Seeing Double

Rebound - Part 13

"Not another food fight!" Sam screamed, crouching down with her hands protectively curled over her head.

She wasn't the only one screaming. Food and utensils were flying around like a tornado around Dash's body and it looked like all Phantom could do was dodge.

That's all any of them could do at the moment.

"We have to move," Danny grabbed her elbow and hauled her up. "Where's Tucker?"

"It's every loser for himself, stupid!" Sam said.

Right. Not Sam.

"You're a real hero, you know that Dash?"

She, that is he, tried to pull his arm out of Danny's grip. "Shut up!" He shrieked with Sam's voice, high pitched and panicked. "Just leave me alone!"

This wasn't Sam, but it hurt seeing her look so vulnerable.

"Stay with me," Danny said. "Let's go outside."

Then Sam was nodding, a determined frown clearing away the panic. "Follow me!" She said.

And he knew, at least for the moment, that he was with Sam again. He released her arm but then she grabbed his hand, and she dragged him towards a wall. "It's safer than going through," she said. "We should hug the walls and go around."

But then she froze up again and flinched as an overturned table came flying towards them.

Danny tackled her and they laid flat on the ground for a moment, safe enough as the table landed titled against the wall with a pocket of space beneath it.

"It worked out like a shield," Danny chuckled. "Weird luck, huh?"

She stared up at him with wide eyes and he scrambled to get off. "Uh, Dash or Sam?"

She flinched, then scowled at him. "Ugh, it doesn't matter! Let's just go."

She grabbed his hand again, this time squeezing painfully, and they ran side by side until they made it out of the building.

oOo

Phantom knew how to tell Sam and Dash apart now. Her body flickered with a faint glow when Dash was in control, a grey aura hanging over her body and tucking back inside as they flipped back and forth.

It was easier to spot from far away.

It wasn't exactly the same as the green core of a ghost, but maybe it would work the same. Then he could just reach out and tug him out of her...

But he needed Dash's body nearby. Needed them beside each other. Otherwise wouldn't Dash end up kind of like Phantom? A ghost while his body still lived?

Wouldn't he deserve that though?

"C'mon baby ghost, I thought you were a hot shot around here?" Pointdexter kept trying to taunt him into violence. "Is it even true that you fought a dragon? Those just tall tales?"

It would feel good to kick Pointdexter and Dash through a window.

But that wouldn't exactly be the heroic thing to do.

So? Why play hero?

Dash's panicked gasps as Phantom choked him against the lockers replayed itself in his mind's eye. He heard those ghosts in the mirror wailing at the cold. At the pain.

It didn't feel good to be the villain.

"What's the plan after this, Pointdexter?" Phantom said. "Your cover is blown! You can't keep pretending you're Dash Baxter."