A Half-Ghost Mutant?

Summary: During "Million-Dollar Ghost," Jack shot Tucker with ectoplasm, prompting him to ask, "I'm not going to grow a third arm, am I?" As responsible scientists, the Fentons tried to find the answer. Some unexpected people took interest in the answer as well.

This takes place after "The Ultimate Enemy" but before "Reality Trip," and it is after the events in the first X-Men Movie.

Disclaimer: I don't own either Danny Phantom or The X-Men.

"And so, in conclusion, the ectoplasm in the weaponized form found in all portable Fenton anti-ghost products is neither mutagenic nor carcinogenic," Maddie Fenton wrapped up. The Question and Answer period that followed was extensive and ran for at least two hours.

The lecture had drawn a particularly large crowd from Amity Park. Since the massive ghost invasion that concluded shortly after Mayor Ernesto Montez was almost kidnapped by Inviso-Bill, or rather, Danny Phantom, the citizens of this small town in Illinois became aware of the need for protection from the malevolent creatures called ghosts. They mostly regretted their harsh judgments of the heretofore dismissed crack-pot ideas about ghosts that the Fentons made mention of for decades.

But most of all, the people of Amity Park were most likely to encounter the Fentons in their ghost-hunting capacity, and the topic under discussion – what effects the ectoplasm in the Fenton anti-ghost weaponry will have on humans – was top priority for the local people present. The Fentons' enthusiasm for their profession was legendary, and the fear of getting tagged by a stray hit (well… from Jack, anyway) caused a fear such that becoming informed about such things was a very real need.

This lecture brought audience members from out of state. The Guys in White were represented, as were others with a vested interest in the paranormal. The million-dollar bounty on one so-called dangerous ghost, Danny Phantom, brought many ghost hunters out of the woodwork. The Groovy Gang and the Extreme Ghost Breakers, among others, were treated like side-show pariahs, and other folks with a similar interest in ghosts were scorned as lunatics nationally until a green dome appeared around Amity Park, Illinois. All traffic to and from the town came to a standstill.

The lack of phone, Internet, and other media receptivity garnered attention from all kinds of authorities. The governor requested assistance from the National Guard to come in and take down the dome that surely inhibited the freedom of citizens from leaving and entering the town.

The drilling to break the dome was useless, but the urgency of the problem only grew when the self-proclaimed Ghost King transported the town into the Ghost Zone. The town was not only unreachable, but it disappeared. People made comments about magnetic irregularities and disappearances in the Bermuda Triangle, but the complete disappearance of a town from Middle America caught all KINDS of attention. The Anti-Ecto Control Act of Congress was passed shortly after the reappearance of Amity Park. The Guys in White were taken far more seriously by other federal agencies than they once were.

Present at the lecture were doctors, professors, and other scientists who specialized in genetics who were also interested parties. Senator Kelley died ignominiously - it took time, but the news DID spread that he was under the influence of some odd mutation before he died, and some thought it almost poetic, considering how relentlessly he pushed for anti-Mutant legislation. But whether citizens ultimately stood for or against Mutants, there was a growing national interest in knowing more about mutagens.

As the room began to clear following the extensive Question and Answer portion of the evening, a well-dressed man in a wheel chair and a fellow who was blue and furry approached Jack and Maddie.

"Ghost!" Jack whipped out a rather large ecto-gun aimed at the blue figure.

Both figures who were within target range froze for a moment, until the blue one smiled sardonically. "I've been called many things over the course of my life, but I'll have to admit that's a new one."

Maddie grabbed her husband's arm. "Jack, put that down. Don't you recognize these men? Professor Charles Xavier and Dr. Henry McCoy are famous geneticists. Professor Xavier and Dr. McCoy, I've used some of both of your work as a part of my source material for this evening's presentation."

Charles extended his hand. "Thank you for saying so, Mrs. Fenton." Maddie took and shook the offered hand.

Jack pouted as he processed his wife's words. "But the Wisconsin Ghost and that Box Ghost are blue."

Dr. McCoy bit his tongue, and the professor sympathized with his emotional pain, saying, "That may be, but so are any number of Mutants."

Jack blinked. "Mutants, not ghosts? Well, that's alright then."

Dr. McCoy raised his eyebrows and murmured, "That's also a new but refreshing reaction."

Jack beamed and snickered. "Well, hey – Mutants are still human. Ghosts… What's that you called them, Sweet Cheeks?"

Maddie smiled indulgently. "Odd manifestations of ectoplasmic energy and post-human consciousness, love."

"Yup. That's the one. They're something else entirely."

Maddie sighed and focused on the men in front of them. "I'm glad to meet you both. Is there something I can help you with?"

Professor Xavier smiled. "Indeed, Mrs. Fenton. We've followed your work with great interest, and I had a question that required a bit more attention than the Question and Answer section of your presentation allowed for."

Jack and Maddie shared a glance. Jack's excitement grew, as he realized he was just about invited to blather on about some point or other in their research.

Jack smiled. "Sure thing, Professor. Go ahead and ask."

Charles, charmed by Mr. Fenton's exuberance, returned the smile and nodded. "I appreciate that your ghost weapons, as they are, are not mutagenic. But if a circumstance changes – for example, a great electric charge would hit a person at the same time as a great amount of ectoplasm – might that have a different effect than the known effects you've covered?"

Jack jumped, as that possibility never occurred to him. "Of course they wouldn't. My college buddy Vlad Masters – yes, that Vlad Masters," he said proudly, as Dr. McCoy raised his eyebrows in recognition of the name. "He viewed our experiment with our proto-portal, and he got hit in the face with an unexpected burst of electricity and ectoplasm. If it caused a mutation, we would have known."

