It was rare for Vlad to drop by Fenton Works unannounced, so when the black limo pulled up next to Danny's strange little home on a Saturday afternoon, the young man immediately felt himself go tense.

He felt the anxious churn of his stomach when the familiar head of silver hair greeted his vision. As if sensing his glare, Vlad Masters looked up at that exact moment and made direct eye contact with him.

Vlad smirked and waved; the courteous gesture insincere in every way. Danny glared harder at the man, suppressing the urge to flip him off.

"What is he doing here?" Danny muttered under his breath, walking quietly to the door of his bedroom to get as close as possible to eavesdrop on the conversation downstairs.

There was the generic jingle of the doorbell, thundering footsteps of his dad, and then the door was swung open.

"V-Man! What are ya doin' here?!" He heard the booming voice of his dad.

"Oh? Should I assume that you're not happy to see me, Jack?" The smooth voice of Vlad Masters answered.

"Of course not, you know you're welcome any time. Maddie! Guess who's here?!" Jack bellowed into the kitchen and led their guest into the house. Their voices grew softer and Danny cursed when he couldn't make out their conversation from where he was snooping.

He huffed, not trusting his parents' machines to go ghost in the house. From this hearing distance, he heard the faint words 'conversation', 'worried', and 'way', but they weren't exactly helpful verbal cues to go off of. Urgh.

Danny shrugged his shoulders and tiptoed back to his room; he'll find out later tonight when he corners Vlad and inevitably gets him to spill his evil plan on world domination.

"Do I hear Vlad?" Jasmine whispered as she stepped into his room.

"Yeah," Danny said flatly. "The fruitloop is here. Again. Torturing us."

Jasmine sat on the bed, thinking pensively. "What do you think he wants this time?" She asked.

"Mom, or world domination. Could be either or, but preferably both," Danny shrugged from his place. "Same ol' situation every time."

Jazz shot her brother a confused look. "You don't sound very worried about this."

"Oh I am, I'm just not showing it. Calm surface, turbulent waters underneath and all that," Danny said. "Plus, the guy's like a textbook villain. If I poke him enough, he'll spill his plan sooner or later."

"Preferably sooner," Jasmine said with a frown. "I don't like the idea of Vlad sniffing around mom and dad for too long."

"Trust me, Jazz. Give me some time and I'll have him in the palm of my hand by dinner."

Danny's opportunity came when his parents got busy in the kitchen, arguing about the ramifications of serving ghostly meat. He gave Jazz a discreet look, signaling her to leave him alone with Vlad in the living room. She was reluctant but acquiesced, pretending to do work at the dining table.

Danny marched up to Vlad with all the confidence he could muster. "What are you doing here?" He said flatly.

"What manners, my dear boy," Vlad looked utterly unimpressed. "If this is what a public education has done to you, then American society is truly headed for a downward spiral."

"I'm serious, Vlad. I don't want to play games today." Danny growled. "What are you doing here?"

Vlad put his hand over his heart, feigning innocence. "Can't I simply pay a visit to my beloved college friends and my godson whom I keep so dear to my heart?"

"Bullshit."

"Language, Daniel." The man looked serious that time, and Danny felt his confidence falter just a bit. It was never good to be on the receiving end of Vlad's anger.

"So, who do you have your eyes on this time? Mom? Dad? One way or another, I will find out," Danny said.

"Actually, I'm here to make you an offer." Vlad rolled his eyes. "You really do take the fun out of things, don't you?"

"What?" Danny asked. He wasn't sure he heard right.

"I know you've been struggling academically as a result of your ghost powers, Daniel. So, I would like to graciously extend-"

"How do you know that? Did you set your vultures on me again?" Danny seethed, cutting him off mid-sentence. "I told you to stop stalking me!"

"Your grades-"

"My grades are none of your business!" Danny yelled bitingly, stepping into Vlad's personal space and staring down at him hatefully. "I mean, what is your deal?! Will you not stop until everyone around you is anxious, paranoid, and miserable?!"

Vlad fell silent, giving a dead-eyed look at the furious young man before him. Unfortunately, the older man didn't seem to be intimidated in the slightest, choosing to stir his tea peacefully from his position on the couch.

Maddie popped her head in curiously. "Honey, is everything okay?" She asked, looking from her son to her (ex?) best friend.

"Quite, Maddie, my dear," Vlad smiled too cheerfully.

"I meant my son," Maddie shot back and gave Danny a worried look. "Is there a problem here, Danny?"

"No, mom, I'm fine," Danny muttered.

"Because if there is, I'd be more than happy to help you take care of it," Maddie insisted, giving Vlad the stink-eye.

"My dear, we were just having a spirited conversation. Daniel here is quite the passionate debater," Vlad said innocently. "And I'm sure Daniel is more than capable of holding his own in a difficult situation. You've raised such a well-adjusted young man, after all."

Danny silently fumed at the subtle dig.

"Well, I'll just be in the next room if you need anything, dear," Maddie smiled at her son before leaving the two alone.

The tension in the room was palpable.

"Are you quite finished with your tantrum?" Vlad asked calmly, folding his hands neatly on his lap.

