Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Everything was falling into ruin, and it was all Danny’s fault.

Danny helped his parents as best he could, guilt motivating his actions more than anything else. Ever since he had donned that ridiculous hazmat his parents had made for him, and stepped into the portal, he had set something in motion. But at least he hadn't dies in there, but it was a close thing. Had Tucker not realized that it was still plugged in before Danny had gone inside to investigate it, he would've been a goner. He had found the button inside, and had accidentally pressed it, receiving a nasty shock instead of what could’ve been death by electrocution. Sure, he was still hurt pretty badly, but he’d live. The only effect seemed to be that Danny could always tell when a ghost was nearby, a violent chill racing down his spine whenever one was near. His parents had written it off as a side effect of the ectoplasm present in the electric current. He was a bit stealthier than before, and much quicker on his feet than he probably should be, but other than that, Danny was as human as he could possibly be.

It had been fine for the first month or so, at least until the first ghosts started finding their way through the portal. Danny remembered the first ghost attacks, even though in retrospect, they hadn’t been that bad, but they had still shot straight terror through him to the point his heart stuttered in his chest. He remembered seeing Sam in danger, held hostage by the ghost dubbed “The Lunch Lady”, enraged over something as simple and petty as a change in the lunch menu. Sam had gotten really hurt before his parents had been able to arrive and rescue her. She had been hospitalized for weeks and had slowly stopped hanging out with him and Tucker, becoming a ghost in her own way. In the times he had seen her, they'd have fierce fights, Sam saying it was unethical to hunt ghosts, simply because of what they were. Danny disagreed. That was the last time they'd spoken (she always was too kind, willing to defend just about anything, but Danny didn't want to see her get hurt again. Not when he could do something about it). The next time he’d seen her had been the Undergrowth incident, and then he could only assume she moved away since he hadn’t seen hide nor hair since. (He sincerely hoped she wasn't dead, but he'd never really know.)

Danny had taken up ghost hunting after the event with the Lunch Lady, Tucker joining him for the tech component occasionally. He had practically begged his parents to teach him to fight and equip him to be a ghost hunter, a fierce urge to protect his only friend and to make up for his horrible mistake burning in his chest. Wearing the hazmat constantly had been part of the deal, both to protect him from a potential backlash and attacks from ghosts to an extent. He had covered it up at first, embarrassed, but that eventually faded as the threat level rose constantly. Jazz disapproved of his new hobby, trying to convince him it was dangerous and he didn't have to follow in their parents' footsteps, regardless of his guilt. Danny was supposed to be a child. But to him, it didn't matter, he was doing this for his own reasons. Jazz herself grew more distant after their 15th talk of this nature.

As it turned out, Danny was really good at ghost hunting too. As he grew in skill of his own along with rumors and tales of his fights with the ghosts spread, he actually grew in popularity. It was… nice in its own way. He even got to take Paulina to Homecoming. Despite the fights and the injuries(and lack of Sam, and barely talking to Jazz anymore outside of simple things), it had been the best time of Danny’s life.

Then it got worse. Danny hadn’t been able to fight Technus at all since all of his weapons, even his specially made goggles, had been hijacked, rendering him useless. Tucker was the best friend he could’ve asked for, outplaying the tech ghost at his own game, much more familiar with Fenton tech than that ectoplasmic memory of a scientist ever could be. Then Tucker’s parents found out Tucker had been joining him in the fights. Danny had tried to tell them what a help Tucker was, Danny had his parents try too. But for the Foley’s, Amityville wasn’t safe anymore, so Tucker was forced to move away. They had still talked for a time, Tucker still worked remotely where he could, an easy compromise with his parents where he could help out and still be out of harm’s way, but it just wasn’t the same. Danny was alone now.

Then it continued to spiral. Danny couldn’t handle ghosts like Fright Knight, or Nocturne on his own, and even when his parents helped, Danny came out with more than a few broken bones. Fights like those had resulted in some pretty severe arguments between Jazz, their parents, and even himself. Jazz thought he shouldn’t be fighting, he disagreed, his parent’s encouraged it but clearly didn’t want him to get hurt in a weird sort of middle ground. There was no winning the argument. Then Jazz had decided to graduate early and offered an ultimatum, leave with her or stay. It hadn't really been a choice to him though, despite the feeling of his heart getting ripped out. He chose to stay in Amityville, or what was left of it by that point. Jazz fled to go to college, even going so far as to change her name and number. Danny hadn’t heard from her since she had left.

At some point, the school had shut down due to structural damages that weren't expected to get fixed anytime soon, and he had switched to being home schooled, his education on ghosts and weaponry becoming the very center of his life. He swore he would destroy any ghost that tried to hurt anyone in Amityville, for everything they had done to throw his life into chaos. He hadn’t agreed with his parents’ opinions at first, but now he knew. Ghosts, at the very center of their beings, were evil. They were at fault for Sam, Tucker, and Jazz leaving him. (It wasn’t his fault, no way. He was fighting. He was protecting Amityville. But he had opened the portal…)

Then the Ghost King, Pariah Dark, had stormed through the portal. There was nothing that could be done. His dad had tried, using his latest invention, the Fenton ExoSkeleton. He had ended up crippled from the energy drain, now barely able to move, but that didn't stop him from finding a way to continue fighting ghosts. His mom was starting to crumble under it all too. The stress from trying to protect and lead what was left of Amityville’s scarce population became slowly overwhelming. Danny was just trying his best.

The Ghost King’s undead army had filled Amityville in a matter of hours and had claimed it as his point of conquest to reach out to the rest of the living world. Ghosts were evil, destructive beings, and it was about to get a whole lot worse. The Fentons were already struggling to get the supplies they needed just to keep themselves and their small resistance group fed, and Danny could easily see the supplies they had left dwindling in the coming weeks.

