AN- First off, I own nothing (besides Tucker's OC girlfriend). Dialogue has been taken from a few different episodes of the show. Everything you recognize belongs to Nick, Butch Hartman, and all those involved. I wanted to do something sweet and fluffy for Christmas (even if Danny is a scrooge).
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays.
Danny Fenton was incredibly impatient, knowing Tucker was coming home NOW. He missed his best friend and knew Tuck missed him too. Of course, he had his girlfriend… but he had something important he wanted to talk to Tucker about that he couldn't tell Sam. Not until he was ready. But that conversation would have to wait because Sam was waiting with Danny and she laughed at his impatience. The couple was waiting at the top of the hill in the center of town. "Relax… he's probably got to get his luggage… Planes are slow." She reminded him with a teasing grin. "Not everyone can fly, Ghost boy." Danny just laughed and stuck his tongue out in response.
"Whatever you say, Goth girl." Danny joked. "But he said he'd be here at eight. It's eight oh seven." As though he didn't have a history of being late to things himself.
The twenty-two year old was flying home to Amity Park and his best friends couldn't wait. Tucker had left to go to college at California while his two best friends stayed closer to home. "Remind me again why you're the one interested in space and working for NASA and I'm the one who went to CalTech" They heard Tucker's voice before they saw him. Tucker was still wearing a hat on his head, but he'd changed it from a red beret to a red, yellow, and green rasta hat that covered some of his dreadlocks. Sam thought that California was good for him, but she was happy to see him home. Amity just wasn't the same without their little group.
Danny laughed and waved him off. He'd had a few internships for NASA since high school, but he realized he really didn't want to go back to space. It just led to bad memories. "Been there done that…" the young black haired man joked. He enjoyed being the 'ambassador' between the Ghost Zone and the human world, though lately his younger sister/clone Elle would seem to spend more time in the GZ than he did. He and Sam also worked at FentonWorks more now that they both graduated. They both had some political classes, though Sam was the one who actually had a degree in PoliSci, rather than just a few classes. While Danny still had an interest in space, he was not as interested as he had been as a kid. Dealing with a world-destroying asteroid and going to Space in a life or death, life ending giant hunk of space rock as a sixteen year old, really reduced one's desire to spend any more time among the stars. Plus he had plenty to do back on Earth, between helping his girlfriend with her many 'projects', helping his parents with their inventions, and just generally being Danny Phantom.
Tucker gave a quiet sigh as he looked down at the town. Danny raised an eyebrow for a moment, and Tucker ignored his best friends' glances. "Pasadena is so busy… I almost forgot how small Amity is" Tucker said by way of explanation and Sam frowned, protective of this town where the three had been born and raised. "Not a bad thing… it's nice. Peaceful" He added with a grin. He did miss small town life. Tucker often felt out of place in the bustling city so it was nice to come home even if his visits were far and few in-between. He often thought of coming back after graduation, and that was part of the reason he wanted Haley's introduction to 'the most haunted town in America' to go well.
"Peaceful" both halves of the couple snorted. "Peaceful unless you're up late dealing with psycho ghosts"
Tucker shrugged "That is one area, Amity Park's got Pasadena beat… no ghosts in California… no Nasty Burger either," Suddenly he grinned and looked at his two best friends "That's the first place I'm bringing Haley" he announced and Danny chuckled
"Bringing your girlfriend to a place called Nasty Burger? Great first impression" he joked and Tucker scowled in response.
"And how many dates have you and Sam had there?" The halfa remained silent, knowing his best friend proved his point. "Where's Val?" He asked, thinking about the missing fourth member of their little group. None of them brought up that she and Tucker dated throughout their last two years of high school but in the end, they realized they wanted different things.
"She got accepted into some IT graduate program in DC… she'll come back to Axion in a semester's time" Danny added, figuring Tucker already knew from his weekly group emails, but he saw Tuck was looking for some familiarity even if he already knew it all. "Speaking of your girlfriends… why didn't you bring Haley?" he knew she'd be coming in a few days but he was surprised Tucker wanted to make this initial trip without her.
