Part 3
The Journal of Daniel Fenton, Entry #8
Sometimes I almost wish I were a religious person so I could make sense of some things, or at least decide what they were. This past month has me thinking of two different creeds.
One, karma. The classic cause and effect law prevalent in several Indian religions. A law that basically says if you do good things, good things will come back to you, and if you do bad things, ditto. Now I know more then a few people who would jump down my throat at the supposed utter falseness of this law, citing various examples where bad people got the best of life and good people were hammered on by the dark side of it until they shattered in one way or another. I'm not here to debate its veracity (dictionaries are fun!). I'm simply using it as something I'm pondering.
It says if you do good, good will happen to you.
But another type of belief, Chinese in origin I believe, states that there must be a balance between happiness and unhappiness in life. If you get too much of one, the other will be thrust upon you for balance. In both ways. If you're TOO happy…look out.
The reason I wonder about this is due to the events of the past month.
Ghost attacks have been minimal and easily dealt with: my last real effort was with Tom the Samurai. I actually have time to study. And Valerie…
For lack of a better term, I will call it wonderful. Oh, it's not like those Harlequin romance novels: I don't float to school every day (even though, all things considered, I could if I wanted to). We also seem to have avoided the teenage sinkhole where our relationship seems to be based more on obsession then love (I've read of them in magazines mostly, ones I cribbed from my sister, don't ask why, of young women my age saying that she and her boyfriend can't stand being apart from each other more then a minute and takes this as a sign of true love. It's not true love, it's hormones mixed with inexperience mixed with learning. See, I do pay attention in school sometimes!) I've mentioned Sam before…and though part of me doesn't like to admit it, whatever complications we have just don't exist with Valerie. After getting over the get to know you hills, we've clicked.
I think that soon we may be taking the step to the next level…but I'd rather not think about that. For one, it makes me worried and embarrassed, and sometimes it even makes me glad I don't wear sweat pants if you know what I mean.
BUT, of course, there are still problems. We still haven't figured out just how Valerie forgot my secret. We've had a few theories, but none that have borne fruit. And of course, Tucker saw fit to come up with another problem…
"Danny, you have to let Valerie attack you." Tucker said. Danny nearly spat his soda into Tucker's face.
"What?" Danny snorted.
"I agree. What?" Sam said, arching an eyebrow. They were back in the Nasty Burger doing their now-usual brainstorming session.
"I know it sounds weird, but hear me out Danny. We keep thinking about the reason why she forgot…that put me on another train of thought last night. Ok, she forgot…but how could she REMEMBER?" Tucker said.
"I'm not following Tuck."
"Ok, Danny. You said you got a glimpse of her room. And that it's covered with Danny Phantom stuff. Her grudge apparently hasn't faded."
"No." Danny said in exasperation.
"And you hadn't run into her…well since the whole time travel thing before this started."
"No."
"And Valerie is now spending a lot of time with you."
"I'll say, and let me tell you, it's a pain keeping it from the school."
"Brief pause: why are you doing that?"
"Valerie KNOWS them. And she's come to really hate gossip."
"Fair enough. Back to the point. Plenty of Danny for Valerie, no Phantom. And she hasn't slacked off on him. Eventually Danny, she might start to wonder why and how the ghost kid is avoiding her so effectively." Tucker said. "And Valerie's a smart cookie. She might think one of the possibilities is inside information. And who could be giving him inside information? And then she may look at you…the boy from the family of ghost hunters…who come to think of it, looks and sounds ODDLY like the Phantom…" Tucker said.
Danny stared for a second, and then he smacked his forehead.
"Why, for once, can't anything in my life be simple?"
"Technically most of your problems are simple. Ghosts show up, scare people, you beat them up, and they leave. Simple." Sam said. "This situation doesn't allow a physical violence solution. At least, not in and of itself."
A light bulb appeared over Danny's head.
"Hey, I know how to dodge Flash! I mean…I just had an idea." Danny said.
"And if anyone at ALL gets that last reference the author will be utterly amazed." Tucker commented.
CRASH!
Sam offered Tucker a broom and dustbin, and Tucker sighed and walked off to tidy up the forth wall.
So we are now faced with another Identity Crisis, of sorts. But together, the three of us have worked out a somewhat risky plan.
The only trouble is a matter of communication…
Danny couldn't understand the greeting, but the fact that Wulf started licking his face like an actual dog made it pretty clear.
"Hey! Hey! Good to see you too." Danny said, even as he tried to untangle himself from Wulf's grip. Wulf spoke more Esperanto and ended with 'Friend'.
"Yeah, I'm your friend Wulf. You understand me, right?" Danny said. Wulf nodded. "Keeping away from Walker ok?"
Wulf growled a bit. Walker had tried a few times to recapture him, but a combination of Wulf's dimension-tearing claws and Danny's help had kept Wulf out of Walker's grasp. Wulf didn't mind much: he was nomadic by nature and used to moving around. But Wulf nodded, indicating he was keeping away.
"Ok…Wulf, we're friends right?"
"…Danny…friend…"
"Right, ok…" Danny said, as he withdrew a large book. He'd had to go to nine different stores in three different towns, but he'd managed to find an English to Esperanto textbook. Wulf gave it an odd look.
"…I…need…your…help…" Danny slowly said in Esperanto. Wulf looked amused by his speaking: Danny was probably tripping all over the accents. Wulf said something back in Esperanto that Danny didn't really understand.
"…Come…with…me." Danny said.
"…Go…friend." Wulf said in English.
"Yes, come with me." Danny repeated, as he gestured. It was easy enough to lead Wulf out of the Ghost Zone and back into his parent's house.
"…Sorry…cold…in…here…" Danny said as he went through the book. His parents were STILL mucking with the Fenton Face. Wulf didn't seem to notice: must have been the fur.
Jazz was a tad bit freaked when Wulf showed up in her room, but it faded as Danny, SLOWLY, introduced Sam and Tucker and Jazz, explaining as best he could who they were. Wulf seemed to understand, and upon deciding that 'Jazz…friend…too…" started licking her face, much to Jazz's annoyance and secretly some hidden delight.
"Ok Tucker. You busted your butt for four days refamiliarizing yourself with his language, you think you can explain to him our idea?" Danny asked.
"I can try. Give me the book." Tucker said.
"Wulf!" Danny called, and Wulf stopped licking Jazz and bounded over to Danny. "Tucker…friend…will…explain…help…" Danny said, having to look up will and explain in the book.
Tucker's Esperanto was a bit smoother then Danny's, but he still needed to refer to the book a lot, and hence it took nearly three hours to fully explain Danny's need. Wulf seemed very confused for the first hour, but after three he seemed to have grasped the basic concepts.
"…Wulf…go…to friend…we…'play'…then Wulf…go…when ask…ed…this…help…friend?" Wulf said. Danny figured that was a pretty good grasp, and congratulated Wulf on understanding. Wulf seemed to take pride in this.
Tucker explained it once more, just in case. Wulf nodded along the whole time.
"…Wulf…help friend…"
"Yes. You're a good friend." Tucker said in Esperanto.
"Now let's hope he's a great one." Danny said.
Our plan is on the surface simple: Wulf will come to my school tomorrow, scare a few kids, then I, the Phantom, will show up, we'll play-wrestle for a bit, and then the second Valerie shows up Wulf will leave, I'll dance with her a few seconds and then I'll leave as well, and maybe this will help alleviate any suspicions she has on where her enemy is.
Of course, Wulf's language barrier leaves stuff up in the air. He might not fully understand that I just want to scare a few people. And if Valerie jumps me before I can tell him to leave, he may very well jump Valerie. Or…well there's a lot of stuff that could go wrong, and I sure don't want to turn Wulf into an enemy.
I wonder if this is the Chinese factor coming in to rain unhappiness on me. You have to understand, I don't plan on hiding my true self from Valerie forever, especially if it gets…serious. But until she and I have gotten into each other's confidence enough to start revealing such things, she has to think we're two different people, and not be given a reason to think otherwise.
But I can't sit here and keep fretting, or I'll be up all night.
Danny Fenton, with crossed fingers, signing out.