Amityville was in ruins, people were dying and going missing all the time now. He couldn’t tell you the last time he had seen Star. Danny supposed that was why he was standing in front of the portal in the lab that was supposed to have been abandoned, deep in enemy territory, the very heart of the invasion. No one knew he was here, friend nor enemy, and Danny wasn’t so sure if he could manage to get out again.

The swirling green vortex called to him, like it always did, tugging at something deep in his chest. This was such a stupid idea. He should just shut it, cutting the ectoplasmic scum from their main source of energy. They would drain Amityville’s natural supply quickly after, then devolve, cannibalizing each other for energy, until there was nothing left and they all destabilized. Cruel but fitting for such beings. Then whatever remained could easily be picked off. It was the safer strategy.

But Danny knew he wouldn’t be able to do it. There had been the odd ghost here and there. The exceptions to the rule, not the standard. Amorpho had been helpful to an extent. The sad princess who only came to the Mortal World to retrieve her necklace, then promptly left, hadn’t really been a problem. Then the really strange ghost girl who kept referring to him as ‘cousin’, of all things, and not as a figure of speech either.

She had introduced herself as “Ellie” and knew his name and so much else about him before they even met, it was eerie. She had babbled on about timelines and dimensions like they were more than science fiction, leaving odd remarks that went clear over his head. She was only in Amityville for a day or so (he had kept an eye on her the whole time), grabbing a bacon-ranch milkshake at the Tasty Burger before she left peacefully through the Ghost Portal on her own. He had never told his parents about the strange little ghost, who seemed so familiar but also gave off that off feeling all ghosts did.

Ellie was the reason he stood here. Danny knew he shouldn’t trust a ghost, especially one he hadn’t seen in months. But she had talked about the “Infinite Realms”, and “her Danny” in just a way that made him believe her. Danny stared at the portal and wondered if he would see her again.

Danny checked his equipment, making sure all the blasters, shields, and the rest of his survival kit were safe and stocked. He secured the mask onto his face, designed to filter out the ectoplasmic air of the Ghost Zone into something safe for humans, it reminded him of a diver’s mask with the hoses connected to a storage unit he could use to recharge his weapons. Mask in place, the goggles with built-in ectoscanners and infrared, and his hood all in place, Danny could only think of one thing he could do.

Danny prayed, he wasn’t sure to who, but the word “Ancients” popped into his head, one of the strange sayings that Ellie had used.

“Ancients, please let me find someone to help us out of this shit situation,” Danny swore, then plunged into the portal.

Danny tumbled, twisted, and was flung into a green expanse, his stomach finding a new home in his throat. Danny was only able to catch glimpses of what lay on the other side of the portal. He saw the rugged black-purple islands, suspended on nothing, doors of every size and shape, staircases to nowhere, and a contorting horizon, a twist of greens in shades he hadn’t known existed. Then it was gone.

The beginning sensation repeated as Danny was flung directly into another portal. He screeched behind his gear. This was not the plan! Where was he even going?! His knees met asphalt and his mask beeped, confirming the air was safe for breathing without the risk of contamination. His suit had protected him from his fall out of what could only have been a natural portal. At the least, his knees had taken some damage from that fall. The sky above him was starry, and Danny immediately recognized where he was, but it was different somehow.

Danny picked himself and stared at the familiar place in front of him. He was on the edge of town, on the road leading straight into it, in fact, but the stars were different. There were more lights on in the city than Danny could recall recently seeing. Danny looked at the sign and realized why he felt so displaced. Seems he wasn’t in Amityville anymore, but a reflection of it.

Welcome to Amity Park

Chapter Text

Danny stared blankly at the sign for a minute, possibly even two. Park. Amity Park. Not Amityville, Amity Park. Parallel dimensions, a voice whispered inside of his head, sounding just like Ellie. Danny made sure his goggles were functioning correctly, turned on the ecto and infrared scanners, dimmed as to not impart his vision, but assist in the darkness of night, and began his walk into town, feet unable to keep up with his racing thoughts.

On the surface, everything was approximately the same. It was like a dream, a mirror of reality with only the slightest differences that gave it away. Some of the stores were different, some just had different names. However, why would anyone name a burger joint the Nasty Burger? He had no clue, but the food was exactly the same so…? He checked some flyers someone had put up, looking at the date. It was the same. So it really was an alternate timeline, not somewhere in the past or future. He had no idea that Ellie had been serious about alternate dimensions until he had thrown himself through the portal. He could almost easily see time travel now too. (He had a feeling he didn’t want to, especially of his own timeline.) His eyes caught ghost-themed merchandise and stores all over town, and he frowned. Maybe ghosts weren’t as much as a threat here? Maybe there were more hunters, or the ghosts were weaker? He even saw plushies of one particular ghost he didn’t recognize. It was… strange. Ghosts were dangerous. They shouldn’t get merch.

Out of habit, and habit alone, Danny walked home, just close enough to catch a glimpse, of the building. Physically, it was exactly how he remembered. The bright, glowing FentonWorks sign, the Opscenter on top, and even the GAV parked in the driveway. Jazz’s car was there too. Jazz was still here in this dimension. Danny wanted to see her desperately, longing for his sister burning in his chest in a way it hadn’t since the invasion had started. But there was no guarantee she was the same here. (He wondered if Tucker and even Sam still lived in this Amity.) There was a stark difference though. It didn’t feel like home. It lacked the warmth that FentonWorks always gave off, like a home was supposed to. Here, it wasn’t a home, just a building. It wasn’t his home.

Danny realized he had a new problem. He was on his own, with no money and no place to stay. Danny cursed under his breath, but a violent chill stopped him short. Ghost.

“Wow, someone needs to wash their mouth out with soap.”

