Danny looked his first real challenge in the eye,after that whole week of training with an expert ghost wrangler,already fighting ghosts,learning things on his own and just trying to plaining adjust to ghost powers.He truely felt he could take on someone just a little under 2 years younger then he was.
"You sure you wanna fight?"he inquired her with an amused grin playing on his face,"You're kind of a girl,you know."
"Danny..."the word's sizzled out under Jade's breath,but he could tell she was just felt fustrated and betrayed.So he nodded and turned to face Emerald seriously,
"Alright,I'll be fair."Danny told her calmly,blasting a small ectoplasmic beam on the cuffs and bursting free to go and look the surprisingly nonchalant pre-teen,"I can see where you're getting at,Emerald.Why don't we just talk about this."
But Emerald only narrowed her eyes more,pushing a button on her wrist and the loud almost pierceing sound of mechanical whirring started up and a few seconds later,Emerald had on a high-tec robotic suit on (alittle like the Techins guys) and was glaring down on Danny.
Danny sighed and got ready to fly up to fight,"Guess not,"
"Danny!"a worried Jade called up to him,he turned to her and saw that she looked almost pleading,"I don't know how strong she is,but please don't be too hard on her.I mean,if you have to the by all means yet!But...she's still my sis-"
"Shut it!"Emerald snapped loudly,firing a green blast at her.
"Danny..."she grunted as the blast started phasing her,"Forget that...that...oh darnet!JUST DO WHAT YOU HAVE TO!"
"My pleasure,"Danny grinned an apt,he really was ready!
First,he zoomed over to where she was and was about to deliver a pretty bad kick in her side,when she almost effortlessly stepped to one side and grabbed him by the ankle.With a small smirk,she thrusted back and he just barely caught himself in mid-air.Thinking for a moment he dissappeared.Then,reappearing over her,he was to shoot an etcoplasmic blast at her when she directed a cannon on her mechanical arm and shot a bigger blow of it at him.
"Uh..."he groaned nauseously as the slime started to run down his body,that's when the burning sensation started,"YAAHH!"
Emerald laughed hysterically,before explaining,almost in a normal voice and manner,"That stuffs hot on you're flesh if you're a ghost.But..."she wised up,"Not on a suit of armor."
He clenched his fist in anger and slight humilation,phasing through the slime and with his eyes blazing green,he echoed a a loud war cry and slammed his fist with great power into the suit of armor a momentarily distracted Emerald.Danny drifted backwards and breathed heavily under his breath.
"You!"she came back snarling fierecly,but then tried regaining her cool composure,"Nice first shot,but believe me.I'm going to make you 'go ghost' all the way before this is over with!"
Jade,who was watching with wide and anxious eyes,couldn't help feeling sorry for her sister.Sure,she was riddled both angery and hurt my her own sister's betrayel,slightly guilty for taking so much time with thier mother and sorry that this was the result of it all.But,like any criminal,she had to be stopped.
"Danny!"she called out to him quickly when he had drifted back almost near her,he turned to see resolute glowing in her eyes,"Hit her with everything you got,Danny!Don't hold back because she's my...sister.Ooh!Go for it Danny!You can."
"Wow,not only does my know-it-all of an older sister worship the grounds you walk on,"Emerald shouted out coldly,making sure they both could hear,"She's also you're personal cheering squad!Wow.Too bad you'll never have a wedding!"
"Thats..."Danny began in a low,valourous voice,"Is enough!"
Powering up to as high as he felt he could go,they locked in almost-mortal combat.Swinging thier fists at each other and dodging,a few blasts just barely missed Jade.As they fought,Danny noticed that as he fought harder he seemed stronger with each blow he made and shot he aimed for and made.He was still pondering on that,when Jade delivered an awful hit into the still slightly swollen ribs.He groaned and leaned over,that was when she blew on a whistle and Blaze appeared out of nowhere looking angry and mean.
