"And this adjourns our meeting, ladies and gentlemen, time to get some work done."

Phantom said this as he clasped his hands with a cheerful smile, standing before a small audience of his followers. Their meeting was held not in a shady house somewhere in the Knockturn Alley, but in a place where neither the Ministry nor Voldemort would be looking for a bunch of outcasts that formed their group — a hotel conference room. Miss McLain was luckily a well-off singer, so they could allow it. The half-bloods and muggleborns that formed the bulk of the organisation were utilising their adaptability to the fullest. The white-haired prince gathered the lieutenants every second week to assign tasks and hear the less urgent reports.

The Equatores, with the latin pronunciation, as some smart-mouths had started calling themselves, were growing in numbers. The Ministry created a lot of enemies over the last few decades, creating the despondent crowds that Phantom managed to appeal to with promises of greater security and rights. Even some vampires chose to tag along. They too faced the same level of ostracism as the werewolves, so they were a welcomed addition to the cause of the revolution. Phantom welcomed them with open arms. There were different wizards and witches that joined. Some were lured in by the prospect of opportunity in a new Britain, some were more excited about fighting the other enemy of their cause — the Dark Lord himself. What Dumbledore failed to accumulate due to forced inaction — the armed believers, Phantom managed to attract to his side. And he was getting awfully smug about it.

With the aid of the mole in the Death Eaters' ranks, the halfa knew where they would strike. He was all too happy to obstruct the Dark Lord's schemes. And sometimes he was killing two birds with one stone. That's how it worked: Voldemort actively utilised the greatest asset in his disposal — the immense wealth of the most influential wizarding families. Thus, he made sure to secure support or make the officials overlook important things with said money. By learning when that illegal transaction would take place, the allies of the undead prince could strike and grab those bountiful galleons. Part of it was left to the organisation's funds, but the rest was given to the members of the cause as a reward. Something to keep them motivated if honeyed words did not suffice. Since the Dark Lord would not send the veterans for such minor things, they were an easy pick initially.

And then they started going with bodyguards of the medium calibre. Voldemort was learning, and since such information was not the most delicate one, the circle of potential traitors was very large. Luckily Ember's love spell was making Amycus a problem for Voldemort's Occlumency. It simply erased all interactions with his goddess, who was the only one receiving information from him, leaving nothing to be picked by the Dark Lord. However, Carrow must not report to anyone but Ember. An easy to accomplish goal.

But the occasional attacks on Death Eaters were a beep on the radar. In the grand scheme of things, relatively little was changing, and there was a reason for that. Theoretically, they could stage an attack on Malfoy Mansion and let Phantom kill the bastard, but the halfa knew that it would be a pointless loss of life. That's why some of his effort went towards finding Horcruxes, just recently another group, of miserable Ministry workers, had brought to him what he wanted — some information about who Voldemort really was. They did keep tabs on what it was and it wasn't that hard to get. The wizards feared him, but the files were there. And that's why the halfa planned on checking the leads right after the meeting.

"As usual, report to me immediately after," Phantom added.

"Gottcha/we got it/ will do sir," a series of responses followed from the lieutenants that were slowly leaving the room.

Danny didn't follow them, opting to stay and wait in the spacious room. He still had things to do, and he was waiting for a signal. And true enough, one of Ember's brainless minions soon turned up.

"Mistress is waiting for you," he spoke, before leaving.

Danny snorted at Ember being referred as such, but the thrall would not appreciate his joke anyhow.

"Was about to meet up anyway," the halfa got up and turned invisible.

Without any difficulties he made his way through the corridors, ending up just outside Ember's room. Taught by the unpleasant experiences of the past, Danny chose to knock this time.

"Come in," he heard a voice from the inside.

Danny phased through the door, greeted by a peculiar sight. Ember, fresh out of shower and wearing a towel, was busy applying her usual mascara. In the mirror she could see the halfa's confused face, and her own expression turned into that of annoyance.

"What?"

"I...always thought that the makeup was part of the whole ghost thing," Danny rubbed the back of his neck. "Like your burning hair or white skin."

Ember snorted, returning to her delicate procedures. "Many think that way, babypop. I was just about done..."

She once again observed his reaction. Danny simply shrugged and sat on the edge of the bed. And it angered her on the inside. That idiot was sitting near a woman one step away from being naked, and yet remained oblivious to his position. Sighing mentally, remembering Chiara's words that jumping him was a no-go, she restrained herself. And resisted the urge to punch his stupid face. Ember decided that they should change a subject before it turned ugly.

"Anyway, you never told me where we will be going."

Danny perked up upon hearing this. "Well, we did some digging on the miserable life of one Tom Riddle. Voldy's real name, so to speak."

"And what, he has a sad life story about how his papa used to beat him up?" Ember asked sarcastically.

"That I don't know," Phantom leaned forward. "We only have Ministry records and they are sparse enough as it is. But we know that his mother is from an ancient, noble and at that time impoverished house of Gaunt."

"Woo, his mommy even had an evil last name."

Danny chuckled and continued. "Their last place of residence is unknown. Someone must have meddled with papers. Either it was the Ministry that wished to stop that place from becoming a place of pilgrimage for frootloops of all kinds, or..."

"Snake-fucker doesn't want us to know where it is," Ember concluded.

"Exactly. Mind you, the info I currently vomit at you is in fact a bunch of scraps and pieces here and there. Quite a while has passed since those records were written, too. That lead was worth a shot, but I admittedly hit a dead end," Danny said and got up. "The records also say that the little dark lord in the making was put in a muggle orphanage where Dumbledore found him. I wasn't given a name once again."

"Why would a pureblood throw her son in there?"