"She's got a few more finals." Tuck shrugged "Besides, I didn't want to freak her out with everything all at once"
"You didn't tell her?!" Sam threw her head back and laughed and Tucker scowled at the goth.
"Of course I did!" he snapped "She knows about Danny… but knowing my best friend is part ghost and the guy who saved the world during high school and actually knowing him are two very separate things"
Danny understood that. Even members of this town sometimes had trouble believing Fenton was the hero Phantom until they witnessed it with their very own eyes. Danny grinned "Bringing the girlfriend to meet your parents and your best friends… that's a big deal."
Tucker laughed and rolled his eyes "Yeah, bringing her home to meet every single person who knows nearly everything about me since I was in second grade and moved in…" Danny and Sam were teasing him playfully but Tuck held his own, teasing his best friends, too.
"Since you told her Danny's secret… did you tell her yours?" Sam grinned, a dangerous look on her face and Tuck backtracked slowly.
"One, it's been years since he revealed his powers to the town, and the whole country knows now" he pointed out "Two… what secret? That I used to name my PDAs?"
"Used to?" Danny chuckled "At Christmas, you kept calling your laptop Fiona!"
Tuck shook his head and laughed "Phffffttt, fine… what other dirt do you possibly think you could have on me?"
He knew that was the wrong question to ask the couple because both of their eyes grew wide and gave identical smirks that he had only seen when they were in the middle of a ghost fight "MAYOR FOLEY!" they burst out laughing as former mayor tried to hide his blush.
"I wasn't!" he started to protest but their smiles and laughs soon got him to smile, too. "I didn't tell her…"
"okay… what?" Danny demanded, studying his best friend. "You told her I was half ghost but not that you were mayor?! At sixteen?!" Danny grinned, evilly and smirked "I would have thought that'd be the first thing you'd tell all those California girls… I bet more than a few of them would be… curious… about a teenage mayor/"
Tucker scowled "Didn't work on any of the girls in high school" he muttered before realizing he just admitted to trying to use that as a pick-up line.
Sam and Danny howled with laughter at that new information. "FIVE YEARS! Five years, I've been waiting for you to admit that you tried to use your status as one month term mayor to get dates" Sam nearly cackled. Tucker tried to glare at his best friends, but soon the three were laughing and reminiscing.
"Okay fine… so we can't tell her that you were the youngest mayor and the shortest serving term… but can we at least tell her about the time you tried to become king of Amity Park due to ghosts?" Sam begged and Tucker frowned.
"Or we can just talk about Tucker Foley…." Danny added with a grin. "That's TF…"
"Too Fine!" Sam joined in with her boyfriend as they both grinned at their embarrassed best friend.
"Do NOT" he practically growled as they smirked.
A few days later, and Haley Everhart was with her boyfriend in his hometown. She missed him but she was glad they were together again. She was curious to see the town where he grew up for herself. She would never admit it to anyone but herself, but she was slightly jealous he had lived in one place his entire life and he had people that had all been in the same classes since kindergarten because they knew him. Her own childhood, she'd moved around every two years or sooner, due to her father's career in the military. She wanted somewhere that she could consider home.
As Danny and Sam predicted, she'd been a little apprehensive at the name of the local eatery, but she tried a burger. She surprised herself with how much she enjoyed it. Tucker was even pleased Sam could eat more than just the French fries now, since Nasty Burger finally added tofu versions of their burgers after Sam led a few 'campaigns' to add more non-meat options to the menu.
Haley tried not to stare at Danny but she watched him throughout the meal. She noticed she wasn't the only one watching the halfa. A boy who couldn't be older than seven was watching him and she saw the child clutching an action figure that looked suspiciously like Danny Phantom. Danny was an expert at ignoring the fans and continuing to do his own thing. He was silently debating with himself about going up to the kid to talk after the group at their meal just to see the kid smile. While he typically didn't sign autographs or anything in public (because he figured if he signed one, he'd have to sign hundreds) but kids were an exception. Plus the four young adults and the boy and his mom were the only ones in the restaurant now, besides the teens behind the counter. To everyone in town, Danny Phantom was just their local hometown boy, son of the two inventors of Fenton Works. They were used to Danny and his ghost-fighting wasn't anything special.