"All right." Danny said, as he put a shirt down on the floor. He, Sam, and Tucker were crammed into a broom closet in his school on a recess break. "Here's the plan. If Wulf understood the time instructions, and I think he did, he should show up here, in this closet, in about 50 minutes, which is when you, Tucker, break for your next class. He's tracking me by smell, hence the shirt. But just in case Tuck, you come here, speak with him, just in case…and then we do the plan. Ok?"
"Ok."
"…You know guys, this is a lot of trouble and by myself I probably couldn't have done it. You're really going out of your way to help…just thanks. Thanks a lot." Danny said, even as he looked a bit sheepish.
"Hey, what are friends for?" Tucker said.
"Yeah Danny. Besides, who else am I going to turn to to get out of Christmas caroling?" Sam said.
"I'll be there! Now, let's head out into the hallway, my way: seeing all three of us come out could be…awkward." Danny said, as he went ghost, turned Tucker and Sam intangible and invisible, and left the room, dropping them off in an isolated corner and transforming back behind them.
"Ok guys, let's head to class. Oh, one last thing. When it happens, just try and keep out of sight. Or at least, don't meet up with each other." Danny said.
"What? Why?" Sam asked.
"If Valerie sees you and Tucker, but no me, and the Phantom just happens to be around…we have to avoid giving her ideas on all fronts!"
"Good point. I'll head to the cafeteria and take advantage of the…short lines." Tucker said, and grinned. Sam rolled her eyes.
"Ok ok. Well let's get moving before we freeze up." Sam said, and the three went their separate ways.
Tucker was back in the broom closet 48 minutes later.
And six minutes after that, reality tore open in front of the black teen, and Wulf slipped out. He sniffed and looked around, a bit confused by the confined quarters.
"Friend?" He asked.
"You'll…see him soon Wulf." Tucker said, once again reading from the Esperanto book. "Now, you remember the plan."
Though it was a bit garbled to his inexperienced ears, Tucker was pretty sure Wulf said "For Danny, I go out and scare people and then he will come and we'll play for a bit and when he asks me to leave I go back home."
"Yes, exactly!" Tucker said, in English, and looked at the book again. "But remember Wulf…just…scare. Do not…hurt anyone. Just scare…them."
"Don't…hurt…" Wulf said in his labored English. "…Scare."
"Yes."
"…Now?"
"Yes, now."
It was like a switch, as Wulf
went from relatively benign to full on American Werewolf in
London, and with a snarl he pushed past Tucker, phasing through
the door. The very loud screams that erupted on the other side made
it clear that people had seen him, as Wulf snarled and barked, the
sounds fading after a few seconds.
Tucker peeked out through the door. An empty hallway with various dropped school supplies. Tucker exited the broom closet and went down the hallway, hands in his pockets and whistling.
It didn't take the racket long to reach the class Danny was in, as he glanced up. A few seconds later the door slammed open and a panicked student ran in.
"HELP! GHOST! AHHHHHHHHH!" The random student screamed, and the whole class immediately panicked. They remembered Sizzle too.
"Ok people, stay calm! We're on the first floor, exit through the windows!" The teacher said, as the students ran through for the windows and opened them.
Everyone was so busy trying to get out no one noticed Danny stayed behind in the classroom.
"Heh. I'm ready for my close up, Mr. DeMille." Danny said, as he thrust his arms out. Flashing rings surged over them, as they flowed over his head and feet as well, meeting in the center of his chest and disappearing in a twinkle of light over his chest logo. Danny turned invisible and intangible and flew through the wall. It wasn't hard to find Wulf: he had just had to follow the screams.
Wulf apparently understood the concept of 'Don't hurt anyone' better then Danny realized when he found him: not only was he not attacking anyone, he was doing his menacing in such a way that the students didn't trample each other in their attempts to escape. Danny found Wulf in the gym, where he was chasing the current class around.
"HEY!" Danny yelled, and Wulf turned as Danny slammed into him, turning intangible to phase both him and Wulf through the wall.
He never saw that Valerie was in that class. Her eyes narrowed.
"Well well, good things do come to those who wait." Valerie said, and ran for the locker room.
Danny phased Wulf outside, past a group of students who panicked all over again.
"Hey Wulf." Danny said almost casually.
"Friend! Play now?" Wulf asked.
"Yes Wulf, we play." Danny said. "We play ROUGH."
The look in Wulf's eyes made Danny a little nervous: his lack of English speaking skills aside, Wulf clearly understood that word.
"Rough!" He said, mostly joyfully but with a hint of sadistic glee mixed in as well.
And then he grabbed Danny and shifted his weight, and the two of them tumbled down onto the ground. Danny ended up on the bottom, and though Wulf landed on the ground and not on Danny the impact was notable.
"Owffff!" Danny gasped, and then got his leg under Wulf and flipped him off him. Wulf landed on his feet as Danny flipped to his. He charged at Wulf again, but Wulf actually sidestepped the attack, grabbed Danny's arm, and swung him over his body, slamming Danny into the ground. Again, not as hard as possible, but Danny was still briefly winded.
"…You're a little too good at this." Danny said. Despite his lupine features, Wulf clearly grinned.
Danny flipped up and leapt on him again, and the two tumbled across the school ground until they ended up on the football field where they split apart. By now, several of the students had noticed that the wolf ghost was not longer chasing them…and they recognized the reason.
"Yeah! Go Phantom! Whoo! Get him!" And so on came from a little less then a dozen people scattered around the football field. Danny couldn't help but chuckle to himself.
"Ah, me public." Danny said, and fired an ectoplasmic blast, keeping his aim off just in case. Wulf dodged and retaliated with a blast of red ectoplasm from his eyes, and when Danny dodged them Wulf pounced on Danny again. But this time, Danny bounced off the ground and flew up, as the two continued to wrestle with each other. To a casual observer, it looked life and death. That was good, as Wulf snarled and went for Danny's chest, seizing his costume with his teeth but not actually biting down, as he drove Danny back down into the ground. Danny yelped (he did feel the impact after all) and then got his feet under Wulf and shoved him away, Wulf flying across the football field and landing on his feet after a somersault.
And Danny spied a familiar red figure in the distant sky. Well, things had gone well so far, as he flew forward and once again slammed into Wulf.
"Ok Wulf, you have to go now!" He whispered, as the two appeared to struggle.
"Go?" Wulf said, looking a bit disappointed. He'd clearly been having fun.
"Yeah. We can play more later! But you have to go now!"
"…Go now!" Wulf said.
"Yes! Pretend to run away!" Danny said, as he shoved Wulf backwards. Wulf flew like it was a punch. Danny thrust out his hands and fired a spray of ecto-shots, all of which were aimed around Wulf. Wulf understood, as he acted like they hit him. He let out a mournful howl and then slashed out with his claws, shredding through reality and heading back into the Ghost Zone, as Danny pretended to try and follow him, and when he 'failed', he pretended to be mad at the fact, acting like he didn't notice Valerie behind him.
He was still a bit startled when he heard the clicking and whirring up noise that signified Valerie was getting ready to fire.
"Well well, look who finally crawled back out from under his rock." Valerie said. After getting used to hearing sweet nothings from Valerie, her cold angry tone was quite a turnaround. "Well, when I'm done with you, you'll wish you stayed in hiding!"
Valerie blasted off a missile.
Danny flew upward to avoid it. He had debated on what to do here, and had decided that 'less is better'. He wasn't even going to speak to Valerie, less she recognize his voice (he knew that in ghost form his voice had a bit of an echo and hence sounded a little different, but Danny wasn't going to tempt fate). Nonetheless, he felt his waving hand gesture of dismissal said enough, a 'Ok you don't want me around, I'm gone.' And after doing it Danny flew at Valerie. Valerie yelped and tried to dodge, but she wasn't quite fast enough as Danny phased through her and turned invisible on the other side. By the time Valerie managed to turn around Danny had dived into the ground and vanished entirely.
"What the…hey! Don't run away!" Valerie said, looking around. The small crowd had begun to boo, and Valerie glared daggers at them, even though her mask hid it. One even threw an empty soda can at her, though he didn't get anywhere near enough to hit her.
"Lousy ingrates! UGH! Next time, Phantom!" Valerie growled, and flew off.
Danny popped back up into the school in the same broom closet that Wulf had come from.
And which he entered into again, much to Danny's surprise. He must have followed his nose.
"Friend…Wulf…do…ok?" Wulf asked. Apparently he wanted to see if he had disappointed Danny. Danny found it touching.
