#She's not tied down to Amity Park the way Danny is | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

nerdofspades · 2 years

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Continuing from this post, with some more details being pulled from this reblog.

When Phantom sees Batman hanging out on a roof in Amity Park (where he can be seen easily, but only by someone who can fly) the first thing he does is sneak up on him.

For Phantom, it's easy. Invisibility, intangibility, and flight make it ridiculously easy for him to not make noise while approaching someone. He just needs to not breath too loud while he approaches. (Or speak. Both of these things are also easy for a ghost. Or a half ghost like him.)

So Phantom does that, and if it's pay back for all the times Batman startled him while he was working. No one needs to know.

The first thing he says is that Batman looks like he's looking for a fight. Batman does not jump or look startled in anyway. Danny is disappointed.

(Danny did manage to sneak up on Batman. Bruce just has excellent control over his reactions to maintain his persona. He also knew Phantom to be mischievous and was expecting this.)

So, Batman doesn't skip a beat and tells Phantom it's just a precaution. Mostly for if a less friendly ghost spotted him first. He wasn't going to start any fights.

Phantom gives a nod and says "good, you're learning."

Which sets off Batman. Because Phantom was not supposed to know. Danny scrambles and manages to brush it off. Batman has Fenton tech. He clearly got it from someone and if it were Jack and Maddie, Batman wouldn't be having a conversation with Phantom. Jazz has never been particularly good at the tech and hunting stuff, but she's got an interest in ghostly psychology. That leaves Danny, and that kid has been in and out of town all summer. That and with the only consistent access to the ghost zone in FentonWorks, it pays to have friends inside the house. And Phantom uses Fenton tech too. Gotta get it from somewhere.

While everything Phantom says is technically correct and factual something about the way he says it (the panicked rambling) doesn't sit right. Batman decides to "make polite conversation." With Phantom about the Fentons.

The more he asks and the more Phantom talks the more concerned he gets. Jazz has basically become Danny's parental figure in any situation where Jack and Maddie aren't technically required. Sure she inherited their genius, but at least half her drive to succeed is tied to getting out of there. They don't have safe food to eat and the entire house has been contaminated with ectoplasm due to Jack and Maddie's lax lab safety. (Phantom off hand mentions that the ecto-contamination will probably have effects on the kids that aren't constantly wearing jumpsuits.)

And the amount of things Jazz and Danny do that Jack and Maddie apparently just don't notice is astounding. Both kids sabotage or steal particularly nasty ghost weapons on a regular basis. Danny sneaks out more nights than not and his parents notice less than five percent of the time.

(Phantom specifically does not mention why he knows all of this, but it is obvious to Bruce that he and Danny do not have a professional relationship. He doesn't have it actually figured out, but he probably thinks they're dating.)

Batman wants them out of that house. Now. It's only when Batman directly brings that up that Danny realizes he's fucked up and said too much. He debates back tracking and trying to play it down again. But. By now he's spent enough time with the League to know about his adoption tendencies and has spent enough time listening to Jazz, Sam, and Tucker to know that he's actually right. That house is fucked up. Trying to cover it up now would just make Batman more convinced he needs to take them in.

So Danny does the opposite. He tells Batman that trying to move them now would be worse. They don't want to be separated and one or both of them would immediately sacrifice everything to help the other if separated from their parents.

The only way to make sure they stay together would be for Jazz to take custody of Danny. So, either she gives up Harvard and stays in Amity so Danny can finish high school with his friends, or Dannt gives up Amity so Jazz can stay at Harvard. Even if Danny manages to convince her to go to school, she now would need a full time job to take care of them on top of needing to pass her classes as a full time student to maintain her scholarship. Doing both would likely be impossible.

They will not thank him for intervening.

(Danny does not mention his obsession. He does not say that leaving Amity is not an option for Danny. That it would mean so much more than just leaving his friends and support network behind.)

Bruce hates it, but concedes. In this case. For now. He quietly resolves to get as much money into Danny's bank account as he can without making it obvious. No need for the League to know about that.

He also suggests that Danny and Jazz get therapy. Offers up a League contact that they can meet at the Watchtower if they don't want to visit anyone local. Especially with their relationship to Phantom. (And now the League.)

Oddly enough, Danny takes the offer. Jazz does too, but that wasn't too much of a surprise. Danny knows that Jazz can't actually be his therapist because of their relationship, and the main reason she's been toeing that line is because Danny didn't have other options. Now that he has one he can take some stuff off her plate and even get her some help off loading all the crap from their parents and taking care of him. So yeah. They take the therapy offer.

(This does nothing to curb the League's belief that Danny is one of Bruce's kids. Jazz gives them a little confusion, but it's not like Bruce hasn't taken in kids with families before.)

(Bruce does remember to handle his actual business before leaving. He was there to give Phantom a League communicator so they could call him for major ghost problems outside of Amity and he can call them if he gets in over his head. While Danny is good at what he does, Batman does not want to call a civilian child to a battlefield if he can help it.)

Dinah (Black Canary) takes them on as patients. Because neither one is directly connected to the League and Dinah spent minimal time with the ghost gear stuff, she doesn't have any concerns about being able to stay professional. She does tell both of them that if they have concerns about that, or if Danny becomes more involved in the League, they can tell her or Batman and they'll work to find a suitable replacement or address those issues in another way.

Neither of them talks about Phantom at first. Jazz opens up much faster, but she also has an easier time obfuscating the relationship between Phantom and Fenton.

Danny doesn't talk about Phantom at all.

Both of them raise a million red flags for Dinah regarding their family life, but both of them reiterate that they would rather not bring it to court.

Slowly, eventually. Danny feels safe. He's still slow and hesitant. He asks a few questions to verify that even the nosiest League members don't know what he tells her. (Manhunter has gotten several talks about not digging into Dinah's memories and if he has to, staying away from any that take place in this room. There is no camera and everything is hard copy. If Bataman were to try and open that door, it would set off an alarm. The walls are lined with lead and so on and so forth.)

Then Danny tells her outright that he and Phantom are the same perosn. They tall for quite awhile about the accident, hero work, his parents, and more. At the end of the session Dinah can tell this is something Jazz has been avoiding with the gift of hindsight and Danny says he'll tell Jazz she can open up about it.

Things look good for them.

#dp x dc #danny phantom #batman #justice league #black canary #jazz fenton #long post #give these kids therapy #parental neglect

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shower-phantom-ideas · 10 months

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Danny leaves Amity Park and Earth to commit to his rile as Ghost King

Ok I can’t lie to yall it’s one am and I wanted to write danny becomes ghost king and moves to the realms but misses school so asks William Lancer to skype call him during class so he can still be there. But I got very off track. Like I think I wrote a character study of jazz? I had to force myself to stop no joke. I could write this way forever but I think it’s kinda boring to read when I write in this style.

Anyway rambling here it is

Danny becomes the high King of the Infinite Realms and tries his hardest ti balance it all with his human life but it’s too much. He can’t keep up. His parents start putting more and more pressure on him. Plus their hatred if Phantom and ghosts has gone from a 10 to one hundred. Jazz thinks their obsessed, like their in love but with the idea of destroying Phantom. She no longer tries to give Danny a false hope of them accepting him as a halfa. Like he can’t see that. Every time she pulls him out if the kitchen, the living room, the lab. Hell every time Danny walks down the hall and one ih his parents join him, theres Jazz. As if summoned. Shes made it her mission to keep Danny from them and when she can’t she will do her best to make sure hes not alone with then. He thinks it’s a bit extreme and secretly is so glad for it. It’s like shes telling him his feelings are justified and that hes not crazy for being scared of his parents. That he doesn’t have to have the same fear of her. Shes on his side. Shes protecting him. And it’s nice. To be the one protected for once.

So they make a plan for him to leave. The Realms arent going ti give up or go away so he might as well go there. At least if hes nit running from his new responsibilities as Ghost King then they wont have to track him down and dump it in him once it’s piled up too much to be ignored. Hes already told Jazz hes not going ti pass up the crown. Imagine the good he can do as King. Plus hes promised that if he needs any help he will ask. So she helps him go. Their parents hardly notice when Danny disappeared from their house. Their obsession, their devotion, to Phantom has completely blinded them. Jazz is only staying because she is so close to finished here so wont have ti stay long. Less than a year and she can go off to any college she wants. Her grades are proof enough that she knows she wont tied to them and their money. She will be dependent of them and make a name for herself completely unrelated to them. These monsters who have taken her parents place.

She does wish she noticed sooner. Make she could have spared Danny so much pain and trauma had she just seen the signs. It was so clear to her now that this was their path. With every passing day she should have seen what they would become. But children love their parents regardless of goodness and she wanted to, no needed to believe they would do right by Danny. That no her parents wouldnt try to turn their son into a science experiment and strap him to a table and cut him open. She so craved and longed for a normal stable family. Something she no doubt learned doesn’t exist while studying physiology. She can’t blame herself. She knows it’s not her fault. She is still a child and still loved her parents. Even now as she makes plans to leave them and never come back to them. Even now she loves them. ‘Maybe im making a mistake’ ‘am I doing the right thing?’ The doubts pour into her mind. Then she sees them or talks to them and is once again reminded of why shes doing this. She has no doubts about if she can do it. She is smart and resourceful. She can easily make it on her own with a full ride to pretty much any collage. She would earn money as a tutor still and maybe even write articles online for cash, shes already got some offers, but that little voice in her mind still nags at her that they’re her parents and they love her. Maybe they used to but she knows they only care about one thing. Their “work” or their “science” in reality it’s their obsession. Ironic how they are like ghosts with their obsession controlling them. Unable to do anything else, think about anything else, until is fulfilled. If they just achieved their goal they would let up and maybe even return to their family. Minds no longer unable to sleep due to thoughts of their target. But Jazz could never let them. The price of her loving parents is the life of her sweet little brother. What a choice for a 17 year old to make. Have the family she was promised from all the media she had as a kid, showing familys of understanding and endless love. Or lose any hope of loving parents to help her little brother have his own loving family.

