#nocturnalfruitloop

Ghostgirldani: "You. Just what do you think you’re doing here, Plasmius?"

nocturnal-fruitloop: Her creator smiled deviously. “Do I need a reason to visit my little girl?” His words were meant to sting. Cold eyes stared down at her intently. “And please, can’t you simply call me Vlad, at least?” the older ghost hybrid quipped.

Ghostgirldani:"How about I call you a creep and a fruitloop instead?" She growled, eyes flashing green. "I know you’re not here for friendly chit-chat, so why don’t you tell me what you want? Or better yet, why don’t you get lost."

nocturnal-fruitloop: Vlad flinched at the cereal-related insult. He couldn’t believe it had stuck so well with his foes. His smile vanished, replaced with a scolding  and unimpressed look. “Oh, the scary eyes,” he teased dryly, “Why would I need to explain myself to you, Dani?” His eyes flashed red for only a second, but it was a dangerous sign. “Perhaps I’m just here to finish some… neglected business?”

ghostgirldani: The girl swallowed hard, her fear starting to overtake her anger. "Don’t you come anywhere near me." she warned, taking a step backwards. “I can kick your butt, and you know it. And you’re never gonna get your hands on me again!"

nocturnal-fruitloop: Taking a step forward without changing his expression, Vlad continued to stare at the other. It was more than apparent that he was not scared of her.  Clone of Danny or not, she was nothing in comparison to the ghost boy. “And what are you going to do to keep me away?” he retorted, his lips curling up into a dangerous grin. “Zap me? Fly away? Call for Daniel?” he chuckled, “It’s of no use. Your threats are worthless.”

A black ring appeared around his middle, separating into two and moving outwards from his torso. In the black and white flash he changed; red eyes replaced cool blue ones, fangs replaced teeth, his previously white hair darkened to pitch black and stood spiked rather than in its usual ponytail, his skin turned blue and his ears pointed, and his clothing changed from a black suit to a white, red, and black outfit, complete with cape and all.

His fanged smile was eerie, mixed with his red eyes and ghostly white glow. Vlad Plasmius took another step towards Dani, but made no immediate move to lunge or attack her. “Do you really think you could fight me?” he asked, grinding her threat beneath his metaphorical heel.

Ghostgirldani: Dani’s hands shook as she backed away a bit more, but she kept her voice steady as she retorted. “I’ve fought you before, and beat you. I can do it again!"

A white ring appeared around her waist, spreading up and down, transforming her from girl to ghost. Her hoodie and shorts were replaced by her black and gray jumpsuit, and her raven-black hair went snow white. Her green eyes narrowed as she faced off with her “father", and her gloved fists glowed the same color. 

"I’m giving you one last warning. Leave me alone!" she growled through clenched teeth. She was a lot stronger now than she’d been the last time they’d met. She could take him. But a small part of her still wanted him to accept her as his daughter, wanted to find out that he did love her, after all. And that made her hesitate, waiting to see what he would do.

nocturnal-fruitloop: Vlad seemed to hesitate as well. A small amount of surprise showed on his face; Dani was truly intending to stand up against him- alone-, and that fact was shocking. For a moment he seemed to forget what he’d intended to do (although he’d never really had that figured out in the first place).

“Remember you had some help, last time,” though his voice was level, the words that escaped his lips were icy and dripping with venom. His surprise had been abandoned, replaced with cool composure and a serious glare.

His fists glowed with pink energy, but he still did not attack. Instead, he waited. Like the predator he was, Vlad waited for Dani to make the first move, knowing from experience that doing so himself may prove unwise.

He watched her. Glowing red eyes wandered about her stance, the energy in her hands, and, finally, her eyes. Defiance was there. He knew that. But the smallest voice in his mind said that there was more behind them than just that.

Ghostgirldani: Dani almost smirked as him, noticing the flash of surprise on his face. “Sure, Danny and Valerie rescued me, when I was barely able to keep from dissolving into a puddle of goo. No thanks to you. But once I was stable? That was all me. And I’ve only gotten better since then." She cracked her knuckles, working hard to hide whatever fear she felt. I can do this. she thought, steeling her nerves. I can beat him. He can’t ever hurt me again.