Danny looked out of the window. "A question I asked myself. I theorised that she wanted Tom to stay away from their insane family. Could be wrong, of course. But then I thought, what about the father? The mysterious Mr. Riddle that was a complete non-entity in the records. There is no pureblood family by that name, and Merope's own folks could not accept anything but."

"But he could be everything else, even a half-wizard."

"True. And I had no way of knowing what happened to him. Death? Abandonment?" Danny grinned. "But then I was struck by a revelation. Or, rather while talking to Mr. Diggory I suddenly realised where to look. When the Ministry removed the enchantment on the portkey that lead to Cedric's death, they determined where it used to lead. A village of Little Hangleton. I paid that place a visit. Or, rather, the cemetery. And what do you know — a tombstone of Tom Riddle Senior — a muggle. The age fit perfectly as well."

Danny approached Ember and looked at the mirror, too, fixing his stark hair.

"I asked the local historian, and he confirmed to me that Riddles were an affluent family, but quite unpopular. The townsfolk had a lot of rumours surrounding Riddle Senior. They did say that he was 'charmed' by someone named Merope, but he left her very abruptly. And I suspect foul play on her part here. Magic, most probably. The puzzle was complete and I had the location. Furthermore, for all their hatred for muggles, Gaunts were not discreet at all. They were the local nutcases, and the villagers were one step away from forcing them out. Voldemort did not bother enough to erase everyone's memories.

"Wait," Ember snorted, putting down the eye brush. "The guy that wants to kill everyone imperfect is only a half-wizard?"

"My ghost half didn't stop me from beating you guys up. It's not about what, but who you are. And what kinds of spiders live in your attic. I think he also misses the irony of pursuing the same ideals that made his family a bunch of despondent lowlives. I'll surely stick it to him when we meet."

"So, we are going to that village, hoping that Tommy hid the Horcrux there?" Ember got up and approached the bed, her back turned to the halfa.

"Pretty mu..."

He was interrupted when he saw the girl drop the towel and begin to dress up. That one even to the most clueless of people was enough to turn his head away, as the ectoplasm flushed to his face. Ember looked over her shoulder as she finally put on the leather top and tied her hair back.

"Why green in the face, babypop?" She asked with a smirk.

"Was...that really necessary to dress up in front of me?"

"Betcha liked the show," the diva said, scooping up her guitar. "Don't be a pussy, dipstick."

"Well...I...didn't dislike it," Danny mumbled, inadvertently raising Ember's spirits.

"Alright, let's go kill that bastard again."

She had honestly expected the trip to Little Hangleton to be quicker. Problem was, the village was 200 miles away, so it was quite a flight for the two of them. But Ember was too busy thinking about her companion to care. She was feeling enthusiastic after learning that Danny did find her attractive. Chiara had warned her against such obscene ways, but that's just who Ember was. The diva was very simplistic, very direct in her approach. It didn't mean she couldn't concoct an elaborate plan, but that's just not her usual modus operandi. To further entertain herself on the way, she decided to finally instigate a conversation.

"Hey, dipstick," Ember flew closer to the halfa. "I've been meaning to ask for a while — what were you doing after you left that town?"

Danny blinked and turned to glance at her. "There isn't much to tell."

"Oh, cut the bull," the rocker nudged him, "I know it's more than that."

Danny sighed, still keeping on course. "Well, with my parents' lab destroyed, I couldn't come to the Zone. And besides, at the time I wanted human company, not a ghostly one."

"So how did that work out for ya?"

"Admittedly not much. I hadn't been able to blend in for quite some time, and remained largely unsuccessful. But all that made me more cynical and cured my social anxiety, I guess. I wanted to continue studying at Ilvermorny, but MACUSA wanted my head for a murder I did not commit."

"It was a shady story. None of us knew what happened to your family."

"Yeah...and you won't," Danny's face became grim. "I was told to keep quiet about what killed them, but I think that Clockwork's involvement means a lot."

Ember stopped dead in her tracks. "You...know him?" She asked in shock.

To many ghosts the Time Lord was a legend, and to an even bigger number of spectres — a myth. Clockwork was the embodiment of perhaps the greatest power in existence, who was at the same time the most reclusive ghost. Rumour had it that he could never be found unless the Ancient One himself wished for that meeting to happen. When he chose to leave his abode, Clockwork almost always froze time to converse with someone in absolute secrecy. And rarely was he a herald of good news. Seeing Ember's reaction, the halfa rubbed the back of his neck.

"Yeah. The old man bugs me occasionally," he dismissed his companion's shock. "I'm a bit angry with him for not taking me to the Zone when he has all the power to do so. But this whole rebellion thing is partially his idea."

"And...whatever killed your family was apparently so horrid that Clockwork had to interfere?"

"Yes," Danny mumbled. "Clockwork made sure that nobody but me remembered what happened. That bastard is worse than Pariah himself. My predecessor wished to rule everyone like a tyrant. This one wished to bring death to all mankind, and as for ghosts: you would have just been his playthings to break however he wished," the halfa explained. "He is currently kept in one of my thermoses, under Clockwork's eternal watch," Danny chuckled. "My parents created such a powerful tool without even knowing it. But Clockwork performing a little brainwipe also meant that someone was going to get pinned for the crime."

"And those idiots in pointy hats just rolled with the idea that you murdered your folks?" Ember asked in bewilderment.

"Yes. But they dropped the charges due to the lack of proofs. But the very fact that I stood trial for murder allegations made my life worse. My schoolmates already feared my 'scary death magic', and now they had yet another reason to shake and run away. Eventually the school had enough and just expelled me. I used to live there after destroying the lab, so that also removed the roof above my head. This made me unable to get a proper job."

"And since wizards are so backwards, no proper muggle job for you either."

"I did work as a janitor and a loader, but it was mostly my consciousness. But mostly I lived off my family's remaining fortune. That's how it was for two years until I was around seventeen. It happened in Salem when I stumbled across a dark wizard that terrorised a small community. I...was not acquainted to a fight with a human. My blast simply vaporised him."