"You did great Wulf. Wonderful." Danny said, saying the last word in Esperanto. Wulf gave the doggy grin again and licked Danny's cheek.
"…Go now?" Wulf asked.
"Yeah Wulf, you need to go."
"Play…later?"
"Yeah Wulf, we will."
"…Play. Goodbye, friend." Wulf said, as he tore open another portal. Within seconds he was gone.
"Well, that went pretty well overall." Danny said as he turned back to normal and turned around.
And the door to the broom closet slammed open.
Valerie hated the fact that every time these days she charged out of her costume, she had to take off all the little quick-change orbs and put them in her backpack. But better that then her father randomly searching her and finding the gear. Or someone accidentally hitting the activation button: Valerie didn't want to have to explain herself if she suddenly found herself in a red suit in the middle of the cafeteria.
Well, at least she'd gotten into the bathroom and changed without anyone seeing her. Even if the Phantom had run away without accepting his well deserved butt-whooping. He was a coward on top of other things, Valerie mused, as she left the washroom, acting like she'd been hiding there.
And more bad luck came crashing down on her, as a certain someone happened to be outside. A certain orange-afroed, alien t-shirt and glasses wearing, freckled nerdy someone.
Nathan. Valerie froze.
"Valerie! My love!"
"AHHHHHHH!" Valerie screamed, and took off running down the hall.
"No! Please! There's only 1,017 days left for you to accept my invitation! Please! We would work so well together! Valerie!" Nathan wailed, chasing after Valerie, who put on an extra burst of speed, as she rounded the corner…and decided hiding was better then running.
She picked the first door she found.
And that was how Valerie and Danny ran into each other again, as Valerie ran into the broom closet, whirled around, and slammed the door shut, as Danny's heart leapt into his chest. Had despite everything working so well, Valerie somehow tracked him down anyway? Was it all about to fall apart?
Well, Danny wasn't going to fold if there was a chance he could bluff. It was dark in the closet, and Valerie had looked inside for maybe 1/3 of a second before turning around to shut the door. She probably hadn't seen Danny.
Yet, as he screamed and cowered back, even as Valerie jumped and whirled around.
"…Danny?" She said in pure confusion: while the broom closet was dark it wasn't pitch black. "What on earth are you doing in here?"
"Val? Is that you? Is the ghost gone?" Danny said, putting a quaver into his voice. He didn't much care for playing a coward, but he figured it was realistic: if the accident had never happened and he had managed to do all he'd done in his normal life as clumsy, shy, Danny Fenton, then Danny Fenton would have run away from a seemingly ravenous wolf ghost and hid in a broom closet too.
"Uh…just a sec!" Valerie said, as she whirled around. She wasn't looking for any ghosts: she was making sure she'd lost Nathan.
After 40 seconds, she figured she had.
"Is it gone?" Danny said, getting a bit annoyed at how much whimper there was in his voice. He wanted a little, not a 'I'm about to piss my pants' level.
"Yeah, it's gone Danny. You ran in here to hide?" Valerie said.
"…Yeah…Sorry." Danny found himself saying.
"For what? Everyone else ran away as well. It's hardly like you're in a small group population." Valerie said, sitting down next to Danny. "I'm pretty sure it's gone now though."
"You weren't running away from it?" Danny asked, hiding his curiosity at just how Valerie had ended up in the same broom closet as him in his supposed fear of the ghost.
"Heck no! Takes more then some dumb ghost to scare me! No, it was Nathan."
"Nathan?"
"Oh come on Danny, I'm sure you remember Nathan."
"Only vaguely. I was spending more time thinking of you."
With the gloom, Danny couldn't really tell if he thought Valerie's expression meant anything, but he thought she gave him one that essentially said 'That's sweet.' Thought.
"Yeah well, you might want to spend more time thinking about him. He's one of the thorns in my side. Heck, hiding from him is how we met, so to speak."
"Yeah I remember now. He's still chasing after you huh?"
"Yes! He just won't quit! I've tried being nice, I've tried threats, I've tried ignoring him, and he just won't give up! If he weren't so harmless I'd have taken a restraining order out on him, and even so I'm really getting sick of him chasing after me!"
"…Well uh…you want me to go say something to him?"
"And give the whole school a giant blazing sign that says 'We're going out?'. Sorry Danny, not yet." Valerie said.
"No no. I could just go speak to him…as a friend of yours. Man to man. Better then me sitting around and doing nothing if he bothers you." Danny said.
"You're not going to beat him up are you?"
"Not my thing."
"Yeah I know." Valerie said, and leaned in and gave Danny a brief peck on the cheek. Danny turned bright red, even as Valerie pulled her head back. "There are guys who will fight for their woman, and there are guys who don't understand that there are certain times to do it and certain times not to. I think that if push came to shove, you'd be one of the first ones." Valerie said.
"Uh…yeah." Was all Danny could say.
"All right then. Let's get out of here before anyone else walks in on us." Valerie said, as she got up and peered through the snowy-style glass window that reduced anything viewed through it to a blur of colors. "I don't think anyone's out front."
"You don't think?" Danny said, standing up and walking over to her.
"Yeah, think. I don't have X-Ray eyes. But hey what are the odds…" Valerie said as she opened the door.
Valerie had been right: there wasn't anyone in front of the door.
However, there were a considerable number of people on each SIDE of the door.
And since all these people were considerably jumpy after the ghost attack, the noise of the door opening got everyone's attention, as Danny and Valerie found themselves staring back at a large group of their peers.
Valerie stared in shock for a few seconds before she smacked her hand into her face, while Danny felt severely tempted to blow his secret identity so he could just sink through the floor.
And then everyone started laughing. Exactly why, Danny never found out. He didn't think it was very funny.
"It just HAD to be this way, didn't it?" Valerie muttered. She could already see people whispering to newcomers attracted by the noise. The gossip mill was about to be cranked up to maximum overdrive. Man, karma was a bitch in certain aspects.
Danny was still trying to collect himself when Valerie removed her hand, an angry look on her face.
"What? There was a GHOST, attacking us! MUST you assume that there is only ONE reason for us to be in this closet, especially considering the aforementioned CIRCUMSTANCES?" Valerie snapped. It didn't stop the students' laughter, which was now starting to include catcalls.
Danny just wished he could disappear. This possibly couldn't get any worse.
"Well, who have we here? FEN-TON!"
Scratch that, Dash had just arrived.
Though apparently he couldn't think of anything else at the moment to direct at Danny, so he turned his attention to Valerie, who was trying to cover her embarrassment with anger.
"Hey Val, man…after what happened I knew you'd fallen down the ladder…but I never thought you'd be content to sit and eat dirt on the bottom rung!" Dash cracked. "What happened? You couldn't run with the stallions any more, so you decided to lie down with the…wimp horses?" Dash said, and laughed to himself like his lame ending was a new gift to the field of humor.
Valerie was still glaring at Dash, but her expression abruptly changed as a cold, wicked grin flashed over her face.
"You're right Dash. In terms of social status, I have fallen down the ladder." Valerie said.
And then she snapped her hand out and seized Dash by the testicles.
Dash's scream of pain cut off all the laughter like a switch. Even Danny was stunned, as Valerie's anger returned, full bore.
"And in these last few weeks, I am beginning to realize just what a blessing that may be." Valerie said, as Dash whimpered and danced as she maintained a death grip on his pride and joy. "You know Dash, I won't blame you for your insults. It's what you do. What I DO take objection to, Dash, is the way that my new financial trouble seemingly gives you free reign to call my character and virtue into question. So I suggest you issue an apology right this instant, STALLION, or your name will be changed to the more appropriate handle of GELDING." Valerie said, and twisted hard.
You can't blame Dash for screaming like a woman. Most men would.
"SORRY! SORRRRRRRYYYYYYYYYY!" Dash screamed.
Valerie released her grip, and Dash crumpled before the black girl, who flicked her eyes over the crowd.
"Anyone else want to make unfounded comments?" She asked.
Danny just stood and stared, amazed by it all.
Then he heard another brief snicker, and turned to look at a jock whose name he couldn't recall, who had by now flowed from the surprise of watching Valerie's act to the student reaction of mocking anyone who suffered such a comeuppance, even a peer. The jock looked at him, a note of condescension in his eyes.
