Guess who's not dead? (Well, I mean it's debatable.) Yes everyone I have returned from my unintentionally extended hiatus and I'm so sorry. School is the worst thing ever and because of it I'll try to update as often as I can but I don't know if I'll be able to go back to monthly updates. And I'm so sorry I missed Halloween! You might be getting a Halloween thing in December. Who knows at this point. Anyway, enjoy! I love you all so much!
It sucks being the new kid in school.
Elsa Arendal knew it would be a rough first day, especially since she had just moved all the way from Norway and in the middle of the second semester no less. The brick and plaster building named Casper High seemed much more intimidating than she had imagined. She just kept her head down as she made her way to the entrance of the building, hurrying to the administrator's office as quickly as she could.
She was not in the mood to make friends today. Moving across an ocean was hard enough but in addition to that she had to face high school. High school. For now, she just wanted to get caught up in her classes. She could make friends later.
Elsa wasted no time getting to her locker and using the combination she was given before someone bumped into her, causing her to fall to the floor and drop her things.
"Oh my gosh. I'm so sorry! I-"
The voice stopped when Elsa opened her eyes to find a boy standing over her, frozen with his mouth open as if he were about to say something. He was smaller but lean and taller than she was with jet black hair and big blue eyes that blinked back at her.
"I-I-I-" he stuttered before stopping, seemingly realizing that she was still on the floor. He held his hand out to her, "Here." She stared at him for a moment before taking his hand and letting him help her back onto her feet. They stood still before realizing they were still holding hands. They both quickly let go, small blush forming on each one's cheeks.
"I-I'm sorry about that," he cleared his throat before bending down to pick up her fallen books.
"Det er greit," she replied with a small smile. The boy paused what he was doing and looked up at her in surprise. She turned bright red when she realized what she said. "I mean… um… It is alright," she tried, mentally scolding herself. Years of English classes, all gone to waste.
"So, you're new?" the boy asked, standing up with all her books in hand.
She offered him a small smile, "Is it that obvious?"
"Well, the different language was a hint," he said, handing her her things and receiving a soft thanks from her, "That and I'm pretty sure I would remember someone like you at this school. I-" he stopped when he realized what he just said, "I'm talking too much aren't I?"
Elsa couldn't help the small giggle that escaped her lips. This boy was just too adorable.
"Uh, I'm Danny," he offered with a sheepish smile, hoping to salvage the conversation.
She placed the books she didn't need in her locker and pulled out what she did need, "Elsa."
Danny smiled, a little more confident, "So… uh, what's your first class?"
Elsa thought for a moment before reaching into her locker and pulling out her schedule. "I have… Biology."
"So do I," he grinned before red began to creep into his cheeks, "Um, i-if you want… I could walk you to the class and show you the way."
Elsa's smile grew at his shy nature and she opened her mouth to respond when a burly blonde in a letterman jacket shoved him into Elsa's open locker and slammed the door before leaning up against it like nothing happened. "Hi," he said with a flirtatious smile, "Name's Dash Baxter. Star Quarter back. King of Casper High. What's your name beautiful?"
Elsa blinked back at the stranger before raising a brow in disbelief. Was this guy for real? "Excuse me," she shooed his hand off her locker as she began to unlock it, "It is very rude to interrupt a conversation."
Dash moved away and scratched his head, "Uh… Okay. Anyway, how would you like a tour of the school from the king himself?"
"No thank you," Elsa replied as she opened to locker door to find Danny staring back at her in surprise. She helped him out of the locker before hugging her books to her chest, "Danny, here is already showing me around. I don't think I'll need anymore help. Thank you." With that, Elsa turned and began to walk away with Danny following behind her, a look of shock on his face before he gave her a small smile.
Maybe it wouldn't hurt to make a few friends.
Elsa ended up having a better day than she had anticipated. She made a another friend who happened to have most of her classes with her. Her name was Valerie. She was super sweet and definitely knew her way around.
"So tell me Elsa, either you wore too much blush today or you've met someone," Valerie said as the two made their way down the stairs to the front lawn of the school at the end of the day, "Tell. Me. Everything."