Danny had an ectoblaster out in less than a second, pointed directly at the ectoplasmic scum that had dared to sneak up behind him. Even worse, his scanners lit up with an ectosignature so dense Danny had only one to compare it to. It widened its toxic green-on-black eyes, raising gloved hands in a mockery of surrender. It looked young physically, mid-teens perhaps, and vaguely human. But with pure white hair, wisping like smoke as the edges, lavender skin, ectoplasmic green freckles, pointed ears, and most likely sharpened teeth as well, there was little mistaking that it was a ghost in front of him. For some reason, it wore something he would’ve said was a Fenton hazmat suit if he hadn’t known better. In fact, it could almost be. An exact inverse of the one he wore, silver gloves and boots with a charcoal black bodysuit, a silver symbol on its chest similar to a ‘D’. It made no move to attack, and neither did Danny. He could feel it eyeing him over.

“For a newer ghost hunter, you sure are packing that Fenton tech. You a fan or something?” The ghost asked, its voice echoing like all ghosts did, buzzing inside of his head. Danny refused to speak to it.

Danny leveled his blaster and let it charge to max, and the ghost’s eye widened, its own glow mixing with the charge of the blaster. Danny’s finger was only able to brush the trigger before it was snatched out of his hand, and the blast went off in some random direction. Faster than his eyes could track, Danny found himself slammed into a wall, the breath from his lungs knocked out of him. The ghost’s eyes glowed an icy blue for a moment before returning to the standard dangerous green, its teeth bared like a feral animal. Danny’s wrists were forced above his head and bound by ice. Of course. A ghost of this level would have some sort of elemental affiliation, but it had to be ice of all things.

The ghost backed off, huffing in irritation, crossing its arms. Danny thrashed, pulling against the ice, half tempted to dislocate his hand and wrist in order to escape and wipe the post-sentient expression of its face. Danny snarled and spat at the ghost, spitting out insults and curses in one continuous breath. The ghost only looked mildly impressed.

“Ancients, calm down, will you? I’m not going to do anything.” The ghost frowned.

“What do you want?” Danny hissed, glaring at the bright glow of the ghost through his goggles, freezing cold but maxing out his ectosensor.

“Literally just to know who you are and what you’re doing so close to FentonWorks. For a ghost hunter I’ve never seen before, you’re really well-equipped. And also trying to hunt me. Don’t you know there’s been a peace treaty between me and most hunters? Even the out-of-towners know about that one,” The ghost babbled.

Danny reeled at the incredulity of the idea, a peace treaty, with a ghost. He could only see it since the one in front of him was at such a caliber that it would take the time and resources to catch and destroy. Just like it would for Pariah. Whenever he made it back home that was. But he had never met this ghost before either. If he could find the same one back in his own dimension, maybe they would have a fighting chance, even if it meant teaming up with a ghost.

“Who are you?” Danny demanded.

The ghost stared at him blankly for a minute before responding. “I’m Phantom. Who are you? I definitely haven’t seen you around before.”

“Danny Fenton.” Sure, he wasn’t the Danny of this world, but he was still Danny and that wouldn’t change.

Phantom seemed visibly startled, frowning. “No you’re not,” Phantom said with finality.

Danny huffed, “How would you know, ghost. I’ve decided to join my parents recently, which is why I’m here.”

“You’re not Danny Fenton.” Phantom hissed, and Danny glared at him.

For some reason, the stupid ghost didn’t believe he was Danny. It was even starting to show its true colors, fury in its eyes, barely contained. He considered that the ectoplasmic cold-spot could actually tell that he wasn't from this dimension, but his gut disagreed.

“Of course I am-” Danny could finish that statement as his goggles, hood, and mask were ripped off of him, tossed to the ground.

Danny yelped as they were ripped from his head, taking a chunk of his hair most likely with it. Phantom stared at him, his face going through a series of emotions. Smugness, then shock, disbelief, and then pure confusion all in the span of a second as the ghost undoubtedly recognized him.

“See, dumbass, Danny Fenton.” Danny snapped.

“You’re not Danny Fenton.” Phantom had the nerve to repeat, staring Danny directly in his eyes, “Are you one of Vlad’s?”

“Vlad? What does Mom and Dad's creep of a college friend have to do with this?. And how are you so sure I’m not Danny, anyways?” Danny snarled, well and done with this ghost. Extreme level or not, he was going to blast a hole straight through its chest for this.

Phantom floated down to the ground, and sent a quick look back towards the FentonWorks building, before resuming eye contact. Bright white rings blossomed from its waist, something he had never seen from a ghost before in his life or in his parents’ research. They split, running up and down Phantom’s form, blinding him without his goggles.

Danny blinked the spots away, and then had to adjust to the sudden lack of lighting, Phantom’s glow was gone. In its place, Danny stared back at eyes frighteningly similar to his own, except different in all the wrong ways. The skin was too pale and littered with different scars. Eyes that looked bruised from lack of sleep, hair obviously uncut and unkempt, smaller in both stature and frame, the age wasn’t quite right either, younger only physically. The lack of a hazmat suit threw him for a loop, along with a shirt he hadn’t seen in at least a year. But it was undoubtedly him.

“Because I’m Danny Fenton,” his own voice echoed back, eyes still burning that awful ectoplasmic green.

And just like that, the dream-like reality he had entered quickly became a nightmare.

Chapter Text

               Danny’s mind had devolved into a state of panicked chaos since his own doppelganger had revealed himself. He couldn’t pin down a single thought. As quickly as they came, they were replaced by another, he was thinking too much and not at all. It left him stiff, unable to do or process anything worthwhile. The ghost had grabbed his arm and was dragging him away and there was nothing he could possibly do about it. Even appearing more like a human, the ghost’s hands were ice cold, enough so he could feel them through his suit, and tight enough to leave bruises. Danny wanted to fight, he should fight, but he just couldn’t.

                Danny blankly looked at his new surroundings. It was Tucker’s house. The living room he hadn’t been inside in months. (That was a lie, he had walked through the remains of it in the aftermath of a ghost attack.) He was placed against the old, well-loved sofa and just sat there. Phantom has a sour look on his otherwise expressionless face. The expression was far too stiff, and there was no light behind those eyes. Hallow and dead, so wrong in every aspect, and Danny wanted to throw up seeing that on his own face.  

