Chapter 2: Danny's Question
Danny said quietly, "Tuck, I've been having this dream for two weeks now! It's driving me nuts…"
"Same battle, same mystery figure?"
"Well, I saw the figure clearly this time….it was a girl, about my age. She had white hair and one streak of pale purple hair down the left side of her head. She kept saying something…but I couldn't hear her. But what really got me was those eyes…those glowing purple eyes…"
Tucker was deep in thought when Danny said, "I haven't seen eyes like those since…oh….my…GOD!"
"What! Who is she, do you know!"
"Tuck…I think…no, I know…that girl was SAM!"
Tucker stood gaping for a few seconds but then whooped like a maniac. "YES! I now have undeniable proof that you are head over heels for Sam! Oh, this is just too juicy!" Danny quickly slapped a hand over his mouth.
"Why dontcha yell a little louder, Tuck? I think there might be some people in SCOTLAND who didn't hear you!"
Tucker continued excitedly, "But don't you get it? Now you know why you've been having these dreams and you know how to stop them! You have to ask Sam out, it's the only way, man! And don't give me that stupid 'putting Sam at risk' bullshit you always give me! If she was scared of being around you, why has she helped you fight ghosts for FOUR YEARS? Look, the senior prom is Thursday night; ask her to be your date!"
Danny seriously thought about that. "Maybe you've got a point…but I don't have time to discuss this now, we got to get to class soon, I'll see you around Tuck…" And Danny walked off to his next period, even though he was about thirty minutes early. His head was still deep in thought when he left.
"Maybe Tuck is right. If I ask Sam to the prom, it would give me the perfect opportunity to finally tell her how I feel…wait, what am I thinking? I couldn't do that, not now…my life is just too hectic and dangerous for her to be that involved with me. I wouldn't want to put her in danger…she's been kidnapped by ghosts more often than I'd prefer already. But…she still stays with me. Even though she knows these ghosts are dangerous and lethal, she still wants to help me…I can see now why everybody used to call me clueless. Maybe it is time for a change…it's decided, then. I'll ask her to prom, or die trying…I hope…"
Sam's psychology teacher droned on about psychosis or musical savants or whatever…she wasn't really paying attention today. She was perfectly content staring off into space with a slightly amused expression while she unconsciously doodled all over her notebook. She looked down at the page and quickly ripped it out, turning an impressive shade of red.
She was horrified to find that she had unconsciously made a perfect sketch of Danny Fenton, followed by Danny Phantom, both surrounding a big heart with the words "Mrs. Samantha Fenton" in the middle. She sighed to herself and started taking down her teacher's notes as she thought to herself…
"For the love of god, Sam, pull yourself together! You are a Goth, and therefore do not feel this way ABOUT ANYTHING. Goths don't fall in love…oh, who the hell am I kidding? I love Danny…don't know how the hell it happened, but I do. Well, can you blame me? I mean, all of a sudden he's really been impressing me lately. His grades are up, he's kicking ghost ass left and right, he's finally over that witch Paulina! Not to mention he's so…so…HOT. Holy crap…I just said he was hot! BAD SAM, BAD, BAD, BAD SAM! Maybe…but it's true. That ghost hunting has definitely helped…"
The bell snapped her out of her reverie and she quickly packed up her things, leaving for Lancer's World Literature class, where she would meet with Danny again.
As Lancer droned on about poetry, Danny quickly nodded off in his chair and began to daydream…
Danny opened his eyes and smiled as he found himself under an apple tree in the park. He turned his head to the side and was surprised to find Sam there, slumbering peacefully next to him. Her eyes fluttered open and she smiled that odd smile that was very un-Goth and reserved only for Danny.
Danny felt his heart beat faster as she climbed closer to him, drawing her lips to his…
"Mr. Fenton…"
Danny could feel her warm breath on his skin now, he closed his eyes…
"Mr. Fenton…"
And just as their lips met…Danny heard a very un-Sam like voice…
"CRY THE BELOVED COUNTRY! Mr. Fenton, as important as sleep is to growing adults, I'd appreciate it if you not do so IN MY CLASS!" Danny snapped awake to find the entire class staring at him, trying their best not to laugh. Sam looked anxious and worried, and then Danny looked up to find a very ticked Mr. Lancer. "Mr. Fenton, perhaps you can tell me who wrote this poem on the board? If this class is boring you, then you must be a poetry whiz!"
