Danny Phantom - The Next Chapter

An Adjustment Period

The others had given Jazz the rundown of what had happened on their way home from school. At first she was shocked that Danielle had come back, but then she became concerned that the Guys in White might somehow find a loophole in their agreement and come after them all yet again. But her worries eased when they hurried upstairs and found Danny sitting against the wall doing his homework, looking no worse for wear.

‘Are you alright?’
Jazz demanded, quickly kneeling at his side.

‘I’m fine,’ he replied, ‘A little stressed, but no more than usual.’

‘So what happened?’ Sam asked, sitting down alongside him.

Danny shrugged and nodded towards the closed door.

‘She just wanted my help in scaring away the Guys in White and tried to leave again but I convinced her to stay for a bit so we can keep an eye on her and keep her safe. I really want her to stay here but I don’t know how I can convince her without making it seem like we’re imprisoning her.’

Jazz frowned. From a psychological standpoint, she could see the issue. From what Danny had told her, Vlad had created Danielle to be his perfect clone, but he never saw her as her own person, just a tool to be used. She never had any real sense of freedom until she escaped and explored the world on her own. But that was a dangerous situation to be in for any kid, never mind the fact that she had ghost powers. She understood why Danny wanted to keep her close. But on the other hand, she felt a strange twinge of jealousy. The way Danny was so protective of Danielle, someone who was practically a stranger to the rest of the family… but she shook those thoughts away. It was silly for feel jealous, Jazz was Danny’s older sister, she always would be. This didn’t change that at all.

‘Well you don’t need to worry about her sneaking out,’ Tucker said, also taking a seat and pulling his laptop from his bag. ‘I’ve got access to the entire city’s surveillance network so if she goes anywhere, we’ll know.’

‘She’s not a prisoner, Tucker!’ Danny sighed, ‘I don’t want her to feel like she can’t leave the house or anything. I just want her to be safe. There’s people and ghosts out there that would love to come across her alone and I don’t want that kind of trouble to catch her without someone there to help.’

Jazz sighed heavily and rose to her feet again. ‘It looks like we’ve all got some thinking to do. I’ll see if I can come up with a good approach from a psychological standpoint.’

Danny frowned up at her for a moment, and she felt a sudden jolt as she wondered if he was reading her innermost thoughts, but after a moment he nodded and she excused herself.

The moment she was alone in the solitude of her room, she slumped, the tension that had been weighing down on her finally seeming to catch up. She’d get around to doing some research for Danny. But right now she just wanted to be alone with her thoughts. She flopped down heavily on her bed and stared up at the ceiling as she tried to pin down exactly what she was feeling. She loved Danny with all her heart. She’d do anything to protect him, to help him, and she knew the rest of the family would do the same. And she knew that he loved her just as fiercely, so why was she feeling so uncomfortable with the idea that Danielle might be staying?

Jazz had only met her once before and she had saved Danny’s life. If anything, she should be ecstatic that she was back again. Someone who would do so much for her brother should be welcomed with open arms. And yet…

A quiet knock at the door made her look up and she quickly grabbed some of her books to have the appearance of researching. A moment later, Danny eased the door open and poked his head inside. Jazz insisted her use the door instead of phasing through it, as a courtesy more than anything. He actually surprised her by listening.