Disclaimer: same old disclaimer still applies - the same one you can find in any of my other DP fics, but if I must…I still don't own Danny Phantom and the credit for the song "Next Best Superstar" goes to Mel C. The credit for "Remember" goes to Butch Hartman's team, don't know exactly who wrote it. But it wasn't me.

A/N: Hey peeps, back once again with another songfic. This one is about…well, I'll leave that blank and see if you can work it out before I revel it. I was sat at my computer one morning reading fanfics before I caught the bus to school and this song came on the radio. It was so perfect I just had to write it. I hope you like it. it's a bit longer that i thought it was gonna be. and it might get even longer...watch this space.

Chapter 1 - Next Best Superstar

She was young when they spotted her. Just a few weeks shy of her 17th birthday. She was singing in a karaoke competition in a local bar, she wasn't supposed to be there but she had friends who had told her about the competition, then forced her to enter, then snuck her in with a fake I.D. then practically threw her onto the stage when it was her turn. She didn't particularly want to be there but once she was on the stage, guitar in hand, and the light was on her she had to admit she liked the feeling. It had secretly been a dream of hers to go professional but she didn't think she was good enough. She knew she was good, (she had won enough boxes of chocolates in other karaoke competitions to know that) but she didn't think she was good enough 'just a little more practice, then I'll make a demo c.d.' she would always tell herself. But she had never found the nerve.

That night however, her friends had entered her into the competition because they knew that there were going to be talent scouts present and they knew this could be her chance. And notice her they did. When all of the other acts were on everyone looked in their general direction, listened for a few seconds, then turned back to their drinks and their conversations. But this girl. When she had taken to the stage people had noticed her because of her hair, it was flame red in colour and pulled back into a high ponytail. The name was so unusual it demanded even a little of their attention. She was quite plain apart from her hair; she was wearing a pair of baggy black jeans, black trainers, which were covered by the bottom of her jeans, and a black baggy shirt with long red sleeves. Her clothes hid the fabulous figure all her friends told her she possessed and her face was un-obscured by make-up.

The audience had acknowledged her, and then went back to their beers as they had for all of the other young boys and girls who had had the courage to stand up there. She had stood in the middle of the stage waiting for the background music, when it materialised she had begun to strum her guitar along with it to a tune unfamiliar t those in the bar because t was one of her own creations. As she began to sing, the din grew quieter and quieter until everyone in the room was silent and focused all of their attention solely on her. When she had finished singing the last note a thunderous applause went up from the listeners and the two talent scouts looked at each other and smiled, they had found their new girl.

They watched her smile, bow and leave the stage to rejoin her group of friends who immediately began to pat her on the back and tell her she was fantastic. The girl just blushed and thanked them before turning to the bar and ordering herself a coke. The talent scouts gave her a few minutes before they got up and approached her.

"Hello" the male said, offering his hand to her when he was close enough "my name is Anthony and this…" he indicated the woman who was with him "is my partner Amy"

"Hi" said the girl with flame red hair and aquamarine eyes to match. She looked them up and down. They both looked young, late twenties at most. He had short mousey brown hair and green eyes, she had long blue-black hair and hazel eyes and they were both dressed smartly in business suites, they looked so out of place that the girl felt sorry for them. She grew uncomfortable as they continued to stand in front of her and smile so, without trying to sound rude, she asked "is there a reason you came over?"

"Oh, of course" Anthony said as he began digging in his inside pocket for something, which he proudly produced for her to look at; it was a small piece of card, a business card. "We're from Crush music productions, we heard you on stage and we thought you sounded fantastic. We believe that you may even be the next big thing. We want to offer you a contract"

Her friends screamed but she continued to stare in shock at the business card. 'We want to offer you a contract' the words kept rolling themselves around in her headShe couldn't believe what she had just heard 'they want to offer me a contract!' She thought about it for a moment, then smiled at them and uttered the one word which was to change her destiny and eventually shatter her soul. "Yes"

Sign a name, sign away every hour, every day
You're living your dream

"Great, just sign your name here then we can go and see your parents and arrange things" Anthony beamed as he produced another, larger piece of paper and a pen. The girl took it from him, leant on the bar next to her coke and wrote in her elegant handwriting Ember McLain.