"Blaze..."she told him slyly,looking up as Danny clutched his side in pain,she seemed to wonder but said,"Finish him!"
So that's when things really got bad,the Ghost Wolf started to shot rays Danny could barely dodge,then when that didn't work he seemed to get an idea in his head that made him almost grin.With a sneering look,he pounced on the now seemingly helpless Halfa and started scratched and occasionally nipping at him like mad.Jade watched in horror at what seemed like enternity,before Blaze picked him up and threw him with a hard bash againist the wall.
"Danny!"Jade nearly cried in choked tears threating to spill,he was beaten pretty bad.His suit had rips and he had scratchs that were long and looked deep.Two black eyes and he just layed there in a limp,motionless form,that's when Jade was able to phase through as he had and come by his side.
"Not a fun way to end you're first relationship with a boy is is?"Came the ecohing of her sister's harsh words,but Jade only ignored her while she knelt down by his side,then she continued at her sister's suspence,"I knocked that ghost boy out so fast,it's not even funny.That's why I'm not laughing!Now that he's out of the way...I'm going to do what I should have done a very,very long time ago..."
Jade rose suddenly,her breathing was coming out in short,abrupt puffs as she turned on Emerald with saddened,soulful eyes,"Sister,"she began to say in a chapfallen,disapointed voice,"What have you turned into?I tried to make sure you were alright,I even asked you."
"What?"Emerald blinked,confusion filling her green eyes.
"I asked you,more times then you'll ever know if you wer okay,"Jade started to say more clearer and more confidently,glancing down briefly at Danny and then up at him,"Then you attack him!"she pointed to Danny,"An innocent teen boy who just happens you be part ghost."
"You're point?"she inquired cheekily,regaining her composure.
"The point is I did nothing to you but try and love you,"Jade told her with a sinking feeling,as she snapped disgustedly,"And you,Emerald Janet Black,betrayed me!"
The two locked eyes with each other and were just about to make a mad run at each other.When Danny,who was just barely able to fly,threw himself between the two and stretched both his hands out to barricade them from each other.His breathing was raspy,Jade noticed with rising concern,but he only shook his head at her worried face and started saying,
"Look at you two.You're sisters and you're fighting over something niether of you had any control over!Jade,it's not you're fault you were born a quarter ghost and lived with your mother most of the time;Emerald,nothing's you're fault either.Listen,unless you two are going to solve you're differences without fighting,I'm not moving a mus...cle..."
Doing the opposite,Danny collasped back down to the ground and changed back into his normal form.Still badly beatened up and scarred.He,Jade thought with sympatheny,had used the very last of his strength to do the thing he thought was right.And she admired him for that.
"Jade,"Emerald sniffled slightly,tears forming in her eyes as she jumped out of the suit and the two of them embraced,"I'm...I'm sorry Jade!"she sobbed,"...I'm so sorry."
"It's okay,"Jade whispered softly into her ear,"I forgive you."
All thefeelings like betrayel and anger,faded at that moment.While they just continued on hugging each other,that's when a third party joined them and the three of them,Sisters and...Mother,embraced for a long time.As the moon came out from behind the clouds outside and a howl was heard from the outside somewhere on a small hill.
The Next Morning...
Danny woke up the next morning lying on his back in bed,the covers were pulled up and he was still wearing the same outfit as the day before,but he didn't know why he was there or how.Then it hit him!The battle,he bolted up and then gasped at how his back and ribs ached when he tried sitting up and his arm seemed to be secured carefully in a makeshift cast.
"Danny."
He turned then to see a very different and very warm Jade come up to him and throw her arms around him.But,as he still felt confused and disoriented,he only pulled away and that's when he caught sight of a sorrowful-looking Emerald and a much older woman,about his parent's age,standing beside her.
"What's going on?"Danny asked her in a hushed voice,wanting to be sure this wasn't an ambush of some sort.
"Danny,first off,this is my mother..."Jade stepped back and the woman who resembled both Jade and Emerald stepped forth,"She's also part ghost."