"Pft," Ember huffed. "Honestly, what did you expect, Babypop? You're not going to cry about a murder, are you?"

"That was a bit insensitive," Danny said sarcastically, "But he deserved it. Plus, I had my time to deal with it. When I reported the guy's death, the locals somehow realised it was me, but instead of surrendering me, they gave me some cash. That's how I realised that I found my calling. So, I used my usual pseudonym and started hunting down the dark wizards and witches for money. It is a surprisingly lucrative market. Aurors are too slow, and they are stretched thin. Not to mention that their success rate is inferior to mine."

"But you didn't have a job when you applied to Hogwarts, did you?"

Danny clicked his tongue. "MACUSA took notice that some excessively powerful spectre was on the loose. And he was killing or maiming people that on the outside appeared as dutiful citizens. So, I decided to move. Especially since on the muggle side of things the government was also hellbent on capturing me. I realised that I couldn't continue this line of work for a while, until the dust had settled. So, I was eating through my inheritance money until an opportunity came right up to me."

Ember nodded, as the cold wind brushed against her face. "So after this is over...what's your plan?"

"Once I finally make it to the Zone, I suppose I'll take what's mine. Killing the Dark Lord is a nice note in my resume, don't you think?" Danny smirked.

The diva rolled her eyes. All the ghosts that were present on Earth had been stranded there after Phantom destroyed the last permanent portal. And now he of all the people was searching for the way in there. But Ember was also intrigued that the halfa was getting more and more enthusiastic about his predestined role. Perhaps being put in charge of first a bunch of students and then an underground group made Phantom taste the power of authority. It was also the easiest way out of his inevitable impoverishment after things blew over and he was no longer a professor. On one hand Ember envied her companion, but on the other, she was not particularly enthusiastic about him becoming a full-fledged king.

Because that would create an insurmountable difference between their ranks. And Ember was not someone grand enough to be near him when that moment came.

She pushed away that thought. That's not what mattered at the time.

"And what about your human buddies?" She asked to change the subject.

"Sam works for MACUSA now. Last I've heard, something to do with magical creatures. But her family connections can get her to any other post she likes. And she probably still is afraid of that reclusive kid with scary magic. Tucker got himself a nice spot in the IT, but I move so much that we can't contact each other often, sadly. But it does concern me that he doesn't know about what I do. Or what I am."

"I guess you should talk to them before you, you know, move for another world."

Danny nodded. "I know. And I will. Anyway, I think we are here."

The two ghosts invisibly descended to the ground in order to see the road sign. True enough, it was Little Hangleton. Looking around, Danny then turned into his human form. It could come off as suspicious that a normal young man walked through the snowy village in nothing but his usual wear, but not as much as a walking lightbulb. Ember's glowing aura could also be reduced to a state of near non-existence. Yet, she also refused to wear anything warmer, despite her evident discomfort.

"I can handle a little chill," she argued, making Danny shrug.

"As you wish. We could always buy you something," he pointed at a store.

Ember snorted. "Come on, Babypop. I'm the one with money here," she said, making the halfa blush in embarrassment. And then she cackled. "I'm really fine. Even if it's not something enjoyable."

"Alright. Let's go see that shack, then."

The village itself was not very large, it took the two spectres only around twenty minutes to traverse it in the entirety. In the light of the setting sun and igniting lanterns, the snow crunched beneath their feet. From what Danny had previously gathered, the Gaunt shack was somewhere in the adjacent dark woods. His plan was quite simple. They would go in the shack's general direction and wait until his ghost sense went off. Considering its range when concentrated on, the metaphorical radar was bound to beep at any second. And if it didn't, then the Horcrux was to be looked for elsewhere. Fortunately, this wasn't the case. A gust of air finally emerged from Phantom's mouth as he triumphantly went forward, dead set on the goal. Ember trailed behind him, occasionally turning intangible to avoid branches and roots that stuck from the ground.

Eventually the two made it to the shack, although it could barely qualify as such anymore. A single story building, with its roof collapsed in several places, the whole structure tilted, the shack looked ready to collapse at any second.

"Lo and behold," Danny said dramatically. "The residence of the ancient and noble house of Gaunt."

"Shit, it's even worse than I imagined it," Ember mumbled. "Are we really going in?"

"We are," the halfa grinned and opened the door.

Immediately their senses were assaulted by the foul smell of filth and dilapidation.

"And I just had my shower," the diva shook her head and went in after the half ghost.

Danny himself meanwhile didn't care for the surroundings, he was there after one thing only. Making his way to the centre of the room, he suddenly stopped, looking at the floor. Without extra comments, he kicked the rotting boards, breaking them and revealing what was beneath. With a smirk, Phantom dug his hands in there and took out a golden box.

"A bit outta place in this shithole, eh?" Ember asked, peeking over Danny's shoulder.

"Pretty much," he said and forced the box open.

And there it was within, the foul ring that radiated the invisible miasma that only Danny could feel. And yet it felt like something...more than that.

"So, what do we do now?"

Humming, Danny picked it up to examine. A golden ring with a black stone on its top, there was seemingly nothing out of ordinary, until...

"Wait...Em, give me some light, please."

The ghost did as she was asked, letting some green fire come out of her palm. Now, with a source of light other than the moon's, they both could see a strange, triangular symbol carved on the stone.

"Huh," Danny mumbled. "I think I saw this symbol somewhere. Well, doesn't matter. In we go."

He turned his hand intangible, digging inside, feeling not only Voldemort's soul remnant, disgusting to the touch, but also something else.

"Hm...it seems there's a curse on this thing, too."

"Ooh, scary," Ember smirked.

