It had been a long time since a ghost had shown up out of the blue anywhere around Daniel Fenton. For the most part, Danny had reached such a level of fame and notoriety that very few ghosts dared to venture through the portal and into the real world via Amity Park. And if they did, they would usually send a message through someone Danny knew first. He wasn't sure if that was out of fear or respect, but he hoped it was the latter.

Thus, when his ghost sense went off suddenly on a random Tuesday morning, Danny found himself genuinely curious as to who it could be. He honestly expected Skulker (if any ghost would show up, he was a likely candidate as he still popped in every now and then, insisting on a good fight and hunt) or Dora. Heck, even Frostbite, despite the fact that he rarely left the Far Frozen.

For some reason, Danny didn't expect the ghost he saw (although he really should have) floating in the middle of his otherwise extremely normal living room, in his perfectly average, non-ghost or ghost-hunting related apartment. The ghost, for all he was friendly and definitely someone Danny looked up to, stuck out rather obviously in the comfortable little space the black-haired man had rented for college. With a fair amount of bulk, red, glowing eyes, and a clock tower embedded in his chest, Clockwork's adult form cut a far more imposing figure than anyone who had ever really graced the space before.

Maybe if this had been his parents' old house it wouldn't have looked so odd, but the half-ghost's apartment had been done up in tasteful and calming earth tones by the interior decorator that was constantly having to redo his parents new corporate offices every time they blew up a wall inventing something. (Danny personally thought the guy had appreciated a normal project for once, which was why he'd been given such a great deal.)

To his surprise, Clockwork shifted to his child-like form and grinned at him. "Does there have to be something wrong for me to drop by? I simply thought I would visit." Danny felt his eyes widen in surprise and something flashed across the ghost's face. Something he couldn't really define. Hesitancy, perhaps? It was out of place enough to make Danny blink for a moment, unsure if he'd actually seen anything.

"I thought that we could catch up," the old specter continued.

The dark-haired man crossed his arms and stared at the ghost he'd long considered his mentor suspiciously. "Clockwork, I know you know what's going on in my life. You're the master of time. We don't need to catch up."

Clockwork floated towards the ceiling, his hands behind his back, a far too innocent look on his childish face. "So I am not allowed to have a, what do you humans call it? A vacation?"

Danny's eyes narrowed. "Really?" He couldn't help it if his tone dripped with sarcasm.

The ghost sighed as he changed into his old-man form. "I'm not lying, Danny, but you're not entirely wrong either. However, I cannot tell you or it could—"

"I know, I know," the half-ghost cut in, annoyed, "it could ruin the future." He sighed and gestured for the ghost to follow him into his kitchen. "Let me get you a drink," he offered, before muttering to himself. "After I get me one..."

Clockwork changed to his adult form as he followed his young charge, one eyebrow raised. "I do not require your food for sustenance."

This time, Danny shot him a smirk over his shoulder. "Firstly, I always keep a couple of ectoplasmic options in the fridge, now. Skulker's dragged me out during enough truces that I've developed a taste for them. Besides, they're nice to have on hand if a ghost I'm on good terms with comes to visit. Secondly, most ghosts can eat human food, even if they don't need it. If you're here for a 'visit', then we can do it over a drink. What would you like?"

The purple and blue ghost just stared for several seconds.

"Oh, come on, it's not like you didn't know this was coming," Danny pressed as he opened the fridge.

"Daniel," Clockwork started, but the half-ghost cut him off.

"Danny. You know I hate it when people call me 'Daniel'." So maybe he was being a bit short, but he didn't exactly have the best memories of the times when Clockwork showed up like this.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the time ghost nod his head in apology. "Danny, I don't know every little detail of every single occurrence. If it has nothing to do with how the future changes, then I rarely take note of it."

Danny shrugged. "Green ectoplasm it is." The green one had this kind of burning kick that he felt the need to subject Clockwork to right now, rather then the smooth yellow one or the blue one that kind of tasted like frozen strawberries. He tended to stay away from the red stuff... that messed with his emotions too much.