Elsa looked at Valerie in surprise. Was she really that see through? Or was her friend just really talented at reading people? She hesitated for a moment. Elsa wasn't really used to opening up to people.
"Oh come on," Valerie laid a hand on Elsa's shoulder when she saw her hesitation, "We're friends. You can tell me."
Elsa glanced at the ground shyly, "Well… His name is Danny. He didn't mention his sur name but… He was just really sweet and shy and… Valerie, are you alright?"
Said girl was gaping back at the blonde before she closed her mouth, "I've um… I've dated Danny Fenton before."
Elsa froze and looked at her friend wide eyed, "Oh my goodness! I-I'm so sorry! I had no idea! I only-"
"Elsa, it's fine," Valerie reassured her, "Danny and I are no longer an item. Just friends. It didn't work out anyway. But you…" she smirked as they reached the sidewalk, "From the way he's been eyeing you all day, you've got a pretty good chance."
Elsa quirked a brow, "'Eyeing?'" She was unfamiliar with that term.
"Oh right. Um, it's like slang for 'staring at.'"
Elsa's eyes widened. She leaned closer to Valerie and dropped her voice to a whisper, "He's been looking at me?"
She smirked at the blonde again, "Mhm. Anyways, we'll have to talk about this more tomorrow. I have a job I need to get to," she began to walk down the sidewalk, "See you!"
"Goodbye," Elsa smiled before turning and heading in the direction of home. It took a while but she finally reached an area she recognized. She was only a few blocks away when a loud electric guitar chord rang through the air.
Elsa reached up to cover her ears from the harmful loud noise and squeezed her eyes shut, dropping her things. This went on for a while. Loud chords randomly sounded in her ears, shaking the ground underneath her. She tried to make her way home but each time she did, more ear-piercing guitar music filled the air.
She opened her eyes again when she heard a crash in front of her. Laying on the pavement was a boy with snow white hair and a black and white hazmat suit. His green eyes widened when he spotted her, quickly sitting up. Their eyes met and they stared at each other for a moment before a girl with blue flaming hair landed in front of them.
"New fans huh? You come here often?" she smirked before lifting her arm and strumming on her purple guitar.
Elsa closed her eyes and braced for impact but it never came. She opened them again to find the boy holding up some sort of green shield that blocked the attack. Letting the force field drop and reaching into his belt, he pulled out a silver and green thermos. He uncapped it and pointed it at the girl.
"Show's over, Ember!"
With that, the strange thermos sucked the girl in before the boy slapped the cap right back on. He let out a sigh of relief at the quick victory and turned to the girl behind him. She blinked back at him with wide blue eyes.
He glanced down at her dropped books. "Uh here," he said as he bent down to retrieve her things, "Let me help you with that." Once he gathered them all, he stood back up and handed them to her.
Ignoring the strange sense of déjà vu, Elsa took the books from him. "Thank you," she said softly before she noticed a strange glow around him, "Herregud, I heard about ghosts in this area but…"
He raised a brow with a small smile, "What you weren't expecting to meet one?" She shook her head, tightly hugging her books to her chest. When he saw her eyes closely examine him, he quickly changed the subject, hoping she wouldn't recognize him, "S-So, um, you're new in town?" She didn't speak, only gave him a small nod. "Well," he gave her a smile, feeling a little more confident as Phantom than he did Fenton, "As the official superhero of Amity Park, I'd like to welcome you-"
He was cut off when he heard the distant threats of the Fentons. He turned back to her, "Uh, sorry. I gotta go. Maybe I'll see you around?"
"Maybe," she replied, eyes still wide.
His smile grew before he jumped into the air and flew off into the sky, leaving Elsa watching in awe. I mean can you blame her? It's not every day you see a real ghost, let alone talk to one.
"Danny Phantom?" Valerie asked before narrowing her eyes, "What was that ghost creep doing? Did he hurt you?"
"No, no, not at all," Elsa assured her, "He actually saved me. He was really nice too."
She could hear Valerie scoff over the phone, "Well, I don't trust him. That ghost kid's caused me enough trouble."
As much as Elsa liked Valerie, she couldn't help but feel her judgment was a little prejudiced. Don't worry, Elsa had plenty of time to consider her opinion on the ghost boy. With Amity Park getting attacked nearly everyday, she did get the chance to see him in action. She will admit that he was quite impressive.