"I want to thank you Danny."she smiled at him,grasping his hand in hers,"Thank you for reuniteing me with my family."
"You're...welcome?"he said with raised brow,eyeing Emerald in the background suspiciously and then turning to Jade,"But,what happened?How'd I get back home and-"
So,Jade came back over to sit on the side of his bed and began to explain to him that after all this time thier mother had been held back because she had been so busy and caught up with the run of the bandits,it was touch-and-go for her every day.But,not explaining how exactly,but only saying that since the crime-rate had gone down and everything seemed to be going back to normal (as far as normal went with ghosts) and had returned home to find all of this out.And that they had been talking and getting reaquinted all through the night while Danny had been asleep and Jade had told Danny's parents not to distrub him for obvious reasons.
"And Emerald...?"Danny asked as soon as she was done,not all to entirely convinced someone could change like that.
But before she could speak,Jade came to her rescue,"Just some things that needed to be sort out,"she smiled at her sister,who in turn smiled back,"I guess it's safe to say..."
"Safe to say that you two should have a few minutes alone before we go,"Jean intreupted,giving Jade a knowing look and smiling at Danny,"It was nice to meet you,young man."
"You too."Danny told her slowly,nodding a little uneasily.
As soon as Emerald and her mother had left the room,wall enterance,Jade stood up and then walked back to the far wall.With her back opposite from Danny,it gave both of them a chance to think about what they wanted to say to each other.But first off Danny started off by asking,
"How's Sam?Is she alright by this whole thing?"
"She understood,"Jade repiled coolly,not turning to look at him,"She agreed that it'd be best for us to explain things to..."
"Blaze?"Danny inquired again,picking up where she trailed off.
"Behind bars."
That's when they both fell silent to really do so deep and real thinking,thinking that they hadn't done for a long time and that probabley needed to be done before saying anything.Finally,just as Danny felt this would go on forever,Jade dashed over to him and gave him a quick kiss.
"And that was for?"he asked her in a surprised voice,trying to hide the fact that he had never been kissed before by a girl.
"For everything,"Jade told him quickly and then started over by kneeling down on one knee and putting a hand on his shoulder,"Before you came along,I was just so anti-social and moody.But you,Danny Phantom,never gave up on being my real...well maybe once.But,you're my first true friend."
Danny smiled at that and after a moment of to,he began to say what was on his mind,"Well,if it wasn't for you..."he glanced down at himself,"I'd probabley be a wreck right now without my amazing Ghost guide's words of wisdom and training."
They both laughed at that.
"But seriously,"Danny told her,straining his eyes to look at her fully and recoginize her as almost like his guarding angel maybe,"You really helped me out and...you're my friend too."
Smiling,for the very first time,a true and honest smile she hadn't smiled since she was a young girl.Jade started to walk backwards and was just about ready to leave,when she turned to him one more time and then asked hopefully,
"You won't forget me,"she turned to look out the window and then she turned back to him with a sigh,"Will you,Danny?"
The words seemed to swirl around in Danny's head,as he lay it back down and closed his eyes.Then,with a start,Danny rose up and saw that he was no longer banaged up.He caught up slowly and catiously from his bed to make sure and then made his way over to the window.Looking out,he observed two squirrels running about on some black eletrical wires.Had it all been just one big dream?He wondered,still leaving the question undecided,Danny open up the window and stuck it out just enough to see it start to turn a white-ish colour in the Afternoon light of the sun and then back to being his regular skin.Smiling,Danny sat up on the window ceil and thought he could just make out someone flying out in the distance.
"So,Danny Fenton,was it all just one big dream?"he asked himself again aloud,leaning back and allowing his thoughts and dreams for the future flow,then he grinned,"Not a Halfa of a chance."
The End.
Thank you for everyone who took part in reading and reviewing my first and maybe,hopefully not last piece here.Anyways,see ya!Hope y'll liked it...and that's all folkies!
LP