Disclaimer: I do not Danny Phantom and am making no profit from this.

Hitting Hard
.Poisoned Scarlet.

Okay, so maybe she was being a baby about everything. But what could she do about it, really? Sam Manson lay on her bed, the sheets up to her chin, her amethyst eyes staring widely at her purple ceiling as rain pounded on the roof.

It was so loud, she didn't know how her parents managed to sleep right through storms like this. It usually took her hours to go to sleep and by that time it was much too late to even get an hour of shut eye. So that would result in another tiresome, languid day in which she would sleep in one of her classes and inevitably get detention.

Another loud BOOM struck in the sky.

How can they sleep through this?!

Maybe it was the fact that they were so tired they couldn't care if a hurricane hit.

Yeah, probably, Sam thought, swallowing as a rather loud clap echoed through her room. Her room. Sometimes she cursed herself for grabbing the biggest room in the whole house. It was wide and spacious and since it was midnight, completely dark.

So dark, all she could see was up to the end of her queen bed. From there on in everything was pitch black. Save for the brief flashes of light that came from her shrouded window.

A flash of light startled her and Sam shifted her eyes to the window. Another flash followed by a hollow crackle made her stomach squirm. She usually loved the rain, the storms. Usually when they began in the early evening, the lights were on dimly, and she had a nice hot cup of cocoa in her hand along with a nice, warm fleece blanket.

And right she didn't have either.

What probably made everything creepier was the fact that Amity Park, the small city she resided in, was practically haunted by ghosts.

Yeah, you heard her, ghosts. As in, ghouls. Those transparent, mischievous, vile and loathsome creatures of the dark. And even though she was completely and totally Goth, there was only so much a a girl could take.

So now she lay on her bed, stiff with fear, as the thought of a ghost roaming around in her room, grinning maliciously, filled her mind. Of course, her room happened to be in perfect condition for a ghost scar tactic. I mean, come on: Dark, misty room, thunderous claps outside, rain pounding, hail on it's way, the branches from the tree that stood tall and broad right by her window scratching against the glass to make a harrowing screeching sound...

Sam had found more than one ghost lurking around in the dark compartments of her closet or even in plain sight. Of course, she never told Danny or Tucker, her best friends for life, about this.

If she told them she'd never hear the end of it. Tucker would convince Danny to check up on her more than usual (or Danny just will by himself) and place a load of high-tech, anti-ghost, devices all over her house—or even neighborhood.

Sam didn't want to burden them with it, so she simply stayed quiet, snatching a Specter Deflector once in a while when Danny didn't notice. She already had her own Fenton Thermos; given to her by Danny Fenton himself "just in case." as he'd told her. In actuality, she used that ingenious device more than she hoped she would. She was sure she had at least fifteen ghosts inside the infinite tube.

She had to release those ghosts into the Ghost Zone soon; lest they broke free from their restraint and caused havoc in her room.

A shift in light made Sam freeze up. She sunk deeper into her bed, bringing the blanket almost over her eyes as she listened for peculiar noises. And she got one, alright; it was a sifting, mischievous noise. It was like someone was skulking around in her room, watching her.

Huh. Now that she thought about it, she did feel watched.

Sam swallowed down a gasp and stared at the ceiling once again. The rain was pounding heavily now and it was making her fidgety. She never did like late-night rainstorms because of the ghosts that haunted her room. The just loved to mess around with her and, even though they knew her affiliation with Danny Phantom, that did nothing to stop them from coming back to spook her every once in a while.

Or everytime she was alone and without Danny or Tucker—which was why she hated heading home.

Not just because her parents bugged the heck out of her whenever they commented on her clothing style (which was every time) but because of the ghosts that haunted her room often grinned at the thought of making her skin crawl with unseen creepy crawlers and making her heart thump faster than it was suppose to.

Another flash of light, followed by a frightening clap, followed by a creepy giggle and more shifting was what broke Sam from her train of thought.

She shot up in her bed and glared around her room, knowing her glare wasn't going to affect any ghost lurking about since it held no anger nor malice—more like fear and worry.

She hated when she was weak like this; unable to even stand up to a couple of stupid ghosts.

