Author's Note: Ah! Another Chapter up and running! Hope you all enjoy! I am really having fun with this one. I have been trying to stay true to form to the TV series (running gags and all), and hope that I am doing a good job. As usual, reviews are always appreciated!
Ormandria
The Nasty Burger, Amity Park, 12:20 p.m.
Skulker flew back into Amity Park city limits, his temper honing down a touch with the thought of finally having Danny Phantom's pelt on his wall. He was greatly disappointed though when he made his way to the boys home, only to discover that no one had bothered telling the ghost-child about the attack on his precious female.
"All right ghost-child. If they will not inform you of what is going on, I will simply have to try again, until they do. One way or another, I will make you mine." Skulker went searching through the city in hopes that he would once again find his current prey. It didn't take long. There, standing outside of the Nasty Burger, was Paulina. She was busy chatting happily with three friends, two males and one female. The two side-kicks were no where to be seen, but this time Skulker was hardly concerned. There were enough people here to ensure that one way or another word would get to his real prey.
Skulker laughed as he flew down and shot a green ray of ectoplasm straight at Paulina's little group of friends.
"What I don't get," Sam continued as she and Tucker headed to their favorite hang-out. "Is, what does Skulker want with Paulina anyway? It's not like she's that great a catch."
"Says you," Tucker told her, a sly look in his eyes. "Danny wouldn't mind catching her sometime."
"Please," Sam groaned. "Don't remind me."
"Besides," added Tucker, ignoring Sam's bitter remark. "Didn't you hear him? He thinks she's Danny's girlfriend. So he probably figures that if he can get her, he can get to Danny."
"Wow," Sam stopped in mid-stride and looked at her friend in disbelief. "I don't know which amazes me more. That you paid enough attention to what was going on to pick up on what he said, or that you actually figured something out that might actually be the case."
"You know Sam, that hurts," Tucker pouted. "I'll have you know that I happen to be very smart."
"Says the boy with the D-average," Sam laughed in return.
The come-back was ready and on Tucker's tongue, but a series of screams erupted into the air as people scrambled past the turn ahead of them. Looking at each other they knew instantly what was going on.
"Skulker," they shouted in unison, as they ran the last block to the Nasty Burger.
Sure enough, as they rounded the corner they saw the World's Greatest Ghost Hunter firing ectoblasts into a cluster of high school kids. Dash, Kwan, Paulina and Star stood in a tight group as they tried desperately to avoid the blasts. Every time they moved toward the door of the Nasty Burger, a blast hit the door. When they tried to move away from it a blast would hit near their feet. Sam was struck with the sudden impression of a giant, multi-colored, four-headed and eight-legged chicken trying to outrun the local gunslinger as it were.
"Hey, Slug for Brains!" Sam shouted, throwing her shoe at the ghost in an attempt to distract Skulker from his targets.
Skulker turned on her and laughed. "Do you think you can stop me with a mere shoe? I am Skulk…."
"Yay, yay. You're Skulker. World's Greatest Ghost Hunter," Tucker mimicked snidely. A blast from Skulker's gun ripped into Tucker's hat, carrying it away.
Tucker cried out and dove behind a large trash dumpster beside the restaurant, curling up with his back against the wall and his knees under his chin. After a moment he looked next to him and saw Dash and Kwan were already huddled there in identical positions.
"Dude," said Dash, shaking his head and looking on Tucker with something very close to pity in his eyes. "You scream like a girl…."
"Oh, man," Tucker sighed despondently.
"I hate being interrupted," Skulker sneered, looking back toward Sam. "Now, where was I? Oh yes, the girlfriend."
The ghost pulled a second gun from his holster and fired off a shot from each gun. The first knocked the Fenton Thermos from Sam's hands, ensuring that Skulker need not worry about her trapping him in that irksome device.
The second was fired at a retreating Paulina, who had been trying to sneak away in the confusion. A ghostly green net sprang from the gun and entrapped the popular girl, knocking her to the ground.
Before Skulker could reel her in though, a large two-by-four hit him square in the back. He let go of the rope connected to the net and swirled until his face was mere inches away from Sam's.
"You know," he said, his voice full of irritation. "You are really beginning to annoy me."
"Good!" Sam retorted, her hands balled up into fists, ready to fight. "You want a piece of me? Come and get it!"
Skulker sighed heavily. "I really don't have time for this now, but if you want, I can come back later. Right now, I have what I want." He quickly made a dive at Paulina before she could get untangled from the net. Lifting her up, so that she was dangling upside down, he yelled down toward Sam.
"Tell your friend that if he wants to see his precious girlfriend again, he will turn himself over to me for the hunt." With that Skulker flew up and away with a screaming Paulina in his clutches.
"Sam?" Tucker asked as he crept out from behind the dumpster.
"Where were you Tucker?" Sam nearly screamed at him. "He got away!"
"Sorry," Tucker flinched. "I'm just not use to having to fight ghosts without Danny's help. But hey, he'll show up again and we can get him then." He smiled wanly at Sam.
"Not likely Tuck," Sam stared at the sky where the ghost hunter had disappeared. "He's got Paulina."