She didn’t know why he was waiting, but some instinct told her not to attack first. Her time spent traveling and sneaking around, living on her own, had taught her to trust those instincts; they’d kept her out of trouble more than once. Plus, she still couldn’t bring herself to act offensively against anyone. Especially not him.

"What are you waiting for, Daddy dear? Don’t you want to come win back your little girl?" she taunted. “Or are you scared of me after all?"

nocturnal-fruitloop: Vlad gave a concerned frown. A part of him was slightly intimidated and slightly impressed at her display of confidence. It reminded him of Daniel. He wasn’t sure if that fact bothered him or not.

The lack of either making a move left an uncomfortably tense atmosphere- for him, at least. He had been certain she would be naive enough to attack by now. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he was proud of her. She had really been his only ‘successful’ clone, in more ways than one.

He knew he’d thrown that away, though, in a fit of blind rage and foolishness. One of many mistakes he’d made in his life. Another tally on the chalkboard, so to speak. Vlad pushed these thoughts away as best he could; he had more important things to attend to.

Her words stung. For a fleeting second, one he prayed she didn’t catch, the halfa was visibly hurt. The small break in composure did not last long, as it was replaced by an inhumanly low growl and a narrowing of bright red eyes. He couldn’t bring himself to speak.

In a moment of emotion- rage, hurt, whatever it may have been, Vlad did something he had deemed foolish.

He lunged at Dani.

Ghostgirldani: The girl dodged sideways as the older halfa lunged at her, taking to the air. Part of her was relieved; he’d made the first move. He’d attacked her. Everything now as self-defense. And that she could handle.

Another part of her, however, wanted to cry. She felt like the betrayed little girl she’d been the first time she’d realized he was using her. She’d barely dared to hope that his hesitation now meant anything. But maybe, if he hadn’t attacked, it was because some part of him still cared for her. That he’d maybe even actually loved her, once. 

But no. Danny was right. She was nothing but a mess that he wasn’t going to clean up. A mistake. A failure. And he’d never seen her as anything more than that. He really hadn’t ever cared. And it was stupid to ever think otherwise, even for a second.

She set her jaw, firing a single huge blast of green energy directly at the other ghost.

nocturnal-fruitloop: Vlad regretted what he did instantly. But he had made his bed, and now he had to lay in it. Even if he couldn’t sleep, even if it was uncomfortable and lonely. He inwardly winced at the thought.

He shot at her a few times. The shots didn’t have any real battle-lust to them, though. It was as if he were simply ‘going through the motions.’ It was almost frighteningly obvious that he just wanted to get this over with and move on. ‘You’re sick,’ he thought to himself.

The thought revived his rage. With a bit more meaning, Vlad dodged the blast of green energy and made for her again, flying after the cloned halfa. He moved quickly, trying to grab onto her hands when she was within reach so he could prevent her from shooting at him again.

Vlad didn’t dare speak. His normal gloating was silenced by the idea- the fear- that he might say something wrong or foolish. He’d already acted as such. No need to back up that claim.

Ghostgirldani: Dani dodged his few attacks easily, surprised at how little force seemed to be behind them. “You getting weak, old man?" she called, taunting again. “And what happened to the witty banter? Cat got your tongue?"

She wasn’t quite fast enough when he came after her again, however. Apparently, he was still quicker than he looked. He caught one of her arms, preventing her from fleeing.

“Let me go!" she screamed, all bravo and confidence gone from her voice. Her shout was one of pure terror and anger. She aimed a blast directly at his face, as her green eyes, full of fear and hatred, met his red ones.

nocturnal-fruitloop: He let go.

How could he keep his hold on her? The sheer amount of terror in her voice, the shattering of the facade she’d held this whole time, stalled him. And it showed, too. The shock on his face. The realization that something he created truly feared and hated him.

Vlad looked back into her green eyes. He wondered if red could show any emotion, or if they just looked empty. He wondered if she could see the hurt and shock behind them.