"Alright, stop it!" Sam shouted into the dark."I'm trying to get some sleep and you're not making it any better!" She stared into the black, swallowing down a whimper when the light flashed again—harder, brighter—and the sound continued—louder, closer—and tried her best not to lay back down and throw the blanket over her head.

Oh, man, what I would give to have Danny over— She halted her thoughts. No way was she going to go recruit Danny's help to battle some little old ghosties. Sam Manson wasn't that type of girl—the damsel in distress type, that is. She was an independent, fiery, individual who believed in fighting for what she deemed right and not taking no for an answer.

... But right now she could really, really use Danny's help.

Sam swung her legs over her mattress, consciously aware that something might be lurking underneath her bed, and grabbed her phone.

All of a sudden, sound became silenced. The thunderous claps halted and the flashing light stopped. The rain seemed to lighten and Sam was so close to putting the phone back onto the receiver until a really big BOOM shook her to her core.

Sam dialed in Danny's number, anxious to hear his lovely, deep, voice which soothed her like nothing else. Not even her parents or dearly beloved pooch could sooth her the way Danny could. It was one of those mysterious charms the halfa had.

Or maybe it was just her.

Sam heard a click in the line and was thrilled to hear his tired yawn followed by a: "Sam? What's—yawn—up?"

"D-Danny!" She stammered, relief clear in her words. "Oh, Danny, I thought you would never pick up!"

"Jeez, Sam, sappy much?" Came his light-hearted reply; sleepiness gone. "Alright then, since you decided to call me at—three am in the morning for no specific reason, mind filling me in on the details?"

"I—" She was just about to unleash a mock-flirt reply when a noise made the hairs on her neck stand. Sam stood up, swallowing, and looked into the dark with unsure eyes. Maybe she should just give up her tough-girl act and tell Danny what had been going on and why she was so reluctant to head back home—because she was being haunted by at least three ghosts.

Two little girls and a boy around her age. Well, at least that was how they manifested themselves to be. Sam had heard Danny drone on and on about how ghosts created fonts in order to gain a mortals confidence. Course, she knew these ghosts weren't here for friend-making.

"Sam? Hey, are you alright?" Danny's concern made Sam smile a bit, but it quickly disappeared when a giggle followed by a hic-up of laughter chilled her. Now there were two voices; a high pitched and a raspy voice.

They were at it again alright—picking stuff up, misplacing things, making her bed shake...

I've been watching way to many horror-flicks. Sam thought dryly, trying to ease her fright. "Uh, um, sorry Danny, I just stubbed my toe." She lied.

She heard Danny snicker on the other line. "Klutz. Now really, why did you call me up at three am? Seriously, this is like the one night in the whole week I can actually go to sleep at curfew."

Way to make me feel guilty, Dan. "Err—yeah, it was one of those unconscious habits." Sam lied, knowing she should tell him the truth but her ego too big to allow her too. "You know, kinda like sleep walking?" She cursed herself for making it sound like a question.

And because it sounded so stupid.

"Uh-huh... sure." Sam winced. He totally did not buy that load of bull.

"No! Really! Haven't you read about it in those medical magazines?" Sam continued on, hoping he'll have one of those "moments" and believe every word she said. Hoping he would be clueless like he used to be. In a way, Sam liked it when he was clueless; it was one of the many frustrating character traits Danny possessed. It might get her so worked up she'd rip out the hair in her scalp but at least that way he never found out about her crush on him. Or, at least, she made herself believe it was a crush.

In reality, she couldn't picture a world without Danny Fenton or Danny Phantom.

It was just so... so—it was a terrifying thought for her. To put it bluntly.

"No, really! No joke, Danny," Sam continued, desperate for him to believe a lie she didn't even believe herself.

"No, yeah, sure, I totally believe it, Sam." Sam almost groaned into the speaker.

But now, Danny wasn't so gullible to every little thing people told him.

Of course he'd have to be a bit more skeptical—he fought ghosts, for crying out loud! Lying, deceiving, malicious ghosts!