The choice was clear. She would sacrifice anything for him after all. If he asked her to give up her human life and join him in ruling the Realms she would have. Hell if he asked her to become a halfa she would have. This sweet boy whos willing to give up everything for everyone else deserves at least that. The hero who is not loved for his acts but despised, hated even, by those who he protects. A crueler fate even that his whole being obsessed with protecting them. Even if he wanted to give up on them he couldnt. She doesn’t even think hes capable of wanting to give up on protecting them. His ghost obsession keeps him from it. So she will give to the giver. He deserves just that.

~~~~

#danny phantom #jazz fenton #danny fenton #jack and maddie #seriously how to I tag stuff #I had a system for it a year ago and I forgot #forgive me I have been reading books and am In book mode #good sister jazz #she loves her brother

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armed-with-knitting-needles · 1 year

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I've got my first Phic Phight prompt done for the prompt: "someone sees Vlad transform, and when Vlad confronts them it goes better than expected" from @skellagirl

I had a lot of fun with this!

Ao3 link, then full fic:

Sheryl was having a good day. Her husband had given her new earrings that morning, FentonWorks brand, that were supposed to prevent ghosts from possessing her. Then she had made her grandmother’s sugar cookies, which had turned out just perfect. And, she had managed to avoid all the potholes from the latest ghost attack on her way to her afternoon shift at city hall. Things were nice.

She waved at Maureen as she made her way back past the reception desk into the staff offices. Maureen’s grandson’s baseball team was playing against the Centerville Marmots that afternoon, so Sheryl had agreed to take the last few hours of her shift. She figured she’d give her a batch of cookies, too. The boys would like that.

That probably meant she should give Mr. Masters his share before giving the rest to Maureen. She picked up a crisp plastic she’d already filled with four cookies and tied off with a Packers ribbon. It was always a good idea to be on good terms with the boss.

In general, Sheryl liked Mr. Masters. Sure he could be a little overly spirited when it came to dealing with the youth population, but that was just part of his charm. He really put his all into managing Amity Park and it showed. He’d put more funding into public infrastructure than the previous mayor, which was certainly nice. He’d also been able to talk FEMA around to giving them funding after some of the larger ghost attacks. Lord only knew how he managed that. When the last mayor had tried it, the town had been investigated for fraud and several years of improper federal income tax withholding had come to light. Shame about that. Shame about Sean from Payroll’s prison sentence, too.

But, the important thing was that Amity Park was getting FEMA relief now and Mr. Masters wasn't a half bad mayor. Really, the only problem Sheryl had with Vlad Masters was the fact that he responded to meeting invites with “tentative” and no further information, if he responded at all. It was a small gripe, but she would like to know if the mayor was available to discuss the budget or if she needed to reschedule. Ah well, no one was perfect.

She knocked on the mayor’s office door. There was muffled ranting coming from the other side. He must have brought his cat into work again, then. She knocked one more time for good measure, but if he didn’t want her barging in, he’d had plenty of time to say something.

“Hiya, Mayor Masters,” she said grinning widely while gently opening the door, “Sounds like ya might..”

Sheryl trailed off as her eyes grew wide and her grin dropped. Mayor Masters was, in fact, ranting at the cat on his desk, but something strange was happening to him.

He had dark rings forming around his waist. They split in the middle, one traveling up towards his head, one darting down towards his feet. Where they parted, his dark suit turned silver and his pale skin turned blue. In seconds, she was staring at a glowing apparition, floating nine inches above the wooden office floor. His cape fluttered in an imaginary wind. His hair tapered into two spikes that reminded Sheryl of that evil fairy from Sleeping Beauty. It was mesmerizing.

Sheryl swallowed hard. She got the distinct feeling that she should not have seen that, but what was she supposed to do in this kind of situation. Was this one of those things you mentioned to people or was it one of those things you just pretended never happened? She’d seen him change into a creature of horrible beauty. Did that follow the same protocol as accidentally seeing a coworker change clothes?

That would have to be close enough. She would just close the door and mention that he should probably lock it next time he needed to do something like that. No need to embarrass him by saying something now.

The door creaked as she started to close it and Sheryl winced. Mr. Masters didn’t notice,but Maddie the Cat launched herself off the desk towards Sheryl with a chirping meow. Cripes. Normally, she would be quite proud of her status of “favored by the feline”, but today it was just going to cause more problems.

Mr. Masters's eyes locked with hers as he turned to see where his audience was going. They stared at each other for a few awkward seconds that felt like an eternity. Maddie the Cat rubbed against Sheryl’s leg. Right. This is why she wanted to leave instead of saying anything. Why had she even gone in there in the first place? Oh. Right.

She cleared her throat and broke eye contact. “I brought cookies,” she said, praying this would be enough to break the awkward silence, “They’re lemon sugar.”

Mayor Masters continued staring at her, his expression somewhere between horror and deep discomfort. Sheryl could relate, but they had to be professional about this.

She cleared her throat again. It did not clear the tension from the air like she had desperately hoped. “I’m just going to leave these here,” she said, putting the cookies next to the door frame right inside the office.

There were a few more awkward seconds of staring.

“Right,” Sheryl cleared her throat, yet again, “I’m just going to go relieve Maureen. Her grandson has a game today, dontcha know?” More awkward silence. “Bye, hon.”

Sheryl breathed out as she closed the door with a click. She felt a pressure on her leg. Maddie the Cat had followed her outside the office. Darn it. The cat wasn’t allowed into the main part of city hall just in case someone had allergies.

She looked back at the door between her and the man she could only assume was imploding from embarrassment. Maybe Maddie would be okay out there with her in the lobby. Just for that day.

—

Forty-five minutes later, Mr. Masters pinged her on Skype.

“You can bring Maddie back to my office now.”

Sheryl stared at the message in quiet disbelief. That’s what he wanted to start with? The cat? Well, she supposed she couldn’t blame him. What were you supposed to do when something like that happened? Google had not been able to tell her, that was for sure.

She looked up. It was a slow Friday afternoon. Almost nothing ever happened on Friday afternoons. Surely, she could take a few minutes to go talk to the mayor.

“I’ll bring her right in,” she typed back before getting out the “Be Right Back” clock with movable hands and setting it for thirty minutes from now. That should be plenty long.

She grabbed Maddie the cat and marched into the office. It was now or never.

—

Vlad sent Sheryl a message on Skype, because what else was he supposed to do? He’d been trying to plan for the last forty-five minutes and it was getting him nowhere. He just needed to get this over with.

His idea had been simple. He just had to overshadow her and influence her thoughts enough that she wouldn’t tell anybody. That would work. Probably. Maybe.

Okay, so overshadowing didn’t work very well for influencing thoughts over long periods of time, or if the subject of influence was important. Vlad knew Sheryl. She was a very strong-minded woman and this was not something that she was going to forget easily. This wasn’t like a business deal where he just needed his victim to sign something in front of witnesses. It wasn’t like a vote that was a one and done action. No, just making her forget was a significant change that would need to be maintained over a long period of time. Overshadowing wouldn’t work for this.

He supposed at this point he would have to go for bribery and threats. That almost always worked. All he needed to do was offer her some money and remind her that he could destroy her life if she didn’t keep quiet. She was a part time employee of city hall in her late fifties. She had no power and no resources that would make her capable of taking him on. He’d make sure she knew it. And if she proved herself loyal, he’d make sure she was well compensated. He’d done that before for others, for less serious matters. It usually worked.

Usually.

If all else failed, he could make her disappear. That always worked. With his powers, he could truly make sure that no one ever found the body. He glanced at the little package of cookies with the Packers bow she’d left him.

He’d try bribery first.

There was a knock on his door and Vlad did not jump. Ah, yes, that must be her now.

“Please, come in,” he called from his desk.

The door creaked open slightly and Maddie the Cat trotted into the room. Right, yes, he’d used that as an excuse to call her over. He could see Sheryl just peeking into the room from behind the door. She was nervous. Lovely.

“Please, Sheryl, come in and have a seat.”

He watched her as she slowly made her way into the room, gently closing the door behind her. Good, she had enough sense to know that this had to be a private conversation. Perhaps this would be better than he had hoped.

Her earrings glinted in the light as she sat down and Vlad felt his heart sink. They were FentonWorks brand, a smaller version of the Specter Deflector that Jack and Maddie had put out on the market just last week. He had hoped too soon. She was prepared for this, prepared for him. No, that still might be a coincidence.

“I’m sure you know I didn’t actually call you in here because of the cat, Sheryl.” It was a neutral statement and one designed to let her do the talking. It would allow him to gauge how much she actually knew.

“Oh, yes,” Sheryl said nervously, glancing towards the closed windows of the office, “I figured you’d want to talk to me about accidently walking in on you.”

Vlad nodded. “Quite.”

“Well, I am sorry about that,” she said, her mid-western accent thickening as she spoke, “I certainly didn’t mean to invade your privacy like that, but I did knock.”

Vlad blinked. “What?”

“I knocked twice before coming in, dontcha know? But, you were so caught up in your rant that you didn’t even notice. I was hoping the cookies would cheer you up, since you were obviously in such a mood.”

Vlad did not know what to do with this. This was not what he was expecting.

“But then, when I opened the door, well, you were changing. You really need to make sure your door is locked when you're doing something like that, hon. Or at least say something if you hear someone knocking. I don’t know if it’s quite like changing clothes, but it isn’t a decent thing to do in public.”

Vlad spluttered. “It is not like changing clothes,” he said, trying to get a grip on the conversation, “I activated the ectoplasm in my cells. There is nothing indecent about it.”

Sheryl gave him a look that reminded Vlad strongly of the time he tried to convince his mother that it wasn’t technically underaged drinking because he was with his cousins and they were over twenty-one. “I don’t know anything about ectoplasm activation or anything,” she said, “but I do know that when you change, you do it behind closed doors and you lock those doors if you think anyone might open them.”

Vlad blinked again before resigning himself to… well, whatever this was. He laid his hands out in front of him, palms up. “You're right, of course,” he said, smoothly, “I really shouldn’t be doing something so private where just anyone can walk in.”

Sheryl nodded once, “I’m glad you agree.”

“And it is private,” Vlad pressed on, “Nobody can know that I can change like that.”

“Why not?” Sheryl asked in what Vlad could see was genuine curiosity. Of course. Sheryl was rather well known for sharing any and all information. Bribery wasn’t going to work if she couldn’t even figure out why this needed to stay hidden.

“Sheryl,” began Vlad, trying to figure out how to put this in a way that didn’t give her any more information than she already had, “What you saw me change into, it scares people. There are people out there, powerful, dangerous people, that believe that because I can change like that I am not human and I don’t have rights.”

Her eyes widened. “Oh, dear. That’s terrible, Mr. Masters.”

Vlad nodded. “Yes, it is,” he leaned closer and made eye contact, “So, I would appreciate it if you kept this to yourself. If word got out, I could be removed from office and I don’t know if your position would survive the upheaval.”

It wasn’t much of a threat, but, with someone like Sheryl, anything bigger or more direct could do more harm than good. Besides, Sheryl seemed to have a soft spot for him. He could use that.

“No! They couldn’t do that. That would be discrimination.” Sheryl’s eyes held fiery determination and Vlad honestly did not understand how she could be that naive. He let a very real grimace show on his face.

“I’m an elected official, Sheryl,” he said in a voice that was almost soft, like he was telling a hard truth, “I don’t have those kinds of protections. People can vote me out for any reason they want.” No need to tell her that people couldn’t actually vote him out of office if he didn’t let them and that the much bigger risk was that he would be dragged away to be experimented on by the government. Smaller secrets with smaller consequences were so much easier to keep.

Sheryl stared back at him, resolute. “Don’t worry, Mayor Masters. I won’t tell anybody that you’re… Er…” She paused. “What exactly are you?”

And they had finally gotten to the part of the conversation that Vlad had actually been expecting. This is the part of the conversation he’d spent forty-five minutes preparing for. “I’m ecto-contaminated. It’s a medical condition caused by over exposure to ectoplasm. You see…”

“Oh no need to explain, hon,” Sheryl said as if he hadn’t said something shocking, “My nephew Mikey has the same thing. He got attacked by this ghost bug half a year back and now his skin glows whenever it rains.”

Vlad blinked. What? Just what?

“I’m sure a lot of folks around here have it,” she continued, oblivious to the way she was taking Vlad’s world view apart. “In fact, just the other day, I was talking to my friend Michelle and, she’s a funny one Michelle, well, she says that most of Casper High probably had the ecto at this point. I think that’s a bit of an exaggeration myself, but-”

“Thank you Sheryl,” Vlad cut in. As useful as it would be to hear the rest of Sheryl’s gossip about Amity Park and and ectoplasm, for now, Vlad just wanted to make sure he wasn’t part of that gossip. “I’m sure there are plenty of people that are ecto-contaminated, but my case is rather severe and I’d rather it did not get around that I can change forms like that.”

Sheryl blinked and nodded slowly. “Well, if it makes you feel better, my lips are sealed, but it’s really nothing to be embarrassed about so long as you don’t do the actually changing in front of other people.”

“I mean it, Sheryl,” said Vlad, “I don’t want anyone else to know about this.” He didn’t particularly want to kill Sheryl, but he would if he had to.

“Okay, okay. I gotcha. I won’t tell a soul. Not even my husband.”

Vlad breathed out, relieved. He really did hate disposing of bodies. And the lemon sugar cookies were definitely something he would miss. “Thank you. Now, there wouldn’t happen to be anything I could interest you in, just to make this little deal official? I’m sure I could arrange a nice vacation for you and your husband if you would like.”

Sheryl put a finger on her lip and tilted her head. “You know,” she said, “that does sound nice, but I think there’s something else you could do for me.”

Vlad tensed. He was willing to give a lot, but it was never a good sign if the person you were bribing had something specific in mind. It meant they might have more specific things in mind in the future.

“Please start either accepting or declining the calendar invites I send out,” she said without a hint of guile.

“What?” Vlad asked, entirely flabbergasted, “Calendar invites?”

Sheryl sighed, “When I send out meeting invites you don’t reply or you mark them as tentative instead of accepted or declined. It makes scheduling budget meetings hard, dontcha know? I never know if you’re going to show up.”

“I… uh… Okay, I can do that” Vlad said. Really, calendar invites? That's what she wanted? Well, whatever made her happy.

“Glad to hear it!” Sheryl said, smiling wide. “Well,” she said, starting to stand up and dust off her skirt, “If that’s all, I’d better be getting back out to the front desk. We don’t want to keep any of your constituents waiting, now do we?”

“No, we certainly do not. Thank you, Sheryl. You have my utmost confidence.” He couldn’t believe it was that simple.

“Of course, Mayor Masters.” She paused just as she was closing it, “Just make sure to keep the door locked if you need to change like that again.”

“Of course,” Vlad said smiling.

His brow furrowed as the door clicked closed behind Sheryl. Were there really that many ecto-contaminated people in Amity Park? Sheryl’s nephew glowed when it rained? What did that even mean? He got out a notepad and started writing down all his questions. He had a lot of investigation ahead of him. Maybe he should try paying Daniel and his friends a visit.

—

Sheryl smiled to herself as she left work that evening. Maureen had texted telling her that all of the boys had loved her cookies, she’d managed to get the printer unjammed on the first try, and Mayor Master’s had accepted every one of her meeting invites that she’d sent out over the last quarter. Sure, it had started out a bit awkward, but it had been a good day.

#phic phight 2023 #danny phantom #vlad plasmius

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sailor-toni · 1 year

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Danny Fenton Football Captain and the East Coast Vampire

Chapter 9: Casper High’s Losers

You can also read this on A03, FF.net, and Wattpad

The ballroom was in old Amity Park, stuck between two small gardens. Its old antique facade was decorated in colorful streamers and lights. A large banner that read “Amity Park charity Masquerade Ball” hung above the large double doors. Even the statues and gargoyles that stood on the building had colorful paper masks tied to their faces.

“Hey Danny,” Valerie grabbed his hand and pointed to the roof. “Did you know that each of the gargoyles on the roof are supposed to represent the founding families of Amity Park?”

“Really? Kind of a ugly way to show it,” The gargoyles had to be taller than his Dad to stand out against the ballroom's massive glass dome.

“The gargoyles are there to ward off evil spirits but on their backs are the family crests. The one pointing to the West is supposed to be the gargoyle for the Manson Family. The one to the east belongs to the Sanchez family, the one pointing north belongs to the North family, and the one right above us is the south gargoyle. It belonged to the Master’s family.”

“Hun - wait the Masters?”

“Yeah. My Dad said they used to be a big deal in Amity Park before their family died in some weird house fire. He said the whole city could see the flames.”

“Woah, that sounds horrible.”

“Yeah. The weird park was that the flames were pink, not red. I think the library has a book about it or something. My Dad has been getting into all that paranormal ghost business recently.”

“Oh no. Let’s hope he doesnt turn into my parents.” Danny joked.

“Oh god I hope not. I might have to disown him if he started wearing a bright yellow hazmat suit everywhere.”

Speaking of hazmat suits, Danny could see his parents were already inside. His Mother was wearing a navy suit and the same simple black mask Danny had on. Meanwhile his father wore a full hazmat suit. The neon orange plastic squealed and rustled with every movement he made. The plastic around his face was half covered in condensation, but that didn’t stop his booming voice from echoing off the dark oak walls. Danny goaned and hid his face in Valerie's shoulder.

“I’m sure nobody will even know you're related to them tonight Danny,” She giggled at his misfortune.

“I hope not. Here, let’s go this way,” he led her into a crowd of masked people, quickly handing their tickets to the poor teenager collector with the red hat and thick glasses, and speed walked past his parents. Now away from the source of embarrassment he could finally see the interior of the ballroom.

It was grander inside than it was outside. There were statues that hung to the gold balcony above them, each face was carved as smooth as possible to make them look as alive as possible. Their harsh gazes looked down upon them. Their strong wings looked as soft as feathers with the small carved details made. Greek columns lined the lobby walls with a dusting of gold on its stone face to spread more reflective light across the massive lobby. It looked like there was a dusting of gold on everything, from the ends of the tables to even the floor below them. The pitch black title had gold glitter embedded within the stone, it made him feel as thro he walked on the night sky itself. There was even a woman with a long black gown and ivory skin, playing a calming song on a golden harp above them. The balcony golden gates framing her thin arms. As wonderful as it was he felt out of place, like an imposter standing with gods. His suit was a tad too small and his shirt collar felt like it was choking him. His cheap simple black plastic mask suddenly became itchy and his body felt hot under the crystal chandei;ler. But Valerie loved it. The lights reflected like stars in her beautiful teal eyes.

He let her lead him around the old building. A child-like smile graced her face as they silently explored the hallways leading off the main lobby. The old gas powered lamps still hung above them, now modified to hold flame shaped light bulbs. Their soft light was brighter by the floor to ceiling length mirrors that hung on each side of the hallways. Each mirror was taller than the walls in Danny's bedroom and had been polished to a ridiculous extreme. He feared if he got too close he would see each and every sore and defect on his face. Valerie let go of his hand and began to twirl in the hallway, the mirrors catching her movement like clear shadows. The deep red of her dress sparkled in the light, and the low cut back caught his eye. He quietly came behind her, grabbing one loved hand and twirling her around the room.

“You know there is a ballroom right?” He whispered into her ear

“Yes but it doesn't have mirrors like these.” she whispered back.

The two twirled and danced in the middle of the hallway, as dozens of their own reflection joined them in this clumsy dance. Big smiles were painted on their faces as their mess spanned the whole hallway, traveling up and down the length of the mirrors. Their movements matched a beat only they could hear. Their movements slowly falling to a close as sweat built itself on their foreheads.

“That was great,” Danny whispered into her ear.

“Yeah, it was,” Valerie wrapped her arms around his neck, whispering the words into his ear. The air tickled his ear and his face began to burn up.

“Hey guys, what are you doing?” Kwan yelled down the hallway. The couple quickly broke apart, with Danny awkwardly coughing.

“h-Hey Kwan, what’s up!” Danny said.

“I’m good! What are you guys doing over there? The party right here! And Mr. Master’s is about to give a speech!” Kwan waved them over.