"You're so…normal" Haley whispered before she could stop herself. Her boyfriend and Sam started laughing. Haley had seen Danny on the news a few times and she knew her father always told her how the Air Force respected the ghost-boy. But in real life he just looked like a regular guy she'd see on campus, easily forgettable. Maybe that was why he decided to keep the charade going for years after high school. She knew from Tucker that the military had helped the group in Antarctica, but only a very tiny select group of 'special forces' knew that Danny Fenton was the Ghost-boy until almost a year ago, when he decided hiding it wasn't his best course of action. He revealed the duality of Danny Fenton/Phantom almost a year ago, so while the town had long since known, the rest of the world was still adjusting to the news.
"He is normal" Sam smirked, then eyed her own boyfriend suspiciously as he stole a fry. "You have your own fries… right there!" she feigned annoyance and he smirked, like he was any other twenty-two year old guy.
"Yours taste better" he announced in a smug satisfaction and their young observer giggled.
"Same fries" Sam laughed "They are the exact same" and then to prove her point, she took a fry from his plate.
"Maybe… but the ones on your plate taste better." He grinned as she laughed, shaking her head.
"Can't argue with his logic" Haley laughed, reaching for a fry from Tucker's plate amid the techno-geek's protests. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a blue mist escape Danny's lips and Tucker tensed beside her. She watched the group of three move into action. Automatically, the moved and it seemed like this was a choreographed dance the way all three moved in sync. As Tucker and Sam got up from the table, Danny transformed in Phantom. In that same instant, Sam pulled out what looked like a lipstick from her purse but it grew in size until Haley realized it was a round tube that said FENTON THERMOS in big block letters.
"TREMBLE BEFORE THE MIGHT OF GREASY MEATY MEAT CONTAINED IN TINY BOXED CONTAINERS OF BOXES!" Haley noticed an immediate shift in the three and Sam and Tucker sat down and Danny lazily floated over towards the voice.
"Hey, Boxy… Nasty Burger isn't your typical scene?" Danny called towards the ghost, amiably. The young boy refused to take his eyes off the scene, despite his mother's attempts at French fry and milkshake bribery. This was why he wanted to come here… to see his hero in action.
"THIS HUMAN EATERY HAS FOOD IN BOXES PREPARED FOR EASY TRANSPORT!" The Box Ghost announced "IT IS THE PERFECT PLACE TO INTRODUCE THE FOOLISH HUMANS TO THEIR FUTURE BRINGER OF BOX AND LUNCH BASED DOOOOOOM!" That was when Danny noticed the tiny ghost beside the Box Ghost. She looked a little older than Jazz's toddler daughter and the tiny ghost was sucking her thumb as she looked around. "BOX LUNCH! MEET DANNY PHANTOM, KEEPER OF THE CYLINDRICAL GHOST PORTAL CONTAINMENT CYLINDER FOR GHOSTS" He said to his daughter and the young ghost hiccupped in response.
"Wait… Box Lunch… ewww!" Danny said as realization dawned on him of his only experience with the ghostly girl when he was a teenager. He refused to think of her parentage or that ghosts could even have kids. That was a mental image he didn't need. "Just please go back to the Ghost Zone?" He didn't really want to hurt the young kid and he hoped it would be as easy as just getting his thermos.
"Beware!" the young child said happily and Danny glanced at her father. He gave Danny a look and the halfa pretended to be frightened of the child in a very over-dramatized fashion. Box Ghost gave an approving smile and nodded. Both he and his daughter then disappeared back to the Ghost Zone.
Danny shrugged at the now empty space and turned back to Fenton before walking back to his table. Sam gave him a curious look and Danny shook his head, not too sure what happened himself. "I-I guess it's bring your kid to work day?" He shrugged. "She looked kind of cute in a weird… mixture of her parents kind of way. I didn't know a ghost could be cute" he added and grinned "Except Cujo. Ghosts dogs are always adorable... except when he's in a bad mood."
"Who's the mother?" Tuck asked and Danny grinned.
"Sam's favorite ghost…" He smirked and he glanced at his girlfriend "Or one of…" he joked, knowing his girlfriend had many ghostly enemies herself. "Our deceased meat-crazy cafeteria worker" he added as Tucker blinked then shudder as realization hit.