He took out a green drink that had a bio-hazard symbol on it, walked to the cupboard and took out two glasses before pouring glowing green liquid into both cups. Then he set them on the small table in his modest kitchen, one in front of Clockwork, the other in front of the chair he was planning to sit at.

Clockwork raised one eyebrow in question as Danny put the container back in the fridge and reached for the cup. He noticed his mentor's expression and shrugged. "Bottom's up."

The man took a long sip, enjoying the burning sensation before he set it down on the table. The ancient ghost shook his head with a smile switching to his old man form as he took the offered seat across from his host. He also, much to Danny's amusement, picked up the drink and took a sip of it. The half-ghost waited for a moment, but got no reaction otherwise. Too bad, but not too unexpected.

"So," Danny said, "what would you like to talk about?"

"Straight to business? How unlike you, Danny."

"How unlike the old me," the half-ghost corrected. "The old me didn't know the meaning of the words 'day planner'. I don't think I could get through college without one at this point and my grades are actually decent for once. Time management and all that."

Clockwork chuckled and sipped his own drink. Much to Danny's consternation, he gave absolutely no reaction to it.

"Very well," the ghost changed forms to his adult self again. "I, of all people, can respect your time and will get directly to the point.

"Back when we first met, I didn't just randomly choose you of all ghosts and humans to help," Clockwork said as he took another sip of his drink.

The dark-haired man frowned. "I know. You did it to save the future."

"There were other reasons as well."

Danny's frown deepened. "Like what?"

"Firstly, your potential. You survived a far larger dose of ectoplasmic infusion than any other half-ghost in the world, and you are far more stable than any other half-ghost as well."

"There have only been two other half-ghosts in the world," Danny pointed out, taking another gulp of his drink.

"Until this point in your linear timeline, yes," Clockwork responded.

Danny spit out the ectoplasm, coughing. "Wait, there will be more? Others?! In the future? Is that what you're saying?"

The time ghost changed into his child form and just smiled but didn't answer. Right, Danny thought, why am I surprised, again?

"Secondly, while you are just as fallible as any other human, you have a good heart. You want to do good and that leaks over into your ghost form and has affected your obsession. It also affects other people and ghosts around you, more than you know. I didn't want to see that potential wasted, and as of right now, I haven't."

Silence fell over the room as Danny digested that. Then he smiled at the compliment as he rose to get a cloth to wipe up the ectoplasm on the table.

"Thanks, Clockwork. I guess I need to hear that sometimes."

Again, his mentor just nodded, although he had a soft smile on his adult-form face. When had he changed? Probably when Danny's back was turned.

"The fact that I was able to rub it in the Observants' faces has nothing to do with anything," the time ghost added on mischievously.

Danny snorted as he wiped the ectoplasm up and put it in the box marked for the bio-hazard. He would also put the cups in there for his parents to decontaminate later. He doubted any ectoplasm he actually washed down the sink would have any effect, but had learned the benefit of caution the hard way. The ectoplasm he kept in his apartment shouldn't actually hurt anyone (he was actually very careful with what he brought out of the ghost zone), but he figured the less he actually contaminated, the better. Fewer incidents that way, in any case.

"There are a couple of other reasons, Danny, not the least of which is because you have a good support system. Your friends are loyal and your family, while oblivious at times, is supportive and loving."

Danny slid into his seat once more, eyes narrowing again. "You're getting at something."

Clockwork just shrugged, changing to his child-like form. "It's just something to keep in mind, and something that I noted and took into account when I decided to interfere in your life."

"You know, you say you don't really focus on unnecessary details, but I'd say that's what you've been focusing on for the entire conversation," the half-ghost said dryly.

The young-looking ghost shrugged. "I'll reiterate: I'm not omnipotent, Danny. A powerful ghost? Yes. I will admit that. But I am not, nor will I ever claim to be, a god, no matter what the ancient myths say."