Danny offered his hand to his date and led her back to the main room. Kwan was wearing a sun mask while Star stood near him with a moon mask. Danny and Valerie chuckled at the mask choice but kept it mostly to themselves. The last two to join were... Dash and Paulina? Dash was wearing a pale pink tie to match Paulina’s pink princess dress, her mask was bedazzled with rhinestones and gold trim. Dash wore a silly grin on his face while Paulina looked less than pleased. He waved hi to everyone but Danny and stood on the other side of the group. Danny rolled his eyes but the lights began to dim and the Amity Park Historical society came up on stage with Vlad.

“Thank you everyone for attending our masquerade ball! Give yourselves a big round of applause as we have raised enough money to restore the old Master’s mansion and bring back a apret of our town’s great history!” Mr. Lancer said into the mic. The crowd began to clap and cheer. “Let’s also give a big round of applause to Vlad Masters, for none of this could have been done without him and his donation to hold this ball. Mr. Masters, do you have any words for the crowd tonight?” Mr. Lancer handed the mic over to Vlad.

“Thank you Mr. Lancer. I would like to thank everyone who came to this amazing ball. The support for this has exploded in the past few days and it warms my heart to see the community come together to remember my family home and restore it to its former glory. My father would be amazed to see the support everyone has given.” His words were rewarded with another applause. “And with those somber words, let’s get this party started!” Vlad handed the mic back to Mr. Lancer, who was drowned out by the applause. The crowd broke up into little groups and many couples took the lead to the dance floor.

The ballroom was split into two floors. The bottom floor was empty save for a few candelabras, while the second floor circled the edges of the walls, leaving the center for anyone who wished to watch the people dance below. Punch and food was served on the second floor, of course.

Danny led Valerie to the second floor to quickly grab some of the rich food. Below them Kwan and Star had begun their dance, while Vlad and his wife Desiree watched from the doorway. She whispered something in his ear. He gave her a sweet kiss before departing the ballroom. Danny thought that was strange but shook the thought from his head,and he quickly filled his plate with all sorts of small expensive looking snacks.

“Ohh what is that one?” He asked.

“I don’t know. You wanna play rock, paper, scissors to see who will try it?” Valerie asked.

“Sure, but if you lose you can’t spit it out.”

“Neither can you, dummy,” The first match Valerie won, the second Danny won with a quick slight of hand, and the third round was won by -

CRASH!

Danny felt something wet on his back. Behind him Paulina covered her mouth and looked embarrassed.

“Oh my god. Danny I am so sorry! I didn’t mean to.” She said, grabbing a cloth and dabbing it on his clothes.

“Really Paulina? You can’t let this go? You have to sink down to something like this?” Valerie spat back.

“No this was an accident, I swear! I tripped over my dress. I didn’t mean to-”

“It’s okay. I’ll go find a bathroom and see if I can get it out. I’ll be right back.” Danny said.

“Wait Danny, I'm telling the truth. I didn’t do this on purpose!” Paulina tried to follow Danny but Valerie stepped in her way.

“It’s fine. I’ll be right back I promise!” Danny scurried down the ballroom steps and began his search for the bathrooms.

The hallways got darker as he traveled down them. Every door he tried was either locked or led to an office. About to give up hope at office number five, Danny heard voices coming from down the hall.

“Hello? Hey, do you know where the bathroom is?” Danny called out, but the voices continued on as if he wasn’t there. He rolled his eyes and made his way down to meet them.

There at an open door. Sam Manson and Tucker Foley were pulling books out of a bookshelf.

“It’s not this one,” Sam said.

“Not this one either,” Tucker replied.

“What are you guys doing?” Danny asked, scaring the shit out of the two.

“T-that’s what we should be asking you Fenton!” Tucker said.

“I’m here on a date. Wait, don't tell me. Are you guys dating?” Danny gestured towards the two.

“NO!” they both yelled. Their faces twisted in disgust. Sam pretended to be sick, while Tucker stuck his tongue out and gagged.

“Jesus, sorry I even mentioned it.” Danny chuckeld.

“Well you should be sorry,” Tucker said.

“Yeah! We know what you’ve been up to Ghost Boy,” Sam said.

“AUGH! We went over this already. I’m not the ghost boy”

“Then why did you hide a bomb in the basement? We saw your ghost friends moving it yesterday!” Tucker said.

“What?” Danny felt his veins froze.

“Yeah. You might not know it but my parents also gave a large donation to this event, and were involved with the planning,” Sam said with a smug smile.

“Yeah, I bet you didn’t count on us seeing your goons yesterday during setup.” Tucker added on.

“There’s a bomb?!” Danny yelled.

“Don’t try and play dumb. We heard everything the metal guy said. Make sure you don’t mess up, or else the ghost boy will hear about it. Plus we know you lied to us,” Tucker said.

“Yeah we saw you with the two color eyes. Your disguise was failing you and you tried to hide it,” Sam said.

“NO! No, no, no. You guys got this all wrong. Wait, did you say metal guy?” Danny asked.

“Yeah, he had metal skin,” Tucker said.

“Did he have a flaming mohawk that was both green and blue?”

“Yeah, we saw it all!”

“Oh god. No, we need to get out of here. We need to get everyone out of here. God I didn’t think he would be back so soon,” Danny moved into the room and tried to pull the other’s out. Sam and Tucker pulled their arms from his grip.

“Do you think we are stupid?” Sam said.

“No, I don’t think that. I think we are in great danger and we need to get out of here!”

“This boy thinks we are dumber than shit,” Tucker said to Sam.

“No, please trust me on this. I know you have no reason to trust me, but please. We need to get everyone out of here right now.”

“And let you get away?”

“I didn’t plan any of this. Why would I do that?”

“Well It’s no secret you don’t like your parents,”

“So, you two think I’m trying to kill my parents? You two are crazy!”

“Are we crazy or are you the crazy ghost boy?” “Either way we are about to find out,” Sam pulled another book from the bookcase. A click followed it and it swung open. “Oh! I didn’t think that was going to work.”

Behind the bookcase was a long hallway down into the basement. Tucker and Sam rushed in, with Danny not far behind. His cried were ignored as they landed at the bottom. It was a small circular room with his parent’s ghost killer 9000 in the center. The timer was slowly ticking down from thirty minutes.

“See, you were just trying to get us away from your bomb!” Tucker yelled.

“I did not put this here,” Danny pleaded.

“Yeah right-” Tucker took a step forward and a loud snap followed. A ball of slime injected itself from the wall and latched on to Tucker. Swallowing up his body and leaving only his head exposed.

“Tucker!” Sam yelled. As the second ball shot itself out and latched itself to Sam. Locking her in place just like Tucker. A third ball shot out towards Danny, he ducked down and dogged it. The ball bounced off the wall behind him and got him by the back. Soon it too, swallowed up his body, leaving only his head exposed. He tried to transform but the slime was preventing it.

“Ha ha! It looks like you got caught in your own trap!” Sam laughed.

“That wasn’t his trap.” A deep voice answered. Skulker phased through the walls. His new body was fixed and shined to a fine polish. “Hello Ghost boy. How have you been?”

“Oh well-”

“I don’t care.” A green sword came out of Skulker’s arm. He grabbed Danny’s hair and pressed the blade to his neck.

“WOAH! Wait, I thought you were working together!?” Tucker yelled.

“AHAHAH! As if! This Ghost Boy is the only prey to have ever escaped me. And now I will cut his head off and mount it to my wall!” Skulker said.

“Skulker! Put that away. I paid for your way out to help me with the bomb. Not to kill the boy,” A voice cut in. Skulker put his blade away and released Danny. Everyone twisted their heads to see who it was. Vlad Masters stood by the door with a sour expression.

“Vlad Masters?” Sam said.

“That is my name child,”

“Vlad! What is going on? Why is my parents bomb here? I don’t understand,” Danny said.

“I didn’t want you to find out like this Daniel. At least not until you were ready to know.” Vlad sighed. “As you know I went to college with your parents and we were close friends. A sort of found family if one must put a name to what we were. And we were determined to create a portal to the world of the undead, or as you buffoon of a father put it. The Ghost Zone . Bah! What a childish name. But we were young, dumb, and determined to make it happen. But something happened, as it always does. Jack turned the portal on while I was in the same room as it. He forgot to check if I had made it out or not. The portal was unstable and ectoplasm infused with my body creating a condition called ecto-acne. It creates boils on the skin and inner membrane of the body filled with ectoplasm that very painfully burst and the mix of puss and ecto-palsm can cause some very serious infections. For years the accident stole my life from me, leaving me in agony, and when I thought it was finally over. I found myself born anew. But the entire time I was trapped with my body revolting against me, you parents never visited. They left their mess behind to start a new life with a little family of their own. So tonight I thought it would be fun to reward them for their actions. Once this bomb goes off about half of the people here will get ecto-acne and when the police go to investigate. Your parents will be framed for the crime. Their life will be ruined just like mine was.”

“What if people die?” Danny asked.

“This bomb will not kill any humans, as your mother designed it to only kill ghosts. But when you expose humans to that much ectoplasm, it creates ecto-acne. That is why I, and a few others won’t be here when the bomb goes off.” Black rings emerged from Vlad’s waist and moved across his body, enveloping it in a shadow. When the shadow dispersed Vlad’s skin was blue, his now black hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail, and his clothes were pure white. Gold fringe and lace were embroidered along the edges of the regal suit. “Daniel, you look surprised? Did you think you were the only halfa that existed? You are not the first of your father’s failed experiments.”

Danny was stunned into silence.

“Now you are a bright young lad. You can put together that while the meddling kids over there will survive the bomb, you might not. And I do not wish to see you die. So. I give you an offer. Join me. I have mastered my powers. I can teach you everything I know,” Vlad multiplied himself. His copies filled up the room before they disappeared in pink smoke. He made pink shields, and covered himself in bright pink fire before putting it out. Leaving him unhurt.

“Are you serious?” Tucker yelled. “You got hurt in college and now you're going to make a whole bunch of random people suffer the same fate as you?”

“Yeah you should just get back as his parents instead of getting everyone else!” Sam backed her friend up.

“You two wouldn’t understand. Neither of you died and came back to a world that is against you,” Vlad said.

“But you’re super rich now. You own like five different companies. You have more money than you could ever use! Yeah his parents fucked up but why not move on?” Sam yelled.

“Because I will never get the life I could’ve had back.”

“Danny this guy is bad news! Don’t listen to him!” Sam yelled.

“Look Daniel. A few moments ago they were accusing you of killing your own parents, and now they are begging you to listen to them. To do as they say. The people here are fickle and will discard you as soon as they get what they want,” Vlad said. “Everyone in this miserable town is like this. So, why fight to defend scum like this? When you can come home with me and Desiree and live like a king with people who understand you?”

Tucker and Sam tried to yell but their voices were cut off when Vlad snapped his fingers and the trap wrapped around their mouths. Danny’s own trap disintegrated around him. Dany fell to the floor and Vlad offered a hand to him. “What will it be?” Danny looked around the room, at the bomb ticking down, the two idiots in their trap, Skulker, and back to Vlad. The music from the ballroom was faint in his ears, and the image of his friends infected with ecto-acne came into his mind. Danny smacked Vlad’s hand away.

“Thanks but no thanks. I have people I need to protect,” Danny stood up and let the white rings on his body transform him into his baggy hazmat suit.

“Mr. Plasmius, do you need me to handle this?” Skulker asked.

“No. Get to the safe house. I can handle this,” Vlad waved him away. Skulker phased through the ceiling and disappeared into the night. “If you are talking about your date, I will allow you to take her out of the building before the bomb goes off. But I would hurry. Time is running out,”

“No, I’m going to stop you. Before you can hurt anyone,” Danny said.

“Don’t make me do this Daniel. I am more powerful than you can imagine.” Vlad started floating off the ground. Danny shot a green beam from his palms and cut into Sam and Tucker’s traps, freeing them.

“Make you do what?” Danny spat at him. Vlad Plasmius bared his teeth, displaying a set of sharp fangs, and he grabbed Danny, throwing him against the wall. “Get Star and Kwan and find a way to disable the bomb. I’ll handle him!” Danny shouted orders at Sam and Tucker.

“You’ll deal with-” Danny’s blast hit Vlad across the face. Danny flipped the ol man off before phasing through the ceiling. Vlad was quick to follow behind him.

Danny flew into the air with Plasmius hot on his trail. The clones tried to out maneuver him in the air, flying below and above him, trying to trap him in a clone bubble. But he let himself fall close to the ground. His body picked up speed as he raced along the road. He couldn’t fight him here, there were too many people and they might get hurt. Danny thought. But there was one place that was already destroyed and he was sure no one would be there.

WHAM! A clone blind sided Danny, sending him flying towards another clone, who grabbed him and tossed him high into the air. A third clone grasped his collar and spun him like a top before letting go and watched Danny crash through a water tower.

“Daniel we don’t have to do this,” Vlad or one of his clones said. Danny phased through the water and flew towards his destination. He threw small blast that the clones easily dogged.

“I won’t let you frame my parents!” Letting his emotions build up in his chest Danny let the hot beams of light shoot out of eyes. The beams hit one of the clones, reducing it to pink dust. “Yes, I got one!”

A hand grabbed his collar, “Fine. If we must play this game, let it be known that it brings me no joy little badger,” Plasmius spare hand turned a hot neon pink, he then let the light shoot off directly into Danny’s stomach, sending him flying across the sky. The light burned through his suit and scorched his skin. A clone flew under him and blasted him in the back, sending him up. And then a third came in and blasted him again. He was popping pong through the sky till he saw the corpse of the old Master’s mansion. Danny used his own blast to break the cycle and send his body flying towards the house.

#Danny Phantom #fanfiction #ghost grey #valerie gray #vlad masters #writing #popular AU #fanfic #fenton #sam manson #tucker foley

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imekitty · 3 years

Text

Grave Error II

Follow-up to this ficlet.

Fun fact: I first tried writing this like a month after writing the first ficlet and struggled so much that I ended up rage quitting in tears. But now a couple years later, I gave it another try!

-----

Maddie stared at the three headstones before her. Her son. Her husband. Her daughter. She was the last one standing in this cemetery now.

But someone was watching her.

“I know you’re there,” said Maddie. “You might as well show yourself.”

Nothing happened for a moment. Then Phantom fizzled into view several feet away.

“You’ve grown since the last time I saw you.” Maddie smiled at him, noting his broadened shoulders and height.

Phantom ran a hand through his hair. “Yeah. I don’t age as quickly in this form, but I guess have grown a little, huh?”

“In this form? As opposed to what?” asked Maddie. “A human form?”

Phantom gazed at the graves, his lips thinning. Maddie looked down at her withered hands speckled with liver spots.

“I look old, don’t I?” She chuckled. “But I know that’s no surprise to you. You’ve been coming here to watch us when we visit for many years now.”

Phantom gripped one of his wrists, wringing it.

“You just always stayed invisible,” said Maddie. “But I knew you were there. Every time.”

“I just wanted to—”

“Don’t.” Maddie shook her head. “I don’t want to hear your reason.”

A breeze rushed past. Maddie tightened her coat around her.

“But you might as well come closer.” She kept her eyes on the headstones. “Stand next to me. I’m too old to do anything to you now anyway.”

Phantom hesitated before taking slow steps toward her, his boots crunching over dead leaves. He stopped by her side and faced the headstones.

“You really knew I was there?” he asked. “Every time you came?”

“Mmm hmm. I could tell.”

“But then why didn’t you say anything to me before?”

“I had nothing to say to you. And I didn’t want Jazz or Jack to know you were there spying on us. Jack would’ve wanted to hunt you down, capture you.”

Maddie could see Phantom’s bright glow on the edge of her vision as she continued to stare ahead.

“And I just wanted to forget about you,” she murmured.

“Forget about me?” Phantom looked down at himself before raising his eyes again. “But then why are you talking to me now?”

Maddie shrugged. “This is the first time I’ve had to come here alone. And I suppose maybe I didn’t want to be alone.”

They stared at the headstones in silence for some time.

“My entire family.” Maddie felt her throat tightening and tried to breathe to open it. “They all left before me. I just never thought I’d be the last to go.”

Phantom folded his arms and shifted his weight from one leg to the other. “How… I mean, what happened to them?”

“Why do you want to know?”

Maddie looked at him. Phantom kept his head down.

“I just thought you would’ve known already,” said Maddie. “With how much you like to spy on us.”

“I wasn’t spying on you.”

“Then what do you call watching us invisibly every time we came here?”

Phantom blinked a few times, still staring at the ground. “It was the only way I could see you. Because I can’t leave Amity Park. Whenever I try, something just...holds me back. It won’t let me go.”

“Because your ghostly obsession is tied to this town,” said Maddie.

Phantom did not reply.

“But why would you want to leave?” asked Maddie. “Why would you want to see us?”

“You know why.”

Phantom continued keeping his gaze to the ground. Even with his slowed aging, Maddie could see tired lines around his eyes and mouth.

“I still see reports about you when I check the Amity Park news,” said Maddie. “You’re still saving the town, still making those silly jokes and puns while you do it.”

Half of Phantom’s mouth curved up. “Yeah, well, it’s all I have now. I… I have nothing else. Not since…”

He glanced at her before returning his gaze to the ground.

“So you’ve been reading about me?” he asked. “You’ve been...thinking about me?”

“Does that stroke your ego, Phantom? Satisfy your obsession to be a beloved hero?”

“That’s not it.”

They stayed silent for a moment, staring at the headstones.

“I found their obituaries online,” said Phantom. “But neither of them gave the cause of death.”

“I didn’t want to disclose that.”

“Please tell me.” Phantom gripped his elbows tightly. “I would really like to know. Please.”

Maddie sighed. “Jack went first. Heart attack. We had known it was coming for some time. He had been struggling with his blood pressure for years and was terrible at eating healthy. He always ended up cheating with tons of fudge.”

“He never could resist fudge.”

Maddie quirked a brow. Phantom was smiling wistfully.

“Jazz caught pneumonia one day.” Maddie faced forward again, reading her daughter’s name etched in stone. “No idea where it came from. She was in the hospital a few weeks. We all thought she had beaten it when she moved into transitional care. But then she took a turn and was just...gone.”

Heavy tears sprang to her eyes, too hard to hold back.

“I knew I’d probably outlive Jack.” Her voice faltered. “He was overweight and ate all the wrong things. But my children… I never thought I’d be burying them too. Certainly not both of them.”

Her body shook, her old legs barely able to support her convulsions. Phantom stepped closer and held his arm out to her. She took it without thinking and leaned on him.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I didn’t mean to leave you so soon.”

Maddie wiped away her tears with her fingers. “Are you really still trying to convince me you’re my son?”

“You still don’t believe me?”

Maddie sighed deeply and did not look at him as she continued holding his arm. “No.”

Phantom’s shoulders lowered, his head fell.

“But I think I might like to pretend you’re my son. Just for now. If you don’t mind.”

Phantom raised his head. She did not return his gaze.

“I don’t mind.”

She tugged on his arm in the direction of a nearby bench. He led the way, escorting her, supporting her.

They sat together for some time. Maddie kept her hold on his arm. And when she grew tired, she lay her head on his shoulder.

And when he lay his head against hers, she allowed it.

The moments were long and quiet. Cold breezes rustled the few leaves left in the trees.

“I’ve missed you, Mom,” murmured Phantom.

Maddie sat up and studied his face. His eyes shone with tears.

She let go of his arm and stood. She walked away from him and never looked back.

And then a fourth grave appeared next to the others.

Danny read the names on each headstone. His sister, his father, his mother.

Finally together again.

He stood in front of his own grave and considered phasing through the ground into his casket to lie with his bones.

#danny phantom #maddie fenton #danny fenton #imekitty writes #angst #major character death #grave error #i only proofread this once #if it's too depressing sorry #but the original prompt was depressing #and i'm honestly not feeling too great right now

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danny-phantom-writings · 2 years

Note

Hi! I saw that you're taking writing requests. How about this? On patrol one night, Jack and Maddie run into a homeless kid. It pricks at their hearts, seeing the black haired preteen in a ratty hoodie. But why is she so eerily familiar?

Thanks for the request! I hope you like what I came up with!

It had been a slow night. There had only been one ghost sighting all night, Phantom just flying overhead, but they weren’t able to follow him. He was too fast and too far away when they had spotted him.

Maddie huffed from her spot behind the wheel of the GAV, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

“Maybe we should head in soon, Jack. I don’t think tonight’s the night.”

Jack gave a big yawn, nodding his agreement.

“Alright, we can always try again tomorrow! I’ve been itching to get my hands on a ghoul and try out the new Fenton Pulverizer!” He hoisted the weapon he had been tinkering with, a white blaster with his face plastered onto the side.

So, they decided to head home and get some sleep before the kids got up in the morning.

They had almost managed to get to the house, too, before Maddie saw something on the side of the road. It looked like there was someone laying on the bench at the bus stop, but they were a bit too small to just be some person. It didn’t help that Amity Park didn’t really have any homeless people. The sight was out of place enough to catch her attention.

She stopped the GAV nearby, watching what looked like a child through the rearview mirror.

“Jack, does that look like a kid to you?”

