#in order sneak back into the school to save spectra

[spookberry]

Haunted High arc part 1!! (next)

[echoghost1]

DannyMay 2020 Day 11

Yeah I got the next one ready! Hopefully I’ll have day 12 done tomorrow and I’ll be able to post a few more (I kind of bounced around when writing these and I got 13-16 done already, just need to edit them)

A/N: This is a reimagining of the episode Doctor’s Disorders. Basically, I'm ignoring the whole "I want a perfect body" motive and going back to her roots.

You can read it here 

or down below

Danny felt pretty dumb for not expecting that ghost bug to explode into a thousand tinier bugs. It was so obvious!

When the student body got infected with that weird ghost virus, he and Tucker ended up being the only ones safe from the quarantine. The two boys worked out a plan to sneak Danny into the hospital, all he had to do was use a single power and he'd be in.

He should have known it was a trap.

Spectra floated above him, her shadowy form was somewhat transparent under the dim glow of the operating lights.

"Ah, just what the doctor ordered." She smiled her sickly sweet grin as she held him down. “And I would know, I’m the doctor!”

He hated being looked at like that. Of course it was Spectra that was behind all this. Trapping all the students, making sure they were vulnerable and afraid. And what was worse than being sick with a mysterious illness that might not have a cure, and to be stuck with abilities you can't control, abilities that scare you.

"So Danny, how does it make you feel, knowing you walked right into my trap?" She ran the back of her fingers down his cheek, which would have been a soothing jester if her touch didn’t make him feel terrible.

"Stupid." He admitted against his better judgment. 

She laughed and her shadow form darkened, "And why did you even bother to come in the first place? It's not like anyone here actually likes you."

She had a point, everyone at the school either picked on him or ignored him. And most of them still ran away from his ghost half. It didn't matter what he did, it was a losing battle. 

"It's been a while since our last session, and I believe we left off on a question. Do you have the answer yet? I think you've had plenty of time to think about it." She crossed her legs as she leaned back into the chair next to the bed. 

Somehow she had shifted back into her human disguise and he hadn't even noticed. She might not be holding him down, but he couldn't find the energy to leave either. "What was the question?" He asked hating himself for being so forgetful. 

She leaned forward, taking his hand, and making him sit up. "I asked, what are you? A ghost trying to fit in with humans? Or a creepy little boy with creepy little powers?" Her grip tightened and it wasn't just to keep him there, but to make him answer. 

But he didn't know. How could he? "A living ghost? A screw up that can't even die right."

Her grip loosened but she still held fast. He hated feeling like this, but she was like a large planet compared to him. The gravity of her pulling him into her orbit but it was so strong that it pulled him in too far. He was crashing into the surface and burning up in the atmosphere. There was no escape.

"Why do you insist on saving anyone?" She asked, "If they don't want you around, why bother?"

"It's the right thing to do, isn't it?" He wasn't sure anymore, "I just want to help. I activated the portal, I let the ghosts out."

"Oh, so you're cleaning up your mess? That's not heroic Danny, it's damage control." She set down his hand on his lap and leaned back in her chair, "That's not your purpose." She pondered aloud before changing tactics, "So stop confusing rushes of adrenaline for acts of bravery. Tell me what you really want. What grabs your attention and won't let go?"

"I want to be an astronaut." The words slipped out in barely a whisper. "I want to go to space. I want it so bad it hurts."

"But you can't, can you?"

He pulled his knees up to his chest and hugged them tightly. Of course he couldn't be an astronaut. Not with his grades, and he had no idea if he’d even pass the physical test now. His new normal wasn’t healthy.

She placed a hand on his shoulder, “I think that’s enough for today. We’re making some real progress. And remember, it’s okay to reach for the stars as long as you don’t leave your head in the clouds.” She gave his shoulder an encouraging pat before walking away.

He sat there feeling absolutely numb. 

He had beaten her before, but how? She was stronger than ever and had the student body held hostage. There might not be a cure for them. They might not ever leave here.

Danny got up from the bed in a daze. There was no point in staying if he couldn’t save them.

“Danny!” a bad attempt at a whisper called.

He perked up at the sound of his name to see Tucker.

“You’ve been in here for like an hour and I started to get worried,” Tucker admitted nervously fiddling with the lipstick laser Danny had let him borrow.

“I’m sorry Tucker, I don’t think I can fix this.” Danny looked down at his shoes, “It was stupid of me to even try.”

“Did you not find who did it? I’m sure if we both look-”

“I know who did it Tuck.”

“Well let’s go kick their butt.”

“It’s no use. She already beat me.”

Tucker looked him over, but Danny couldn’t look him in the eye. He was taken off guard when Tucker smothered him in a hug. “Dude I’m so sorry. If I had known it was Spectra, I would have never let you go in alone.” Tucker pulled back and looked Danny over again, trying to catch Danny’s eyes, “What awful things did she tell you this time?”

“Nothing I haven’t told myself before.”

“Oh man I wish I had your mom’s bazooka. I’d both that lady’s mouth clean off!”

“Thanks, I think?”

“You’re my brother from another mother! I’d do anything for you.”

“That’s a little scary dude. And I’m the ghost.”

“Pfft, only half. And the other half is a scaredy-cat.”

“Hey, no fair.” Danny playfully pushed Tucker’s shoulder. “At least I don’t smell like gym shorts and ginger snaps.”

Danny paused to think now that the negative cloud of self-doubt had started to clear. “You still have that cologne on you right?”

“Of course,” Tucker reached into the largest pocket of his cargo pants, “How do you think I got in?”

Deciding to ignore that last comment Danny nods in acknowledgment, “Good, because I have a plan.”