Chapter Six: The Official Superhero Test
"Look Danny, I know what you've said, I just don't get how you're so calm about this," Sam took a sip out of her milk carton. As normal, she, Danny, and Tucker were all sitting alone at lunch – completely ignored by the rest of the student body.
"I'm not calm. I just have nothing I can do about it right now," Danny told her, casually stabbing a rubbery piece of ham.
"Danny's right Sam," Tucker said. "Everyone thinks Wes is crazy. No matter how much evidence Wes is able to put together, no one will ever believe him."
Sam's eyes flared, "I'm not talking about our pain in the ass stalker, Tucker. I'm not even worried about him after our talk at the Nasty Burger. Have you guys even been listening to me? I'm talking about how your parents aren't letting you see the new Dumpty Humpty concert with us! We've had the tickets for months!"
Danny shrugged, "My grades are in the toilet. The only way they know how to respond is to take away my social life, even though I don't have much of one because of the ghosts. Sometimes I just wish that I could tell them why I'm such a disappointment, but it'd probably just end with them getting in the way or doing a bunch of research on me. Not to mention just how plain weird everything would be once they knew that I was half gho – oh, hi Wes."
Much to the trio's exasperation, Wes found himself sitting across from Danny and Tucker and next to Sam in a matter of seconds. The red-head had a determined look on his face, "I just want to know why you won't admit it. I mean, think of all the recognition you would get by just telling everyone you're Phantom."
Danny swallowed a spoonful of lumpy mashed potatoes before looking Wes dead (no pun intended) in the eye, "You really still believe that? Of all the people in Casper High to have a creepy obsession about, why did it have to be me? Why not Mikey or someone? And how would I even 'be' Phantom. If you haven't noticed, I'm very much alive."
On some level, Danny felt kind of proud of himself for that lie. He pushed the feeling of pride down and looked at Wes.
"Maybe right now," Wes answered simply. "But you can turn into Phantom. Somehow you're both, dead and alive. Ghost and human, like some kind of hybrid."
"You read too much sci-fi," Tucker commented. "And I gotta ask, where did you even come up with this 'Danny is Phantom' idea anyway? It's kind of... illogical."
From the tone that he used, everyone there could sense that Tucker was about to say 'insane' rather than 'illogical'.
Wes humphed, "I didn't make it up, it's the truth. The other day in class, you left for a bathroom break – and I could hear a ghost attack across town. I got this random thought that maybe you ditched class so often to ghost hunt because your parents are ghost hunters. Then all of a sudden everything made sense: you're Danny Phantom."
"And where was this 'sense'?" Sam said in finger quotes.
"Look Wes," Danny said, "I know that you've convinced yourself of this, but you have to let it go, it's not healthy. You look like you haven't slept in a week and earlier I got a glimpse of your science test grade. You need to be focused on your studies rather than some fictional obsession. Even though you might find it hard to believe, it's scientific fact that humans can't have ghost powers, at all. The entire concept of humans turning into ghosts and coming back alive is impossible. If you want to know about it, maybe you can ask my parents."
Danny, Sam, and Tucker shared a look for a moment. They all knew never to intentionally go to the Fentons for ghost information, otherwise it ended badly. Such as the time Jack was explaining the portal and Danny had to fight off two ectopusses behind his dad's back.
"I'm right," Wes said impertinently. "And sooner or later, your dirty little secret's going to slip out whether you like it or not."
"If my 'dirty little secret' is the fact that I'm supposedly Phantom, haven't you already been announcing that to the entire school for over a week?"
Wes grunted and stood up from the table, "Watch your back, Phantom."
Danny smiled in a joking manner, "And you watch your's, Phantom." Only Sam and Tucker saw his eyes momentarily flash green.
Wes was seriously pissed off. He's been beating himself up collecting evidence that Danny Fenton is Phantom, and nobody was even looking at it! Why couldn't they see that they were all fools? If that wasn't bad, his mind was still hurting from trying to figure out what that whole encounter with Vlad the other night had been about. He hadn't brought it up around his Dad again, but nothing added up. Maybe he could ask Danny what was up with the hologram of his Mom... Are you crazy? he chided himself. There was no way in hell he was fraternizing with the enemy. Especially after that encounter at lunch earlier in the day. He could tell Fenton was enjoying his suffering... he could just tell.
With his social life in ribbons, Wes hoped that he could find sanctum in basketball like he normally did. But even there, he was taunted by the fact that everyone believed him to be off his rocker.
When he reached his basketball locker... he was met with a horrible collage of all things 'Phantom' on the door. Random pictures of Danny Phantom were taped to the door, as well as notes that just said 'Wessie Phantom' or 'Approach With Caution: Danny Phantom's Locker'. What angered him the most were the ones mocking his theory that Fenton was Phantom.
"What's wrong Phantom, is there something wrong with your locker?" one of the other guys asked. Instantly, all chatter in the locker room died down and all eyes were on Wes. He noticed out of the corner of his eye that Justin was giving him a sympathetic look.
Not wanting to give them the satisfaction, Wes went forward and began to unlock his locker. He'd deal with all the Phantom shit taped to it later. As Wes was putting on his uniform, he heard a few guys laughing about Fenton being Phantom and finally lost it. It wasn't fair that nobody believed him. Why was he the crazy one? He had all the evidence, everyone else just refused to see it!
Wes slammed his locker shut, sending a few pictures of Phantom fluttering to the floor, "Are you guys seriously this fucking dense! They even have the same name for Christ's sake! Danny Fenton, Danny Phantom."