                Danny’s turbulent thoughts came to screeching halt when two people entered the room, one from upstairs, the other through the front door. Tucker looked the same as he had when he’d moved away, glasses and horrible fashion sense and all. He wanted to cry. The other, Danny thought he’d never see her again. Sam looked different than how he remembered her, her shoulder length hair pulled back into a taunt ponytail, revealing an undercut. She wore a leather jacket with patches for various movements, her plaid skirt switched out for a pair of tight black jeans with chains dangling from the waist. But despite the difference in appearance, everything else was the same. She was still here in this world, in Amity, and the three of them were together. In a sudden surge, fear pieced through him. Sam and Tucker were here! With a ghost! They were in danger!

                With a surge of adrenaline, Danny flung himself off the couch and at Phantom with a war cry, trying to pin the other down. His suit was phase proof! He should have the ghost!

                Phantom yelped as he was pushed down, hitting the floor with a dull thud, far easier to push down than a human should have been. Danny’s size advantage and surprise also helped. He grabbed the ghost’s wrists and pinned him down as hard as he could. If he could at least buy a minute or two…

                “Sam! Tucker! There’s a ghost impersonating me! Run!” Danny shouted with desperation.

                No one moved, and they all just stared at him.

                “RUN!” He pleaded.

                Nothing.

                Sam and Tucker exchanged a glance, before Sam snorted. “Oh, Mr. Evil Ghost, care to tell us why there are two of you in the middle of Tucker’s living room?”

                Danny froze in horror, and the ghost under him gave an exaggerated sigh. He looked over to Tucker in a final attempt. He was giving Danny a strange, befuddled look. It was hopeless. His grip slackened the tightest amount, and Phantom easily pushed Danny off. He landed into a sitting position, and easily sprung up back into a fighting stance. Where had Phantom but his blaster? He really needed it right now.

                “Could you calm down and behave?” Phantom hissed lowly, eyes flashing green.

                The fear and unsettling nausea returned. Danny froze, all the muscles in his body drawn taunt under the ghost’s gaze.

                Sam gestured her hand at him, and Phantom released him from his gaze, and Danny fought the urge to collapse under the relief and did his best to remain in stance.

                “I found him lurking around outside FentonWorks, then he claimed to be ‘Danny Fenton’ when I confronted him,” Phantom said, “Oh, he’s also under the impression that he’s some idiot ghost hunter.”

                “I am not an idiot, ghost scum!” Danny defended himself.

                “Ah, so a version of you that takes after your parents or something?” Tucker asked.

                “Apparently.”

                Sam walked up to Danny, boots heavy on the wood flooring. She leaned into his face, purple eyes carving picking him apart in scrutiny. He had seen her like this before, but never directed at him. It terrified him to some degree. “Okay, Not-an-Idiot-Ghost-Hunter, who are you?”

                Danny gulped, then found his spine. “I’m Danny Fenton,” he stated, “You’re being fooled otherwise by this ectoplasmic imitation.”

                Tucker whistled, “Wow… he’s really got it down.”

                Betrayal. Sam scoffed and went to recline against the wall by the door. His easiest escape blocked. At least the window was always an option.

                “It’s getting irritating. He’s already tried to shoot me, and then you got be to be witness to his next stunt. Didn’t fight me on the way over here though,” Phantom huffed.

                “You’re a ghost. You’re dangerous. I have a right and a duty to protect people from you,” Danny defended himself and his pride.

                “Do you seriously believe all ghosts are evil?” Sam asked, looking down on him from her spot.

                Danny’s own Sam had asked this same question during their fight, and it echoed through his ears. “Of--,” he almost echoed his answer too, but stopped himself short, nearly biting his tongue. Mental pictures of Ellie popped through his mind, along with the few that weren’t so bad, and often helped the ghost hunters back home. That one shapeshifting ghost who liked to play pranks, the teen biker ghosts who were just on a date, and Technus who could be easily convinced to actually help with the promise of some tech. They weren’t evil.

                “There are exceptions, but most meet the standard of being self-centered and pursuing their own gains even at the expense of others. But it doesn’t matter, all ghosts are dangerous, harmful intentions are not.”

                Sam raised a brow, “Huh, better than what I thought at least.”

                “And he’s not wrong,” Phantom added, moving to the couch, crossing his arms. The other two glanced at him. “Ghosts are dangerous, harmful intentions or not.” Danny and Phantom met eyes, “But you shouldn’t shoot first, that’s a good way to start conflict with anyone, ghost or otherwise.”

                Danny would never admit it out loud, but he made sense, except “Not when they’re intentions were to wipe you out from the very start.”

                Now all three were staring at him, with Phantom the most intently. He crossed his arms across his chest and decided to meet Phantom’s gaze in challenge this time rather than cower away from it (the longer this went on, the less his gut bothered him, and the pressure in the back of his throat, though Danny’s pretty sure his stomach just couldn’t knot any tighter at this point.)

                Sam stepped between them and cut their staring match short. “Yeah, no, not doing this again. You,” she pointed at him, “Knock-Off, yeah, explain. Now.” Same ordered.

                “Knock-Off?” Danny gasped, “I’m the human one!”

                “What do you mean by ‘wipe you out’? We haven’t had any big threat like that in at least half a year. And even then, I’ve only ever known two ghosts who even attempted to pull something like that off,” Phantom said from behind Sam.

                “You don’t mean…” Tucker trailed off.

                “No, not him. The other one.”

                Somehow, the fact that there could be another ghost out there that this group could be talking about laced terror through his veins. He wasn’t even sure if they were talking about-

               “Oh, you just mean Pariah Dark,” Tucker huffed, although it was closer to a sigh of relief.

               Danny choked, devolving into a series of coughs. Tucker was treating Pariah like he was a light-weight, Danny couldn’t believe it. “There’s someone worse than Pariah Dark?!” It came out in a high-pitched whine.

