Chapter 18: Ice Cold

As Starfire dragged Danny around the town, seeing sights and watching the local birds singing in the trees, the ghost boy was concerned with what he's going to have to do. Seeing the nearby town clock, he realized that it's 3:40.

20 minutes to go. What do I do when that happens?

He had a conundrum. He had no idea what to do, if he reveals what he really is or continue the lie. It was not easy at all. Not helping is that he has feelings for her.

"What will we do next, Phantom?" She asks while being perky.

This snaps Danny out of it. Looking around, he sees a phone booth. Despite what year it is, he decides it's worth a try.

"Maybe, a game of hide and seek? This time, I look for you?" He asks.

Starfire hums in thought as her hands are behind her back and she looks up. "I do not recall ever being the one who does the hiding while you are the seeker. I believe that will be glorious!"

"Tell you what, that phone booth? I'll go in there and count to 100. That's plenty of time to hide from me."

Starfire nods and heads to a hiding spot. Once she's gone, he takes a breath and bolts for the booth. Once he gets inside, he reaches his pocket for change, then realizes he has no pockets. Reluctant, he presses some buttons and tries something.

In Amity Park, Sam is at her bed, writing something down before closing her book and sighing in relief.

"Glad that's done. Wonder what Danny and Tucker are up to." He cellphone rings, she answers. "Hello?"

"YOU HAVE A COLLECT CALL FROM: Danny-Fenton-Totally-Real-Because-I-Go-Ghost."

Sam raises her brow, but responds. "I accept the charges. Hello?"

"Sam! It's me! Real me!"

"I figured…" She asks, confused. "Why are you giving me a collect call?"

"Because I'm not home. I'm at a town North of Amity Park. That alien girl I mentioned? She's back and she's kind of dragged me on another date!"

"What?!" Sam shouts, annoyed at this girl stalking Danny.

"Get Tucker, use the Boooo-merang and find me! I need help!"

"Got it!" Sam is about to hang up before she speaks into the phone again. "By the way, you owe me for this call." She hangs up properly.

Danny hangs up as well. Looking out, he sees Starfire gone.

"Right… I guess I should at least make it look like I'm looking for her." Stepping out, he walks around. "Star? Starbolts?" He asks out loud. He doesn't see her. He hears her giggle coming from the trees. He was about to walk away, but then he hears the giggling again and decides to go in. He gives a smile. "Can't hide forever, you know." He says.

Starfire peeks out from behind a tree near Danny. She hides her giggle, but not her grin. Danny looks behind a tree away from her.

Danny is actually smiling. Starfire has the body of a teenager, but the mind of a little girl. It was actually endearing. He then walks to the tree Starfire hides behind. Once he looks around, Starfire quickly kisses him, surprising him.

"You have done the seeking me out!" She says.

"Yeah." Danny says. "I guess I win?"

"Do you wish to find another activity for us on the date?" She asks.

"Um…" Danny thought quickly on how to kill time. "Why don't we just… walk around?"

"Okay!" She says.

Sam and Tucker sneaks their way into FentonWorks thanks to the back door. As Danny's parents work in the Ops Center, they reach the basement with ease.

"Tucker, find the stupidly named tracking device."

Tucker does so, looking at the table covered in tech as Sam goes to the Specter Speeder.

"Found it!" Tucker says, taking it in his hand. "You sure Danny is in trouble? I mean, if it were someone like Ember or Spectra then I could see the danger. But this alien chick sounds like she likes him."

"She thinks he's an alien like her, Tucker! Besides, you want Danny to get abducted or whatever?!" Sam responds.

"Alright already!" Tucker shouts.

"Grab some tech to fight with!"

Once they board the Specter Speeder, they go through the secret exit. It leads them out, where they throw the Boooo-merang and make their way.

In the other universe, Blackfire is locked away with the Gordanians as the Centauri police take their ship and are flying it to their world, where she and her allies are to face imprisonment. She snarls in anger with her eyes glowing.

"I'll make my sister pay for this." She says. She's in a cell with her arms in cuffs, the same kind her sister was once in when she came to Earth.

As she does this, she hears someone walking to her cell. It's a Centauri officer. He opens her cell, causing the electrical bars to retract.

"It's time."

"For what?" She asks grumpily. He takes out a remote and presses a button that causes her cuffs to open and fall to the floor. "What? Why?"

"Your ugly friend, the one covered in those gassy noodle things, paid me." He gives her what looked like a gem. "He wanted me to give you this. Just use it and go."

Blackfire takes it. She knew what it was, she used it find her sister last time and figured it would help her get to her sister again.

In the world of Danny Phantom, it's now 10 minutes to 4. Danny still needed to decided how to deal with Starfire. Would he tell her the truth or continue to hide what he is to her? He figured Sam and Tucker can help him.

