Chapter 10: Roommate Rumble

Sam clenched her fists angrily as she looked around the room with both disgust and extreme irritation.

Clothes thrown everywhere. Candy wrappers, soda cans and other various junk food items littering the floor. Random books and papers all scattered over and under the desk and shelves. The place an absolute pigsty and she had had it with the condition of the small bedroom, especially since she had told the owner of all the mess to clean it earlier.

"Danny!" Sam yelled in anger as she stomped out of the room and down the stairs. "I can't believe it. Who could live in a room like that? Nobody could possibly be that messy! Not even a pre-teen with ghost powers!" Upon her arrival to the main floor of the massive home, she could hear the distinct noise of talking coming from the direction of the kitchen.

Sam growled as she made her way into the cooking area to find Danny, Danielle and Tucker at the table, eating sandwiches that they had made and watching something on TV that Sam had no interest in whatsoever. Sam let another growl escape past her lips as she walked over in front of the small counter top monitor, blocking their view and making it very clear that she was irritated and that it had probably only increased with them ignoring her and her rage.

"Hey! We're trying to watch something here!" Tucker protested, somehow oblivious to her anger. Sam turned toward him and, just from the glare she gave him, caused him to shrink back and sink lower into his seat, wishing he could take back his last statement.

"Everything ok, Sam?" Danny asked though he clearly didn't have to because even a blind person could see that she was upset. The fiery glare, that he was sure would have sent him up into flames if she had that as a ghost power, only confirmed it even more so.

"No, everything is NOT ok, Danny!" she snapped as she threw her hands into the air for added effect of how mad she was. "I thought I asked you to clean the room three days ago!"

Danny sighed, but resisted rolling his eyes, knowing that that wouldn't help him in anyway.

"Yeah, and I told you I'd do it this weekend."

"It's Sunday afternoon, Danny!"

"So?"

"So!? So there's garbage everywhere, random clothes all over the place that probably need to be washed and your books are everywhere around your desk! I mean, it's no wonder you never have your homework. You probably can't ever find it up there! Danielle keeps her room cleaner, and she's twelve! I know guys aren't the neatest creature on the Earth, especially when they're teenagers, but that is just ridiculous, Danny!"

Danny narrowed his eyes and glared at her as his anger started to boil.

"Get off my back, Sam! Yeah, the room's messy, but I told you I'd get to it when I'm less busy!"

"Excuse me!? Who do you think you're talking to!? And you've spent the whole weekend on the couch with Tucker, stuffing your face with Pizza and watching stupid, macho action movies! You couldn't get any less busy!"

"Well, so what if I have!? I mean, is it so bad that I actually like to relax once in a while when I don't have to worry about school or fighting ghost!? I'm not gonna spend it cleaning!"

"Well when are you gonna get it through your thick skull that you're not the only one living in there anymore, Danny!? I'm not gonna live in that room the way it is!"

As Danny and Sam stared each other down, yelling back and forth between each other, they were oblivious to the small audience of their best friend and daughter, who was horrified and scared at the way they interacted with each other. How could they yell and be so cold to each other like that? Didn't they love each other? People don't yell at each other when they love each other! Sure, she's seen both of angry before, but never would she have thought she would see her father this angry, and at her mother no less! Not to mention her mother's temper which could be deadlier then an active volcano!

"Um…guys…" Danielle said quietly, a bit of fear running in her veins.

Danny, ignoring his daughter from his lack of hearing her, instantly got to his feet and made his way toward Sam, getting dangerously close into her personal space, an act that they all knew pissed her off like no other.

"Yeah? Well, if you don't like it, you don't to stay in my room," he said in a low voice, though everyone still heard it, and crossed his arms over his chest. A collective gasp came from both Danielle, who looked like she was about to have a heart attack, and Sam, who flew into a whole new level a rage no one knew was possible.

"You know what, THAT'S FINE!" she yelled as she headed for the front door.

"Oh, so now you're just gonna leave!? Just like that!?"

"Dad!" Danielle yelled as she put her hands on the table and leaned forward.

"Yeah, I am! Because I need to get away from you since you feel the need to and wanna act like a fucking child!" she screamed as she yanked the door open and turned to look at him once more. "I swear, sometimes, I don't know why I even put up with you, Danny!" And with that, she slammed the door, making her way down the street to who knows where.

