I wrote this story for ectoblood on Tumblr in a Gift Exchange. They requested angst with a happy(ish) ending and the au where Danny Fenton is a ghost hunter and Phantom is his target. I managed to deliver that with a twist. I hope you enjoy it!

Danny pressed the button and everything changed. The neon green light burned his eyes, his skin, his lungs, his very nerves. His muscles locked as a scream tore from his throat. The sound echoed from the walls of the tunnel. Between him and the entrance to the lab, something wavered. Black and white fabric. White hair? The boy's bone dry, unblinking eyes couldn't focus on the insubstantial figure's face. Just also unblinking green eyes. Then the figure's mouth opened, echoing Danny's scream.

Heart pounding, Danny Fenton shot up from his bed. Though his hands shook, the images rapidly faded until only the green light and pain, the boy's fuzzy memories of the accident a month ago, remained. He remembered posing for a picture at Sam's insistence, mind-blowing pain, and then waking up in the hospital. Since then, he had struggled to remember, but nothing. Only wispy dreams which he both wished and feared would bring him clarity.

Mom's knocking on his door shook the boy out of his thoughts.

"I'm up! I'm up." With the quick shout, Danny rolled out of bed and towards the bathroom; time to face another school day.

Ten minutes later, the teenager found himself walking into the kitchen to grab breakfast. He quickly spooned cereal into his mouth as his mom set two silver and green inventions on the table. The boy raised an eyebrow as the woman spoke. "These are for you, sweetie." He eyed the strange looking thermos and pinkie-size cylinder. She pointed. "This device captures ghosts, just press the button to activate it. And this is a miniaturized ectoblaster." She turned the base, activating it for a few seconds before reengaging the safety and handing the device to Danny.

The boy tilted his head questioningly. "Why are you giving these to me?"

"With all the ghosts that have shown up recently, your father and I want you and your sister to be safe." Mom's expression turned sturn. "But only use them as a last resort. If you run into a ghost, I want you to run away and hide if you can and call us. Only fight if you have no other choice. Do you understand me?"

"Yes, ma'am." Danny nodded, quickly agreeing as he saw the parental worry right underneath that sturness.

With a ruffle to his hair which earned an only half serious groan in protest from the boy, his mother started pouring her own cereal. Soon after Danny finished eating and put the inventions in his bag. With a waved to his mom, he started walking towards school.

Danny's shoulders fell as he thought about the worry on his mom's face this morning. That had been a near constant fixture since the accident and not just because of parental worry about his health after ending up in the hospital. About a week after that, the ghosts started showing up. Mostly violent, feral animalistic creatures with a handful of single-minded humanoid monsters. Not two weeks after the portal, a creepy old lady ghost showed up, wrecking the school cafeteria, and assaulting the students. And it was all Danny's fault. The ghost came through the portal and the stupid portal only started because of him. It was Danny's fault that these ghosts came through, hurting people.

Suddenly a child's scream rang out, causing the boy to abandon his thoughts. The teenager sprinted towards the noise. Darting around a corner, Danny nearly tripped as he stumbled to a stop. In front of him, a boy, no older than eight, remained frozen in fear, his wide eyes locked on a wavering, ethereal figure. The octopus-like creature twirled and hissed in the air as it floated slowly towards the child. Its long tentacles greedily reached to grab the kid's arms. Heart pounding with fear, Danny acted surprisingly quickly and with little thought. He wiped out the chapstick-shaped device and shot the ectopus. The ghost spun around and fixed angry, too human-like eyes on him. In an instant, slimy tentacles wrapped around Danny's free arm and squeezed. Biting back a yelp of pain, the teenager desperately shot the creature again which released him with a hiss. With shaking hands, he bent down to retrieve the thermos and activated it. The blue light sucked the creature into the device, leaving the area in silence except for the breathing of the two humans.

After a few seconds, Danny looked up, focusing compassionate eyes on the younger boy. "Hey, are you okay?"

The kid nodded, still shaking with fear as Danny walked forward. Now actually looking at the boy, the teenager realized he recognized him, having probably seen him in the park before.

"I'm Danny. What's your name?" He asked, squatting down slightly.

The 8-year old child finally met his eyes. " My name's Jamie."

"Okay Jamie. Are you heading to school?"

Jamie nodded. "Mommy let me walk by myself."