The older halfa neglected to dodge the green blast, being hit full force and thrown back. He needed to stop acting like this. He needed to get his head back into the game, least he wanted to lose his reputation.

Aiming shots of pink ectoplasm at her took some discipline. But he did it, nonetheless. He tried to recover his serious and composed demeanor, but felt as if his eyes betrayed it. But then, he wondered again, wasn’t bright red empty?

Ghostgirldani: Dani threw up a shield, creating a glowing green sphere around herself, deflecting the pink blasts. She was shaking too badly to do anything else. She fought her emotions, trying to calm herself, but the terror and rage were overwhelming. Even if she’d wanted to fight or flee, she was stuck on the spot. As it was, she could barely manage to hold the shield and keep from crying.

The look in his eyes haunted her. She’d expected there to be… something. Anger, hatred, malice… anything, really. But it had been like looking into the eyes of a shark: dead, blank, emotionless. And yet, he’d let her go. 

She looked at the man through her shield, a single tear of anger and pain escaping to slide down her cheek. Her voice cracked as she said a single word: “Why?" 

It was the question that had haunted her since she’d first helped him capture Danny. That burned in her head as she’d screamed in his device, melting into nothing. That caused her to wake up in the middle of the night, trembling. Why had he used her and betrayed her? Why wasn’t she good enough? Why did he attack her? Why didn’t he just finish her off? Why did she even exist?

nocturnal-fruitloop: Vlad stopped. He couldn’t continue, not like this. Maybe- maybe if she’d fought back, but not like this. It wasn’t right. It wasn’t fair. Why should he be fair, though? No one had ever been fair to him. Why shouldn’t he just destroy her now and get it over with? Why shouldn’t… should…

“Why?” he echoed hollowly.

But how could he answer that? His witty retorts wouldn’t come. Cruel quips were stuck in his throat. Rude remarks could not escape his teeth. And no explanation could come forth. Was there even an answer he could give? Part of him wished there was.

Part of him. Always part of him. That’s what came with being half alive, he supposed. What suppressed that part? His own pride? Guilt? He wasn’t sure, but suppressed it was.

He couldn’t look directly at her. Not with the way she trembled. He’d always thought he would enjoy that- seeing others tremble before him, especially after his younger years. But it wasn’t like that. He simply couldn’t bring himself to enjoy this.

His thoughts fell back to those before: ‘something I created.’

Was that it? No, it played to minor a part. Vlad knew why. It was because he knew she’d once cared for him. She, perhaps the only person- clone or not- had cared for him. And for a while, blind as it was, he’d cared back.

“I cannot explain,” he answered evenly, “Though… If I could, I’m sure you wouldn’t care to hear.” Fickle and worthless as it was, that was all he could manage to respond.

He wouldn’t look at her. He’d been trying to blast her a few moments before. But now, he wouldn’t even look at her. And now he sounded… almost sad. She’d never seen him like this before: malicious, powerful, stubborn, haughty, and always strong. Even when he was beaten, he terrified her, because of how powerful he was. But now he just looked… she wasn’t sure of the word.

Ghostgirldani: She dropped her shield. Maybe he was just acting, and this was just a trap, but she didn’t care. She was still upset, still scared, but mostly, she was angry. Angry that he wouldn’t look at her, even now. Angry that he had hurt her. Angry that he didn’t care. Angry that she wasn’t good enough. That even now, he didn’t think enough of her to even try to answer her. She felt like she was boiling and freezing at the same time, as the emotion drowned out all else.

"No." she said, her voice even and calm and laced with ice, as she trembled there in the air, ignoring the angry tears that splashed down her face. “You don’t get to make any more assumptions about me. You don’t get to just not explain. You owe me that, at least. Look at me, and tell me exactly why I wasn’t good enough for you. Father."

nocturnal-fruitloop: He’d never heard more final words in his life. At least, he couldn’t think of any others at the moment. Vlad looked back at Dani, stung by the tears in her eyes, though he knew he shouldn’t be. He should just get this over with, end her and move on. That was why he was here, wasn’t it? He raised a hand, glowing with pink energy, ready to blast her apart.