"Mom!" Danielle yelled again as she watched her mother walk out the door. Danielle could feel a tight feeling building up in her, a fear she had long since put away after her fight with Vlad. Her fear of losing another parent. After Vlad had tried to destroy her and Danny the first time, she would have dreams and always cried to herself when she felt lonely because he really was, as much as she hated to say it, the closest thing she had ever had to a parent, and to feel his betrayal and watch him walk out of her life, was something that broke her heart, and something she never wanted to feel ever again.

After finding out that Danny and Sam where her parents, she couldn't take it, knowing that it could happen all over again. Though a part of her was concerned that they wouldn't have wanted her, her biggest fear in that situation was that if she did get to have them as parents, she would lose them just like she had Vlad. She couldn't go through that again, and seeing her mother walk out of the door like that was just too painful a reminder of what she feared the most. It just wasn't fair. But that's just how life goes, and if she knew anything about life, it's that it was never fair.

Danny let out a frustrating growl, catching Danielle's attention once more as his eyes glowed an angry green. In an effort to keep from doing something he knew for a fact he'd regret, he turned on his heel and headed toward the basement stairs. A cold sweat broke out on Danielle's face as she saw him making his departure as well.

'No! I can't lose both of them!' she thought in fear as she fought back tears.

"Dad! Where are you going!?" She cried in worry, but trying not to make it seem like she was yelling at him as well; there had already been enough of that for her taste today. She hopped off her chair, but didn't advance any further for fear of him lashing out at her, as well, in his anger. Danny turned around to face her, but the look on his face caused her to flinch slightly. Upon seeing the terror behind her eyes, Danny's gaze softened a bit, easing Danielle's tension enough for her to speak again. "Ar-aren't you going to go after Mom?" Upon seeing the anger return to his face once more, she really wished she hadn't said anything at all.

Without another word, Danny turned and continued his way into the basement. Danielle's eyes widened as she cautiously followed behind him into the lab. A bright light flashed as her feet touched the floor and she turned to stare at her father's back in his ghost form. His broad shoulders were tense as he stood in front of the open Ghost Portal. Danielle stared at him quietly as the bright green glow of the swirling door to the other dimension added to the frightening glow of his already ghostly aura. Danny turned to look at her over his shoulder.

"No."

"No?" She asked in a whisper so low, she wasn't even sure herself if she had actually said anything. Though she wanted to ask again, a bit more forcefully, she knew she couldn't; raising her voice to him in this state was a sure fire way to feel the wrath of his anger and a guaranteed punishment. "What do you mean?"

"If she wants to get pissed over something so insignificant, and feels the need to stomp out of the house like a child, then that's fine by me," he said turning around fully to face her. Danielle wanted to mention that he was about to do the same thing, but knew it wasn't the time nor her place to say such a thing. Not in the state of mind he was in.

"But Dad, what if something happens to her?" she asked as tears started to build in her eyes and her voice started to get quieter. She knew it. Her worst fear really was coming into reality, and she hated it. "What if she doesn't come back? Don't you love her?"

Danny's eyes grew hard at her question as well as an angry scowl gracing his face. Danielle felt her heart skip a couple of beats as she started to panic and wish she hadn't decided to question his love for her mother. Not right now. Maybe later when he was less angry she could ask and it'd be ok. But not now.

Danielle waited for what she was sure was going to be a loud, angry shout from him, and the sheer terror his booming voice would unleash upon her. She could feel her legs trying to move backwards and head back up the stairs, but she willed them not to move, mostly due to her being afraid; one wrong move could lead to a very bad result if she wasn't careful. Imagine her surprise when he turned around and headed toward the portal.

"Go upstairs," he said with his back to her. Danielle blinked a few times at the calm but clearly stern tone to his voice. She knew he was mad and was going into the Ghost Zone to blow off steam, but she also remembers hearing about the last time he did that and how he ended up the victim in a story written by the Ghost Writer. She knew she shouldn't let him go alone, and wanted to stop him or at least go with him so she could keep him from making a similar mistake.

"Ma-maybe you shouldn't go…into the Ghost Zone…or at least, not alone," she said softly, turning her gaze to the ground.

"No," Danny said quickly without a second to even consider what she said might be for the best. "You are to stay here. Do not leave the house." Danielle knew that she was forbidden to leave the house alone because, even though she had been living there for almost two weeks, and the reporters have stopped coming by for interviews all the time, they still didn't want too many people getting more video of her and turning on her like they did him when he first started to fight for the town.