Again, Danny snorted and took a sip of his drink, letting the ice-cold (and yet burning, no wonder he liked this thing) liquid slide down his throat and settle into his stomach. A couple of years ago, he wouldn't have been able to do that, but he'd gotten so accustomed to outside sources of ectoplasm that he actually craved them now.

"Your castle exists outside of time. You have all the time in the world to study whatever you could possibly imagine wanting to learn."

Clockwork just shook his head, turning back to his old form. "My castle does not exist outside of time. I live in this universe and in the linear time-stream just as you. I simply have access to the time-stream, on a far more basic level than you are suggesting even."

Danny blinked. "Really?" he asked. Clockwork's head bobbed in a nod. "I always figured it existed in multiple timelines and dimensions at once or something."

The ghost's wrinkled, blue skin stretched into an amused smile. "Not quite the way you're thinking."

"Then why can't I find it unless you want me to?"

Clockwork raised an eyebrow again. "There are other ways to keep a lair hidden in the Ghost Zone."

Danny considered that for a few moments before taking another sip of his drink. "Huh."

"So tell me, Danny, when was the last time you contacted your family?"

The black-haired man frowned at the non-sequitur, but didn't see a problem answering.

"I talked with Mom and Dad a couple of days ago, and I'll be seeing them in a couple of hours when I go to meet Frostbite. I also called Jazz last night and we talked for a good hour."

"She is doing well with her psychology practice?"

Danny grinned. "Yeah. In between the humans, ghosts, humans that want to be ghosts, and ghosts that want to be human her work calendar is pretty booked. Heck, she's even so equal opportunity that she has one guy that wants to be a chicken... But I'm sure you already knew that too."

Clockwork smirked for a moment before cocking his head. "And your friends?"

"I've been texting Tucker all day," Danny replied with a shrug.

"And Samantha?"

Awkward silence. "It's getting better. We're both working at it, but it's been... strained, since we broke up."

Clockwork nodded. "You should call her."

Danny sat back in his chair, leaving his cup on the table and folding his arms. "So that's what you're after? You want me to get on better terms with Sam? We've agreed to stay friends and she's still agreed to help me with ghosts when she's in town. I know she isn't avoiding visiting and she hasn't backed down from her word. I know it's been a while, but I figure I'll just have to give it time to find our new rhythm. We're not going to give up on each other, so I don't see why you're worried."

The Ancient ghost switched to his adult-form. "I still recommend you call her."

This time, Danny's frown gained a touch of worry. "A-alright," he said finally. "I will. Today, even. Before I go to meet Frostbite."

Clockwork looked pleased as he nodded.

"And Valerie?"

Danny blinked. "It's been... a couple of weeks. Seriously, Clockwork, what's going on?"

"You know I can't tell you."

"Why not?" the half-ghost asked in frustration. Clockwork just stared at him. Finally Danny took a deep breath. "Fine. I'll call her too. I'll even try and get a hold of Danielle."

"I'm sorry to worry you, Danny."

The young man sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I know you don't like to, but you wouldn't be here if you didn't think it was important."

"Indeed. You know me well."

"Really?" Danny asked. It was his turn to raise an eyebrow. "Somehow I think that despite knowing you for over a decade, I'm only scratching the surface."

They both shared a chuckle.

"It has been my honor to get to know you, Danny."

The half-ghost, who had been about to take another drink slowly lowered his glass to the table as he scrutinized his guest. His hand tightened around the cylinder just a touch.

"It sounds like you're going somewhere... or like I am."

Clockwork didn't answer.

"Clockwork..."

"Danny."

He had to stop himself from tightening his grip more. He didn't want to have to sweep up glass. Or pick it out of the wall. He'd had to learn to do some pretty annoying repairs the last time that had happened.

"I guess asking where would be futile." If he said it through clenched teeth, then who could blame him? No matter how vague Clockwork was failing at being, the when was pretty obvious at this point.

More silence.

"Do I even get a say in this?"

If he didn't know that Clockwork would just freeze time and move, he may have tried to punch him. He knew it would be like shooting the messenger, but the ghost could be so utterly frustrating at times. And there were some things he hadn't completely gotten over, even as an adult.