"Can't remove that one, actual magic ain't my forte. But the Horcrux..." Danny finally pulled out the black substance. "Now there's one problem less."

He clenched his fist, and once again, inadvertently caused excruciating pain to the two people who were connected with it. But what's done is done. There was now one Horcrux less. Danny fiddled with the ring, tossing it between his fingers.

"You can keep it," the halfa said, throwing it Ember's way. "Curses don't work on ghosts."

"That's why you are giving it to me instead of pocketing it yourself?" The diva asked sarcastically.

"I am still half-human, you know. No telling what it would do," Danny crossed his hands.

Ember sighed and took his hand, putting the ring back into his palm.

"Go sell it, then. I'm sure you know people who would love to buy this shitting thing. And Ancients know you need those."

Danny's shoulders sank. "You didn't have to put it that way," he grumbled.

"I'm here to be the voice of reason. Which is absurd in the first place. Anyways...can we go now? I'd hate to be in this shithole more than I have to."

Danny shrugged and chuckled, as he headed for the exit. "Yes, that makes two of us. Well, let's get outta here before Voldemort catches up. He's definitely going to check on what's happening."

"Aw, I wanted to see his angry face," Ember cackled, before the two of them headed away from the shack.

"Hey, you think he will move his treasures now?" She asked, getting ahead of him.

"Probably. But I guess that's even better. He will run around like a headless chicken," Danny shrugged.

"Snake, more like. You think he will grow it back if you cut it with a sword?"

"Those are lizards," the halfa stopped and deadpanned.

"Meh," she popped a tongue. "Had straight Fs in biology. When I was, you know, alive."

The young professor smirked. "Seems we are kindred spirits in this regard. As I was saying, if Voldemort hides his stuff again, we will at least have a clue as to where they might be. Because so far I have no idea where the other Horcruxes are. We still have three to destroy."

"Jeez, he ain't making the life easier, eh?" Ember asked and hummed. "Hey, you told me that one of these Horcrux things was in a diadem, right?"

"I did. What are you getting at?"

"Maybe he did the same thing with other artefacts like it? Something big, I bet."

"That's...actually not a bad idea. It's definitely not a sword of Griffindor. He isn't so stupid to cast such curse on a thing that can be teleported away by whoever. But Hufflepuff and Slytherin — we might be on to something," Danny smirked.

"See? I can be smart," Ember shrugged. "Where's my Nobel, Dipstick?"

"In Sweden," Danny answered bluntly and cackled at her dry expression.

"Wow, these brits really did a number on YOUR brains, Babypop," she responded.

The two walked for some more time, as neither was eager to embark on a lengthy flight. Danny had to go all the way to Hogwarts, even.

"Anyways...now that we are done with this, I haven't got an answer yet," Ember spoke up again. "You coming to this year's Christmas party, Dipstick?"

"Oh, so you were for real..." Danny lowered his head and coughed. "How's that gonna work exactly?"

"Simple. You come to the place I'm crashing and we hold a party. Nothing difficult."

"Yeah...alright, Em. Guess I owe you after making you do all this."

Ember narrowed her eyes. "This isn't about debts, Dipstick. I...just want you to have fun," she mumbled quietly.

Danny chuckled. "Have fun during Christmas? Someone is quite optimistic for a ghost."

He immediately felt a hard nudge. "Stop turning into Grinch in front of me."

He grasped his punched hand dramatically. "Help me! I'm feeling!"

"You'll live," Ember rolled her eyes, but smiled still. "Or whatever it is you do."

"I just exist," Danny offered, fiddling with the ring in his pocket.

-Linebreak-

"Severus, you look awfully thoughtful today," noted Dumbledore with a smile gracing his lips.

The two of them were alone in the Headmaster's office. It was the late evening some days after Fenton and McLain had their little escapade. Dumbledore was correct in his assumption that something was plaguing the Potions Master's mind. He had come to his office so late, after all, so the old wizard could easily make that assumption. Snape sighed, finally turning towards Dumbledore.

"I must say...I am conflicted about the information I have."

"Does it concern the Dark Lord?"

"Partially, yes. He's been absolutely furious the last few days, I've heard from my sources. He even killed one of Malfoys' elves in a fit of anger."

Dumbledore's look turned thoughtful. "What could be the cause of such reaction?"

"For some reason he believes that the one who earns so much ire is our current Defence professor. I know not how Fenton managed to get on the Dark Lord's most vile side, but this is the current reality."

"It is indeed strange. What could Mr. Fenton do to earn such fury? And does he know of it?"

"I can't come and ask him. Fenton has an impenetrable wall of outward naivety. Which conceals his true understanding of everything around. Fenton knows we spy on him, Albus, but he doesn't even seem to concern himself with it. By Merlin, he brought me for a drink soon after."

"He...knows?" Dumbledore blinked in curiosity. "I suppose we should thank him for not overreacting, then. But is that why you are conflicted? Because you have developed an amicable bond with him?"

"It is not the problem," Severus cut the old wizard off. "I simply don't know what game he is playing. He talks grand, yet what could he possibly do?"

"Well, from Voldemort's reaction we can safely assume that he must have done something. Remember that Mr. Fenton is an experienced fighter with unpredictable magic. Any ideas as to what he had done?"

"The Dark Lord wants Fenton's head. From what I have gathered, Daniel destroyed something very important. Something whose nature the Dark Lord doesn't even want to disclose to the Death Eaters."

Dumbledore hummed thoughtfully. No, it couldn't be that he...

"You know something, Albus?"

"It is just a speculation. But I had my suspicions for a while, yet had no ability to act upon it...Severus, I believe that we cannot keep many secrets from him. Young Fenton somehow learned of our espionage, has free access even to the Chamber of Secrets with his magic...perhaps he already knows of us. Of the Order."