Everyone was staring again... just great. One of the guys started laughing, prompting everyone else to join. Now the entire locker room was engulfed in laughter.
"'Christ'? Didn't figure you were a religious type, being a ghost and all Phantom," someone called.
Wes narrowed his eyes,"It's a figure of speech dickface. And don't call me Phantom!"
Before the situation, Wes left the locker room, which was still in hysterics. He was sick of being everyone's clown, but he wouldn't stop trying. Fenton... Phantom... Fenton... Phantom... both of them Danny. Was it really that hard to put together?
Two days later, after the locker room incident on Wednesday, September 21st Wes had a mission. The idea had struck him somewhere around his second cup of coffee the night before, and he decided to test it out as soon as possible. He was ready... he just hoped Danny would be.
That morning before the tardy bell rang in Mr. Lancer's, Wes lingered around Mr. Lancer's desk. Wes kept an eager eye on the clock, there were seven minutes left before class started. He could only hope that Danny arrived to class before it started, otherwise he would have to wait to put his plan in action until the next day he arrived on time. But Wes felt good about his chances. After a short observation period, there was a 3:5 probability rate that Danny would arrive on time, especially since neither Sam nor Tucker were here yet. Wes noticed that Danny was typically late on days when Sam and Tucker arrived to class before him, and since they were both absent, there was still hope.
"Alright guys," Wes said to the students who had already sat in their seats, "if he manages to get here on time, watch Fenton. I have a plan."
Two or three people groaned, "This isn't you still trying to convince people that Fenton's a ghost, is it? Just let it go, Phantom."
Wes rolled his eyes, "Maybe, if you pay attention, you'll realize the true Phantom hiding right in front of you. Just trust me."
"Whatever, ghost-boy."
Three minutes before the bell rang, the trio walked into the classroom. A few people looked at them inconspicuously, curious what Wes was scheming, but most ignored them as usual. Wes stopped haphazardly leaning on Mr. Lancer's desk; it was go time. When Danny was walking pass him, Wes frantically turned around in a haste and knocked Mr. Lancer's blue "Shakespeare is Love, Shakespeare is Life" mug off of his desk. Wes smirked. This was a test to see if Danny would use his powers to impossibly stop the mug from breaking, I mean, every superhero has a hero complex, right? Wes had read or heard about it somewhere: the official superhero test. And if Wes's theory was right Danny would fall right into his – SMASH!
Or not.
The mug lay in shards at Wes's feet. Thankfully there hadn't been anything in it, but it was still a mess. Danny looked at Wes with a confused expression, and all of a sudden the students who had been there when Wes made his announcement started laughing.
"What kind of plan was that supposed to be?"
"I – I-" Wes stuttered.
"Oh, I know," someone suggested. "Maybe he expected his hand to gothrough the mug, because of his ghost powers. That's why he knocked it over."
Cue more laughter.
Danny was even more confused than ever, so he turned to Wes, "I'm sorry, I'm lost. What just happened. What plan?"
Wes blushed, "I – uh, see, I read somewhere of this thing where you drop something and – uh – look, I was trying to see if you'd use your powers to pick up the mug. Only someone with superpowers would be able to do it that quickly, and, yeah."
Danny narrowed his eyes, had he really thought that would work? "Superpowers? Y'know maybe I'd have superpowers if I was bitten by a radioactive phantom – but dream on Weston. Maybe one day I can catch a coffee cup, right after Phantom reveals his secret identity as – guess who? – Peter Parker. I bet you saw that coming too, didn't you Wes?"
Leaving him gaping like a fish, unable to come up with a witty response, Danny left to go to his seat wordlessly. Sam and Tucker followed suit, except Sam put her hand on Wes's shoulder and whispered, "Get help."
And of course, at that very moment, Mr. Lancer walked into the room. His eyes scanned over the room before he spotted his broken mug. His eyes grew comically wide, "Crime and Punishment! What happened to my favorite mug?!"
"Weston..." drawled the entire class in monotone. Mr. Lancer turned to Wes, who was frozen in a look of panic.
"Weston, how and why is my mug on the floor?" Mr. Lancer demanded.
Wes wracked his brain for a good enough excuse. It's not like he could tell his teacher he was trying to get another classmate to show his superpowers. "I thought I saw a ghost?"
Tucker snorted. Moments later, Sam kicked him in the leg with her heavy combat boot. "Ow!"
Mr. Lancer didn't seem pleased, "See me after class Mr. Weston. We'll discuss your payment for the replacement mug."
Wes walked to his desk muttering, "It's just a damn mug... it can't be that important."
Danny sat at his desk, hoping that nobody was still looking at him after Wes's whole mug ploy at the beginning of class. He was trying to sink into his textbook (figuratively, not literally), when he heard Wes whisper something with his enhanced hearing.
"I'm onto you Fenton, or should I say Phantom."
Wow... so threatening. Danny was just shaking in fright now. He was just about to close his eyes when Tucker threw a small wad of paper at him. Curiously looking back at his friend, Danny quietly opened the note.
It read: "Danny Phantom: Saving Shakespearean Mugs since 2005"
Danny almost fell back in his chair from laughter.
By now I've been through most of the reviews, but since I'm new to this site, I'm not sure the best way to respond. But I will thank anyone who has reviewed on this story, because it means a lot to me. Also, I would like to state that I only consider the scene in Shades of Gray as Wes's only official appearance in the show, no other background cameos.