"She did? I'm walking to school too. Meadow Creek is on the way to Casper High, if you want to walk with me." Danny asked, not really wanting to leave the kid after what just happened.

The kid nodded again as Danny stood up and put his weapons back in his bag. With shaky legs, the two started walking side-by-side. Jamie reached for the other boy's hand for a second before pausing, unsure. Danny raised an eyebrow before freely offering his hand, which the younger boy eagerly grabbed. Not that Danny could blame him, the kid was obviously shaken about what just happened. Danny himself was shaken and his arm hurt from where the ectopus had grabbed him.

Half in an effort to distract himself, half in an effort to calm Jamie, Danny motioned to the boy's green, cartoon character covered shirt. "I like your shirt. Do you like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles?"

To Danny's relief, Jamie relaxed, his eyes brightening as he answered. "Yeah! Donatello's my favorite! Did you know….?"

The question lead to an excited rant about TMNT filled with child-like joy that only a little kid can possess. The two stopped in front of the Elementary school's sign, ten minutes later.

"We're here." Danny said as Jamie's speech trickled to a stop.

"Yeah." The younger boy let go of Danny's hand and faced him. "Thanks for saving me from that scary ghost, Danny." said the child as he hugged the teenager

Danny smiled. "No problem. See you around Jamie." He waved and received one in kind as the younger boy walked into the school.

The teenager turned away, walking towards his own school. An odd mixture of guilt and relief swirled in Danny's gut. He still felt so guilty about opening the portal and practically inviting the ghosts through. But….he had done something to help. He had been terrified but he had acted. Danny saved that kid. He had done that. Maybe...he could still help. The boy swallowed; the thought of fighting ghosts scared him. He remembered the stories Dad told him as a kid, ghost stories told around the campfire that kept him awake at night, flinching at every shadow. And now he knew those were real and he felt helpless….except when he was protecting Jamie. Jamie's fear-filled eyes flashed in his mind again, the thought of him or anyone else being hurt making Danny's heart clinch. He couldn't let people get hurt because of him. He wouldn't. It was stupid and dangerous but Danny wanted to keep everyone safe, he needed to. He had always had this need to help people, this inability to turn away when someone was hurt or in distress. Heck, that was the reason Dash and the other bullies picked on him more than the other kids; he tended to make himself a target so the weaker geeks wouldn't get beat up. Was it really a surprise he felt compelled to act now?

Now at the doors to Casper High, Danny made his decision. That night, he raided his parent's weapons vault, starting his vigilante career as a ghost hunter.

One week after that fateful decision, Casper's halls bustled with rumors. Not about Danny's ghost hunting. A few times the boy had found himself at the right place, at the right time to catch a few animalistic ghosts but had mostly stayed in the shadows. He was used to it though; someone as low as him on the social ladder tended to remain invisible. And this was an intentional decision anyway. It was dumb but Danny really didn't want to tell his parents about his ghost hunting. Because as excited and supportive as they might be (they had always wanted him to take interest in the family profession), they might also forbid him from hunting understandably worried for his safety.

"Did you hear about that ghost fight at the mall? Paulina said she saw the Phantom!" Star excitedly whispered to her friend.

Danny perked up at the gossip, eavesdropping into the conversation.

"Really?" Valerie crossed her arms. "And you believe her? She hit her head."

"No, she didn't. You really believe in the other ghosts but not Phantom?"

The other girl waved a hand flippantly. "A ghost that protects people and fights other ghosts, really? It sounded like something from a cartoon."

The two girls walked away, leaving the eavesdropping boy to furrow his brow. He didn't believe it either. According to his parents, ghosts were evil and only capable of feeling anger. They might fight each other for territory but they didn't help, only hurt. And everything he'd seen so far had aligned with that.

Another scream- these were becoming far too common- rang through the hall as students started running past Danny and towards the doors.

"Out of the way nerd!" Dash pushed past the smaller boy, knocking him down and into the lockers.

Just then an echoing roar sounded. A crash soon followed as a large reptilian head rounded the corner. With shaking hands, Danny pulled his ectogun from his bag and aimed. The beam hit the….dragon?... Right between the eyes. The hit only caused the creature to growl as Danny scrambled up. Then something black and white flew past his shoulder. It was…. A glowing, floating teenage boy. Oh great, another ghost. There was no way he could take on both.

