The Phantom Anomaly

Chapter Twelve

When the trio steps out from Danny's closet, they glance at each other. Without a word, all three teenagers collapse onto Danny's bed, a tangle of limbs and bags. They lie there in complete silence, absorbing everything that has happened.

Then, Danny lets out a chuckle. That's all it takes. The three of them break out into laughter, growing louder and more absurd as they go.

"You have a...and you can..." Sam says between heaving breaths. She is unable to finish as her laughter takes over.

Tucker tries, with barely any more success. "You're..." He stutters through a syllable, laughs, then gives up. "....king...."

"Danny?" Jazz's voice calls from downstairs. Sam and Tuck don't seem to hear. They keep laughing, even as Danny phases through them and the bed. He lands in front of his sister.

"Hey, Jazz. We just got back..." he starts, but her expression halts his breath. "What's wrong?"

"Mom and Dad." Jazz says. At his horrified look, she raises her hands. "No, nothing like that. They're fine. More than fine, actually. That's the problem. They finally answered my calls, and they told me where they were."

Danny hadn't known that they were even leaving the house. He had assumed that was his fault, for not remembering when they told him, or for not being around the house enough for them to be able to. But he had assumed that they had told Jazz where they were going.

"They didn't tell you before they left?"

"No." Jazz says. "And now I know why. They were at a ghost conference, Danny."

His heart sinks. "I'm guessing they weren't at a conference with ghosts."

Jazz shakes her head, her gaze sympathetic. "No. It's pretty much our worst nightmare. Hunters and scientists, all in one place. All talking about how to get rid of ghosts."

Danny bites his lip. That's not good. In the past, Jack and Maddie Fenton had considered themselves alone in their field of research. They had never consulted any 'ghost hunting amateurs' before. For them to go to a conference, they must have wanted to find like-minded people. The worry, though, is that their already poor opinions of ghosts will be worsened by their conversations with other hunters.

"How long is the conference?" Danny asks.

"Well, that's the thing. They only told me where they were because the conference is extending. It was originally only going to be a week, but they had a breakthrough, and now it will be almost two weeks." Jazz explains with a grimace.

Danny inhales sharply. A 'breakthrough' could mean anything. A weapon. A false hypothesis. A way to create ghosts. A way to destroy them. A way to discover his identity....

"Danny." Sam's voice suddenly cuts through his panic. His fingers twitch, and he recognizes the pattern of Cat's Cradle. "There you are."

His eyes fixate on the string between their fingers. Purple. Sam. Safe. His eyes trace upwards, until he finds Sam's eyes. Purple. Sam. Safe.

"It's okay, Danny." Sam says, smiling. Danny takes a deep breath, then disentangles their fingers from the string. He puts a hand on Sam's cheek.

"Thank you, Sam."

He takes another deep breath, then turns to Jazz. "Thank you for telling me. Now, at least, I'm prepared, mentally."

"I'll keep prodding them for details." Jazz says. "I'll be driving back to campus tomorrow, but I'll stay in contact. And I'll be back in a few weeks for Christmas break."

"You're the best, Jazz." Danny says, hugging his sister.

"I know." She replies, smugly. "Also, Danny...you're freezing."

"Um, not to interrupt, but.....Danny, I think I left Cheryl in your lair."

"In his what?!?!" Jazz asks. At the same time, Danny reaches to his right, and his hand disappears into a green mist.

"His lair. The Phantom Castle." Sam replies. Her tone is sympathetic. Sam, at least, had a few days to absorb all of this new information. Jazz is getting bombarded with mind-blowing facts.

"We are not calling it that." Danny says. His hand is still inside of the portal. He seems to be struggling to find the PDA. Jazz won't stop staring at the spot that her brother's arm has disappeared. "Tuck, where did you put it?"

"She should be in my room. On the desk, maybe?" Tucker replies, then suggests, "Fort Phantom?"

"No." Danny answers shortly, pulling his arm back out of the portal. He hands the PDA - Cheryl - back to Tucker. "It's not a military base."

Jazz, recovering slightly from her shock, says the first synonym that comes to mind. "Phantom Safehold."

Danny grins. "It's perfect. I want it to be a safe haven for ghosts, humans, and halfas....so 'safehold' is the perfect way to describe it. Thank you, Jazz!"

"Now, explain to me why you suddenly developed a lair? And how you snatched Tucker's PDA out of thin air? And why you feel so cold?"

"Let's sit down." Sam suggests. "There is a lot to catch you up on."