Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom; Tim Burton's Corpse Bride or any characters thereof; Spirit, the Halloween superstore; or the Ghostbusters theme song. I do own James Schofield, however.
All Hallow's Horror
Friday, October 24
"I can't believe it's only one week until Halloween!" Sam said happily as she walked out of Casper High. "The Halloween Dance is going to be so great this year."
"Yeah, and I still don't have a costume!" Tucker moaned.
"I know what I'm going as," Danny said, following the two.
"Oh, no, not again…"
"No, not an astronaut," Danny replied. In a quiet voice, he added, "The costume's too small."
"Then what is your costume?" Sam asked.
"Danny Phantom, of course." He smiled, and his eyes briefly glowed green.
"Oh, great…"
"No, no, don't worry. I got a costume for it. I'm not actually going as Danny Phantom."
"Ha, ha. Really funny. And just how do you expect to pull it off?"
"I bought green contact lenses that glow in the dark, and the costume came with a wig. I'm all set!"
"I dunno, man. This has 'trouble' written all over it. What are you gonna do if a ghost attacks?" Tucker asked.
"It'll be fine. And if anything does happen, I'll just pretend like someone spiked the punch bowl."
"And we'll have to cover for you?" Sam said in a tired voice.
"Exactly."
"Great," Sam and Tucker said in a flat unison.
Saturday, October 25
Sam peeked into her closet, stealing a glance at her costume. She smiled in excitement—she knew this Halloween would be the best yet. Suddenly, she heard a tapping on her balcony door. Looking over her shoulder, she saw Danny Phantom, and walked out onto the balcony to talk to him.
"What's up?" she asked.
"Just wondering if you wanted to go to the movies or something," Danny asked.
"Sure. Just let me grab my jacket and tell my grandma." Sam went back inside, grabbed her black fall coat and yelled down the stairs, "I'm going to the movies with Danny! I'll be back in a few hours!"
"Have fun, dear!" Sam's grandmother said.
Sam went back onto the balcony. "So what are we going to see?"
"It's a surprise. Close your eyes, and don't open them until I tell you to."
Sam nodded and closed her eyes. Danny picked her up in his arms bridal-style and flew into the hair. Sam felt the cool October breeze pick up as they soared, and she nuzzled closer to Danny, despite the fact that he was just as cold in his Phantom form.
A few minutes later, Danny whispered, "Open your eyes." Sam obeyed immediately, and then gave a small gasp of surprise. They were invisible, floating above theatre patrons, watching the opening credits of Tim Burton's Corpse Bride.
"Danny! This doesn't come out until next weekend!" Sam whispered.
"I know," he replied. "I looked online and saw that this theatre was having a special preview for the newspapers, so I thought you'd like to see it a little early."
"This is amazing, Danny! Illegal, but amazing."
"Only if we get caught, which we won't—as long as you hold my hand the entire movie. Otherwise you won't be invisible anymore."
"Right." Danny and Sam floated down into a pair of empty seats. Sam faithfully held on to Danny's hand, even after everyone else had left the theatre.
"Come on, Sam," Danny said. "Time to go home."
"Okay…" Sam said, a little upset at having to leave so soon.
Sunday, October 26
Sam woke up late, thankful once again that her family wasn't religious and didn't attend church very regularly. For a brief moment, she felt sorry for Paulina, whom she knew was currently attending Mass at the Catholic church on Elm Street. Sam yawned, then picked up her cell phone as it began ringing the familiar tune of the Ghostbusters theme song, the ringtone she'd bought especially for when Danny called. "Hello?" she said.
"Get up and get dressed. Day Two is just beginning."
"Day Two? Of what?"
"Of Halloween Week. Now get dressed. I'll be over in ten minutes."
Exactly ten minutes later, Sam heard the doorbell ring. "So, he decided to use the door today," Sam said aloud, putting her hair up in its usual ponytail. "I'm impressed." Because of the chilly weather, she'd decided to wear a black sweater and ripped jeans, rather than the tank top and skirt she usually wore. However, she still had her boots and purple tights; the tights could be seen through the holes in her jeans. She made her way downstairs, where her grandmother was waiting with Danny.
Taking Sam's hand, Danny lifted her up and took her through the roof, traveling to Spirit, Amity Park's Halloween superstore. He gently put her down in the alley behind the store and transformed back into Danny Fenton.