Kinda like the ones that were scaring the wits out of her right now. Sam knew she had nothing to be afraid of—it was just a simple haunting but she couldn't be so sure anymore. They could be just portraying as humans left behind; the whole 'wondering soul' charade. But if they turned out to be something more... she could be in real danger.

"Hey! And since when do you read medical magazines? I thought all you read were VAMPSextreme and Goth's Gone Wild!" Sam rolled her eyes at the cliché names her best friend invented and laughed along with him as the thunder lessened and the rain increased a notch or two.

"Oh, shut up, Dan—EEP!" Sam gasped when the phone was thrown out of her hands. Shaky and confused, Sam wondered away from her bed, swallowing down a scream as giggles filled the recesses of her mind. They echoed and bounced inside her head, driving her crazy as she tried to get back to her bed, to hide under her covers and wait for Danny to come. Because she knew he would come. It wasn't normal for someone to be cut off in mid-sentence... she just hoped Danny didn't have one of those drowsy moments and fall back asleep; phone still in hand and drooling already.

Faintly, she could hear Danny's hysteric cries of: "Sam?! SAM?!" Coming from somewhere farther into the room. Her dark, damp room.

Sam braced herself and shouted, "Danny! Danny, listen to me! I need your help! Ghosts! Ghosts are invading my—KYHAAA!" Sam let out an uncharacteristic scream when one of the dead girls came right into her face, her bluish-gray face deadly serious as her eyes danced with scarlet flames. The girl grinned, somehow keeping her serious facade, and said in that echo-like, devoid, voice of hers: "I wouldn't do that if I were you..."

"Y-Yeah, I wouldn't do that either if I was me either..." Sam uttered shakily, gulping down her shock. Not once had one of the dead girls tried anything on her; nothing this extreme. She'd hear their voices, perhaps seen a blur of one of the two, but she'd really never seen them.

The dead girl kept grinning and in a flash of light she was gone from sight, leaving behind one of her terrible giggles.

Sam shut her eyes,breathing deeply and shouting: "DANNY HELP ME!" She knew she blew it. She should've stayed quite. She should've kept her big mouth shut.

But she wouldn't be Sam Manson without going against all orders, even with the knowledge that they were for her own good...

She was thrown from her bed and to the floor, where she gasped and kept in her pain as electricity shot up her arm. Sam crawled away from her bed, determined to find the phone and call for help, before another shove threw her off balance. Someone grabbed her by the hair and yanked her up, where she was met with two fiery red eyes which would've entranced her to the point of slavery if it wasn't for the nipping fear she felt on every skin cell she had.

"I told you not to do that!" yelled the little girl, sending a scathing glare to the slightly older girl that stood a few feet away; the only glow in that portion of the room. "Didn't I tell her not to do that?!"

The girl nodded absently, picking her nails. "Yes, you did tell her that," she said in her raspy, dead voice.

"So now I can punish her, right? Right! Cause all I wanted to do was play with her but all she does is go out with that stupid, stupid boy with black hair!" The little girl sniffled and lowered her head, shaking in fury. "Stupid, stupid boy taking away my playmate! That's why I came here, 'cause you're" —The little ghost girl pointed at the older girl—"boring and I thought you would be better!" The little girls eyes bore into Sam's mysterious violet ones, showing all the hostility and anger she'd been suppressing for God knew how many years.

"I—I—look, I'm sorry!" Sam said, screwing her eyes shut against the pain that bolted from her hair being pulled back. "But I—I just really like hanging out with him and it's not my fault! I didn't know you wanted to play... trust me, if I knew, I wouldn't go off with him." Sam opened her eyes and she knew the little ghost girl didn't buy a word. She spat to the ground and sent her a menacing glare.

"Liar," she growled, low and hating. "You wouldn't play with me even if you knew I wanted to! BECAUSE YOU LOVE THAT DANNY BOY AND YOU WON'T PLAY WITH MEEE!" She swallowed a breath she didn't need and wailed, sending the vibrations directly to Sam, who gasped as the unearthly shock waves misted through her, filled her with a type of shock that she knew she couldn't just ignore.