"Heh, dude, you gonna let your girlfriend fight all your battles for you?" The jock said.
Danny knew he was being called a wimp. He wasn't sure where he managed to pluck his response from, but it came, as Danny assumed a cool glance in response.
"…Sure. Why not? She seems to be good at it." Danny said, glancing at the still agonizing Dash.
"SOYLENT GREEN! What on earth is going on here?" An all too familiar voice rang out, and then Mr. Lancer pushed his way through the milled students.
His eyes flicked from Dash, to Valerie and Danny, to Dash again, and then the open door behind the pair, and then to Valerie and Danny.
As Dash saw Mr. Lancer, and despite his still considerable pain, managed to toss a counter their way as he pointed at the two.
"They were making out in the closet!"
"WHAT?" Danny and Valerie said in the same outraged voice, as the students began to chatter around them.
"QUIET! ENOUGH! All students, back to your classes! Nurse, help Mr. Baxter! Mr. Fenton, Miss Gray, my office. NOW."
"But…" Valerie protested.
"No talking! More marching!" Mr. Lancer said, pointing.
The words Valerie mumbled under her breath as she walked to the office with Danny were ones Danny was surprised Valerie knew.
"All right, now that we are away from all that chaos, perhaps you'd like to give your side of what happened?" Mr. Lancer said as he sat at his desk, Valerie and Danny in chairs before him.
"Dash was lying!" Danny spluttered.
"Mr. Baxter was also lying prone on the ground grasping his genitals, so while anything he said's authenticity may be called into question the fact that something occurred is not." Mr. Lancer said. "Now…why were you two in the broom closet?"
"Hiding!" Danny blurted out.
"So you confirm you two WERE in the broom closet?" Mr. Lancer said. Danny's eyes widened as he realized he'd fallen into a minor trap.
"Yes! No! We were in there for hiding! Just the two of us! I mean, it wasn't planned! Wolf! Just wanted to get away…wait no, I mean…!" Danny babbled, as Mr. Lancer watched, his stern teacher gaze covering the mildest hint of amusement.
"Danny, quiet." Valerie said, and Mr. Lancer's eyes flicked to the girl. While Danny was a lawyer's dream, self-destructing under a few leading questions, Valerie remained as cool as a cucumber. "I know what you're trying to find out, and I know you think teenagers shouldn't engage in such activities on school property, if at all, and I know you think that teenagers would naturally lie to cover it up. So I'll let the evidence speak for itself. All you have is the so called evidence of Dash, which is clearly hearsay."
"Been watching Law and Order, I see, Miss Gray." Mr. Lancer said.
"Among other things. Evidence is what matters Mr. Lancer. So tell me, do you see my makeup smeared, or any of it on Danny?"
Mr. Lancer checked. His eyes could have stood in for a security X-Ray.
"…No." He admitted.
"Do you see our clothing, disheveled in any way?"
"…No."
"Then really, what evidence do you have? We were hiding from the ghost, nothing more. Do you want more proof? What on earth could you want? Do you want to check my purse for condoms?" Valerie said, as she tossed said purse on the desk.
It was up to debate who turned redder: Danny or Mr. Lancer. Valerie grinned to herself: she'd known that would catch the old prude off guard.
"…Um…no Miss Gray…that will not be necessary…I guess you have…proved your case." Mr. Lancer said. "Though I must say…if you are…you really shouldn't. Not for a few years, if you catch my drift and my advice."
"I'll take that into consideration. Can we go?" Valerie said, standing up like they'd already been dismissed.
"You can Miss Gray. Mr. Fenton, stay here."
Danny's eyes went wide again, as Valerie arched an eyebrow. But she couldn't exactly tell Mr. Lancer that she defied him and drag Danny out, so in the end she left.
"Look sir…" Danny said as Mr. Lancer glanced at him again.
"I believe your story boy. I just wanted to ask you what happened to Mr. Baxter. I have a feeling that asking Miss Gray would result in…unnecessary vitriol…" Mr. Lancer said, glancing after Valerie.
"…Oh. Well Dash saw us and made some, um, 'unrefined' comments about what he assumed the incident was…and Valerie took offense."
"I gathered as much." Mr. Lancer said, and sighed. "You know, I once thought that Mr. Baxter had a basically decent core, but some days I wonder…" Mr. Lancer mused to himself for a bit before realizing Danny was still there. "Well then, that will be all, Mr. Fenton. Though I must say, what was assumed? Don't make it reality."
"Um…yes sir. Of course." Danny said. Mr. Lancer then gave him an odd look.
"Miss Gray, Fenton? I must say I am a bit…taken aback. Not what I was expecting."
"Uh…yeah. We seem to be…getting that a lot." Danny said as he stumbled out in his eagerness to get away.
"So what'd he want?" Valerie asked out in the hallway.
"Just uh, what happened to Dash. He thought your view might be 'biased'." Danny said.
"Damn straight." Valerie said, and sighed herself, looking around, seeing the occasional glance and at least one brief finger point. "This wasn't exactly the way I wanted it to happen."
"Me neither." Danny said.
"Why they would feel the need to devote so much attention to us…doesn't make any sense to me." Valerie said.
"It's school."
"Point. Well you know what they say Danny." Valerie said, as she suddenly took his hand in hers. "If you've got it, flaunt it."
And so until they parted for class, Danny and Valerie walked down the school hand in hand.
Well, on the plus side, at least our plan worked, and Valerie still seems none the wiser about my 'connection' to the Phantom. As for the school…well, they would have found out anyway. And I am beginning to be able to care less and less what they think.
Still, we still need to try and find out how Valerie forgot. And let's not forget Nathan, Valerie's little stalker in training. I don't know what I'm going to do about that yet.
I'll figure it out later though. I owe a friend a playdate.
The Phantom, off to the Ghost Zone…
"Ok Tucker, starting to get a bit annoyed now." Danny said as he, Tucker, and Sam sat in the Fenton kitchen the next day. The whole house was still chilled due to his parents' continued experiments on the Fenton Face, and though it was a bit more comfortable then last time white mist still came out of the mouths of the teenagers every time they talked. Which Tucker wasn't doing much of: he was lost in a graphic novel.
"Hang on Danny, I'm getting to the good part." Tucker said, his eyes darting back and forth.
"Tucker, you've read that darn Ultimates graphic novel so many times that I've somehow got it memorized due to your insane amount of knowledge somehow spilling out of your head and…going into mine…or something." Danny said as he lost the point of his comment. "Yeah it's cool, I've read it myself, I know that, so please could you stop reading it and help me?"
"Hang on…almost there…ahhhhhhh…" Tucker said. "Oh Captain America, I want to have your manbabies."
"Yeah yeah, Captain America's a badass extraordinaire and he makes fun of foreign countries in the process, put it away!" Danny said, slapping the novel down. "Ok, first order of business: are we still clueless on how Valerie forgot my secret?"
"Clueless."
"Clueless."
"Ok that went quickly. Next order of business: Nathan." Danny said. "How are we going to deal with him?"
"I missed the part where he became a problem." Sam said.
"Sam…he's bothering Valerie, and I'd like him to stop, and I said I'd talk to him, and I don't know what to say." Danny said.
"Actually Danny, I believe the correct recollection was 'You didn't get to say much of anything because Nathan found out you're dating Valerie and hence became your mortal enemy for life in his own cute nerdy way'." Tucker said.
"Ha ha Tucker. That doesn't help me. He won't listen to me, Valerie's tried being nice, mean, ignorant…nothing is working! What else can I do?"
"What do you usually do?" Tucker asked.
"Well normally when I'm desperate I kick butt and throw them back into the Ghost Zone. But somehow, in this case, that strikes me as murder."
"I think that's a valid legal interpretation." Tucker said.
"How about hurting him? Is hurting him an option?" Sam asked.
"What? NO!" Danny yelled, amazed at the question.
"Yeah I know. Just testing. Heh heh…" Sam chuckled. Danny sighed, a bit taken aback. That wasn't like Sam.
"Guys, I know to an outsider the obsession may seem kind of funny, but I've seen enough in both my ghost fighting and my television habits to know it could grow into something uglier. I want to nip this in the bud."
"Ok…maybe you could bribe him?"
"I doubt it."
"We could talk to him?"