"What if I don't want to go?"

"This is not something I have control over."

"You've fought the Observants before!"

The ghost changed into his ancient form as he shook his head. "It is not the Observants who have given me orders."

"Then who?" Danny demanded.

"Whom."

"What?"

"Whom is the proper term."

"Thank you for the grammar lesson. I'm sure that's far more important than answering my actual question."

Clockwork raised an eyebrow as he smirked over at Danny. "That's the Danny I know."

The man frowned. He wasn't that sarcastic. Then he shook his head. "I'm not letting you change the subject. Who told you you couldn't tell me?"

"You did."

Silence.

Danny blinked. "What?"

A sigh. "You did, Danny. Or, you will."

"In the future?"

Clockwork nodded.

Danny stared at his drink while he tried to wrap his mind around this.

"So... I..." Then he shook his head angrily. "No, I can't just leave everyone!"

"Technically, you're not going to. And that is the only thing I can tell you."

The young adult stood abruptly and began to pace. "So am I leaving or not?"

"Technically yes and no."

"You're not making any sense!"

"It will make sense in the future."

Danny scowled at his drink, blinking back angry tears. But he'd tried going against fate before, and he'd seen where that had gotten him. So he could fight it and make things worse for himself and everyone around him... or...

"I'm... not coming back, am I."

"Danny..."

"You wouldn't have said anything if I wasn't supposed to figure it out."

"That doesn't mean I can tell you anything else."

He felt like he'd been socked in the gut by Skulker's newest suit and couldn't help the look of betrayal he shot the timeless ghost as he stood. Then he turned and looked around the room at his apartment. He'd been wanting to get out on his own for a while and honestly, he really loved it. And his new life. Sure, things had changed, and hadn't worked out exactly like he'd wanted them to, but he was still pretty happy and content.

"Can I tell my family?"

"No."

"They'll... try to stop me."

"Yes."

"But... I have to go."

"It would... be best, according to you."

He grit his teeth again but pressed on. "Can I... write them letters? Explain everything?"

"Yes."

He nodded and deflated a little. At least he had that much. "Will you make sure they get them?"

"Yes."

"How long, exactly, do I have?"

"I can't tell you that."

Of course not, Danny felt his fists clench. Ghost Zone forbid that Clockwork give him specifics. Without a concrete time, Danny would need to rush all the calls with his family. Take care of everything like he only had moments rather than be able to properly plan how to say go...

Goodbye.

"Enough time to at least get a will or something together?" And if that will said something like 'Punch Clockwork in the Face,' then all the better.

Silence met his question.

The half-ghost sighed."I guess I'll just write something up while I'm trying to reach everyone." There were some websites he could check out, right?

"Do you have regrets, Danny?"

The ghost seemed to be full of non-sequiturs today. Danny shot him a frown. "Is there a human – or a ghost for that matter – who doesn't? Of course I do. I wish I could have kept my identity a secret for longer (you know how much I hate the spotlight) and I regret having to banish Vlad to space, and a bunch of things that happened with the ghosts, especially in those first few years. No one's life is perfect... but I've worked hard to make up for my mistakes. I can honestly say I'm happy where I am now."

He swallowed. "Do I really have to leave? I'm not going to die, am I?"

Clockwork shook his head. "No, you aren't going to die. Not any time soon in any case."

The half-ghost relaxed a little at that. "Oh. Well, that's good, I guess."

The Master of Time sighed. "I'm sorry, Danny. I've worried you. But, while I can't really help that, I... thought you would welcome-" Clockwork's head tilted in contemplation, "a chance to leave nothing unsaid."

Danny deflated. "Yeah. I... I may not feel it now, but I'm sure I'll appreciate it in the future." He knew himself that well at least.

Clockwork nodded. "You... will be missed, Danny," he whispered. He'd changed back into his old-man-form again, looking even more ancient than normal, and very sad.

The half-ghost couldn't really get many words past the lump in his throat for several seconds.