"Where are we?" Sam asked.
"Close your eyes. You'll see in a minute." Danny made sure Sam's eyes were closed, then led her inside. "Open them."
Sam gaped at all the Halloween merchandise. "Why are we here?"
"I thought that maybe you needed something for your costume, so if there's anything you want, it's my treat."
"Danny…" Sam said, looking at him. "Why are you doing all of this?"
"You'll see," he said softly. "Now, go have fun."
Sam smiled, hugged Danny tightly for a moment, and ran off like a kid with free reign of a candy store. Danny watched her with an amused smile on his face. My plan is working, he thought.
Half an hour later, Sam had gotten a deluxe costume makeup kit, a long black-blue wig, and a large bag of candy corn, which she was currently eating as she and Danny walked home. "You know something?" she asked.
"Yeah, I do. What do you know?" Danny retorted with a smile.
Sam chuckled. "I know that candy corn is the greatest food on the face of the planet."
"Really? What about grass sandwiches? Is candy corn Ultra-Recyclo Vegetarian?"
"Come on, lay off that."
"Sorry, Sam."
"You're forgiven."
Smiling, Danny wrapped his arm around Sam, and she leaned her head against his shoulder. She exhaled heavily, her breath making clouds in the crisp October air. "So, when am I going to find out what all this is about?" she asked.
"Soon, ma chère. Very soon," Danny replied in his best French vampire voice, trying to sound alluring and mysterious.
"Stick to ghosts, Danny. They suit you better than vampires."
Monday, October 27
With less than a week until Halloween, Sam was beginning to get restless—and so were the ghosts. Danny was exhausted from staying up all night, and he was beginning to fall asleep in class more often than usual. The third time he dozed off in Mr. Lancer's class, Sam nudged him with her elbow to awaken him.
"Huh? Wha?" Danny said muzzily, blinking as if against harsh sunlight.
"Wake up, Danny," Sam said. "We're supposed to be working, remember?"
"Oh, right," Danny said, yawning. "Sorry, I didn't get much sleep last night."
"I know. Tell you what; let's go to the cafeteria after class and get you some caffeine. Do you think you can stay awake that long?"
"I can try," Danny said. "If I start dozing off, will you wake me up?"
"Sure."
Five minutes later, Danny felt a handsqueeze his thigh. Startled out of another nap, his eyes shot open and he looked down to see a slim, pale hand with black nail polish—Sam's hand. "What are you doing!" he hissed to her.
"Waking you up," she replied calmly. "It was the only way to get you awake without Lancer seeing." Danny realized that her hand was completely out of view unless one was looking straight down, as he was.
"Well, I'm awake now. Could you please move your hand?"
"Why?"
"Because, it's…it's…"
"Embarrassing?"
"It's…inappropriate for school."
"What about after school?" Sam teased.
Danny blushed. "Well..."
Sam laughed quietly and moved her hand away from Danny's leg. "Just don't fall asleep again, and you won't have to worry about it."
"Yes, ma'am," Danny said seriously.
Tuesday, October 28
"I finally figured out my costume," Tucker said as he, Danny and Sam left school. "I'm going to dress up as a fast food worker."
"Really? Why?" Danny asked.
"Because I'm going as what the entire football team is going to be doing in ten years."
Danny and Sam both laughed, and then blushed as they looked at each other out of the corners of their eyes. "Hey, Sam, I don't think you ever told us what you're dressing up as for Halloween," Danny remarked.
"It's a surprise," Sam said. "You'll see on Friday."
"Aww, not even a clue?" Tucker asked.
"Nope. Nothing."
"Hey, that's cool," said Danny. "It'll be interesting to see if we can guess before then."
By that time, they had arrived at Tucker's house, so he went inside and Danny and Sam continued on. But rather than stopping at his house, Danny walked past, following Sam. "Uhh, Danny…"
"I know. I'm coming over for the next part of Halloween Week."
"What? There's more?"
"Of course. What would Halloween Week be without a horror movie marathon? We can do our homework while we watch, if you want. I already talked to my parents."
"Yeah, but not mine."
"I don't think it'll matter, Sam." He gestured to the driveway; her parents' car was gone.
