Disclaimer : Nope, don't own.
Also, this has absolutely nothing to do with any of my other fics.
A Chance Meeting
A gift to TheFishKing.
Danny pulls at his sleeves, not really comfortable in this whole... outfit. He's wearing a long-sleeved black tunic, with a white belt and pants, and black boots. Little pieces of armor – two gauntlets here, a shoulder pad there, some armor around his hips, small bit of a breastplate – are scattered across his body.
All of this emphasizes the circlet above his brow and nestled in his snowy white hair, the form the Crown of Fire took when he became the Crown Prince of the Ghost Zone.
(Not to be confused with the King of the Ghost Zone, which he would only become after his sixteenth century as a ghost. And wasn't that a scary thought, "living" that long.)
He fiddles with the edge of his tunic, pulling at a loose thread. He is... a bit nervous. This will be his second "public appearance" in the Zone as it's Prince, the first after his Coronation.
"You okay, Danny?"
He's so glad he's not on his own.
"Hey, Sam." He smiles into the mirror, meeting the concerned lilac gaze of his Betrothed (girlfriend to the Real World) as she comes up behind him. He studies her without turning around.
She's wearing a short black dress with a purple, black, and green floor-length open skirt over it. There are vines wrapped around her waist and chest, and a black cape with a purple inside fastened around her shoulders. On her right arm is another vine wrapped from the back of her hand almost to her shoulder. On her other arm, are three different gloves, each a different length and color. Finally, her shoes are a pair of black high-heeled boots, the top of which are turned inside out so you can see that the insides are purple as well. She looks so beautiful.
Sam turns him around, fixing the clips for his cape so they're even. Gently, he takes her hand, pressing a kiss on it just above his ring to her, the other symbol of the Ghost King, the Ring of Rage. It turned out that the King was never supposed to wield that kind of power on their own. They were supposed to share it with their Queen. The previous King, Pariah Dark, had never taken a Queen, and thus had been overwhelmed by the power the two artifacts held within.
Danny, not wanting to turn out the same way, had proposed to Sam (who was already his girlfriend at the time) as soon as he got home from the Coronation. Of course, he made sure that she understood just what she was committing to before he allowed her to say anything, but that didn't stop her from saying yes.
Now, they were in a back room in the part of the Zone that connected to Hades, preparing to attend Pandora's Deathday party, which would be doubling as a meet-and-greet that would allow him and Sam to be introduced to the Greek Pantheon.
And since Pandora was their ally in the Zone, and the party was taking place in the Zone, if the Greeks caused trouble, Danny would be able to kick them out if needed.
He hopes it won't be needed.
"Danny," Sam lays her free hand (he's still holding the other) on his cheek and tilts his head so he's looking into her eyes, a light purple surrounded by radioactive green – a side affect from Undergrowth's possession of her a year ago and the energy of the Ring of Rage – gazing at him lovingly. "Stop worrying. Everything will by fine. Even if something does happen, as unlikely as that is, you can literally banish people from the Ghost Zone. You are in charge here, everything is on your terms, and no one can take that away from you."
He breathes in deeply, and straightens his spine. "You're right, of course." He murmurs to her. "Thanks, Sam." He leans forward and brushes his lips against hers in a light kiss, then rests his forehead on hers, gazing into her two-toned eyes and relishing the moment of peace.
Gosh, he loved this girl.
A light knocking on the room's double doors draws his attention reluctantly away from her.
Danny sighs, and moves Sam's hand to rest on his arm, before calling out in the Ghost Zone most common, yet unnamed language. "Enter."
The doors swing open and admit one of Danny's new servants, who had come with his inheritance, who bows deeply once at the doorway.
"Speak,Crispus." Danny acknowledges, and leads Sam closer to him.
"My Prince, my Lady, your carriage awaits you."
Danny nods and gives the relatively young looking ghost a smile. He knew that the servants had suffered under Pariah, and had transferred their fear of the former ruler to Danny himself. He was doing his best to abolish that fear, but it was a work in progress. They weren't flinching every time he moved or spoke anymore, which was a relief. He didn't like the idea of innocent ghost (or people of any kind, really) being afraid of him.
"Than we shouldn't keep them waiting." Danny walks to him, Sam next to him.
Crispus moves out of the way as they walk pass, then closes the doors behind them.
Out in the hallway, Danny taps into his Ghost Core to hover, lending some to Sam – through touch – to do the same. That wasn't a power she had gotten from Undergrowth, flight, so Danny always made sure to keep some kind of contact with her in the Zone, unless it was just the two of them.
They make their way through the towering corridors and arching halls to the front entrance of the Royal Keep, the Castle in the exact center of the Zone, home to the ghosts' rulers and their family.
Exiting, they find their ride to Pandora's waiting for them. A lovely black, white, and green carriage, pulled by a team of four Swiftwinds, beautiful silver (yet see-through) winged horse-like spirits who were said to be the dead first offspring of the immortal Pegasus, sits patiently at the bottom of the stairs.
(It is said that only the strongest of protectors could get near Swiftwinds, much less ride them, so the fact that a small herd of them sought out Danny in the Human World not three days after his Coronation, and – according to Clockwork, who could understand them – pledged themselves to his service in return for his protection, was a huge shock.)
Danny guides his Betrothed into their ride, then settles in next to her, silently wishing that this was the trip back instead of to Pandora's.
