lifted his head up to answer their concerns.

"What about the G.i.W?" he soberly asked, now Sam's turn to go quiet. She didn't know how to answer it. It seemed like his only concern was them now. If only they had a solution-

"Not to sound like an absolute genius, but Danny, you're holding one of the most dangerous and ultimate weapons of the earth," Tucker dryly stated as his two friends looked at him in confusion, causing him to roll his eyes. Were they really that dense? "Um, hello? Change reality? Get the G.i.W to stop hunting you?"

Danny's eyes lightened, now full of hope and grinning at the gauntlet on his hand. Why hadn't he thought of it before?! He didn't need to erase everybody's memories, not even the G.i.W!

"I can just make them forget about me, or just ignore me!" he finally said with a relieved smile as Sam grinned at the idea and Tucker sighed of relief.

"Phew, you both finally caught on. I thought you guys must've lost your brains or- OW what was that for?" Tucker exclaimed at the sudden jab on his shoulder, glaring at the goth for instilling pain.

"For making fun of us. You know how tired we all are, I'm sure we would've thought about it sooner or later," Sam rolled her eyes and smirked at the techno-geek who shot her another glare.

"It was just a joke! Jeez, do you always have to be this violent?" Tucker said with a frown as the goth shrugged, the amused expression still lingering on her face. Danny just chuckled at his friends' behaviour but didn't comment on it, still happy about the sudden realization of not having to erase anybody's memories.

That's right! I don't need to change anyone, except the GiW! We'll head back home and then-

"Danny boy! Are you finished talking to your friends? It's getting late and we all want to get back home," Jack's voice boomed, interrupting Danny's thought. The three teens nodded as the adults approached them, each telling their kid that they'll talk about the situation later.

Danny sighed when he noticed how Sam's parents seemed to be wary of him, frowning at him every now and then. But he really couldn't blame them. After all, they were still not over that time they skipped school. Nor the fact that now he's a ghost and responsible for their kidnapping.

But Danny didn't let that bother him, he would talk to Sam about it later. Right now, everybody was tired after the trip and definitely hungry!

"Um, dad? How are we going to get back home?" Jazz asked with a frown. They were practically in the middle of nowhere, with no humans or transportation! How on earth were they supposed to head back home?

However, Jack just smiled. "I'll just call the blimp! I always knew that something like this was to happen so I made sure to always have the remote with me," he grinned causing all the adults, and Jazz, to sigh of relief. However, the three younger teens were nervously scratching their arms.

"Who wants to tell him?" Tucker whispered to Danny and Sam who both stared at each other in worry. They all knew what happened to the blimp, it had been destroyed on their way to Florida. But none of them were ready to tell Jack that.

"Hey, dad?" Danny hesitantly said, knowing that his two friends wouldn't volunteer to share, "We can't use your blimp... it kinda got destroyed on our way to save you guys."

Jack frowned but Maddie quickly interrupted her husband from what he was going to say next. "That's okay! We'll just call a taxi or someone to pick us up."

The adults nodded at the idea while the trio just sighed.

"Do you think there's signal here?" Tucker whispered again to which both teens glared at him.

"Hopefully," Danny muttered. He was not looking forward to walking back home.


The trio had just returned from their trip and as promised, all had gone back to their homes and slept for the remainder of the day. They were tired and knew that the next day would also be exhausting; Danny had wanted to use the gauntlet and deal with the G.i.W, police and fans. He didn't think he could stall the issue for long.

The following day, Sam and Tucker went to visit their friend. They knew he probably wouldn't want to go out after all that happened, especially when everybody knew where Danny Phantom lived. Luckily, the police nor the G.i.W had shown up, yet. It was only a matter of time when they burst through their door with ecto-weapons.

Danny sighed out of relief when he saw that the people knocking on his house were none other than his friends. He would've hated to see a mob of people who either loved him or detested him waiting outside his house!