But she also got the chance to see more of Danny Fenton as well. She had met his two best friends, Sam and Tucker. They were nice and she hoped that they could grow closer as friends.
Regardless, today's ghost battle had cornered Elsa behind the school with no one else around. Of course, Phantom was there to save her before the ghost could do any real harm.
"Geez," he said to her as he finished sucking up the techno-ghost, "You have great timing."
"So do you," she retorted, raising a brow. She breathed a sigh of relief as he tucked the thermos away, "Who knew this town would be so dangerous?"
"Well," Danny quickly swallowed the lump in his throat, trying to summon all the courage he had, "If you want, I could take you home."
Elsa placed her hands on her hips with a teasing smirk, "A ride home from Danny Phantom himself. And who am I to receive such an honor?"
Phantom shrugged, "A pretty girl who happens to live far away." He suppressed his urge to blush at what he just said. Fenton would blush and stammer an apology, but right now he was Phantom. He encouraged himself to work with this new, and cooler, persona that he was painting for himself.
"Danny Phantom the superhero is also smooth with one liners? This is quite the day," she responded with an even bigger smile, "In that case, I'll take you up on that offer."
He quickly pulled her closer by her hand and scooped her up in his arms. He sent her a flirtatious smile before launching off into the air. She yelped in surprise, arms wrapping around his neck for support. This time he couldn't hide his blush but Elsa didn't notice. Her eye swept over the town before them, now seeing it in a whole new light. After telling him her address, he zoomed towards her house. Her laughter rang in his ears as she felt the wind whip through her hair.
They reached her house too quickly for either of their liking. "There is good," she pointed to her small balcony. He floated down and gently set her on her feet before hovering in the air again.
"There you go, Princess. Home, safe and sound," he smiled, not even realizing that he just used a pet name.
"Princess?" she asked with an amused looked, "We're using nicknames now?"
He shrugged nonchalantly, "Only if you want."
"Fine then, Ghost Boy," she smirked, "Does this mean I'll be seeing more of you, Phantom?"
He gave her flirty look, "Depends, do you want to see more of me?"
She rolled her eyes and shook her head, but smiled nonetheless, "Don't read too much into that. But my balcony is always open."
"I'll hold you to that," he said with a wave before turning and flying away. Once he was far enough away, he stopped and tried to calm his racing heart. He was never, never, that smooth and it was very stressful.
The next day of school sure proved to be interesting. At least the morning was. Elsa had been walking to class when she spotted Danny, Sam and Tucker over by the picnic tables. She took a deep breath and gathered all the bravery she had before making their way over to them. "Hey guys," she said once she neared them.
They looked up at her in surprise but smiled regardless, mostly Danny. "Hey Elsa," Sam was the first to speak, "What've you been up to?"
She smiled back, feeling a bit more comfortable, and opened her mouth to respond but was grabbed by the arm before she could.
"Ella, right?" The blonde turned to see two figures on either side of her who she recognized as Star and Paulina.
"Um," she shrunk back nervously, uncomfortable with how close the unfamiliar girls were, "It's Elsa."
"Of course it is!" Paulina corrected herself. "We knew that," Star played it off, "We were just joking, silly!" Paulina gripped Elsa's arm again, "So, are the rumors true? Did Danny Phantom really take you flying yesterday?!"
"Uh," was Elsa's only response, glancing back at the trio, "Yes but I was speaking with-"
"Wow!" Star beamed, "You have to tell us everything!" Paulina nodded, "Don't worry. You're pretty enough to catch attention but not enough to pose competition so-" Paulina stopped, realizing what she said, before turning and glaring at her friend, "Star, why would you say that?!" she looked back at Elsa and began to pull her away from the table, "Now, I want every last detail."
Elsa looked helplessly back at the trio as she was dragged away, mouthing, "I'm sorry."
"So," Tucker turned to Danny, "Elsa got a visit from Phantom yesterday?"
Danny blinked out of his dreamy state and stared at his smirking friends, "What? She was in danger and after Technus was caught, she was scared. So I offered to take her home."
