HOME | DD

Description
"Wh...What did you say?" Danny stammered.

The gash in Solitaire's face that was his smile opened.  "Don't be so surprised, my boy.  After all you've seen and done, you don't think that precognition actually could be performed?"

Incense flooding his sinuses, Danny blinked twice.  This man did have a point.  He'd witnessed–even performed–multiple examples of supernatural feats time and time again.  Was he to be shocked that one more "impossible" feat had been done before his very eyes?

"Perhaps I should explain the circumstances," Solitaire continued.  "I'm what's known as a medium, Danny Phantom; a person attuned to the spiritual energies and prescience apparent in everyone.  You and I are very much alike, in the sense that we have both harnessed the power of the Ghost Zone for our own use."

Danny raised a brow.  "What does fortune-telling have to do with the Ghost Zone?"

"Ectoplasm is the matter most attuned to human psychokinetic energy," the tall man sighed.  "It is how I theorize a ghost forms: the electromagnetic pattern that makes up a person's consciousness survives after death, and builds itself a new body on a parallel plane of existence.  And this same energy can be used to tap into visions of the past and future.  Surely, you've witnessed this power before in your travels?"

Thinking back, Danny had seen visions of the future before, with the aid of other ghosts.  Clockwork, the ghost of time, and the Observants had the distinct power to see into the time yet to come.  Slowly and cautiously, he nodded.

Solitaire smiled once more, his wound of a mouth thinly creasing.  "Now then," he said, "would you like your fortune or not, Mr. Fenton?"

Danny sighed.  What did he have to lose?  "Sure."

As the teen leaned back in his chair, Solitaire started shuffling the cards with almost inhuman dexterity.  His long, claw-like fingers flew back and forth as the cards shifted and folded into one another within the deck.  It was like watching a master blackjack dealer at work.

After he'd finished the long and complicated process of randomizing the draw, the tall man drew three cards and placed them on the table.  The first card faced center, the second left, and the third right.

"Now, my boy..." Solitaire said, "each of these cards signifies a time in a person's life.  The first represents the past, the second present, and the third future.  Do you follow?"

Danny nodded, his eyes never leaving the cards.

"Good.  Let's see what we have here..."

With one fluid motion, Solitaire flipped the past card over.  It showed an ace of clubs.

"According to this," he elucidated, "you recently experienced a powerful rebirth of some sort, most likely when you acquired your ghost powers..."

Before Danny could confirm this, the man had already flipped the center card, revealing a five of hearts.

"...But this rebirth has led to a series of events that has caused you great sorrow and emotional anguish..."

He flipped the remaining card, but seemed to take some time with it.  The last card showcased a ten of spades.  At this, Solitaire's green eyes widened, slowly drawing towards Danny.  The worried stare made the boy uncomfortable to an extreme degree.

"...Anguish," Solitaire said, "that will continue to culminate until complete and absolute ruin is visited upon your life."

"Wait a minute," Danny said after the cartomancy was over.  "This can't be true... My life's going perfectly fine, even with my ghost powers.  There's no reason for my life to go bad..."

"Is there?" Solitaire asked.  "What about your relationship with Valerie Gray?"

At this, Danny's heart skipped a beat.  "What do you mean?"

"That young woman with whom you were conversing," he said.  "There's something special between you two, and it's not just that you potentially like each other.  It's the fact that each of you has a double life.  Double lives that ruined your relationship on both sides."

Danny gulped.  It was true, what Solitaire was saying.

"So what would happen if this same effect were to occur with other people in your life?  Your family?  Your friends?  All driven away by the power you possess, the secrets you keep..."

Sagging into the chair in which he was sitting, Danny let Solitaire's words sink into his mind.  It was all entirely plausible, what this man was suggesting.  Gaining ghost powers and becoming a superhero had taken quite the toll on his personal life.  What if it led him down a road where nothing could be fixed?

What if it ruined him?

"Listen, Danny..." Solitaire said, interrupting the boy's thoughts.  "If it were up to me, I'd change your fate, but as far as I know, Fate cannot be changed.  I'm very sorry."