"That would be a good idea Sam, but considering the lack of attractive women who talk to him he could end up obsessing on you."
"Ahhhh…right. No going that way." Sam said.
"Why don't you just use the whole ghost thing to your advantage and scare the daylights out of him?" The Box Ghost said.
"Yes but the thing is…ACK!" Danny said, whirling around as he heard the voice. It was indeed the Box Ghost, floating by the fridge. The lack of heat in Danny's house had kept him from noticing his ghost sense.
Strangely, the Box Ghost didn't look angry or aggressive. Indeed, he was actually looking over the door in the middle of going through the fridge.
"What the hell…!" Danny said anyway.
"Oh you know the spiel. I am the Box Ghost! Beware! Fear me! And all that jazz…" The Box Ghost said as he turned back to nosing around in the fridge. "Don't mind me, I just wanted to raid your fridge."
"…what?" Danny said, confused.
"It seems like a simple concept, like the construction of a box!" The Box Ghost said, as he finished making a huge sandwich from various fridge foods. "Just do what we do and threaten to drop him off of something."
"No no, the fridge thing." Danny said.
"Oh. Well you see, as GREAT and MARVELOUS as boxes are, they cannot do EVERYTHING, like keep food FRESH, so a REFRIGERATOR is based on the CONCEPT that food remains FRESH longer if kept at a low temperature…"
"NO! WHY ARE YOU STEALING MY FOOD!" Danny yelled. The Box Ghost yelped and his sandwich parts flew everywhere.
"Um…I am the Box Ghost! Fear Me! And…let me eat because every restaurant in town has chased me out by throwing stuff at me."
Danny hopped off his chair and transformed. The Box Ghost gulped.
"Um…give into your kind and generous nature and let me have a snack here?" The Box Ghost asked.
A blast of ectoplasm slightly singed the wall next to the Box Ghost's head.
"Maybe you've been hanging around with the cafeteria worker ghost too long, but the expression holds true Box Ghost: there's no such thing as a free lunch." Danny said. "However, I'm in a good mood, so I'll make you an offer. Go back to the Ghost Zone on your own, and I won't kick it back into it. This offer expires in three seconds." Danny said, and then grinned wickedly, inspired by Valerie. "Unfortunately it just took me seven seconds to say all that."
"AH! GOING! GONE!" The Box Ghost said, as he phased through the floor. Danny chuckled and flew over to close the door, before transforming back, fetching a broom, and cleaning up the fallen food.
"I swear it won't be long before he's the amusing sidekick instead of the not-really-that-amusing enemy." Danny said as he finished and walked back to the table.
The Box Ghost popped back up through the floor.
"BEWARE!"
And then he was gone again.
"…Right." Danny said, and sat back down.
"Mr. Cardboard Obsession has a point Danny. Why don't you just scare him?" Tucker asked.
"That was the first thing I thought of Tucker, but once I gave it more thought I realized that it could be more trouble then it's worth. Telling people with obsessions to back off sometimes works, and sometimes it just focuses the obsession. If I show up and scare Nathan's pants off, I could very well set his mindset into 'If I can't have you, NOBODY will.'"
"Aren't you attributing a little too much possible malevolence here? Nathan is just a face in the geek crowd." Sam said.
"Right, and all we need for him is to say the wrong thing in Desiree's presence and suddenly he's Nathan Black, Prince of all Ghost-Squishers or something." Danny said. "I'm not saying it WOULDN'T work…but the way I look at it it seems like too much of a dice roll."
"What you need is someone with a higher understand of basic humanity." Tucker said.
"I'll get Jazz." Sam said, standing up.
"No wait Sam…wait…not Jazz." Danny said, as another idea occurred to him. "Yeah Tucker. Someone familiar with humanity…and its dark side…and without qualms on manipulating it for the greater good. I think I know just who to talk to!" Danny said as he jumped up and ran out of the room.
He returned a few seconds later.
"I just realized I have no idea where I left it. Do any of you remember where I left my, uh, 'special phone'?"
"You didn't keep it in your room?" Tucker asked.
"I did, but Jazz and I were playing with the features one day and our parents came home and we didn't want them to see it so we played a game of keep-away and…well it's a very long and boring story but the end result is, can you guys help me look?"
"Sure Danny. What are friends for?" Tucker said.
What are friends for?
The four words kept ringing through Sam's head. Was she watching it all slip away? By her actions now, in aiding Danny with Valerie, was she completely ruining anything happening with her? Would it say any less of her then not putting in a full effort in said aid? She'd lied, somewhat, on her 'Just Testing' question. In reality a small part of her had hoped that Danny would be willing to resort to violence for Valerie. That would show he was clearly not himself, and in that there might be a sign that his forming relationship was potentially built on nothing but smoke and mirrors…and two seconds after saying the question, she realized how much she was grasping at straws. And just why.
It was those feelings that guided her now. Danny had also said, theorizing about Nathan, the old phrase 'If I can't have you, then no one will'. It brought to mind another phrase: you don't realize what you have until it's gone. Nothing crystallizes a feeling like loss.
True, Danny wasn't dead or under a curse that said he could never be with another woman, but as Sam watched the relationship gel instead of crashing and burning or dissolving into a revenge plot…it had finally clarified her confusion. How she truly felt.
And now it was too late.
So to speak.
One thing Sam was NOT going to do was openly interfere with the relationship. Her hidden feelings were one thing, but beyond that she was still Danny's friend. She had no right to do so, no matter how justified her reasons might seem to herself.
But that didn't mean she couldn't poke around and make sure for herself there weren't any holes in the bonding. Heck, it wasn't like she was going to exploit them. Just…warn Danny if she found them. For his sake, more then hers. Yes, that was justified. Wasn't it?
Right?
Great, now those reasons were as murky as her feelings once were. Well, Sam figured she would just have to keep putting one foot in front of the other. And see what others thought, as she knocked on Jazz's door. One thing about the search: it had let her slip away from the boys.
Jazz answered silently, as she saw Sam and then looked around to make sure she was alone.
"Hey Sam." She finally said.
"Hey Jazz."
"Come in." Jazz said, inviting the Goth girl in. "I take it you're here to see if I've figured anything out."
"Yeah."
"Well, as far for why Valerie has suddenly forgotten, I haven't nailed anything down and I doubt I can. The time travel thing seems most likely, if bizarre…but my thoughts on the subject have turned up…something. But you may not like it."
"…Tell me anyway."
"All right." Jazz said as she got a piece of paper. "You wondered why Valerie made the step she did. Well…I think I may have a reason. And it ties into her seeming forgetting." Jazz said, as she drew two crude Dannies, one normal and one ghost, and then a happy Valerie and an angry Valerie next to each one. "Ok, here we have the situation before the time travel. Valerie kinda likes Danny but hates Danny's ghost half."
"Yeah."
"Each is a kind of attraction, with different dressings, so to speak. Love and hate are quite closely linked, though it's much easier for love to become hate then vice-versa. Anyway, the time travel event happens. Valerie finds out that Danny and her ghost are one and the same." Jazz said, drawing an arrow between the two. "However, the situation is so chaotic that she puts her dislike on the back burner. And she never gets a chance to take it off, because then the memory anomaly occurs, quite possibly due to a ripple effect of the timeline changing or something. However…I don't think the memory disappeared."
"Really?"
"In a sense. Much like energy cannot be created or destroyed, it can only be transferred to one state to another. There are two states to the human mind: the conscious and the subconscious, each with its own areas of memory. And as you may have read, children who suffer trauma, such as sexual abuse, may repress the memory of the event. However, like before, the memory doesn't just disappear. It's still there, just buried. And it can affect your everyday life. And I'd say forcible change of recall due to chronological manipulation counts as a trauma. So, the memory of the secret disappears into the murk." Jazz said, scribbling over the arrows pointing to each one. "Now, you're saying Valerie didn't see Danny again until the mall."
"Yeah."
"All right then. Based on what I've theorized, here is what may have happened. Valerie is drawn to Danny and the Phantom, each for a different reason. Her knowledge of the truth has disappeared inside the subconscious. However, while her conscious mind may not be aware of it, her subconscious mind is, much like a therapy victim may honestly not remember sexual abuse but still feel the mental effects of it. She sees Danny, and a reaction occurs. Not only does her conscious mind like him, but her subconscious mind is also drawn to him, because it knows he's the Phantom. But since her conscious mind doesn't have the proper…information on the nature of the attraction, it attributes it to what it believes: she likes Danny Fenton. And in such a mental bumping, the two attractions merge."