Maddie frowned. "I don't know, Jack. He got a very bad case of ecto-acne, and his dark hair prematurely went white. We thought he was cured of the ecto-acne which came with the accident over 20 years ago. Neither of us counted on Vlad's illness resurfacing."

She smiled proudly. "Our son Danny suggested the cure, which solved the problem. But… maybe the accident with the portal changed at least part of his genetic make-up, such that he was predisposed to have that life-threatening case of ecto-acne. I didn't think of it before, but that is the type of thing that Agent Orange did to Vietnam vets, so the idea isn't so farfetched."

She frowned again, and Professor Xavier read her mind. 'What if there was more damage caused by the accident? Vlad was really angry, and hadn't spoken to us for twenty years, well… since the day of his accident. I wonder if the electricity that's needed to run our portal is a danger?'

The professor raised his eyebrows. "You said that an accident happened with your proto-portal. What can you tell me about this portal?"

Jack smiled. "It is a portal from this dimension to the Ghost Zone. That's the dimension where ghosts, uh, hang out. They don't exactly live there, if you know what I mean."

Dr. McCoy raised an eyebrow. "Indeed. And besides Mr. Masters' accident you just mentioned, did the portal work? Did it open a pathway between the dimensions?"

Jack put a hand on the back of his neck. "I'm not really sure. After the accident, the University of Wisconsin yanked our funding and confiscated our materials. But we never stopped trying to safely open a portal between here and the Ghost Zone.

"About a year ago, we created a new portal – not something that fits on a table top, like our proto-portal, but something big. I mean big enough to get an enclosed vehicle in there. (You've got to see our Specter Speeder some time!) But the portal… We call it 'the Fenton Portal.' We've seen ghosts come out of there, so we know it works."

Maddie sighed. "When we first turned it on, we weren't sure it would work. We set the dials, set the ecto-filtrator in place, but when we plugged it in, it sent out a spark, and that was it. It was such a disappointment. But the next time we came to see it, the Portal was fully functional."

Charles asked, "Where is this Fenton Portal of yours?"

Jack beamed. "It's in the lab in our basement. Would you like to come and see it? And while you're there, you can see the Specter Speeder, and lots of the other equipment we've been talking about all evening!"

The professor was pleased that he didn't have to think of a logical reason to get himself invited. Mr. Fenton was more than willing to share his information. Exchanging a glance with his friend, Charles answered warmly, "We would be honored and delighted."

Maddie was also pleased. "We're looking forward…"

"Why don't you come for dinner? We've always got room at our table. My Maddie isn't just brilliant in the lab or behind a lectern, but the things she comes up with in the kitchen… Mmm!"

Maddie smiled at the thought of new guests, but then peaked her eyebrows as she thought of a snag. "We would love to have you both, but I'm afraid our home's not wheel chair accessible."

Before either Charles or Hank could respond, Jack said, "Nonsense. I can carry the professor, and we'll get Danny to bring the chair along. Don't let that stop you from coming."

The professor peaked his own eyebrows. "Thank you for your very generous offer. Henry?" Dr. McCoy nodded. "We would be delighted to come and enjoy your hospitality."

Dr. McCoy smiled at their warm reception. "Give me a moment. I need to inform people back at the school of our change in itinerary."

Maddie furrowed her brows. "School? What school would that be? I've read through many of your works, but I must have missed that on the biography page."

The professor wheeled back to get a better view of his hosts for the evening, as he settled in to speak of his greatest achievement. "I'm the headmaster of a school for the gifted. We teach academics on a very high level, among other things."

Jack beamed again. "We have two children in high school. If Jasmine weren't a senior, I might ask about a placement for her. She's brilliant! Takes after her mother."

Maddie blushed. "Oh, you!"

Dr. McCoy tilted his head. "And what of Danny?"

The lady sighed again. "I don't know what's going on with him. He wants to be an astronaut for NASA when he grows up. But something changed in him about a year ago. He's still a good boy, but… I'm not sure his grades support his dreams." She exuded frustration, but she didn't seem willing or able to express the problem.

Professor Xavier smiled. "Whatever the situation, I look forward to meeting your children and spending an evening with your family."

Vlad's invisible duplicate left the lecture hall shortly after the Question and Answer portion of the presentation. "So, Jack's stupidity spurred this bout of research. While this event was billed as both of the Fentons' production, it's obvious that my Maddie is more geared to handle PR." He smirked. "It's a gift I'll have to keep in mind, once I get her for my own."

He floated to the ceiling, about to leave, when he said, "Those men who approached the Fentons before I left… I don't know who they are, but the situation bears investigation." The duplicate hovered in place. "But it's been over three hours. My concentration's waning. I'll get my most faithful minion on it once I get home."

With that, he disappeared to be reabsorbed by the original back in Wisconsin.

A nondescript man in his late twenties and a white lab coat checked his notes one last time. He adjusted his glasses as he watched the professor and Beast approach the speakers.

He thought, 'It's good to know that this presentation wasn't anti-Mutant. Magneto will be interested in the results, but he might be more interested in the professor's interest in these particular speakers.'

His eyes narrowed as the large man leveled a gun at the Mutants, but the woman in the blue jumpsuit defused the situation. Interesting.

The man's eyes flashed yellow. 'I believe Magneto will agree that these people could use some observation.' Once he passed through the door, he became a pretty female prep school student who walked with a bounce in her step to her destination.