               “You’ll never have to deal with him, don’t worry, he can’t exist in your world.”

               Danny devolved into coughs again.

               “Woah, you lost me man. I thought he was a clone?” Tucker exclaimed.

               “Nope,” Phantom shrugged, “He doesn’t know Vlad, so not a clone. The age is too close, so no time-travel, and he didn’t know I was Danny, so not an elaborate prank courtesy of our resident shapeshifter either. That leaves parallel worlds, which is back up by the fact he’s human, just a bit contaminated.”  

               Danny tried to take all of that in, but found he couldn’t, it went right over his head. It was just too unbelievable. There was no way something like time-travel was a more reasonable answer to this, let alone cloning.

               “Okay, so a parallel Danny, who just happens to still be an idiot and fights ghosts,” Sam concluded.

               “Hey!” Both Phantom and Danny complained, before glancing at each other.

               “So, are you?” Tucker asked.

               “Am I what?” Danny replied.

               “From a parallel world?”

               “Yeah,” he huffed, “Where is this world’s Danny? Because there’s got to be a reason you have Phantom over there pretending to be this world’s version of me, right? Where is he?”

               The trio glanced between each other, and a horrid thought came to Danny’s mind. “He’s fine, right? He… Nothing bad happened to him, right? He’s not dead, just busy or whatever, where he can’t be here. I’m still alive in this world, right? There’s no way I could be dead, right?!” Danny’s nails tried to bite at his palms but couldn’t manage to get through the thick fabric.

               “Dead’s one way to put it,” Tucker snickered.

               And it all came crashing down. God, he was dead! Danny was dead in this world. Danny let himself slump unto the floor, unwilling and unable to hold his taunt stance any longer. He had always considered his death, especially after his first few major injuries from ghost hunting. Jazz was always so concerned. She didn’t understand why he had to. But the chance had always been there…

               “Tucker,” Sam hissed, “Read the room”.

               “What?” Tucker whined.

               “D… Danny,” Phantom spoke, and Danny met his gaze, so close to his own, but so wrong, “I… He’s not dead, not completely. I… can you tell me about the day the portal turned on? That happened in your dimension, right?”

               Danny looked at Phantom silently. He wanted to argue and snap at the ghost so bad, not only for stealing the face of Danny Fenton, but for the soft way he spoke to him. He wasn’t fragile (even if it felt like he was shattering.)

               “The portal? What about it? What does that have to do with anything?” Danny asked for clarification.

               “Please just… How did it turn on; how did that happen?”

               Danny thought for a moment. “I mean, Mom and Dad were all depressed about it not working. Tucker and Sam thought it would be cool to check it out, and I figured it was safe since it was broken. So, we went down in the lab and Sam wanted picture, but I know my lab safety, so I put on my hazmat,” Danny gestured to his current suit, he didn’t notice the intense stares of the others in the room. “I was about to go in, when Tucker saw that it was still plugged in, and unplugged it before I went in-”

               Phantom let out a sudden string of curses, none of them in any language Danny recognized, while Tucker seemed to choke on his own spit, and Sam just looked increasingly tired. “What?” Danny asked.

               “That’s where it all split off, I’m guessing. A fucking plug,” Sam cursed, gripping the bridge of her nose, hunched over herself.

               “Huh?” Danny was increasingly confused.

               “The split, from our timeline to yours. When… Danny went into the portal in this world, it was still plugged in,” Phantom explained, a pained expression on his face.

               “But that would’ve…” The pieces snapped in place. Oh. “But you said, he wasn’t dead just a second ago… no one could’ve survived that much electricity.”

               “I didn’t.”

              Danny stopped breathing, staring at his own face. Phantom… was Danny Fenton? It… He didn’t want to make sense, but there had been no divergence from the story, or hint otherwise. And the way Sam and Tucker acted around him was far too familiar for him to just be some ghost posing as Danny Fenton for a cover-up or whatever. But if he had died that day, in the lab… Danny wasn’t sure if him actually being a ghost in this dimension was better or worse than being just straight up dead.

               Phantom continued, a distant look on his face. “But somehow, I didn’t die completely. I woke up, the portal was on, but I wasn’t completely human anymore. I can switch back and forth, my heart still beats in human form. A half-ghost, in a way,” Phantom… Danny(?) said, just loud enough to be heard.

               “But…” Danny started. He wanted to claim it was impossible. But he had seen and handled the portal blueprints on so many occasions. He had even looked at them recently to figure out his way here. Mathematically, with the high content of both electricity present, and ectoenergy, anything could’ve happened if someone had been inside. A ghost forming inside of a human body, and reviving it? It wasn’t nearly as far-fetched as some of the other things he had seen from ghosts. Hell, he was in a parallel dimension right now. Fuck it.

               It started out as a choked snicker, before developing into a full cackle. A singular plug was what had changed his entire fate, and that of Amityville. An outlet. How funny was that?!

               “You… You broke him, Danny,” Tucker sputtered.

               “He also just told a ghost hunter from a parallel dimension, that he died and became Schrodinger’s dumbass,” Sam snarked back.

               “Oh, that makes sense.”

               Danny managed to reign in his laughter to ask another question. “I bet that was quite the surprise for mom and dad, huh? First ghost they meet is their own son,” he managed to chuckle out before going back to his fit.

               When no one responded after a while, Danny glanced around, they weren’t meeting his gaze.

               “Don’t tell me they don’t know,” Danny huffed. He knew his parents were a bit airheaded and oblivious at times, but they had to know their own son was a ghost. Phantom had to be setting off all of their equipment and alarms. Especially with an ectosignatures like his own.  (To be such a strong being, Danny couldn’t imagine what it must be like, even though Phantom was sitting right in front of him.)

               “Guess I’m not saying a thing then…” Phantom half-heartedly joked.

               “No way. Don’t you still live there?” Danny asked.

               “Yeah.”

               “And they don’t know?”

               “Nope.”

               “Why?”