“Hm?” He looked at her, confused. She motioned at the mirror for him to take a look and he did, squinting at the mirror before turning around to look out the back window. A look of surprise crossed his face. “You’re right!”

They left the car.

Danny walked down the stairs, trying to stifle the yawn that threatened to break his jaw.

He froze when he reached the bottom.

It looked like someone was on the couch swathed in a hodge podge of blankets, the only thing visible of them a familiar mop of black hair. He was instantly gripped with so much anxiety.

He rushed over to the couch, shaking the sleeping bundle. There was a disgruntled noise, the same blue eyes, staring into his.

“What. The. HELL. Are you doing here?” Danny whisper yelled.

Danielle glared at him, sitting up, keeping the blankets wrapped around her like the fluffiest of cacoons.

“I’ll have you know! You’re parents are the ones who made me stay the night.”

“... what?”

“They found me on a bench last night and thought I was a homeless kid or something and made me stay the night. I was just going to leave before they woke up, but I guess … I fell … asleep. By the way, I told them my name was Ellie.”

Danny rolled his eyes.

“They’re going to think something’s up when they see us together.”

Dani just scoffed and waved him off.

“Of course they won’t.”

Something was up.

Maddie tried not to stare or anything of the sort, but she couldn’t help the glances.

Nothing looked out of place on the surface. It was just breakfast, the kids sitting around the table eating their cereal, Jack working on one of his projects. Maddie was doing the same, of course, but she was distracted by the addition to the table.

She was happy to see the girl hadn’t run off while they slept like she half expected her to, but now that she was seeing her here, right next to Danny, she couldn’t help but think she looked familiar. They had the same messy black hair, even if hers was longer and tied back. They had the same blue eyes, too, the same bright shade. And maybe she was stretching, but she could swear they even had the same smile.

She reminded Maddie too much of Danny. She wasn’t sure why they looked so similar, but the connection was there nonetheless.

Danny left for school with Jazz, the two waving goodbye and leaving the girl with their parents.

“Uh … Thanks for letting me sleep on the couch. And for breakfast.” Ellie said, fidgeting at the table. “I should, uh… I should get going.”

“Oh, you don’t have to go anywhere if you don’t want to.”

She looked at Maddie, confused. Maddie glanced over at Jack, nudging him with his elbow. He started.

“Right! We were talking about it last night. A kid really shouldn’t be left on the streets.”

“We know you don’t want to tell us about what happened, but you don’t have to, at least not right away. We can discuss staying long-term another time. But just for now. We can make up the guest room for you.”

It’s true, they had already planned to let the girl stay as long as she needed. Especially now, when she saw so much of Danny in her, she couldn’t let the girl go out alone, not without assurance that she had somewhere safe to go.

The girl seemed hesitant but eventually nodded, a big smile on her face, just like Danny’s. It made Maddie’s heart twist.

“Yeah, alright! Thank you!”

#danny phantom #danny #phantom #danny fenton #jazz #fenton #maddie fenton #jack fenton #danielle phantom #danielle #dani phantom #dani #writing #danny phantom writings

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q-gorgeous · 3 years

Text

Ghost Farm

fanfiction

ao3

The GIW need ghost samples to conduct experiments. Why capture ghosts when you can make your own? prompt by @mystyrust

word count: 2609

warning: offscreen character death

gosh this prompt

Danny yawned as he walked into the school. He walked up to Sam and Tucker and was just about to greet them when heard Paulina sobbing into Dash’s chest by her locker.

“Woah.” He said. “What’s happening?”

“Star’s still missing.” Sam whispered.

“It’s been a week since her parents filed that report and no one’s seen any sign of her since then.” Tucker looked at his PDA. “No one has anything new to report online. I think it's starting to really wear on Paulina.”

“Maybe when we patrol later we should check up on some other places rather than just the ghost hot spots.” Danny said, looking back at Paulina. “Maybe we’ll be able to find something while we’re out.”

“Maybe.” Sam said. The first bell rang and they started heading to class. “But if we’re being realistic, a week is a long time with this kind of thing. She could be long gone out of Amity Park by now. Or, you know.” She whispered that last part.

“It wouldn’t hurt to try looking around though.”

The three of them walked into Lancer’s class. The empty desk next to Paulina felt like it took up the entire room and many of their classmates were trying not to look at it. The final bell rang and Mr. Lancer turned from where he was writing on the board.

“Alright, class.” He said somberly. “Let’s get started.”

QQQQQ

“We’re having no luck down here, Danny. What about you?” Tucker called through the Fenton phones.

Danny flew past the arcade and an ice cream shop and stopped, floating in front of an alley. “Nothing here. I think we can call it for-”

Danny’s head whipped towards the sound of trash cans crashing around. He floated into the alley slowly, looking around. When he came out the other end there was no one there.

“Are you okay, Danny?”

He turned back around. “Yeah, I think some cat was getting into one of the garbage cans over here or something.” He flew back out of the alley.

“Okay, well then-”

Danny stopped listening to her when he saw something laying on the ground. He touched down on the concrete and bent over to pick up a pink clip.

“Hey Sam.” Danny asked. “Dash and Kwan were talking about taking Paulina for ice cream, right?”

“Yeah?” She said, confused. “Why?”

“I found Paulina’s hair clip on the ground.”

A heavy silence settled between the three of them.

“She probably left with them, right?” Danny asked. “They wouldn’t have left her alone here?”

“There’s no way they’d just leave her there. Not with Star missing.” Tucker said.

Silence hovered over them again for a few seconds before Danny spoke. “You guys go home. I’m gonna fly up and down the streets over here again.”

“Are you sure?” Sam asked.

“Yeah.” Danny took off, flying above the buildings and scanning the ground below him. “Be careful getting home and let me know when you get there.”

They both gave him affirmatives and he looked up and down each street. In fifteen minutes he got notice that Sam was home and ten minutes after that so was Tucker.

He let out a deep breath, a bit more relaxed now that he knew Sam and Tucker were safely at home. He had a bad feeling, but he hadn’t seen anything suspicious along the streets or in the alley, so maybe Paulina did leave with Kwan and Dash and she just dropped her hair clip.

He turned around to start heading back home. He dropped down in between his house and the neighbor’s and transformed. Before heading inside, he let Sam and Tucker know he was home and he turned off the Fenton Phones and put them in his pocket.

Danny opened the door and stepped inside, shutting it behind him. He greeted his parents who sat waiting on the couch, his mom reading the paper and his dad cross stitching something. He yawned and started heading upstairs to get ready for bed.

After brushing his teeth and changing in the bathroom, Danny crossed the hall into his room, closing the door and turning off the light. He flopped down onto his bed and pulled the covers over himself.

He hoped Paulina was doing better tomorrow.

QQQQQ

Paulina was missing.

She had never come home last night and her parents called all her friends, asking if they knew where she was. No one had seen her since yesterday, and her parents filed a missing person report. It spread like wildfire through the school.

Dash and Kwan in particular looked horrified and close to hysterics throughout the day. They didn’t talk to anyone, didn’t even really look in anyone’s direction when their names were called.

It took until lunch, but soon word spread that one of the underclassmen was missing too. One of the band kids. No one had seen him since last night either and he just happened to live in the area that the ice cream shop was in.

It didn’t stop there either. Day after day, more and more kids were disappearing. Mikey, Dale, Sarah, more underclassmen. It was getting to the point where they cancelled school until someone had some answers.

That didn’t stop Sam from going out and searching for any clue she could find though. The first time Danny had seen her when he was patrolling on his own, he scooped her right up and took her home, scolding her.

When his mom got a panicked phone call from Sam’s hysteric mom, his heart dropped into his stomach. His hands went numb and he stared at his mom until she got off the phone and walked over to where he sat on the couch.

She pulled him into her arms tightly and whispered into his hair.

“Sam’s missing.”

QQQQQ

“Come on, Danny!” Tucker yelled through the computer. “You can’t just walk around waiting to be kidnapped! If you get kidnapped how are we gonna fix this?”

“What we’ve been doing hasn’t been working, Tucker!” Danny yelled back. “I can only cover so much ground when I don’t know what I’m looking for and you can’t be out there. I can barely do any patrols as it is, my parents are always coming up to my room to check on me. I don’t see any other way to do this.”

“What if you don’t come back either?”

Danny paused. “I have to come back. If I don’t come back then neither does Sam.”

Tucker sighed. “Just. Be careful.”

“I’ll try to be as careful as I can while being kidnapped.”

Tucker made a face at him just before Danny logged off. Transforming, Danny jumped into the air and flew out the window. He flew around town a bit before dropping off into the alleyway he found Paulina’s hair clip in. The areas that the kids were last seen in seemed to be all over town, but he couldn’t shake the sound that the garbage cans had made that day out of his head.

Pressing his back against the wall, Danny transformed and strolled out, walking down the street. There weren’t many people out most days now. Most of them were too afraid of going outside and getting snatched up like all the teenagers.

He’d been walking for fifteen minutes before he heard the crunch of gravel underneath tires behind him. He didn’t turn around and kept walking forward. Footsteps rapidly approached him and suddenly a bag was over his head.

“Hey!” He shouted.

“Are you sure we should take this one? What about his parents?”

Someone else scoffed. “They’re too dumb to do anything about it. They won’t even know where to find him. Just help me get him in the car.”

They picked Danny up and hauled him back towards the car. He heard the trunk open and they tied his wrists together before shutting the trunk heavily above him. Soon the vehicle was moving and driving away.

Well, he accomplished what he sent out to do. It wasn’t very comfortable though.

They must’ve been driving for at least an hour because by the time they stopped, both of Danny’s legs were asleep. The trunk popped open and he could feel the cold air rushing in. They pulled him out and placed him on the ground, yanking him back up after he almost collapsed from the pins and needles feeling in his legs.

They walked him to an entrance where he could hear key cards being scanned at multiple points. They led him through squeaky hallways until they stopped and were suddenly lifting him up onto a bed? No, a stretcher. They strapped him down and once he was tightly bound they ripped the bag off of his head.

Danny scrunched his eyes up at the white light bouncing off the bright white walls. Looking around, he saw two faces staring down at him. Agent K and Agent O.

“The GIW?” Danny said. “What the fuck? Why are you kidnapping humans?”

They ignored him and started pushing him down a very long hallway.

Rolling down the long hallway, Danny can hear the moans and groans, most of them coming from ghosts. He looks around and sees room upon room, windows letting him see the people inside each of them.

His heart drops when he sees Star. She’s floating inside her room, a small husk of a ghost. When she sees him, her eyes immediately light up with rage and sparks fly off of her as she bounces all over the room.

In the next room is Paulina. It doesn’t look like she’s a ghost, but it looks like she’s sick with ghost powers again. She’s pressed tightly against the wall she shares with Star. She hiccups and a ghost sense floats out of her mouth.

As they push him by, he sees everyone. Mikey, Dale, Sarah. All of the underclassmen that went missing. Even Dash was there. Each one various levels of dead, alive, and sick.

They reach the end of the hallway and his pulse is spiking, his heart hammering in his chest. He hasn’t seen Sam anywhere.

He clears his throat. “So, uh, wanna share what you guys are doing here?”

“Ghost studies.” Agent K clips out.

“Right. Why are you kidnapping humans then?”

“It’s easier to make ghosts than to catch them.”

“What-” Danny stops and his eyes widen. They can’t be serious. Making ghosts? His thoughts go back to Star, bouncing around her room like a comet and his blood runs cold.

They roll through a set of double doors and when they open they’re in an operating room. His thoughts are buzzing and he can hear the click and ping of metal objects being placed on the counter. They’re just about to roll a utensil cart over to his stretcher when he hears a scream that fills his veins with fire.

Without even thinking about it, Danny rips his wrists out of the restraints and punches Agent O in the face. He falls into the cart and all of the tools clatter to the ground. Danny shoots an ectoblast at each belt binding his ankles to the stretcher and hops off the bed, facing Agent K, glaring at him, hands filled with ectoplasm.

“You’re a ghost!” Agent K exclaims before Danny kicks him in the stomach.

“And you’re scum.” Danny snarls. He shoots an ectoblast into the side of Agent K’s head, knocking him unconscious.

Transforming, Danny jumps up into the air and starts flying from room to room, looking for Sam. He finally finds her in another room in a different hallway, another agent sticking a needle full of ectoplasm into her arm. She screams again.

As the agent is reaching for something else from a tray, Danny picks up the tray, sending its contents flying, and smashes it into his face. The agent tumbles to the ground and Danny grabs his keycard. Picking Sam up, Danny phases them out of the room, locking the agent inside.

“Sam! Sam, are you okay?” Danny asks shakily.

She shakes her head. “We can’t worry about me right now. We have to get your parents and the cops.”

“But-”

Sam shakes her head again. “Some of these kids won’t make it long enough for you to patch me up. They’ve been sick for too long.”

He looks at her for a few seconds before nodding. He shoots up into the air, holding Sam close to his chest as he flew as fast as he could back home.

He flew straight into the living room, halting abruptly when he saw his parents standing there. They stared with wide eyes at Sam in his arms and started reaching for their guns.

“Wait!” He shook his head. “We need your help! I found out where all the kids are!”

Maddie’s gun clattered to the ground. “Where are they? Was Danny with them?”

“Danny’s fine, he’s not there.” He said hurriedly. “They’re in a GIW compound outside of town. We need to hurry.”

“Let me just-” Maddie started reaching for Sam.

“No! We can’t waste any time.” His grip tightened on Sam. “She said she’ll be fine for now but there are kids who won’t make it much longer. They need our help more right now.”

“Okay. Okay, Jack. Get the keys for the van and a couple of bazookas. You take Sam to the van and direct us to the compound. I’m going to get in touch with the police.”

They all piled into the van and Danny directed them toward the compound. Danny kept a close eye on Sam and Maddie stayed on the phone until they reached the compound, giving the police the address. The van slammed through the brick wall surrounding the compound and straight into the front wall of the building.

They all jumped out, Danny still carrying Sam, and he keycarded them through all the locked doors until they got to the wing full of students. Maddie covered her mouth as she looked at them.

Soon the police got there and they began to cart out the agents that remained in the building. Paramedics came in to take care of the kids who were still alive while Jack and Maddie worked on calming Star and the other ghosts down.

Danny let go of Sam’s hand slowly as the paramedics loaded her into the ambulance. He turned around and flew back into the building where he found his parents trying to comfort a distraught Star.

He floated up to her and held a hand out. She looked at it and her eyes darted up to his face, recognition flashing through them. Tears welled up in her eyes and she stood, wrapping her arms around him as she sobbed.

He loosely wrapped his arms back around her and waited with her until she was ready to go.

QQQQQ

Danny, Sam, and Tucker sat closely together on top of Danny’s bed. They had just gotten back from the memorial held for all the kids that died inside the compound. Danny and Tucker each held one of Sam’s hands, gripping them tightly.

Sam took a deep breath and let it out shakily, her fingers twitching and going through Danny’s hand before settling back in place.

Danny hoped to whatever deity there might be that this would never happen again. No matter what anyone thought of the ghosts in Amity Park, they had never stooped low enough to kill someone. They weren’t collecting humans for a ghost farm.

He glanced up at the window, looking at the night sky. A ghost flew through the night, sparking brightly like a comet.

#gorgi writes #danny phantom #phic phight #phic phight 21 #phic phight 2021 #danny fenton #sam manson #tucker foley #star #paulina sanchez #fanfiction #fanfic #fic #phic

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avaritia-apotheosis · 3 years

Text

Phantom Children Ch. 8

What's this? An update! Massive thanks to my betas for helping me get through this chapter <3

In Which: A few answers are given to the family and Danny is rudely awoken

[Side note: If you wanna know the general ages of the batfam, its listed in the AO3 version. I also talk about katanas in the end notes ^-^]

AO3 | Prologue | 7 | [ 8 ] | 9 DAMIAN INFORMED TODD—and Drake when he arrived on his bike sometime later on—that the boy whose face is plastered across the monitor was neither a picture of himself nor of Father.

Drake took one glance at the monitor and sighed, pressing his fingers against the bridge of his nose. “Just when I thought this day was getting better.”

“What, did that café on 5th finally let customers supersize their drink?”

“God that would be the dream, wouldn’t it?” Drake sighed wistfully. “Nah, but I did get a lead on where some of that stolen Cadmus tech might’ve ended up. I was gonna spend the night following up on it, but I guess we have to deal with,” he gestured to the monitor, “whatever this is.”

Todd leaned against the edge of the computer, arms crossed over the red bat insignia on his chest. “What are we dealing with this time, brat? A clone? An alternate universe counterpart? Magic shenanigans?”

Maybe. Perhaps. All of those were perfectly valid conclusions for the enigma that was Daniel James Fenton. (Why Fenton and not al Ghul? Or even Wayne?)

Damian, too, was a genetic experiment; a ‘test tube baby’ as Drake put it at times. Damian was born for greatness, created to be perfect. The perfect soldier. The perfect assassin. The perfect heir. Was this boy—Daniel—like him as well?

A failed one, then. Perhaps the precursor to Damian’s own existence. But that would not explain why the boy was allowed to exist for so long. His grandfather demanded perfection, especially from those of his own blood. If the boy was a failure, he would have been eliminated immediately, not sent to live with some eccentric scientists in the Midwest.

Damian was not naïve enough to think that his mother and grandfather did not keep secrets from him. On the contrary, he expected it. The League of Shadows dealt in secrets as often as it did in death. Certain information was worth its weight in gold, whether it was given or buried away.

But he could not help the sharp pang in his chest. A lightning strike, quick and electrifying at the notion that they kept secrets about their family from him.

His father’s face flashed in his mind. The shock turned into a slow, dawning horror. That flicker of light, of recognition, as he scrutinized the contents of the flash drive and cross-referenced it with a public database.

And grief.

Damian recognized the grief.

Alfred, too, nearly dropped his tray of fresh-baked cookies when he stepped in front of the monitor. His usual unflappable demeanor was momentarily broken at his father’s whispered “Sixteen years. Alfred— he’s sixteen years old.”

His father knew of the boy. He was allowed to know of Daniel when he was not allowed to know about Damian.

------

Grayson returned to the cave with a distinct lack of energy in his step. His mask dangled off the tips of his fingers, chin angled downwards and covered largely by his hand. For a split second, their eyes met. Grayson shifted his gaze away, scratching the back of his neck. Father told him, then. Damian wondered how much Father revealed to his favorite son.

Damian clucked his tongue and buried himself deeper into the chair, arms crossed and pointedly looking away. If it was not for his accursed ankle, he’d have headed out to the training ring to take his frustrations out on the dummies.

“Oh, thank god you’re here, Dickface. Damian’s completely out of it.”

Damian shot him a look. “Shut up, Todd.”

“Leave him alone, Jay. Is Tim back yet?”

Drake emerged from the changing room in a dark green shirt, a fresh cup of coffee in hand. He took one long sip before exhaling. “Yeah, I’m here.”

“O-kay…” He pressed his hands together, mouth thinned into a grim line. “Uh, hey Tim, glad to see you back safe. Bruce is coming down soon to explain some things.” He let out a deep sigh, carding a hand through his hair. “This kind of thing would probably be better with the girls around, but I—god, I don’t know.”

Todd raised an eyebrow. “Don’t know whether to call Steph and Cass in Hong Kong, or don’t know what’s going on?”

“Yes.”

------

When Father arrived, Pennyworth following dutifully behind him, it was with an aching slowness in his gait. His steps measured and precise, preternaturally quiet as he made his way to stand by Damian’s chair. Damian sat up straighter, shoulders squared and back an inch away from the backrest. The rest, even Todd, stood at attention; an ingrained habit among Robins and an amusing instinct even among the senior heroes of the Justice League when it came to facing the Batman.

His father kept a steady hand on Damian’s shoulder, and Damian, shamefully, leaned into the touch; his head inclined towards his father’s hand so much so that he could feel the ends of his hair being pushed up slightly as he brushed against his father’s forearm.

He spoke with his usual monotone, as if he was heading a Justice League meeting as opposed to unveiling the secrets surrounding that boy. He brought forward the few photos they obtained from the flash drive. “A few weeks ago, we were alerted of suspicious movement from the League of Shadows in Amity Park, Illinois. Their objectives are, as of now, unclear, though it appears to be tied to the death of Amity Park resident, Daniel Fenton.”

One photo was a standard ID picture people get for their driver’s license, the lighting deliberately horrible so that any attempt to look decent would always end in failure. Another photo was a little better; a candid scene of him chatting with two others his age, a Caucasian girl in gothic-style clothes and an African-American holding a sleek, but still very outdated PDA. His blue eyes crinkled at the corners, hand reaching up to his face to stifle a laugh. There were other photos like this, some candid, others posed. At the forefront of each, a boy that looked too much like his father, too much like Damian.