"But-Dad-"

"End of discussion, Danielle!" he said as his voice rose, striking fear in her heart as was its intended purpose. "I'm not going to say it again. Stay. Here." With a quick glared over his shoulder that ensured she would not speak again and glued her to her spot, he took off, head first, into the Ghost Zone.

Danielle felt her legs shake as they were finally allowed to move once more, all nervousness and fear leaving with his departure. She knew he wasn't mad at her, and would be back once he had calmed enough, but she still couldn't help the fear that naturally came to her. It was the unknown command that made her bend to his will, as well as Sam's, though it was not from fear as she knew neither of them would ever actually do any real harm to her. As much as she wanted to follow him, she knew better then to try to disobey him.

"I'm sure he's fine…" she reasoned with herself as her voice shook a little and she started back up the stairs. "Maybe I should go after Mom. She is a bit more level headed than-" Danielle paused as she thought about it. "You know, on second thought, I'm sure they could both use a little personal time."

As she found herself in the kitchen again, she was surprised to see Tucker still sitting at the table, eating Danny's sandwich after having finished his own, and acting as if nothing had just happened.

"Um…aren't you gonna say or do anything!?" she asked.

"Nope," Tucker said, taking another bite of the sandwich. "Hmm…needs more mustard. And less tomato."

"Tucker! Get serious!" she said, slamming her hands on the table. "Those two are angry. Angrier than I've ever seen either of them, and worse-they're angry at each other! What are we going to do!? What are we gonna do!? What if they split up!? What if my mom doesn't come back!?" Danielle could feel herself hyperventilating as she struggled to return her breathing to normal.

"Whoa, whoa, calm down," Tucker said as he walked over, kneeled and placed his hands on her shoulders and looked her in her icy blue eyes. "Danielle, you need to calm down and breathe, ok?" She opened her mouth and took a deep breath, only holding it for a second before releasing it as well as all her panic. "Good. Now, I've gotta go. I've got some mayor stuff to take care of. You gonna be okay here alone for a bit?" he asked. His only response was a small nod. As he stood, he placed a hand on her head, pressing her denim beanie more into her scalp. Danielle looked at him, confused about the smile on his face. How could he be so relaxed about all this? "Don't worry about them. They've fought before. It'll all blow over soon as they both stop being stubborn." Giving her a quick wave, Tucker made his way out of the door, leaving Danielle alone and restless with her thoughts.

"I don't care what Tucker said. I've got to do something to fix this before it's too late. But what?" She said as she paced back and forth in the kitchen. Then, like a lightning bolt, it hit her. "Well, if Mom wants a clean room, and Dad doesn't want to do it, I guess I'll just have to do a little housekeeping," she said with mischievous smile. "Goin ghost!"

As she yelled out her father's signature battle cry and threw he arms into the air, her body flashed as her two white rings formed around her body and travelled over her, changing her into her Phantom form. Turning herself intangible, Danielle floated through the ceiling and into her parents' bedroom where she surveyed the damage of the job ahead of her.

"Eww! Gross!" she said, holding her nose. "It smells like a locker room in here! No wonder Mom was so pissed about this. Ugh. Well, I guess I'd better get started on this. I wish I was better at duplication. This would go so much faster."

Danielle started with the garbage. Although would rather have blasted it all into oblivion, she knew that would just leave burn marks all over the place, and that would have just turned into one more thing she would have had to deal with. She groaned when some of the candy stuck to her glove, but it only got worse as she somehow, though how she did was beyond her, got taffy stuck in her ponytail. She cursed whoever above for the creation of such a sticky mess, and vowed to stay away from it for a long time. After spending almost half an hour figuring out which strands of white hair had taffy in them and which didn't, she was finally able to cut the few out with a ghost ray blade made with her fingers.

She quickly flew down to the kitchen and grabbed a black garbage bag and flew back into the room, throwing the various wrappers and soda cans into it before grabbing her father's waist basket that was beyond overflowing, and depositing the contents into her bag. Phasing her head through the wall, and seeing that the coast was, she quickly turned invisible and dropped the bag of trash into her families outside bin.

Danielle flew back into the room and decided that the laundry was probably the next thing that should be done. After gathering all of the clothes off the floor, including more than a few pair of Danny's underwear, Danielle phased into the laundry room, and put them into the machine.