               “How would your parents react to you being a ghost? Would they accept you? Would they try to experiment on you? If you were the first ghost they’d ever met, while also believing that all ghosts were evil, would you really tell them?” Phantom pushed.

               Danny had to think, and found he had no excuse. That’s exactly what he would’ve done in the same situation. (He had never told his parents he was the one to turn on the portal in his own world, why would it be any different here?)

               “Probably not, no.”

               Danny glanced at Phantom once more. This is what he could’ve become. The potential was there. He could’ve been a ghost. But he wasn’t sure he wanted that. He enjoyed being human, powerless and with a beating heart in his chest, right alongside his family. When Danny thought about the FentonWorks he had seen here, how cold it had felt, even though there were a lot more of the people he cared for in this version of Amity, it hadn’t been a home. No, Danny was happy he wasn’t a ghost. He loved his parents, and from the sound of it, Phantom had troubles with his. Danny couldn’t do that to them (especially when he thought of them now, with his Mom overstressed and Dad crippled. He hoped they were okay.)

               “We’ve gotten off topic!” Sam announced, “I’m glad you’ve gotten over your existential crisis, but we still need to know why the hell you’re here.”

               “Oh,” Danny realized, “Yeah. Pariah Dark’s claimed most of the city, and we don’t know how long we have left. I met a ghost, and she claimed her cousin was really strong and would be able to help us.”

               “Two things? Pariah? That was over a year ago for us, has he been around for so long? And I’ve only met one ghost who’s referred to me as cousin. Are you talking about Ellie?” Phantom asked.

               “Yeah! She was actually pretty neat for a ghost. Talked about her cousin a lot. But… Pariah’s been attacking for just over a month now. He’s taken most of the city, and we’re not even sure how many people are left in there. We have a resistance, but… we’ve been closed off for a while now. Supplies and morale are desperately low.”

               “Who knew Ellie added dimension jumping to her travel itinerary?” Tucker smiled.

               Phantom also had a soft smile at the mention of the young ghost girl, but it quickly hardened as he mulled over the information Danny had given him.

               “No,” Sam decided. “Yeah, that sucks, but we can’t help you.”

               All three boys turned to her.

               “We’re dealing with another dimension’s problems here. And frankly we don’t have the capabilities for it. This isn’t our problem. Danny… no. I know that look. No,” Sam all but ordered.

               Phantom had a glint to his eye, appearing livelier than he had the entire rest of the night. “He wouldn’t have made it here if we weren’t meant to help.”

               “Danny…”

               “No one else. Just me. I’ll go, you all cover for me here. If it’s Pariah, I can handle it. I’m a lot stronger than I was a year ago,” Phantom claimed.

               “There’s no convincing you otherwise?” Tucker tried. Sam gave him a sharp look.

               “You know I have to, now.”           

               “Are you sure?” Sam pushed, urgency in her tone. “Are you sure you’ll be fine? You know I don’t like this and will come after you if you don’t come back, right?”

               “Of course.”

               Danny doubted himself for a moment. He was taking someone away from their home to help him defend his. It felt wrong, but it also felt like he no longer had a say in the matter.

               “Okay, fine,” Sam relented. “But you’re going to need supplies. A ton of it. Medical, food, weaponry. I’ll gather up what I can, and then you can be on your way. And make sure Knock-Off over there gets some rest. You might not be human, but he is like the rest of us and needs rest.”

               Danny’s eyes widened and Phantom let out a small laugh. “This works for me! Thanks a bunch, Sam.”

               Sam huffed, a small smile playing at her own lips (Danny missed his Sam), before she left with a wave, already on her phone ordering medical supplies and rations galore.

               “Hey, Other-Danny?” Tucker addressed him directly.

               “Yeah?”

               “You good here? My parents aren’t home, so you can raid the fridge and shower or whatever. I’m sure we can find some clothes that fit you or whatever so you can at least rest up while our Danny finishes his patrol before getting some rest himself,” Tucker offered, though a strong side glance was directed at Phantom who stuck his tongue out.

               Danny grinned wide. “It’s been ages since I’ve had a warm shower. Also, your fridge is now doomed.”

               (He missed his Tucker too.)

               Phantom gave a small smile and a wave before he was washed over in white light, returning to his ghost form. Danny took in all he could before he flew off. Purple skin, bright white hair, tapered ears, sharp teeth, toxic green eyes (much more alive than any other ghosts he had ever seen, he realized), and that soft white glow all ghosts seem to share. His hazmat was the same as Danny’s own, just inversed in colors, just like his counterpart. Danny wondered if he would look just like that as a ghost too.

               Tucker dragged him around his empty house, a smile on his face that felt a little too sad and forced to be genuine, but once Danny had stripped and gotten in the shower, he found he couldn’t care less. With a belly full of leftover meatloaf, and a warm place to sleep, it was the best rest Danny had in years.

               Danny stood beside Phantom in ghost form, a large pack secured to both of their shoulders, although Phantom’s contained most of the heavy things. His gear had been cleaned and repaired to the best of their ability, along with adding to his arsenal of weapons. With his goggles and hood secured onto his face, Danny had a moment of déjà vu as he stood in the echo of his parent’s lab before the swirling abyss of the portal.  (Danny was also trying to push off the dreams he had last night. They had all been different versions of the day he’d turned on the portal, but Tucker never unplugged it, or it hadn’t mattered. He dies in the end and becomes a ghost each time. Sometimes, his parents were even in the lab with him, pointing a gun at his head despite his pleadings. Sometimes he was the one holding the gun.) With a heavy breath, Danny readjusted the bag on his shoulders.

               “Ready?” Phantom asked.

               His own outfit had been slightly modified as well. Phantom’s gloves and boots were switched out for gauntlets and armored boots in a bright silver, with a light plated armor covering the rest of his body and joints, the plates a dark metal that shared the ghost’s glow. There was also a cape, in a deep blue, with what Danny could’ve sworn were stars. Phantom had the hood pulled up and secured to his head with a circlet of ice. He looked regal in a way only a ghost could. He looked strong. Danny felt anything but.