Sam blinked.
"So you're basically saying that Valerie's time-forgotten memories may have inadvertently made her MORE attracted to Danny."
"So to speak. She still doesn't like the Phantom, right?"
"Yep."
"That's her conscious mind again. Her subconscious drew her to Danny because he is the Phantom, but her conscious mind attributed the feelings to attraction. Hence, the arrow now goes more in one way." Jazz said as she drew a big arrow over her scribbles pointing to normal Danny.
"So her feelings are artificial?"
"…No Sam. Not really. How can I explain this…well, an example comes to mind. Your friend Tucker's a techno-geek. Has he ever played the X-Box game Knights of the Old Republic?"
"Yeah he had a brief obsession with it."
"Yeah I had a short-lived boyfriend who was obsessed with it too. You recall the plot?"
"Should we recite it in case someone reading it has heard of the game and wants to play it but hasn't heard of the fatal plot twist?"
"If anyone like that is out there, they would be advised to skip the next three lines."
"Ok, yeah I remember. You're a warrior with no memory, and you find out you're really one of the villains of the piece, Darth Revan, who had done terrible things until the Jedi Council captured him/her and wiped the person's memory."
"Yes, and depending on how you play you can be good or bad. If you chose to be good, does the fact you were once evil negate your good and render it false and artificial because you were once evil and you no longer remember the fact?"
"…No…I suppose not." Sam said, as she realized that door was closing for her.
"What's happened is similar. Part of her dislike has morphed into attraction. It's probably why she made a move…but the rest is just her and Danny Sam. I wish there was something I could do for you, but…"
"Yeah. I know. It's ok…it's ok." Sam said. The fact that she was staring at the sheets of Jazz's bed made it clear that she didn't really think it was all ok.
Jazz put a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"Whatever happens, Danny does care for you Sam. Don't let this get you down."
"…Always a bridesmaid, never a bride?" Sam asked, as it was the only allegory she could think of.
"Maybe. Anyway, I'll think it over some more. For you."
"Thanks Jazz."
"No problem. Now you better get back to Danny and Tucker before they notice you're missing."
Danny and Tucker hadn't noticed; they were too busy searching. Three minutes after Sam rejoined them, they finally found what they were looking for among their father's ghost equipment.
"I guess Mom found it and thought dad built it." Danny said.
"But the word Fenton isn't on it." Tucker pointed out.
"…Well um…in any case, let's go up to my room and call."
"…You want help with your relationship."
"Yes."
Noel Collins, aka Savior of the Teen Titans, interlaced his fingers and leaned back in his chair, looking at the faces of the three teenagers on screen. Danny Fenton had called them, using the T-Communicator that Savior and his group had given them at the end of the Flammadea incident, and of all people, they wanted to talk to him. And considering the reason they had given for the fact, Noel was even more surprised.
"Danny…just a point. We gave you that to call for help in a situation that was too much for you. It wasn't really supposed to be used for…dating advice."
"It's a bit more then that Noel…"
"You're alone, right?"
"Yes, yes."
"Just checking. Ok, then. I suppose I owe you a few more things considering our past history. And it's not like vandals are trying to burn our building down. What's the situation?"
Danny explained him, Valerie, and Nathan. Near the end, Noel noticed they were all looking amused. Noel had a feeling it wasn't due to anything he was doing.
"Well Danny…I suppose I could help with the situation. But perhaps some other people would like to chime in. Wouldn't they, Gauntlet?" Savior said as he spun around in his chair, revealing the irreverent teen behind him. He'd been making faces for the past 25 seconds, hence the three teen's amusement.
"Yeah! Tell him he's lucky he HAS a girlfriend!" Gauntlet said.
"Duly noted." Savior said as he spun his chair back around. "You're probably right on the scaring him outright won't work theory Danny. People with such emotions are tricky."
"Ohhhhh, I know! Danny could go Batman on him!" Gauntlet volunteered. Savior glanced over his shoulder.
"How so Gauntlet?"
"You know, dangle him off a building until he promises to stop."
Savior looked exasperated.
"Oh come on, I bet that was the first thing you'd do."
"One, I already said that outright fear probably wouldn't be effective or necessary. Two…"
"You're arguing against it? Come on! It's not like there's any law against it!"
"I seem to recall abducting people against their will and threatening assault being illegal."
"Not if you don't have a social security number, and they don't give those to ghosts."
"…Danny's HALF-ghost!" Noel blurted, now thoroughly annoyed.
"So he only has four or five digits then? Great! Makes him even harder to track!"
"No Batman dangling! Not for this! Will you get out of here!" Savior said, shoving Gauntlet off screen and returning to his chair.
"Why couldn't he have come along when you visited?" Tucker commented.
"Do I really need to answer that question for you?" Noel replied. "All right Danny, let me make sure I have this straight. You have a 'geek' with an obsessive crush on Valerie. You say outright scaring him won't work. You're right. However, fear could be used to your advantage. The problem with people like that is they won't accept straight messages. You need to wrap it in a certain kind of packaging. Kind of like using a spoonful of ice cream to swallow a pill."
"Great. How do I do that?"
"Well Danny, you're in luck. I have an idea. Get a piece of paper, this requires a few steps…"
Nighttime.
The home of Nathan Notimportantenoughtobegivenalastnameyet.
The room was what many people would consider a nerd's room to be like: filled with trinkets of the 'trade' and of course a shrine to Valerie. Nathan slept peacefully on his bed, holding a Cylon plushie.
Then a dull light infused the room.
"Nathan……."
Nathan muttered in his sleep.
"Nathan…Naaaaatttttthhhhhhannnnnnnn…"
Nathan snorted lightly.
Danny kicked the end of the bed.
"AH! WHAT! AHHHHHHHH!" Nathan screamed as he saw the blurry shape at the end of the bed. He fumbled for his glasses and put them on, and screamed again at what he saw.
Which was a floating pink sheet topped off by the face of a strange generic looking man. In reality, Danny wearing a sheet borrowed from his sister and his parent's still unfinished Fenton Face.
"Who are you?" Nathan gasped.
"Nathan, I am the Ghost of Love!" Danny declared.
"Love is dead?" Nathan asked.
"….Um…" Danny said, caught off guard.
"You can't be the Ghost of Love, or else there would be no love in the world, much less in my heart!"
"Of for the love of…kid, I'm just doing a job, not serving as an abstract concept, you dolt."
"Oh." Nathan said. "Why are you here?"
"Nathan…your feelings have called me…it is very rare for me to appear to mortals, but what flows through you has been brought to my attention…"
"You mean Valerie will go to the prom with me?"
"NO!" Danny yelled. "I mean…I'm sorry, but Valerie Gray is just not interested. Due to how you feel…"
"LIAR!" Nathan yelled, jumping on his bed. "You seek to destroy the greatest thing in my life! You are a false ghost, and I'll prove it by putting this wooden state through your heart!" Nathan yelled as he yanked a wooden stake from his dresser drawer and lunged at Danny.
Wait not, Danny hadn't misheard: it really WAS a wooden state. A replica of Tennessee, Danny noticed.
He went intangible anyway, as you might have guessed, and Nathan fell off the end of his bed and thudded on the floor with an 'Oof.'
"One, that's vampires moron. Two, what if I'd just been some guy? You would have killed me!"
"That was the point blasphemer! My love is written in the stars!" Nathan said, getting up.
"Nathan…I am the Ghost of Love. What's YOUR source?"
"My medium! She told me so."
"Kid, for five bucks a minute, your medium would have told you you were the world's greatest lover."
"…Funny, that's what my mom said too." Nathan said.
"Look, sit down kid, and listen!" Danny said as he went around Nathan and shoved him onto the bed. "While your love may be true, it is misguided. Valerie Gray is not your true love! By focusing so much attention on her, you stand a strong chance of never meeting her, and then you will be alone, forever!"
"But I feel so strongly!"
"Kid, you're a teenager and a nerd with little to no prospects! Looking at a Hieronymus Bosch painting would get a rise out of you!" Danny said. "Valerie Gray is not meant for you! But your feelings are so strong, and so deserving of someone, that I have been called here!"
