The Phantom Anomaly

Chapter Two

Danny feels surprisingly happy after school that day. He had managed to stay awake in all of his classes, and as a result, he has most of his homework done.

Sam notices the bounce in his step and smiles lovingly up at him. Tucker walks beside them, but his face is buried in his PDA as he searches for possible reasons why the ghosts didn't show today.

They reach the Fenton's house, and Danny's eyes light up.

"Jazz is home!" He shouts when they see the teal car sitting in front of the house.

He runs inside, and the two friends follow with a smile. Inside, Danny is hugging his older sister and slightly glowing, like he does when he is really happy.

"Danny, ghostly aura." Jazz warns, but she is smiling just as much.

"Oh. Whoops." Danny chuckles, concentrating. The glow disappears. "Why are you home?"

"It's Thanksgiving break for me." Jazz says. "When do you get off?"

Danny glances back at his friends, confused.

"Tomorrow is the last day for us." Tucker answers.

"I didn't even know it was November." Danny admits, rubbing the back of his neck. "I've been dating my papers wrong today."

Sam chuckles and walks up to hug Jazz. The two laugh about Danny's cluelessness.

"All right, I get it." Danny says, his hands up in surrender. "I'm an idiot."

"You sound tired Danny. Long night?" Jazz asks.

"Better than normal." Danny answers vaguely, glancing towards the basement door.

"Oh, mom and dad are gone already." Jazz says when she sees his expression.

"Already?" Danny asks, raising an eyebrow.

"They didn't tell you?" Jazz asks. "They're leaving for a week."

"I had no clue." Danny says. "They didn't even call me."

Jazz frowns. "Well, we should call them tonight. I have a few things to say to them." She says firmly, stopping all complaints in their tracks. "For now, though, you should sleep while you can. You look exhausted."

Danny's eyes widen in distress.

"Go on, Danny." Sam says, pushing him towards the stairs. "We'll be right down here if you need us."

Danny gives in. "Wake me up before dinner."

"Gotcha covered, man." Tucker says, looking up from his PDA for the first time.

Danny heads upstairs, but the other three head to the couches to talk.

"He had a terrible nightmare last night, Jazz." Sam says in a hushed voice. Tucker puts down his PDA. "I heard him muttering, and then he started whimpering. Whimpering! I've never heard him so upset. It took me nearly ten minutes to wake him up, and even then I'm not sure it was me. He woke up screaming."

Jazz bites her lip. "In class this week we were learning about PTSD and its many forms. Danny has been through a lot these past few years, especially for someone with a growing mind. It's possible that he is developing problems with stress."

"How do we help him?" Tucker asks.

"If his nightmares continue this way, then we'll have to figure out a way to snap him out of them. If he starts showing symptoms during the day, then we'll..." Jazz trails off, thinking.

The other two wait patiently for her to form her thoughts.

"My freshman essay was about distractions, and how they help your mind fix itself during a panic attack. If we can find a distraction for Danny, then maybe that can help him." Jazz says.