Sam sighed. "You know, despite the fact that my parents don't understand a thing about me, it would still be nice if they were around more often."
"Well, at least they're not around to keep us from watching these movies, right?" Danny said brightly, pulling a few DVDs out of his backpack.
"Good point," Sam replied.
Wednesday, October 29
Sam awakened slowly, feeling that something was off. She opened her eyes to see that she was lying on the couch in the den, cuddled next to a still sleeping Danny under a large blanket. She panicked for a moment, trying to remember what had happened the night before.
Okay, so we watched a few movies, ordered a pizza… Sam said to herself. We must have fallen asleep while watching a movie or something. Sam looked at her watch: it was past eight in the morning. At that moment, she was thankful that they had the day off for a teacher's meeting. She nudged Danny until he moaned and started to stir. "Danny! Wake up!" she said.
"What is it, Sam?" Danny asked, voice thick from sleep. A moment later, his eyes popped open. "Sam?"
"Yeah. Did you call your parents last night and tell them you were staying over for the night?"
"Umm…" He pulled out his cell phone. A moment later, he said, "Yeah, I did. I don't remember it, but my call log says I did."
"Good, then we won't get in trouble."
"Hey, I almost forgot!" Danny suddenly said loudly. "We have to do the next Halloween Week activity today."
"What is it this time?" Sam asked, genuinely interested.
"Pumpkins!"
"Pumpkins?"
"Yeah. Come on; we have to get to the store." Danny stood and, taking Sam's hand, practically dragged her up the stairs and out of the den.
Fifteen minutes later, they were at the grocery store, looking at all the pumpkins for sale. Danny hoisted up a large one, while Sam compared the shapes of two pumpkins. "So, what are you going to carve into yours?" Sam asked Danny.
"I don't know. I'm debating between the new thing"—he pointed to his chest discreetly—"and the classic Jack O' Lantern. What about you, Emily?"
Sam's eyes widened. How does he…? "I haven't decided yet," she replied, trying to keep her voice as calm as possible.
Danny smiled knowingly. "I'm right, aren't I?"
"That depends. What do you think you're right about?" Sam asked.
"Your costume."
"Maybe, maybe not. You'll just have to see." Sam set down her pumpkin and turned around. While her back was turned, Danny made his hand go intangible, and then stuck it inside her pumpkin for a moment. She then turned around and picked it up. "All right, let's check out."
When they got home, they immediately started carving. Sam cut the top off her pumpkin before she started scooping out the seeds with her bare hands. Suddenly, she felt something strange in her pumpkin. She pulled it out, revealing a folded piece of paper. She unfolded it and read it.
Sam, will you go to the Halloween Dance with me?
--Danny
Sam smiled. "Yes."
"Yes what?" Danny asked. Sam held up the paper. Danny started smiling, as well. "Great! I'll pick you up at, say, 6:30?"
"That sounds good," Sam replied before throwing a glob of pumpkin meat at Danny. This move incited a full-on pumpkin war, leaving both victims sticky and a little cold, but their pumpkins spotless.
Thursday, October 30
"Tomorrow's Halloween! Tomorrow's Halloween!" Sam said in a singsong voice, walking home from school.
"Yeah!" Tucker agreed. "The one day where you can pig out on candy without your parents getting upset."
Sam looked over at Danny, who was staring at the ground with a serious expression on his face. "What's wrong?"
"Huh? Oh, nothing," Danny replied. "Just thinking about my costume, that's all."
"There shouldn't be much to think about, should there?"
"I don't know."
Sam frowned; Danny shouldn't be this serious so close to Halloween. She stepped a bit closer to him. "Hey, you know you can tell me what's wrong, right?"
"Yeah, I know," Danny said, giving her a smile. "But nothing's wrong."
"Okay, then."
Friday, October 31
It was the end of the school day, and Danny was worried; Sam hadn't come to school at all. Sam never missed school without at least calling him to tell him why, especially on Halloween.
Danny slowly walked home alone, since Tucker was helping to decorate for the dance. When he got home, he noticed that no one was around. Shrugging, he went upstairs andchanged into his costume, doing his hair and makeup. When he came back downstairs, he saw a note lying on the table. He picked it up and read it, assuming it was from his parents. What he read made his blood run cold.