Danny gulped and looked at the board, his eyes shot to the title, "Oh my Luve's like a Red, Red Rose."
Danny sighed in relief and smiled as he said, "Oh yeah, that was written by Robert Burns. He was a poet that lived in Scotland many years ago, hence the odd spelling of the word love."
Lancer froze and the class's jaws dropped. The teacher stammered, "That…that's…correct? You got it right? Are you a fan of Mr. Burns' work?" Danny scratched his neck nervously and said, "You could say that…"
The truth was that Danny had attempted to read that poem to Sam on Valentine's Day this year. Unfortunately his only copy was shredded in a fight against Technus, Master of machines, technology, and long-winded introductions.
"Very well, Daniel. I applaud your knowledge of ethnic poets, but I'm still watching you." Danny gulped and nodded. Sam turned in her seat and mouthed to him "How the hell did you know that?" He just shrugged and went back to watching Mr. Lancer, stealing glances with Sam the whole time…
As soon as class was over, Sam and Danny got out of the room and bust out laughing. "Oh my god…my ribs hurt, I was laughing so hard! Danny, how did you do that?" He just shrugged and smiled nervously. He bid goodbye to Sam as they walked off to their next class.
The bell for lunch finally rang and Sam quickly grabbed her salad and went to find her friends. She passed by a bush that rustled very rapidly. Sam jumped a bit and stood back a little, figuring another ghost could pop out at any minute.
A small bird landed in the bush. The next second, the bird flew out of the bush in a pop of green light, landing in front of Sam, very dead and very crispy. Sam recognized the light and whispered, "Danny! What the hell are you doing in there?" Danny poked his head out and then emerged.
"Sorry about the bird. But for your information, I was hiding from…"
At that moment, a very nasal voice called out, "Danny! Mi nino caliente! There you are!" Danny sighed and finished his sentence, "…her…"
Sam turned red again as Paulina bumped her out of the way and got up close to Danny. "Danny, I'm still available for the prom on Thursday! I don't have a date, and neither do you, so you can take me!"
Danny smiled sarcastically and said, "You know Paulina, I'd love to go with you…but then again, I'd love to have my tonsils ripped out by a rabid ghost wolf. Forget it; I'm not going with you anywhere."
Paulina either didn't hear or didn't care. "Oh, did I mention I'm also available after the dance, if you catch my drift!" She got uncomfortably close to Danny and winked very obviously. Sam then grabbed Paulina's shoulder and whipped her around.
"Listen you little witch, Danny said no, can't you take a hint!"
Paulina spat back, "Don't you dare speak to me you unpopular little piece of crap! Let the cool people talk while you crawl back to your unpopular little hole…" Sam looked on the verge of tears, she was so angry. Unfortunately, Danny began turning red as well.
"Listen here, Paulina! You can chase after me all you want and I'll be able to say no to you every time. But don't you dare ever insult Sam in front of me! Take that back, now!"
Paulina was getting mad now too. "I'll insult who I want to! She's a pasty goth freak and doesn't deserve to be in the presence of such popularity…so, as I was saying…"
This time Sam spoke, struggling to keep the anger from slipping into her voice. "Take that back, Paulina…now."
"I will not, and you can't make me!"
"Yes I can…"
"Then make me!"
Sam obliged and, quick as lightning, punched Paulina right in the face. Sam stormed off just a tear escaped her eye, muttering curses to the sky and absolutely livid. Danny turned to go get her when Paulina stood and said, "That witch! I'll kill her for that! I better not be bleeding, or else she's…Danny, what's wrong?"
Danny froze in place upon hearing Paulina. His eyes began to glow an intense green and he turned to Paulina, speaking in a low and very un-Danny like voice. "Get away from me, Paulina…get away and stay away or you will suffer for that…GET LOST! DID YOU HEAR ME, YOU LITTLE WITCH? GET LOST!" Paulina turned pale at his sudden change in presence and ran away frightened, screaming like a ninny.
