Danny had slinked back under the surface, a sense of worry clouding his thoughts.

So now they knew, and there was no convincing them that it was only a trick of the eye.

The merman thought back to a simpler time, one where he was worried how Dipper might react at his secret identity. However, with the newfound weight growing on his shoulders, he only found that he was particularly wary. Perhaps Dipper would understand, perhaps he wouldn't. Nonetheless, he had bigger fish to fry.

No pun intended, Danny added with a soft smirk. Oh, how he needed to get back to his old life, filled with the sound of witty banter and maniacal laughter. At this point, even Skulker would be a welcome and familiar face.

As he was deep in his thoughts, he hadn't noticed the wild creature swimming up to him. All too late, he saw the bright flash of a red scale.

Danny slammed into the being with an umph, landing in the sand not far away. With a shiver, he felt a throbbing pain in his head, almost like a hammer smacking against his skull, persistent and painful.

His eyes flashed a bright yellow and he tensed in pain, causing the other being to laugh. With blurring eyes, he looked towards the girl in confusion.

Long, brown hair covered a tan, ovular face. A large, red tail gleamed in the dissipating light, bright scales climbing up her body and ending in swirls on her cheeks. Her smile, accented by large, pointy fangs, was deathly and horrifyingly calm as she stared down at Danny's sinking figure. Her bright red eyes shone like flashlights.

"Serafina," he muttered with a shaking breath.

"Danny," she greeted, a laugh escaping her lips. "Pleased to meet your acquaintance."

"You'll never get away with this."

"Oh, don't worry." Danny's eyes closed, his head resting on a mixture of sand and dirt. "I'm sure when you wake up, we'll finally see eye to eye."

* * *

Danny's eyes snapped open, a bright, crisp yellow color. With a groan, he felt scales climb from his neck and stop at his temples, resembling a mask of sorts. The majority of his flat teeth had been replaced with terrifying, sharp fangs, which poked uncomfortably at his mouth.

"Finally, you're awake."

As if thrown out of his own body, Danny watched helplessly as the monster he'd become pushed himself off the ground, facing Serafina with a slight grin.

'No,' he whispered, but the words never escaped his lips.

This was hardly what he'd planned when turning evil. Not only was he a threat to the world, but he also had to watch from the sidelines as he did things he would never have dreamed of.

A triangle appeared by the merwoman's side, a cane in hand and a top hat balanced precariously on its point.

"Heya, Phantom." His eye tilted upwards. "How's it feel?"

Danny shook his head, a smirk playing across his lips. "Please, like you don't know."

Bill rubbed his hands together, his cane floating beside him. "Great. Now here's what you're gonna do--"

"Actually, I think I have a better idea." Danny nodded at Serafina, who bared her fangs.

"Must I remind you that the two of you work for me?" Bill's eyes narrowed.

Danny shrugged. "You said it yourself, I'm powerful."

"Funny, he said the same thing about me."

"Well, Triangle, it looks like the tables have turned."

"You can't defeat me."

"It's a good thing that we don't have to. Without a body to overtake, a dimension being ripped open, or a nightmare to show up in, you're nothing." Serafina rushed at the triangle, but before she could blink, he was gone.

"Daniel!" The two's heads snapped in the direction of the voice.

There stood Mermando's father, tall and mighty, a trident held tightly in his firm hand. Mermando wasn't far behind, racing to keep up.

"Ah, Amerdon, how nice to see you again." Serafina smiled sarcastically. "Oh, and I see you've brought the kid. What a nice little reunion.

"Sera. I've missed you."

Serafina scoffed. "Enough with the pleasantries. Danny, grab the boy."

With a toothy grin, Danny lunged forward, his movements swift and fluid from years of flying through the air. Water, to him, wasn't much different. With outstretched hands, he grabbed onto the boy's struggling shoulders, digging his claws into the flesh.

'No!' The yell came from the real him, the one that was trapped under layers of evil.

Suddenly, a shout came slicing through the water. Clear as day, Jazz's voice ripped through his clouded mind.

"Danny!"

Seeing his confusion, Serafina mimicked the look. "You know her?" Jabbing a clawed thumb at the surface, she tilted her head and smiled evilly. Danny, suddenly uncomfortable, gulped. His claws dug deeper into Mermando's skin, causing him to cry out in pain. Amerdon rushed forward to help.

"She was a friend," he muttered, shaking his head.

"Don't be silly." Serafina laughed, swimming forward. "Ghosts don't have friends."

"You--"

"Yeah, I know about that. Nothing you should worry about. If anything, it's good. You were already a freak. Not like there's any difference now."

Danny growled lightly, fighting against his animal instincts to tackle her. She flicked his nose lightly, smirking.

"Well, no reason why she shouldn't join the party." With a quick, loud laugh, Serafina took off towards the surface, a red blur on the blue backdrop.

Danny opened his mouth to stop her, but before he could utter a sound, Amerdon had him on the lake floor. Mermando swam quickly away as Amerdon struggled to keep the squirming boy under his control.

"Danny, this isn't you. You have to fight against this."

Inside, the real Danny was aching to get out. 'I am!' he screamed, kicking at the metaphorical walls.

Outside, Danny smirked. "Please." He got one arm free and punched the merman square in the jaw, taking that moment to slink out from under him. "You're nothing but a relic, old man."

Serafina rushed down, her claws digging into someone's wrist. Danny froze in his spot as he studied the fiery orange hair, partly covering her terrified blue eyes. They snapped towards Danny, her mouth forming words that couldn't make their way through the water.

"Serafina," Danny said cautiously, his mind fighting to make a decision.

"Is there a problem?" Serafina's voice was harsh, each word dripping with venom. Jazz's attempts to escape slowly got meeker as her eyes began to close, head lulling.

"Serafina." It was the only word that was coming out of Danny's mouth as he watched the fight slowly fade out of his older sister.

"She's nothing to you now, Danny. Getting rid of her will be like popping a pimple. I'm just relieving you of your past."

"You shouldn't do that," Danny warned. He felt his normal self rushing forward as he took on a hostile stance, Amerdon and Mermando watching in fascination and horror behind him.

"And why shouldn't I?"

"Serafina, you can pop all the pimples you want, but they're still going to leave scars."

He jumped towards the girl.