This is my first major attempt at the Danny Phantom world, so go easy.
This story takes place about a week after "Phantom Planet". The purpose of this fic is to correct Butch's biggest mistake, and set the stage for future DP fanfics of my own writing.
I don't own DP. Butch does.
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Danny Phantom: A Fresh Start
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"Look! There he is!"
"Huh?" came Danny Fenton's questionable gasp as he tried to pinpoint the source of the voice. A moment later, he found it, in the form of a bunch of screaming girls, ecstactic at seeing him. "Aw, not again!"
Before he knew it, he was running for his life as the mob of fangirls chased him down the streets of Amity Park, Illinois, in hopes of... well... whatever it was they wanted. Autographs, photographs... or maybe something more wild, like...
"Bear my children!" one girl screamed. Danny only shuddered at that one.
The chase continued for some time, until Danny suddenly tripped and fell onto the sidewalk. With a fearful glance, he saw the group bearing down on him. Well, they know, so... Danny shrugged as he stood up and issued a mental command to himself. A second later, a pair of white rings surrounded him and scanned his body vertically, transforming his very body. White hair replacing his raven-colored locks, a black-and-white jumpsuit with a well-known emblem on his chest. One would say he was a completely different person now. As the transformation finished, there stood Danny Phantom, in all his meta-human glory, just before he flew up into the air and away from the approaching mob.
As Danny looked back towards the street, he saw the crazed girls flashing their cameras like a bunch of paparazzis. With a salute, Danny flew off into the horizon, much to their disappointment. Finally free to himself, Danny began to ponder the recent turn of events that turned him into a international celebrity.
Geez... you save the world from ONE asteroid, exposing your secret identity in the process, and everyone wants to be your biggest fan. Danny groaned to himself. And who can blame them?
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Clockwork's Tower, Ghost Zone...
"...and that's how my mornings usually began." Danny finished explaining to the ever-wise Master of Time from within his domicile. Danny had arrived at the Tower about ten minutes ago in hopes of having a heart-to-heart talk. From his chair, Clockwork merely glanced at him as his form suddenly shifted to his "old man" appearence.
"So, I see you've become quite the celebrity." Clockwork quietly said. "But, of course, I see everything."
"Of course." Danny said in agreement before continuing. "Ever since that incident with the asteroid, I haven't gotten a moment's peace, especially now that they know who I am." He remembered what it was like before he became Danny Phantom. Back then, he was just seen as the skinny loser at high school. No guts, no muscle, and no respect. Then that altercation with that Ghost Portal changed everything.
On a dare from his close friends Tucker Foley and Sam Manson (the latter currently his now-official girlfriend), Danny found himself putting on a jumpsuit and exploring the innards of the "broken" portal, only to accidently turn it on and get blasted by the energies created by the portal as it activated. The next day, Danny realized the full extent of the incident, as he found himself phasing and turning invisible uncontrollably. It was about a month since then when Danny's high school was attacked by a ghost, one that seemed to bear resemblance to a cafeteria worker. Defeating the so-called "Lunch Lady Ghost" with his fledgling powers, Danny began to find a sense of purpose, using his new abilities to defend his town from more and more ghosts as they arrived.
Over the course of the next two years, Danny's reputation began to grow, as did his list of enemies. Skulker, a big-game ghost hunter in high-tech armor. Technus, a technopathic braggart with power over any and all technology. Ember McLane, the ghostly rock diva with a powerful guitar and a literally flaming mane of hair. Penelope Spectra, who could be summed up in two words: crazed sadist.
And then there was Vlad Masters, once the college chum of Danny's father Jack Fenton before he accidently got blasted in the face with a prototype Ghost Portal 20 years ago (which he blamed Jack for) and developed similiar powers to Danny's own. Having used his powers to get ahead in life and become a multi-millionaire, Vlad had both power and respect on his side, from both his human and his ghost employees. Vlad never hesitated to make Danny's life difficult, whether by convincing Danny to become his heir, stealing his mom Maddie from Jack out of a desire for her love, or becoming Mayor of Amity Park. Of course, despite the danger Vlad brought, Danny knew that there were others even worse than him, as evidenced by the sight of a heavily dented Fenton Thermos on the table in the next room over, its covering charred pitch black from burn marks. Danny only shuddered at the thought of knowing exactly who was in that Thermos.
It was two weeks ago when a large asteroid laced with ectoplasmic materials first threatened to smash into Earth, as a result of Vlad meddling with a high-tech satellite orbiting around Saturn. The so-called "Disasteroid", cleverly named as such by the newspapers and TV, would have easily destroyed Earth. It took the combined effort of every ghost in the world to phase Earth completely, leaving the Disasteroid to pass through harmlessly.