"So you're going to teach me how to make Valerie love me and go to the prom with me?"
"NO! VALERIE GRAY IS OFF THE TABLE! GET THAT THROUGH YOUR DUMB HORMONE DELUDED LITTLE TEEN BOY HEAD!" Danny roared. "Nathan, she is not meant for you. Obsessing over her will just insure you have no love at all! So I have come to set you on the right path!"
"…So…you're going to tell me who my real true love is?"
"No!"
"Then what's your point?"
"Arrghhh! Look kid, Cupid's the one with the random love job! I speak of true love! True love cannot be predained or prepared for! It just comes! And it will never come to you if you do not stop hounding Valerie Gray!"
"…So…what do I do?"
"That is why I am here Nathan. I will guide you to your real true love, and if you do exactly what I say and do not let your human impatience get in the way, then you will find true happiness!"
"So you're going to be like my personal Emperor Guard?"
"No!" Danny snapped. "I mean…there is much love in the world, and I must guide it all. I cannot stay and see to you personally. But I can give you my own personal guidelines on human love, and your greatest chances of finding yours. If you follow my words, you will one day find a woman who cares for you back. For with Valerie Gray, you are lost." Danny said, as he reached into his sheet and withdrew a folder. "These are my greatest observations for the centuries I have guided human feeling. Follow them and one day rich fruit will be your reward."
"…You printed them out and put them in a clear plastic binder?" Nathan asked, looking at the folder.
"…Yes! Just because I am the Ghost of Love does not mean I cannot utilize modern conveniences!" Danny said. "But I must go, Nathan. I have done all I can here. Listen to my words, or you will find nothing but misery! Now I go! I wish you luck! Love Ghost AWAAAAAAY!" Danny said as he flew through the ceiling.
Nathan sat there, staring.
"…Did all of that just really happen?"
"It happened! Listen to me you dunce!" Danny said as he popped out of the ceiling upside down in front of Nathan, and before Nathan could react he flew back up and away, for real this time.
Nearby, Tucker turned off his Fenton-Talkie…which was just a Walkie-Talkie (with the word Fenton on it!). A few seconds later, Danny joined them, yanking at the Fenton Face.
"Gah! My parents need to figure out how to let this thing let your skin breathe before they go any further!" Danny said as he yanked the mask off and removed the tiny Fenton phone he'd had tucked under it, through which Tucker had been reading the script Savior had provided him.
"So how it'd go?" Sam asked.
"I think I made some headway, but with people like that it's hard to tell." Danny said.
"And the 'centuries of observation'?" Sam asked, amused.
"That would be all of Savior's advice on love as well. As he worded it, if Nathan follows all of it chances are by the time he's eighteen he'll be up to his eyeballs in women. And hopefully all of Noel's advice on bad signs will allow him to find someone to spend his life with, hence fulfilling my 'promise of true love'. As long as he leaves Valerie alone. I think I've gone out of my way enough to be nice." Danny said, as he finished folding up the sheet of his disguise. "Anyway, it's the weekend now, so I'll just call him tomorrow and see if I made any headway under the guise of me being Valerie's, uh, good friend and all."
Danny was tucking the sheet away in his backpack, and hence didn't see the brief flash of pain that came over Sam's face at Danny's choice of words.
And he never got a chance, and with a poof a small man wearing a pink suit and a diaper and armed with a bow and arrow and a very cross expression on his face bamfed into existence in front of Danny. His eyes went wide in surprise.
Cupid slapped the ghost teen.
"This is MY job! Back off, bitch!" Cupid snapped, and with another poof he was gone.
"………………………Ok." Danny said. And just when he thought nothing new could surprise him.
Log Entry No 63-Valerie Gray
The ghost bastard finally came back today…and then he ran away like a little bitch the second I showed up! Augh! That cowardly piece of…next time, he won't get away! Next time, I'll show him that staying and fighting…is…worse then…running away…because of…some…reason…forget it! Next time I kick his butt! He's going down!
Oh yeah, and the whole school found out about Danny and me. They reacted as I expected they would. Stupid sheep. Well, I don't care what they think. Danny's special, and the fact that THEY can't realize it is THEIR loss.
He even said he'd talk to Nathan (Creep). I don't know what Danny could say that would help, but the fact that he's willing to try and do something for me, and put more thought into it then 'threat of physical violence' just shows why he's so great.
…It's getting deeper. I can feel it.
Danny's shy though. So I'll toe the line for now. He'll come along.
Down the path we walk…
…I wonder if I should begin preparing to tell him about the other side of me. The kind that hunts ghosts.
Though with school, my job, and Danny…it doesn't seem as urgent now.
Though I still have some butts to kick.
And…some other things.
Log over.
"So did you get anywhere?" Tucker asked Danny on Monday.
"I'm not sure. I called Saturday, but Nathan's mom said he was in his room and has asked not to be disturbed. So maybe I affected him…or maybe I have awakened his wrath and he's planning to avenge himself on all of those who would keep him from Valerie. Knowing my luck he's probably selling his soul for power right…"
A hand dropped on Danny's shoulder. He nearly punched the dropper out in his surprise.
He was glad he didn't, as he turned around into Valerie planting a kiss right on him. It wasn't quite on his lips, and it was more a kiss of gratitude that Danny might have gotten even if Valerie and him weren't involved and he'd done what he'd done…but it was still a nice surprise.
"I don't know WHAT you said, but you're a miracle worker Danny!" Valerie said.
"…I am?" Danny said.
"Oh don't be modest! You said you'd talk to Nathan. Well he called me Sunday night. Said he was sorry for bothering me and he wouldn't do it any more!"
"Really? And he meant it?"
"Sure sounded like it! You did it! You're the greatest!" Valerie said. "What did you do anyway?"
"Well uh…I just…talked to him. Spoke to him as a fellow man…I guess it worked." Danny said.
"Oh yeah it worked. What HAVEN'T you done for me lately Danny?" Valerie said, batting her eyelashes. Much to his surprise, Danny could think of a few things…and was again glad he was wearing jeans.
"Anyway, I have class now. I'll see you at lunch Danny." Valerie said, as she turned and walked off.
"…Well, looks like the Ghost of Love was a success in his one and only appearance, if we don't want strange bird men showing up and bothering you, anyway." Tucker said. "What was in that folder anyway?"
"Well…most of it was just up front and frank advice. Learn about stuff so you'll be able to talk, take care of your body so you'll have certain standards of attractiveness…learn certain things about women, do this, don't do this, watch for this…you know Savior. He always thinks us mere mortals would be so much better off if he was running our lives instead of us."
"Well, he seems to have helped here." Sam said, as she tried to sound happy, or at least neutral. This was good for Danny. She should accept that.
But it still hurt.
And Sam was beginning to realize if she didn't do something, it could hurt for a long time.
The Journal of Daniel Fenton, Entry #12
History beckons me.
Ok, that makes it sound much more important then it probably is, but mankind always did have a big head when it came to his own place in existence. Cut me a little slack.
With Nathan dealt with and helped (I'd like to think), it seems like everything's finally ok these most recent few weeks.
And with Valerie…
Something's going to happen tonight. We have a date again…and this time there's money involved. I won't be wearing a tux, but I won't be wearing casual wear either.
And provided that nothing explodes, in terms of the town and us…
…Well, best not work myself into a state over it.
It's still been quiet. As you know, Amity Park has been relatively peaceful. My last big battle was my second arranged run-in with Valerie as Danny Phantom, which was considerably less complicated then the first time. I just saw her flying around one night and transformed and tried to go talk to her. She attacked me, I dodged a bit, and told her that if she wanted to hate me, fine, but it said more of her then it did of me, and then I left. I think I disguised my voice well enough, and Valerie seemed poignant the next day at school, so maybe I made some headway.
I'd like her to know the truth eventually.
But not tonight.
Tonight's our night.
Danny Fenton, off at history's call.
"You're sure you're ok with this?" Danny asked Tucker.
"Hey man, homework's done, games are beaten, latest attempt at Foley is a bust, gotta have something to do on Friday night." Tucker said. The two of them were in Danny's room, as Danny laid out his nice clothes. Danny didn't want anything interfering with the evening, so he had recruited Tucker and Jazz to keep an eye on the portal. Danny had swept the whole town over the past two days and found it ghost free. Anything that was coming, was coming through the portal.