"Come in," the paranoid teen quickly ushered them in, Tucker and Sam amused at how he was acting. You'd think he had been smuggling them drugs.

"You don't have to worry, nobody saw us coming here," Sam assured her friend.

"Yeah, but they already know where I live now, they don't have to follow you guys," Danny muttered, walking over to the kitchen and taking a seat at the dining table, his two friends doing the same.

"True, but everybody except for our parents know that you are here. Everybody else thinks you're missing," Tucker pointed out. The hybrid nodded, understanding what his friends meant. But he couldn't help but be worried.

Things were too quiet at Amity Park. Nobody was out scanning his house, including news reporters, government agents and the police. Not to mention, not a single ghost was in sight; were they busy? Or perhaps relishing the pain he was in? Either way, he was glad he didn't need to show up to suck them back into the thermos.

"You guys don't think it's weird that there's nobody out scoping for us?" Danny asked nervously. Sam and Tucker looked at each other, nodding their heads.

"Well, yeah... But shouldn't that be a good thing? I mean, we kinda need you invisible, until you fix the situation between the government agents and police," Tucker said and Sam nodded in agreement.

"He's right. Plus, I'm afraid that my parents might've already told everybody about your arrival; I tried convincing them that it's a bad idea, but there's nothing I can do with two adults who love gossip," she muttered as Danny nodded but suddenly got up from his seat.

"Then I guess I should head out now and get it over with," he grinned, transforming into Phantom in a blink of an eye and shooting up through the ceiling. His two friends quickly hurried out the door to catch him already waiting for them outside.

"Do you always have to do that?" Tucker crossed his arms in annoyance.

"Nope," Danny said, the grin still not wavering. "But it makes me feel better."

"Aren't you going to tell your parents?" Sam asked in worry, knowing that the G.i.W were dangerous, and there's no saying what they could do to her ghost friend if they got their hands on him. Danny noticed her worried for him and smiled warmly.

"I'll be fine, Jazz said she'll tell them. If it makes you feel any better, you guys can come with me and just scope for any danger outside their place," he said, raising an eyebrow at seeing their determined faces.

"We were gonna do that before you told us. We're not letting you enter the lion's den without precautions" Tucker firmly said.

"What are you talking about? I -I mean we- are going with you, whether you like it or not," Sam stated, seriousness written all over her face. Danny picked his two friends up and turned them invisible, now flying towards the headquarters.

"Yeah, that's a terrible idea. They'll just use you guys against me to get what they want," Danny answered dryly, shaking his idea at what his friend suggested. There was no way he'll let them go in.

"So you expect us to let you go in, alone, with nothing to defend yourself against?" Sam shot back, while Tucker just stayed quiet watching the argument unfold. He didn't know whether to stop them or just watch amused.

"Um, ghost powers? Duh. I've managed to handle them before, it's no different now," Danny stated with a grin as Sam sighed and turned her head away, staring at nothing in particular. She just pretended to observe the scenery to hide the hurt obvious in her face.

However, Danny noticed that his friend was upset and tried to comfort her. "Look, Sam, I don't want to put you guys at risk at being almost killed again. I saw you sacrifice your lives about five times this week! Do you know how that makes me feel?!"

Sam turned back to face him, a solemn expression on her face, letting him continue his rant. "I've watched you guys always come to my rescue no matter the consequences. I saw how my involvement in ghosts has put your lives in danger. You two were the first to get hurt every time one of my enemies decided to show up," he continued. "Don't you see?! I.."

Danny looked at both his friends before staring blankly at the ground, his pace now slower. "I... I'm afraid of losing you, both of you."

The trio remained silent for the rest of the trip, and Danny didn't know whether to be glad or not. He mistook it for the fact that he was right about what he said and that his relationship with them has ruined their lives.

But what he didn't know was that his two friends were feeling extremely guilty, and were at loss for his friends. They believed in the complete opposite of what Danny had said. They didn't know that they had been hurting their friend by just being victims of ghost attacks.