"When did…that… happen?" Tucker asked and Sam and Danny shrugged. They had no idea and they honestly didn't care. The boy at the next table was now smashing his action figure into his burger as the four young adults were catching up, amused watching their friend's young fan.
Danny was talking to Tucker, later that night, during a city-wide patrol. "Haley is a good fit for you" Danny said and Tucker smiled, knowing she was. Tucker glanced at his best friend, seeing Danny look like there was something on his mind.
"Dude?"
"I'm going to the ghost zone tomorrow" the halfa said suddenly. He'd been planning a trip back but this was the first time he said it to Tucker. "I go monthly now… sooner if I can" he added by way of explanation and Tucker nodded, still not sure if there was something else.
"Sam knows?" He asked and Danny laughed
"Are you kidding? Of course!" He smiled, thinking of the goth "She knows about all my trips" Tucker saw him fiddling with something small and metallic in his hands.
"Why do you have the ring?" Tuck asked. Danny grinned. Every time he went into the Ghost Zone or on any trip that separated him from Sam, she'd give him the 'Wes Ring' and Danny would return it to her once he came home safely.
"Inside joke" Danny shrugged, not really wanting to explain the significance of returning the ring that began so long ago. Tucker knew the gist, but that wasn't what Danny wanted to talk about. "But this time… this time… I'm not giving this ring back" He said quietly and Tucker stared at him.
"Dude… This is Sam we're talking about… if you break her heart… she'll break you." Tucker warned and Danny shook his head.
"Not… no… It's not that I'm not giving this ring back… I'm not giving this ring back" Danny said slowly to the 'Wes Ring' as he stuck his hand in his pocket and pulled out a second ring with a black band and purple gems. He studied Tucker's face, worried Tucker would add something to cause everything to fall apart.
"Clueless no longer" Tucker said softly before chuckling "Good luck, Clueless One. Call us as soon as it's official… no waiting… I have to be able to tell my best friends that I was right all along and that they should always always listen to me."
Danny laughed. "Whatever you say, Tuck. You coming back to live here after graduation?" He asked, eager for a subject change and Tucker glanced towards him.
"I hope so… I haven't really talked to Hals about it… but I miss it here." He admitted. "How cheesy is that? I go away after high school then come crawling back after finding out I'm not fit for the California life-style" But Danny just laughed
"You're not the first… and you're not the last." He said as he felt that familiar shiver deep within him and saw the blue mist, reminding both young men the reason they were out here.
"But it will be the last thing you do, Ghostboy" Skulker said from behind the two young men.
"Two things. You make it sound like I'm still in high school… and that doesn't even make any sense to what we were talking about." Danny complained as Tucker sized up the Hunter.
"Your pelt…"
"Yeah, yeah" Danny answered dismissively. "On your wall, I know I know. You still hunting me? I would have thought you'd be tired of losing your prey" He laughed, eager for the chance to practice with some new equipment he got from his parents and Jazz's husband. "You want to do this the easy way or the hard way?" Skulker aimed a blaster at Tucker "Hard way it is!" Danny grinned "Well I've got some new toys and I've been looking for a test subject."
Sam was waiting in their shared apartment. Danny had told her he'd be home twenty minutes ago, but she knew time moved differently in the Ghost Zone… and that his parents probably roped him into something. Whenever Danny would go to the Ghost Zone, he would have to go to Fenton Works because his and Sam's apartment didn't have a portal. Danny would always joke that drilling into the Ghost Zone probably went against their lease or negated their deposit. They'd have to wait until they had a house themselves… but that would be something they'd have to talk about after tonight.
She heard his key in the door and the twenty-two year old grinned as he opened the door. "You're late" Sam teased. She was reading through her latest case at work, but set down the thick folder and her highlighter when he walked in the door.
"Watches don't work in the Ghost Zone…" he said quietly. "That'll be something I'll have to remind my parents about…"
"An anti-ecto clock?" Sam asked, amused.
"Or Tucker and Haley" Danny added. "Tuck said they'd been working on some new gadgets for us that aren't affected by the spectral energy… or some that uses it as the power source" He shrugged his shoulders and she glanced at him.
