Before you get started, I simply want to say THANK YOU to the 700+ views of this story! I love that you folks are enjoying this! I'm trying to stay in character for these peoples, but sometimes, as this is a fanfic, I have to sorta go with something they might say given the circumstances that weren't really addressed in the show (Although we all love, the DashxDanny moments), and it feels to me that I get outta character a couple of times (especially with Jazz). So I do apologize if I write out of character, I constantly have an episode or two up from the first season just to give me a sense of direction with the conversation...
"Nothing, Jazz," Sam said quickly, "you know how spacey your brother can be."
"Hey, Mom," Danny called out, "is it ok if another one of my classmates comes over? He's bringing the last half of our English notes and I wanted to copy them down."
"Why sure, dear," Maddie replied. "What's his name?"
"Al."
"Do you know if he's a vegetarian like Sam, here?"
"Uh, I saw him eating chicken in his salad yesterday at lunch, so I'm going to take a guess and say 'no'," Danny responded to his mother.
"Alright, I'll add some more sloppy joe mix to the bowl," Maddie said with a smile.
…
Dash got there first. He knocked on the door. "Fenton better be home…" he growled.
Sam got up from the table, awaiting the food and the arrival of the other two guests, and told Maddie that she would answer the door.
"Don't worry, Mrs. Fenton, I'll get the door. Al said he would be here shortly," she spoke as she left the room. She crossed the living room and opened the door. "Oh, it's you."
"Well thanks, Manson. Nice to see you too. What are you doing at Fentina's house? Are you two dating or something?" he inquired. He honestly wasn't sure why he asked that, it just came out of his mouth.
"What do you care, Dash? Do you want to date him or something?"
"NO! I just wondered why you answered the door instead of Jazz."
"Cause I thought you were Ross."
"Great, another loser to work with. I see you more than enough of you lo-sers at school. Do I have to see you after it as well?"
"Just come on in. We promised Danny we'd be on our best behavior with you here. So come on in, Mrs. Fenton's making dinner," Sam said gritting her teeth so she wouldn't say anything else.
"Fine."
"Danny, it's Dash."
"Oh, hey dear!" Maddie said as she peeked up from the bowl in front of her, "How are you tonight, everything ok?"
"Yes, Mrs. Fenton, everything's ok. Whatcha making for dinner?"
"Oh I'm just making some sloppy joe mix with some fries and corn. Do you want anything special?"
Special? Why is she asking me if I want anything special? I'm the school bully, I torment her son every day, my folks hate them, and she treats me like I'm her son as well… Danny's got a good family. Crazy, but good… Why can't mine be like his?
"Um, ice cream?" Dash said finally after a moment of hesitation.
"Sure, thing, Dash. I think I've got some Rocky Road left. How's that sound?" Maddie said, happily.
"Cool. So, Sam, you're telling me that Ross is going to be here any minute?"
"Yep. And maybe he'll knock a little more sense into you than last time."
Jazz looked at Dash and tried to stifle her laughter (key word: tried).
"It's not funny, Jazz. That new kid really packed a punch, yesterday," Dash said to Jazz, who was holding her sides after the laughter subsided.
"You told me it was a football accident!" Jazz proclaimed.
"Mason…" Dash growled under his breath.
"Don't worry, Dash," Danny started with a pleasant pitch to his voice, "Al's actually coming here because he's helping us on our projects. He's a wiz at chemistry. He actually gave me the whole chemical breakdown of our project."
"Speaking of which, does it have something to do with ghosts?" Jack burst in on the conversation between the teenagers. "Because I'm your man if you need any help, son!"
"No, but thanks, Dad," Danny spoke while performing his nervous tick, "We're doing a study on alum."
"Yeah, it was in one of them cartoons when we were kids, as a gag. It was pretty cool," Dash said with a slight upward change in his pitch as he looked to Danny.
"Ah, nuts."
"Well, if you need anything…" Jack said, dejected.
Ding-Dong, rang the bell. Welcome to FentonWorks, I'm Jack Fenton. "Wow, that's a first," Al responded to the doorbell.
"I'll get it!" Danny threw back as he rushed to the door.
"Al, what's up? I thought you wanted to meet at midnight," Danny said as he opened the door
"Well, I looked up some travel information wheeze and it would have been midnight huff huff when I got here, but I found a spell pant that allows for teleportation. Can I sit for a bit?" Al responded breathlessly, leaning on the frame of the door.
"Sure, man. It looks like that took a lot out of you," Danny said as he grabbed Ross by the arm and led him toward the sofa.
