Author's Note: Thanks to everyone who favorited, followed and reviewed! Special thanks to Phantom J. Rider and The Mirror Above the Sink who beta-read this chapter for me!
Don't own Danny Phantom. Chapter named after Smoke and Mirrors by Imagine Dragons
A little warning: there's going to be bullying in this chapter
Meh! Meh! Meh!
Danny reached towards the alarm clock on his bedside table. He fell short and grabbed the clock's power cord instead. Instinctively, he pulled, bringing the clock and anything in its path crashing to the floor. The clock continued blaring, sending a headache reverberating throughout Danny's skull. He moaned in annoyance and yanked his covers off.
Once he managed to sit up, Danny pulled the plug, halting his alarm's irritating symphony. Sure, he would have to go through the trouble of resetting it when he got home, but he didn't care.
He stretched, yawned a bit, and then gathered up his clothes for the day and headed to the bathroom. It might've been annoying waking up thirty minutes before he needed to, but at least he could take a quick shower before Jazz hogged the bathroom.
Not even two minutes into his shower, Danny heard a knock on the door.
"Hurry up!" his older sister called out. "I need to get to school early today."
"You're always early to school!" Danny shouted back.
"Just be quick!" she retorted.
Danny shook his head. "I take the fastest showers in this house," he muttered to himself.
He took his time, trying to use up as much hot water as he could just for spite. Then he got out, dried off, and got dressed.
Danny stepped up to the sink to brush his teeth. While brushing, he kept his head down, avoiding eye contact with his reflection in the mirror.
Danny never liked mirrors. Even when he was little, he'd tried to evade them. He was even made fun of in school for his unnatural fear. But it hadn't been all that bad. After all, he did meet his two best friends when they defended him from one such bullying session.
A knock rattled the door, causing Danny to jump.
"Hurry up Danny!" sang his mother. "Your sister uses the bathroom too, you know."
Danny spit out the toothpaste in his mouth. "I know Mom. I'll be out in a minute."
All refreshed and clean for the day, Danny finally left the bathroom. Jazz rushed past him and slammed the door as soon as her brother was clear. Danny hurried down the stairs and entered the kitchen. He riffled through the nearest cabinet and took out a box of cereal. He grabbed a bowl on his way to the table. Then he walked to the fridge, opened the door, and groaned loudly in mild anger.
"What's up, son?" asked Jack as he rounded the corner to the kitchen entrance. He repeatedly dipped a spoon into his own bowl of cereal.
Danny arched his eyebrows and gave his father a side-long glance. "There's no more milk."
"No!" The large man threw one hand in the air while the other cradled his breakfast. "Oh, the humanity!"
As always, Danny wasn't sure if he should've taken Jack's reaction seriously or not. He merely scowled and shut the fridge door.
"Hey Danny-boy," said Jack. "Don't be so glum."
Danny gave his dad a half smile, even if it only made Jack feel better. "I'm all right. So far, this morning isn't all it's cracked up to be."
"Well look on the bright side," countered Jack as he stepped up beside Danny and placed a large hand on his shoulder. "Things can only get better from here."
Danny nodded. "All right."
Of course it'll get better, Danny thought to himself sarcastically as he got muscled into his locker once again. He could hear the jeering laughter of Dash and his fellow jocks through the grating. A few seconds later, their guffawing began to fade as they made their way to class.
"Hello?" Danny cried out as soon as he knew they were gone.
"I'm on it." was the reply. The mechanism within the locker door clicked delicately while the person on the other side turned the dial. The door opened and Danny spilled to the floor, unable to catch himself before falling.
Sam and Tucker, Danny's closest friends since forever, helped him back to his feet.
"That's the third time this week!" yelled Sam. Her hands were clenched into fists. The Goth style make-up seemed to accentuate the rage apparent on her face. "Why does he keep going after you?"
Danny shrugged nonchalantly and red flushed into Sam's cheeks. She punched Danny's locker, focusing all her anger into the one, solid hit.
Tucker shifted his gaze away from the small device in his hands to address his companions.
"Hey, uh, guys? We should probably head to class now," He inched a little ways away from Sam. Even though both boys had been witness to some of Sam's more violent tendencies, neither had still become fully used to it.
"Yeah," Sam replied. "Let's get going. Lancer might've already marked us late or absent."
Mr. Lancer's literature class went by, of course, with several more incidents. Incidents such as Dash tripping Danny when he got up to receive his graded test, realizing he got another D-, and then being called out in front of everybody by Lancer. Danny was relieved when the bell finally rang, signaling an end to the torture.
