Just as he'd promised, Danny arrived ten minutes later. Their house was only a few minutes away, so it was a reasonably short drive. Honestly, James was surprised that he didn't just fly, but he figured Dad liked to keep up appearances with his parents. That, and James had a feeling that after tonight he was temporarily grounded from using his powers — Dad was definitely petty enough to drive James instead of flying home.

Dad walked through the door and pocketed his car keys. James was sitting opposite his grandparents, who occupied the couch. Maddie looked up from her phone (which, he was sure she wasn't actually looking at — she was just finding a way to avoid speaking with James) and smiled. Though, her smile was shallow; she was concerned and worried more than anything.

"Hello, sweetie," Maddie greeted.

Danny's expression was firm, "Hi Mom, Dad. James."

James gulped. Dad wasn't stupid — he'd already figured out that James had snuck out and flown to FentonWorks to get Lilith's Switch… which she wasn't supposed to have in the first place. They both knew that much, but Dad didn't know how badly he'd messed up… Ancients, what a disappointment James was.

"Hi — hi Dad," James said. "I'm sorry. I'm really, really sorry."

Danny took the other free seat beside the couch, between James and his grandparents. "I know," he replied.

James shook his head, "No, you really don't."

Maddie's lips thinned. "We need to talk," she said. Jack squeezed her hand and James sighed, this was it.

Danny raised a brow. He could sense that there was something off about this. "... alright?" He rubbed the back of his neck and met his parents' gazes. "What about?"

"We caught a ghost earlier tonight," Jack started and Danny's eyes betrayed panic. James looked down, burning (metaphorical) holes into the carpet. His cheeks burned green, displaying his shame. "We took it to the lab and then it turned into James." Jack's admission was blunt, too blunt for Danny.

Danny's breath hitched in his throat. "What?" James observed his dad's aura chill the room by a few degrees, not enough that Maddie and Jack would notice… but it still wasn't good.

"He implied he's part ghost or something and he won't tell us anything else," Maddie explained. She leaned forward, "Did you know?"

There was a beat of silence. Danny shut his eyes and ran his hand over his face. He stayed like that for a moment, just holding his face in his hand, before he opened his eyes. "Yeah," he mumbled. "I know about it."

Jack was unperturbed, but Maddie exploded. "And why haven't you said anything?" Her entire body trembled with frustration, eyes flaring. Jack tried his best to calm her, but it was futile; she was locked onto Danny.

Danny gripped the bottom of his seat, finding it difficult to speak. "Because… he's like that because of me."

James's stomach dropped. He sounded so guilty. "Dad—"

"Shush," Danny dismissed him. "You're in enough trouble. It's been twenty years, I figured I'd have to fess up sometime. Didn't expect it to be tonight."

"Danny?" Jack asked. He was calmer than Maddie, but he was still pretty miffed.

James ignored his grandpa. "Dad, you don't have to—"

"I kind of have to, James," Danny interrupted. He took a moment to relax, unclenched his muscles and slumped into his seat. This admission… wasn't going to be easy, no matter how well his parents reacted. He looked above his parents, focusing on a painting hung above the couch. "James was born part ghost. He's had powers his entire life and so has Lilith. That's why we kept them homeschooled for a few years, so they wouldn't slip up in public."

Jack's jaw dropped and Maddie gaped.

"Son?" Jack tilted his head. "I don't understand, how was he...?"

Danny swallowed. Here was the big one..."I'm half-ghost."

They didn't respond. Jack and Maddie continued staring, observing their son as if he were speaking another language. There weren't any context clues to comprehend; he had spoken literally. There wasn't any metaphor about it — Danny was half-ghost. The only issue was getting them to believe that half-ghosts were real and that he wasn't just consumed by his ghost half…. James wanted to help him, to support him. But what could he do? James was the problem here!

"Wow…" Danny looked at the ceiling. "That was weird to finally confess. But I uh," he rubbed the back of his neck again — his nervous tick, "I've been half-ghost for twenty years. In high school, I was inside the portal when it first turned on. Gave me a nasty shock and I've had powers ever since. And I was going to tell you, but I was fourteen and I was so scared — scared of everything, really.

"Scared of my powers, scared of myself, scared of your reaction…" Danny counted off on his fingers. "So, I kept it a secret. And when I was finally less scared, it just felt like it was too late to say anything — it'd be weird to say anything. So… I just never brought it up, and I'm sorry. I have a lot to apologize for and if anything, be mad at me — not at James, or Sam, or Jazz… I asked them to lie, for me."

When his grandparents didn't speak, James fidgeted with the material of his sleeve. It felt like a minute until someone spoke, but was probably only a quarter. "This isn't a prank?" Jack whispered. "You actually… all these years…"

Maddie shook her head. "No," she refused. "Danny you're not a ghost."

"Well, not full ghost," he explained. "I can still breathe, heartbeat, brain activity—"

Maddie cut him off, "No, stop with this bullshit. I would've known if my son died! Twenty years," she laughed. "Twenty damn years!"

"I mean, Mads… it makes sense," Jack offered.

Danny sighed, "Thanks, Dad."

"The way he changed in high school… we were so worried, remember? And then he got better, brought his grades up, stopped cutting class..."

Danny nodded, "I started managing my powers better. And well, I also made a few allies. Because—"

"You're Phantom," Jack put it together. Danny's lip wavered, astounded that he'd guessed it on the first try. "James's ghost form… it looked a lot like Phantom. He said Phantom was his Dad, that means you're Phantom."

