Challenge topic #38: Save Me
Character(s): Danny Fenton
Genre: General
Rating: K

Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom.


He narrowed his eyes at his adversary. Although the battle wasn't exactly what he'd been expecting when he answered the call for help, he had to hand it to his foe... The little bugger was small, but ferocious. Danny was already covered with stinging scratches and abrasions. A clawed swipe had narrowly missed taking out his favorite eye. Well, he was fond of both of them, really... But that was beside the point. The point was that this should have been simple. A heroic answer to a cry for help. Ideally, he'd have swooped in, flashed some fancy moves, slapped on his hero-persona smile, and gone on with his life. But no... His target had to go and be difficult about the whole thing. Danny manfully suppressed an urge to just blast the whole mess to Kingdom Come. He knew that wasn't really an option, though. The little girl whose cry for help had first drawn him over here was still watching from nearby, eyes tearing and lip quivering. The whole drama had drawn an audience of slack-jawed lookie-loos, camera phones at the ready. He could already see the dozens of horribly embarrassing videos that would shortly be put up on the Internet. Talk about haunting. He'd have a hard time living this down.

The green eyed devil spawn leered at him, almost seeming to say "Oh, save me, hero. You're our only hope."

If the words had actually been spoken out loud, they'd definitely be followed by a mocking cackle. No doubt about it. The monster was pure evil. If only destroying it utterly were an option. Oh well.

Danny closed the distance between them again, eyeing the possibilities. The beast flexed its claws into the high tree branch where it perched. It thrashed its trailing tail in aggravation, keeping a very wary eye on him as he floated just out of slashing range. Danny couldn't blast, because he had to minimize damage: to the tree, to the spectators, and unfortunately, to his foe. Similarly, he couldn't just turn the tree intangible, because the fury of his opponent would be turned on those below, once it had been dislodged from the branch. Coming into hand to claw combat would only result in more injuries to his own poor, abused body. He wiped away a dripping line of icy ectoplasm from a stinging cut high on his cheekbone.

He had only one other option and it left a very bitter taste in his mouth.

Not only was this a power he had yet to master fully, but like his Wail, it was one he'd first seen (and had used against him) when he'd met his evil future self. Danny had to form an ectoplasmic containment bubble... An autonomous shield, self contained, and maintained indefinitely at a distance without physical contact with its originator (him).

He didn't like it, he didn't want to do it, and he certainly didn't want his townsfolk to see him do it... Whether or not he was actually successful. The whole situation just... Agh! Not only did it dredge up bad memories, but there was the public relations aspect to it. If one of his not so ardent fans caught on that this technique could be used to imprison "helpless humans" as well as his enemies... Man, the GiW would be glued to his butt even tighter than they already were. Such annoying (and potentially dangerous) hazards to public and ghostly welfare shouldn't warrant so much of his tightly stretched time.

His enemy just glared at Danny as he wavered, an unmistakably smug twist to its lips. He could almost hear it whisper at him, "Come and get me, Sucker."

"Fine, then. Let's just get this over with."

Danny crooked his fingers into tense a claw shape, calling the power forth and molding it to his will. A whispered mental command sent the invisible energies spiraling outward to ensnare his foe. A final twitch of his straining fingertips and a grimace of effort snapped the field into place. His bright green energies manifesting into material form... solid, strong, and stable.

Mostly. The shield bubble flickered a bit as he tried to shift his captured foe towards the pavement below. He concentrated, furrowing his brows in an attempt to block out the distractions of a crying child, a growing crowd, the cameras, the struggles of his captive, Tucker's camera (he almost faltered with the dread of whatever evil teasing Tuck had planed), the impatient way Sam was starting to tap her booted toe...

Agh! Focus!

The beast spit and thrashed within its temporary prison. Danny held the shield steady as it descended with agonizing slowness, off the branch, out of the tree, and to the sidewalk near the feet of the little girl who'd summoned his help in the first place. As she clasped her hands below her chin, and began bouncing excitedly in place, Danny released the shield. The furious cat instantly bolted away from his owner and the slightly worse for wear ghost boy, spitting and hissing the whole way.

"Mr. Fzbt! Wait!" she started to bolt after her pet, before skidding to a spinning halt and throwing her arms tightly around Danny's midsection. "Thanks, Phantom!"

He could only mumble, "You named your cat Fuzz Butt?"

"Uh-uh." She shook her head. "His name is FZBT. Gotta go! Bye."

Danny blinked his bemusement. Whatever, it was time to make his less than heroic escape... er... exit. He phased into invisibility and drifted over to the nearest alley to change back to human. His friends met him there. Danny winced and suppressed the urge to hide. He was in for it now. It was a pretty safe bet that he'd be getting teased about this for days on end. His toughest fight all week was against a vicious, flea-ridden, straight from the pits of Hell, eviler than cafeteria dining, fluffy pet cat stuck up a tree. So embarrassing.


A/N: Sorry for the hiatus. I've just had absolutely no impetus to write... until I got stuck in an all day conference at work. The fools, they let me bring my iPhone. Typed the whole thing on that. Mwah-ha-hah!