Still holding the gun in front of him, Danny backed away, keeping his eyes fixed on the two ghosts. Luckily, the smaller ghost seemed to be occupying the dragon. It bobbed and weaved around the larger ghost's head. Then it went for the dragon's neck. Heart pounding, Danny backed away faster, expecting the smaller ghost to rip into the creature's throat. But instead, gloved hands pulled off something around the dragon's neck. Was that a necklace? Danny's brow raised at the dragon shrank and changed shape, until it resembled a green-skinned woman with a blonde braid. The previous dragon collapsed on the floor bonelessly. The black and white clade ghosts grabbed something that looked suspiciously like a Fenton thermos from its belt. Danny's eyes widened as the device activated and captured the other ghost in blue light.

Then the remaining ghost turned around and Danny's jaw dropped. Neon green eyes meet his as the figure's expression morphed into an identical one of shock. The human's hands shook as an enormous wave of deja vu and familiarity hit him. It...it couldn't be. The ghost...it...it.

The ghost's mouth opened and closed as the being walked (actually walked!) two steps forward. One gloved hand raised in front of it. And Dany's mouth snapped shut as he stumbled back, hitting the lockers. With shaking sweating hands, the boy raised the ectogun higher but his eyes remained locked on those painfully familiar eyes.

Then the double doors, the same ones the other students had fled through, slammed open. Just like that the spell was broken. Both the human's and the ghost's eyes snapped to the figure who just entered.

"It's Phantom!" Paulina shrieked. "You saved us!"

Wordlessly the ghost nodded. A second later, wide curious eyes fixed on Danny again. The ghost, Phantom, titled its head before disappearing.

Paulina's excited questions drifted into Danny's ears without penetrating his brain. His stomach flopped.

"I have to go." He spit out, not caring that the girl he'd had a crush on since sixth grade was actually talking to him.

The boy sprinted down the hall and into the bathroom, slamming the door behind him. Clumsy hands lock the door to the stall. Danny leaned over the toilet. He felt like he was going to throw up. Oh god. Oh god. His arm wrapped around his upset stomach. Why...why...why ….did….did the ghost look like him? Exactly like him?! Well not exactly, the hair was white and eyes green. But the rest? Like looking in a mirror. How and why? Why did Phantom look like him?!

The boy straightened slightly, letting out panting breaths. Was it some kind of taunt? Was Phantom a shape-shifter and taking his form to…? What? Taunt his parents, the ghost hunters whose portal let all the ghosts into their world or to taunt him, the boy who started it all? Was it a threat, a warning? Danny fell to his knees, his legs collapsing. He didn't know, he didn't know. He had no idea what any of this meant.

And as much as that terrified him, it also angered him. How dare that ghost fly around with his face?! Taunt him like that!? Danny stood up, his fists balled. He had to do something, he had to get answers. If he was a ghost hunter before, he definitely was one now. He would confront Phantom and get the ghost to talk, even if it took months.

Danny sprinted around the corner, the 'borrowed' Fenton Finder beeping in his hand. He glanced at the screen. The two ghosts, both with strong signatures, had moved sense showing up on the rader. Maybe, maybe he'd be able to catch Phantom this time, after a month of chasing.

The boy growled. Phantom was so slippery, escaping Every. Single. Time! Danny had managed to capture a few ghost animals and an annoying specter that ranted about boxes. But it brought little satisfaction, his prize always just out of reach.

The teenager rounded another corner, an abandoned warehouse looming in front of him. Shouts and crashes echoed from inside the building. Panting, Danny slowed down. He found a door and jiggled the doorknob, sighing in relief as it swung open.

Not two second later, a massive paw swiped at the boy. Danny hit the wall, knocking the breath out of his lungs. Slited, yellow eyes the size of his head fixed on the boy. Blessedly steady hands raised his large ectogun but the feline ghost batted the weapon away. Panicked, Danny crawled away but didn't make it far. The creature let out a low growl as it swiped at Danny again, this time clawing his arm. The boy yelped at the pain, blood dripping from the fresh wound. With shaking arms, Danny pulled himself to his feet and sprinted towards the door not blocked by the ghostly cat.

"Take that!" An echoing voice yelled behind him.

The cat yowled. Then a crash sounded and the speaker yelped. But to Danny it barely registered. Heart pounding, he kept running until claws dug into him from behind and he fell forward. His head made contact with the concrete floor and he blacked out.

Danny came to, his head throbbing. Eyes still closed, he groaned in pain. Then something cold cradled his head and the pain reseeded. The boy hummed in contentment.