Danny sighed, getting up to leave the tent.  "Don't be.  It's my fault... All of it."

~~~~~~~~~~

Why does it have to be this way? he thought. Why does everything bad always happen to me?  Can't I get a break?  Just once?

Danny Phantom finished packing the rest of his essential belongings into his backpack and slung it over his shoulder.  Many of the things in his room were gone, having been thrown into the pack, which now felt quite heavy.  But it was all needed for the long journey ahead.

The journey Danny had decided to go on for the sake of his friends and family.

It brought a tear to his eye, thinking of how it would hurt them.  However, thanks to Solitaire's vision, he now knew that to be an inevitability.  Better to get it over with in one stroke than drudge it out painfully, like it had been with Valerie.

He'd been thinking of their friendship, and how it had all but fallen apart due to their respective secrets.  How an enemy had manipulated their emotions to get the best of them.  How any chance of a deeper relationship had been shattered.  Perhaps forever.

And through it all, Danny could only come to one conclusion about Valerie and him.

They were going to kill each other.

Perhaps he'd kill her, perhaps she'd kill him.

Perhaps sooner, perhaps later.

Now, Danny was taking the first step to do something different and avoid that seemingly inevitable outcome.

From inside the backpack, a ring-tone came.  Pawing through the haphazard collection of belongings, Danny withdrew a cell-phone, setting it to "TALK" and putting it to his ear.

"Hello," he greeted sulkily.

"Danny?" Tucker's voice emanated from the phone.  "You sound sick... Are you okay?  You've been acting weird all day..."

"Tucker," Danny said, "I'm leaving.  For good."

On the other end of the line was silence, followed by, "Wh–What do you mean?"

"I can't stay here anymore, because I'll only end up driving you and everyone else I care about away.  I'm just leaving now, so it'll be less painful.  Goodbye, Tuck."

"Danny!  Wai–" But Danny had already hung up the phone, tucking it back into his backpack.

Finally, he wrote a short note to his parents:

Dear Mom and Dad,

Goodbye.  I probably won't see you again.  Tell Jazz goodbye for me when she gets back from visiting Yale.

Love,
Danny.

Pinning the note to his door, Danny then looked out the window, musing upon all his ghost powers had ever brought him: misery, anguish, and solitude.  Sighing deeply, he flew through the window at top speed, wanting to get as far away from his old life as possible.  Behind him, the brownstone that was FentonWorks faded into the distance.

Regretting nothing but what his friends would think, Danny Phantom flew west into the sunset, repeating to himself:

"It's for the best.  It's for the best.  It's for the best..."

Description
"Wh...What did you say?" Danny stammered.

The gash in Solitaire's face that was his smile opened.  "Don't be so surprised, my boy.  After all you've seen and done, you don't think that precognition actually could be performed?"

Incense flooding his sinuses, Danny blinked twice.  This man did have a point.  He'd witnessed–even performed–multiple examples of supernatural feats time and time again.  Was he to be shocked that one more "impossible" feat had been done before his very eyes?

"Perhaps I should explain the circumstances," Solitaire continued.  "I'm what's known as a medium, Danny Phantom; a person attuned to the spiritual energies and prescience apparent in everyone.  You and I are very much alike, in the sense that we have both harnessed the power of the Ghost Zone for our own use."

Danny raised a brow.  "What does fortune-telling have to do with the Ghost Zone?"

"Ectoplasm is the matter most attuned to human psychokinetic energy," the tall man sighed.  "It is how I theorize a ghost forms: the electromagnetic pattern that makes up a person's consciousness survives after death, and builds itself a new body on a parallel plane of existence.  And this same energy can be used to tap into visions of the past and future.  Surely, you've witnessed this power before in your travels?"

Thinking back, Danny had seen visions of the future before, with the aid of other ghosts.  Clockwork, the ghost of time, and the Observants had the distinct power to see into the time yet to come.  Slowly and cautiously, he nodded.

Solitaire smiled once more, his wound of a mouth thinly creasing.  "Now then," he said, "would you like your fortune or not, Mr. Fenton?"

Danny sighed.  What did he have to lose?  "Sure."

As the teen leaned back in his chair, Solitaire started shuffling the cards with almost inhuman dexterity.  His long, claw-like fingers flew back and forth as the cards shifted and folded into one another within the deck.  It was like watching a master blackjack dealer at work.

After he'd finished the long and complicated process of randomizing the draw, the tall man drew three cards and placed them on the table.  The first card faced center, the second left, and the third right.

"Now, my boy..." Solitaire said, "each of these cards signifies a time in a person's life.  The first represents the past, the second present, and the third future.  Do you follow?"

Danny nodded, his eyes never leaving the cards.

"Good.  Let's see what we have here..."

With one fluid motion, Solitaire flipped the past card over.  It showed an ace of clubs.

"According to this," he elucidated, "you recently experienced a powerful rebirth of some sort, most likely when you acquired your ghost powers..."

Before Danny could confirm this, the man had already flipped the center card, revealing a five of hearts.

"...But this rebirth has led to a series of events that has caused you great sorrow and emotional anguish..."

He flipped the remaining card, but seemed to take some time with it.  The last card showcased a ten of spades.  At this, Solitaire's green eyes widened, slowly drawing towards Danny.  The worried stare made the boy uncomfortable to an extreme degree.

"...Anguish," Solitaire said, "that will continue to culminate until complete and absolute ruin is visited upon your life."

"Wait a minute," Danny said after the cartomancy was over.  "This can't be true... My life's going perfectly fine, even with my ghost powers.  There's no reason for my life to go bad..."

"Is there?" Solitaire asked.  "What about your relationship with Valerie Gray?"

At this, Danny's heart skipped a beat.  "What do you mean?"

"That young woman with whom you were conversing," he said.  "There's something special between you two, and it's not just that you potentially like each other.  It's the fact that each of you has a double life.  Double lives that ruined your relationship on both sides."

Danny gulped.  It was true, what Solitaire was saying.

"So what would happen if this same effect were to occur with other people in your life?  Your family?  Your friends?  All driven away by the power you possess, the secrets you keep..."

Sagging into the chair in which he was sitting, Danny let Solitaire's words sink into his mind.  It was all entirely plausible, what this man was suggesting.  Gaining ghost powers and becoming a superhero had taken quite the toll on his personal life.  What if it led him down a road where nothing could be fixed?

What if it ruined him?

"Listen, Danny..." Solitaire said, interrupting the boy's thoughts.  "If it were up to me, I'd change your fate, but as far as I know, Fate cannot be changed.  I'm very sorry."

Danny sighed, getting up to leave the tent.  "Don't be.  It's my fault... All of it."