"Will... will you take care of them?" the young man finally managed, his voice soft as he stared out the window. "I know it's a lot to ask, but..."

"Of course I will."

Danny took a deep breath, feeling a weight lift off of his chest, "Thank you."

"I will... leave you to make your preparations."

Danny nodded, unable to turn and watch the ghost leave. He did, however, feel his resentment flowing away. Clockwork had come and warned him as best he could. It wasn't his fault that Danny was leaving. He could have just not said anything and let Danny run into whatever he would run into on his own.

"Thank you," he said again, his voice quieter and harsher than it had been. He voiced it before Clockwork could get far and practically felt the time-ghost pause. "I know... you did what you could."

"You are welcome, Daniel Fenton."

He managed a sad grin. "I just told you, it's Danny."

A chuckle. "Good luck."

And he left Danny alone.

xXx

Danny wrote one main letter explaining everything Clockwork had told him, wanting to make sure that that was taken care of first and foremost. He wasn't about to leave without an explanation at all.

Once he finished with that, he looked over some of the sites for submitting wills online. Figuring that he could write that up while he talked to people, he decided to call Sam first.

Thankfully, she answered after several rings sounding surprised but not unhappy. He forced himself to talk to her as if things were normal between them again and found it getting easier as the call went on. He could tell she appreciated the effort. It took every ounce of self-control he possessed to keep tears at bay because awkward or not, he still didn't want to leave her behind. They talked about everything and nothing, with Danny asking little questions here and there, writing down the answers in the word document he'd pulled up to take notes on. By the time the call finished, he felt both better and worse: better about their relationship and worse about having to leave it behind.

The moment they hung up, he finally allowed himself to cry. Not long or hard, but very sincerely. Not just for her, but for everyone.

Once he got hold of himself, he called Tucker. They didn't have a whole lot to talk about these days, but it was nice to hear his voice nonetheless. He encouraged Tucker to do everything he wanted to do – to follow his dreams and all. Tucker had gotten more into politics since he'd become mayor (and he wasn't the only one who still couldn't believe that the town had wanted a 15-year-old to be mayor, even if he'd had close ties to the world's hero at the time). But despite all of that, it wasn't Tucker's passion. That would always lay with inventing new tech, which he'd only just recently gotten back into.

His throat didn't feel quite so tight when he hung up.

Next were his parents. He was going to see them tonight, but that didn't mean he couldn't check in with them for a minute and let them know he was still coming. As usual, they didn't have a lot of time to talk, but they always took a moment to answer his calls unless they were in the middle of something really volatile. Fortunately, they weren't now and his mother picked up the phone with a bright smile he could practically hear. His father's voice boomed over the line shortly afterwards.

He seriously considered telling them despite the warning he'd gotten, his mom especially... but he'd learned the hard way that not listening to Clockwork tended to turn out badly. He figured she could tell something was up, but she didn't press it. He told his dad how proud he was of him and his father, of course, ate it up. He always did with any sort of praise he received. Danny made sure to tell them how much he loved them and appreciated everything they did and let them know he'd be on his way soon.

After them, he called Jazz, who immediately wanted to know what was wrong. Danny never called her two days in a row. He chuckled and said he just wanted to follow up on their conversation from the day before. Again, they didn't have much to talk about that they hadn't already discussed, and Danny as much as he wanted to, didn't dare ask any 'theoretical' questions for fear that she'd figure everything out. He'd just have to take a guess with her when it came to his will.

Sadly, she had a client in a few minutes and had to hang up fairly quickly. Danny felt a pang of regret for that, but wished her luck and let her go.

Valerie was next, and he traded banter with her as he asked after her life. He didn't really get into anything deep with her, but he did let her know that he saw her as a valuable friend and ally, and he was glad they'd gotten over their differences. Well, mostly.

Part of him really wished they could have a close relationship like he shared with Tucker and Sam, but part of him was just as glad he didn't. It was easier to let go right now.

Then he tried to get a hold of Danielle and was almost relieved (and a little guilty) when he couldn't. He made a mental note to leave an apology in her personal letter for not being able to reach her.