Snape's eyes widened. "You don't mean that...Albus, we still don't know if he is someone who can be considered an ally."

"Well, he is certainly not our enemy, now I can see that. Perhaps we could...open the windowsill just a little for him," Dumbledore smiled. "We can be useful to each other. Fenton is extremely resourceful and powerful, he can be a very good asset if we approach him correctly."

"Then you better make that approach sooner," Severus huffed. "Fenton is leaving tomorrow for several days."

"Why?" Asked Dumbledore.

"As Daniel put it: 'once a year people who want to kill me, just don't'. And he is insane enough to celebrate Christmas with that sort of crowd. His friend invited him, and Fenton agreed. This child is beyond me."

"He seems confident that nobody is going to harm him or his friend," Dumbledore concluded. "But I believe it is dangerous for him to leave Hogwarts."

"It is Fenton. He will ignore all your warnings," Severus huffed.

"I suppose we will wait until he comes back, then."

"Albus, we should let the rest of the Order know. You can't make such a decision on your own."

"But of course. We are not inviting him in yet, Severus. We should simply cooperate."

-Linebreak-

The Christmas eventually came. How could it not? There wasn't really anything of note that happened during the early day, it was the day off, and most students had already left the school to join their families. The current teaching staff, however, could not be described as family men and women. They weren't going anywhere. Flitwick invited Danny to join him in Hogsmeade, to witness all the celebratory events that took place there, and the halfa decided to oblige. Knight bus would be there only in the evening, just like the ghost party, so Phantom decided to take his short collegue on the offer. He didn't have anything better to do.

The village of Hogsmeade was suitably dressed for the occasion, with Christmas trees at every corner, the magical pyrotechnics cracked and flashed loudly, and the ropes of colourful ribbons and tiny flags were trickling through the streets. The fact that Danny was there, didn't mean that he was filled with that widely known spirit. He had seen that stuff before, and the outward signs of celebrations like this could not suffice.

"Come now, Daniel," Flitwick smiled at him, "Why the long face?"

Danny sighed. "It's nothing. Back in the day my doom and gloom on this day was contagious."

"Oh, brother," the small professor fixed his glasses. "I know you can't force someone to be happy. It is strange, but it is who you are."

"Thank you," Danny nodded.

"Hey, Danny-boy!" One of the jolly and red-nosed villagers called the halfa out. "Come join us for a drink!"

"I'll pass for now," Danny pulled a smile on his face and waved at the man. "Keep a pint for me, would ya?"

"Sure thing!"

The halfa saw the man walk away and rubbed his temples. "My poor liver. You guys really need to do something on your time off."

Flitwick cackled. "Each holiday is a reason to throw a mug or two. Your body is more durable than mine, too."

He had no idea just how much. The thought made Danny smirk inwardly, and did raise his spirits just a little.

The trip to Hogsmeade was a nice round of preparation for the main event he had signed up for. It has to be said that despite the halfa harbouring no love for the holiday, it wasn't as grim of a case as during his childhood. It was more of a nagging feeling in the back of his head, which kept reminding him of how it had used to be. Now Danny's family, the main offender in this case, was gone, leaving only an aftertaste when it came to Christmas. The young professor didn't know how to get rid of that feeling, but...he supposed he could enjoy what he had in the rare moments between the recollections of unpleasant memories. And the company of the villagers and his half-snoring colleague was pleasant enough.

"Hi, professor!" One of the curly-haired girl-students came up to the halfa's table.

"Oh, hey there," Danny tilted his head backwards. "Ms. Brown, right?"

"That's right," she gave a sugary smile, too. "I wanted to wish you a Merry Christmas!"

"Oh...thanks, I guess," the halfa shrugged, not noticing the looks some other girls were shooting Lavender's way. "Since you are here, thanks for the chocolate. Did you make it?" He overtly tried to make some discoveries.

The girl seemed to contemplate her answer, before beaming. "Of course it was me, sir. Did you like it?"

"I sure tasted peppermint," he gave her a meaningful look. "And something like roses, too."

Lavender didn't seem to realise that he was describing the love potion ingredients,confirming his suspicions of third party's involvement. That potion was not a fifth year's work.

"You don't have allergies, do you?" She asked worriedly.

"No, I...look," Danny finally straightened up and faced her. "Tell me honestly, Ms. Brown," he lowered his voice. "Were YOU the one who added love potion in there? I'm not going to punish you if you tell me."

The girl was startled by that demand, becoming red in the face.

"We-well...I..."

And the she felt a feminine hand on her shoulder. Turning around, she saw a pair of green eyes staring her down.

"I suggest you tell him," Ember whispered. "I'd love to know, too."

"Wh-who are you?" Lavender asked.

"Hey, Em. Didn't expect to see ya here," Danny beamed, forgetting about Lavender for a moment.

The blue-haired dive took a look around, ignoring confused looks in her direction. "You know I am not the patient type, Babypop."

'She even has a pet name for him?!' Some jealous students of fairer sex asked themselves in terror. 'Who is she?!'

Danny chuckled. "We'll talk later, Ms. Brown. This ain't over, but let's not dampen the holiday, hm?"

"Ehm...yes, sir," the girl said timidly.

"You still here, pipsqueak?" Ember asked, before Lavender scurried away.

It sounded amusing, coming from a girl that was barely taller, and who looked barely older. Ember did catch some looks, mostly because her rocker outfit looked quite obscene by wizarding standards, what's with her leather tank top and pants. And her outwardly rude behaviour was also to blame. Yet, she was right to be angry at such underhanded tactics (while the irony was lost on her). But nobody around had heard that part.

"Thought you are popular with the kids," Danny commented.

"Yeah, those with actual taste," Ember picked up a chair from a nearby table, spun it around and sat at Danny's. "And if they don't recognise me, they automatically don't have any," she huffed and pulled her azure hair back.