"Well, I know I'm going to try and help her," Sam said, looking to where the A-listers had dragged the blonde, "Poor girl looked like a deer in headlights."
And that's what she was. She was lost, having heard things about Paulina and the A-listers, some bad some good. As more days passed, she tried to avoid most of them. And Paulina was the first to notice.
Danny was minding his own business and walking to have a late lunch after a short run-in with the box-ghost when he heard a soft sniffle. He followed the sound to find the janitor's closet door cracked open. He opened it to find a certain blonde sitting on the floor with her knees pulled to her chest and her head resting on her knees.
"Elsa?" he called to her, "Elsa, what's wrong?"
She lifted her head to reveal tear stained cheeks and slightly red eyes, "Oh! Danny… It's nothing. Paulina was just picking on me. She said a few things and… really it's stupid to be crying over something like this."
"Paulina and the rest are the stupid ones," he muttered, causing some laughter from Elsa. He smiled and offered her his hand, "Here." Elsa smiled and wiped her tears away, taking his hand and pulling herself up. She shyly brushed her hair out of her face before tackling Danny in a tight hug.
He was surprised at first but wrapped his arms around her to offer some comfort. They stayed like that for a while before Elsa pulled away, wiping her eyes some more. "Now," Danny smiled, putting a hand on Elsa's shoulder, "I think we could both use some gross school lunch. What do you say?"
It may have seemed like a small act, that comment, but to her, it meant the world. Elsa laughed again, "I think that's a great idea."
Elsa had managed to escape the A-listers but unfortunately couldn't escape the rumors. Everyone bombarded her with questions, most being if she and Phantom were in a relationship. But she was quick to assure everyone that she wasn't and that she didn't want one.
And it was true. Elsa didn't like Phantom that way. She thought he was nice and she appreciates what he does for the town but he's just a friend. Besides, she's got her eye on a different Danny.
"Boo!"
Elsa gasped and jumped back as a ghost materialized in front of her. "Phantom!" she scolded him with a small pout as he laughed at her.
"I-I'm sorry," he spoke through his laughter, "I just couldn't resist."
Phantom's ghostly glow stood out against the dark sky. He had appeared on Elsa's balcony with her clad in her pajamas. This wasn't the first time he visited. This had become a more frequent thing for the two as their friendship began to grow.
When Danny finally calmed down he noticed two chairs in the balcony. "For me? Aw, you shouldn't have."
"I only did it because I got tired of standing the whole time you visited," Elsa said sitting down.
He sat down next to her and thus began seemingly endless conversations. It had been a few months since Elsa had first moved to Amity Park and she soon got used to the frequent ghost attacks and the company the town hero.
Eventually a comfortable silence fell on them as they both looked up at the starry sky. Elsa bit her lip nervously as a thought came into her mind, "Phantom? Can I… can I ask you for advice?"
Danny straightened in his chair, "Of course."
She looked down nervously, "Well, there's this guy and…"
Danny's heart sunk in his chest at the mention of another guy. He noted that she was struggling with her question and ignored what he felt and attempted to make a joke to ease her nerves, "Wow, confessing your feelings for me already Princess?"
"Shut up," she shoved him playfully, "But seriously, I don't know what to do."
"Well, who is he?" The curiosity was practically eating him alive.
Elsa turned away from his glowing green eyes shyly, "Y-You don't know him."
"Try me."
She sighed, "His name is Danny. Danny Fenton."
Danny's heart hammered in his chest at her confession. A big goofy grin spread across his face before he reminded himself that to Elsa, they were both completely different people. "I know him," Danny admitted, "And you should tell him. He'll never get the guts to make the first move."
She turned back to face him, "Well, why not?"
"Can you blame him. I would be shaking in my boots if I were confessing to someone so…" he paused when he met her eyes, "Stunning."
"Aw, Phantom," her smiled grew, "You're too sweet… but I don't know if I'll be able to tell him."
He raised a brow, "Why not?"
She shrugged, "Because, well, I'm not very good at talking to people. I get shy."
"You talk to me."
"You're a ghost."
"Fair enough."