               “Of course,” Danny claimed with faux confidence.

               “Then let’s hop to it.”

               Phantom held out his hand, and Danny took it. It was still as cold as ice.

               Phantom dragged him through the portal, and Danny reacquainted himself with the weightlessness that came from going through the portal, and just like the first time, he was immediately swallowed by a second one. But he was ready for it. Danny landed square on his feet, while Phantom floated softly to the ground.

               What he hadn’t been expecting was the chaos of an active war zone.  

Chapter Text

The taste of ash on his tongue was familiar enough to Danny after the past month or so, probably even before then, if he was being honest. With the amount of destruction Amityville was constantly under, there was an eternal layer of it on the ground, which only ever bothered the few living that remained, but he would prefer it not to be in his lungs. The disorientation of the portal, combined with the sudden lungful of ash, spawned a coughing fit with enough force that it shook his entire body. Danny practically heaved, trying to steady his vision and make out just what was going on. 

Icy metal was suddenly placed on his lower back, and through tear-filled goggles, Danny just managed to make out the blurry form of Phantom, standing nearby, face indecipherable. 

“Hack your lungs out later, we need to get to cover,” Phantom said, gently shoving him, seemingly unbothered by both the portal travel and the cloud they had kicked up on entry. 

Danny swallowed, mouth several degrees drier than it had been before the portal, and snatched a hold on Phantom’s other gauntlet. “Follow me, then.”

This was his world, he was in charge now. Phantom had agreed prior to follow his lead, though Danny didn't know how far that extended. He had a feeling Phantom wasn't going to be following orders, at the very least. Danny moved as fast as he could, jumping over debris as he tried to figure out where the portal had spat them out. He kept half an eye on Phantom, watching the ghost's lack of reaction carefully. Whatever it was he was thinking, Phantom clearly wanted to keep it to himself. It turned out they weren’t too far from the old movie theater. They had to shut it down after a concert of Ember's and the following fight had destabilized the whole building. 

“We’ve got to get to Casper High, that’s where we’ve been bunkering,” Danny said. 

“Is it still off Main Street and Linden Drive?” Phantom asked. 

Danny nodded. 

“Want me to fly us there?” Phantom offered. 

Danny paused, considering it. He didn’t truly trust Phantom, alternate version of himself or not. But they were limited on time, and there were some people who desperately needed some of the medical supplies Sam had given them. 

“Drop me and I’ll hunt you down myself,” Danny threatened. 

Phantom was all sharp teeth under his hood. “I wouldn't dream of it.” 

Danny was barely prepared for the sudden arm wrapped around his torso, the chill of the metal gauntlet seeping through his hazmat, or the weightlessness that instantly attempted to force the utilitarian breakfast he had scrounged at Tucker’s out of him. He clung shamelessly to Phantom, hissing curses under his breath. 

Phantom had the audacity to snicker, a large, mischievous smile on his face that Danny recognized from the mirror. It made him pause, eyes wide under his goggles. The uncanny feeling Danny was constantly fighting with him wasn’t as bad when Phantom was actually a ghost, especially with the icy-prickling sensation at the back of his throat. But little things, like their mirror grins, kept reminding him that they were the same person in the back of his head. Ellie’s Danny had died in the portal, and a half-ghost or whatever Phantom had called himself was still a ghost in his book. 

“Welcome aboard the Phantom Express, currently en route to Casper High School. Please keep your head, arms, legs, blasters, and various other things secured to your person at all times,” Phantom announced. 

Danny wanted to smack him. “Stay close to the ground or you’re going to get shot.” 

“Got it. Ruin all my fun,” Phantom huffed. “Actually hold tight, though.”

Danny did just that, though he unfortunately ended up more in a princess carry than he would like to admit. With Phantom’s armor, it certainly didn’t help, but between the wind chill and Phantom's armor, Danny felt like he was freezing. But the damned ghost moved fast, darting around corners and bypassing their carefully set up checkpoints with ease. Considering how much stuff they were both carrying, and then the pounds of gear Danny himself was wearing, it was both scary and impressive. It filled him with a sense of bitterness at just how easily Phantom could get past it all. Did their defenses mean nothing? How strong was Phantom? (How strong could he have been, if the portal had been plugged in? Could he have prevented all of this with his own sacrifice?) 

When he finally caught sight of the shimmering ghost shield over Casper high, a tension Danny didn’t know he was holding released. He was back, he had made it back, despite the high risk of his mission overall. He had brought help, as uncertain as he was about Phantom. Phantom seemed so confident he could beat Pariah Dark, but Danny doubted it would be an easy fight. The ghost hadn’t told him how he had done it, just that Pariah Dark in their world was no more.

Phantom touched down just around the corner, hidden from direct view of the school. Danny was thankful to be on solid ground again, practically stumbling until he could support himself on a wall. He was perfectly happy to ghost-hunt from the ground, thank you. 

“Do you… intend to go in?” Danny asked, he hadn’t thought about how Phantom could get through the shield. 

Phantom shrugged, “I mean, yeah? Why wouldn’t I?”

Danny frowned. “There’s a ghost shield,” Danny said, pointing out the obvious. 

Phantom grinned. Danny didn’t like that. “Don’t worry about it.”

“If you break our shield, I’m going to shoot you,” Danny threatened.  

Phantom’s grin stayed in place as he transformed back, now dressed in a dark hoodie, old jeans, and a Fenton-patented gas mask to cover his face (thankfully). Between the hood and the mask, he was unrecognizable. It would be weird if two Danny Fentons were running around. Luckily, he still had his supply bag. He held his hand out and gave a small bow. 

“There. Am I human enough now?” Phantom asked, voice muffled by his mask. 

Danny crossed his arms. “You’re still a stranger,” he pointed out. 

“A stranger you were sent to get help from,” Phantom countered.

