I just didn't feel that this type of fic would be complete without a chapter devoted to Vlad's lab accident, so if you really don't feel like reading it, the original stuff starts next chapter.

Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom!

"I'm telling you Jack, it won't work!" Vlad Masters exclaimed to his roommate and college buddy, Jack Fenton. The two of them had been inseparable ever since they had found out that they were both interested in becoming ghost hunters when they grew up.

"Bogus, V-man, it totally will!" Jack replied. His large form was hunched over the proto-portal that he and his two friends had been working on. He wore a lab coat over a bright orange jumpsuit, with black edges that matched his long black hair. Vlad also was wearing a lab coat, except his covered a yellow shirt with a white stripe across the middle. "This portal is sure to bust a hole into the ghosts dimension," he said, moving over to the master control switch as Vlad leaned in to look at the metallic, circular device.

The third member of the group, Maddie Brown, a redhead who wore her lab coat over a pink blouse and a matching skirt, walked over to the calculations for the portal, which were right next to where Jack was standing. She was at the top of their class, really brilliant. Vlad was in the middle of the pack intelligence-wise, but Jack, being a bit of a bumbler, barely managed to pass his final exams every year. That's why they had her looking over the calculations, to make sure that everything was done correctly. Vlad looked at the two of them next to each other and felt a twinge of jealousy. He knew that both he and Jack were in love with her, but that they were both too afraid to tell her. Besides, both of them knew deep down that they didn't want to risk ruining their close friendship over a girl. He turned his attention back to the portal.

"Jack," Maddie suddenly spoke up, "these calculations aren't right." Unfortunately for him, Jack was too excited over the prospect of finally achieving his dream of building a gateway into the spectral plane to hear her.

"Banzai!" he yelled, as he threw both joysticks on the switch into forward. Vlad watched as a green ball of light formed in the center of the metallic ring. Suddenly, the ball began to expand rapidly. Once it reached the edges of the portal, a massive blast of energy emanated from the device, blasting Vlad in the face.

"Boguuuuuus!" he screamed, as his molecular structure was literally altered by the ghost energy. The ectoplasm-powered battery ran out of juice, and the portal died down. Vlad stumbled over to his two friends, his hands covering his face. They gasped as he stood up and removed them. His face was disfigured by dozens of ghostly zits, and his hair had been turned from ebony to snow-white. He noticed his reflection in a large mirror that had been set up by a graduate student aspiring to be a laser technician, and fainted. Jack picked him up and ran him over to the infirmary, with Maddie following him as fast as she could.