"You know, I probably should have paid more attention to Grandma when she was showing me how to use this thing," she said as she floated in front of the machine, the various buttons flashing in front of her. Danielle sighed as she slouched her shoulders. "Even the washing machine is Fenton brand. I mean, I can't believe that she and Grandpa honestly believe that ghost could infect and hide in your clothes…then again, it wouldn't be that surprising. I just hope I won't have to worry about getting shocked." Danielle cautiously pushed a button on the machine. When nothing happened, Danielle looked at it with worry, but jumped back when the Machine beeped to life and jumped around a few times before starting up and filling the inner tub with water and detergent.

Danielle let out a sigh of relief as she levitated in place. "Thank God. I really wasn't looking forward to having to fight off Dad's underwear if it came to life. It's scary enough without moving."

On her way back to the bedroom, she grabbed a bucket and cleaning supplies for later. She placed the bucket on the floor and went over to the desk that was littered with random papers and books. Deciding it would be best to sort them into different piles, she started with the books, which varied from school text books, comic books, magazines and, to her surprise, even a few ghost books from the Ghost Zone. After placing the comics and magazines in the desk drawer and the books on the shelves, she crossed her legs and floated in place while organizing the various papers.

Once those where all settled and put away, she grabbed her cleaning supplies and went to work. She flew around, wiping down the desk and the dresser, dusted the shelves, the lamps and the model rockets Danny still had, and even get every speck of dirt off the windows and computer screen. She saved the floor for last knowing that it would take her the longest.

"I'd better take my gloves off. Don't want the cleaning products to fade them," she said as she slipped them off and looked at her pale hands, or, more specifically, the violet purple color that Sam had colored them earlier that week. Danielle sighed, remembering how her Aunt Jazz had insisted on the three of them having a girl's night so that they could get to know Danielle a bit better. It had been fun, up until the point where they wanted to a makeover on her. After almost a half an hour of negotiating, she agreed to getting her hands and feet painted and a small amount of make-up, but was very vocal about keeping her hair the way it was.

Thinking back to the night and how much fun she had with them made Danielle a little sad, but she knew she didn't have time to cry over it right now. She had to finish getting the room cleaned. That would fix everything.

Dumping the cleaning product onto the floor, she took the brush she had and began to scrub the various stain and spots left on the floor with vigor, determined to get them all. She was going to make that room glow. Once the floor was clean, she began to scrub the walls, and even the ceiling, just for good measure.

Wiping a hand across her forehead, she was a little upset at the spots of missing polish that had come off of her nails, but ignored it as she looked at the cleanliness of the room, a sense of accomplishment and a job well done filling her tired body. She glanced at the clock to see that it was close to dinner time, meaning that everyone would be home soon.

"Wow. I can't believe I spent over four hours cleaning," she said as she slipped her gloves back on and raised her hand to her mouth, trying to suppress a yawn. "I really should practice my duplication more often. I think a before dinner nap is well deserved." She said, making her way over to her parent's queen sized bed which had recently been switched out with Danny's old full size one. Danielle climbed under the covers and wrapped herself up before falling into a deep sleep and unconsciously turning back to normal.

Unfortunately for her, a ghost had picked that particular moment to attack, and with her being the only person in the house at the moment, it went straight for her.

The large blob of ectoplasm slithered into the room via the cracks in the doorframe before reforming. Danielle's ghost sense shook her body, leaving an icy chill in her throat, but she simply wrapped herself tighter into the comforter. The ghost smiled evilly as its tentacles moved closer to the girl before wrapping one around her body and the other around her throat. The ghost brought her closer to his body, preparing to absorb her into himself, but let out a shriek of pain as his left tentacle that was wrapped around her throat was separated from his body, causing his hold on her windpipe to collapse and fade into nothing on the floor.

The ghost turned to see a very angry Danny Phantom and Sam Manson, completely equipped in the Fenton Peeler, blaster at the ready.

"Alright, pal. You've got until the count to 1 to drop my daughter before we blast you into oblivion!" Danny said, hands glowing a bright green color.

The ghost simply laughed as his arm regenerated and he started to absorb Danielle again.

"Why do they never listen?" Sam mumbled, firing a blast into the ghost side. Letting a roar of pain and anger, he turned around only to come face to face with Danny, whose eyes were now glowing a bright blue.