More importantly, however, was the ditching of his secret identity. Vlad chose to reveal himself as "Public Ghost Enemy #1" in hopes of extorting the world to aid him in stopping the asteroid. Needless to say, Jack was not pleased to learn that Vlad was the ghost who continuously assaulted his family, and he left his ex-friend drifting aimlessly in deep space during an attempt on the Disasteroid gone wrong. It was clear that Vlad wasn't coming back anytime soon.
Danny, on the other hand, exposed his secret identity for more noble reasons. And now, poor Danny was suffering the repercussions of being a worldwide celebrity. Statues of him adorned every corner of the world, no thanks to Danny's pal, "Mr. Mayor-for-a-Day" Tucker (thankfully, Tucker was quickly removed in favor of Vlad's predecessor, Mayor Ernesto Montez). Photographers and interviewers hounded him and his family throughout the day, hoping to get some kind of dirt on the young hero. And Danny, as he told earlier, was dogged by fans everywhere he went.
"People are always looking for someone to idolize, Danny." Clockwork explained as his formed changed again to its "child" appearence. "It's an undeniable fact in life. Movie stars, athletes, superheroes..."
"Yeah, but after what happened yesterday, I realized that I don't want this life anymore."
"The superheroics?"
"No. I wouldn't give that up for anything. I'm talking about the fame. I just want it to go back to the way it was."
"Really?" came Clockwork's reply as he returned to his "middle-age" form. "Care to explain?"
"I don't think I really need to explain it to you." Danny pointed out. "After all, you know everything."
"I do," Clockwork pointed out. "but they don't." he finished with an odd glare. Danny only shrugged it off.
"Okay, it all started yesterday morning..."
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Fenton Residence (FentonWorks), Yesterday Morning...
"It was a nice Friday morning. Sun shining, birds singing... up until the moment I had to wake up..."
As Danny was tossing and turning in his sleep, a sudden shout jarred him awake.
"Danny!" came the yell of his older sister Jasmine, causing Danny to transform out of reflex.
"What? What, Jazz?" Danny asked as he looked around the room, ready to fight. "What's going on?"
"It's the Guys in White! They're at the front door and they're loaded for bear!"
"Oh snap." Danny grimaced. Even though Danny Phantom was a world-renowned hero, he was still a ghost, and thus a target for the U.S. Government's Ectoplasmic Defense Force, often referred to as the Guys in White (for their trademark white business uniforms). They had first heard of Danny when Vlad put out a bounty on his head, and they had been dogging him ever since as part of their mission to destroy all ghosts in the world (something that Danny utterly opposed, since, despite their name, ghosts were just as much living beings as humans were).
"Mom and Dad are trying to stall them downstairs. They wanted me to give you your lunch and see you off while they're distracted." Jazz continued
"Makes sense." Danny replied as he transformed back and then quickly got dressed. Once clothed, Danny grabbed his backpack and a bagged lunch that Jazz had brought up. Just as he was about to exit through the window, he turned to Jazz. "Tell mom and dad that I'll see them later."
"Will do. Be careful, Danny. I'll meet up with you at school."
"No problem." Jazz called back as Danny jumped out the window and floated down to the ground harmlessly. Soon, Danny Fenton was running down the street.
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In the living room...
"...And did I ever tell you about my Specter Speeder 2.0?" Jack Fenton proudly explained to his white-suited guests. Aside from skin color, they were completely identical in appearence.
"Yes, Mr. Fenton." the black-skinned agent groaned.
"You've told us three times already." the white-skinned agent added.
"Well, fourth time's the charm. Right honey?" Jack's wife Madeline said with a wink.
"Of course! Thanks Maddie." Jack grinned. "Anyway, it's a piece of work if I do say so myself. Precision control system. User-friendly interface. 44 oz. cup holders, which I'm especially proud of by the way..."
Maddie wasn't really listening, though. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Jazz come down the stairs and wave. Maddie smiled back, knowing that Danny had escaped safely. She was just about to tell Jack when a shrill beeping sounded from the black agent's pocket. As the agent pulled it out, Maddie saw that it was an Ecto-Radar device, and it was locked on a moving target. The agent only looked at the Fentons in triumph.
"Clever tactic, trying to stall us." the black agent grinned. "But we've expected as much." Pulling a communicator out, the agent began speaking orders. "Attention, Team Epsilon. Target is on the move, identified as Daniel Fenton, alias Danny Phantom. Classified as Level 7 Ectoplasmic Entity. Begin Operation Chalk Trail. Priority One, over."
