I do not claim ownership of the cartoon Danny Phantom. Get your facts straight here people.

The Time Stop:
Chapter Three:

I've dealt with my ghosts and I've faced all my demons
Finally content with a past I regret
I've found you find strength in your moments of weakness
For once I'm at peace with myself

Danny had spent the past three years fighting ghosts as Danny Phantom. He had grown stronger than all of them and none of them posed a threat to him anymore. However, Danny had trouble for a long time and he lost the last few years of childhood earlier than he should have. He was forced to grow up and missed out on a lot of normal teenager stuff.

Some of the battles he faced were so devastating. At those weakest moments, he somehow found the hidden strength he needed to become victorious. His strength came from developing new powers most of the time, but it also came from the encouragements from his friends.

But now he was leaving it all behind. No more fighting ghosts. No more near deathly battles. He was on his way to somewhere he could have peace away from all those hardships he had been forced to face the last few years.

I've been burdened with blame, trapped in the past for too long
I'm movin' on

No more being blamed in ghost form for things that weren't his fault. He didn't kidnap the mayor. He didn't steal from those stores willingly. When he left, he would be leaving behind all the wild accusations about his ghost half. He would no longer have to listen to people complain about him or the destruction some of his battles caused to the city. He could finally flee from all of it.

I've lived in this place and I know all the faces
Each one is different but they're always the same

He had lived in the small city of Amity Park his entire life. Everyone knew him. In human form, all they see is the weird Fenton kid whose parents are a joke. In ghost form he is either seen as a hero to the town, or as someone always out to cause destruction.

They mean me no harm but it's time that I face it
They'll never allow me to change

Sam, Jazz, and Tucker are the only ones who know the truth. They love helping Danny fight ghosts and the smiles on their faces when they help capture a ghost are always so bright. They would harp on him so bad if he ever said he wanted to stop being the hero. They didn't want him to change what he did because they enjoyed it. Or at least they enjoyed it when Danny let them hang around during his battles.

The truth is, they were never there when a really dangerous battle was happening. They weren't out there all hours of the night or constantly leaving in the middle of class to catch ghosts. Danny did all the harder stuff. The others wouldn't be able to deal with it if they were also on ghost duty 24/7. They only enjoyed it because they didn't feel pain and exhaustion to the full extent that Danny did.

But I never dreamed home would end up where I don't belong
I'm movin' on

With everything going on, Danny's home was starting to feel less comfortable and safe. Danny was never safe in Amity Park. Ghosts were always out to get him, no matter where he was. Home didn't exist for Danny anymore. He almost never had time to even be in his own house. He was always busy and almost never got a break.

A home is where you can relax and enjoy yourself. It's where you feel safe. It's where you can be the most comfortable and just be yourself.

Danny no longer had a home. His sense of 'home' was taken from him once he became a halfa. His former 'home' became just the house that was listed as his address. He didn't belong there. He wasn't safe there. He wasn't comfortable. It wasn't home.

I'm movin' on
At last I can see life has been patiently waiting for me
And I know there's no guarantees, but I'm not alone

That was why Danny left. Flying now through the sky and the clouds he felt like he belonged. He was headed towards his new life. His new future. He didn't know where he was going or what to expect, but flying to find it just felt right. He might physically be alone, but feeling the wind around him as he travelled through the sky brought him peace. He might not have another person beside him, but he knew he had Clockwork looking after him.

Danny would be alright. If there was one thing Clockwork taught him, it was that he was never alone. Clockwork was his guardian and would always be watching over Danny.

There comes a time in everyone's life
When all you can see are the years passing by
And I have made up my mind that those days are gone

Danny's life had hit a standstill the past few years. His friends and his peers were all making their way slowly through their high school careers and their lives and Danny was stuck doing the same thing everyday. Ghost fighting never gave him time to grow at the same pace as those around him.

Danny didn't want ghost fighting to be all he did the rest of his life. Leaving Amity, Danny could take the time to find a purpose in life that he could truly enjoy. He wasn't going to let the years fly by being forced to get hurt everyday fighting ghosts.

I sold what I could and packed what I couldn't
Stopped to fill up on my way out of town

Danny carried his duffle bag of belongings as he flew. He had nothing else in the world now. They were the only things that were his now. He had stopped at the local drug store on his way out of town and bought some food and water bottles to help last him a few days and took off.

Danny stuffed everything in the duffle and sighed as he realized that everything he currently could say he owned was only just enough to fill the bag. Nothing he left at Fentonworks was his anymore. He wasn't planning on going back anytime soon, so the only things he really truly owned where the items in his duffle as he flew across the states of America.

I've loved like I should but lived like I shouldn't
I had to lose everything to find out

Danny loved his parents. He loved his sister. He loved his friends. He should have spent more time with them though. He regrets that he was forced to give up that time to fight ghosts. He didn't want it to be that way, but that was just how it was.

Danny had lost a lot more than anyone had realized. He lost some of the most important things a person can have. Probably the most important thing he lost, he lost his innocence. He had seen the world for what it was and it was horrible. And that was something that can never be forgotten. He could never unsee all those horrible things, and he could never get his innocence back.

Maybe forgiveness will find me somewhere down this road
I'm movin' on

Danny knew that his friends and family would be hurt by him leaving, but he had to do what was right for him. He only hoped that they could forgive him, try to understand that this was what he needed most.

If Danny ever did return to Amity Park, he could only hope that he would be forgiven. For now though, Danny had a new life to live. And he was on his way to find it.

I'm movin' on
I'm movin' on

Hope you enjoyed. I decided to make this a song-fic chapter because I just felt this song fit really well with what Danny is feeling and going through in this story. Sorry I lied about sharing the contents of Danny's letter this chapter. I'll be sure to include it in the next chapter which by the way will not be another song-fic chapter. Keep an eye out during the first week of October for the next installment.

This chapter was posted: 9/24/2013

~Red

(The song used in this chapter is called, "I'm Movin' On" and is property of the band Rascal Flatts.)

{Special thanks go out to: Stewiacker for being the first reviewer for this story.}