Slowly, Danny opened his eyes and gasped immediately after. A pale glowing face with green eyes filled his vision. Phantom. The boy stiffened. And the ghost held his head in its hands.

Danny swallowed. "What are you doing?" He whispered, voice shaking more than he would like.

The ghost's eyes feel on him. "You hit your head. I'm trying to help it feel better." The ghost then closed its eyes and the chill pouring into Danny's head increased. Despite himself, the boy leaned into the gentle touch. That felt so much better.

Catching that thought, Danny huffed and rolled his head to the side, dislodging the ghost's hands. Phantom frowned. "I guess that'll do. The cold should help. Luckily your head's not bleeding."

At that Danny said nothing as he slowly sat up, narrowed eyes fixed on the ghost. Phantom floated half a foot back, eyebrows furrowed and matching the human's gaze. The gaze broke when Danny put weight on his arm and winced. He glanced down, brow furrowing at finding bandages wrapped around his bicep.

"I bandaged your arm too." Phantom pointed. "I did my best but I don't have a lot of experience so you should get it checked out."

"Why?" Danny asked, barely registering the explanation. The ghost titled its head in confusion. "Why are you helping me?" The human clarified, skeptically.

"You hurt yourself." The ghost's brow wrinkled in deepening confusion. "Why wouldn't I help you?"

The human's brow also furrowed. He couldn't fathom that answer. Ghosts didn't help people. They probably didn't even understand the concept. Still feeling distrust, the human's eyes searched around him, looking for his weapons. Noticing the behavior, the ghost's expression hardened. "If you're looking for your ectogun, I hide it. I obviously don't want you shooting me."

Danny paused, studying the ghost again. "I'm not going to shoot you." Probably. "I just want some answers."

"I do too." The ghost paused as Danny's eyes widened, not expecting that at all. Then Phantom sighed, voice quieting. "Do you know who I am?"

"Yeah." Danny's eyes narrowed, resentment flaring. "You're the ghost who's been tramping around Amity Park, wearing my face."

Phantom crossed its arms, timid behavior disappearing. "Rude." It raised a finger. "First of all, I just look like this. Second, I mean, do you know who I was...before I died?" Danny's jaw dropped as Phantom continued. "I mean, we look really similar so I figured we're related." Phantom's eyes fixed on the floor. "So...did you have a twin brother? Or maybe an uncle who died young and everyone says you look just like."

Danny gaped, barely believing where this conversation was going. He shook his head dumbly.

Phantom's shoulders fell. "So no. I thought...I hoped ..." The ghost bit its lip. "It's just...I can't remember anything from before about two months ago. I thought maybe you would know."

The human shook his head, frowning. "We're not related."

"Are you sure?" The ghost motioned to its attire. "I mean I'm wearing a jumpsuit like the ones your parents wear."

Danny's gaze traveled up and down the black and white jumpsuit….that looked a lot like the one he was wearing when he had his accident. His mouth opened and closed as his mind struggled to understand. Something familiar tingled in the back of his mind, like the answer was in a half forgotten memory or dream.

Not registering the human's shocked expression, Phantom put its hand on its chin. "And the first thing I do remember is your parent's lab. That has to mean something right?"

At that piece of information, the answer fell into place in the human's mind. His mom and dad had a theory about how ghosts form. But….but that could not have been what happened here. No way, that couldn't be true.

Danny's eyes widened and his breath quickened. Finally Phantom noticed the human's growing panic. Neon green eyes fixed on him. "What is it?"

Almost against his will, Danny's eyes meet the ghost's. Eyes that were so familiar. He saw them in the portal, during the accident, didn't he? The half remembered dream haunted him. He saw the wavering form of Phantom in the portal. Phantom's formation. Phantom's beginning.

The wide eyed ghost waved its arms, floating closer to Danny. "You figured something out, didn't you? What is it?"

Eyes fixing on the floor, Danny shook his head and ignored the question. His hands gripped his hair. "No. No NO. NO. Shit shit shit ."

"What?! It's bad. It's that bad." The ghost mirrored Danny's panicked expression.

The human continued shaking his head and muttering more curses. This could not be happening! There was no way, no way this was real.

The ghost wavered in place wringing its hands. "Please. Just tell me what you know."

"No!" Danny gritted his teeth. "You'll use it against me."