"Danny, you know that's not true," Tucker finally said in a serious tone, all playfulness erased. "Just because of an accident that turned you into a ghost isn't going to ruin our friendship. We know you have a job, and that it's to protect this town, and that's why we help you. We cannot allow you to carry all the weight on your shoulders and just expect us to stand by," he said.

"Correct. You think we don't feel hurt when you get back from a ghost fight all bruised up because we couldn't help you? You think we don't realize the pain you're in from lying to your teachers, classmates and even your parents? Well, you're wrong Danny. Because there's absolutely nothing that's gonna prevent me - us from being your friends," Sam continued, staring deeply into her ghost friend's eyes, daring him to look back.

Danny was shocked at his friends' statements and was at loss on how to reply. He was glad that they didn't think he was a menace or a burden on them, and especially glad they will always be his friends. But he was still worried about them.

"I, wow. Thank you guys, I really don't know what I would've done if I didn't have you guys by my side," Danny sincerely said, smiling at both teens. "But please, just be more careful next time, I don't think I can afford to lose you," he said but in a brighter tone replied, "plus, who's gonna help me get out of the Fenton thermos when Jazz stuffs me in again?"

The trio laughed and Sam replied. "Don't worry, we'll get you out if that happens again."

Danny smiled but then chuckled. "I see. But tell me again, why do you both hang out with a kid with ghost powers?" he asked, gently placing them on the ground upon reaching the headquarters, making sure to land a good distance between the building.

"Because it's our obligation as your friends to make sure you don't get in trouble," Sam replied with a smirk to which the hybrid rolled his eyes.

"What she said. We're your friends and part of our job is to make sure you're okay," Tucker stated with a grin. "Plus, Sam has a crush on yo- on safety! And she's the type to always look out for people," he corrected himself.

Tucker nervously glanced at Sam who had a hard glare on him, wanting no more than to strangle the boy in front of her. She couldn't believe he had been this close to exposing her!

'Smooth Foley' she mouthed to the techno-geek as he shrugged with a nervous smile. But luckily, Danny hadn't noticed anything weird with what Tucker had said nor noticed the odd behaviour between his two best friends. Instead, he just nodded with a smile and turned to spy on the guards in front of the door.

"See? Clueless as ever," Tucker whispered to Sam as she rolled her eyes but didn't comment further on the matter and just observed Danny who seemed to be calculating how he was going to get in.

"Alright guys, I'll just slip in without them noticing by going intangible," Danny stated, floating.

"But won't they sense your presence the minute you fly in?" Sam asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, yeah. But I'm not sneaking in there and taking something," Danny said, pausing for a bit. "I'd rather not waste my energy on fights against them and get straight ti the point," he said.

"Are you sure you don't need any-" before Tucker would continue, Danny had already turned invisible slipped through the doors, "...help."

Sam sighed tiredly, but then, remembering what Tucker had said minutes ago, punched his arm.

"Ow! What was that for?" he yelled in annoyance, rubbing his arm in pain.

"Oh, you know what! 'Sam has a crush on safety'. What was that? If I weren't so worried right now I would've stuffed some veggies in your mouth," she growled, gazing from behind the bushes at the guarded doors.

"I'm sorry, it just slipped! But can you please lower the amount of pressure you put in punching me? My arm hurts," the boy grumbled, also turning to look in front of him.

Instead of replying to the techno-geek, the goth just glanced at the bird that managed to land a metre in front of them. "I.. I'm sorry, Tucker. I shouldn't have snapped on you. I'm just... upset, and worried about Danny. I can't believe we have to wait here, without being able to communicate with him."

Sam wished she had the Fenton earphones with her at this very moment. Not only did they look good on her, but they were a great form of contacting her friend who may be in trouble right now!