~~~~~~~~~~

Why does it have to be this way? he thought. Why does everything bad always happen to me?  Can't I get a break?  Just once?

Danny Phantom finished packing the rest of his essential belongings into his backpack and slung it over his shoulder.  Many of the things in his room were gone, having been thrown into the pack, which now felt quite heavy.  But it was all needed for the long journey ahead.

The journey Danny had decided to go on for the sake of his friends and family.

It brought a tear to his eye, thinking of how it would hurt them.  However, thanks to Solitaire's vision, he now knew that to be an inevitability.  Better to get it over with in one stroke than drudge it out painfully, like it had been with Valerie.

He'd been thinking of their friendship, and how it had all but fallen apart due to their respective secrets.  How an enemy had manipulated their emotions to get the best of them.  How any chance of a deeper relationship had been shattered.  Perhaps forever.

And through it all, Danny could only come to one conclusion about Valerie and him.

They were going to kill each other.

Perhaps he'd kill her, perhaps she'd kill him.

Perhaps sooner, perhaps later.

Now, Danny was taking the first step to do something different and avoid that seemingly inevitable outcome.

From inside the backpack, a ring-tone came.  Pawing through the haphazard collection of belongings, Danny withdrew a cell-phone, setting it to "TALK" and putting it to his ear.

"Hello," he greeted sulkily.

"Danny?" Tucker's voice emanated from the phone.  "You sound sick... Are you okay?  You've been acting weird all day..."

"Tucker," Danny said, "I'm leaving.  For good."

On the other end of the line was silence, followed by, "Wh–What do you mean?"

"I can't stay here anymore, because I'll only end up driving you and everyone else I care about away.  I'm just leaving now, so it'll be less painful.  Goodbye, Tuck."

"Danny!  Wai–" But Danny had already hung up the phone, tucking it back into his backpack.

Finally, he wrote a short note to his parents:

Dear Mom and Dad,

Goodbye.  I probably won't see you again.  Tell Jazz goodbye for me when she gets back from visiting Yale.

Love,
Danny.

Pinning the note to his door, Danny then looked out the window, musing upon all his ghost powers had ever brought him: misery, anguish, and solitude.  Sighing deeply, he flew through the window at top speed, wanting to get as far away from his old life as possible.  Behind him, the brownstone that was FentonWorks faded into the distance.

Regretting nothing but what his friends would think, Danny Phantom flew west into the sunset, repeating to himself:

"It's for the best.  It's for the best.  It's for the best..."