There was another flash, but this time it didn't come from the window, it come from right in-front of her. Something pushed her away with a kind of frightened cry of her name as she tried to grasp her barrings and control her arrhythmical heart. The waves from the ghostly wail still passed through her with the same intensity as she tried to choke in a wail of her own. How long had it been? Something told her seconds but shouldn't the wail just pass through her? Like it usually did with Danny?

Or were these simply the after-effects of the wail?

Sam didn't know. All she knew was that vision was beginning to blur as she coughed and hacked and tried everything she could in order to alleviate the pain simmering inside of her—the ghostly slithering that tangled up her insides and left her helpless to anything. It felt as if someone had turned up the stereo to a deafening point; she couldn't hear single thing. The shocks fried up everything in her body; her limbs felt numb, her eyes felt dry and sucked of life and she couldn't even feel her own mouth move as she suppressed cries.

Is this how Danny feels whenever he's hit with a wail? But... he looks fine after a second... but maybe.. "Sam! Oh, jeez, Sam, please say something!" Maybe he's faking being alright... "Sam? Hey, no. No, no, Sam, don't black out on me." Or maybe it's because of his ghost abilities that it doesn't hurt that much. "You have to stay awake! You got a direct hit of the Ghost Wail. You have to stay awake so I can ease the pain. It won't go away—not when the wail is directed onto a human."

Sam mumbled incoherently, eyes fluttering as she tried to contain another blow of the wail. It was repetitive, like it just wouldn't pass through her. No matter how much she tried to ignore the scathing burns of the wail; it was just no good.

The ghostly echo's simply wouldn't lower in power.

"Alright, hold still." Said the voice, hesitant. "This is going to hurt, but—"

Sam felt a surge of energy course through her body and she didn't even have time to scream as her nerves fried with the new invasive energy. She just felt her body arch before she hit the ground again. In a second, the shock waves quit and she was left breathing heavily. It felt like a work out now; like she just got back from the Boot Camp of Doom and she just wanted to go pass out on the couch.

Then it was silent.

"S-Sam?" Came that lovely voice again; that dark and mysterious voice, drenched with fear. "Please... open your eyes, Sam..."

So she did as the voice asked and slowly fluttered her eyes, gazing into the glowing emerald eyes of her savior. It took her a moment to figure out it was Danny as his other half. Those beautiful, concerned, worry-filled, glowing green eyes of him made her—wait a second!

Sam shot up from the floor, vertigo making her lean over, before shaking her head and staring hesitantly into Danny's relieved green eyes.

"Oh, Sam!" He sighed with relief. "You had be chewing on my nails there! I thought for sure you were gonna—whoa—hey!" Danny felt his face heat up when Sam jumped into his arms, hugging him tightly and burying her face into the nook of his neck.

He swallowed and his hands went around her hips while she clutched him tightly. He relaxed after a few seconds, sighing contently into her hair as she looked over her shoulder. Danny being easily swayed, Sam was really just making sure all of the ghosts were gone. Her eyes flickered north, east and west for any sign of ghostly glow and once satisfied she leaned off of him—if only he would let her go.

It was then that it struck her that she'd needly clung to him and now he was clinging onto her and liking it. And much to her horror, she was liking too. The way his hands slithered around her waist and held her tightly, firmly. She couldn't deny that she loved feeling his chest on hers, her cheek pressed against his neck as the fresh smell of aftershave washed through her nose. So, Sam did what she'd been dying to do ever since she found out about her crush on Danny three years ago—she leaned in and pressed onto him tighter, not wanting the moment to disappear.

This is so girly, but I have been waiting FOREVER for this! Ugh, this is so girly...

"Sam.." Danny didn't seem the least bit bothered. In fact, he closed his eyes and leaned into her too, hugging her closer than he'd ever allow. You don't hug your best friend so intimately when you've sworn yourself off her. For life. But with her coming onto him that way.. it was kinda hard to say no.

Especially when he really did like her.

A lot, a lot.

Nothing like those silly crushes he'd had on Paulina and Valerie. This was totally different—this kind of like made him feel hot and sweaty and nervous.

Right now he was getting that way; once his mind decided to turn on and shove the truth right into his face: that he was hugging Sam and her chest was more developed than it appeared to be... and her—

Uh oh.