Flitwick coughed to get some attention. "Daniel, who is your friend?" He tried to be polite despite his befuddlement.

"That's Ember," Danny sighed, seeing Ember unceremoniously drink from his mug. "She's a singer."

"The best thing you brits have seen," she added, before thinking. "Well, since Led Zeppelin."

"She also has quite an ego," the halfa added. "We go a while back and decided to reunite not so long ago."

"More like Babypop barged in without warning, all but telling me to abandon all my other plans," Ember jabbed back.

Danny chuckled. "Guilty."

"It is good that you keep contacts with your old friends," Flitwick smiled.

"Who said we were friends back then? She tried to literally kill me each time we met," Danny commented.

"I almost got you one time, Dipstick," Shrugged Ember. "Broke your leg, I recall."

"It was the ribcage," a correction soon followed.

That sounded extremely unhealthy in all possible aspects. The rumour mill was going to spin very soon.

"Eh..." Flitwick was at a loss.

"It's fine now, though," Danny tried to ease the discomfort. "We all had rules not to overstep."

"Yep. We never went out to HARM his family."

"You did ensnare my parents."

"It was only one time, hush."

"And before that my sister."

"I didn't HARM them. I need adoration, not corpses. Besides, I gave up on trying to end ya."

"That's because I am the strongest out of all of you," Danny flashed an innocent smile, before feeling his ear being lightly pinched.

"Alright, sweet prince, we gave enough of a show. Come on, or we will be late," Ember said and took his hand, pulling him after herself.

"I swear that neither of us did anything illegal!" Danny shouted on the way out. "Thanks for everything, Filius!"

The professor blinked, trying to understand what had just happened.

"Sheesh, what an entrance," said Rosmerta, taking Danny's half-emptied mug of butterbeer. "Didn't take our Danny-boy for liking that sort of girls."

"He said they were FRIENDS," Filius added, narrowing his eyes just a bit.

"Fine, too early to call the bets," the woman rolled her eyes. "But I'm close to winning from the seems."

"You shouldn't go around making bets like this. It is the lad's life," the professor commented.

"We all wish him the best. Danny is a nice boy. So helpful around the village, too. So few things happen here, Filius, you start howling with the wolves without any entertainment."

Filius sighed and rubbed his temples. "He was right. We do need proper hobbies."

Meanwhile, after the two undead got outside, the halfa sighed and dropped his head.

"You know, Em, I think I'm starting to regret my decisions up to this point."

"Took your sweet time for that, eh, Dipstick?" Ember cackled. Try as she might, the ghost could not hide that she was clearly enjoying it all. "Those harlots better stay away," she said with all seriousness.

Danny stared at her for some time. "What's with that reaction?"

"Nothing," Ember looked away. "Anyways. We decided to start a bit earlier, so I came here."

"You could just call. Even then, how did you make the Knight Bus change its schedule?"

Ember winked and absent-mindedly fumbled with the tumblers on her guitar.

"Of course you did," Danny sighed. "Fine, let's not overstay the welcome, then."

Her power to charm people was quite a step-up from the normal possession, he thought once more. Despite Ember normally being only level three on the power scale, her abilities, alongside the boost gained from public adoration, were enough to elevate her to the seventh tops. Her recent music tour made her stay at a stable fifth, as long as her music was at the top of the charts. It did make Phantom's companion a formidable opponent, much more so than her slim frame could indicate. That wasn't the topic on his mind for long, however.

The two of them were quick to get to London. Despite how tempted Ember was to have her own light-speed taxi, Danny's opposition was enough for her to drop the idea and release her victims. The hotel itself was hit by euphoria of the holiday, but the entrance halls and corridors was not a place their own celebration would take place. Apparently, Ember bought off an entire hall for the evening, with Lunch Lady ghost ready to handle the cooking part in the hotel staff's stead. She really took the conspiracy part seriously, Danny was proud of her. But, near the doors, he still felt hesitant. While knowing that no harm would come his way on that day, he still felt anxious. He suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder, as Ember all but lied on it.

"Come on, Babypop. I'm there if you need me."

"It IS your idea," Danny chuckled and sighed. "Alright, here we..."

He didn't finish his sentence, as the door opened, revealing a pale green-haired ghost girl in red jacket. Upon seeing them, she immediately grinned.

"There you are, finally! We were thinking all sorts of things."

"I don't doubt that, Kitty," Danny rolled his eyes and smiled. "Sup."

"Hello to you too, Your Highness," the red-eyed ghost smirked. "Come in, already!"

As Ember let go of the half ghost, the two of them entered the half-lit spacious room. It had everything you would expect from a Christmas feast. Even a plastic Christmas tree. Adorable. Danny's ice blues caught the sight of a big patch of melting snow in the far corner.

"What's with that?" He asked.

"Klemper threw a fit again," Kitty rolled her eyes. "Skulker refused his request for a thousandth time by now."

"Klemper is here?" Danny's voice filled with dread.

"Friend!" A childish, moaning voice sounded from behind, as Danny was enveloped in a strong hug by a hunched blonde ghost in pyjamas. "It is good to see you!"

"Likewise," Danny pulled a smile over his face, his human body begging for air.

"Fuck off, you are choking him," Ember pulled the obnoxiously friendly spectre off.

"But...I just wanted to greet a friend," his lip quivered.

"It's fine," Danny raised his hand, smiling. He had long since concocted an approach to him. It was always better to reciprocate Klemper's feelings, lest he went ballistic. "Just...please be considerate that I'm still human. Would you?"

"Oh," the ghost scratched his temple. "Alrighty then!"

"Go bother someone else, Klemper," Ember spoke.

"You are right!" Klemper said innocently. "I should greet other friends!" He said and flew off.