He and Starfire walked a bit and noticed a couple kissing under a tree. As Danny stood and stared as Starfire, who also stared, looked to him and had a small smile. Instantly, she came to his front and kissed him. This causes a blush on their faces, though Starfire just has a smile while Danny just has his stunned look. Once Starfire turns and walks away happily, Danny starts to rub his mouth with his arm. He stops and lowers his arm, looking Starfire briefly and smiles a bit.

His smile drops as he thinks to himself. "What do I do now?"

He looks to the couple, seeing how happy they are. He thinks back to Starfire assuring him she's not afraid of what he's hiding. He takes a deep breath and walks to her. He takes her arm, causing her to turn around.

"Yes? What is the matter?" She asks.

"Starfire…" He says. He pauses before regaining his strength. "I need to admit something to you." She looks to him, somewhat worried. "It's why I'm afraid I can't see you anymore." He looks away for a moment before taking one more breath. "The truth is-"

A purple starbolt appears out of nowhere. It hits the ground between the two and sends them flying apart. Nearby civilians are terrified by what they see and run away.

Looking up, the two see a familiar figure, one they don't want to see again. A figure who looks scornfully at Starfire.

"Hello, Sister." She notices Danny and gives a lustful grin. "Hello, Handsome."

"Blackfire?!" Danny asks. "Why are you here?"

"Indeed!" Starfire calls out. "You are to be imprisoned… again!"

"Oh, you know… broke out again after… seeking vengeance… the usual." Once again, she speaks nonchalantly.

"You will not succeed!" Starfire shouts. She looks to Danny. "I will deal with my sister, locate safety! She desires you!"

Reluctantly, Danny nods. He flies into the trees and watches as Starfire takes on her evil sister.

"You think you can actually protect him?" Blacfire asks in a condescending tone.

"I will do what I can for Phantom!" Starfire declares.

"You're willing to protect him even though he's got a secret from you?" Blackfire asks.

"I wish to prove to him he need not hide his secret from me."

Blackfire scoffs. "You're so simple-minded, Starfire. I figured it out already… it'll break your little heart. I'd tell you, but I want him to say it to your face so I can watch."

Glaring at her, Starfire throws starbolts at Blackfire, who fires her own starbolts to counter each one.

Now deciding this isn't enough, both sisters fly to each other, throwing punches that land on each other's faces. This sends them both falling a bit, but they manage to snap out of it and begins fist fighting.

As far as Danny can see, while Starfire is doing her best, Blackfire appears to be winning. He clenched his fists, he had to do something. He looked around and hoped he could see the time somewhere. If it was time, he could use his powers to help Starfire. Even though he didn't want to, he had to run off to figure out what time it was. He managed to get away from the trees and reach the town clock. There it read 7 minutes left.

"Seriously?" He asks annoyed. He hears a crashing sound. He worries. "Oh no…" He sees a dark figure rise up, looking around. "I gotta hide…" He runs to behind a building. Once he reaches, he presses against the wall, out of Blackfire's view. "Maybe I can use my powers after all?" He tries to go invisible, but nothing happens. "Maybe not…"

"Hello?" Blackfire can be heard calling out. "I won against the little loser!" Danny glares as he looks up, hearing that the voice calling out is getting closer. "Time for my prize!" Concerned, Danny tries to run, but, out of nowhere, Blackfire speeds in front of him. "Hey there!"

Before Danny could get away, Blackfire grabs him by the collar and punches him out.

Danny awakens to find himself in a room of some kind. Getting up, he sees on a bed. As he looks to his right, he sees a digital clock. It read 4:30.

"What?" He gets up. He gets off the bed and walks around. As he does, he sees his feet and notices they aren't his white boots. It's his red shoes. "Uh oh…" Now looking at the rest of him, he realizes he's human again. "Starfire and Blackfire… did they see me change?"

Now looking around, he recognizes he's in some kind of hotel room suite. He figures it's one in this town. He walks to the room's balcony door. Moving the curtain, he can see snow and, based on the height, he must be on the ninth floor.

What do I do now?

He leaves the curtain. He's about to walk to the door that will lead him out when he hears another door open. To his right, he walks to the opened door. He sees a familiar shadow on the floor. He sees a purple boot stepping in view as the rest of the figure is blocked by the door. He realizes, based on the color of the boot, it's Starfire. He's seen him in human form.