"Don't worry, Sam. I'm sure Danny's fine, he can handle this himself, can't he? If he was unsure of facing those agents he would've called us to help," the boy comforted to calm down the goth, knowing she was worried about the GiW catching Danny. And he couldn't blame her, he was worried too!

"But we've got to trust him."

Sam nodded at her friend's statement, realizing he was right. Instead of moping around, they'll just wait and believe that the ghost can take care of the problem himself.

Meanwhile, Danny had gotten into the building fairly easily, and it didn't take him much time until he reached their base.

The first thing he'd noticed upon his arrival was the alarm going off, indicating a sign of ecto-energy. Danny immediately knew it had to do about him and didn't seem fazed by the scurrying agents. In fact, the ghost only grinned and revealed himself to them.

'Ecto energy detected,' he heard to system say. The agents were too consumed with the alarm going off that they had failed to see Danny floating on top of them.

"There's been a huge surge of-" before Agent k could continue with what he was going to say, Danny descended to the ground and flew close to them, a good amount of distance between. The agents that he recognized before quickly drew their weapons and Danny smirked.

"Nu-uh," he said, raising the gauntlet and changing their ecto guns to a french horn and a chicken. "Here's a gift," he continued with a grin, tossing the Fenton thermos over to the GiW.

Before they could question what was inside the thermos, the content inside was released, revealing a severely deformed ghost aka Freakshow. However, Danny solved the mild problem by changing him back to his human self with a lift of his hand.

Freakshow dazedly rubbed his forehead and confusingly scanned his surroundings only to be met with horror. To his misfortune, he wasn't where he'd liked to have been.

'Blasts! He brought me back here,' Freakshow angrily thought, glaring at the floating teen. If only he were a ghost, he'd turn invisible this instance and fly out of here!

Danny smiled upon seeing Freakshow get handcuffed and was about to leave when he remembered the main reason he'd decided to come here.

"Oh, and," Danny stopped, turning back around and facing the agents seriously, "Danny Phantom is not who you're looking for. Danny Phantom is your ally, not your enemy. Leave Daniel Fenton and his family and friends alone."

The power emitted from the gauntlet at this statement glowed a tranquil blue, surrounding the people in and out of the building. Danny waited to see if it really worked and fortunately, it did. The agents stumbled for a bit with their eyes closed before rubbing them and looking at him confused.

Deciding that his job there is done, Danny sighed of relief and flew across the walls to the back of the headquarters where his friends were waiting for him. He smiled, spotting them hiding behind the bushes and turned to look right in front of the guards.

Sam and Tucker smiled back upon seeing their friend okay and not hurt, but their eyes immediately widened when they saw him standing right in front of the agents with the ecto guns...

"Everything all right gentlemen?" Danny asked the guards as they nodded.

"All is well, Phantom," they replied with a nod as the ghost grinned and nodded back, flying over to his friends who's expressions were priceless.

"What?" Danny asked with a light smirked.

"You.. they-they didn't... but-" Tucker sputtered out in confusion as Sam just smiled at her friend silently. Did it actually work?

"Is something the matter, Tuck?" Danny asked again innocently.

"Well, you did it all right. I'm gonna be honest, I wasn't sure if that gauntlet was gonna work..." Sam stared at the item on Danny's arm apprehensively as Tucker nodded, finally grinning.

"Man, congrats on being GiW free! Now all of your problems have been solved," he exclaimed as Danny's smile melted into a frown.

"I wouldn't say all. I still have to go back to school tomorrow to empty out my locker and I'm 100% sure there's going to be many of the students there. not to mention, there's Valerie..." Danny said, tapping his chin thoughtfully. "I'm not sure if she'll ever talk to me again, as Fenton. Or if she hates me now."

Sam nodded, recalling the fact that the teachers asked them to come to clean up their lockers after school had finished rather than emptying it all out on the last week. It was bothersome, really, especially since it was rescheduled on Monday. They weren't going to come back and clean up the lockers since they were supposed to be on their trip then.