Danny rubbed his neck, and as he did so, he heard a roaring laughter. With a deadpan expression the halfa turned to face a hulking metal giant with flaming green mohawk.

"Laugh all you want, Skulker, you are on his BFF list, too," the halfa commented.

"I warned that whelp that if he so much as looked at my haunt, I will blast him with artillery."

"You have an artillery cannon?" Danny raised an eyebrow.

"You'll be surprised by how many loose weapons for sale there are nowadays," Skulker huffed, emptying his plastic cup of punch, strong enough, and rich enough in ectoplasm to eventually lead to the loss of sobriety even in the dead. "Pure defence. No pleasure in hunting with meat-grinding cannon."

Danny dreaded to learn where his human world haunt was located and how the humans reacted to a ghost firing at them from a military-grade killing mechanism.

"So, whelp, any nice jobs for me?"

"Since when are you two buddies?"

Both the halfa and a ghost turned towards a greasy blond biker, to whom a living shadow brought another punch cup.

"Hello, Johnny," Danny smirked and put a hand on his belt. "Ever since I showed the metalhead that there are much rarer prizes for him to hunt."

"The whelp has access to the wizards' knowledge," Skulker added. "This lets me hunt the hidden magical beasts. A welcomed addition to my collection of prizes. Not as much as this whelp's head would be, but he drove his point clear."

"And his head into the ground, too," Danny tilted his head and grinned. "I took up a certain job, which does require an occasional monster for display. So we nicely compliment each other."

"What kind of job is that?" Asked Johnny.

"Look at him shaking at the very mention of a concept of work," cackled the suddenly emerged Kitty. "I heard that Danny-boy is a teacher now."

"Pfft, what," Johnny huffed, but then noticed Danny's expression. "Oh, it's true then. Sheesh, that's a downgrade for sure."

"I actually enjoy teaching kids how to defend themselves against the supernatural," Danny responded.

"Yeah, but...dude. Ain't you a prince?"

"Prince of what? A world I can't get in? It's like owning a house you don't have the keys for," Danny rolled his eyes.

"You blew up the portal, you know?" Asked Kitty. "It was your choice."

"I can't blow it up from the other side, you know. And even if I, say, laid down the explosives and the portal did close. I had no way of knowing if the destruction was beyond repair and reverse-engineering. And I had to be sure."

"You could let a duplicate stay behind," Johnny offered.

"Can't keep clones in two worlds at once. Believe me, I tried," Danny mumbled.

"Watcha guys talking about?" Asked Ember, two cups of punch in her hands. Immediately she gave Danny his portion.

"About how we all are stuck on this side because Phantom wanted to keep his secrets tight," Skulker said. "Hello, Ember."

"Bucket-head," the girl smirked at her long time ex.

"You guys kept crawling out of that portal each day and now you are homesick?" Danny asked.

"Well, yeah. Aren't you?" Kitty asked.

"You mean Amity Park? Not really. Even Ghost Zone is homier at this point."

"Which none of us can't get in."

"I get it!" Danny raised his voice in exasperation. "Not my fault you all rushed out the second you learned of my plans."

"Yeah, that was our fuck-up, so what?" Asked Johnny.

"Ancients, language," Danny mumbled, as Ember interjected.

"Come on, y'all. I invited Dipstick for him to have a good time. Don't go hounding on 'im."

"We're just pointing small things out. Wish I could punch ya, kid," Johnny spoke. "But the truce and all."

"You or your pet servant?" Danny smirked. "But since Ember asks, let's not provoke each other."

"Yeah, Walker's gonna be after our asses forever."

"I thought he stayed in the Zone," noted Danny.

"He did. But if per chance one of us gets back, one tattletale will be enough. Your friends didn't make it, eh?"

"Frostbite, Pandora and Dorathea are all local lords," Skulker huffed. "They wouldn't have come out of portal unless forced to."

"Glad you keep tabs on all my friends."

"Don't sweat it, oh," Johnny was nudged by his girlfriend. "What gives?"

"It was sarcasm, you knucklehead."

Everyone around chuckled at the biker's titular misfortune. Still, that part of the exchange did point out the obvious — Danny's allies among ghosts were largely absent. He had really hoped to see some of them, perhaps harbouring hope that one of them had a way of traversing the worlds. But the world was not going to make it easy for him, and he would have to try the hard way. As usual. But the bright side was — nobody so far had voiced the desire to take the crown and kill him for it. Perhaps years of absence had given them some clarity. They would be fighting an unwinnable battle for a crown to the world that was out of reach.

As the two girl friends took their leave to chat about their own things, Johnny rubbed his side.

"That's the life in a relationship for ya," he mumbled.

"I think it is just you, Thirteen," said Skulker.

"Oh, look who is talking, Mr. Can't-find-remote," rebutted Johnny.

"Still can't believe that you and Ember were a thing," Danny added, before staring into a barrel of a blaster. "Come on, we all know why it seems odd."

"It's still uncalled for. I don't see a ring on your finger, whelp."

"I'm still twenty. And I have whole eternity ahead of me," the halfa made a sip calmly.

"And you better treat Ember well, whelp."

"What does she have to do with this?" Danny asked.

Two other ghosts stared at him. "Dude, she sticks with you most of the time."

"Because we work on overthrowing the ministry together. Of course we meet a lot."

"So you mean to say that you both are in this because..."

"I appealed to her desire to spite the snobby adults, she seemed interested."

"And you don't think it is because of other reason? Ancients, whelp, how dense are you?"

Danny narrowed his eyes. "You people just keep calling me dense without explaining it."

"Because you fucking..."

"Language."

"...Cannot catch a clue, man. How do you lead a revolution when you are so clueless?"

"For your knowledge, I destroyed several Horcruxes, guided only by my and now Ember's deduction."