Elsa's eyes narrowed at him, "If you tell anyone, I swear Ghost Boy-"
He put his hands up in surrender, "I won't tell anyone." His attention was caught by the city hall clock striking the hour of ten. His eyes widened, "B-But, I have to go." He floated up into the air before turning and giving Elsa a wink, "God natt prinsesse."
She laughed at his use of Norwegian, especially his terrible accent, but she smiled at the effort, "Goodnight Ghost Boy."
A day at the mall with Valerie sounded nice in retrospect. It started off fun but of course a ghost attack was overdue and it decided to show up in the mall. Elsa couldn't recognize the ghost that found Phantom. He had a posh voice, fangs, strange black pointing hair and a white, red and black suit with a cape to match.
He kept bragging about the ancient item around his neck, calling it a volpina. It was a black curved hook-like pendant on a chain. With it he created more ghosts. Danny was shocked at first when Skulker appeared out of nowhere but when his ghost ray passed through the ghost without it turning intangible, he realized what power this gave Vlad.
"Illusions," he said to himself before turning and flying straight towards his enemy. Vlad tried to fire an eco-ray at him but he dodged, landing a kick in Vlad's stomach and grabbing the necklace.
"Ah!"
Danny turned as Vlad fell into a shopping mall display. He found Elsa a little bit away from the door, probably in the middle of making her escape, clutching her arm. He quickly flew down and landed next to her. "Elsa," he asked hurriedly, "Are you alright?"
Elsa nodded, "The ray just grazed my elbow. I'll be okay."
Danny turned as heard Vlad groan when he rose from the debris around him. Danny's eyes glowed green and he let out a low growl. "I am going to break you in half!"
As he launched towards Vlad, Valerie returned to find Elsa. "Elsa? Where did you go? I was looking everywhere for you!" She grabbed the blonde's hand and dragged her out of the mall.
But of course, Vlad wasn't defeated easily. He managed to evade Danny and spot two teenage girls. Having not missed the exchange between Phantom and the blonde, he swooped down and grabbed her, ignoring her furious protests and semi-successful hits.
He landed on the top of the city hall building and Phantom soon appeared. "There you are," he smirked, "Running from a fight? I thought you were crazy, not a coward Vlad."
"Oh my dear boy, I do not run away from fights. However I do believe I have something of interest to you." Vlad turned with a smirk, revealing Elsa who was gripping Vlad's outstretched arm for dear life as she hung over the building.
Danny's confidence left him as soon as he locked eyes with Elsa. "Let her go Vlad," he narrowed his eyes at the villain, "She has nothing to do with this."
"Oh but I disagree," Vlad held out his other hand, "Hand over the volpina now."
Danny's eyes softened as he looked down at the amulet wrapped around his wrist and then looked at Elsa. "Fine," he sighed before tossing Vlad the necklace, "Now let her go."
Vlad smirked as he caught the volpina, "A very poor choice of words."
Elsa's hand was suddenly released from Vlad's grip as she found herself falling towards the ground. She closed her eyes before she felt another hand grab hers. She opened her eyes to find Phantom standing on a ledge a little lower on the building, using it for leverage so he could pull her up.
"Freeze ecto-freaks!"
The three of them looked down to find the Fenton's with their guns pointed up at them. Vlad smirked to himself as his used the volpina to create another illusion. He wouldn't let Jack and Maddie spoil his fun yet.
He held another figure above the ground for everyone to see. Elsa gasped when she looked up to find Danny Fenton dangling above her. "Fire and boy falls," Vlad called to the Fentons.
"No!" Jack, Maddie and Elsa all called at once.
"It's another illusion!" Phantom called down to Elsa, trying to reassure her while still pulling her up. Even as the Fentons put away their weapons, Vlad let go, calling out, "Whoops, my hand slipped."
"Danny!" Elsa called as she reached to grab his hand but he wasn't close enough. "No!" she yelled as she watched him fall, "Danny!"
Phantom pulled her up. "Elsa it's another illusion."
But she was in hysterics, calling down to him and frantically looking at Phantom, "Save him!"
"Elsa, it's not real," he said, arms wrapping around her waist before she did anything stupid.