"WHOA!" Sam fell forward, face smacking on the floor as Danny phased through and fell to the basement. Danny quickly went tangible, face redder than scarlet as he looked at his hands and cursed them to oblivion; they were touching places they were not suppose to be touching. He swallowed and quickly floated upward, watching as Sam rubbed her button nose and looked annoyingly at the dark surrounding her.

Did she notice? Danny thought, paling. Oh, God, I really do hope she didn't notice I was practically groping her—ohhh, crud. But to his relief, Sam simply looked around once and called, "Danny! Danny, I know you're here! You can hide you body, but I feel the cold spots you leave behind!"

He sighed and went tangible, cracking a smile when her shoulders relaxed upon seeing him. She stood up and walked to the light switch, feeling the wall as she tried to localize the small switch.

She almost tripped over one of her combat boots.

Danny snickered. "Here, let me help you." He floated easily across the room and flicked on the light, grinning. He leaned on the wall and transformed into his black hair, blue eyed counterpart. "Alright, now I know why you called me."

Sam shifted. "Yeah... you know, it is perfect ghost environment. With the storm and all..."

Danny nodded, keeping his trained blue eyes on her own violet. "Yeah... they did seem pretty homey here, don't you think?"

Sam stiffened. "Oh, yeah! You know my house—huge and homey."

"Yeah... they also seemed to look like they've been here for a while..." He trailed off, narrowing his eyes at her own roaming ones. "Any idea why?"

Sam gave in, just like he planned she would, and sighed. "Alright, alright! I get it.. they've been haunting my room for the last year or so."

His eyes bulged. "Year?! They've been haunting you for a year?" He walked closer to her, grabbing her shoulder. "Sam, why didn't you tell me?! We could've prevented that this ever happened! Heck, what happened if they disconnected the phone and I couldn't be here right now? Or Overshadowed you? Or maybe even—" Sam's soft hand clamped over his mouth.

She sighed. "This is why. Because then you guys will get all worried over me and start to drop by to check on me more often," she looked up onto Danny's troubled eyes. "I just didn't want to worry you guys. I'm sorry."

He was serious for a moment, before a grin cracked on his face and he began to double over in laughter.

Sam stood there, dumbfounded, staring at Danny with burning cheeks as he laughed. "Hey! What's so funny? It's the truth!"

Danny waved his hand, "It's—hahaha—it's not that! It's just that... Sam, we're always worried about you!" Danny straightened, elaborating once spotting Sam's confusion. "We're always watching you, Sam. We're always worried about how you are, where you're at, who you're giving eyes too.." For a moment, Sam could have sworn Danny's eyes flashed a deadly green. "So it doesn't matter if you tell us this, we'll just hook you up with the latest anti-ghost devices mom and dad created and you'll be good to go!" He placed a hand on her shoulder, looking down at her five foot seven frame. "So, next time something like this happens—you don't end up getting hurt."

Sam was awfully aware at how warm and large his hand was as it rested on her shoulder. "Yeah... I guess." She smiled. "Then next time my room gets haunted, I'll know who to call!"

"Don't make me say that ridiculous catch phrase Tucker said last time."

Sam smirked. "Ghost Busters?"

Danny sighed, scratching his messy hair. "Yeah, that."

And then awkwardness ensued as the two hormonal teens stood a bit too close to each other, Danny's hand still on her shoulder and Sam wanting to put her hands all over him.

"U-uhm," Danny stuttered and quickly hid his nervousness with a quirky grin. "I think I'll be going now. It's going to be five am and we have a test for Lancer's class..." He groaned. "Great. Now I gotta cram."

Sam laughed lightly, "Yeah, you should go and study before school..."

"Yeah."

"Yeah." Danny let his arm drop to his side and Sam was aware at how cold her shoulder got. She almost told him to put it back, but quickly shut up when he walked to her window and in a great flash of white transformed into Danny Phantom. With his snow white hair being dampened by the rain splashing outside, Danny threw a quick smile at Sam before hopping onto the windowsill.

Then Sam got a devious thought. "Hey, Danny, before you leave..."

"Yes, Sam?" He turned himself around and waited patiently.

She grinned. "I never took you as a horn dog."