The ghost's jaw dropped. "No, whatever it is, I won't." The human's glare just intensified so Phantom pleaded. "I know you don't like me. I'll… I'll leave you alone. I'll stop bothering you. But, please I need to know who I am."

Something in the statement stoked Danny's anger. The boy gritted his teeth. "You're no one. You're not even a person."

Phantom's face morphed into a hurt expression. "That's not true."

"You're a freaking echo!" The boy's face turned red as he shouted. "Mom and Dad's god forsaken portal almost killed me. And if that wasn't enough, it used me to make a freaking ghost."

Phantom's eyes widened in confusion. Its glaze seemed to rove everywhere but see nothing. Danny could almost see the wheels turning, the puzzle pieces sliding into place. That is, if he thought the ghost even had the mental capacity for that.

Finally the ghost's brow furrowed. "Wait...are you saying I'm you?"

Something in Danny snapped. In a flash, he leapt to his feet and at the ghost, with raised fists. Fully planning to deck Phantom, the boy instead sailed through the momentarily intangible ghost and crashed onto the floor. He barely registered the pain from the impact as he rolled onto his back as Phantom floated away from him, startled.

"You're not even real." The human growled. "You're as much me as a video of me would be. You're just a sick, twisted reflection."

The ghost's lip quivered in hurt confusion. "But…. I don't understand."

"Of course you don't." Danny scoffed. "I shouldn't even be giving you the dignity of speaking like you can understand me. You don't have the mental capacity."

Phantom gapped. "No. That's not….I'm not stupid. Just… help me understand." One hand went to the ghost's forehead, as if in thought. "We're connected, right? I just don't get how."

Danny gritted his teeth. He didn't want to think about that, let alone talk about it. He didn't want to be connected to this...this thing in front of him. Ignoring the ghost's pleas, the human stood up and started marching towards the door. He didn't care that he still had no idea where his weapons were; he just needed to get away from this ghost.

Suddenly, Phantom appeared in front of him. A cold hand grabbed his shoulder. "Wait."

"Don't touch me!" Glaring murder, Danny roughly pushed the ghost away, who suprisingly remained solid but stumbled back at the human's action.

"I'm sorry." The ghost sagged apologetically. "Just wait."

"No. Stay away from me." Danny sneered. "You are so lucky I don't have my gun right now. But if I even see you hanging around me, you will regret it."

With that Danny practically sprinted out of the room, leaving Phantom floating with a hurt expression.

Danny ran home. Chest heaving, he sprinted up the stairs and slammed the door to his bedroom.

Gripping his hair, the boy paced. No, no no no no! This could not be happening. The portal...the portal, it almost killed him and then it did….this. Why? Why? Why? Why did he press that stupid button? It messed everything up! First letting all the ghosts through and then this! And he'd started trying to make up for what he did, by fighting the ghosts and protecting people. But what good did that do if all of it was his fault?! Not only did he let all the ghosts through but he unknowingly created a dangerous ghost.

Because as painful as it was to admit, that was what Phantom was- a ghost formed from the ectoplasm of the portal and the emotions of his near death experience. A specter bearing his image, like some kind of dead reflection of him.

With that thought, Danny stopped pacing and met his own eyes in the mirror. His own distressed reflection, so much like Phantom's, sent a surge of rage through the boy. Growling he slammed the closet door shut banishing the image.

It wasn't fair! How was he supposed to live with this...this constant reminder of what almost happened to him and of his mistake?! With this unnatural connection?

The boy shook his head. That link had to be severed. Phantom...Phantom could not be allowed to continue existing in Amity Park. He needed to find a way to sever their connection and banish the ghost to the Ghost Zone so all of this could be put behind him.

But Phantom's compassionate eyes as the ghost treated his injuries flashed through his mind. The intelligent and hopeful expression as the ghost asked if Danny knew where he came from. The hurt expression as Danny verbally and physically assaulted the ghost.

Could he hurt a person?

That thought stopped Danny in his tracks. No, no, no. Phantom was not a person, just a confused glob of ectoplasm that the human was inconveniently connected too.

The word sounded hollow and untrue in his own mind. A tiny voice argued to just leave the ghost alone but balling his fist, Danny pushed the thought away. He couldn't just do nothing. He had to do this, to protect everyone (to ease his guilt).