Danny had brought a special phone. Its number was only known to a few people, and only for emergencies. If they absolutely had to, Tucker or Jazz would call Danny. Otherwise, they'd leave him alone. The pretense was Tucker was sleeping over. His parents were so obsessed with perfecting the Face (both swore they ALMOST had it) that Danny could have had a circus over and they wouldn't have noticed, much less noticed Danny missing. He hadn't yet told his parents about him and Valerie. He had his reasons.
Hence when the doorbell rang, he was a bit surprised. He was going to meet Valerie, not vice versa.
"Danny! Sam's here!" His mother called up to him.
"Sam?" Danny said.
"What, you didn't invite her?" Tucker said, a bit confused.
"Invite her to essentially do something to ensure my date goes smoothly? Tucker, that's selfish to the extreme." Danny said, as he headed through the door and downstairs.
She'd come to her choice.
"Hey Danny." Sam said as Danny came down the stairs, looking a bit confused.
"Uh, hey Sam. Is something up?"
"Yeah…Danny…" Sam said, and steeled herself. Once she did this, there was no going back.
"I found out about your little group watch…I'd like to help."
"…Help?"
"Keep an eye on things."
"…For me."
"You deserve a quiet night."
"………………Sam, you sure you want to do this?"
"…Yeah. I am Danny."
She was. They say that if you truly love someone, you'll have the strength to let them go. If she couldn't be with Danny, then she'd do what she could to make sure he was happy. In that…she could come to terms with it all.
Jazz had said that it was far too easy for love to turn to hate, and above all else, Sam wouldn't let that happen. If she couldn't express her own love…then she'd help Danny with his.
After all…there was something to be said for karma.
And though his conscious mind didn't grasp the concept, in his eyes Sam could see Danny knew that.
"……Thanks Sam."
"You're welcome Danny." Sam said. "So where's the setup?"
He watched as the teenager snuck out the back door and set off down the street to the meeting place, dressed nicely, walking in the certain way men do in these situations. Danny was humble enough not to turn it into a strut…but to the watchful eye the walk said it all.
And the figure stood there, watching the teen, thinking. Danny had hunted for ghosts, but it was child's play to hide from his sweep. He was so much more then a spirit.
And he needed to make his own choice.
Vlad was in a good mood until he showed up. Tonight was the night! First a Packers game (and they were winning! Yes!) and then finally after so much preparation his revenge would finally happen…
Until the figure walked in, and immediately Vlad could tell there was a snag.
"We have a problem." The figure said.
"What? What kind of problem?"
Despite the robe completely concealing the figure's features, Vlad could tell he was gravely displeased.
"…Interference."
And so the figure stood and watched, and waited, and pondered the options.
And in the end, he decided that he knew what he had to do, as he turned towards the Fenton Household.
From the Mind of Jasmine Fenton
It looks like Sam has finally managed to make her peace with this. Good for her. I can only guess at her feelings. I always thought her and Danny had something special…but you can never predict the course of life. Who'd have thought that not only would I end up believing in ghosts, but that my brother was partly one?
And yet…I am a bit worried.
I am not a believer in fate. We make our own lives as we live them, based on our education and decisions. All things come from the mind.
At least that's what I thought until the ghost thing.
Danny's been through so much lately. That awful fire ghost, then the king ghost, then an evil future self, and whatever he went through in the time travel thing…he deserves happiness. He's found it with Valerie.
But as the saying goes…it's quiet. TOO quiet.
As I sit her and jot these notes before I join Tucker and Sam and provide a cover if my parents find them Dannyless, I can't help but wonder. I've picked Danny's brain a few times. I know his general fears. Is this a new chapter in his life…or the calm before the storm?
After all, we all have happiness and misery in our lives. They balance each other. Balance is needed. Too much of anything…even good…can create a vacuum…
And you know the other saying…
…Nature abhors a vacuum.
Such worries never touched Danny's mind.
Everything had gone great. They could afford the food, it actually tasted good (though not much better then a hamburger: Danny figured it was probably a mindset thing), Valerie looked lovely, and the phone hadn't rung all night.
After dinner, they'd just gone for a walk through the park, watching the stars, not saying anything, letting their held hands be their only needed contact. In the end, Danny had hailed a cab and taken Valerie back to her home.
"I had a great time Danny." Valerie said. Her eyes had that sultry cast again, made even more so in the moonlight. Danny felt nervous…but less so then normal. As if he knew the flow.
"I did too." Danny said. "…Well…um…you better get in before your Dad notices you're gone."
"My dad's working tonight." Valerie said.
Those were all the words that needed to be said, as the two looked at each other.
Danny started leaning in, as Valerie tilted her head up slightly and closed her eyes…
And then the phone in Danny's pocket rang.
Valerie's eyes snapped open, as Danny jumped. Mood ruined.
"You didn't turn off your phone?" Valerie said in disbelief.
"No! Well…this is just for emergencies!" Danny said, a bit annoyed himself. "This should just be used if my father had a heart attack or…hello?" Danny said as he answered the phone.
Valerie's aggravation vanished instantly as she saw Danny listen to whoever was on the other side of the line…as within five seconds his face had turned ash-gray.
"Oh no…" He whispered. "No."
"Danny? What's wrong?" Valerie said, concerned.
"Home emergency! I'm so sorry Val, but I have to go NOW!" Danny yelled as he ran away from her.
"Wait! I'll call you another cab!" Valerie called after him.
"NO TIME! HAVE TO GO!" Danny yelled back, as he sprinted across the street and was around a corner before Valerie knew it.
She stared after him, feeling shocked, worried for him, and disappointed. And it had been such a nice night…
With a sigh, Valerie went inside, pondering if she should wait by the phone in case Danny wanted to call her. You never knew when tragedy was going to strike, and when you'd need someone there for you.
Danny waited two seconds until he was out of Valerie's sight when he transformed and took off into the sky. He was pretty sure he broke all his personal speed records on his way home, but he didn't care.
It was obvious that from the garbled, panicked phone call he had gotten from Jazz that something was seriously wrong.
And when he got to his house, he realized he was far too late.
One was the fact there were police and fire trucks around, not to mention an ambulance. The second was the giant hole in the side of his home. It was like someone had taken a wrecking ball to the structure.
Danny had enough sense to fly down, transform back, and run the rest of the way as a human. There was a blockade around the door, as Danny pushed through the gawkers and ran for it.
"Hey kid! You can't…!" A cop yelled.
"I live here!" Danny yelled as he ducked around another officer and ran in through the front door. "Mom! Dad! Jazz!"
"Danny!" Came the cry, and a second later his mother was hugging him fiercely. "Where were you? I was worried sick!"
"Mrs. Fenton! Careful!" Came some stranger's voices, and then hands came down on the woman's shoulders. "We haven't finished checking you yet."
"What happened?" Danny asked.
"Oh Danny…just stay calm. Everything will be all right." Maddie Fenton said as she was led away by some paramedics.
Danny's search turned up his father and Tucker being examined on the nearby couch. Before Danny could do anything though, he found himself being pulled aside into a hallway.
"Jazz!" He said. "What's going on? What happened?"
"Oh Danny…I tried…" Jazz said.
"Tried what?"
"…Someone attacked us. He tore through all the defenses like they were toys…mom and dad tried to stop him but he tossed them around like they were rag dolls…they were helpless before him…we all were…"
"Who? Who did this?"
"…I don't know. I didn't recognize him among any of your foes…he was huge…had armor…he was…appallingly powerful…the weapons did nothing…"
Danny looked sick.
"What happened to our parents? To Tucker…to…" Danny trailed off. Jazz looked miserable.
"Mom and Dad and Tucker will be ok. Just bruises suffered…but Danny…"
"…No." Danny said, fearing the worst.
"…It's Sam."
"No." Danny said.
"…He took her."
"…What?" Danny said.
"He kidnapped her. That was…the whole point of the attack. He took her away." Jazz said.
Nature abhors a vacuum…Danny blinked, as the whole thing sank in. Someone had waited until he was away…and then he'd gone after his family, his friends…he'd taken Sam.
…There were a lot of things Danny was going to do, and all of them involved pain.
To Be Continued