Danny then remembered Sam and ran off after her. He found her sitting by the fountain in Amity Central Park. Thankfully, neither had classes in the afternoon (perks of senior year) and he sat next to her. "Sam, I am so…are you crying?" Sam wiped her tears away. "Sam, I'm so sorry you had to hear that. Paulina's been chasing me all day, trying to get me to take her to prom…"
Sam bitterly muttered, "I hate her so much…she just keeps dumping on me…Danny, you cannot take her to prom! She'll try to turn you into a pompous, egotistical, maniacal…"
"I'm not taking her to prom!"
"Wait, you're not? Oh thank god…"
Danny chuckled and said, "Now, what I was trying to tell you this morning, before the "Spanish Spectacle" showed up, is that I have a present for you." Sam looked at him questioningly as he pulled a small item wrapped in notebook paper from his bag. Sam cautiously said, "What is it?" Danny smiled and said, "Let's just say next time Paulina messes with you, I give you permission to hit her with this."
Sam's expression instantly lightened up and she ripped the paper to find that she was holding a small metal rod, just like the Jack-O-Nine tails his father made. She pressed the button and from it sprang a long green blade of spectral energy. "Sam Manson, you are now the proud owner of a Fenton Light Blade. This will hurt most any ghost, and is great for warding off unpleasant company as well. It's one of two in the whole world."
Sam asked, "Where's the other one?" Danny took the object from his belt and said, "I have the other one, and like I said, you can use that to hit Paulina if need be." Sam smiled and hugged Danny.
"Thanks a lot! That's so sweet of you! I don't know what to say…"
"Well, you could say…yes."
"Yes to what?"
"Well…yes to my offer… 'cause I was going to give that to you when I finally worked up the nerve to ask you to prom…I was going to let you keep it either way, even if you said no…"
Sam's face went from dumbstruck to joyous and she flung herself into Danny's arms. "Yes, of course I'll go with you! Why wouldn't I! Thank you so much…this is so awesome!" Before she knew what she was doing, she kissed Danny right on the lips. She stopped, shocked at herself and ran off, saying, "I'll see you tomorrow, and remember, FAKE-OUT MAKE-OUT!"
As Sam disappeared over the horizon, Danny's hand slowly traveled to his lips. An odd smile crept across his face and suddenly he started whooping like a maniac. "Sam kissed me…SHE KISSED ME! SWEET LORD ABOVE, SHE KISSED ME!" Danny turned intangible and flew off at near supersonic speeds. He darted straight into his bedroom window and crashed into the closet. He emerged still hollering "I CAN'T FEEL MY SKULL, BUT I DON'T CARE! SHE KISSED ME, SWEET GRANDMA ON A STICK, SHE KISSED ME!"
Danny was so excited that he never saw his bedroom door open while he jumped on his bed, hollering like a maniac. "A little excited, eh little bro?"
Danny turned so fast that he gracefully flew off the bed and landed on his head on the floor. "I'm okay…just dazed…whoa, Jazz? Is that you?" Jazz Fenton smiled warmly at her little brother, donned in thin glasses and a Yale hoodie.
"Oh, my little brother is all grown up now! He has finally gotten a clue and found the love of his life. I may cry…or puke, one of the two."
"Zip the lip Jazz. If you'll excuse me, the prom is in two days and I need to find a tux before then. See ya!" Danny ran out of the room and dashed downstairs, hoping he could get out before…
"Danny! Could you come on down to the lab for a second, I wanna show you something!"
Danny sighed as he walked downstairs to meet his father in the lab. "Danny, word on the street is that you've been building ghost tech! I wanna talk to you about these "light blades" you made…"
Danny suddenly became very nervous and sputtered, "Wha…what are you talking about! I don't build ghost weapons! Whatever gave you that idea!"
"Danny, I found the blueprints in the desk drawer; you know, the ones that say, "Fenton Light Blade: by Danny Fenton"."
Danny sighed and said, "I knew I should've burned those blueprints…"
"Listen Danny, I checked the supply store in the back and you used enough materials to construct two of these little beauties you created. I figured you'd get one, but may I guess who the other one went to?"
