Oneshot I did as a request challenge to KaliPhantom on DeviantArt. Christmas with Danny.
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Christmas Spirit
The light of a new day fell through the bedroom window, sending glares into the eyes of a sleeping teenager. Mumbling darkly about inconvenient window placement, Danny rolled over and pulled his pillow over his head. He froze.
Seconds later he was sitting bolt upright in bed, eyes wide.
"Orange orange orange orange orange orange orange!" He said quickly. "If Ghostwriter forces me to speak just in rhyme, I'll hit him until he must live as a…silent street performer! YES!" He punched his fist in the air, and froze once again, grin sliding off his face, as he saw his perturbed sister standing in his bedroom doorway.
"Did you suffer a recent head injury, or is this some new Christmas protest?" She asked uncertainly. A second later, she stared in shock as her younger brother rushed over and squeezed her in a bone-crushing hug.
"I'm not talking in rhyme! No head injury! Merry Christmas!" He shouted quickly, and tore off downstairs to have some breakfast.
"Are you sure?" Jazz shouted worriedly after his retreating form. Laughing, Danny jumped the last few steps and ran into the kitchen. His parents were arguing once again over the existence of Santa. Not whether he was real, mind, they both considered that proven by last year's sighting. But whether he was a ghost…
"We saw them last year!" Said Jack irritably. "Santa is actually a small army of ghosts that feel like being nice once a year!"
"No Jack, that was Santa!" Maddie said. "I already admitted I was wrong, can't you just stick to your…Danny." She said hurriedly, nudging Jack in the ribs. Both of them immediately fixed on happy, get-along smiles and sat down. Danny quirked an eyebrow and started munching on a granola bar.
"Er, your father and I were just talking, sweetie." Maddie said. "We're done now." Danny smiled in amusement.
"Sounded like a pretty loud talk." He said conversationally when he finished swallowing, forcing his face to go straight again. "You guys aren't fighting again, are you?"
"Of course not!" Jack said quickly as Jazz came into the room. "We were just…um…" He slumped. "Fine, Danny. But it's important! After all these years, we finally both agree that Santa exists. But now, we don't know what he is."
"He's just what the stories say." Maddie said intensely.
"He's a ghost!" Jack came back loudly.
"He's a human!"
"He's a ghost!"
"He's an alien!" Danny shouted. Both of his parents froze and stared at Danny, who was choking on laughter.
"Your…faces…" He gasped. "I'm…gonna…go. Sam and Tucker. Bye!" Still laughing at their expressions, Danny stumbled out the door and took off for Sam's.
"Presents tomorrow!" Maddie called after him. "Keep your eyes peeled for a man in a red suit!"
"Ghost." Jack muttered.
"This family's insane." Jazz sighed.
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Danny and Tucker were ushered into the backyard by Sam's latest butler. She seemed busy in her nice new greenhouse.
"Ah, merci Pierre." She purred as she plucked some fresh grapes from a nearby vine and started munching on them contentedly. A second later, an icy finger poked her on the shoulder.
"Ahh!"
"Boo." Danny said dryly, grinning like a goon as he appeared behind her.
"You dork!" She yelled playfully, tossing a grape at his head. He laughed.
"I'm the dork?" He retorted in mock anger. "You think your plants can think!"
"And what's up with using their native languages to talk to them?" Tucker threw in. "Who speaks that many languages anyway?"
"Weirdo." Danny laughed. Sam snorted.
"Says the ghost boy." She argued, grinning. "And the techno-geek."
The three friends left together, heading downtown.
"Well you seem to be in a good mood this year." Sam said, smiling. "Is GhostWriter forcing you to behave again?"
"Nah." Danny said negligently. "But once you've been through an all-rhyming Christmas, it's hard to find stuff about the normal ones to bring you down." His mouth quirked into an evil grin. "In fact, I feel like sharing the cheer. You guys up for visiting mayor Vlad?"
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Vlad scowled down at the long list of things he had to do today. It was Christmas Eve, for crying out loud!
His musings were interrupted by a light bang, on the other side of his desk. Moving warily, the old half ghost walked around to see a black box with a white bow.
"Oh, this must be from Daniel." He said irritably. The box shook slightly, as if its contents were moving. "Oh no." He groaned. Reaching down with a resigned expression, Masters opened the box.
"Woof!"
"A DOG?!" He yelled. Danny appeared a second later, standing in front of Sam and Tucker.
"HA!" He shouted. "You needed a dog, and now you have one!"
"But I needed a cat!" He argued, and then froze, his eyes bugging out and his jaw dropping. "No, I didn't mean it! I-"
"Too late, dude." Tucker said smugly. "It's all on video."
"Merry Christmas!" Danny shouted, and the three teens phased through the back wall, laughing.
"AHHHH!"
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That night, the three friends all met up at Danny's place to exchange presents.
"Oh, cool!" Tucker exclaimed when he opened his gift. "Doomed Classic! Thanks, Danny!"
"No problem." He said with a grin, reaching down to open his own, small box. "So whatcha get me, Sam?"
"Oh, something from my greenhouse." She said nervously. Tucker snorted.
"Sam, you don't give people vegetables for Christmas. You…oh…"
Danny stared, confused, at the small red and green plant in his hand.
"What is this?" Grinning, Tucker quickly plucked it up and held it above his head.
Exactly seventy five seconds later – Tucker timed it – Sam pulled her lips off of Danny's and both of them took a deep breath, incredibly red.
"Uh, Merry Christmas." Sam stuttered, blushing. Danny just nodded his head, eyes wide and slightly vacant. Tucker took off for the door. "Hey, where do you think you're going?" She asked curiously.
"I've got some people to show that to!" He shouted back as he left. "About two hundred bucks worth of people. Merry Christmas to Tucker!"
Sam, if anything, turned even redder at that, but stopped trying to get up when Danny's hand fell on her lap. She turned and looked at his red, nervous, grinning face.
"We still have to celebrate Chanukah."