She struggled in his grip, "Let me go! You can still save him!" She stopped and kneeled on the ledge, feeling tears prick her eyes. She buried her face in her hands as she began to sob.
Phantom tentatively reached out and laid a hand on her back, "Elsa?"
She slapped it away and turned to him, "Why didn't you save him?" she moved to the crevice where the wall and the ledge met, leaning against the wall, "You should've saved him… not me!"
Phantom stared at her while she sobbed. His eyes softened and a small smile made its way onto his face. She did care. She cared about him. With one last look at her, his decision was made. "Elsa," he reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder, "Elsa, look at me."
"Leave me alone Phantom!" she slapped his hands away again.
His one hand landed on her cheek. "Elsa, listen. I know that wasn't the real Danny," he gently lifted her chin so she would look at him and a bright flash blinded her for a minute, "Because I'm right here."
Her mouth hung open as she stared at Danny Fenton. "Hi," he gave her a sheepish smile, "Surprise?"
She gripped his wrist and pushed him away. "Stop," she hugged herself, "Enough! I'm tired of the illusions!"
He moved closer to her again, "But Elsa, I'm not an illusion. Just open your eyes. I know you're scared but please, look down." She peeked up at him before glancing over the edge. "Do you see Danny down there?"
"N-No."
"That's because it was a fake. But me," he took her hand and place it on his chest, above his heart, "I'm the real deal. See?" She blinked back at him as she felt his heart beat against her hand.
He offered her a small smile, "Would I lie to you Princess?"
Elsa stared at him for a moment before collapsing into his chest and holding him in a hug. She buried her face in his neck and he hugged her back. "Well," he said as they both pulled away, "Now that that's settled, I believe there's a ghost to catch," he wiped her stray tears away, "There's a door to the inside over there. Go home and get some rest. You've had quite the day."
He moved a little bit away from her before a white ring formed around his waist and he was transformed into Phantom. He gave her a small wave before launching up in the sky towards Vlad with newfound determination.
Elsa sat there for a bit, trying to comprehend what had just happened. Her face burned red when she realized that that one night, she had ended up confessing her feelings directly to him.
That night, Elsa waited on her balcony for a guest she knew was coming. Eventually he did show up, landing next to her and turning back into his human form. "Wow what a day," Danny tried to joke, "Definitely not how I imagined it would go. Right Elsa?" He turned to look at her to find her leaning on the railing with her elbows and staring at the sky.
There were a few moments of silence before he spoke again. "Hey," Elsa turned to meet his eyes when he continued, "A-Are you disappointed it was me?"
"What?" Elsa shook her head, "No of course-"
"Because I totally get it if you are," he rambled nervously, "I-I mean, you probably expected someone better. I really messed up today, letting Vlad get to the volpina. I'm just some clumsy careless guy. I'm not the hero you expected."
Elsa's eyes softened as he hung his head. She mustered up whatever remnant of courage she had for what she was about to say next.
"Brave? Check," she began counting off things on her fingers, "Righteous? Check. Witty? Check. Best one liners I've ever heard. Selfless? Check. Talented? Check. Handsome? Definite check. Kind? Check," she met his wide eyes shyly, "I'm using the same words I use to describe Phantom to describe you. Every one of them fits. Every last one."
She continued, "You're still the same person Danny. Whether you wear a black and white hazmat suit or jeans."
A smile spread across Danny's lips, "You're the first person to like Fenton better than Phantom."
She shrugged, "Finding out that Fenton was Phantom was an added bonus," she moved forward and cupped his cheek, "I like you Danny. You. With or without your powers."
They shared a silent moment before a blush began to creep up Elsa's cheeks, "And me? Well, I'm just sitting here wondering if he also likes the strange Norwegian girl who doesn't know any English slang and gets lost in the halls. But," she shyly looked up at him, "I'm glad it was you."
He stared at her for a few seconds before gripping her waist and pulling her close to him She looked up at him in shock. "I'm glad I told you," he whispered before leaning in and kissing her. Turns out he did have the guts to make the first move.
Elsa practically melted at the feeling of his lips against her own. Arms wrapped around each other as they shared another memorable moment together under the stars. But one phrase kept replaying in Danny's head.
I like you Danny. You. With or without your powers.