It had been another week since Sam and Danny had made up. She had now returned home and things with Evan seemed to be going back to normal. Sam would either see Danny or speak to him on the phone every day, that obviously annoyed Evan, but the man said nothing to Sam, so she was pleased. Danny had decided he would become a fireman, since he needed a real job, and it would be a way for him to help people more than he already did. Tucker of course thought that was a bad idea when it came to his unpredictable ghost fighting schedule and how it would mash up with the predictably busy schedule of a fireman. Danny had just justified it by pointing out he wasn't a high school student anymore and wouldn't mooch off of Jazz forever just so he could fight ghosts at his convenience.

Danny hadn't said anything about his experience in the ghost zone since the night by the pool, and that was fine. Even though everyone was mildly curious what happened, no one was dying to know the details, they were just glad Danny was back and he was cooping fine. Well, Jazz thought he was cooping a bit to well, but that's a therapist for you, always saying there's something wrong with someone, trying to find something to fix.

Tonight Danny and Evan were meeting for beers. Neither one had wanted to, but Evan, in an attempt to appease Sam had decided the two needed to bond. Evan had gone so far as to tell Sam that he might even learn to like Danny if he got to spend some time with him, now that he had dealt with the initial anger. Danny had accepted without hesitation, seeing this as a perfect opportunity to put Evan in his place without Sam there. So, Danny stepped into a local bar dressed in black jeans and a dark blue collared shirt. His eyes glanced around the room twice before seeing the head of blond hair he had come to view as a form of amusement rather than competition.

The other man was wearing dress slacks and a white shirt. That's a shame, blood doesn't come out of white and with any luck, there would be bloodshed tonight. Danny took the open stool besides Evan, patting him on the shoulder as he sat down. "Hey! It's my new favorite man."

"Favorite man?" Evan raised an eyebrow, not even trying to hide his surprise. Yup, he had been expecting a fight right off the bat.

"Eh," Danny shrugged, waving the bartender over, "If Sam loves you, then I like you. Heineken, please."

"I suppose…." Evan didn't take his eyes off of Danny, "Newcastle."

Danny turned back to Evan, grinning, "Hey, I'm sorry about the party, man. I didn't realize it would upset you so much for me to talk about how Sam was in high school. I mean, when I was with her I kept asking her parents what she was like before I'd met her."

Evan's eye twitched a little. This was going to be easier than he'd though.

"No…I was upset. I thought you would try to take Sam away from me."

Danny laughed a little, taking a swig of his beer as soon as it had been given to him, "And what makes you think I'm not?"

Evan looked at Danny in surprise again, mingled with anger, "If you were going after her you wouldn't be trying to make friends with me."

"And why is that?" Danny stared blankly at the TV hanging in the corner of the bar, it was on a Boston game. He'd never liked baseball, but the casual, 'I don't care' look was needed for this.

He could hear Evan stumble with the words for a second before speaking, "Because, you would be more concerned with wooing Sam than befriending me to make her happy."

Danny took another drink, swallowing slowly, "You ever hear of the saying 'Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer'?" He tilted his head a bit, so he was watching Evan out of the corner of his eye.

The blond simply looked back at Danny, "I'm NOT an enemy you want to keep close."

"That's a good one, Evan." He didn't even have to look at Evan again to tell the man had internally cringed at the use of his name. "Look," Danny swiveled around so he was facing Evan, took another drink, nd propped his beer bottle on his knee, "I love her, I won't give that up without a fight."

Evan offered an extended hand to Danny, he only raised his eyebrows and looked at the hand like he had never seen one before, "What is that for?"

"It's tradition for gentlemen who are rivals to shake hands, acknowledging each other as equals."

Danny laughed, taking another swig of beer, "We aren't gentlemen." Or equals, thought Danny.

Evan took a swig of his own drink, resting his elbows on the bar counter as he turned to watch the Boston game, "True, just remember all's fair in love and war, and this is both."

They sat in silence for the rest of the night, warily watching one another, but not saying anything lest they risk discovering they had more in common than Sam. They didn't like each other, and neither one wanted to like the other. Danny was furious inside. He was hoping that Evan's short temper from before wasn't just from the stress of Sam's old beau reappearing after three years. He was hoping he could have made a pattern out of Evan swinging at him. Now he would actually have to learn about the man to figure out what it was Sam had fallen for, and how to get rid of that. Now he would have to put in effort.

Three beers each and six innings later the two parted ways, Danny raising his bottle to Evan who clinked his to it in a show of respect. Loathing, yes. But respect as well. Evan left first, calling a cab since he had taken a cab in the first place, unsure of how much he would drink that night. Danny waited a few minutes before walking outside and going around the back of the bar. In a flash of light that went up and down his body in rings Danny Fenton had become Danny Phantom. His black hair was a soft white color and floated about his head and face like smoke. His blue eyes were a disturbing green, and his shirt and jeans had been replaced with a black jumpsuit that had a stylized white "D" on his chest.

He hadn't gotten the fight he wanted from Evan, so he would look elsewhere for it. In a mere moment he was off the ground soaring through the city sky, his eyes searching for signs of any ghost at all. There. Box Ghost. He would do.


Author's Note: This was a difficult chapter to write because it's basically filler, but it was necessary. It is my shortest chapter to date, and I'm sorry for that. I promise this is not a trend.