Play the game; take the blame for the power and the fame
You're living your dream

It had been six months since that night in the bar, Ember's career had gone from strength to strength, and her head was still spinning. Her image had changed dramatically. Where she used to wear plain, simple, baggy clothes that covered her body almost totally, now she was wearing skintight pants and small tops that rarely covered her midriff. She now wore outrageous make-up and more jewellery, she had her ears pierced before she had been 'discovered' but hadn't really worn earrings very often.

On her seventeenth birthday she had gotten a new, electric guitar, it was bright pink with turquoise flames and the head looked like a flicker of flame. She had loved it and never went anywhere without it. With this new wardrobe came a new attitude. She had gained more confidence and was now more likely to stick up for herself and say no when she wanted.

The fame she had acquired and the speed at which she acquired it still overwhelmed her at times. She could hardly go out shopping without someone screaming her name and running over asking for her autograph, even when she wasn't wearing her make-up or 'stage clothes'. She was loving the attention she was getting but starting to resent the loss of her privacy. What was worse was when she found out that the media was hounding her friends and family, asking for information about her and blackmailing them. She felt guilty because of the residual side effect her fame had on others and she felt that they blamed her for the intrusion into their once peaceful lives and so had begun to drift away from them. Always she repeated the mantra 'this is my dream, I'm living my dream' to keep herself going. Keep herself appearing at all of the events her managers booked for her.

Sell your life; sell your soul telling everyone you know
You're living your dream

Sometimes she felt as if that night in the bar she had signed away not just her professional and personal life, but her soul as well. She was prone to fits of depression, but it was during these times that she found she wrote her best songs, so she just accepted it and went on with her 'life'

And you know that you're good
Cause they told you you could be
The next best superstar
And you know you can sing
And you'll do anything to be
The next best superstar

You're the next best superstar

Make a joke; do the show, where does all the money go?
You're living your dream

As time went on she had begun to withdraw her real self and just present a mask to the public. She would smile and laugh in interviews and rehash the same answers repeatedly to the same monotonous questions. She would stand and sign autographs for the fans who stopped her in the street. She would make appearances and sign cd's. she would have her picture taken with those who had camera's, always maintaining her mask. The only real pleasure she found was when she was on stage with the audience. There she could let her mask drop and be the person she really wanted to be. Someone who still enjoyed what she was doing. Still liked to write her songs and not just writing to try to beat back the worst of the depression when it hit.

While she was the biggest thing to hit the music scene in a long while, she hardly saw any of the money she was getting from her sales despite the fact that she wrote all of her own songs so there were no royalties that needed paying. When she asked where it all was she was told that it cost a lot of money to organise everything, she had so many team members that after they were paid there wasn't much left, but what was left she got all of, apparently. She didn't believe them but didn't ask again. She wasn't in the business for the money anyway, she was here for the music.

Crack a smile in denial; throw your morals on the fire
You're living your dream

She would smile and laugh in public while she knew that on the inside she was dying. She could feel her heart breaking and her soul degrading. She was becoming something she didn't like and every night she would sit in her hotel room and cry while she wrote her songs. She had long ago abandoned her attempt at getting a message to the world through her music. He had been turned into yet another teen rocker who had no individuality. Did what she was told and when she was told. And she loathed it.

Sell your life; sell your soul telling everyone you know
You're living your dream

Now nearly a year after she had first sung in that bar she was sure that she had lost her soul that night. It had shrivelled and died inside of her and her heart was slowly dying along with it. She had given up. Lost all hope and faith in the people around her. The false smiles and friendships. She hated them all, but there was nothing she could do about it. Her old friends had drifted so far away they didn't even want to know her anymore and her family had practically disowned her. Still, whenever she was asked in an interview, she would always say "I'm living my dream"

And you know that you're good
Cause they told you you could be
The next best superstar
And you know you can sing
And you'll do anything to be
The next best superstar

You're the next best superstar

She had wanted this 'life' since she had started to play her guitar and yet, when she had finally gotten it, she had found that it was a hollow life. People only wanted to know her because of her fame and when they found that she wanted to talk, wanted a real friend, they had dumped her and moved onto someone else and left her felling used and alone. Her fame had brought her boyfriends, but they were just as shallow as her 'friends'. She had nearly slept with the first one. She had gone into the bathroom to sort herself out. When she came out, he obviously hadn't heard her because she had heard him the phone to the local paper, offering to exclusively sell his story the next day. She had thrown him out and cried her heart out, swearing to remain celibate until the fame had worn off enough for her to find the right man.