After that, he went about finishing submitting his will, surprised that it shouldn't take that long to go through (apparently, you could get the things taken care of online pretty fast these days, who knew?). Despite his rather dangerous life as a child, he hadn't ever gotten around to making one. Perhaps he'd never thought he'd actually die? Part of that could be due to typical teenager stupidity, and part of that was undoubtedly due to the fact that he still wasn't sure if he could die in the normal sense. No one had ever been able to give him any answers either. Not even Clockwork (not that he would even if he knew).

While he was glad the ghost had told him he wasn't about to die, he still could not figure out where he'd be going and why he couldn't come back. Or any of Clockwork's other annoying clues.

Danny felt his stomach clench.

He swallowed the feeling and continued writing. Once he finished that, he canceled all of his future appointments so as not to leave a mess behind for his family to clean up. After that, he focused on making a few finishing touches to the personal letters and notes he wanted to leave for everyone. He'd made some friends in college and didn't want them to feel left out. He even left a note for the important ghosts in his life as well as a statement for the media, figuring Jazz and Tucker would go through his things and give the public what they needed to hear.

Then he folded his last load of laundry and did his dishes so his Mom or Jazz wouldn't need to.

He'd considered canceling his appointment with Frostbite, but wouldn't be able to get a hold of the ghost until he went over to his parents' anyway and figured he may as well go. If he ended up leaving before then (even if he didn't see how that was possible), then he was sure his parents would let the Far Frozen know, even if they were still uncomfortable when contacting ghosts.

Then he grabbed the bag of contaminated items, turned and walked out of his apartment, making sure to take his key with him so he could leave it at his parents' house. Then he transformed and made the ten minute flight to see his mother and father, who welcomed him happily.

They enjoyed a meal together, just the three of them, before he gave them a hug and left for the Far Frozen. If he held onto the hug for a few seconds longer than normal, they didn't seem to notice.

xXx

As strange and alien as it was, the Ghost Zone had become almost a second home to him. He knew the immediate area on the other side of the portal like the back of his hand and most of the areas around it rather well too. He didn't know how far it stretched on in either direction, but he knew he could travel for days and not reach an end. He wasn't sure there was an actual end to it all (Frostbite's insistence on infinite realms may have had something to do with that conclusion as well).

He reached the Far Frozen without incident, happy to meet with the yeti tribe leader and even joining them for one of their traditional meals, even if he couldn't eat much due to his already full stomach.

The old ghost could tell there was something wrong, Danny knew, but he thankfully didn't ask. Instead they spoke of new changes in the Ghost Zone. Apparently Walker was finally coming around and being far fairer about his sentencing. He still had a long way to go before Danny could really support him, but any positive change to a ghost was leaps and bounds of improvement that should be encouraged.

Dora, Pandora and Frostbite had finalized a formation of their alliance. Between the three of them, they did their best to represent and speak for the Ghost Zone to the humans and relations had been improving lately. Well, the government didn't seem to want to come in and destroy everything anymore in any case. The dissolving of the GIW several years ago probably had something to do with that.

As the discussion wound down, Danny decided he was grateful he'd made it to this meeting. He felt a little better about disappearing on everyone now. Almost everything he'd been working on was in the best possible condition for him to leave it. Sure, things weren't perfect, and he really hoped that everything didn't fall apart without him there, but he didn't think he could do much better at this point.

Stupid hero complex. He'd just have to trust in everyone to pull their weight without him there.

When he went to leave, Frostbite also gave Danny a hug, as awkward as it tended to be wen he did. The ice ghost still dwarfed him. He'd just drifted into the air and was about to head back towards his parents' when one of the tribe rushed over worriedly.

"Chief, Great One! Please! My son!"

Frostbite turned to the worried yeti, holding his hands up in an attempt to calm her down.

"What's wrong?"

"He ran off while playing! I just turned my back for a moment and now he's caught at the edge of The Rift!"

Danny frowned. "Rift? What rift?"