"I'll be finished when you stop steamrolling your way into my life to do whatever you want, fruitloop," Danny gritted out.

Vlad barked out with laughter. "You should know better than anyone that I always get my way, so why put up the fight to deny me now?"

"To knock you down a peg and remind you that you shouldn't always get what you want," Danny retorted.

Vlad stared at Danny contemplatively. "What if what I want closely aligns with what you want?" He said slowly, every word resonating within Danny like some foreboding force.

Danny, however, wouldn't let himself get thrown for a loop. "You're too much of a narcissist to care about what I want," he said resolutely, crossing his arms defiantly.

"Oh?" Vlad said, looking way too pleased. "Then I suppose the aerospace engineering program at the University of Michigan is of no interest to you?"

Danny stared at the man, torn between anger and complete disbelief. "...How do you know about that?" He gaped. "Seriously, do you have a bug on this house or something?"

"Nonsense, my dear boy. I'm quite capable of eliciting information through the art of conversation," Vlad said and rolled his eyes. "Although I'm impressed that your parents even have the slightest clue with what you want to do with your life."

"Don't talk crap about mom and dad."

"Of course, you're so very protective," Vlad continued, smiling ruefully down at his tea. "Even though their ghost obsession has almost cost you your life more times you could possibly count. Quite honestly, I'm surprised at my friends' obtuseness. Jack may be a lost cause, but I truly expected more from Maddie when it came to your well-being. Tell me, do they know who, or better yet, what you are?"

They were wading into dangerous territory. "Vlad..."

"I guess not. Ironic that they still haven't figured it out, isn't it? But with all your nightly vigilantism going on, your grades have certainly seen better days. Shame if mom and dad were to find out that you're barely passing history and biology, at the expense of your own safety too."

This was checkmate, and Danny knew it. While his ghost half wouldn't be a deal-breaker with his parents, his ghostly crime-fighting tendencies certainly would be. If mom were to find out, it'll be house arrest until graduation day.

Danny shuddered; he didn't want to give up his freedom like that. "Name your price," he said harshly.

"It's very simple. You aim high for your dreams, little badger. University of Michigan is a good school with strong engineering programs. But if you want that acceptance letter, your academic performance needs to be better. Miles better than what it is currently." Vlad said firmly. "I can help you by putting you on the right track. If you follow my guidance to the letter, you may just see graduation and a sparkling college acceptance."

This kind of opportunity didn't come by often, Danny knew this. But it didn't stop him from digging in his heels. "I mean, Jazz-"

"-is brilliant, yes, but she's much too pre-occupied with her Ivy League dreams to offer any time to you."

"Mr. Lancer-"

"-has a horde of other D-grade idiots to worry about. Frankly, I should be insulted that I have to put in this much mental effort to convince you to let me help you," Vlad frowned. "Do you want to be stuck here forever with no future prospects?"

Danny was silent for moment. "How can I trust you?" He said quietly.

The question hung in the air and both sides could feel the weight of it. Vlad knew a degree of honesty was required here; whether he liked it or not, he would have to lay down a few of his cards.

"You're right, you can't." Vlad conceded. "But you need more help than what you're getting at the moment."

Danny bit his lip nervously.

"However, if you're willing to go against your gut to work with me this time, then perhaps it's only fair for me to give up something in return," Vlad said carefully. "So, name your price, Daniel."

"...Stop trying to break my family apart," Danny said. "I'm serious, Vlad. If you want to be friends with my parents, you have to stop with all this creepy stuff."

"Go on."

"I want to do this the right way. From pulling my grades up to college applications and interviews, I want to go through the proper channels just like everybody else. So, no overshadowing teachers or college admissions professors," Danny added. "If we do this, you have to take into account what I want."

If Vlad felt any type of way toward those conditions, he certainly didn't show it. "You have a deal, little badger," he said, reaching out his hand for a handshake.

Danny stared at Vlad's hand before grasping it with his own to seal the deal. Vlad's palm was warm and dry, rough with callouses and firm. Danny tightened his grip and cursed his spindly frame. Physical assertion or not, he just wasn't intimidating enough for Vlad to feel threatened.

Vlad smiled slowly, his eyes twinkling with something close to amusement as Danny tried to squeeze the life out of his hand. It was like he could read the boy's thoughts. All of Danny's insecurities lay opened before the man like words on a page.

Danny felt like punching him.

Later that night, Jazz looked over at Danny across the dining table. He was picking at his food with an introspective look, thinking very hard on something but finding no solution. She tried to catch his attention a couple of times during the meal, but the boy just shrugged and grunted into his peas. As a teenager, Jazz knew all too well what that meant.

But the weirdest thing was when Vlad leaned over to whisper something in Danny's ear, her brother didn't pull away with annoyance or roll his eyes like he usually did. Instead Danny seemed resigned, talking to Vlad in hushed tones and carrying himself with a degree of seriousness that she didn't know her own brother possessed.

Jasmine really didn't know what to make of that, but she couldn't help but think that it was Vlad who has Danny in the palm of his hand this time.

To be continued...