Danny stopped, stared, and flushed a brilliant red. "I-I-I-Ooh..." He groaned as she bent over and laughed. "I swear I didn't mean it Sam! Honestly!"

She covered her mouth. "Really? Your hand was oh-so enthusiastically grabbing my—HAHAHA!" Sam hid her face in her hands as her shoulders shook with mirth. Danny sat cross legged in the air, pouting, and wondering to himself why she wasn't angry with him; why she was laughing so hard and why she wasn't out for blood yet.

He shrugged. Maybe it was a girl thing...

"You're—not mad at me?" He asked hesitantly, almost regretting asking in the first place when she slowly stopped and stared amusingly at him.

"Nah," she waved, "Why would I be mad at you? At least it was me and not—" She stopped herself, eyes going wide, as Danny smirked and crossed his arms, staring smugly at a doe eyed Sam.

"And not who?" He leaned in.

She shook her head. "No one. Now go before I send you to the Ghost Zone, Danny" She shooed him, face red and looking almost angry. But Danny didn't move, he floated to her and circled her some, avoiding every shove and push.

"No way, Sam," Danny sang. "And not who? Come on, tell me!"

"No one!" Sam bit. "Now go!"

"Nuh-uh, not until you tell me!" Danny put his hands behind his head and laid down in the air, eying her with twinkling eyes as she flushed another shade of red.

"I—it was nothing, okay?" she said, tiredly. "Now, go. I need sleep, too, you know."

Danny frowned and stayed silent for a moment, deciding if he should go or not. In the end, he decided to leave. Might as well, he thought, it's not like she'll tell me... Once Sam makes up her mind, she makes up her mind. He floated almost depressingly to the windowsill, looking back once before getting ready to take off.

Damn. Guilt. Curse you Danny Fenton!

"... That it wasn't Valerie or Paulina."

Danny froze and whipped his head back to Sam, who was already under her sheets with her back turned to him. The frosty rain didn't even make him shiver as he floated outside, getting drenched and knowing it but unable to stop staring at her. He bit his lip and rubbed the back of his head, fisting his hand and daring himself to say what he wanted to say before he lost his nerve.

"You should know that the only girl I'm willing to touch is you," And he shut her window and went intangible, not believing what he'd just voiced. He saw her shoot up in her bed, turn to the window and search for any sign of him. He watched as she sighed and looked down, a hint of a smile playing on her lips before she shook her head and fell on her pillow, snuggling in.

Danny stayed outside her window for a while more. The rain pelted the earth harshly but it simply passed through him like nothing. He floated back to his home almost dreamily.

Maybe he should come bust ghosts at her place more often.

But as he showered and changed, throwing his school supplies into his backpack and getting ready to bound down the stairs and eat breakfast before meeting up with his two best friends like always, a thought made him stop dead and drop the spoonful of cereal.

Somehow, he knew that after that little confession last night, he wouldn't be able to look at Sam Manson the same way ever again.

"Danny?" Jazz called concernedly, waving a hand over his face as he stared horror-struck at the wall. "Danny, is everything alright?"

"I-I, uh, yeah, Jazz." He swallowed. "Peachy."

His sister stared at him for a little while more. Before a knowing glint settled into her clear blue eyes. "Someone just realized they opened their big, fat mouth and said something they weren't suppose to to their best girl friend."

Danny grabbed his backpack, face scarlet, and muttered, "Jazz. Shut up."

Jazz, on the other hand, laughed as her little brother phased through the wall and headed to school. She rested her chin on her hand, smiling giddily.

"I knew it."

A/N: The title came to me as a spur-of-the-moment thing, since I was at my grandmother's place for the summer. Could you believe it was storming there? The loud thunder storm served as my inspiration and why Danny Phantom?.. Well, come on! Ghosts and storms! What can I say? Amity Park came to mind.

This is probably the worst I've done in FFN. Writing-style wise. For some reason, even though I went back through it and reread it, I couldn't polish it up like I normally do. This is, sadly, the best I can do with this particular fiction.

It's probably because this is my first time steering away from the Naruto, NejiTen, category. So please, cut me some slack. I've got a couple of ideas for DP :3

Scarlett.