Eager to leave the suffocating atmosphere, Danny rushed out the door. His friends were stuck in the back, so he waited for them in the hallway. He took a couple of deep breaths, trying to prepare himself for the rest of the day. I wonder if I can convince Ms. Tetslaff I'm sick? He thought to himself. I really don't want to go to gym class.
A large hand grabbed hold of Danny's shirt, interrupting his musings. Dash pulled him forward and sneered in his face. "You're coming with me."
Before he could protest, Danny was surrounded by Dash's posse and dragged to the closest bathroom. One of Dash's buddies closed the door behind them and stood by it.
"Alright," sighed Danny, "what is it this time?" Dash brought his face uncomfortably close to Danny's, his lips turned up in a cruel smile. "I've just about had it." he said. "First math, now English. I swear if I didn't have my little punching bag," he slugged Danny in the shoulder, "I'd be going mad by now."
Danny wrinkled his nose, which the blonde brute saw as a look of defiance. He threw Danny at the back wall and began whaling on him. Dash's punches became more brutal as his friends cheered him on. Danny tried to wrap his arms around himself for protection, but only managed to block the kicks toward his head.
Finally, Dash stepped back, gazing down at the smaller boy cringing on the floor.
"Come on, Danny," he mocked. "Cry for us. Cry like a little baby."
"I'm not… that...scared of you," Danny wheezed out through clenched teeth. The football star blinked in surprise. "Well then, we're going to have to fix that." He grabbed Danny and hoisted him up. "I know! Don't you have, uh, spek-, specs-, uh,-"
"Spectrophobia?" answered Kwan.
"Yeah that!" Dash said triumphantly. It took Danny a moment to realize that Dash was taking him to the bathroom mirrors.
He covered his face and began shouting, "No! Stop!"
Dash struggled to grab Danny's arms but couldn't quite pin them down.
"Hey guys, help me out!" Two of Dash's friends took hold of Danny's arms. Kwan, a worried expression dominating his face, addressed Dash with caution. "Hey man, don't you think this is a little much?"
"Don't worry about it," replied Dash. "Little Fentina here isn't going to snitch on us, is he?"
Danny didn't reply. He was too busy trembling and gazing at his reflection.
Danny's fear of mirrors stemmed from his childhood. One of his classmates had told him that looking into a mirror would separate his soul from his body. Danny didn't believe them and immediately sought out the first available reflective surface. What he saw made him scream. From that day onward, Danny had refused to reveal just what it was that had put him in such a panic.
And now, being confronted by his worst fears, Danny couldn't help but remember what he had seen then.
In the mirror, a boy of Danny's age stared back. His hair was white like bleached bones. A pair of black horns protruded from his forehead, separating his bangs in odd clumps. His eyes were black with acid green irises and his ears were pointed. An expression of horror, very much matching Danny's, stole over the creature's face. Danny glanced at Dash's reflection- the creature in the mirror copied him- and noticed that Dash didn't seem to see anything unusual.
He continued to tremble fearfully, even as Sam broke down the door and charged in.
"Hey!" exclaimed Kwan. "No girls in the boys bathroom!"
"Oh just can it, you ass!" she replied. She stormed up to Dash, glowering the whole way. Tucker stayed by the doorway, a furious Mr. Lancer by his side.
"Let. Him. Go!" Sam fumed, each syllable laced with enough malice to make a drill sergeant shake in his boots.
Dash tilted his head in mock consideration. "Well, I guess you can have your boyfriend back," he tossed a dazed Danny in her direction. "I was done with him anyways."
"Mr. Baxter!" Dash's smirk was slapped right off his face with the call of his last name. He turned, braving the onslaught of Lancer's beet red complexion and eloquent use of the English language. But instead of going on his usual tirade, Mr. Lancer simply stated "Principal's office. Now!"
Mr. Lancer led Dash and his buddies away while Sam and Tucker supported Danny.
"Are you okay?" asked Tucker. "You're still shaking real bad."
"Y-yeah," Danny struggled to say. "I just want to go home."
"Don't worry," Sam piped up. "Lance asked us to escort you back to your house. We can hang 'til you feel better."
Sam's comment bolstered Danny's strength. With his two best buds in all the world, he knew he'd feel like a million bucks in no time. After all, there was absolutely no way his day could get any worse.
Author's note: Alright so that's chapter 2! Just thought I should mention I plan to make to make chapter updates every two weeks. It's two instead of one week because I hand write everything in a journal first and then type up later. I'm also really slow at typing and I get distracted easily so it takes me forever to fully finish a chapter. I hope you're all enjoying the story so far and thanks for reading!
Spectrophobia is just one of many names that refer to the fear of mirrors. I chose this name because 'spectro' refers to ghosts and I thought it would be most fitting.