With that, Danny decided he would capture Phantom, though that little spark of doubt remained

Hunting Phantom this much was probably not healthy but Danny just couldn't seem to stop. Anytime he wasn't in school or sleeping, he was running around Amity Park chasing ghosts fights. His grades were falling. Sam and Tucker gave him worried looks at school as he stopped hanging out with them. Mom and Dad threatened to ground him and hovered over barely hidden injuries that he blamed on his clumsiness. But two months later, he was still no closer to catching Phantom and so he couldn't stop (though his mind still whispered- this is wrong).

The finder beeped just as Danny came to the fountain in the park. Suddenly something swooped from the sky, causing the boy to duck. The ghost, a large vulture, missed but went in for another grab, only to be shot from the side. Hands lit neon green, Phantom floated ten feet away, the closest the ghosts had been since their last encounter. Both figures remained stationary for a second until another bird came at Phantom from above. At the same time, the first bird leapt at Danny who whipped out his ectogun and shot. With a screech, the vulture flew backwards, hitting a tree. In the second before the bird could recover, Danny uncapped his thermos and captured the ghost.

An echoing shout then caught Danny's attention. Phantom's shield, which had been protecting Phantom from the ghostly bird, shattered as the vulture swiped its talons. The human turned the thermos on the other bird, which squawked as it was sucked in.

Silence fell over the area, broken only by the bubbling of the fountain. Phantom lowered its protectively raised arms as Danny aimed the thermos to capture his true prize. Then green eyes met blue and Danny stilled, thermos in his hands falling, at the ghost's face. Instead of anger or even warriness like he expected, Phantom's lips turned down in hurt defeat. The ghost paused for several seconds, long enough to be captured. But the human remained frozen until Phantom disappeared without a word.

That small sliver of doubt continued to grow.

Another day, another ghost hunt, another injury.

When Danny came too, it was dark. Blinking the spots from his eyes, he focused blurry vision on the starry sky. He was laying on...grass? Where was he exactly? And how did he get here? Trying to sit up, the boy flexed his right ankle and then he hissed in pain.

Suddenly a glowing, pale face appeared in his vision. "Hey, take it easy. You're hurt."

A gloved hand appeared behind the boy's back and on his arm, gently helping him to a seated position. To his own surprise, Danny didn't shy away but instead, accepted the help. He then glanced down towards his ankle and raised an eyebrow. Phantom had….wrapped it?

"This is turning into a pattern." At the harsh tone, Danny looked up, meeting the ghost's concerned eyes. "Is coming after me really important enough to get yourself hurt?"

Danny prickled at the sharp tone, crossing his arms. "It's not just about you. I'm trying to keep everyone safe from all the ghosts."

"Bull shit." Phantom's eyes narrowed. "I've seen how you look at me."

Looking down, Danny said nothing, his previous defensiveness dying. Instead his stomach churned with something that might be guilt.

"Really? You're not going to say anything?" Phantom continued.

Then Danny's eyes fell on his thermos which lied by his knees. He raised a questioning eyebrow as the ghost's mouth closed at seeing the object. Instead of acting shocked and jolting forward to grab the device, Phantom sneered cynically. "Go ahead. Take it. Capture me. It'll make you happy, right? And it's not like it matters." The ghost scoffed. "I don't have friends or a family or my own life. I'm not even a real person so why should it matter if you hate me, hurt me, or even destroy me?"

Danny bit his lip. For some reason, the accusations stung a lot. But the human shook his head, pushing away the guilt. Uncertainly, he reached for the thermos and again, Phantom didn't move to stop him. Activating the device, Danny looked up and met the ghost's disappointed eyes just as the figure disappeared into the thermos.

Twenty minutes later, Danny limped through the front door of Fentonworks. He sighed, keenly noticing how quiet it was. With Mom and Dad away at a conference and Jazz staying over at a friend's house for once, the boy was alone….or not. He glanced down at the occupied thermos in his hand. It held Phantom, the ghost he'd been trying to capture for months. But that thought, his accomplishment brought no satisfaction. Yes, he'd done what he set out to do, but what now? At the same time, the ghost's biting words rang in his head. Once in the living room, Danny sat down on the couch, laying the thermos down on the coffee table. Then he picked up the remote, intent on distracting himself.

But it didn't last. Almost subconsciously, Danny's eyes flitted over the device again, Phantom's defeated expression returning to occupy his mind. At that Danny shook his head and huffed. No, nope. He wasn't doing this. He had what he wanted. But Phantom's words rang in his head. It'll make you happy, right?