His father glanced at the photos. He shut his eyes and when he opened them again, he fixed them on some distant stalactite in the Cave. “Around six months ago, Daniel was pronounced dead in a vehicular accident. A body was present, but according to police reports, he was identified via his driver’s license as opposed to any kind of DNA profiling.” He leaned over Damian’s chair to pull up a profile of Masters. “Our source—Vladimir Masters, mayor of Amity and a friend of the Fenton family—indicated his belief that Daniel is actually alive. I am inclined to agree.”

“He’s your son, isn’t he,” Drake said, more of a statement than a question.

Father gave a curt nod. “I cannot say for certain until I can perform a DNA test, but I highly suspect that to be the case.”

“First the demon spawn, now this. Great.” Todd made a hand motion towards the screen. “You know, Bruce, not knowing you have a kid once might be a coincidence, but twice? How do you do that?”

“As of three hours ago, I was still under the impression that my son never made it to term.”

“What?”

“Over sixteen years ago I was involved in a mission that put Ra’s and I on the same side. During that time, Talia and I entered a relationship that resulted in a pregnancy. Though initially ecstatic, she eventually led me to believe she miscarried the child and pushed me away. For what ends, I do not know, but trust me Jason, if I knew—” He paused, the hand that was not on Damian’s shoulder curled into a tight fist.

Father pinched the bridge of his nose. “Why she hid it from me then doesn’t matter. Why Talia wants him back now is important. Judging from Daniel’s records, he was adopted into the Fenton family as an infant and has since lived a seemingly normal life as a civilian. His adoptive parents, Jack and Maddie Fenton, are brilliant scientists and engineers focused on the field of paranormal studies. Eccentricities aside, they have zero connections to the League of Assassins or any other concerning parties.”

“So why now?” Dick asked, shifting his concerned gaze from Bruce to the static picture of Danny’s tired smile. “Why, after all this time, decide that now would be the best time to recover him?”

------

Danny’s experienced plenty of rude awakenings before, but waking up at the ass-crack of dawn to avoid his kidnapper-slash-assassin-slash-biological-mom launching a surprise attack takes the fucking cake. He can’t believe he’s saying this, but thank god for all those late night ghost attacks that conditioned him to be a light sleeper. And, of course, the League’s insistence that everyone be in optimal condition regardless of how little sleep you actually got.

Danny kicked Talia off of him, ripping his blanket away before scrambling to his feet. Seriously, if the universe decided to spontaneously give him powers again, he’d really like an upgrade to his ghost senses, please and thank you. Something that works on humans and not just ghosts. Like spidey-senses. He’d really, really like some spidey-senses.

“Your reaction times have improved considerably,” Talia said.

He eyed the katana sheathed beside his bedroll. “Thanks. Who could have guessed that constantly challenging someone to a spar in the unholy hours of morning would make them paranoid to sleep too much? Really, how am I supposed to grow taller at this rate? ” If he could just get it--

She smiled, taking a step forward. “Prepare yourself.”

“Heh.” Danny stepped further away from Talia, keeping his back to the mouth of the cave. One hand stretched in front of him and the other, coated in a green light, was kept hidden behind his back. “Am I actually gonna get some answers today?”

“Let us make it interesting. Last 10 minutes against me and I shall tell you more about your brother.” Talia twirled her blade. “If you happen to draw blood, you may ask any one thing of me.”

“Anything?”

“Within reason.”

His face caught between a grimace and a smile. He’d rather be sleeping right now, but if he had to be awake, then he’d better make the most of it. “Deal.”

Talia’s smile dropped. She veered her body to the right, barely dodging the streak of bright green that whizzed from behind her. The ectoplasmic energy that surrounded the katana bled away as the handle connected with Danny’s outstretched hand.

She quickly glanced back at Danny’s bedding. Beside it lay an empty sheath. “You have telekinesis?”

He shrugged. “It comes and goes.” Yeah, no way was Danny gonna admit that seven-out-of-ten-times he forgot that he had telekinesis. Besides, that shit was hard to do when he wasn’t Phantom.

“A surprise attack from behind is a sound strategy, Daniel. Though it’ll take a lot more than that to harm me.”

Danny pointed to the side of his cheek. “Are you sure about that?”

Talia frowned. She reached up to her face. Her fingers brushed against her cheek and came away with a thin streak of blood.

Danny grinned, pointing his blade at his opponent. “First blood goes to me.”

------

Fact: most fights don’t last long. An average street fight could last anywhere between 25 to 40 seconds, and sword fights rarely last over a minute. Like Talia said, the goal of a fight was to end it with as few injuries to oneself as possible. Humans, even the most skilled ones, can rarely last long in a fight. Prolonged combat is suicide; it makes you tired, makes your muscles heavy. It’s nothing like what Hollywood would have you believe.

Even with Danny’s own enhanced stamina and Talia holding back, he couldn’t last a full ten-minute spar. If Talia didn’t finish him within twenty-five seconds, then he’d fall by his own human limitations.

But the goal wasn’t to spar continuously for ten minutes.

He only had to last that long.

Danny sprinted out of the cave. The sun barely peeked out of the horizon, a thin line of deep orange breaking apart the wide expanse of blue-black sky above. He couldn’t see shit; great news since that meant there’s a good chance Talia couldn’t either, but that doesn’t fix the fact that he can’t see.

Nearly stumbling on the ice, Danny veered to the left. The edges of the lake stopped at towering rocks twice Danny’s height, leaving little room for cover. Though if he remembered correctly, there should be a few crevices here and there to hide in.

“You’ll have to be faster than that, Daniel.”

Shit—

Danny stopped. He brought his sword up to parry Talia’s strike and twisted away, putting distance between them.

Well, so much for just avoiding her for 10 minutes.

He adjusted his grip, keeping his sword steady and eyes trained on Talia as they circled each other. Danny lunged with an overhead strike. Talia used one hand to block the downswing by gripping his wrists. She thrust her sword forward, the tip harshly poking Danny’s abdomen.

“Less than three minutes.” Talia let his wrist go, Danny’s arms slumping to his sides.

He sighed as he sheathed his sword. “Damn, I thought I’d last longer than that.”

“You made a good effort,” Talia assured him. “Putting as much distance between us at the beginning was a good strategy. You recognized the win conditions immediately and attempted a battle of attrition.” She placed a hand on his shoulder. “I am very proud of you habibi, especially as you managed to draw first blood.”

A warmth grew in Danny’s stomach at the words, heating his cheeks. Sheepishly, he scratched the back of his head. “I wasn’t entirely sure that would work, honestly.”

“It was clever; half a second later and you might have even killed me. You are an al Ghul through and through” She brushed his hair out of his face. “What would you like as your prize, then?”

Danny’s heart clenched. He frowned, dropping his arm to his side. If I was such an al Ghul, then why didn’t you keep me? The question lodged itself in his throat, stifling his thoughts. It was something he’d been wondering for a while, actually, in the moments of solitude he had at the compound. Talia, during their training, would always remark at his potential. How talented he was, how adaptable he was, how much greater he would have been if he had been trained at a younger age.

Well then, why wasn’t he? Why did she give him up?

But each time he tried to ask, his tongue would turn to lead and the moment would pass, the question still left unsaid and simmering at the back of his mind. A Pandora’s Box that held none of the world’s evil but all of Danny’s possible shortcomings.

He could ask the question now.

He could.

He didn’t.

“Why did you take me?”

Talia tilted her head. “It is because you’re my son.”

“No. Not that. It has to be something more than that. You had sixteen years to come back for me—or, hell, you could have just never left me.” His breath hitched, fingers mussing his hair and hiding his eyes. “Why else did you take me?”

“It is true that there was more than one reason why we decided to retrieve you from Amity Park. One of which is because you are my son and an heir of the Demon’s Head.” Talia stilled. The dark skies of dawn made it impossible for him to read her. “The second reason was to protect you.”

“You kidnapped me…to protect me?”

“Knowledge of the ghosts of Amity have spread through the more insidious parts of the world. There are many out there who would pay exorbitant fees to study one of you or to use you.”

Use him? What did she mean by—

Oh.

Ghosts—Amity Park’s brand of ghosts—were a new element that the world had to contend with. Amity Park might have a crime rate of zero but that wasn’t the case everywhere else. Theft, assault, murder; the world was rampant with crimes and criminals clawing their way to the very top. Having ghosts, even ones with the most basic powerset, would be a huge advantage.

“There’s no way that would work,” Danny insisted. “Most ghosts just want to be left alone, and the ones that want to wreak havoc would never work with humans. The only reason they even work with halfas like me at times is because they still consider us as ghosts.”

“If my sources are to be believed, ghosts might not even get a choice.”

Danny’s blood curdled in his veins.

No.

Someone’s found a way to control ghosts.

#danny phantom #batman #danny phantom x batman crossover #dp fic #phantom children.txt

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datawyrms · 3 years

Text

Half a Decade Late

Valerie was finally promoted to the main headquarters of the Guys in White. There she finally comes face to face with Phantom, who disappeared five years ago, locked in a cell. For Phic Phight 2021, @lexosaurus' prompt!

Nothing proved ’harder workers get ahead’ was only a capitalist lie than the absolute hassle getting promotions within the GIW. Of course she’d gone right to them for employment, it was the only organization large enough to actually pay people that took her resume of ghost hunting seriously. She had experience, actual knowledge and even her own gear but had still spent years getting jerked around to various small operations, basically just using her to train all their useless recruits while still just considering her a ‘fellow’ field agent. It wasn’t like she had the option to quit in protest, no one else was in the market for ghost hunters. As far as most people knew ‘ghost intelligence’ was just a joke cover story that the agents were very attached to. They didn’t want any more Amity Parks, so if she wanted to live somewhere new and still do her job...these guys were it. She’d been very clear, she wanted to be in the main office, where everything happened. That didn’t stop them from constantly assigning her literally anywhere but the actual headquarters. Maybe they finally ran out of other places, she still half expected to get stopped at the door and be told about a new field mission they absolutely needed her on immediately. It didn’t happen. Valerie Grey finally got to clock in as an Ecto Containment Officer at the main branch. Where they kept the strongest creatures, developed the new anti-ghost equipment and did more than just splattering a ghost down to nothing. Sure, she liked a good ghost obliterating, but it got boring after a while. There were only so many ways a ghost could beg for it’s useless afterlife before it became white noise. It didn’t stop any new ones from showing up, or tell her anything new. Just got rid of one pest, permanently. That wouldn’t help explain some ghosts, the powerful ones that showed up again and again. It wouldn’t explain the one that stopped showing up either. There was no way that life ruining ghost just got ‘bored’ and vanished without notice. It was still out there, plotting something. She just knew it in her bones. She had to be ready for it. There were traces of that ghost, hints of his ectosignature that she came across in the field, he was still out there. The GIW was just a means to an end, she didn’t trust them to be ready alone.

Sterile corridors and simplistic signs were expected, but even the break area was doing its best impression of a frozen tundra. Fantastic for morale? Probably not. Made the coffee pot easy to spot, at least. Even if she preferred to avoid the stuff in uniform. It stained too easily, and just made her wish for her red battle suit. She took a cup to at least have an excuse for her scoping out the place, she could pass it off to someone once she got to the containment area. A quick double check that everything was in place at the mirror before heading right back out to the winding halls. She wasn’t going to be late, she didn’t have time for that. Maybe a red tie was against protocol, but no one had been stupid enough to bother her about it yet. Judging from the deferential nods from her latest coworkers, that wouldn’t be changing. No one who worked here couldn’t know who she was. The only Ghost Hunter who got out of Amity Park without getting corrupted by the ectoplasmic monsters. It was a shame, Jack and Maddie Fenton used to be a serious force for humanity. Five years ago they suddenly flipped the script, denouncing their work and calling for peace with unreasonable fiends. Their daughter Jazz likely had something to do with it, but Valerie had her own theories. Danny, her friend and once boyfriend had gone missing around that time. Leverage to ensure the Fenton’s ‘good behaviour?’ The whole thing reeked of ghosts. To think she might have gone the same way. Back then she was actually listening to the pest, starting to really consider them a ‘good’ ghost. Like that was actually possible, when he’d just been playing to emotion and her own desire to give up in fighting a dangerous foe over and over. So much for that. That monster showed it’s true colours, sure enough. Something the GIW never bothered to look into, even as she wrote report after report about the incident, how unlikely it was for the Fentons of all people to change that drastically without constant possession. Not worth the resources, even when it was easy to see what tech was built on the foundations the couple had laid. They were throwing away so much to focus on little outbreaks of ghosts instead of making more of a lasting change. Stupid. That was what the funding was ‘meant’ to go towards, as if helping the Fentons would be less productive than making a slightly different ectogun.

She almost hoped there would be a problem, just to prove this is where she should have always been.Even if it seemed distinctly unlikely. She had to swipe to get into the lab, then yet again to actually get to the cells. Or the ‘vault’, as if the higher ups wanted to pretend the creatures in there were inert materials instead of cunning and dangerous beings. Even though they had someone posted at each door, and someone on guard inside as well, herself today. To get acquainted with the place mostly, she had more than enough training on ‘proper handling’ procedures.

“Hey, you can swap with me today, if you want.”

Valerie blinked, eyebrow already raised at the posted guard’s suggestion. “I can handle watching caged ghosts.”

They had the sense to look embarrassed, taking their hand away from the oversized ectogun to loosen their tie- which was tied rather poorly now that she got a better look at it. “I’m sure you can, it’s just, well.” They wouldn’t stop fidgeting with their tie now, eyes checking that no one was really paying attention to the guards. “H0G02 is awake today. No one likes those days.”

“Then all the more reason to get used to it early.” She didn’t give them time to sputter another excuse, swiping her card and striding past without another look. As if people should be worried about a captive ghost being awake. Maybe some of the people here never got a spine before joining up.

It wasn’t as cold as she expected it to be. Or as dark. It was actually brighter, thanks to the extra row of fluorescent lights. On some level she expected the room to reflect the monsters kept here, a shadowy icebox of a space. Of course it wasn’t. These were defeated creatures under human control, of course their cages would be bright and clean, the air warmed for human comfort. The ghosts might not like it, but why care what they wanted? It wasn’t like there were many to begin with, mostly green oversized vermin with blank red eyes. Most had the sense to cower back as she walked past, but a fair few didn’t even twitch. Calling a ghost of all things lifeless was foolish, but it was the only word coming to mind...she had to focus. She didn’t pity these things. Why so many creatures though? The real dangerous ones, the most monstrous ones were the ones that could play human, the ones that had conniving minds that only worked to cause destruction and terror. These were just feral things, annoying but hardly more impressive than a coyote when you knew what to do. Half of them she’d barely rate above ‘feral cat’. A light near the back flickered. Strange. When it flickered a second time she was already releasing her helmet to pull it on. Not nearly as easy as just willing it on, but at least she could carry it in a pocket without needing to rely on some ghost’s power. Three steps and her gun was ready, not that she expected to need it. Really, she worked on autopilot, legs still moving as she stared at the largest glass cage at the back of the room. Or more accurately, at what was in it.

“Oh, newbie. ‘Sup.” The ghost rasped out, blank green eyes watching the ghost hunter. A teenaged boy with a shock of white hair, a black jumpsuit, but the voice of a seventy year old chain smoker. Just sitting in a painfully bright cell, watching. Not exactly as she remembered him, but close enough.

“You.” The disgust was easy to voice, even as her brain struggled to catch up. He was here? Looking practically exactly as he had when she was still a soft hearted freelancer?

He only gave a sputtering laugh at the aggression. “Me? You’re not that mad about the light, are you? I’m bored, Tie.”

“What are you doing here?” That wasn’t the important question really, she should be more concerned that he apparently was able to manipulate light fixtures from his cell...but she’d been hunting after this ghost for five years. Protocol could go shove itself up the director’s ass.

“Same thing I do every day Tie, being some government property!” His laugh was wrong, not from amusement like she remembered. A desperate cackle that didn’t fool anyone. “You new enough to still have your soul in there?”

“Answer the question, Phantom.”

The smirk slid off the ghost’s face. “Wh’ad you call me? Like I’m only calling you Tie cus the red sticks out, I can call you Shooty if you don’t like it, newbie.”

The response made her insides run cold. It had to be Phantom, and the terrible sense of humour was just like him- but the ghost wasn’t quite right. What was this? It couldn’t be some copy of the ghost kid, could it? “I called you by your name, ghost.”

“Never heard of em.” The ghost crossed his legs and looked away, apparently bored of the person holding a weapon. “What day is it?”

Surely he was playing around. “What do you think your name is, then?”

He didn’t take his attention off the ceiling, looking more bored than anything.“Day first, Tie. Gotta know how much of a head start I’ve got.”

“Like you’re in any position to bargain.”

“Hm? Whatcha gonna do Tie? Let me be unconscious for a few hours? Scary. Day first.”

There was the Phantom she knew, snide and sarcastic when he really had no business being so. “I could do worse than that.”

“Doubt it. You gun grunts gotta listen to the freaks out there, remember?” His shoulders shook with a silent laughter, but it looked more like spasms. “No more mishandling the goods, yeah? Day Tie, comeonnnnnn”

Since when was he so interested in the calendar? Not to mention how weird it was how he kept referring to himself...and pretending he didn’t know his name. “It’s Monday.”

That got his attention, the casual rocking halting as he looked at her again, disturbingly still. “Monday, really?”

“Lying is your thing, not mine.”

He grinned. “I like you Tie, so you’ll probably be fired in like a week. Maybe it’s the red.” The tension left the ghost completely, she hadn’t even noticed how stiffly he’d been sitting until his spine relaxed as his elbows rested on his legs. “Pretty sure I’m H0G02. Least that’s what all your creeps call me.”

There was no way Phantom of all ghosts would call himself ‘H0G02’. He had to be a mimic of some sort, a ghost that modelled himself on the once well known Amity Park menace. “You like me because I told you it was Monday? Seriously?”

“I like the Mondays more than you, if that helps.”

“Not particularly.”

“Sounds like a you problem.” He was watching her again, more curious than anything. She shouldn’t be glad to see a spark of something in those eyes, but he was far less creepy this way.

“What’s so great about Monday? You’re a ghost.” She didn’t really care. She should be asking important questions. She was just...playing along to see if it really was Phantom. That didn’t stop her for being grateful for the helmet.

“Monday is the farthest day away from Friday.”

“Wouldn’t that be Saturday?”

“It hasn’t been Saturday or Sunday for...like four years? Those days don’t exist, I think you humans made ‘em up to prank me.” Phantom shrugged, sounding completely serious. Not even a hint of amusement or a grin. “Pretty good one, all you new guys keep it up.”

He was going to be completely useless if he kept saying nonsense. How could he be useful in finding out what happened to the Fenton’s son if he couldn’t even talk about the days of the week sensibly? “Fine, what’s so bad about Friday then.”

“Ohhhhh, you’re really new, Tie.” the ghost flopped onto his side, bored of sitting up apparently. “You know, the day they keep me around for? That day.” He wasn’t quite still, his right shoulder moving very, very carefully. Hiding something.

She didn’t have the patience for this.“What are you hiding there.”

“Tie has good eyes. Gotta remember that.” Phantom muttered, getting onto his back, a blue shard of ice melting off his arm.

“You don’t really think that some ice would help you out of there?”

“Out?” He looked mystified by the suggestion, but that could more be seeing his face upside down. “That glass doesn’t break for anything, I should know.”

Which didn’t explain why he’d been trying to hide the fact he’d made ice at all. He knew it too, but apparently playing stupid was still one of his favourite tactics. “Knock it off and just answer me.”

Phantom’s frown didn’t change, green eyes staring intently at her helmet as if hoping to see through it. “I could show you why?”

It didn’t sound like a threat. “Sure, why not. It’s gonna be a long day.” If it was? Then she’d show him that she wasn’t someone he could mess with.

Ice wrapped itself around the ghost’s lower arm alarmingly quick, a wickedly sharp blade of ice with serrated teeth jutting from the scrawny arm at an awkward angle. It was practised, something this ghost must have done often in all the time he’d been gone from her life. Yet it was so different from how Phantom usually chose to fight. That was a weapon to tear and maim, not to shock, stun or bruise. It looked wrong on him. The idea that this ghost wasn’t Phantom at all only grew more credible with that thing on his arm, even if ice powers were to be expected. His eyes flicked back to green, still fixated on her as he lifted the arm and stabbed down hard. Right into his other arm. Didn’t even blink.