"Don't worry, Danny. I'm sure things will work out between you two. Plus, I'm sure that after you wear my newest spray that I made, she'll-"

"-probably throw up. It's horrendous! Danny, if you want any girl to ever stand at least 5 ft close to you, please don't listen to Tucker," she pointed out as the boy glared at her.

"Thanks for the offer, Tuck, but I'll pass. Valerie's not the type to be swayed by perfume," Danny laughed.

"Well, if you ever change your mind, you know who to call," he said with a wink before his eyes suddenly brightened. "Oh, I almost forgot! I already told Sam about this on our way to your house and with everything going on, it slipped my mind," he said.

The half-ghost raised an eyebrow, intrigued to what his friend had to say, "What is it?"

"Well, my parents ask you and your parents, along with Sam's to come over to our house for a nice dinner together on Monday. They want to have a chance to thank you for yesterday and saving us, Tucker explained and continued. "Plus, we thought it will be a good idea to start all over again and get to know each other better."

Danny transformed back to his human self and the trio started walking back to their houses. Sam sighed, kicking a pebble on the sidewalk.

"Even though my parents accepted your invitation, they're still not quite fond of you.. and your parents," she said hesitantly with a hidden sad tone in her voice. "Even though you saved our lives back there, they're too proud to admit it."

"After I caused all of our parents to be the situation," Danny pointed out as Tucker rolled his eyes.

"Dude, we already went over this, it's not your fault. Now, I don't care what adult problems there's going to be but we're going to solve it like civilized... adults," the techno-geek grinned, "and we're going to enjoy a nice dinner of my mom's meatloaf- and a quinoa salad for Sam."

The goth grinned satisfied and both teenage boys rolled their eyes but kept on smiling all the way back home.


"You guys do realize I can just phase the junk out of our lockers without needing to step into school?" Danny dryly said, nervously rubbing the back of his neck.

"Or we can pretend nothing ever happened and walk in there, quickly pack our stuff and exit calmly," Sam suggested as Tucker nodded excitedly, clutching his PDA.

"I'm gonna have to agree with Sam on this one," he said and then grinned. "Plus, I'm excited to see the reactions of everyone!"

"Yeah, I'm not," Danny muttered, "my legs feel weak, I don't think I can walk in there and just pretend everything's normal."

"You literally saw how everybody reacted when they found out about your identity, they even helped us get away from the GiW. Now go give your weak legs some exercise," Sam teased, pushing the half-ghost, urging him to walk forward. Danny sighed but obeyed and walked into the school doors with his friends by his side.

At first, nobody had noticed Danny as they were too busy talking to their friends about their summer plans and emptying out the lockers. However, Danny had his shirt covering half face to which people thought it was weird until they recognized who he was.

"Oh my god, they're looking at me," he whispered to Sam and she rolled her eyes.

"We would've safely walked to our lockers if you hadn't embarrassed yourself," she dryly said, pulling her friend's shirt back down. "Now just calm down-"

"Guys look! It's Danny Phantom!" someone yelled from behind him and in an instant, all eyes were on him. Danny rolled his eyes at Sam and increased his walking pace.

'Calm down, huh. Literally everybody knows I'm here now!' Danny thought to himself in annoyance as his friends followed along till they reached their lockers. At this point, all the students were huddled around him, and more kept on coming!

Just like that, the pupils of Casper High had stopped what they were doing just to talk about him and Danny didn't know whether it was a good or bad thing. On one hand, he didn't like the attention everyone was giving, mostly due to the fact that his human half wasn't used to it. On another hand, he didn't mind too much as long as they gave him his personal space.

"Yo Phantom! Can you transform into a ghost for us?" someone in the crowd yelled out as shouts of agreement exploded while Danny silently groaned.

"Still think this was a great idea?" he dryly asked, facing Sam who didn't seem fazed about the situation. The two friends merely grinned nervously which made Danny roll his eyes. They were very helpful indeed.