Phantom—I know your secret. If you don't want the whole world to know, too, be at the warehouse on 44th Street at seven o'clock tonight. Come alone, or I will kill everyone you hold dear.
Danny pounded his fist onto the table, suddenly realizing why Sam was absent from school and why his parents weren't home. I can't believe this is happening…Sam, my family…they're in danger, and it's my fault. Danny looked at the clock—4:07. He had almost three hours until he had to be there, and that long until the dance started. He had plenty of time.
"I'm going ghost!" Danny said loudly. A moment later, he had transformed into Danny Phantom. He flew through the kitchen floor and into his parents' lab, grabbing a few gadgets as well as a Fenton Thermos. Then, he flew out of his house and into the early evening.
Ten minutes later, he arrived at the 44th Street warehouse. He made himself invisible, and then passed through the building's wall in order to enter. He looked around, but didn't see any sign of activity. He continued forward—then felt an enormous shock go through his body before he fell unconscious.
Danny awoke to a pounding headache. "Unngh…" He slowly opened his eyes to see that he was in a dungeon-like room with his arms bound by some kind of force field. He looked down, and then paled as he saw that he was Danny Fenton, not Danny Phantom. He tried to transform, but couldn't; when he attempted to, the force field holding his hands sent unbearable shocks up his arms, that rattled through his head and down his spine until he stopped trying altogether. Sighing, Danny leaned back and tried to figure out a way to escape.
Suddenly, Danny heard a tapping sound. He turned his head toward the sound to see a tall, distinguished-looking man walk in, a cane in his hand. He looked at Danny with a cruel smile on his face. "Ah, Mister Fenton, how nice of you to join us," he said with a British accent. "But I'm afraid you didn't follow my instructions. I told you to be here at seven o'clock, and yet you came almost three hours early."
"Yeah, because I have a date with Sam tonight, and I wanted to rescue her in time to keep it," Danny said angrily.
"Ah, yes, Miss Manson. I'm afraid she won't be attending any more school functions, Mister Fenton. In fact, she won't be attending school at all."
"What are you talking about!" Danny asked.
"Well, Miss Manson has made a decision. She has decided that she wants to die tonight."
"WHAT?" Danny yelled.
"Yes, quite shocking, isn't it? Miss Manson is quite adamant about it all…she says she has fallen in love with me; she cannot bear to live without me, so she'd rather not live."
"Who are you, and what have you done to her!"
"I am James Schofield, the Duke of Essex," the man replied, "and I haven't done a thing…she's the one who is going to kill herself."
Danny tried to lunge at the man, but the bonds holding his hands kept him from getting within ten feet of Schofield. Schofield laughed and took a step closer to Danny, who was panting from the effort of trying to reach him. "It is a pity that you are going to miss the festivities, but I must keep you from interfering." He pulled out a pocket watch and looked at it briefly. "Hmm…nine o'clock. Only three hours to go until my union with Samantha."
"Union?" Danny asked, stunned.
"Yes, union. For as soon as her soul departs from the mortal plane, she and I are to be bound in eternal spiritual matrimony."
"No…" Danny whispered, shaking his head.
"Yes. Now, I do hate good-byes, but I must check in on my new bride…my corpse bride." With that, Schofield turned around and disappeared through the door.
Danny slumped against the wall, tears pouring down his face. "Sam…" he whispered.
Suddenly, there was a creaking sound. A moment later, Danny felt warm hands on his face. He looked up to see Sam, looking beautifully pale. "Sam?"
Sam quieted Danny by placing a finger on his lips. "Quick, there isn't much time. I convinced Schofield—he's a ghost, by the way—to let me come in here for a few minutes to 'say goodbye' to you."
"So, you really are…"
"What?"
"Going to kill yourself?"
"What?" she parroted.
"Schofield said you were going to kill yourself, and then you and he were going to get married."
"No! He kidnapped me to get to you. But I wouldn't be surprised if he tried to do something like that; the guy's been dead for 150 years, and he still thinks he's God's gift to women." Danny heard a click, and the shackles around his wrists stopped glowing as they fell away from his hands.
"How'd you do that?"
Sam held up a hairpin. "They were ghost-proof, but basically just regular handcuffs."
"Thanks," Danny said before standing and hugging Sam. "By the way, you look beautiful. That's not your costume, is it?"