"You know, you really should be thanking me right now," he said with a smirk as the ghost started to freeze over. "She's pretty vengeful and doesn't forgive easy. Least I'll make this quick."

The ghost shrieked as it dropped Danielle who hit the floor with a loud thud that startled her awake. "Ow. What the heck-" she stopped when she say the frozen ghost in front of her before it was shattered into pieces by a well placed punch by Sam before she turned off the Fenton Peeler and raced over to Danielle, enveloping her in a tight hug.

"Thank goodness we got back when we did. Are you alright?" Sam said as she pulled back and started examining her daughter from head to toe. Sam stopped when she noticed the very little remnants of nail polish on her nails.

"Yeah, I fine. But I just wanna know one thing," she said, looking at both Sam and Danny who had turned back to his human form and clamped the top on the thermos. "Are you-I mean, you not gonna-no, wait, I should-" she stuttered, finding it hard to ask the question because of fear the answer. "You guys…splitting up?" she asked quietly as a few tears started to come to her eyes.

Sam blinked at her and turned to look at Danny who smiled at her and walked over to them. Sam turned back to Danielle and hugged her tight as Danny wrapped his arms around them both.

"Of course not. Trust me, it would take more than a messy room to break us up," she said, wiping the tears from her daughter's face.

"Yeah. Besides that, roommates always fight. I remember once I had to share my room with Jazz for almost 2 months while Mom and Dad were repairing hers because one of their inventions had blown up almost half the house. We almost killed each other, it was so bad," Danny said, causing everyone to laugh. "But seriously. I'm sorry about earlier, Ellie. I know you were probably scared, and I didn't mean to do that. I'll make it up to you when we all go out for ice cream tonight."

"Well, that's good. I don't think I could stand to lose either of you guys. I've already gone through losing a parent. I don't wanna do it again. And that ice cream sounds really good," she said with a smile.

"And you won't ever have to," Danny said before sighing. "Well, I might as well get to cleaning the room," Danny said, but paused when he looked around to see that the room was spotlessly clean. "Wow…what happened here? I don't think this place has ever been this clean before."

"Um, well," Danielle said, rubbing the back of her neck with a nervous laugh. "After you guys both left and I was home by myself, I was kinda freaking out thinking that you were gonna split, so I figured that since the room was the problem, maybe it could be the solution too. So, I spent the whole day, cleaning this place from top to bottom."

"Oh, Ellie," Sam said as she moved some hair from her daughter's face. "You didn't have to do that. Now you've definitely earned some extra scoops of ice cream."

"Gee, now you tell me," she said with a roll of her eyes and a smile on her face at the prospect of getting more ice cream. "So, how did you guys make up anyway?"

Sam smiled as she held up her left wrist which was sporting a bright blue bracelet that shone beautifully in the light. Danielle was in awe as she held Sam's wrist and gazed upon the beautiful jewelry.

"Wow! That's amazing!"

"Yeah. Danny made it for me," she said.

"Made it? But how?" Danielle asked as she looked at her father.

"With my ice powers. Ghost Ice doesn't melt and isn't effected by normal temperatures. Only way to melt it is with ghost powers. I wanted to give her something to say I was sorry for everything. "

"And I got him a new video game he's been talking about for weeks. To help him relax a little more," she said with a smile.

Before any of them could say another word, a loud explosion could be heard under them. All three got to their feet as raced downstairs to the laundry room where the sound had come from. Danny yanked the door open and stepped back as a flood of water and bubbles splashed out in front of them. Danny turned to see the washing machine jumping around violently, crashing into walls and throwing more water and bubbles everywhere before a mouth full of sharp teeth and glowing red eyes appeared on the screen on the machine, which then decided to roar at them.

"I knew an ecto-powered washing machine was a bad idea," he grumbled as he transformed.

"Yea. Not to mention that this thing made no sense when Grandma tried to teach me how to use it," Danielle said as she stretched. "Well, looks like you get to clean something after all, Daddy," she grinned before walking away with Sam right behind her who was laughing her head off.

"If you're not done with the laundry by dinner, we'll be sure to bring you back some ice cream," Sam called as she closed the door.

"Hey! That was my idea! You can't-" But he never got to finish his sentence as the washing machine chose then to slam him into the wall by covering him with wet clothes that it fired at him like a cannon. Danny emerged from the pile with a pair of his boxers in his mouth and sighed in annoyance.