…No. That wasn’t why he was here, and he knew it.

Vlad lowered his hand carefully, letting it fall back to his side. In his mind he fumbled for words. What could he say? How could he say it? Was there really anything to say?

Of course there was. He grit his teeth at the realization. Vlad was just stalling one of two things. That was weak of him. Foolish. It made him sick.

…It made part of him sick.

“I made a mistake!” he shouted at the smaller halfa abruptly, “One I clearly can’t fix!” His fangs were bared, his fists shaking with rage- rage that he used as a feeble crutch. That was pathetic, but he couldn’t ever admit that, not even to himself.

Ghostgirldani: She didn’t even flinch as he raised his hand to blast her. That was about the response she expected. It was a kind of closure, too. Not at explanation, really, but an answer. And she could defend herself from him. 

She was much more surprised when the expected red blast never came. What sort of game was this? She knew him, better than just about anyone else. She’d lived with him, once. Cared about him, even. He didn’t surrender. Ever.

The words did make her flinch, his shout laced with more than just anger. She blinked at him, her expression softening ever so slightly. She almost… pitied him. There was something broken now, that she had never seen before. But then the words sank in, and her own fists clenched in anger, her expression growing stony once more.

"So that’s it, then. I am just a mistake. I was never your daughter; just your slave." she growled. “And you’re just a monster. I don’t know how I ever thought you were a good man."

nocturnal-fruitloop: “I was never a good man,” Vlad spat. “And it wasn’t…” he trailed off, unsure if he wanted to finish. Perhaps he should just leave it at that- let her believe he was nothing but a monster who cared for no one but himself. That would be so much easier for them both.

But it wouldn’t, at the same time. Perhaps both options were as difficult as the other. There was no ‘lesser’ of the two evils here. He was in this deep. Surely, for all his power and experience, he had the strength to finish what he started?

“…I made a mistake in a different way, Dani,” Vlad continued slowly. “That mistake was neglect… And I cannot fix that,” the older halfa couldn’t believe what he was saying. Were those words coming out of his mouth?

“Do as you will, Dani,” he lifted his arms at his sides somewhat, a gesture that could mean many things. “If deeming me a monster, attacking me, or just flying off is the answer, then do it. I won’t stop you either way,” the words were even, spoken with little emotion but crammed with meaning.

It was like trying to kill Danny or Maddie. He could never have either of them, but he would never rid the world of them, either. He loved them. Perhaps he did have room in his heart for one more betrayal- one more heartbreak.

Ghostgirldani: She stared at him, perfectly still. Her emotions boiled. One moment, she was angry, the next, hurt, the next, pitying this man in front of her. Inside her head, an argument played out.

I hate him. He tried to kill me. And Danny. 

But he’s your father.

No! He lost the right to that name a long time ago. He’s a monster.

You know he isn’t.

She listened to Vlad’s explanation. His admission that he wasn’t a good man. That he was wrong. That he’d hurt her, and that he couldn’t fix that. She felt like her heart was going to explode into a million fragments. 

She wanted to do all three. She wanted to scream at him, blast him into a billion pieces, or just run. Run and hide and never see him again. But she couldn’t move. She felt paralyzed. And that tiny voice in the back of her head whispered to her, reminder her how she’d once regarded this man as her father. How she’d loved him, and believed every one of his lies. Maybe… maybe not everything had been a lie, after all.

She closed her eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath, then opened them, meeting his blank red eyes. And this time, there was something there. She didn’t know what, but it was something. Maybe he really wasn’t a monster. Or at least, not entirely. Swallowing once, she spoke.

"You tried to kill me, and to kill Danny. And I’ll never forgive you for that." Her voice rang with the pain and betrayal which lingered with her, and her eyes were hard and dangerous. “But you made me, too. And I owe you for that. So go on. Give me a reason. Just one. Why…" her voice cracked, and she angrily wiped another stray tear from her face. “Why should I give you another chance?"

nocturnal-fruitloop: He’d almost expected her to just flee. Maybe to attack, maybe to shout at him. He had not expected this. But he didn’t let that show. His cool composure held solid as he watched the other, contemplating her question.