"No, but it is similar." Sam took a good look at Danny. "Wait, I thought you said—mmph," Danny put his own fingers over Sam's lips, quieting her.
"When I figured out you were going as Emily, I decided to dress as Victor," Danny replied, indicating his Victorian-style clothing, slicked-back hair and paled skin. He looked almost identical to Victor, the hero from Tim Burton's Corpse Bride and the man who accidentally married himself to Emily, the Corpse Bride. "I have one question—does Schofield have my parents?"
"Not that I know of," Sam said. "Do you want to go look for them?"
"Wait." Danny pulled out his cell phone and called home. A moment later—"Hello?… Dad, you're home! Where were you?… You and Mom went to the store? Why didn't you leave a note?… You did? Oh." Danny pulled the note from Schofield out of his pocket and flipped it over to reveal another note in his father's handwriting. "Okay. Never mind… Yes, I'm with Sam… Okay, Dad, I will… Okay… Bye." Danny hung up before breathing a sigh of relief.
"So they're okay?" Sam asked.
"They're okay. Let's get out of here."
"Wait, Danny…I think you're forgetting something."
"What?"
"There's still a ghost on the loose."
"Good point. I'll be right back." Danny transformed into Danny Phantom, left the room, and went into the main part of the warehouse. "Excuse me, Duke Schofield, but I believe I owe you something."
"And what is that?" Schofield asked calmly, seemingly not startled by the fact that Danny had escaped.
"A free trip back to the Ghost Zone!" Danny punched Schofield soundly in the nose, throwing the British ghost off balance, and then pulled out the Fenton Thermos. Once Schofield was securely sucked into the Thermos, Danny capped it and went back into the other room, where Sam was waiting. "I love Halloween," he said as he saw her.
"Me too," she replied. "Now, will you take me home so I can get into my costume?"
"Sure." Danny picked up Sam and flew her back to her house, dropping her off on her balcony. She ran inside, and ten minutes later emerged looking resplendently beautiful and corpse-like, with dramatically-shadowed eyes, skin tinted slightly blue, and an artistically ripped wedding dress that hugged all her curves to perfection. She'd even gone so far as to tangle the wig she'd gotten at Spirit, to make it look as though it had been a long time since it had last been brushed. When she came back out onto the balcony, Danny gasped audibly. "Sam…"
"I guess you like it," Sam replied, smiling at the expression on Danny's face.
"I love it," Danny said. "You're perfect—that is, I mean—it's perfect, you know, for a costume…"
Sam hushed Danny once more. "You babble just like Victor," she whispered. "You should just shut up, and live in the moment."
Before he knew what he was doing, Danny was kissing Sam with every ounce of love he felt for her. Without a moment's hesitation, Sam was returning the kiss, sliding her hands up Danny's arms to rest at the back of his neck, while he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her closer.
"Sam?" Danny asked when they finally broke apart.
"Yes, Danny?"
"'With this hand, I shall lift you up. Your cup will never empty, for Iwill be your wine.'"
"Oh, Danny…"
"Sam, I think I've been in love with you since I met you. Is there any chance you feel the same way? "
Instead of replying, Sam kissed him soundly on the lips.
"So. I'll take that as a 'yes'?"
"You can take that as a 'heck yes'."
"Good."
The couple slowly danced to their own silent music, reveling in the light of the full moon and the heady glee of finally, truly being together.
"Danny…"
"Yes, Sam?"
"What about the dance?"
"The dance?" Danny asked dumbly. Then he remembered. "The dance! Come on, let's go!" He picked her up, transforming, and carried her through the night air. They arrived just as the DJ was making an announcement.
"And the winners for best costume are… Dash and Paulina, as Danny Phantom and 'the damsel in distress'!"
Dash and Paulina walked up to the stage, accepting their prizes and beginning a long-winded speech about "the little people who made it all possible."
"Maybe coming wasn't such a good idea…" Sam said.
"Hey, it's all right. Besides, look around." Everyone was turned toward them, nodding approvingly and clapping for the couple, who were holding hands.
"I was wondering when you two would finally get together," Tucker said from behind them. He was dressed as a giant PDA.
"Yeah, we're together. It took a 150-year old ghost, but we're together," Danny replied.
"I don't even wanna know," Tucker said, shaking his head.
Fin