"A very dangerous place, Great One," Frostbite said gravely. "It is an area where a chasm of unknown origin and power will open randomly and draw nearby objects into it before vanishing. We do not know where it leads, but anything drawn into it is never seen or heard from again."

The half-ghost swore he felt his face pale and he swallowed. Was this it? Was this what Clockwork had been hinting at?

"Please! Help me save my son!" the yeti begged them.

Frostbite glanced at Danny. "Will you come and help us?"

Dread pooled at the bottom of his stomach and part of Danny wanted to scream 'no!' at the top of his lungs, like the teenager he used to be. The other part of him – the part that would always be a hero – wouldn't let him say anything other than, "Of course."

"Thank you," Frostbite said with a nod before turning to the woman. "Let me gather the tribe."

"I'll go with you now," Danny said to the mother. "Maybe there's something I can do."

"Don't be reckless," Frostbite warned.

Danny blinked at him and then forced a smile. "Who, me?"

For several seconds, the ghost just stared at him before shaking his head and gesturing with his hand. "Hurry. In case something happens before I can get everyone there."

The two of them nodded before they turned and flew off, the other yeti in the lead.

xXx

In all honesty, Danny was surprised he'd never been to this part of the Ghost Zone before. Then again, the yeti had always warned him off of this general direction. Well, now he knew why, it seemed.

As they approached the area where the boy was lost (or trapped, or whatever, the mother hadn't been too clear on that), the whole atmosphere... changed. He wasn't even sure how or why, but it was strange to say the least. There was also a slight tug of wind, which he found unnerving. The Ghost Zone didn't really have wind normally, but the moving air picked up more and more the further they flew.

"Where is he?" Danny yelled over the sound of the air streaming around them.

"There!" the yeti yelled back, pointing at the small form of a child clinging onto a large island that was slowly floating towards what appeared to be a giant, black crack ripping across the Ghost Zone.

"We have to get him out of there!" Danny shouted. "If we don't act now, the whole rock could be drawn in along with him!"

"But Chief said—"

"Frostbite sent me to help in case something happened before he could get here! I think this counts!"

The woman shook her furry head. "I can't let you do that for me! We should wait for the rest—"

"I'm doing it for him!" he pointed towards the little yeti.

She seemed taken back for a moment, but then her shoulders slumped.

"Thank you, Great One!" she said. "What is your plan?"

His teenage self would have just zipped in there as quickly as he could, hoping to get in and out as fast as possible. Sometimes he wondered how his teenage self hadn't been completely obliterated.

"I'll make as many duplicates as I can, he said. "We'll try and find an anchor on the other side of the island. Hopefully that will give us the protection we need. Come on!"

He flew over to a point where the floating island of ectoplasmic rock was between him and the crack before flying forward. The pull was indeed lessened by rock, thank goodness. The yeti woman followed him.

"I'll find a place to anchor myself. You make your duplicates," she said in a matter-of-fact voice that brooked no argument. Danny just nodded and focused on making as many ectoplasmic clones as he possibly could and ended up with six. Not as many as he'd like, but not too bad either. He hoped it would be enough.

Then he nodded at the yeti (he still hadn't gotten her name and made a mental note to ask her later) before jumping into the air. She grabbed onto his feet and held him firmly in place, reaching her large arms over her head to their full extent. Danny's clones flew above him, creating a chain of ghosts that went over the top of the small rock-island. He could feel the pull on his duplicates as they climbed, within reach of the Rift's pull.

"We can't reach him," the one above him said after a few minutes.

Danny bit his lip and looked down at the yeti below him. "It's not enough. We'll have to move higher!"

The woman didn't look too happy herself, but she nodded and let go of the handhold she'd found. Almost immediately, the force of the pull on the duplicates very nearly sucked them all over, but she managed to grab onto the rock again with one hand and then her feet braced just below it.

A few minutes later, the duplicate looked down with a grin. "Got 'im!"

"Have him climb over everyone to get back here!"