“What are you doing!” She couldn’t remember the last time Phantom had ever been frightening on some primal level. This- with the disturbing snap of bone as the edges of the blade caught and tore made her hair stand on end. “Stop that, Phantom. What’s wrong with you!?”

“Cancelling Friday.” Phantom was laughing as the blade melted away into the pool of green rapidly spreading from his self inflicted wound. “I said you’d probably get fired Tie.”

“Forget Friday you idiot, cover the wound so you stop splattering everywhere!” He was just a ghost-a ghost messing with her. A ghost she’d fought with and had heard scream in pain. This...thing wasn’t him. Her heart didn’t care what her mind thought, insisting he needed help.

The ghost sat up, his left arm holding on by a shred of his suit before splattering into the puddle, but the left behind stump stopped dripping almost as quickly as he’d lost the limb. “Aw. Maybe Tie does have some soul left. You actually sound worried.”

“Of course I am! You slashed your arm off!”

“So?”

He didn’t seem to be in pain. If it wasn’t for the mess of green and the lack of a limb, she’d almost say she imagined it. Why did she care? “You wouldn’t do this sort of thing.”

“Uh. Yes I would? You just saw me do it. I’m down for an encore.”

The idea just made her feel ill. “Don’t.” Did she want this to be Phantom or not? “What the hell is wrong with you?”

“Well I’m down an arm. So the coats are going to be very whiny about how much ectoplasm they can get out of me.”

“You must have felt that.”

“Sure. Isn’t nearly as bad as when they start ripping as much ectoplasm as they can out of you. Every single Friday.” He actually rolled his eyes, like she should just know this.

Why did they bother keeping Phantom around if they just wanted ectoplasm? He might be strong, but no ghost had limitless amounts. They’d just fall apart and stop existing. That’s why the weakest ones never even left the Ghost Zone, they couldn’t survive without constantly being around the stuff! “What makes you so special then? Not your attitude.”

“I’m just lucky enough to make my own ectoplasm. Who knew food was easier to get then high grade ectoplasm? Not me.” His remaining arm pointed to her weapon, his smile stretching. “Bet ya your weapon’s fully powered from Fridays. Yours and every other thing they use in this hellhole.”

“Ghosts can’t do that.” The lie was absurd. It went against everything they knew about ghosts, even before food entered the equation.

“Y’know, Tie. I think I knew a ghost hunter that wore red once.” the ghost’s eyes went unfocused, unmoving as he looked listlessly into space. “It’s a good colour.”

“You knew me. Quit fooling around with this not remembering crap.” Valerie threw her helmet aside, no longer caring. She had to know who this ghost really was. She had to know if everything he was blathering about was a lie. So what if it wasn’t ‘safe’.

His eyes didn’t change. “Y’know how hard it is to remake a brain? Cut me some slack Tie…”

“I mean it. Look at me Phantom. If you’re the ghost I know, you can stop pretending to be something else.”

“You lose the details. Arms and legs are easy. The brain though? Way too hard.” He kept rambling to himself, not reacting even as she put a hand to the glass to get his attention. “Y’know how many times they’ve cut it open? I don’t. I lose track after like. Eleven. Maybe. Pointy Shoe said my best was fifteen but I sure don’t remember that.”

She wanted him to just stop talking. She wanted this ghost to be some strange creature she didn’t know. To not have the only possible link to someone long lost a shattered husk. “Phantom. Do you remember the hunter in red’s name?”

He finally blinked. “I’m not this Phantom guy, Tie.”

“Okay, whatever, forget that part. The ghost hunter in red, what do you remember?” She insisted, knocking again in hopes it would keep the ghost’s focus.

“Wish I’d told em something.” he held up his gloved hand as she opened her mouth to speak. “Don’t remember what that something was, don’t ask.”

So he was Phantom? He couldn’t be. That was so non-specific it could be anything. “You never explained how you’re the only ghost that can make their own ectoplasm.”

“It’s in my name Tie! Come on. Thought you guys were smart or whatever.” He did a very awkward one armed attempt at crossing it, eyebrow raised. “The H? The feeding a ghost food thing?”

She didn’t really get the whole naming scheme they used here. The fact it mattered wasn’t making her gut unclench either. “What about the H?

“Hybrid? Might have been Human. That might have been a joke.”

Valarie’s mouth was drier than any desert when he said it that easily, that casualty while kicking his own arm aside. “You’re saying you aren’t all ghost.”

“Yup. Not yet! Trust me, I’ve tried,” the bubbly high pitched laugher clawed out of the ghost at that. “I tried so much. Guess it’s another thing I’m a failure at, eh Tie?”

Something told her not to ask. She had to know. Five years she waited, five years apparently knocked Phantom clear from reality.“Does Danny Fenton mean anything to you?”

He just laughed harder at the question. “Really Tie?”

“Yes, really.”

“That’s the name I scream at em. Don’t know why. Feels good though.”

“Is it your name?” Had he had contact with Danny? Been part of whatever made him go missing from everyone’s lives? He couldn’t be, there was no way.

“They get reallllll angry when I say it is.”

There was no way the GIW had a human captive for five years. There was no way Phantom could be the Danny she knew. The ghost was just lying. He had to be, she desperately needed him to be. “Were you fused with a human or something? Got stuck when possessing someone?”

“Nah. Been like this before I got here, pretty sure. You can check your fancy gear though. There’s some non-ghost DNA in it. Lucky lucky me,” he lay back down in the mess of ectoplasm, ignoring how it clung to his hair. “Thanks for the Friday off! I hate those.”

There was no reason to need air. Talking to a ghost she didn’t even like shouldn’t make her feel like she was being crushed under a boulder. Panting for air, outside the room would make her look pathetic and weak, but she needed the space, needed to be away from that...mockery of a ghost.

“He does that to everyone. He’ll repeat the whole thing in a week or so, but he’s a really good copy the first time you see it.” The guard gave a comforting word, apparently unsurprised by her sudden unscheduled departure.

Oh, there would be no ‘next time.’ Not if he was right about her weapon. But she nodded instead, letting her ‘coworker’ think she was just overwhelmed. Even if all she could think of was how many ways this place would burn if that ghost- that thing had been a human once. She was good at telling when ghosts lied. Phantom didn’t sound like he had. No matter how much she tried to convince herself he did.

#Danny Phantom #phic phight #phic fight 2021 #valerie gray #how obvious is the angst #100%#but maybe in a different way then usual?#the comfort is only the FLAMES OF POSSIBLE REVENGE

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ecto-american · 3 years

Text

Stuck (Stubbornly)

Phic Phight Oneshot for @deuynndoodles : Jack and Maddie are stuck in the Ghost Zone. Fortunately for them, Phantom's around and willing to help out. However, they'll rather be arrested by a ghost warden and put in ghost jail before they'd allow some teenage menace to help them. Oh wait...

Read on AO3 or FFN

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"Should we call Jazz or Danny?" Jack suggested.

Maddie stared out into the unending void of the Ghost Zone. It hurt to think that their voyage, a trip that they had been planning out for months, would end so soon already, but they had barely made any progress when they realized just how much fuel the Specter Speeder was guzzling. Something was wrong.

"...Not yet," she determined. "We should have emergency fuel. We should be able to get back without any problems. Can you refill?"

"You got it," Jack replied, and he got out of the co-pilot seat. She could hear him go to the back, and shuffling around. He didn't say anything for a while, and that immediately began to unnerve her, but she kept her attention on the dashboard, trying to think of what went wrong when building. Was their fuel lines loose? Was there gas leaking everywhere? "Uh, Mads? I'm not seeing it?"

Her blood froze, but no need to panic. Maybe he just didn't see…

Maddie walked to the back and checked. And checked. Moved some stuff around, checked some more.

They had no emergency fuel.

"Why don't we go outside and check the engine?" Jack suggested. "Maybe we can figure something out." With a dry mouth, she nodded, and they hesitantly went outside to check.

There were no ghosts around, thankfully, just an endless green void. They knew that they would be safe breathing in the GZ air, thanks to their prior tests and experiments. They hooked themselves to a rope using a carabiner clip, the other end tied tightly to the speeder. Floating unnerved her, and she kept a hand on the speeder as they went to the front of the speeder. Jack popped the hood, and smoke floated out, making Maddie's heart sink. This was definitely not a good sign at all, or something that could be a simple fix.

"Need some help?"

Maddie looked over her shoulder to see…

"Absolutely not," she scowled. Phantom was floating nearby.

"Are you sure?" he asked. He floated up a bit higher to glance at their vehicle. "Looks like you got. Well, uh, basically car trouble."

"Leave. Now."

Phantom opened his mouth to say more, but Maddie pulled her ecto-gun out.

"We don't want help from some lowlife ghost!" she hissed. Phantom put his hands up in surrender and flew away.

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An hour passed, and they decided to take a break working on the engine. Every possible problem that she could think of had been exhausted, and she had to take a break to both cool down and think. She sat on the steps leading into the speeder, with Jack deciding to lay on the floor of the inside.

"Fuel line wasn't broken, none of the lines were cut or had knicks. There's no reason it should be draining so much gas," Jack thunk aloud. "There shouldn't be anything besides the engine that the gas is going to, and there's no weird random connections to anywhere else. The battery's still good."

"And we forgot the emergency fuel," Maddie slumped over. Jack sighed.

"It's my own fault," he replied. "I should have checked to make sure Jazz and Danny had properly put all the supplies in. A proper exploration team always triple checks before a voyage."

Maddie could only give a low hum of agreement as she stared out into the zone. She felt somebody pat the side of the speeder, and she scowled as she saw Phantom grinning at her, giving a half way.

"What are you doing here?" she hissed.

"I brought help this time," Phantom told her, and he jerked a thumb behind him. It was finally then that she noticed the Red Huntress. Maddie raised an eyebrow.

"How in the world…" she murmured, only to trail off as she stared at the two of them. Jack sat up, and he poked his head out of the speeder.

"Oh dope! It's my favorite huntress!" Jack boomed. Red seemed bashful at the comment, shifting her weight onto her other foot and rubbing her upper arm.

"I mean, if you don't trust me or want my help, I figured you'd be willing to let a human help," Phantom explained, motioning towards Red.

"So, do you need help?" Red finally spoke up. She reached down to pat her left calf. "I have some tools with me, but I can always go and fetch more."

Something in Maddie's gut told her that this was very, very odd. Humans and ghosts working together so...willingly like this. She had taken note that Phantom and Red hadn't hunted each other down or fought like they used to, but she just assumed that they didn't quite run into each other that much anymore. Both were unpredictable with odd schedules and routines.

She glanced at Jack, who despite his initial enthusiasm, seemed to share her feelings, and she shook her head no.

"We'll be fine," she insisted. "You two should leave."

Red stared at Phantom, who shrugged his shoulders.

"So, wanna just go get some boba tea?" Phantom asked.

"And just leave them here?" Red scowled, motioning to the Fentons.

"They don't want our help," he replied. Red glanced from Phantom and the Fentons, who studied the two of them. She finally shrugged as well.

The two began to idly chat as they flew off, their conversation becoming more and more distant.

"That was weird," Maddie mused.

"Yeah, I thought she and Phantom were rivals," Jack mused. Maddie shrugged. Right now she wasn't too invested in the mystery. She'd worry about that later when they got home.

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Judging by their phones (which they had worriedly learned that they oh-so-helpfully had no reception in the land of the undead), another hour passed since Phantom and Red had left. Jack was deep into the engine, fiddling with a possible solution to the problem as Maddie stood nearby. She continued to think as she looked around. She was surprised that they hadn't been bothered by now.

"Trespassing in an unauthorized vehicle that is also a real world item," a deep southern voice boomed. Well, she absolutely spoke too soon.

They whipped their heads to see a huge, hulking figure, an all white man with a black hat, black gloves and wearing a suit of white.

"Ghost!" Jack squawked. He scrambled to grab his gun, Maddie already having hers drawn. The ghost frowned deeply. Maddie was finally very aware of just how many ghosts were surrounding them. Too many to count, but they all looked exactly like the ghosts that terrorized Amity Park years before, all identical and matching in uniform that resembled a SWAT team. There was also vehicles resembling police cars and police vans.

"Resisting arrest. That's against the rules," he continued. He opened a large green and white book in his hands, flipping to another page. "Assault and battery with a deadly weapon." He glanced up at them with an angry glare. "Y'all are going away for a long, long time."

"We're not going anywhere," Jack frowned. He charged up his weapon.

Maddie looked around, and she shivered anxiously. There was no way they could take on all these ghosts. She nudged Jack, and he side-eyed her curiously. She lowered her weapon, and she used her head to motion around them. Jack blinked as he looked himself, and all of his confidence left him. He also lowered his weapon.

"We'll go," Maddie finally spoke. The ghost smirked, and he knocked on the side of a police van. The back opened up.

"Surrender your weapons," he ordered.

One of the SWAT ghosts came forward with his arms outstretched. Reluctantly, the adults handed their weapons over, detaching themselves from the speeder and getting into the van.

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Their cell was a lot like a normal cell, and it was just them. Iron bars, no windows, single toilet, and four bunk beds. Jack was laying on one of the beds, facing the fall, as Maddie laid on the one across from him, staring up at the bunk bed above her.

Of course. Of course they ended up in ghost jail. It was just their luck. Though a scientist part of her was giddy at knowing that ghosts had some kind of legal system! Who would have known!

As she tried to start figuring out what on earth to do, she heard something banging against the jail bars.

She immediately sat up, staring to see Phantom making the noise by banging something in his hand on the bars. He was staring at them with a bright smile, and it only made her mood drop even more.

"Phantom!" Maddie hissed, standing fully and going up to the bars. "How did you find us?"

"We came back to check on you guys and see if you changed your minds," Phantom explained. Jack got up from his own bed to come over, looking surprised to see the infamous ghost teen. "Technus and Skulker were looting your speeder, and they said Walker arrested you. So we came by as quickly as we could."

The Fenton adults could see Red nearby, glancing around the corner. She was keeping watch.

"We're not going with you," Jack replied. Phantom rolled his eyes.

"Okay, and what? Stay here forever? Never see your kids again?" he asked. Their faces instantly dropped. "So do you wanna go home or not?"

Maddie narrowed her eyes at him before noticing that he was holding a metallic-looking cup of boba tea and raising an eyebrow.

"You brought a snack with you," she said. Phantom shrugged, offering it to her.

"Want a sip?"

"No! Just!" Maddie glanced at Jack worriedly, and he mirrored her expression. They, unfortunately, knew that they really...didn't have a choice. "Get us out of here!"

"Danny, you may wanna hurry it up," Red's voice called out softly to them. Maddie did a double take. Oh yeah. Danny Phantom. Huh, she kinda forgot about that.

Phantom nodded, and he dropped the boba tea, letting it float in the air as he phased them out of the jail cell. Maddie stared at him.

"Wait, you can just phase through?" she asked. Phantom shrugged.

"Uh, sorta yes, sorta no," he replied, grabbing his tea.

"Danny!" Red's voice hissed. Phantom glanced to her.

"Okay, so super quick rundown of Ghost Zone rules. In the Ghost Zone, you guys are the ghosts, so you basically can fly and phase through objects, so Red can phase through objects and you guys too, but this is also a human cell that only I can get you out, and speaking out getting out, we need to leave. Now," Phantom quickly explained. As soon as he finished, he motioned for them to follow him.

He began to fly towards Red, and they jogged after him. Phantom peered around the corner before pulling back. Red did too.

"How's our escape route looking?" Phantom asked. He took a sip of his drink as Red pulled up a map on her suit. She studied it for a bit.

"Hmm. We may run into some trouble," Red mused. "Best bet is for me to take Mr. and Mrs. Fenton and phase with them out of here, and…" She gave a weird pause. "We'll uh. Wait for you to escape on your own." Phantom sucked on his drink, and the sound of air coming through as he ran out of boba tea grinded Maddie's nerves.

"Oh would you just!" Maddie scowled, and she slapped the cup out of Phantom's hands.

"Hey! I paid for that!" Phantom cried out. He scrambled to pick it up. "They were having an unlimited refills special if you got that cup!" Red snorted in amusement.

"Danny, they kicked you out for getting too many refills anyway," she reminded him. Phantom made a face.

"Well maybe they shouldn't advertise it as unlimited refills then," he retorted.

"Most people don't drink twelve cups of boba tea," she replied.

"Maybe I should be rewarded for being able to drink that much then."

"Hm, we'll debate it later," Red replied. "Look, I'll get them out and meet you on the other side. Got it?"

"Got it," Phantom replied. To Maddie's horror and shock, Red lifted her visor up, but not all the way. Just enough to expose her lips, and she leaned into Phantom to give him a light peck on the lips.

"Be careful," she told him. Phantom nodded.

"I will," he promised. "If I'm not with you in five minutes. Just." He paused. "Leave without me, get the Fentons home, and then come back for me." Red nodded as her visor went all the way down.

"Grab my hands," Red instructed the Fentons. Maddie blinked, reluctantly taking one of her hands. Jack took the other. Red summoned her board, jumping in the air and allowing it to manifest beneath her. She held onto them tightly and flew through the walls.

Instinctively, Maddie closed her eyes as she flew through. Only to feel no impact. A blur of walls impaired her vision with constant flashes of the darkness of being in a thick jail wall and the light of the prison rooms and hallways. She blinked as the neutral green skies of the Ghost Zone finally greeted her, and Red continued flying until they were a decent distance from the prison. And now that she had a moment to think…

"What the hell are you thinking?" she exclaimed to Red. The huntress snapped her attention to her in confusion.

"What? You would have died if we let you stay in there!" she scowled.

"No, not that!" Maddie clarified. "I mean, thank you so much for helping us, but you? And Phantom?"

"Exactly!" Jack agreed. "He's an absolute menace! He's a danger! Don't you guys fight? What happened to all of that?"

She could see a glimpse of Red's face under her heavily tinted visor, and Maddie was sure that the girl looked embarrassed and was likely turning as red as her suit.

"Oh man, it's a looong story," Red sighed heavily. "Uh, best and easiest and quickest way I can explain it is; a lot of the things that made me angry with him was a misunderstanding, and I found out that he's...actually a really sweet guy. I know it's weird to say, but, um. Well, I've never met a guy who was so kind, thoughtful and romantic. My life's kinda hectic, and he just...he really goes out of his way to make it easier on me."

"How so?" Jack wondered.

"Well, like. He does a lot of my household chores and stuff like laundry, bringing me lunch when I have long shifts at work, listening to me when I have a bad day," she explained. "He makes life a lot easier and better."

How cute. If it wasn't between a dead teenage menace and this poor, obviously manipulated girl. It honestly reminded Maddie a lot of her own Danny and his little girlfriend, Valerie. Valerie told her a few times about Danny doing some of her chores at home since Valerie was so busy working and doing school. It kinda pissed Maddie off, since Danny never seemed to remember his own chores at home, but she never felt like bringing it up to him because, well, at least he was really good to her. She'd be ashamed of him if he was any lesser.

"Hey!" Phantom called out as he zoomed towards them. "Let's go! Quick!"

Red nodded. She passed Jack off to Phantom, and the two teenagers flew the Fentons home.

#phics #my phics #phic phight 2021

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five-rivers · 3 years

Note

I've been really intrigued by the Elditch AU so I kind of mixed it with the Amity Lair AU and had the idea that Amity is a bit like a supernatural spiderweb where, the longer you stay, the harder it is to leave. Only outsiders who've been there a short time can really tell that something is... off. Especially Danny Fenton. Maybe only people who have lived in Amity can even perceive Danny at all, and to outsiders, Danny Fenton doesn't exist, but the longer they stay the more they see him...

He didn’t mean to... to do whatever it was he was doing to them, to his people (his people) but he didn’t know how to stop it, either. He hadn’t even started to notice he was doing it until one of Sam’s out of town cousins visited for the day and just... didn’t see him. Had walked through him like he wasn’t even there.

And part of him knew this made sense. Part of him, part of him... He brushed his knuckles lightly over his breastbone, remembering what did and what did not lay beneath.

He didn’t start to understand what he was doing until a new student transferred to the school and slowly, but surely, changed.

The first few days he had stared with uncertainty at Danny’s seat. He had asked Dash, in the locker room, about him and his lengthy absence. He had frowned when the teacher called on a student that he couldn’t see.

But now... Now he could see Danny.

Danny could tell that he scared him. He had overheard him talking about wanting to move away. He could also tell that the fear wouldn’t last much longer.

From the shallows of the Dream, his vision obscured by Dream reeds and rushes, Danny watched Amity Park move above him, full of tiny lovely lights of life, all connected by silken cords. All connected to one another.

All connected to Danny.

Here, in the Dream, Danny could feel himself like a great, bloated spider, cross-legged in the center of a web. Six hands, two feet, eyes that saw too much and too little, fangs that dripped with imaginary venom. He could feel himself, frail and tired and trying so, so hard to hold on to the dregs of his humanity and failing. A monster and a teenager. An infant in the eyes of the other monsters.

He blinked, slow as a glacier and as quick as the Dream would let him. The web and the fangs remained.

Did he Love them, those tiny lights, the ones they belonged to? Not in the same way he Loved Clockwork. Not in the same way he Loved his parents, or his sister, or Sam and Tucker, or his teacher.