"Jack," Maddie's voice cracked, "you're not actually believing this, are you? This is all insane! There's no way that I missed this… and did all that I did..."

"I don't blame you for any of that," Danny assured softly. "You didn't know that I'm Phantom, I did my best to hide it from you."

Maddie grit her teeth. "I still don't buy it. You're better than Phantom, you can't be him. You can't be a ghost, not that ghost."

"Do you want proof, then?" Danny raised a brow. "I know that I've done some… questionable things over the years. But back then, I was only a kid! Fourteen years old, struggling with all these powers I didn't know how to navigate, less clueless than James! He at least has me to learn from. But you have to admit, I haven't done anything bad in years!"

Danny stood from his seat and ensured his parents had a good view of him. He kept his hands tucked beside his waist and head held high. "Goin' ghost," he muttered.

"What are you—" Maddie started.

A halo of light materialized around Danny's waist and split, replacing his day-clothes with glossy, black spandex. James observed his grandparents' reactions, ogling at Dad's transformation. Finally, the ring ascended above Danny's head, leaving tanned skin, green eyes, and amorphous white hair… Phantom.

"No," Maddie shook her head. "No."

Danny's aura recoiled, he was anxious and sullen.

Jack placed his hand on her shoulder. "Mads… it's still him. Still Danny—"

There were tears in Maddie's eyes. "He's a ghost! He can't be a ghost! You can't be a ghost!" She brushed off Jack's touch, stood from the couch, and pointed at him.

"Mom, if I had the choice I wouldn't be," Danny sagged, "but I'm alright with this—"

"Why didn't you tell us!?" She grabbed his shoulder. "When this all first happened! What kept you from coming to us? Why did you have to keep this for twenty fucking years!?" James had never heard his grandma swear, nor anyone swear that viciously. Mom cussed from time to time but she was never that intense….

Now, Danny's eyes were watering too. "I was just fourteen…" his voice was broken, crackling with its otherworldly echo. "I was scared of you dissecting me-"

Maddie stomped her foot. "Well, you're not fourteen now! I expected better from you, Daniel!"

"How was I supposed to tell you?" he went intangible and shook off her grip on his shoulder. He stepped back and changed again, back into human form. "Do you understand how terrifying it is to admit all this? Admit that I'm a ghost, a ghost you specifically hate! Admit that I've lied for pretty much most of my life! Admit that my children aren't human either—"

"That's not an excuse! You were never going to tell us!" she sobbed.

Danny's eyes flared vivid green. "Maybe I wasn't! Maybe I was afraid of something like this happening!"

"Because you didn't tell us in the first place! We could've helped you! Fixed you—"

James's head swam. He couldn't take all this fighting anymore! Not when… it was all…

"Shut up! Shut up, shut up, shUT UP!" James detonated like a bomb. His voice rattled the room, sonic energy ripping through the air forcing Dad and Grandma the stop their brutal argument. A painting or two fell from the wall and several pieces of furniture threatened to tip over, but the living room was primarily unharmed.

They all stared at him, especially Dad. James had never done that before, even during training. "Can you… stop fighting over this?" his throat was raw and his eyes watered. "Stop yelling at Dad, this is my fault anyway…."

He didn't look up, didn't want to see their vindictive expressions. He just stared at his lap and cried, fighting off hiccups. Then, something touched his shoulder. James flinched, he hadn't heard anyone move so that meant… it must be Dad.

"James," he comforted. "This isn't your fault."

Oh, if only it were that simple. Dad knew how to assure him, absolve him of the blame. James wouldn't buy it, he knew what happened — Dad was trying but James wouldn't listen.

"I — I flew over here," he choked. "Got caught. My fault. I broke all your rules…."

Dad shook his head, "No, James. I kept these secrets, this is my fault. Don't punish yourself for something you didn't do."

Someone coughed. Grandpa. "He's right, James," he added. "None of this is your fault."

Grandpa was trying; he wasn't as angry as Grandma but James wasn't a fool. Grandpa hadn't spoken at all since Dad transformed, he thought ghosts were awful creatures… he was so disgusted that he couldn't speak. He had to be, right?

James shook his head. "But I'm the one who screwed up… if it wasn't for me you guys wouldn't know and you — you wouldn't hate Dad!"

Dad leaned forward and rubbed soothing circles into James's back. James hiccuped again; his entire body throbbed.

"That's not true," Grandma whispered. She moved from where she'd been standing and crouched beside Danny and James. "I don't hate Danny. Or - or Phantom," she mumbled, distastefully.

Dad looked up. "You don't?"

"I'm angry. Furious," she admitted. "Because you didn't tell me. You're my son, you're supposed to tell me these things! You've been like this for most of your life and… you didn't trust me! I'm angry because I love you! Being a ghost… being Phantom… how could you just hide that for so long?"

Grandpa stood from the couch and joined Dad and Grandma on the floor. "I've never really cared for Phantom… but if you'd told me, I would've changed my mind. I don't like the lies, son. But I couldn't hate you."

There were still tears in Dad's eyes but they had changed… they were grateful. He leaned forward and hugged his parents. "That means… so much."

James tentatively joined the family hug. He still felt beyond awful, but maybe… maybe this wasn't as bad as he anticipated. If he could still hug his grandparents like this, then all wasn't lost.