Fenton! Dash thought, as he turned red when he saw Danny supporting Al. He didn't even notice that his body had gotten up and started walking towards the two boys.
"Hey, Dash! Mom just put your food in front of you!" Jazz yelled at the quarterback. She knew he didn't use manners, but surely, his parents taught him some.
"Huh?" Dash said as he came out of a fog, turning to see who had called his name. Seeing that Jazz was staring him down, Dash realized she had called him out of his fury and wanted him back at the table.
"Yeah, it did. First time I ever used it. Apparently, it's similar to the other thing about which I was telling you," Al said, acknowledging the situation and emotions of the room.
"I need about an hour to recuperate from this. I'll be fine, you go enjoy your dinner," Al said aloud, before whispering to Danny, grinning ear to ear, "with Dashy-boy."
Danny looked at Al hard. He flashed his eyes green to warn him not to push his buttons, and in return, Al's eyes went to the onyx color of his alter ego, saying 'I'm just as dangerous as you are, buddy. Bring it on.'.
"Alright, but I'm bringing your food out here. Oh! and Mom, Dad, I forgot to mention: Albert's parents are ghost-hunters as well!" Danny said with a smirk. That'll teach him to call me queer in my own home.
"WHAT?! REALLY, Albert?!"
Jack and Maddie zoomed over to the couch with the exhausted, young warlock. They started talking about the spectral energy that was happening around town. They asked him questions about his parents, to which Al obliged, begrudgingly. I'm gonna hurt that kid… Al thought, as he had to stave off the parental figures. He told the two ghost-hunters that his parents had gone off eight years ago to a government-contracted job of some paranormal activity in Wisconsin.
"Well, we know of a ghost out there," replied Maddie.
"Really? Huh? What's its name?"
"Do they need names? All we do is shoot them back into the Ghost Zone so they'll stop terrorizing the town. Although, there's a ghost kid that's been hanging around town for a couple of months now. We'd like to study him, molecule by molecule," Jack informed Al.
"Well, I saw the GHOST KID earlier today at school," Al said loud enough to grab Danny's attention. Jazz looked up from her plate, as well. Jack rushed back into the kitchen.
"Why didn't you tell me there was a ghost attack at the school today?! Danny? Sam? Tucker? Uh, Dexter?"
"It's Dash, and I didn't see anything."
"Nope, nothing," Sam and Tucker proclaimed.
"Dad, I was busy in Study Hall trying to get some homework done, I barely even notice that Al had skipped that class," Danny responded hastily.
"Well, how did you see him, Albert?" Maddie asked from the couch, beside the warlock.
"I was in the gym, heading home. There was a package I was expecting to come today, and I didn't want it to be left outside of my condo," Al told Maddie.
"Well, don't go making it a habit, young man," scolded Maddie, as if she were his mother, "School is very important!"
"Yes, ma'am," Al said with a slight chuckle.
The hour passed quite eventfully, Al telling Jack and Maddie of growing up in Massachusetts, moving to Georgia when he was 11 with his uncle, and then to Missouri when he was 13 with his aunt. They asked why he moved to Amity Park. He simply replied that his grandmother lived here and he lived with her. Al actually hated using so much effort to keep up the charade. He couldn't tell them that he was looking for his parents, since they had been missing for the past eight years. The state already considered them dead, and he was beginning to believe that as well, but something deep inside of him still hoped that they were alive.
Danny caught wind of every lie Al told. He was going to ask for the truth later.
Dash was watching Danny eat, barely eating any of his food.
"So when did you stop trying to flirt with me?"
"Huh?" Dash was pulled out of his trance when Jazz spoke in a hushed tone.
"Come with me."
"Ok…"
…
…
Down the hall, away from the dining room and the living room, Jazz cornered Dash. "So what do you like about my brother that you didn't like about me? Was it the fact that I'm a girl?"
"What are you talking about, Jazz?!" Dash exclaimed.
"Last night and tonight, you haven't taken your eyes off my brother. I remember when you used to use our study sessions as a chance to hit on me."
"I'm not staring at him. I'm just simply thinking about things at home," Dash said nervously, blushing.
"Uh-huh," Jazz uttered. "So, you're not interested in my brother sexually?"
"Jazz, I'm not gay," Dash exclaimed. "I don't know why everybody keeps on thinking I am!"
"Alright, but if you hurt him, there'll be hell to pay," she threatened as she went back to the dining room. Dash followed suit.