Scene 2.
The ghost boy had traveled up and down the street outside Fentonworks twice now, but found no ostentatious sign of a belligerent spirit. "Danny! Did you find anything?" he looked downward to find his mother suited up and ready to ghost hunt. He landed next to her.
"Nothing. I can feel it's here, though," he replied. Both Fentons scanned the street again for an otherworldly presence, hopeful for an answer. The rain had slowed to a light drizzle, almost a mist. The sun was hardly noticeable; just a patch of slightly brighter rain clouds to the west. A fine mist had settled over the streets, disturbed by the occasional passing car, and soaking citizen.
"Weird," Danny observed, "usually ghosts are more… loud and annoying than this."
Maddie nodded adding, "Maybe it's just a small bit of spectral energy that found its way out here."
"Mom!" Came an excited child's voice. "Look!" a little boy and his mother, with matching red hair and freckles, had just exited a sandwich shop across the street. "Mom, Really, look!" The child was now tugging at his mother's sleeve impatiently, but she remained busy, fiddling with her umbrella.
"Hold on, sweetie."
Finally the child rolled his eyes, and flat out waved. "Hi, Danny Phantom!" He yelled.
Danny grinned, and waved in return. Hearing her child's strange declaration, his mother finally looked up with picturesque wide eyes and a dropped jaw. The half ghost and his own mother snickered.
Alarms cut the exchange short. They weren't ghost alarms, though. Their source was a jewelry store next door to the mother and child. The redheads flinched as the front doors crashed open, revealing a man and a woman with face masks, shoulder bags, and sizeable weapons. The two innocents began to run across the street, terrified by the sudden potential for violence. Meanwhile, a large pickup truck crashed through puddles down the road, far too fast, and on a collision course.
"No!" the teenage ghost propelled every part of his existence toward the child and his mother. The timing had to be perfect. Become intangible too fast, and he would slip right through the people he was trying to save. Get there too late, and there would be no one to save. The grill of the truck approached mercilessly.
Seconds later, a muddy ghost and his two charges lay toppled over in a puddle, while the truck barreled away from them just as quickly as it came, hardly slowing to pick up the two robbers, who had nimbly hopped into its cargo bed. Police sirens roared down the street.
"Get out of the road!" Maddie yelled. Her son was quick to help the strangers back to the sidewalk. Police cars zoomed by behind them.
"Are you both okay?" Danny asked first thing. The frazzled mother and son nodded and thanked him.
"Okay, good. I'm going after them."
"Danny," Maddie grabbed his arm as he started off. He paused and looked back. "There are no ghosts. Leave it to the police."
Dark eyebrows furrowed determinedly under snow white hair. "They just almost killed two innocent people! Robbery is one thing, but that's crossing a line."
"Danny, they have guns."
The addressed turned intangible and phased his arm through her hand to make his next point. Maddie reacted with exasperation, and just a hint of amusement, continuing, "and you're not a police officer or a vigilante. You're a teenager, who has homework to do. They can handle it."
"But my ghost sense-!"
"Was probably following some ghost cat in an alley. I know you mean well, sweetheart, but please. Stand down from this one."
Stubborn electric green eyes glared into equally stubborn violet ones.
Finally, accompanied by a long-winded sigh, a white ring of energy emanated from his waist. As it glided over his body, he felt his weight return.
"But freezing thieves to truck beds is my favorite form of procrastination!" Danny teased back.
Maddie replied with a good natured smirk and pat on the shoulder, "You'll live."
Turning toward home, the Fentons stopped short. Their path remained blocked by two wide-eyed, messy, jittery, and all around unwell-looking individuals.
"Uhmm… They might be in shock." Danny noticed with a thumb pointed in the direction of said redheads.
"Go get blankets, I'll sit them down nearby."
"Right okay..."
"Now."
"Yup."
Another transformation later, Danny rocketed home.