But he wasn't happy, not at all. His stomach churned with unease and nebulous guilt. Maybe….maybe he should put Phantom in the containment unit? Danny did have no idea what being in a thermos was like for a ghost but it couldn't be comfortable. It would be less cruel to just let Phantom out into the cage in the lab. Yeah, he'd do that. And not because he kinda wanted to talk to the ghost again too. Nope, definitely not.

Slowly, Danny limped down the stairs and stopped in front of Mom and Dad's new containment unit. His brow wrinkled. But how did he get Phantom in there? The boy's eyes feel on a circular port in the side. There. It looked like he could screw the thermos into the side and press the release button to eject the ghost into the cage.

Danny did just that, holding his breath as Phantom was flung out of the thermos and landed bonelessly on the floor. He studied the figure warily while Phantom slowly stirred. The ghost's eyes widened in surprise, taking in the surroundings. Then the expression hardened.

"What are you going to do to me?" Phantom's voice though confident possessed a hint of a wavering fear causing Danny to raise his eyebrow, surprised.

But the human didn't comment. Instead, he sighed. "I don't really know. I guess I'll wait until Mom and Dad get home." Danny frowned, bracing his hands on the control panel so he was looking down and avoiding the ghost's eyes. "I'm sure they'll have questions for you." Or want to run tests, he thought, frowning.

Phantom stuttered. "But...but….you wouldn't, you can't." Danny looked up, taking in the even paler than usual face. Then the ghosts bit its lip. Then as the ghost floated to its feet, its expression hardened though its lip trembled. "I'll tell them who I am."

Danny's mouth fell open. He gasped bug-eyed. "Excuse me?"

Phantom straightened. "I'll tell your parents who I am."

"You're not their son." The words came out biting.

The ghost's attempt at a confident smile fell into a hurt expression. "I guess I'm not….but…..do you really think they could hurt me, since I look like you?" When Danny said nothing, the ghost continued. "Could YOU really hurt me, knowing what you know? We're connected, whether you like it or not. You know, you KNOW we're the same."

The statement made the human's heart skip a beat. His stomach churn, uncertain of what exactly the ghost meant by the statement. Fear spiking, Danny lashed out. "But you're not me!"

"Obviously!" Phantom's eyes flashed brighter, angrily. "I wouldn't hate someone for something they have no control over!" The ghost barred small fangs. "I am so sick of this! I didn't ask to exist! I have no choice in being a ghost! And I came to you 'cause I sensed we had some kind of connection and I wanted answers! But I got nothing. Do you have any idea what's it like to get told you have no past?! No friends, no family?! That you're nothing, not even a real person?" Phantom's aura brightened ominously. "If anyone should be trying to help me, to understand me, it's you. You're the only reason I'm even here!"

"Don't….don't go blaming this on me!" Danny stuttered.

"Why shouldn't I?! You're the one who went into the stupid portal, not me! You're the one who freaking made me!"

"Don't you think I know that?!" The human snapped, punching the console. "Don't you think I feel responsible every single day? I know I opened the stupid portal and let the ghost through. I know everyone's in danger because of me! Mom and Dad are super stressed out because of all the ghosts. And everyone else is freaked out and getting hurt in ghost fights. Or having their homes and businesses destroyed. And then I look at you. And you only exists because of me and the stupid portal. And every time, every freaking time I look at you, all I see is a reminder of how much I screwed everything up!"

Feeling his eyes welling with tears, Danny fixed his eyes on the floor. Trembling, he turned and ran up the stairs and into his bedroom. Slamming the door, Danny collapsed on his bed and started crying in earnest. He hadn't meant to pour all that out to Phantom and he definitely hadn't meant to start crying in front of the ghost but before he could stop himself, all of it had come out into the open. At least he ran before Phantom could really see him crying.

For several minutes, Danny huddled in his room, letting the tears fall. A knock sounded on the door of his bedroom and glanced up. Was his sister home already?

"I'm alright Jazz." The boy called trying and failing to keep his voice steady.

Slowly, the door creaked open. Though he didn't protest the intrusion, Danny looked down, not wanting to meet his sister's face.

"No you're not." That wasn't his sister's voice. It was young, male…..and slightly echoing.

Danny slowly looked up to find Phantom standing in the doorway to his bedroom. He couldn't even find it in himself to be surprised, angry, or even afraid. Instead he quietly, neutrally asked. "How do you get out of the unit?"

