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Danny pulled up his ghost files on his PC, and clicked the first ghost that came up alphabetically. “Alright, so we know all ghosts feed on emotions. Let’s start from the top. What about Amorpho?”
“Well, he likes to pull pranks. And he wants recognition, right? So let’s go with attention,” said Sam, who was sitting cross-legged on Danny’s bed.
Tucker sat on the floor, tapping on the screen of his PDA. “Yeah, that sounds about right to me.”
“Is attention an emotion?” Danny asked. “Eh, it’s close enough. Moving on. Bertrand?”
“Hmmm. I think he feeds on misery, just like Spectra does,” said Tucker.
Danny typed it into his notes and moved on. “The Box Ghost?”
“Are boxes an emotion?” Sam asked sardonically.
“Ha ha, no. I think it’s pretty clear his thing is fear. Considering all the ‘ fear me! ’” Danny waved his hands in the air in a mockery of the Box Ghost.
He clicked through to the next page. “Clockwork? Hmm. That’s a complicated one.”
“Uhhhhh…” Sam and Tucker were just as stumped as Danny.
When his friends provided no input, Danny said, “We’ll come back to him. Cujo?”
Sam smiled. “He’s a good dog. He loves to be praised and treated with affection. It’s gotta be that.” Danny nodded and added it to his list.
They continued for some time, jotting down emotions for each ghost in Danny’s files.
Sam laid on the bed, staring at the ceiling. “Are we done yet? We’ve been at this for ages.”
“Almost. Next up is Vortex,” Danny said, clicking forward a couple pages.
Tucker cocked his head. “You’re going alphabetically, shouldn’t Vlad be next?”
Danny nodded. “Yeah, but I skipped him. He’s half ghost, we don’t absorb emotions like full ghosts do.”
“Riiight,” Sam said, raising an eyebrow. “Didn’t Vlad have that whole epiphany about how during his whole quest for power, all he wanted was love? Is love not an emotion?”
Danny grimaced. “I guess, but that’s a pretty human thing to do, right? It’s not like I feed on emotions either.”
Tucker looked up from his PDA to catch Danny’s eye. “Dude. Why do you fight ghosts? Why do you save people?”
“Um, because they would be in danger if I didn’t?” Danny furrowed his brow in confusion.
Sam caught on to Tucker’s train of thought. “It feels good, though, right? The appreciation and admiration from your fans?”
Danny squirmed in his seat. “Yeah, I mean, I guess. I do get kind of a rush from it.”
“We can tell,” said Tucker. “You light up when people thank you for saving them.”
“Literally,” Sam added. “You could blind me with the glow.”
Danny’s face turned bright red.
Sam and Tucker laughed. “We’re just giving you shit, bro,” Tucker reassured him.
“You have a point though,” Danny admitted. “It does feel good to save people. And it feels good for people to appreciate everything I do, especially considering how public opinion of Phantom has been in the past. But that’s pretty normal, right? Who wouldn’t be happy when their work is acknowledged?”
“Yeah, but does it make you feel more powerful? More energetic?” Sam asked.
“...Yeah,” Danny said. “It does. You really think I’m feeding on people’s emotions?”
Sam and Tucker nodded. “But there’s nothing wrong with that!” Sam said. “It’s normal, for ghosts. And you are a ghost, even if you’re also human. It’s not like it’s hurting anyone.”
“I guess you’re right,” Danny said. “I’m just glad you guys don’t think it’s weird.”
“I mean, it is weird,” Tucker said. Sam uncrossed her legs and dangled them off the bed, kicking Tucker in the side. “Ow! What? I’m just telling it like it is. Ghost powers are gonna be weird, man. That just comes with the territory. It’s not a bad thing.”
Danny laughed. “Thanks guys. So… what’s the specific emotion I’m eating? I don’t think it’s admiration, it’s not like I’m doing this for fame. I like being appreciated, but it can’t just be that.”
Sam looked at Danny thoughtfully. “Maybe you’re feeding off your human half’s own emotions as well. Like, the feeling of accomplishment when you capture a difficult ghost.”
“Huh. Didn’t think about that,” Danny said. “So you think the rush of ghost hunting and the appreciation I get when I save people is what fuels my ghost half? But… I’m not ghost hunting anymore, remember? I mean, a little bit, but I want to be the bridge between worlds. I want to help people and ghosts.”
“So, the sense of accomplishment when you help them, then. That’s like, your whole thing ,” said Tucker.
“Yeah, so knowing that you’re helping someone – ghost or human – is probably what causes that rush and gives you energy,” said Sam.
Danny sighed. “Yeah, that sounds about right,” he said. “Looks like I learned something today. Against my will, but to be fair, that probably applies to most things I learn.” Danny chuckled, then his eyes widened. “Oh no. I’ll have to tell Jazz. She’s gonna be insufferable about it.”
Footsteps sounded in the hallway before Danny’s open bedroom door swung inwards. “Tell Jazz what?” said Jazz.
At once, Sam and Tucker said, “Bye Danny! See you tomorrow!” before squeezing past Jazz and running down the stairs.
Danny held his head in his hands. “Guess I’m finishing this list on my own. Come on in.” He paused for a moment then sat up, looking Jazz in the eye as she got comfortable on his bed. “So we were making this list of ghosts…”