Danny looked at him quizzically and said, "Go ahead, I doubt you'd know though…"
"Lemme think….oh, it wouldn't possibly be Samantha Manson would it?" Danny gasped and sputtered, "Who told you that? How did you possibly know!" Jack laughed and said, "Now Danny, I may be clumsy but I'm not stupid. You're just like me when I first met your mother! The first time we went out I made her first ecto-gun for her! I don't know how relevant getting ghost tech for your sweetheart is for you though…"
Danny laughed nervously and said, "Heh, you might be surprised…" Jack continued, "Anyway, I know that you have a thing for this young girl Sam. Why you two remind me of myself and your mother at your age. Of course, not counting the big hair and gaudy clothes…although I still don't get Sam's parents…"
Danny laughed, "Neither does she for that matter. Actually dad, about Sam…I kinda asked her to prom today…and she kinda…sorta…said…yes."
Jack whooped and grabbed his son in a one arm hug, "Way to go, Danny! You're officially a man now! Now if I can just get you to destroy a ghost, we'll be in business…but I'm getting ahead of myself. We need to get you a tux worthy of the name Fenton! Let's go!" Danny made to protest but was quickly silenced as Jack threw him into the car and bolted towards the mall.
Sam finally reached her house about ten minutes after her meeting with Danny in the park. She flopped onto her bed and stared at the ceiling in mingled shock and joy. "I can't believe I kissed him, I really kissed him! Aww, but it was worth it…he asked me out…SWEET GRANDMA ON A STICK, HE ASKED ME OUT!" On cue, Sam's grandmother wheeled in saying, "Somebody call? What's shakin, my favorite granddaughter?"
Sam quickly told her, "I had the best day! Paulina started yelling at me and made me cry!"
"How the hell does that count as a good day?"
"But I got her back tenfold! I cold-cocked her, right in the eye! I got four years of payback in one punch!"
Grandma whooped and started doing donuts in her chair. "Woohoo! No one messes with a Manson without getting their face rearranged! Way to go!" Sam laughed, she could always tell her grandmother her problems and stories, she understood Sam a lot more than Mr. and Mrs. Manson ever did.
"And Danny Fenton asked me out! HE ASKED ME OUT TO PROM!"
Grandma started doing wheelies across the room, "YEEEEEE-HAAAAAWWWW! My little girl's hooked herself a man! Isn't Danny that friend of yours with the nice butt? Oh, he's a hot one, him!"
Sam blushed impressively, "GRANDMA, STOP THAT! But yeah, that's the one." Grandma cheered again and said, "Wait…you do realize that prom means formal wear, don't you?" Sam's face fell slightly, "Crap…you can't tell mom about this or she'll try to foist some pink fluffy piece of junk on me!"
Grandma laughed and said, "Point taken. But I think I have an idea…follow me. I have something you may want to try on…"
"Dad, I don't think I should put on this tux…"
"Why not?"
"Because it's green…NEON GREEN."
Jack blushed slightly and chuckled nervously, "Heh-heh…sorry about that. I'll read the label next time…"
Jack went back out into the store and found one more suit, carefully reading the label this time. His face lit up and he practically threw it at Danny. About ten minutes later the door opened up and Danny re-emerged. Jack whistled and said, "Not bad, my boy. You look like me in high school. That is, minus about ten pounds from nacho cheese and fudge, LOTS of fudge…"
Danny finally got a good look in the mirror and smiled, slightly surprised. It was probably as good as he had ever looked before. The black pants and tie worked with the white coat and shirt to make a very James Bond style. "Danny, I think you're just about ready. Come Thursday night, Sam won't know what hit her!" For the first time ever, Danny felt like his dad had a point.
Sam's grandmother drummed her fingers against the handlebars of her electric wheelchair in impatience. "For the love of god, Sam, just put on the damn dress and let me see you!" Sam stood inside her grandmother's large closet, biting back her fear as she opened the door and faced the elderly coot. Grandma's face softened and she said, "Oh, forget me, take a look for yourself…"
Sam nervously turned to look at her self in the mirror and she gasped. She looked…she didn't want to admit it…sexy. She never thought she could pull off sexy. The slim black and purple dress she had chosen hugged her curves just right. Her leg showed through the slit in the skirt just enough to seem elegant without being…err…loose.
"My dear, that Danny boy will have a hard time keeping his hands off you, forget his eyes…you are ready." Sam gulped and smiled, because for once, she felt like something was finally going right.