"Starfire?" He asks. There's no answer. Danny looks away, worried she's hurt by him keeping a secret. "I guess… you saw me transform when I was knocked out." He turns his back and walks away. "I've been wanting to tell you… but I couldn't figure out how." As he walks, he notices a small stand with a rose in a vase. He walks to it and pokes the flower a bit. "When I first met you, I thought you were pretty. You thought I was a Tamaranian, but I'm not. I mean, that should be obvious by now." He hears the figure step out of the bathroom. "I'm human with his body infused with ghostly energy. At first… I was pretty afraid of you even though you're very pretty. But I felt bad about hurting you because you're a nice person. Honestly, the more I got to know you, the more I grew to like you. Sure, your being so ignorant of personal space can get suffocating, but you have a good heart that's just as pretty as you are." He starts to smile. "Honestly, I do like you. I like you a lot. So… I guess I should be honest with you." He takes a deep breath and lets it go. "My name is Danny Fenton. When I morph, my name is Danny Phantom. The reason you tend to get emotional around me is because my body is emitting an energy that makes your emotions stronger. But I think we can work through that, or I can be human more often. Either way, I like you a lot and I am very sorry for hiding this from you." He stands there, waiting for a response. Nothing happens. "Well? What do you say?"

He waits to hear her voice, her lovely voice. What he heard next… wasn't that voice. It was one deeper and more terrifying.

"I forgive you."

Snapping back, he sees not Starfire, but Blackfire. She's wearing Starfire's clothes. She stands, her hands on her hips, looking seductive with a wicked smirk.

"You?!"

"Like what you see?" She says.

"W-Where's Starfire?" He asks, backing into the wall.

"Still in that crater… thankfully, before I came, I had a copy of her clothes made for me. Gotta admit, I like it, much more… revealing, don't you think?" She asks as she poses like a swimsuit model to make herself look more attractive.

"Not bad… let me show you my suit! I'm Going Ghost!" Danny creates the circles that would morph him, but they disappear as soon as they form. He tries again, but it doesn't happen. "That's not good… I must be low on power thanks to Dad's gizmo."

"So… you can't fight back?" She stops posing and raises her hands with a wicked smile. "Good… makes this easier. Let's play… Danny."

Her hands glow purple. Terrified, Danny barely manages to avoid her blasts. He makes a break for the door, but Blackfire's right arm gets in his way. When he backs up, he finds her other arm there. She's cornered him to the wall. She closes in on him

"What do you want, Blackfire?" He demands, trying not to look scared.

"Right now? Some fun." She smiles. "I gotta admit, I like the black hair more. Plus, you're so much weaker now… so easy to play with."

Thinking fast, Danny ducks as Blackfire comes in for a kiss. He goes under her arm and makes a break for it to the door.

He tries to unlock the door, but he feels a hand grab him in the back of his shirt.

"No!" He shouts.

"Come closer, cutie." She says.

She then grabs Danny by one arm. He tries to break free, but Blackfire's grip is too much and not as loving as Starfire's. He's pulled away from the door as she brings him back to the main room, where the large king-sized bed is. Lifting him up a bit, she turns him around and holds him close. Danny grabs her by her arms. It looks almost like the two are hugging.

Blackfire gives Danny a wicked smile as she looks in his eyes.

"No! Let me go!"

"Sorry, not sorry. I want this."

She tilts her head to her left and kisses him.

Thanks to her strength, he hugs him tightly and keeps his feet from barely touching the floor to prevent him from getting away. Danny makes muffled sounds of rejection and he feels her deepen the kiss against his wishes. He does try to shake his head, but this doesn't make Blackfire stop. She loosens her mouth a bit only to tilt her head to her right, deepening again. Danny tries to push her off and even grab her shoulders, trying hard to activate his powers to make her intangible. His powers are still not working at the moment.

Blackfire stops the kiss to give him a smug smile.

"So, still like my sister more?"

Despite the predicament he's in, Danny stays firm in his rejection of this girl.

"Do I need to answer that?"

Her smile drops and a look of irritation appears.

"Let me subtly suggest you change your mind."

She throws him to near the window. He lands on the floor. Desperate, he crawls to the window, moving the curtain out of his way, and looks out. There, he sees something he was hoping for.

The Specter Speeder.

His friends are in the cockpit, looking around.

"The tracking device landed around here. Can you track it?" Sam asks.

Tucker looks into the scanner. "It landed in this street. He must be around here somewhere."

Danny starts hitting the window.

"Hey! Guys!" He shouts, looking down as his friends don't notice him. "I'm here! I need help!" He even waves in hopes they see him.

He sees Tucker about to look in his direction. Unfortunately, something pulls him away. Only then does Tucker look up at the 9th floor window, but sees nothing.

In the hotel room, Blackfire has Danny in her grasp. Her right arm around his waist, keeping his arms locked at the same time. Her left is around his neck. She smiles as she whispers seductively in his ear.

"It's just you and me, lover boy."

Blackfire's back!

She just won't take no for an answer. But now she knows his real name.

And where is poor Starfire?

Can Danny figure a way out of this even though his powers are weakened?