'Alright, this is starting to get out of hand,' Danny thought as the crowd got bigger and the screams louder to the point where he couldn't hear himself anymore. Although his two best friends were doing a nice job of guarding him while he stuffed his belongings from his locker into his bag, they couldn't stall them for long. He needed to think of something and fast before Sam and Tucker's defence breaks.

"Make sure you grab our stuff too while you're at it, we'll keep blocking them," Sam said looking with worry at the buzzing students in front of her. If she knew this was gonna happen, she would've agreed with Danny's idea of him turning invisible and getting the stuff instead. But it was too late now.

However, the teen ghost had just gotten an idea and turned to face his fans with a bright smile. "Or I can just ask them to leave," he whispered to his friends.

"I don't think plainly asking them is going to work," Tucker pointed out.

"We'll see," Danny simply replied as he loudly clapped his hands, trying to get everybody's attention. "Hey, people! Listen up, I want to make a request."

The chatters quickly quieted down until the whole hallway was dead silent. "Okay, neat! So um, I was wondering if you could let me just get my stuff from my locker and uh, leave?"

"Smooth, Fenton," Sam whispered in a dry tone as the crowd went back to loud cheers, completely disregarding Danny's statement seconds ago.

"Why didn't you tell us you were Phantom?"

"How long were you a ghost for?"

"How did you turn into a ghost?"

"Why did you disappear last week?"

"So are you a half-ghost?"

"Okay then, off to Plan B," Danny muttered to himself, calling the students in front of him again with a tired smile, "Hey! I wasn't finished talking yet, hear me out. I want to propose a deal..."

Upon hearing about a deal, the teens loud hollars died down again, now intrigued to hear what he was going to say next.

"Okay, so you guys wanna see me transform, right?" Danny asked as everybody nodded eagerly, waiting to hear the rest. "Well, I will as long as you guys leave us alone afterwards-"

Before the poor boy could finish what he was about to say, cheers erupted and he sighed, deciding to go by with the plan. he transformed to his ghost half and floated, giving a short break for Sam and Tucker; they'd been holding the crowd for a while now.

The students gasped, the shock still evident in their faces. They really couldn't believe that all this time, Phantom had been just another student in their school, and specifically someone known to be an outcast and geek.

Others had managed to accept the fact that phantom and Fenton are the same rather quickly after piecing the puzzles together; the tardiness, unfinished homework and assignments, suspicious disappearances during ghost fights. It made sense that Fenton is Phantom, and their identical first names were the first clue.

Danny had then transformed back, hoping to see that the students lost interest and decided to go back to their lockers but unfortunately, he'd been proven wrong. The cheers became even louder and they tried pushing past his friends to get to him.

In fact, transforming into a ghost only made things worse.

"Nice try, but they're persistent," Tucker commented as Danny sighed heavily, deciding on a different approach. At last, it had come to try Plan C and that meant turning invisible and phasing himself and his friends out of here before things escalated.

However, before Danny could follow his next plan, he heard a loud and familiar voice coming from the back. One he was way too familiar with.

"Fenton!" Dash yelled, shoving past the students crowded around him, the A-listers following behind me. Before Danny could comprehend what was happening, the jock winked and seemed to say, 'leave it to me.'

Danny stopped what he was going to say and just silently watched as the A-listers pushed the excited students away, finally making space for him and his friends to breathe.

"Listen up, folks. We all know that Danny Fenton is Danny Phantom, but it doesn't give us a right to huddle around and choke him. He's a human too and this attention you're giving him is freaking him out, so I suggest you back off, or else we'll make you," Dash glared at the teens who seemed uneasy by the boy's threat and obeyed, starting to walk back to their lockers.

Aside from the fact that Dash called him Danny, he was surprised to hear what the jock had said. Who knew that his bully would be the one helping him? And even though he had heard Dash say before that he and his friends protected him from the GiW because he did the same thing as a hero, it was still weird to experience it. And he was especially amazed at how everyone had scurried off after the A-listers showed up.