"Then you are just inattentive in other things. I think she will appreciate it more if you come to it yourself," Skulker huffed. "Anyways, I'm off to see Technus."

Danny smirked. "Lemme guess, you plan on merging your powers to create the ultimate suit?"

The metal giant froze. "How did you..."

"I suppose I am that observant. That, and I looked into the future."

"Is that wizard Divination bull actually legit?" Johnny asked in surprise.

"Most of it isn't. They hide the good stuff in the Ministry the second they find something not extremely foggy."

"Whatever," Skulker huffed. "This suit may just be your end, whelp."

"No it is not. Even at my potential five years ago," Danny called after him.

"Wait, so you were to the Ministry?"

"Yeah. A little scout party, which I also used to confirm some of my theories. And I think that you guys may be able to return home in the future."

"And to do that..."

"Partially, this revolution is but a stepping stone for my plan. They have a unique anomaly hidden in their basement. You ever heard of dormant portals?"

"Dormant?" Johnny scratched his temple. "You are the one from a family of nerds, Phantom."

Danny sighed. "Wizards call them 'Veils'. In their normal form they do work as portals, but with no exit. Stepping into them is a death sentence. It is a step into absolute nothingness. But, if my theories are correct, a surge of ectoplasm can agitate it and turn the Veil into a proper gateway."

"So you just shoot at it?"

"No, this won't work. We need a proper chain reaction. You don't just stuff uranium into a nuke and expect the impact to do the work."

"You mean they don't do that? I mean...I see. But what does the revolution have to do with anything?"

"This thing is still beneath the Ministry. They won't just let it rest once I switch it on. So I have to be sure that it is us who have control over the entrance."

"That is pretty neat...the sooner, the better, too."

"Hold on. I have to get rid of the local Dark Lord first. Because if we behead the government, this snake will just slither in and stand in our way."

"Ancients, kid, you sure plan big this time. Then again, wizards got nothing on us."

"There are certain measures, but even someone with the power of Box Ghost can get out."

"Details...hm, you know, me and Kitty have been real bored for some time. Is your gig any good?"

"You get to beat up people who put little resistance free of charge and moral burdens. Since they are less than savoury characters. So yeah, it is neat."

Johnny whistled. "Sounds like whole lot of fun."

"Of course, I am not letting you do everything you want. It will also mean doing other tasks that help our plans. If you are ready to accept these limits, go wild."

"I'll talk to Kitty 'bout that."

"You do everything together, huh?"

"That's what being in relationship is often like, kid. Well, you do you, enjoy the party."

The halfa did get a chance to converse with several of his past enemies. Johnny's potential recruitment was more of the latter's own initiative. Phantom didn't seek to employ anyone. The party was about something else, and Ember in particular evidently didn't want him to concentrate on his labours. Speaking of, the girl did rejoin him rather soon, and from her mood, Danny could guess that she had had all too much punch. Not that he was much better off. His human self, albeit protected by ectoplasm in his veins, was somewhat swayed by a much smaller amount.

"Come on, Babypop," she said and rubbed against him. "Talk to me, too."

Danny became red in the face. "Sure, what about?"

The girl pouted. "You talk nonstop, Dipstick. Think something up."

"Jeez, when you put it like this..."

Luckily, the brain melted by alcohol couldn't hold on to a thought, so Ember was the one to take the reigns.

"You are so stupid, you know?" She asked, talking into his shoulder.

"I get this a lot today. Maybe you at least can tell me why?"

The ghost girl hummed thoughtfully. "Not here. Follow me."

"Alright," responded Danny, his ability to suspect anything dulled by the pink liquid in his cup.

The two of them didn't just stop outside, instead the prince was led inside Ember's room, which was just around the corner. And as Danny entered, he heard the door close behind.

"Is this privacy necessary?" Danny thought to ask only then.

"It is," Ember said, coming closer. "You know, Chiara can go fuck herself. Her advice is shit."

"That's rude," Danny commented. "She is only trying to help...but what advice are we talking about again?"

"We hoped you would get the clues, but this is just stupid. You are stupid," the girl mumbled. "So I'll just do things my way."

"Your...I still don't follow."

Then suddenly, the ghost pushed him, making the young professor fall on the bed. Before Danny could react, she grabbed his face and kissed him. The surprise was plastered on his face, and even though he quickly regained the freedom of action, he did not pull back. Ember did, eventually.

"I..." Danny was at a loss for words. "I had no idea."

"Of course you didn't," Ember chuckled and sat on the bed nearby, before her face turned serious. "Because. You are stupid."

This time, Danny breathed out a short laugh himself. "I can't argue with that now..."

"And?"

"Are...you sure that you want us to go that way, Em?"

"Been wanting to for some time, Babypop. I get it, you are our future king and it's not my place, but..."

"This is for your prince to decide," Danny smirked. "I've seen you at work, Ember. And I can always trust you with everything. That is more important than anything."

"Someone is very romantic," a sarcastic remark followed.

"I...can't say I have experience with these cheesy phrases. With relationships, too."

"Don't worry, neither am I. Skulker is...hardly the exemplary boyfriend."

"You never had anyone else?" Danny asked in surprise.

"I..." the girl looked away. "I tried during my life, but...got stood up."

"That's a scummy thing to do."

"No kidding. But I was so distraught with that...I never noticed that fire until it was too late, and I..."

"Shh," Danny stopped her rambling, knowing how close she was to recollecting her death, enveloping her in a hug. "I understand, Em. Forget about that bastard. You know I'd never do that to you."

"You'd better," Ember smirked slightly. "Or I'll break your ribcage again."

"Now that's Ember I know. And the one...I've taken liking in. Let's do it, Em. We'll give it a shot and see where it goes."

"Let's start on a high note, then."

"What do you..." he saw his shirt phased off. "Oh."