“Why?”

Back to that one, little word again. Small words always did have the biggest meaning, didn’t they? A mere three or four letters could spell out thousands of things.

“I don’t know,” Vlad stated flatly in response, giving an almost half-hearted shrug. That was the truth enough. He really had no idea why she’d bother. If this had been Danny, he could understand. Maddie as well. But not Dani.

Maybe it seemed a little cold, but Vlad had never been an emotional man. Especially not in situations like this; where he not only had to answer to Dani, but himself, as well. There was a lot he couldn’t admit to himself that was laid out before him right now.

He glanced down. Couldn’t keep his eyes on hers anymore. Even if it wasn’t for long, knowing she’d likely drag his attention back to her, he needed to look away. Just for a moment, so that maybe, he wouldn’t have to face her questions for just a second longer.

Vlad inwardly scolded his foolishness.

Ghostgirldani: What are you? She tried, so hard, to stay angry. But at his shrug, at his honest admission that he didn’t know why she should even give him a chance, she couldn’t do it. She could handle the heartless monster who’d tried to melt her, who’d treated her as nothing more than a puppet. But she couldn’t handle this. As he looked away, her anger faded, and was replaced by pity. He was horrible, yes. Sick, yes. She still hated him. But she couldn’t help but wonder if maybe there was some twisted reason for what he was after all. She supposed she had too much kindness in her; Danny probably would have blasted Vlad apart by now. But she couldn’t help the small voice in the back of her head, which felt nothing but sadness for the person in front of her.

She landed. Clearly, he wasn’t going to attack her now. And she didn’t want to talk to him as Dani Phantom anymore. That was her cousin… no, the boy she’d been cloned from. Not even her cousin; just the original. She was a cheap fake. Her ‘father’ had made that clear, at least. The thought made her feel sick.

She closed her eyes, allowing a few more tears to escape, and transformed back into a small, raven-haired girl in a dirty blue hoodie and red shorts. Just a normal, lost child. Danielle. She looked back up to the vampiric ghost. He didn’t even scare her now. That made her sick, too. 

She didn’t know what to do. A million questions, a million remarks, a million different things she wanted to say, to scream, to ask. A million more that she needed to hear. But mostly, she was infuriated, and disgusted, by the fact that he couldn’t even look at her. Who she was angry at, though, she couldn’t tell.

"Why won’t you look at me?" she whispered, feeling herself crack under the swirl of thoughts and feelings tearing through her mind.

nocturnal-fruitloop: He did it before he had any idea of what he was doing. On his knees before her, arms reaching for her, and he realized he’d completely snapped.

“No! You were perfect, loyal, strong, and real,” the words came in a rush, almost coming out as one long jumble of word-like sounds. “I created a perfect person- not a perfect replica- and was to blind to see-” he stopped. It dawned on him what he was doing.

Vlad’s pride shattered. Shaking faintly, he let his hands fall to the ground. There was no coming back from this point. What had happened today could not be erased, could not be taken back. Even if he ran away now, it would only be physically running. Mentally, he’d trapped himself here.

He didn’t cry, of course, no matter how much this tore him apart inside. At least he had that little shred of dignity left in tact. Not much, of course, but something.

Unable to find a suitable response, Vlad simply remained silent. With a bit more courage than he had left, he looked back up at Dani. Looked her in the eyes while his, surprisingly human, scanned them for what she would do next.

Ghostgirldani: Her first instinct was to back away. He was supposed to be strong. Everything she knew about Vlad Masters said that he didn’t break, didn’t show emotion. Even for the brief time she’d lived with him, she’d always tried to be her best to get even the smallest bit of approval from him. And those few moments had been the most treasured of her life, at the time.

If she was really honest with herself, despite everything he’d done to her… they still were.

I’m… perfect?

She looked at him, kneeling there on the ground, holding his gaze. No more blank red stare: she could see a reflection of her own pain, multiplied and mutated, behind his blue eyes. 