Now you're broken
And how they brought you down
So now you're crawling out

On her 18th birthday, her boyfriend broke up with her. She wasn't surprised, because she had suspected that he was just as shallow as the rest of them, but she had hoped he wasn't. She was so hurt that she locked herself in her hotel room with her guitar for an hour and wrote a song. She had written it to try to express her feelings and get the pent up frustration and depression out of her system. And it had nearly worked.

When it was finished she had immediately went down to her band and given them copies of her new song. They had practiced it all day and by the time the concert was scheduled to start that night they had it perfect. The fans crowded in, the lights went down and she made her grand entrance.

The concert was a great success. The fans had given her their love, but she was beyond them now, she had smiled and sang her heart out, a secret knowledge clouding her heart. Finally the time came for her to leave so with a heavy heart, and a hidden motive, she announced the last song hoping to get one final message across.

"Thank you for coming tonight. You've been wonderful. It's you, my fans, that have really kept me going. I love you guys. This is my last song so I thought I would make it special. I only wrote this song this afternoon so you are the first to hear it. I want you to remember this song and the great time you had tonight. Cherish your lives and loved ones. You only live once so make sure you live the life you want. Don't live your life being dictated to. Surround yourself with people who are worth your time. The kind who you can give your love to and get just as much in return"

The music started and she began.

Yeah! Ohh-ooohhh!
It was, it was September,
Wind blows, the dead leaves fall,
To you, I did surrender,
Two weeks, you didn't call...

Your life goes on without me,
My life, a losing game,
But you should, you should not doubt me,
You will remember my name...

Oh, Ember, you will remember!
Ember, one thing remains!
Oh, Ember, so warm and tender!
You will remember my name!

Your heart, your heart abandoned,
Your wall, now perishing,
Like bad dreams in cold December,
Nothing, but ashes remain . . .

Oh, Ember, you will remember!
Ember, one thing remains!
Ember, so warm and tender!
You will remember my name!

Oh-woo-oh-woo, Ember!
You will remember!
Ember, one thing remains!
Ember, so warm and tender!
You will remember my name!

Yeah! You will remember my name!

As she sang the tears formed behind her eyes and began to spill down her cheeks, but her voice never faltered. Only the people in the first two rows could see the tears and while in a corner of their minds they were concerned for her, they were enjoying themselves too much to let the thought encroach any further than the corner it sat in. When she finished the crowd went wild, they had had a real treat tonight and they loved it. She smiled, bid them a goodnight, wished them happy lives and walked offstage. She went strait up to her room without her usual thank you and goodnight to the band.

All the papers carried the story the next day.

"Teen singing sensation Ember McLain was found dead in her hotel room last night. The police are treating it as a suicide."

And you know that you're good
Cause they told you you could be
The next best superstar
And you know you can sing
And you'll do anything to be
The next best superstar

You're the next best superstar

A/N: SniffI'm sorry but I absolutely love her, she is such a cool villain. I wish she would appear more often, alas, she don't. I watched Fanning the Flames and began to wonder about her and what she was like before she died. (but I think that about all of the ghosts. Every time I see one I think to myself "They're dead, I wonder what they were like, how they died, how long have they been dead ect…")

I happened to hear the full song 'Remember' on Butch Hartman's website and it made me think about her back-story. I personally don't think she is evil. I think that she is a really nice girl so I wanted to write about her. Hope you liked it

Did anyone find the hidden clue in the summery as to who it was about? I'll say it again "She burned too bright for too short a time." Get it?...I'll leave now.

There may be a kind-of chapter two coming soon, I have the perfect song but I just have to figure out how to work everything out around it.

T.T.F.N

May the angles bless you and keep you safe.