~! #$%^&*()_+
Robin bounces in place, excited. Wonder Woman, as the Amazonian Ambassador to "Man's Land", had been charged with being her nation's representative at the "Deathday Party" for Pandora, from the myth of Pandora's Box.
When it was brought up in a meeting, she offered to take the Team, Robin and his teammates, with her as a way to gain experience in such situations.
Permission had been given, and so Robin was standing here, on Olympus, surrounded by living Olympian myths and his teammates alike, preparing to be driven to a part of the Underworld by Hermes, who would be leading the way.
Not to far from them stands another group of teenagers that were also going to learn how to do politics. Wonder Woman had told them these were some of the demi-god children of both Greek and Roman legends. They had all fought in the last mythological war, which the Justice League hadn't been allowed to get involved in.
Robin catches the sea-green eyes of one of the boys by accident. Not really bothered – they were supposed to be making allies, right? – Robin waves and moves toward them. The older teen – he is rather tall, and leanly built, Robin puts his age somewhere around eighteen – returns the wave and meets the Boy Wonder halfway between their groups.
"Hi! I'm Robin. The other League partners and I were asked to accompany Wonder Woman to get experience in the political scheme of being superheroes. What about you guys?" Robin smiles up (why is everyone taller then him? So not 'asterious) at him, trying, and failing, to stand still.
"Percy Jackson, son of Poseidon." He answers, fidgeting with something in his pocket. "My friends and I are going for pretty much the same reason, only we're kinda the poster kids for Olympus now, after winning the war against the giants."
Robin opens his mouth to reply, only to be interrupted by Wonder Woman.
"Robin, please come here. We need to get going."
Robin turns toward her. "Coming!" he calls, then turn back to Percy. "See you at the party!"
He runs over to his friends,the son of Poseidon's shout of "See you!" in his ears.
The trip through the Underworld is amazing. First, they pass over the River Styx, and the ferryman Charon ferrying souls. Then, they fly over the Fields of Asphodel, until they reach a tall rock wall. They fly into a cave, at the end of which is a radioactive green circular portal.
On the other side, is a world even stranger then Robin even thought was possible.
The air is green, the same green the portal had been, yet not, because, while it all glows with it's own light, there are different shades that mingle and circle each other in never-ending patterns. Floating among the green, are purple doors of different designs and islands of all shapes, sizes, and foliage.
Robin spends the rest of the ride in awe of the scenery.
Finally, they spot a Grecian building, almost like a palace. They join a procession of other chariots, carriages, and just strangely skin colored – the most common of which being green and blue – people floating in line.
"Before we go any farther," Hermes suddenly calls out, turning slightly to look at them while still keeping an eye on the horses. "I have been commanded by Zeus to tell you of this part of the Underworld's new Prince. He has only recently been crowned, and, as this sector has never been under Hades control, despite being connected, has complete command here. He could order Zeus himself to leave, and he would be obeyed. Be careful. We do not wish to anger him."
Robin nods firmly, his teammates making their own motions of affirmation. The teen can't help but wonder what was this Prince like, to have such power over his domain.
~! #$%^&*()_+
Danny smiles up at Pandora, who had just greeted Sam and he warmly. They had arrived early, both to get a little bit of alone time with the four-armed ghost, and so Danny could ask a favor.
"I know you are looking forward to introducing me to your people, but I would like to meet them first, without my title making an impression for me, if that would be alright with you, Pandora?"
The older ghost frowns, but agrees.
~! #$%^&*()_+
Robin remains on the outskirts of the huge ballroom-like area, feeling a bit awkward being in such a place as Robin. Usually, he would be going to something like this as Dick Grayson, but it was nice to have a different viewpoint, if only for future reference.
He takes a step back, about to move on, only to knock into someone.
Robin finishes turning, and apologizes quickly as he finds himself meeting a pair of brilliant green eyes.
"It's alright," he says, white hair bobbing slightly. "This type of thing happens a lot in things like this." He pauses, looking the Boy Wonder up and down. "Hey, you're Robin, aren't you?"
Robin startles. He didn't think anyone here would recognize him. "Yep, that's me."
The other teen smiles. "Cool. I'm Danny, and this –" he motions to the girl on his arm that Robin hadn't noticed "– is Sam, my Betrothed. It's a pleasure to meet you."
"You, too." Robin holds his hand out to shake, and he knows this is going to be a beautiful friendship.
The trio loose track of time, talking to each other. Robin learns that Danny actually acts as a guardian spirit/superhero for his own town, Sam and a third friend of theirs helping. With that revelation, they start trading stories of superhero shenanigans. From body switching to rescuing cats from trees, the talk about every topic under the sun.
That is, until the four-armed Pandora, whom the Team had been introduced to on the way inside, walks over with Zeus, Hera, and a few of the demi-gods.
Danny turns his full attention to them, giving a small, upward nod to Pandora, while Robin watches curiously .
"Your Majesties, allow me to introduce His Royal Highness, Crown Prince Daniel Phantom, and his Bride-To-Be, Samantha Flora*. Your Highness, Your Ladyship, King Zeus of Olympus, His wife, Queen Hera, and the strongest of their Half-Blood heroes."
"Wait!" Robin spins around to face Danny and Sam. "You're their Prince and Princess?!"
Danny chuckles nervously and rubs the back of his neck. "Surprise?"
~! #$%^&*()_+
*Flora as in flora and fauna.
Thank you for reading.