But Dash's threats were never one to mess with.

"I- Wow thanks," Danny finally said after everybody had left except for the jocks and cheerleaders who grinned at him.

"Well, you've been saving our butts since forever! We'd like to return the favour no matter how small it is," Dash had said and looked over at his group. "We kinda came here to apologize actually and tell you something important but I'm guessing you guys have to leave?"

Danny nodded, forgetting he had already packed his stuff and his friends were ready to leave the school. "Yeah.. sorry we wouldn't stay long, we have a dinner party this evening and-"

"Don't apologize we get it," Paulina interrupted, wearing a sweet smile to which Sam rolled her eyes. "We wanted to invite you to the beach tomorrow and were hoping you'd show up," she said and looked over at the two friends beside him. "And you can, of course, invite your friends."

"I'd like that," Danny smiled back but before he could say something back, Paulina quickly leaned over and kissed his cheek, earning a blush, and a glare from Sam.

"See you later," she said with a wink as the A-listers began to walk away, leaving Danny and his friends alone in the hallway.

"How does it feel like getting kissed by the school's hottest cheerleader?" Tucker asked with a grin as Danny blushed again and the goth rolled her eyes disgustedly.

"I am both relieved and revolted at the same time. Let's get out of here," she said as the two boys laughed and followed behind their friend who was already out the door. However, Danny stopped laughing after spotting a certain person, someone he'd been wanting to talk to for a while now; Valerie

"Danny?" Sam asked, concerned after seeing her friend abruptly stop walking. She followed his gaze and soon realized he was staring at the red huntress. She pursed her lips in distaste but didn't say anything else.

"I'll catch up to you guys later, we'll see each other at Tucker's," Danny said as the two friends nodded, knowing he probably needed to talk to Valerie about something important.

The black-haired girl felt someone staring at her and was proven right after noticing the half-ghost. She quickly glanced away and propped on her bike, ready to pedal away.

"Valerie, wait!" Danny yelled, quickly going after her before she disappeared again, like at the concert. She stopped, only because she knew he would chase after her anyway.

When the hybrid finally reached her, he opened his mouth to say something but before he could, he was interrupted. "Why?"

Danny raised an eyebrow at the question. "Why what?"

"Why did you hide this from me?" she asked, hurt written all over her face as Danny felt a wave of guilt wash over him. "Why didn't you tell me that you were Phantom? Why did you let me hunt you?"

"I... I don't know."

"No, goddammit Danny answer me seriously! Why did you continue to hurt yourself?! Why couldn't you tell me the truth? Do you know how much it hurts me to know that I was hunting a guy that I liked?!"

"You.. you like me?" Danny asked, completely disregarding the rest of the conversation as Valerie groaned.

"No! I mean yes- I mean... is that all you paid attention to?" she stuttered, looking away from his blue eyes as she sighed and turned back. "Danny, I could've badly hurt you.

"But you didn't," he answered.

"But I could've! Maybe even killed you! Why are you the one looking guilty here, I was the one who hunted you every day making your life hell!"

"After I caused your dad to lose his job. Valerie, it was my fault that you ended up in the situation you're in," Danny said, scratching his head nervously. "If I had just controlled Cujo and didn't let him enter that company, everything would be fine now."

"That is true, I would admit it. Yes, you ruined my life and yes, I still hold a grudge against it. But it helped me realize who my true friends are and look at things from a different perspective. I helped save people from ghosts as the red huntress and improve my self-esteem," she said and then looked away shyly, "and I got to know more about you."

"Danny smiled, a slight blush colouring his cheeks as he too looked away. "heh, well I guess this has been an experience for the both of us. Are we still. friends?"

Valerie laughed and lightly punched his shoulder. "Of course we are. Just promise to not hide something like this from me, I don't want to see you hurt ever again."

The half smiled and nodded, "I promise."


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