"Should we knock?" Danny Phantom asked his ghostly companion. Jazz had started to become known as Sapphire Phantom, or Saf. for short. There was even a rumor that they were either siblings or lovers. All their group had gotten a good laugh out of that.
"I don't know. I think shock value is kind of important for this kind of first impression," Sapphire smiled mischievously.
Danny smiled too. While Jazz was structured and rule oriented, Sapphire was flighty and more than a little troublesome to deal with at times. No one would match the two up on any level.
"Then lets say 'hi.'" Danny smiled and phased through the door with his sister in tow. Invisible, they observed two men, one of which was Blake. The other was, by elimination, his boyfriend. He had short brown hair in a rough cut that hung loosely on his head. He was dressed in a casual outfit, like his significant other. Both Phantoms, though, saw the blue coat that was hung over the chair. A cop.
"Ghosts don't exist, but I am glad that you got a little help today," the other man said.
"But you told me that everyone down at the precinct was talking about a "ghost boy" being public enemy number one. I don't think there all loons Jeremy." Blake argued.
"They also said that the entire town was transported to the "ghost zone,"" Jeremy mocked.
Sapphire and Danny exchanged glances. This was going to be fun. Both men were currently camped out in the front hall with sleeping bags. Danny couldn't blame them. They had only left a few hours ago and he wouldn't want to go wandering around a place like this in the dark. It was clear that neither did they.
"So, when are these ghosts supposed to stop by?" Jeremy asked.
"Around now," Blake said, looking at his watch.
"I hope you don't mind, but we forgot to knock." Danny interrupted, phasing into the visible range of the light spectrum.
"Doors are over-rated anyway," Sapphire dismissed as she became visible also.
Jeremy had gone very pale. Blake looked slightly excited. "Oh! No, we certainly don't. Danny Fenton mentioned you'd be coming by. Make yourselves at home, please." Make that very excited.
"You're the ghost boy that everyone's talking about downtown," Jeremy accused.
"So you believe in me now?" Danny asked in return.
"Jeremy, please. They're guests." Blake shushed.
"Anyway, we're not bad ghosts. Just…misunderstood," Sapphire said as she floated on her back. Danny cracked a grin.
"I thought it was something along those lines," Jeremy said, mostly to himself.
"Huh?" Danny asked. Did someone just believe him?
"I went over all the reports about you today. Things just didn't seem to add up. Sometimes, most times, you save people. Other times you kidnap mayors," Jeremy pointed out. Momentarily forgetting the fact that the person he was conversing with didn't exist.
"I was framed." Danny groused.
"That can wait until later. We still need to be introduced." Blake objected. "I'm Blake and this is my boyfriend. I hope you don't mind that." Blake did look nervous on that subject. Jeremy simply looked like he expected a negative reaction.
Danny smiled and rapped a hand around Jazz's waist. "No problem at all. Considering that we're siblings and not the only ones involved in a very…odd relationship." Jazz smiled back and kissed Danny on the lips lightly.
Jeremy and Blake looked at least a little surprised. "Is there another…ghost we're going to meet?" Jeremy managed.
"Probably not. She's a faerie and doesn't like buildings that much. Prefers nature," Jazz explained. It was true. When Sam took on her faerie form she did much prefer open spaces to houses and buildings.
"Ah," Blake nodded. "So, you are…"
"Danny Phantom, and my sister, Sapphire," Danny smiled.
"You and the Fenton boy have the same name then?" Blake asked.
"Yep," Danny shrugged, sounding casual. "Small world."
"Now then. You said you were looking for a new…haunt?" Jeremy probed, trying to remember what Blake had told him.
"Yeah," Jazz said, moving around and through objects. "And this place looks great. If you would have us?"
Blake nodded enthusiastically. "We'd love to, wouldn't we?"
Jeremy simply ignored the elbow to his ribs and rolled his eyes. "Sure."
Danny smiled and concentrated on the ectoplasm of the house. It was just a small layer of residue, usually. When a ghost took a house as his to haunt, though, he would tie his own ectoplasm into the house's. This would result in an almost physical tie to the house and a slight increase in power. Other ghosts that had their homes in the ghost zone drew power directly from it. An earthbound ghost drew power from the ambient ectoplasm in a normal home. It was a testament to Danny Phantom's toughness that he only drew the smallest bit of power from his surroundings while the other ghosts he fought got a far more considerable power bonus.
Drawing the ectoplasm forth from the house, Jazz, and himself, Danny connected the tree lines. The result was a shocking burst of energy through his system. He had expected a little boost, but not anything like this.
He gave a pointed look to Jazz, who nodded.
"We've got to be going for tonight, but we'll be back tomorrow so we can go over any rules then," Danny smiled once more and floated through the wall, followed by Jazz.
"That was a little bit more than you said it would be," Jazz said while they took a round-about way to Sam's.
Danny turned and looked more closely at the building they had just come from and gasped. He saw it now. It was a probably the smallest portal that he had ever seen, but…
Right in the middle of the roof he could see a tiny opening…to the ghost zone. That was why the it felt so much stronger than a normal house. Anywhere from twenty to one-hundred years worth of ghost energy could be practically soaked into that building.