He looked to the threads that connected them. They were different, Danny could tell, even beyond how the lights of their lives were firmly locked away in Danny’s chest. Thicker, though not as thick as the chain that connected Danny to Clockwork. Even so, Danny could be moved by them. He knew this. Had felt this.

One of them could pull, and he would follow.

He raised his hand to whisper a finger along a thread, feeling its smooth fibers catch along the rough patches of his fingertip. He could feel the person this belonged to. He knew them. Principal Ishiyama.

Did he Love her?

What was this string? What tied them together?

He pushed down on the thread and watched as the little light, as Principal Ishiyama, jittered closer to him.

With a shudder, he released it.

He could feel them, the end of each string both extruded from the surface of his skin and at the same time all knotted together in a hollow space inside Danny, lower than his heart, and-

Oh.

His lips and chin were slick with venom and saliva. The purpose of a spider web was to trap, was to feed.

Young creatures were always hungry.

Except, except, except, that wasn’t all there was to it, was there? When he fought the others, he wasn’t just some, some supernatural animal defending its prey from rivals, was he?

With a shaking hand, he pushed his fangs back into his mouth until his gums ached and his dentition once again felt normal to his questing fingers.

He wasn’t eating them, his people (his people). Maybe, maybe he was feeding on them, but that didn’t hurt them, did it? He’d know if they were hurt. This wasn’t parasitism. It wasn’t predation. It was... It was a mutualistic relationship. He kept them safe, his people (his people), and they gave him...

Something.

He didn’t know what.

He stood, wet and dripping and heaved himself out of the shallows of the Dream and into the waking world. As he did so, he felt a tiny, Loving tug on the always-not-quite-there collar around his neck. Clockwork’s way of letting Danny know he was there.

Danny let out an involuntary croon, part of him wanting nothing more than to dive back into the Dream and find his way to Clockwork. The rest of him was scared.

He padded over to where he’d left Sam and Tucker, sleeping on the floor, and nuzzled his way in between them, determined to enjoy the rest of the sleepover.

“Do you ever,” said Danny, watching Principal Ishiyama closely, “feel trapped?”

“No?” said Sam.

“Why?” asked Tucker.

“I think,” said Danny, carefully, “that Amity Park is a trap.”

“How so?” asked Tucker, gesturing with his juice box.

“People don’t leave,” said Danny. “Reasonably, they should.”

“People are weird like that,” said Sam. “Some people will stay in their houses even when a tsunami is coming.”

“Yes,” said Danny, “but I think I might have... bound people here. Somehow. Tied them to... things.”

“What kind of things?” asked Tucker.

“The city. The land. Each other. Me.”

“People could stand to be more tied to the land,” Sam said, flicking at one of Tucker’s fries with a long, black-painted fingernail. A tension began to build at the edge of Danny’s awareness.

“Is this like that thing where you said the clock guy gave you our lives so you could make us immortal?” asked Tucker. Tucker didn’t entirely believe Danny about what had happened in the Dream.

Danny bit his lower lip. “It’s... similar?”

“Well, I mean, it doesn’t sound like a bad thing. As long as you aren’t eating people or driving them into insanity, it’s probably fine,” said Tucker, rescuing his fries from Sam.

“Free will?” suggested Danny, weakly. (Weakly, because as good as it was to make your own choices, didn’t a completely free will mean that you were unLoved?)

“Are you doing it on purpose?” asked Sam. “Trapping people here, I mean.”

“No,” said Danny.

Sam shrugged. “There you go. It’s something unavoidable for you, too, so don’t worry about it, and if there’s something good you can do with it, take advantage of it. Like I said, people could stand to be more connected to the land.” Again, something felt significant about that to Danny, but he couldn’t put his finger on it.

Danny refocused his attention on Principal Ishiyama. “Have you noticed anything different about Principal Ishiyama lately?”

“She’s more involved this week, I guess,” said Sam. “Talking to more students. Usually, she doesn’t leave her office. Is this connected?”

“Everything’s connected,” said Danny, absently worrying at a cuticle. “I think I pulled on one of the strings connecting her. She moved.”

“Weird,” said Sam.

When he slept, rare as that was, nowadays, Danny found himself in the Dream.

The web had changed. There were more strands leading from the humans to the land, to what nature there was in Amity Park.

Danny ran his fingers along the suddenly-tense line between himself and Sam. This was far less one-way than it seemed. If he focused inward, if he let his eyes drift shut, and Dreamed within the Dream, he could feel the tiny jerks and tugs of the web acting on him, and...

He brought his hands up to the collar. Clockwork’s directions, too. He could feel them, in the mechanical vibration transmitted up the chain, too regular to be noticed unless one looked for it, lost to sensory fatigue.

Healthy children had healthy diets, it seemed to say, even if the word wasn’t quite diet. Or cult, either, for that matter. Or kingdom. Responsibility? No, that wasn’t it. Vassals? Thralls?

Danny hated it when the simplest of words eluded him.

He sighed and let himself drift over the surface of the Dream. The web, obviously, had been doing fine without his conscious input, and he was doing what his Loved ones wanted.

Amity Park might be a trap, yes, but only because Danny cared.

#danny phantom #eldritch abomination au #ask #answer #prompt #prompt fill

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geekgirles · 3 years

Text

Full Disclosure

“I’m sorry for the way I used to act towards you when we were fourteen,” she admitted before softly adding, “especially when you and Danny were beginning to connect.”

In which Sam and Valerie clear the air between them.

Word count: 5176

READ ON AO3

Before we go in, I just wanted to say that I hope I did the characters justice. Really, it’s all I ask because I’m still fairly recent in the fandom (as in, actively participating rather than fangirling on my own) and I’d hate to make a travesty of characters that mean so much to me. Oh, and this one-shot can take place in whatever timeline you want: you hate PP with a passion? Don’t worry, it didn’t happen. You actually think it’s a good finale? That works too. There shouldn’t be anything that indicates this story takes place in anywhere in particular other than Amity Park, so... All you need to know is that Valerie knows.

Please, enjoy!!

As an intense throb manifested itself in her right side, eliciting an involuntary groan to escape her throat, Sam was more frustrated at herself than aching from the hit. It had been two years already since Danny had the accident that gave him his powers, consequently beginning the constant battles against ghosts that made their teenaged life significantly harder, and, as they came to appreciate their lifestyle, significantly more interesting, too. Once Danny gained his ghost powers, she and Tucker took it to themselves to make sure their friend was always supported and aided when fighting his ghostly adversaries.

And with that came the injuries.

They certainly didn’t get hurt as often or as gravely as Danny, since he was usually the one facing the mischievous spirits head-on, but they still had to get used to their own fair share of beatings. The teachers were understandably surprised when they effortlessly completed their first aid training in Health class.

All in all, Sam was used to getting hurt.

Which made the fact that Valerie had landed such a perfect kick that it literally left her breathless all the more humiliating.

Valerie Gray, a.k.a. the Red Huntress. Danny Phantom’s longtime pursuer and Danny Fenton’s one time girlfriend. The once popular girl was now their trustworthy ally. And, as much as Sam hated to admit it, she was thoroughly kicking her butt. Perhaps she should have expected as much from a ninth degree black belt.

“Had enough, Manson?” Valerie taunted with a raised eyebrow.

Getting up slowly, Sam sent her a smirk alongside a challenging, determined look. “Never.” And with that she leaped on the ghost huntress, using her momentum to connect a punch to her face. But Valerie was faster, blocking the Goth girl’s attack with her forearm before sliding her leg under Sam’s to make her lose her balance. Seeing what her opponent was up to, the violet-eyed girl quickly got out of her way, widening the space between the two to give herself some time to think up a new strategy.

Smirking at Sam’s maneuver, Valerie appraised her with pride. “Not bad, Sam,” she said before changing her stance, ready to pounce, “but the extra space won’t save you from this.” Leaping into the air, the Red Huntress didn’t waste a moment to knock Sam to the floor with a roundhouse kick boosted by her movements.

Even if the Goth blocked the attack by keeping her palms up in front of her face, the sheer force behind it was still enough to knock her down. That was gonna bruise in the morning, she was sure of it. Glancing up she noticed Valerie looking down at her with a smug look on her face and her hands on her hips. Sam barely resisted the urge to scowl darkly at her. Panting, she conceded, “Alright, alright. Maybe now I’ve had enough.”

Chuckling at Sam’s proud nature, the green-eyed girl bent down slightly to offer her friend a hand and lift her up from the floor. Once Sam was at her eye-level, she looked down on her watch, now serving as a chronometre. “Five minutes. That’s a full round! Congratulations, Sam. So far, you’re the one who’s lasted the most against me.” She applauded her, but her face betrayed her. She was about to burst out laughing.

Snorting, the Goth girl elbowed her slightly on the arm. “Knock it off! Even if I lost, I still managed to land a few hits myself.”

“Yeah...Trust me, you don’t have to remind me.” Valerie complained with a pointed look as she rubbed her lower back. Early on in the match, Sam kneed her there. Thank goodness she wasn’t tasked with unloading the Nasty Burger’s products that week. “I’m serious, though. Danny without his powers lasts a minute and a half, tops. And Tucker...well, let’s just say that taking one hit without passing out is already a victory when it comes to him.”

“Yeah, he and Danny really should do more exercise.” The two girls laughed at that. These past two years Danny’s skill when using his powers had skyrocketed. Enemies that used to give him a hard time were now more of a headache. He didn’t even have to pay attention to the fight to get rid of the Ghost Box. Now, as Danny Fenton… He’d gotten taller, that was for sure. But he still had the nasty habit of relying on his powers a little too much, which didn’t do his P.E marks any favours. And Tucker was still far more interested in whatever his PDA had to offer than the wonders of physical exercise.

In truth, everyone had changed during that time, if only a little.

Sam was still as Goth and ultra-recyclo-vegetarian as always. Her raven hair was slightly longer, now reaching her shoulders, but she still wore it mostly loose and framing her face, except for the one strand she kept in a high ponytail. Her fashion sense hadn’t changed much either. She wore a black crop top with Danny’s logo on it instead of the old purple ovalーthe town began selling merchandise of its hero to attract, and basically rob, tourists. Since she created the logo herself, she made her own outfits and nobody was none the wiser. She also stuck with plaid skirts, but this time she favoured a purple and black one instead of her old black and green. But her combat boots, accessories, and make-up were sacred. Everybody knew impending doom was near if Sam ever changed even the tiniest detail in her appearance when it came to that.

She was still outspoken and an avid defender of animal rights, individuality, and most importantly, of Danny Phantom. Even though most people celebrated the boy and thanked him for his services, there were still some who criticised him and believed Amity Park was better off before him. Needless to say, Sam was always at the front of the line in any protest to defend Amity Park’s greatest protector. The fact that he was not only one of her best friends but also her boyfriend may have something to do with it. But even if they weren’t together, Sam knew Danny. She’d always known him. She would always defend him from those who couldn’t even begin to grasp just how noble, responsible, and compassionate he was.

The corners of her mouth curled up slightly when she remembered she’d just been sparring with what once was one of Danny Phantom’s greatest detractors.

In a way, Valerie had probably changed the most out of everyone she knew while simultaneously not changing anything at all.

In terms of appearance, just like Sam, she’d only modified her look slightly. She cut her long, dark brown curls so they now barely reached her shoulders instead of cascading down her back. According to her, long hair just got in the way with her suit. She originally wanted to get an undercut, but her dad almost had a cow so they compromised with short hair for now and leaving the undercut for when she was a little older. The huntress still favoured spaghetti-strapped yellow t-shirts, but now she completed her outfit with dark blue jeans or shorts (depending on the temperature) and white sneakers. She also dropped the headband due to her hair, but she kept the earrings.

The most obvious change, though, was that she was now an ally rather than an enemy after Danny Phantom’s head. Sam feared for the worst when Valerie found out her ex boyfriend was the very same ghost she’d vowed to destroy (could she really say she and Danny were exes, though? Sure, they went on a few dates and they genuinely liked each other, but Valerie pseudo-broke up with him right when he was about to ask her to make things official... Ugh, the wonders of the teenaged heart... Always bound to give her a headache. This is why she preferred her Goth indifference...most of the time). As much as they wanted to trust Valerie was going to be sensible about it, her track record wasn’t the best, forcing them to keep an eye out in case she decided to send her more positive opinion of Danny Fenton to Hell and shoot him with her ecto-bazooka.

Thankfully, one day Valerie just sat down with them at lunch, and when Danny tentatively asked her if they were okay, she just smiled and said, “We’re okay.” So they ate lunch in peace...until the Lunch Lady showed up and they had to send her back to the Ghost Zone. At least that time the Red Huntress was there to help them out. Ever since then, the girl sometimes fought alongside them, but for the most part she did her own thing.

And that was something about Valerie that hadn’t changed; her hatred of ghosts. Valerie was still hellbent on getting rid of all the spirits that haunted Amity Park, with half-ghosts being the sole exception ーexcept for Vlad, Valerie held a huge grudge against him for having used her as his pawn; not like the team could complain, they all hated Vlad, after all. And that made her ruthless, determined, brutal… More than once Danny had tried talking her out of her grudge against the paranormal, explaining to her that, albeit not as numerous as the troublemaking ghosts, there were still some that just wanted to be left alone. But Valerie would not budge. She believed all ghosts lacked the humanity and self-control necessary to resist whatever crazy obsession that tied them to our world and would eventually attack.

To Valerie, ghosts were ticking bombs.

Seeing as, so far, most ghosts they faced were malicious or seriously causing trouble, Tucker suggested they just let her be, but the moment she actually targeted an innocent ghost (say, Wulf), then they would have to get serious with her.

All in all, Valerie was their friend. A friend who had agreed to help her train so Danny wouldn’t have to worry so much about her safety when they were out fighting spectres. Not like he really needed to worry, she could take care of herself, but the more prepared they were, the better. And Valerie was helping her with that, and yet, the air still hadn’t been completely cleared between them.

As much as Sam would’ve loved cutting to the chase, a part of her still wasn’t prepared to address the elephant in the room. “Not gonna lie, Valerie, I wiー” she stopped mid-sentence. The last thing they needed was to have Desirée roaming free around Amity Park just because she hadn’t been careful with her words. Clearing her throat, she went on. “I mean, I would do anything for your fighting skills. You must have every ghost shaking in their boots...or whatever they have to shake in.”

As Sam sat down on the floor of her family’s private gym, which Valerie still couldn’t get used to being in, the green-eyed girl made her way to the other side of the room far away from the training tatami, where a middle-sized fridge was located. Pulling the door open, she grabbed two water bottles before going back to Sam. “Yeah, what can I say? I am pretty awesome.”

“And don’t forget modest.” Sam replied sarcastically.

“Girl, when you’re as good as me, you don’t need to pretend to be modest.” She joked as she handed Sam her own water bottle, which she accepted gratefully, before sitting down on the floor next to her. “Believe it or not, though, I became a ninth degree black belt long before I started hunting ghosts.” She looked at the floor, a pensive look on her face, “...we couldn’t have afforded the classes otherwise.”

Sam did her best to suppress the urge to do a spit-take at her words. Valerie almost never brought her financial situation up. The most she used to do was remember Danny why she hated him back when she still was after him, but the topic was dropped altogether once the secret was out. Looking around her ridiculously lavish house, Sam felt like facepalming herself. How could she have been so insensitive as to remind Valerie of the life she lost?!

“Valerie...I-I’m sorry. I should’ve told you to meet up at the park to train, but I…”

“Sam, don’t.” The huntress cut her off with a stern tone. “Don’t apologise. You have nothing to apologise for.”

“But it was insensitive of me toー” Again, she was interrupted by Valerie, who silenced her by raising her palm up in front of her.

“Please, let me talk. You don’t have to apologise for anything because you’ve done nothing wrong. I’ll admit, it’s a bit paradoxical finding out that while I was mourning my losses you’d been hiding the fact that you’re stinking rich all along. But I’m not offended by it. Actually, I think I understand.”

“You do?” The Goth girl asked in disbelief, her eyes wide open.

The African-American girl just shrugged. “I think so. I didn’t realise it until my so-called friends kicked me out of the group, but having money attracts a lot of fakes and shallow people. People who’ll only be there when it’s convenient for them and who’ll throw you away like a used tissue the moment you have nothing else to offer. I know that better than anyone…” When she felt a hand on her shoulder, she looked up to see Sam smiling kindly at her, doing her best to get out of her comfort zone and offer her some comfort. She returned the smile. “Bottom line: you want real friends, so you never talk about your money ‘cause you don’t want to attract the wrong people. I get it.”

“You really do.”

“And I guess I’m also flattered.”

Sam blinked slowly at her. “Wow, Valerie. It usually takes a lot to take me by surpriseーwith the ghost fighting and allーand yet, here we are!”

The huntress just chuckled softly in response. “What I mean is that I understand that it takes you a lot to let people inーand quite literally tooーbut you still invited me. That means you must trust me, if only a bit.”

Sam couldn’t help but blush at her earnest words. It was true, wasn’t it? She trusted Valerie. She would have never invited her to her house if she didn’t. And, now that she thought about it, Valerie had to trust her too if she was willing to show her vulnerable side to her. Somehow, the thought made her smile. Knowing she would have to bring up uncomfortable topics soon, the violet-eyed girl decided to alleviate some of the tension first. “Well, I’m glad you could at least get your black belt first! Otherwise we would be in for a major asskicking from some ghosts.”

That comment actually made Valerie laugh. “Oh, hush, you flatterer! Or I’ll tell Danny his girlfriend has been hitting on me.” She could only snort when Sam gasped in fake shock. “Seriously, though. I personally would love to be as genre savvy as you are. I mean, you always know what to do or have some obscure knowledge about whatever we’re facing. From the Fright Knight’s legend to how to train your dragon ghost.”

Sam merely shrugged with a lazy grin on her face, “What can I say? Obscure knowledge sort of comes with being a Goth.”

The two girls started snickering after that. As their laughter died down, Valerie noticed Sam’s smile fading from the corner of her eye, concerning her. “Sam? Is everything okay?”

“Valerie...I’m sorry.”

That took her by surprise. After a few seconds of shock, the Red Huntress rolled her eyes good-naturedly before gently nudging her friend with her shoulder. “C’mon, Sam. I told you already. You don’t have to feel sorry for inviting meー.”

This time it was Sam who cut her off. She shook her head. “No. No, it’s not that.”

“Then what is it?”

“I’m sorry for the way I used to act towards you when we were fourteen,” she admitted before softly adding, “especially when you and Danny were beginning to connect.”

One would think that a semi-professional ghost huntress would have seen it all, and honestly, so did Valerie, but she was genuinely shocked at Sam’s apology. The shock didn't last long, though. “Are you seriously apologising for that? Sam, that was two years ago!”

Of all the things she could be apologising for...She just had to pick that one, didn’t she?

Sam groaned, frustrated and clenching her gym shorts with her hands. “I know it’s been two years, but that doesn’t change that I wasn’t the most pleasant person in the world to you for reasons that weren’t...completely pure.”

“So what?” Valerie insisted. “Neither was I for the longest time! You and Tucker were right when you called me out during Pariah Dark’s attack; how could I expect to be treated like one of the group when I used to be such a brat to you? You still eventually forgave me.” She pointed out.

“You don’t understand…” Sam whined as she rubbed her face with her hands. “While it’s true that part of my animosity towards you came from how you used to treat us, and another good chunk came from your eagerness to vaporise one of my best friends,” the Red Huntress actually had the decency to blush embarrassedly at that, “I really, really disliked you because I was...well, I was jealous. Plain and simple.”

There. She’d said it. After years gritting her teeth and burning with envy whenever Danny and Tucker (mostly because of Danny, obviously) drooled over Paulina or any other pretty girl, she had finally admitted she was mostly jealous instead of simply not understanding what the fuss was about. Hanging out with girls more often, namely Valerie and Jazz, instead of only spending her time with the guys had really helped broaden her horizons. Especially when it came to her opinion on other girls. She was proud to say she was finally moving on from her “not like other girls” phase.

Even if Danny’s crush on Paulina had driven her nuts more than once, it was his budding romance with Valerie that truly pushed all her buttons and caused her deepest insecurities to rear their ugly head. Even if dating her was dangerous, Danny still wanted to be with her! He was willing to throw caution to the wind if it meant they could be a couple. And he was so protective of her when Technus attacked… As much as Sam hated to admit it, as much as she wished (to Hell with Desirée) she could ignore it all and just focus on protecting Danny from being hunted by his new girlfriend, that hurt.