The duplicate nodded, and then they waited, clutching at each other and listening for the tell-tale signs of the kid coming to them. He supposed that pulling the clones back one at a time might work, but that would be awkward and they'd lose precious time trying to figure out exactly how. Not to mention, he didn't want to let even one hand go to try and pull the others in. He could still feel the increasing pull on the duplicates and—

"NO!" one of the clones yelled out, just loud enough for Danny to hear.

"What's wrong?"

"We lost him! He's getting dragged into the Rift!"

Danny felt his blood freeze, and it had nothing to do with his ice powers.

"Go after him!" he yelled to the duplicate and let him go. His white-haired mirror nodded as he and the others were dragged away.

"What happened, Great One?" the yeti he was with asked worriedly.

He took a deep breath and held her wrists gently, looking straight into her eyes. "He lost his grip or something. Don't worry, I'll get him."

"NO!" she grabbed his hand. "You sent your duplicates out there! That should be enough!"

He shook his head. "They might be able to help, but they aren't as durable as I am. If they're damaged enough, they disappear."

She shook her head again. "I cannot ask this of you!"

Danny smiled. "You didn't. I offered."

For a moment, he saw a grief and gratefulness come over her eyes before she let go. With a nod, he flew up and over the rock-island, immediately getting caught in the wind. He didn't fight it, instead using it to head towards the spinning debris in front of him. Surely enough, there were only two clones left. One of them held the little yeti against his chest, and both of them were doing their best to fight the pull of the rift. Considering that he'd clocked himself at almost 200 miles per hour, that was no small feat.

He reached them in almost no time, watching in horror as the one holding the yeti boy tried to avoid some debris, but couldn't. He dropped the boy just before he ran into some sharp, nasty-looking rocks and dissipated into green smoke, easily swept away by the wind. He didn't get duplicate's memories... although in this case, he didn't exactly think that was a bad thing.

The other duplicate made to turn, but Danny yelled: "I'll get him," as he shot past. "You stay there!" The duplicate yelled an affirmative back and continued doing his best to avoid debris. Danny, meanwhile, raced for the boy and reached out his hand.

The moment the kid's hand was in his, he drew him in, rubbing calming circles on his back. He looked terrified, eyes green-rimmed from crying and shaking from obvious fright and exhaustion.

"Hey, it'll be alright," he said as loudly as he dared. He was catching up to his clone, even if they were both still being slowly but steadily drawn back.

Danny reached out and grabbed the clone's foot. His mirror looked back, but didn't stop flying forward. Danny held out the kid to him, hoping the other boy would understand him. He was ahead of them. He had the best chance of getting out of there, even if he had been flying longer. He'd been working on his endurance.

The kid, thankfully, cooperated, holding one of his hairy arms out to grab the other Danny's. That way, too, if the one ahead lost the boy, the one behind could catch him. The clone looked dubious, but reached back anyway, without losing much speed (Danny made a mental note to congratulate himself later). The boy grabbed his hand and the clone began to pull the kid up towards his chest.

That's when Danny saw more debris coming towards them.

"LOOK OUT!" he yelled, pointing. The other Danny followed that point to see a large chunk of rock.

The clone managed to duck. Danny, apparently, was so focused on them getting away that he forgot he had to get away too. At least, until the rock hit him and knocked the breath out of him... or, well, the ghost equivalent.

The last thing he saw before the Rift consumed him was the figure of the boy reaching towards him over the duplicate's shoulder while they still did their best to fly away.

Then the world went black.

xXx

AN: So, my first foray back into Danny Phantom in... um... years. I've actually been working on this on and off for a long while. Not sure I'm happy with where it went which is why it took me so long to post it, but hey.

Normally I refused to admit that certain episodes don't exist, but in this one, I'll even include Phantom Planet (as much as it pains me). However, the episode 'Livin' Large' will now be replaced by Bluemoonalto's rewrite 'Livin' Larger'. I recommend you check it out!

I don't currently have a beta if someone would like to. Drop me a PM if you're interested. Although this chapter has been beta read by Kuroi Atropos! Props to her! Thanks for reading!