Phantom wrung his hands. "You forgot to turn on the containment unit so..I uhhhh….. Just walked out."

At that Danny sighed and put his head in his hands. Of course, of course he would forget to actually turn on the ghost shield which made the ghost's powers null. Without the ghost shield the unit was essentially a lockless, glass box and unsurprisingly Phantom just walked out of it. Just another way he'd screwed up "I'm not a very good ghost hunter, am I?"

Phantom said nothing in response as Danny kept looking down. He stewed in silence, in self pity. He felt the air in front of him shift. The ghost probably just left. That was fine. Danny couldn't find it in himself to be angry about Phantom getting away; he was just vaguely sad. Another tear fell.

Then the bed creaked and saged, the weight of someone sitting down beside him. Danny glanced over, wide eyes falling on Phantom. Phantom who was sitting not two feet from him with a sad expression.

"I'm sorry." The ghost quietly said as Danny's eyes widened farther. "I shouldn't have blamed you. It's...it's not your fault. You didn't mean for any of this, the portal, or the other ghosts….or me…. to happen. You didn't screw everything up." Phantom bit his lip. "And you are doing a good job of protecting our town."

After the quiet declaration, the two fell into silence as Danny studied Phantom's sincere expression. The boy's eyes softened as he held the ghost's gaze. Normally those eyes, they angered him or brought him pain. But not right now. He felt….something different. Something he couldn't even begin to define.

And maybe Phantom saw or felt something different too. His posture seemed to relax as the ghost turned more fully towards the human.

"Danny." Phantom started, with something quiet, soft, and heartfelt in that declaration.

Danny realized with a start that was the first time Phantom had ever said his name. So the human returned the action, feeling himself relax. "Yeah, Phantom."

The ghost gave a subtle smile. "I've never wanted to be your enemy. I think…. we've always wanted the same thing, to protect everything. And I've always hoped we could work together. So when you're ready come find me." Rising to his feet, Phantom grinned. "You're good at that."

Phantom floating up and through the ceiling. After the ghost disappeared, the human stared at the spot he had phased through. His mind swirled with a mix of thoughts and emotions, mentally going over everything Phantom had said and done today.

And one thing stood out. Instead of escaping once he realized he wasn't trapped, Phantom had apologized to Danny and even tried to comfort him. The boy sighed, putting his head in his hands. He had a lot to think about.

Two weeks later, Danny watched from a distance as Phantom fought another ghost. The ghost boy shot at a blue-skinned, box-welding ghost. Phantom shouted something, probably witty, at the other ghosts but the human couldn't make out the words. Then the ghost boy uncapped the thermos sucking in the other ghost.

With that, Danny took a deep breath before jogging forward." Phantom! Wait!"

Ten feet away, the human could see Phantom's nod in acknowledgment. "Hey."

Danny stopped and started rummaging through his bag. The ghost raised his eyebrow as the human pulled out a thermos. With his palm open, Danny held out the object.

"This is for you." The human bit his lip. "I noticed your old one is really beat up. So I thought I'd give you a new one… and I guess... you can give it to me when it's full so I can empty it…..But just so you stop sneaking into my house to get to the portal!"

Phantom's eyebrow ticked higher. "Really?"

"Yeah. Mom and Dad are working on an anti-ghost security system which they'll eventually finish if Dad stops getting distracted by making Fenton toilet paper." The human rolled his eyes at the thought.

Phantom snickered. "That sounds like something he'd do."

Danny also laughed. "Yeah." Then his lips turned down. "Anyway. I'd rather they didn't catch you." Realizing what he said, Danny blushed and then coughed to break the awkwardness. " Well…..ummm...anyway." He held the thermos up higher as Phantom floated down to his eyes level. "Here you go."

Phantom's feet touched the floor. From an arm's length away, he gently took the thermos. "Thank you." The words held a dozen emotions.

Danny rubbed his neck. "No problem. And….maybe we can..uhh.. patrol together sometime? You know, four eyes are better than two."

Phantom smiled. "I would like that." He put his right hand, the one not holding the thermos forward. "Shake on it?"

Without any hesitation, Danny grasped the ghost's hand which was cool and solid. Phantom's smiled widened as they shook hands, the grip not too tight or too loose. After, the two lingered hand in hand for several seconds until both pulled away at the same time.

With a final smile at the human, Phantom floated up and waved. "See you around, Danny."