"How was it? Where'd you go?"
"I told you I planned on checking on the Far Frozen and Frostbite and his people" Danny laughed "Or were you distracted with reading your cases when I told you this morning?"
"Just because you plan on going somewhere, doesn't mean that's all you go." Sam laughed.
Danny held her close and kissed her. "I went to see Clockwork…" he added and Sam raised her eyebrow in concern. "To talk to him about the future-"
"Danny, you're not… just because the Box Lunch… doesn't mean that whole future will come true…I'm fine… Tuck, your sister… your parents… we're all fine and safe and alive"
"What? N-no! No, no…" Danny shook his head "That's not what I… never mind. Clockwork said that everything is looking good… I was just talking to him about some stuff…but of course he knew that already." Danny feigned annoyance at the all-knowing ghost.
"Of course" Sam laughed and Danny smiled and took her hand.
"I'll tell you about the Far Frozen in a minute…but first, I brought your ring back!" he added, cheekily. He slipped the ring in her hand and she blinked.
"This isn't my ring" She said quickly. It felt different than her ring, even just the weight of it was different. This ring had a black metallic band and beautiful purple stones… but it wasn't her ring. "My ring has a colored stone that's a mix between your blue eyes and your green eyes as Phantom... It's the ring that let me know you could do the impossible… because you came home to me. It's the ring that even your dad could see how we felt about each other so he had it engraved because we were both so damn stubborn and infuriating and he knew we would never admit it to anyone…That's my ring."
"This ring?" Danny asked, removing the ring in question from his pocket as Sam stared at him. He handed it to Sam and she frowned when he didn't put it on her finger.
"That's my ring" she started but Danny just grinned.
"Then I'll just take this ring back" he said, taking back the black banded ring and she just stared at him. He was acting weird. Really weird. She was about to ask if he hit his head or something during his trip in the Ghost Zone when he knelt down on one knee.
Danny had been planning and figuring out what he was going to say for days. No, he'd been trying to decide for weeks if he was being honest. But now, looking into her eyes, that speech he'd practiced had disappeared and he couldn't remember what he was going to say. The words just faded away. Sam didn't say anything, just looking at him with an eyebrow raised in curiosity. She was about to speak when he spoke first, once he got ahold of his nerves. "Remember how we talked about the future… and how I wanted to share it with you? A-as my girlfriend? W-well… I-I know that you said you'll be there to share it with me…but I want you to share it with me as my wife?" he asked, worried because he'd messed up his speech and it wasn't the one he'd practiced.
Sam smiled as she nodded "Count on it, Ghost boy" she laughed as she threw her arms around him, engulfing him in a huge hug, causing them both to fall to the floor. Danny laughed and kissed her hair, as he took her hands in his. He wrapped his arms around her as she smiled, laughing in happiness as he kissed her deeply. "We're engaged."
"We are engaged" he confirmed and before groaning. He really didn't want to get up where they were laying in each other's arms on their kitchen floor to go tell their best friend the news. "But I promised Tuck I'd tell him as soon as it happened…"
"Or we could not tell Tucker… yet. Let him wait…" Sam murmured into his neck as she ran her fingers through his hair, kissing just below his left ear.
"I love that idea, Future Mrs. Fenton" Danny joked, deepening the kiss as Sam laid back against the tile.
"Do you like your ring?" Danny asked after they hung up the phone with Tucker and Haley. The first words out of Tucker's mouth were 'finally, lovebirds' before Danny or Sam even said anything.
Sam laughed as she looked at the new ring. It was perfect, she knew Danny chose it specifically for her. "Does this mean I have to give my ring back?" she teased, holding up the gold banded ring that had her name engraved. Danny had even engraved the black band with her name in the same script as the original ring.
"Hold on to it until the next time I leave to go do something heroic and/ or stupid in the Ghost Zone?" he replied as she playfully rolled her eyes, taking off her necklace so he could add the ring to the chain while she wore her engagement ring in place of that class ring. Danny kissed her again with a smile. "Wouldn't change this for the world."
"Not one bit" his fiancée agreed.