Danny could probably work with that. He had influence over enough of their resistance group that if he vouched for Phantom, no one should try to kick him out, especially if they stayed together. Danny didn't want to let Phantom out of his sight anyway. Would he be questioned on bringing a stranger? Definitely, but Danny was certain enough he could explain Phantom’s presence away for long enough for him to go fight Pariah Dark. Phantom only needed to handle that major threat. Danny was determined to take down a few of the bigger threats himself. He refused to let the ghost do all the work. 

“Fine,” Danny conceded. “But follow my lead,” Danny reaffirmed.  

“Your dimension, your rules. I know. I’m just here to hit Dark real hard.” 

Danny sighed heavily at Phantom’s nonchalance before swallowing thickly, trying to clear his mouth from the taste of ask from his tongue. Phantom was another version of himself. Danny just wished he had half of his confidence.  

Danny did not like this alternate universe. Between the vague texture of ash on his tongue and the heavy presence of Pariah Dark in the air, it kept him tense. His carefree attitude was a mask easily slipped into, more out of habit than to hide his tension from his alternate, who he had mentally dubbed just Fenton (it suited him more than it ever did Danny himself). Amity was just different enough that it kept throwing him off. It was a good thing he had intangibility, because otherwise he would've thrown them both into several buildings that Danny could've sworn were several feet out of place. 

It was worse going through the halls of a Casper High turned fortress. Danny recognized the halls and the classrooms, but the color of the walls was just off enough for him to notice. There was also the fact that the whole building was repurposed as a combination of shelter and fortress. Vaguely familiar adults were decked out in ghost-hunting gear, and nearly every person older than 13 had some form of ectoblaster on them. He was technically in enemy territory if Fenton’s aggression towards ghosts was a reflection of general biases, rather than just the Fenton Signature. They sent him suspicious looks, but no one stopped them as Fenton led him through the halls to a space he recognized as the cafeteria. Fenton carried a respect from people that Danny never had himself.   

Danny paused, blinking at the sight of someone familiar. Mr. Lancer with a full head of hair was not on his bingo card for this excursion. He had a clipboard covered in papers, muttering to himself as he managed the boxes stacked up in various piles all around the cafeteria. Fenton approached and talked with him, then passed over his backpack. He waved Danny over and he mimicked the action, relinquishing his backpack of supplies. 

Mr. Lancer immediately began emptying out the bags with desperate enthusiasm, eyes lighting up and dotted with tears of relief. It was just a mish-mash of general things. Sam knew what people would prefer to be donated and had prepared the disaster supply bags herself. Blankets, toiletries, medications of all sorts, general first aid kits, batteries, nonperishable foods, etcetera. Danny didn’t even know how she had fit so much in each of those bags. Mr. Lancer looked about to cry over it all.

“Mr. Fenton… this is fantastic. But how, or rather where, did you get this? Did you manage to find outside help?” Mr. Lancer asked, sending a pointed look at Danny. “And… who is this?” 

Fenton looked like he was going to answer for him, but Danny didn’t let him. “My name’s James. A mutual friend of ours sent me to help out along with the supplies,” Danny said.

Only partially a lie. They both knew Ellie, but it had been Sam who sent the supplies. Also, his name wasn’t James, but Danny knew better than to let other people give him names. He also hoped that the gas mask would muffle his voice enough for it to be unrecognizable. Mr. Lancer did not need to realize that there were now two of his most troublesome student (probably consistent across all realities). His own version had lost enough hair as it was, he wouldn’t want to subject this version to the same fate. 

“Well, James, thank you. These supplies will save lives here,” Mr. Lancer said sincerely. 

Danny nodded, despite the lump in the back of his throat. Things were really that bad here, weren’t they? He was glad he came, even if he had to witness another apocalyptic version of Amity. He had to reassure himself that he could save what was left of this one, and that he had prevented the other. He wasn’t too late, despite the weight on him from Pariah’s presence, and the blanket of death slowly growing heavier over Amity. It wasn’t too late, he just had to remember that. 

“Mr. Lancer, you’ll deal with the handling of the supplies, right? I want to go report to Mom and Dad,” Fenton asked. 

“Of course, they’ve been worried. Go see your parents.” 

Fenton nodded, and Danny followed after him, giving Mr. Lancer a small wave as he left. 

From the cafeteria, they made their way back through the school towards what was undoubtedly the chemistry labs. Fenton had probably never been banned from those. His presence was barely past the level of liminality, and not nearly enough to develop any abilities outside of his weak ghost-sense. He was human in all the ways Danny had almost forgotten he used to be. Most of all, he was his parents’ son. 

Danny vaguely wondered how different the Fenton parents in this dimension were. They still seemed to care about Fenton, but that could just be because he got into ghost hunting with them. His own parents rarely left the lab nowadays, unless they were out in the GAV, hunting. (Maybe it was because Danny wasn’t human, and Fenton was, that his own didn’t care anymore).

Fenton knocked on the door before entering. Danny didn’t follow him in, but lurked on the wall just outside. He wasn't sure he could bare seeing a version of himself and his parents getting along. They greeted his alternate enthusiastically, joy, and relief in their tone. They asked where he had been and fussed over his state and the state of his gear. Fenton responded in kind. Danny swallowed the lump of his jealousy and the tinge of bitterness. He shouldn’t be jealous. Fenton didn’t have Sam, Tucker, or even Jazz anymore. His Amity was in ruins, and people had died. It was a trade-off, a wicked one. 

Danny took a deep, resolving breath. He came here for a purpose, not to peer at a life he could never have. It wasn’t good for him to stick around here regardless. This was enemy territory, after all. The sooner he got a move on, the sooner Fenton could go back to his life, and Danny could get on with his afterlife. 

The longing in the back of Danny’s throat was thick and sour as he pried himself away from the wall and left, slipping into invisibility to avoid being spotted unaccompanied on his way out. He had a ghost king to beat up for a second time.