"Uh-oh," Tucker replied.
"Uh-oh is right. I think it's time we got Danny."
Fenton Residence, Amity Park, 12:45 p.m.
Sam and Tucker pounded on the front door for several minutes before Jazz finally flung it open in a fury.
"Alright already!" the red-haired teen reprimanded the pair. "I said I was coming. No need to disturb the whole neighborhood!"
"Um, sorry Jazz. Just worried about …" Sam punched her elbow into Tucker's stomach to silence him before he said something stupid.
"About all that homework that Lancer sent Danny. Turns out it's really hard stuff," Sam covered. "So we thought we'd better hurry over to help him with it."
Jazz looked at the teens suspiciously for a moment, before letting them in.
"Well Danny is still upstairs in his room with Valerie. I'm sure you can find the way." Jazz sighed as she watched them rush up the steps. They were out of sight before she even finished her second sentence.
Sam barged into Danny's room to a sight that had her gagging. Danny and Valerie were busy looking over some of the comics she had brought over and were laughing about them. Tucker pushed past, momentarily forgetting the urgent business that had brought them back to the Fenton Works earlier then expected.
"Hey," he commented genially. "What's so funny?"
"This," Danny held up the comic for Tucker to see and sure enough Tucker exploded with laughter. Sam cleared her throat dramatically.
"Oh, hi Sam," Danny smiled up at his friend. "Come on in. I'm feeling a lot better thanks to the soup Val's mom made."
"Really? What's in it" asked Tucker as he grabbed the Tupperware and sniffed the contents.
"Oh the usual," Valerie replied. "Chicken, noodles, chicken broth, celery, carrots, garlic, salt…."
"Sounds delicious!" Tucker grabbed Danny's spoon and hefted a heaping helping into his mouth, only to choke a minute later.
"Cayenne peppers," Valerie continued without missing a beat. Tucker grabbed Danny's glass of water off the bedstand and gulped down the water within.
"Cayenne peppers?" Sam asked in astonishment. "Who puts Cayenne peppers in Chicken Noodle Soup?"
"My mom," Valerie shrugged. "It helps clear the sinuses."
"Boy does it," remarked Danny. "And definitely a boost to the immune system. I even feel ready to get back to school."
"This stuff will definitely put hair on your chest!" Tucker said through gasps for air.
"And yet another reason why no girl will ever date you," Valerie and Sam stated at the same time. Sam glared at Valerie.
"Hey, you can't insult Tucker like that!"
"What do you mean?" Valerie shot back. "You insulted him too!"
"Yah, but he's my friend! I'm allowed to!" Sam's face was mere inches away from Valerie's as the tension in the room rose above the boiling point.
"Um, Sam," Tucker interrupted in a strained voice. "Did you forget why we're here? To help Danny with his homework…."
"I don't need help with my…," Danny started, only to be silenced by the look in Tucker's eyes.
"Oh, yah," he continued as though he had just remembered it. "My homework. Gotta get it done. Sorry Val, but I better get to work."
"That's okay Fenton," Valerie shrugged casually. "I was just leaving anyway." She sent one last mocking smile at Sam before she turned to leave.
The goth girl waited until she was positive that Valerie was downstairs and out of the house before she turned and screamed. "I hate that girl!"
"You know Sam, Valerie is really nice once you get to know her," Danny smirked.
"I don't want to get to know her. She hunts ghosts. You are half-ghost. Therefore, she hunts you! Tell me where the good in getting to know her better is?"
"Hey guys!" Tucker pushed himself between his friends to get their attention. "We have bigger issues then Valerie at the moment."
"Oh right, I almost forgot," muttered Sam, sheepishly.
"Bigger issues? What bigger issues?" Danny looked at his friends, his brow furrowed in concern.
"Well you see," Sam laughed nervously. "We kind of ran into Skulker."
"Skulker?" Danny sat straight up at this news. It was one thing to have his friends going after Youngblood, but quite another if they had to go up against Skulker alone. He wouldn't wish Skulker on his worst enemy. At least, not his worst human enemy. If Skulker was around then that meant it wouldn't be long before he should up at Danny's house to go after him. A fact that would wreck havoc on his delicately balanced world, considering that he had been, up until a little while ago, too sick to fight even a simple ghost.
"Did you get him?"
"Not exactly," Tucker clutched his hands in worry. "He sort of got away."
"With Paulina," Sam finished lamely.
Danny's eye began to twitch. "What do you mean he got away with Paulina?"
"He kidnapped her," Sam watched Danny's face drain of all color as the rest of the explanation just rushed out of her. "We tried to stop him Danny, but we couldn't. It is Skulker after all."
"I don't understand. Why would the Ghost Zone's greatest hunter go after Paulina?"
"We think it was to lure you out of bed to fight," Tucker explained.
"Of course it helped that he said 'Tell your friend that if he wants to see his precious girlfriend again, he will turn himself over to me for the hunt,' as he flew away," Sam remarked, mimicking Skulker's voice for effect.
Danny started laughing. "Well then, I guess it's a good thing that Val did bring that soup over. It was just what I needed to give me the strength to go kick some ghost hunter butt!"