Who broke you, the way you broke me?

She hesitantly took a step forward, then two, closing the distance between them, then sat in front of him, never once breaking eye contact

For all you have… you’re all alone too, aren’t you?

She didn’t love him; she never could. But she couldn’t hate him either, for all that he’d done. Nervously, not really sure why she was doing it, she softly laid one of her small hands on his shaking ones.

How to I fix myself, before I become you?

nocturnal-fruitloop: As soon as her hand touched his, he could no longer hold her gaze, and he looked down. Down, at Dani’s hand rested on his own. For a moment, he contemplated a thought- that, in some ways, they were one in the same. In some ways, Vlad felt she mirrored him. Alone, lost, but…

…But that didn’t matter. It was simple, really- she was good, he was evil. A game the universe had played for eons. Good guys fight bad guys, whether or not the bad guys created them or not. And the good guys… always won.

It couldn’t be any other way, and he knew this. He knew she, and Danny, and Maddie, knew it too. Vlad was evil. A monster bent on not only stealing the woman of his dreams, but claiming everything his former best-friend had gained. Everything he’d lost due to one, little fluke. A demon who wanted power, to be able to control others, out of greed and pride. Traits that made him a truly bitter creature.

Vlad looked back up at her after a moment. His expression was unreadable, though his eyes still gave his inner battles away. He was a lonely man, twisted and soured by tragedy and betrayal. The only difference between him and Dani was a simple one.

She was stronger than him. She had the will to resist doing wrong, despite having the power to do so.

Although he could never say it, he was proud of her for that, too.

Ghostgirldani: "I still can’t forgive you, you know." She broke the silence, a bit more harshly than she’d meant to. “You… I can’t ever explain, what you did to me. How you broke me." She shook her head, not even sure why she was telling him this. But what could be do to her now? She’d beaten him; she knew that. So what has the harm? The thoughts that had plagued her, gnawed at her through all her travels, came tumbling out.

"I’m still a mistake. A freak. And even if Danny accepts me… I can’t ever be part of his family." She bit her lip hard, feeling it split. “I can’t really even be part of his life."

She stood, pulling away from him, wiping the tiny bead of blood from her lip. “I don’t know what happened to you. I don’t know why you became… whatever it is you are now. But I don’t want to become you. I can’t become you." She looked down on him, her expression mixed parts pity and contempt. She couldn’t fear, or hate, or admire him anymore.

"But what else is there for me to be?"

nocturnal-fruitloop: Vlad didn’t react for some time. He just watched her, his eyes flashing with different emotions. They scanned her, as if searching for words. As if he could pull everything from nowhere and talk his way out of this.

His eyes finally set on an emotion.

A smug, proud look, partnered with a small smirk.

“I don’t want you to forgive me,” her creator responded, his voice returning to normal; cool, calm, collected. “And I can never explain what happened to me, either. We’re both mistakes, Dani. We’re both freaks and neither of us should have ever been. Bask in the glorious fact that at least someone accepts you. I, however, remain alone.”

Vlad stood up as well, dusting himself off almost mechanically.

“You’ve already proven that you won’t end up like your dear old dad,” what he said was not mocking, and he winced at his own words. “Painfully proven it. But, then, you have someone,” a cool, calculated smile touched his lips. His eyes darkened some, and it became apparent that Vlad was returning to his normal, diabolical self.

“You’re the only one who can answer that question, Dani,” he studied her again for a moment, then returned his gaze back to her eyes.

“There’s no wrong answer.”

Ghostgirldani: She watched him morph back into the Vlad he used to be. The one she feared, and hated, and respected. The one that could strap a little girl to an experimentation table. The ghost with the blank red eyes. The millionaire with everything, and nothing. The man she’d once called “Daddy."

And when he met her gaze, she smiled. But the expression didn’t reach her eyes. 

"You had someone too, Plasmius. You had me." Her voice, too, was calm and cold. “And I don’t think I’m the first one you’ve pushed away."

She nodded once. For all his lies in the past, that final statement rang true. There is no wrong answer.