That hurt a lot.

Albeit annoying, Danny’s crush on Paulina was safe. Paulina only liked Danny Phantom. Danny couldn’t really get closer to her as his alter-ego without putting her in danger, and Danny would never put an innocent person in danger. And just like that, Paulina became unattainable. But Valerie…

Valerie liked Danny Fenton. She and Danny often just wanted to have a normal life, away from ghosts and burdens that no 14-year-old kid should shoulder. Even if the Red Huntress wanted to kill Danny Phantom, Valerie genuinely liked Danny Fenton. Despite the danger, she was closer than Paulina. And despite their close bond, she was closer to Danny than Sam herself. Because Valerie wasn’t afraid to admit her feelings, unlike her.

In fact, hadn’t Valerie put her job before her love life, Sam knew without an ounce of a doubt that she and Danny would still be together. Because she had been too afraid to tell Danny how much he meant to her sooner.

Yes, she had been jealous of Valerie.

She had been jealous of the attention she received from Danny. She had been jealous of the fact that they went out on several dates and nothing could embarrass them or ruin their little moment. She was jealous because it would’ve meant things would change.

But most importantly, she was jealous of Valerie’s guts.

And she finally confessed it.

...which made what Valerie said next all the more jaw-dropping.

“Yeah, I know.”

Her jaw hanging low and eyes as wide as saucers, Sam slowly turned her head to look the huntress dead in the eye. “You know?” She asked, completely flabbergasted.

Valerie snorted. She actually snorted at her question! And while Sam was looking at her with the most comically astonished expression on the face of the planet, Valerie just regarded her with a coy smile. “No offence, Sam, but it was kinda hard to miss. I think only Danny wasn’t aware of it.”

Sam had nothing to say in response to that.

“Besides, didn’t I tell you before I even started going out with Danny? When you like someone, if you don’t make a move, somebody else will. What did you think I was referring to other than your feelings, chess?”

“That...is true.” The Goth admitted quietly.

Seeing her usually outspoken friend acting so despondent all of a sudden didn’t sit well with the green-eyed teenager. She sighed, “Look, Sam. I understand that you were...difficult because you were jealous. I can’t deny I once or twice acted petty towards you because I was jealous, myself. But even if I hadn’t decided to just stay friends with Danny, I don’t think we would’ve worked out in the end.”

Not for the first time that day, and she was sure it wouldn't be the last time either, Valerie had taken her completely aback. Furrowing her brow in confusion, Sam insisted, “What are you talking about? You two are the best ghost hunters in Amity Park, you guys would have been the ultimate power couple!”

Leaning back on her elbows, the Red Huntress sent the Goth a smirk, “Ah, but you’re forgetting I would’ve had to know Danny Fenton and Danny Phantom were one and the same first. And I…”, for the first time since their sparring lesson began, Valerie found herself hesitating, “I don’t know how I would’ve taken that.

“Sure, I really, really liked Danny, but I had spent far longer hating his ghost half. Ever since the Cujo-related incidents I blamed him for the turn my life had taken. And even when I was growing fond of Danny Fenton, his actions as Danny Phantom still drove me nuts! I mean, he literally unmasked me right before my dad! He forbade me from ghost hunting until I got that upgrade in my suit. Could I really put all that aside in favour of having a relationship with him?

“That’s why it took me so long to face you guys once I learned the truth; I was trying to make peace with it all. I figured I could learn to forgive Danny, maybe even trust him with my life...but never with my heart again. There were too many imbalances between us for me to be comfortable in a relationship with him...and you guys are honestly better together anyways.” She winked at the ultra-recyclo-vegetarian.

“You really think so?” Sam could feel the heat making its way to her cheeks the moment Valerie nodded at her question. “I-I mean!”, ugh, how she hated stuttering!, “Danny’s always been super important to me...obviously! And we’ve always done our best to be there for each other and have each other’s backs, but there are times when I can’t help but wonder if perhaps we’re just making a mistake and we were better off as friends…” She finished with a defeated sigh.

At the sensation of an arm wrapped around her shoulders, she turned to look at Valerie. “Sam, trust me. This is no mistake. You’re one of the very few people who understand there’s no difference between Danny Fenton and Danny Phantom; they’re both Danny and you’ve always known that and done your best to show him just that. And unlike Paulina or me, even if you hadn’t known his secret from the beginning, I’m willing to bet my right arm that you would’ve accepted both sides of him equally either way.”

At her words, Sam could only smile warmly, “You really think so?”

Valerie returned her smile. “I know so.”

Still replaying Valerie’s words and organising her own thoughts in her head, Sam turned to face her, one hand resting on her lap and the other on Valerie’s shoulder, “For what it’s worth, I still think that after a, very understandable, initial bump in your relationship, you two could’ve made a great couple too. I meant what I said when I told you that, if Danny liked you, then we would only have to make room for you at our table. I can’t think of any girl I would be willing to do that for but you, Val.”

Valerie almost gasped at Sam’s words, but she recovered rather quickly, “Thank you, Sam. That means a lot coming from you.” Resting her own hand on top of the one on her shoulder, she winked mischievously at her, “And don’t worry; I don’t go around stealing my friends’ boyfriends.”

The Goth girl snorted at that. “Glad to hear that.”

They remained like that for a moment, just enjoying the comfortable silence that had settled between them and their secret understanding. They were friends. They had similarities and differences. But that would never change the respect each felt for the other.

Finally, getting up from the floor and dusting herself off, Valerie broke the silence, “Come on, there’s still many moves I haven’t used to kick your butt.”

Sam smirked at the challenge, “Oh, you’re so on!”

................

The Fentons’ Emergency Ops Centre had, ironically, become their safe haven.

Whenever they wanted to enjoy some alone time before they had to part ways or a ghost attack took place, they would simply climb up the roof and enter through the door leading to it. Although Danny could just phase or fly them there if they were really pressed for time, which was their usual way of getting there because they were always pressed for time.

The Ops Centre was really just an excuse to spend some time together, really.

It didn’t matter what they did. Sometimes they would make out because they were a couple and couples made out with each other, didn’t they? Especially when said couple consisted of two hormone-driven teenagers. Maybe if they’d been a pair of octogenarians, the fuss of the relationship would have been elsewhere. Like how incredible it was that they’d survived that long in the first place.

Other times they just talked about nothing and everything at the same time. Sort of like what they usually did, but without Tucker. Sam would often talk about the latest hideous monstrosity their parents had intended she wore ー”Oh, you’re laughing now! But trust me, Undergrowth had much better fashion sense than my parents!”ー, or how rapidly the poles were melting and nobody was doing anything about it, or how her latest poetry reading went ー“Kwan’s getting better, actually. This time he wrote about the new scabs he got during the last game”ー, and how they could defeat the villain of the week who was somehow harder to beat than the previous one because, really, they always got harder to beat.

And Danny would recall his parents’ latest shenanigans, or Jazz’s newest psychological experiment with ghosts that she was sure was going to work because it was just flawless; or he’d warn her about the food in his house ー”I know you don’t eat meat anyways, but don’t open the fridge. The ecto-weenies are back and this time they’ve brought BBQ sauce.” He would also complain about the workload of homework Mr Lancer had assigned them; sometimes because he didn’t think he’d have the time to finish it all, and sometimes he just didn’t know where to start because what the Heck is irony anyway? Didn’t anyone realise that what they often called irony was actually more of a paradox? How could they be teaching something wrong in English class?! And, sometimes, in those rare moments where Danny finally realised, only to forget his lesson all over again the next day, that he could count on her, Tucker, Jazz, Val ーand his loved ones, damn it!ー and confide his deepest secrets, he would open up about how being Danny Phantom was taking its toll on him. How being famous was more often than not more suffocating than flattering. How he was getting tired that his enemies only ever came back, or became stronger, or multiplied. How he feared, no, how he felt it was never going to end until he was 100% dead and not just 50%... He even still had trouble understanding what truly happened to him the day of the accident.

And maybe they just would never know.

And then, there were days like today. Days where they would just stay in silence, watching Amity Park since the makeshift observatory his zany but genius parents had built all on their own. Because, sometimes, watching the sunset in silence with that special someone was just enough.

While Danny leaned against the railing, Sam was sitting on top of it, enjoying the soft breeze blowing around her and caressing her skin. “Today I trained with Valerie.”

Perking up at the sound of her voice suddenly breaking the silence, Danny turned his head slightly in her direction. “Oh?” He let out, “How did it go?”

“I managed to last a full five minutes and land a few serious hits myself.” She stated proudly.

The ghost boy whistled appreciatively, “Five full minutes! Now that’s impressive.” He sent her a sly look and a smirk, his admiration turning into amusement, “And how many hits did you cushion?”

Curling her lip in annoyance, Sam muttered, “The fact that I’m even sitting here is a miracle in itself.”

That had Danny snickering like crazy, before a sharp pain in his arm stopped him, “Ow!”

To his surprise, instead of a smug Sam as he expected, he found his girlfriend gingerly rubbing her arm, a pained expression on her face. “Okay,” she panted, “that was so not worth it.”

“Here, let me help.” Gently resting his fingers on her arm, he used his ice powers to send a chilly sensation across her limb, effectively alleviating the pain. “Anything else I should know about? Did the training turn into a battle to the death?”

“Actually, we talked things out and we finally buried the hatchet.” She said seriously.

Danny furrowed the brow in confusion. “Uh, Sam? I was kidding. And I thought you already did that when she found out the truth about my powers.”

Chuckling softly, Sam could only roll her eyes with a smile on her face as she leaned close to leave a tender kiss on his lips before whispering, “Clueless.”

#Danny Phantom #dp #dp fic #dp fanfic #sam manson #valerie gray #danny fenton #tucker foley #jazz fenton #jack fenton #maddie fenton #paulina sanchez #vlad masters #vlad plasmius #most characters are just mentioned though #amethyst ocean #danny/sam #my fic

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goodfish-bowl · 3 years

Text

Lost in the Wood

Here’s Friday’s work. Honestly, I had a few things I could’ve done with this one, but this turned out fine. Alicia was interesting to write, and I kinda imagine her upbringing like my mom’s. If you’re caught up in current Phandom shenanigans, you should be able to figure this one out pretty quickly

Friday: Alicia- family

Summary: Every year, Alica goes camping, searching for something she knows she’ll never find

Words: 925

AO3 link

Alicia had a family once. She married long before her little got together with that buffoon, Jack Fenton. Alicia used to have a son too, Flynn, a small, spry boy with her ginger locks but her husband’s hazel eyes. He was also gifted with her husband’s temperament, level-headed until something set him off. It made tantrums a rare, but catastrophic event. Spittoon, Arkansas wasn’t as desolate or lonely back then nor was she as bitter. She had loved her husband, she truly had, but pinning the blame on her was way out of bounds.

They always went camping on Flynn’s birthday, just a routine trip they did as the weather cooled off and the trees showed their autumn colors. Her husband used the trips to teach Flynn some basic survival skills, like which berries were safe to eat and which ones were not, how to start a fire, and how to build a lean-to. Alicia taught Flynn about wild animals, teaching him how to deal with a bear, or how to snag a rabbit. He hadn’t liked that lesson very much and had insisted they let the poor creature go. Alicia had also told some of her favorite campfire stories on those trips, the same stories her little sister still pursued back up in Amity Park. That trip held some of her most precious.

Then on Flynn’s 12th birthday, the ever-curious boy, had wandered off into the wood and hadn’t come back out. Together, they had searched for days, but Alicia had searched those woods for weeks until she had memorized the entire piece of wilderness. The search parties went from searching for the boy to searching for his body. The missing person posters eventually stopped drifting around and his face no longer appeared on milk cartons. That had been about a year after Flynn went missing. Sometimes she still went back and trekked through the woods, searching for something she knew she wouldn’t find.

On that anniversary, after Flynn was gone for two years, Alicia and her husband’s relationship had grown so taunt they had decided to break it off. They had argued before that trip, but it was playful banter compared to the full-blown fights they had after. He blamed her for Flynn’s disappearance, claiming she should’ve been the one watching him, that it was her job. He never hit her though, because he knew she would hit back, just like her father taught her and her sister.

It had been 14 years since then, and time had turned her into a “bitter old hag”, as Jack liked to call her when he thought she wasn’t listening. Which was fair, Alicia had been trying to make Maddie see sense ever since she married that fool, but she couldn’t help but be jealous too. Alicia had never seen a couple so in love, even after over two decades of being together. Daniel, Maddie and Jack’s son, had turned 16 recently, and whenever Maddie called her to talk, she would sometimes complain about the trouble Danny had been getting into since he had started high school. Jazz was off to college, just around 20 if Alicia recalled correctly, a brilliant girl just like her mother. Alicia loved Maddie, she did, but whenever her sister talked about her children or husband, Melancholy shot an arrow straight through her. Flynn would’ve been 26 today.

Alicia spent her son’s birthday as she had for the past 13 years, alone in the woods. How could she have known that the day she brought that little rascal into the world would end up being the day he left it? Her husband, a spiteful man hidden under a soft demeanor, had no right to blame her, but she still felt guilty. Hadn’t they been fighting when Flynn had run off? Was that really the last memory of them they had given her poor boy? Was their petty bickering the reason he had run off? She would never know.

Alicia turned to gaze to the smattering of colors across the sky, where stars peeked through the clouds, mixing with the blushes of sunset. Her tent was already set up for the night, but she doubted she would venture into it tonight, she never did. The small fire crackled, sputtering out ashes into the night, white smoke warding off insects. A can of baked beans sat near it, warming the tin, her dinner for tonight. Alicia spent her time poking the fire, eventually breaking open the warm can of baked beans, listening to the rustling of the fire and the sound of night and the world blanketed her in darkness.

It was sometime around when the moon reached its peak, that there was a large shuffling in the brush at the end of camp. Damn bears, but it could also be a coyote. Either way, a shotgun worked on just about anything. The rustling continued for a moment longer, and she pointed the barrel at the potentially dangerous animal. Alicia faltered when a young man stumbled out of the bushes, only to be staring down the barrel of a gun pointed at his face.

His long, russet hair was tied back, and wide, honey-gold eyes stared back at her. His clothes weren’t something from this century, a tattered green cloak, white tunic, and brown pants. There was a necklace of crimson roses around his neck and a large, a peculiar spear across his back. His feet were bare, and scars smattered his visible skin. He seemed almost more shocked than she.

“Uh… hi?”

#Danny Phantom #Alicia #Flynn #this turned out alright not my best but itll do #fanfiction #dp side hoes week 2021

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dannymayevent · 4 years

Text

Congrats to @tinydragontoons for completing all 31 days of Dannymay 2020! You did a fantastic job and we hope you enjoyed the challenge!

This fic was written by @lexosaurus based on your art for Day 20: Sky

---*---

Danny wasn’t a good student.

He tried—he tried so hard—but he just couldn’t do it. He couldn’t get his assignments done, he didn’t know how to begin studying for an exam, he didn’t know how to ask his teachers for help because he didn’t understand what he did or didn’t know about each class and he didn’t want to bother his teachers anyways it was his fault he was in this position, it would only annoy his teachers if he came crying to them for his mistakes.

He wasn’t a good student.

---

“Don’t you care about your future?” Mr. Lancer’s eyes bore into his. “Don’t you want to work for NASA?”

Danny shrugged.

Shrug and evade. That was his tactic.

“My grades aren’t good enough for NASA.”

“Maybe not right now, but they could be.”

Danny glared at the ground. The tiles were dirty. They likely were once white, but now they just looked grey.

“I’m not Jazz. I can’t just will my grades higher.”

“I never asked you to be Jazz, Daniel.”

Danny shook his head, frustration pooling throughout his body. Didn’t Mr. Lancer understand? It didn’t matter what he did, he would never be able to work for NASA. He wasn’t smart enough. He wasn’t Jazz.

Danny knew what true intelligence was. Hell, between his mom’s PhD, his dad’s ability to create anything out of a pile of scraps, and Jazz’s perfect grades, he knew firsthand what geniuses looked like.

And he knew he wasn’t one of them.

---

“You going out tonight, Danny?” Jazz said from his doorway, snapping him out of his thoughts.

Danny turned around, away from his zipped backpack filled with incomplete assignments and failed exams, and said, “It’s a full moon.”

He stared down at his gloved hand, watching as the glow shimmered around his body. It had been a year since the accident, but he still didn’t know what the hell he was.

“You want some company?” Jazz asked.

“Maybe tomorrow.”

Probably not. He knew Jazz was worried about him, she was only trying to help, blah blah blah, but how was she supposed to help him if he didn’t even know what he needed help with? He wasn’t a good student, he wasn’t human, and if Vlad was right, he had managed to make the entirety of Amity Park his haunt. Would he even be able to leave this city if he tried?

“Alright, I’ll be in my room if you need me.”

He didn’t respond, instead listening for the soft click signaling his safety from the prying eyes of the rest of his family. He knew she was only trying to help, but she was intelligent like their parents. She had friends, she wasn’t bullied, she was human, and she’d never struggled on a single exam in her life. How the hell was she supposed to help him when they were just so different?

Ignoring his untouched backpack one more time—he could deal with those assignments tomorrow in detention—he pulled on his core and shot through the wall like a rocket.

---

“Care to explain, Mr. Fenton?” Mr. Lancer peered at Danny over his manila folder.

Danny sighed and fell into his seat. Another day, another detention for tardiness and missing homework.

“I don’t know.”

“Mr. Fenton…” Mr. Lancer started, but Danny realized that he didn’t want to hear that stupid speech again. He was sick of it.

“I get it, I suck at school, you’re disappointed in me, I need to apply myself more and then I’ll be fine. I know the drill already.”

“Daniel, that’s not what I was going to say.”

---

The cool, spring air brushed against his skin, cloaking his body like a blanket as he dove into the empty sky. He twisted up, pushing his body higher and higher into the night sky.

Danny flipped on his back. The stars were bright tonight, and Danny could see all the constellations draped across the sky like a painting. Star patterns like Sagittarius and Capricorn painted his vision, and he scanned the constellations for their planets, Jupiter and Saturn. Not for the first time, he wished he had a telescope to see Saturn’s rings. It was, without a doubt, his favorite planet.

But nothing compared to the moon.

It was huge, bigger than normal, and it illuminated the Earth with a soft glow not unlike the aura that surrounded Phantom’s body. It was stunning and majestic and everything Danny needed to ease the stress that was crowding his mind.

It was perfect.

He glided along the air like he was in a lazy river, his tension melting away and falling to the ground below him.

Sometimes, Danny wished he had never stepped foot in that portal. Sometimes he just wanted to be an average teen again with average problems and an average home life. But not right now.

In this moment, Danny wouldn’t have had it any other way.

---

“Mr. Fenton, may I ask you something?”

Danny paused, his pencil freezing in the air. So far, this detention had been dressed in silence. It had been a rare afternoon where he didn’t feel choked by exhaustion, and he was actually able to focus on completing his missing English essay.

“Okay, shoot.”

“When you look into your future, what do you see?”

He set his pencil down. “I don’t know.”

And that was the truth. He didn’t know because he was Danny Fenton, a below-average teenager with below-average grades. How was he supposed to know what his future held?

“I see a bright young man who’s slowly but surely figured out where he wants to be. He’s had to struggle to get to this point a bit more than his peers, but he’s reached his goals and is living his life the way he wants to.”

He stared at his paper, his brows furrowing. There was no way Mr. Lancer could have seen all that. He must have been lying. He had to have been lying.

Danny wasn’t...he wasn’t…

---

He landed on the sign. ‘Now Leaving Amity Park,’ it read.

Looking up, he could see the moon in all its glory. It lit up the sky, highlighting all the stars around it with its twinkling glow.

A bright light flashed along the stars. It lit up, traveling across the sky with an otherworldly speed, before disappearing into the darkness of night.

Danny felt a grin creep along his lips. That was a meteor, no doubt. He closed his eyes and made a wish.

One day he was going to leave Amity Park. He was going to go out on his own, find his own path, and become his own person outside of everything that tied him down here. And then he would be able to return, head held high, and tell Mr. Lancer and his parents and everyone else in his life, “Look! I did it.”

He opened his eyes and stared up at the stars once again. If he reached out, it was almost as if he could touch the moon.

Danny wasn’t a good student, but he still tried. And one day, he was going to try and succeed.

#danny phantom #dannymay2020 #prize #fanfiction

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