"Rest assured, Mrs. Fenton," the white agent replied with a smirk. "we won't hurt him... much."
It was a poor choice of words on the agent's part, as Maddie suddenly leaped off the couch and knocked him to the floor with a powerful roundhouse kick. Before the black agent could draw a weapon, Jack stood in front of him, his large frame intimidating the G-Man.
"Tell your superiors that you are not gonna hurt my son!" Jack threatened. "If you want him, you'll have to go through us!"
"Uh... Actually, Mr. Fenton," the agent stuttered. "we're chasing him as we speak, so we don't have to go through you." With that, the agent picked up his partner and ran for the front door. Maddie only turned to Jazz and frowned.
"Jazz, you'd best get to school. I've a feeling that Danny's gonna need some help." Jazz only nodded as she ran out the back door in the kitchen.
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On the road...
As Danny Phantom was flying down the street, a battalion of armored GiW agents were on his tail, their jetpacks allowing them to keep pace easily. "Man, they sure are quick to catch up!" Danny noted as he turned a corner into an alley. The agents turned to follow, only to crash into a wall of ice like bugs to a windshield. Nearby, Danny hovered in place, his palms glowing an icy blue.
"Listen, I've got school, so why don't you just..." Danny paused before shaking his head. "Nah, too cliche." he griped before using a few Frost Beams to freeze the armored agents to the ice wall. "That ice will melt in about an hour, two at most. Plenty of time to think about this." With a nod, Danny flew away, leaving the agents stuck.
Whew... Close one. Danny thought. But since they know who I am, they'll just keep coming. What I wouldn't give for an escape route. His prayers were answered as Jazz pulled up nearby in her own car.
"Hop in!" Jazz offered. Danny complied, and soon, the two of them were riding down the street. Surprisingly, no more agents attacked them along the way.
However, unbeknowest to either of the Fenton siblings, a small, cube-like object was silently following them, watching Danny intently. As Danny looked up, the cube suddenly flew away, avoiding his attention.
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Casper High...
As Jazz's car parked in the student parking lot, Danny hopped out and ran for the front doors, only to get mobbed by a pack of impatient students.
"Oh, come on, folks." Danny griped as the noisy crowd surrounded him. "I've gotta get to class." But the mob wasn't able to hear him over their collective voices. With a sigh, Danny turned himself intangible and easily walked through the students' bodies, though this did nothing to keep them from following him inside.
"All right, students!" shouted Vice-Principal Mr. Lancer over his megaphone. "Break it up now! Superhero or no, Fenton needs his education!" With a moan, the mob dispersed, leaving Danny to walk over to his locker. Nearby, Sam and Tucker stood to greet him.
"Hey, guys!" Danny greeted. Tucker grinned, but Sam only glared.
"That's it? Just 'Hey, guys'? No 'Hello, my lover' or some kind of mush?" Sam sarcastically replied.
"You really want me to say that?"
"Hell, no!" After a moment, the two of them laughed.
"All right, you lovebirds..." Tucker cut in.
"We're not..." the young couple started to shout out of habit, only to pause at the realization that they actually were lovebirds now.
"Gotcha!" Tucker laughed as his best friends blushed at each other. "Anyway, we've got class, and you know how Mr. Lancer gets over tardies." Soon, the three longtime friends were making their way down the hall, only to pause at the sight of local jock Dash Baxter enjoying his favorite pastime: Nerd wrangling.
"C'mon, dweebo!" Dash taunted as the nerd in his hand made a futile attempt to throw a punch at him. "Izzat all ya got?" Danny only growled as he silently walked over to the bully.
"Leave him alone, Dash." Danny spoke, causing Dash to look up from his task at hand.
"Whaddya want, loser?" Dash flippantly said before turning around and sseing his addressor, upon which he began to sweat. "Uh... Hey Fentweeb... I-I mean Fenton. Just, uh... um..." At a loss for words, Dash merely put the nerd down to the ground and let him run off. "Sorry!" Dash yelled as he ran off as well.
"All right, Danny!" Tucker exclaimed. "Way to show off your respect, pal!"
"I gotta admit, Danny," Sam added. "you really do get your point across."
"Yeah, well..." Danny shrugged. "It's no big deal, really."
"No big deal?" Tucker shouted. "Danny, you're the biggest name in school since... well... Dash Baxter!"
"Not that I asked to be." Danny merely muttered as he walked off alone to class, leaving Sam and Tucker alone.
"What's with him?" Tucker asked absently. Sam only sighed. She had no answer.