Chapter Text
There had been something wrong with Danny lately, and it was summarized and encapsulated by how he stared at the cubby under the desk in his room. Safe and dark and hidden… especially if he pulled some of his blankets in there with him. Almost the right size and shape.
The right size and shape for what , Danny wanted to ask. He had no idea. But every dark, contained, safe space he’d seen lately got a similar reaction from him. Like he was assessing their suitability for… something.
So far, the space under his desk was given the top rating, followed by the space under his bed (which was, apparently, the wrong shape, too flat), and the closet (too big, but more secure).
He wondered if this was just normal ghost behavior; behavior that was only now rearing its head ages after his admittedly strange death. Ghosts were supposed to like the dark.
That was the only thing it could be, right?
He pulled himself away from contemplating the cubby, and tried to focus on his homework. He did, after all, have a lot of homework. It was March of his Sophomore year, and things were going… They were going.
In a few hours, he’d get a chance to go to the Far Frozen and ask Frostbite what was wrong with him. In the meantime… He just had to not think about the cubby. Or dark, hidden, safe spaces.
He whined, high pitched and reverberating.
It wasn’t working. At all.
Maybe if he just… Tucked himself in. Just for a minute or two. Maybe that would satisfy the need clawing at him.
He pulled the blankets of his bed off and draped them over his shoulders before folding himself into the gap and stuffing the excess into the drafty gaps near the floor. It wasn’t… it wasn’t quite right. He squished himself deeper, into the back corner.
He’d just… sit here for a minute.
Just a minute.
He woke up to his phone alarm buzzing at him. He’d set that alarm to remind himself of when his parents were likely to be out, hunting ghosts. Had it really been that long? A quick check of his phone said it had.
Wow. That was… unexpected. Even if he was perpetually sleep deprived these days. And was that… Spiderweb? On his face?
Ew.
(Yes, he ate bugs while flying all the time. Still ew.)
He brushed it away and scooted his way out from under the desk, feeling oddly stiff. It was time to pay Frostbite a visit.
.
If he didn’t already know something was wrong with him, entering the Ghost Zone would have confirmed it. Everything heightened, and ice formed on his hands in response. He wanted to run and hide and cover himself up in ice, make a tiny lair for himself somewhere safe and--
No. He was not doing that. For all he knew, this could be some weird ghost parasite trying to get him into their preferred position to spawn.
Ancients. He should never have let Sam show him those fungi-infested bugs and snails. He was never going to stop being paranoid about that, especially ever since he saw that giant ghost mushroom.
That thing was creepy.
He beat his impulses into submission and went directly to the Far Frozen, successfully avoiding several fights on the way there. Skulker really didn’t know how to quit.
The Far Frozen was welcoming as usual, nice and cold, with dark, quiet caves, protected by allies… No, stop that.
“Great one? Are you alright?”
“I… No, I don’t think so. I’m sorry, this is sort of a medical visit.”
Frostbite’s face turned grim. “We will take care of it as best we can. Come, let us go to the medical hall.”
Danny nodded, and allowed himself to be carried, once again marveling at how much bigger Frostbite was than him.
“Now, tell me, great one, what is troubling you.”
.
“I see,” said Frostbite, after Danny’s explanation. “May I ask, have you noticed any strings on you when you wake up, lately? Thin, like a spiderweb?”
“How did you know about that?” asked Danny. “Is this caused by spiders? Do I have ghost spiders in me?”
“No,” said Frostbite. “No, great one. This is a very natural process that occurs when a ghost’s power increases by a certain amount… Although the exact threshold is different for everyone.”
“And what is that process?” asked Danny, a little calmer now that he knew this was a normal part of being a ghost.
“Cocooning. You are seeking a safe space to form a chrysalis, although the initial readings I have on your core state indicate that you are some time off from truly being ready. Perhaps a few months.”
“Okay,” said Danny. “A chrysalis. Like a butterfly?”
“Very like,” said Frostbite.
“And, uh, what happens after I make this chrysalis.”
“Well,” said Frostbite, cautiously. “The process takes quite a bit of time, but… your ectoplasmic body would start to lose integrity, your core discarding it and denaturing it so as to rebuild it from scratch.”
Danny raised a hand to stop Frostbite, then brought both hands up together to touch his lips, as if in prayer. “Are you saying I’m going to melt?”
“Essentially, yes. Your core would, however, remain intact throughout the process.”
“And, like, my human body? Because I’m pretty attached to that.”
“Er,” said Frostbite. “It will most likely be fine, but I would like to run some more scans.”
“Yeah,” said Danny. “Sure. But, um. How long would this usually take?”
“It is different for everyone. But… months, great one.”
“Months?”
“Months. I would like to extend an offer to you, to stay here while you undergo your metamorphosis. We would guard you, and make sure you received all necessary nutrients and care.”
“Thank you,” said Danny. “But… I can’t. I can’t leave Amity Park alone for that long, and my parents… I can’t disappear on them like that. Isn’t there some way I can stop this? That I can, I don’t know, shed power?”
“No,” said Frostbite. “Not to our knowledge. Any attempt to do so has… not ended well.”
“I… okay.” He took a deep breath. “Then, I guess… I need to tell my parents.”