The first time Danny approached her, she was working in the lab.

"Mom...?" Maddie Fenton jumped a little at the voice. She quickly shot a glance over her shoulder to see her son standing at the entrance to the lab. She pulled her goggles and hood back and gave him a smile.

"Hi, Danny. Did you need something?" She turned her chair away from the table she had been hunched over and rolled her neck and shoulders. She hadn't realized how cramped she was. Stealing a quick glance at the clock on the wall she realized with a start that she had been steadily working for over two and a half hours without a break. It was starting to get late, even for her. "I'm almost done here, then I'll get dinner started." She turned her attention back to Danny, who was still standing by the staircase. She watched as he took a few hesitant steps toward her.

"I um..." He stammered nervously. Maddie's eyebrows furrowed together in confusion. Danny wasn't usually so nervous.

"Danny, sweetheart, you don't have to be nervous." She watched him take a deep calming breath before he stepped a little closer. "You can talk to me, honey." She tried to reassure him. His hand went up to rub the back of his neck, a nervous habit of his that he seemed to be completely unaware of.

"...I know, I just... don't know how you'll react."

"Danny," Maddie started off gently, "you don't have to worry about that. I love you, honey, and I always will. You can be honest with me, and I'll listen." She smiled at him. "I promise." He smiled back with a new confidence.

Maddie knew what this was going to be about before he even started. She would have to be a fool not to have noticed. Danny, while never having been a star student like his sister, had suddenly been having a very difficult time in school. Tardies, detentions, and missed assignments had been piling up for months now. Skipping classes had almost become a regular thing. Sure, he would make up excuses, and she went along with them, but she had been holding out the hope that he would come to her on his own and come clean. She had been preparing herself for the worst for a while now. They could handle it, whatever it was, as a family, and come out stronger for it. He was her baby boy, after all. If she confronted him, he would probably just feel attacked, and nothing good would come of that.

So, she had waited, hoping. And it looked like her patience was finally paying off.

"Oh... Okay." He took another deep breath. "What if... I was able to help people?" Maddie was completely thrown off-balance. "Like you and Dad do? Would you be upset at me?" She stared at him, confused. That was not what she had been expecting at all.

"...Of course not, sweetie. I would be worried about your safety. Helping people isn't easy or rewarding. Superhero's don't exist in the real world like your comics." She caught a strange smile cross his face then, but continued. "You're too young to be thinking such serious thoughts, though, Danny. You're a teenager; school should be your top priority. Besides," She paused, "I thought you were terrified of the ghosts, Danny."

She watched her son's face closely, but it was unreadable. He had been that way since... since the start of the school-year almost.

"I um... Just forget I said anything, Mom."

"Danny! Wait!" Too late. He had disappeared back up the stairs. Maddie stared after him, confused and disappointed. "Did I do something wrong?"