Disclaimer: Sigh No, I do not own Danny Phantom. Don't sue. Just, don't do anything, except read and review this lovely story, because it's my baby, and my baby needs reviews to grow.
Part One: Dark Eyes
Chapter Four: Desired Actions
He flew her out of the boiler room, out of the school, out into the sky. He cradled her close and she slept soundly, as earlier she had been stumbling around as she tried to find the doorway after laughing so hard, and then falling into slumber when he swept her off her feet and flew off. She felt so delicate at the moment, this precious piece of life he cherished. She put complete trust in him, even after what had happened in the bathroom.
"You."
Oh God no. Why did that have to enter his head right now, right when he was so high up in the air? Why did he have to think of that answer she gave him when he asked? Had she been truthful? Did she think that this…rapist…was him? Did the imposter act that much like him, sound that much like him, smell that much like him, feel that much like him? Or…was it really him, and he just didn't realize it yet?
She stirred in his arms, moving closer to him, to the warmth of him. He hugged her all the tighter and slowed, the city below them a canvas just for them. Since it was fall, nighttime came earlier, and that meant that street lights, shop lights, and porch lights came on earlier too. Right now, it was as if buildings were twinkling at them, a dizzying seduction of light. It seemed to whisper to him, "We'll show you ours if you show us yours."
He had had dreams like this, dreams where he and Sam were up in the sky like this. The skyline would wink at them and she would flash him a dazzling smile, clothed in nothing but a silky sheet that floated around her. In this dream he was himself, not his amazing ghost self that ladies swooned over, but both of them were light as air, above society, above the norms, above rules that shackled them to their mind set.
He would lazily make his way to her and she would watch him with those gorgeous amethyst eyes of hers, so much like twilight. And then, she would slink herself around him, he'd find her in his lap.
She'd whisper into his ear, "Look at it all, our private show with the buildings so tall. I want to sit with you here in the sky, watch the stars and the cars go by."
"Anything for you," he'd murmur before deeply kissing her.
As far as dreams went, this one had first place. He just wished that he'd stop waking up when it started to get really hot and steamy. Who knew that his mind had nasty fantasies like that? They may have been in his mind, but they were starting to give him great tips. He was just hoping that he could try it out on a certain someone in the waking world, because he wasn't sure how he could handle the self-abuse much longer.
"Danny…" She whimpered, as if she were having a nightmare. They were nearing his home now. While he would have taken her back to her own bed, he wanted to keep an eye on her and he felt much safer in his own room than in a home inhabited with a butler, a strange grandma, and parents that hated most every inch of him. "…help."
His throat tightened and he felt a few hot tears prick at the corner of his eyes. He buried his head into the top of her silky black hair, clutching her more fiercely. He wanted more than anything to take away her pain, her horror, her sadness. He wanted to be there with her. But…how could he? She was on her own for now and there wasn't a single thing he could do about it.
"I'm here Sam, I'm here." He kissed her cheek lightly. "I'll be here when you wake up. I promise."
"He won't come. He can't come," her tormentor said. "After all, it is your mind."
She wasn't in her room. She was in Danny's. A wrought iron bed, adorned with three or four pillows, and a large, comforter. There was a computer desk, a flat panel monitor with a new hard drive, courtesy her Christmas present to him. There was a TV to the other side of her, a low rise couch that they would sit on when playing DDR (Dance Dance Revolution and, well, they used dance pads for that one) or when bored, a couple rounds of Halo Two. A Perfect Circle, System of a Down, Killswitch Engage, CKY, all of them posters crowded around his walk in closet. His stereo system was scattered here and there, Danny probably still dinking around with it, hoping to modify the bass. His computer was on, and there was something written on it, but she couldn't make it out, a familiarity that she might have to check out when she woke up, if she woke up.
She lay on the bed, tangled up in a sheet of silk. It glided effortlessly along her skin as she shifted her legs. To her surprise, and maybe not, she was nude beneath the silk. A faint trace of disgust ran through her at that thought. She felt like a whore this way. She felt used, a betrayer, and most importantly, lowly. She should have been able to stop this…this…thing, but she couldn't.
"How does my little kitty feel?" he asked as he crawled onto the bed towards her. His weight caused her to slide slightly towards him, but she backed away a little, not looking at him the least. She didn't want to see him, not now anyways. "Now, now, kitty," he scolded. "Let's be cooperative."
"Why won't you let me sleep, just this one time? Why can't I have peace? You could just watch me. Why can't that be enough? You won't have me this way." It all tumbled out so fast that she couldn't stop it, but when she said her piece, she looked at him, straight at those beautiful, crazily obsessed, green eyes. Immense willpower was the only thing that had kept her from crumbling. She may have been scared, but she didn't cringe away. She wouldn't back down, couldn't back down or it'd be the end of her. "You can't have my soul."
He looked surprised, surprised that she would say and act the way she was. He didn't say anything for the longest time and Sam couldn't guess what he was thinking. She knew he was thinking, but his eyes didn't show enough…yet now…they seemed to be holding an emotion that she wasn't very familiar with. She had seen it in Danny's eyes, but very few times, maybe once or twice. Was it longing…or love?
"No fun tonight," he finally said. He got of the bed, his stance less energetic, but still so full of strength. He turned back to her and she had to fight to hide a blush that threatened to fill her face. Before her now she saw a handsome man. He was like Danny Phantom, but then again, not. His snow white hair seemed for thick and sleek. His green eyes were darker now and she saw gold flecks that made them all the more appealing. His physique didn't seem like that of a sixteen year old boy's, but of a man. He was gorgeous and she couldn't help but be amazed. "I was supposed to give you a message anyways. Remember: She looks at me, but doesn't see my eyes."
"…am…"
She was waking up. Relief and disappointment flooded through her, causing her even more grief, but there wasn't anything she could do about it. She looked back up at him and saw a sexy sly grin on his face that disappeared to a determined stare.
"I love you Sam. I want you Sam. You're all I can ever think about sometimes. I have a mind and will of my own, and what I feel for you is my own. I'm not going to be part of him much longer. You'll see. We'll be together yet."
What could she say to that!
"Sam!"
"I love you." Sexy sly grin…And then, he was gone.
Sam Manson opened her eyes and inhaled deeply. She held the breath a moment before releasing it, feeling her heartbeat come to her. She looked over to see Danny kneeling next to the bed, his face searching hers, worried. They seemed cloudy, stormy gray clouds in his normally clear blue eyes. And once again twilight met a pair of eyes, locked in the same face, not the dewy grass, but sorrowful skies, these seeming to be so much more pure and gentle though.
Afraid he was only an image, her hand reached out to stroke his face. She felt flesh, very warm, blood pulsing just beneath the surface, the feeling of small hairs, the body's sign that this boy before her would no longer be a boy, but a man. He cupped that hand with his own, rubbing his face into her skin, and her eyes fluttered, amazed that that one little action felt pleasurable.
"Are you okay?" he asked.
She almost said no, but went against that. "I'm fine, just a little tired." Tired was the understatement of the century. She felt dead, a lead weight, not wanting to move from her spot, just to lie down and not have any more troubles. This was too much stress, and she felt like screaming, screaming till she ran out of breath, until she passed out and died from the effort. Her eyes went wide at that horrible thought, but then she masked it quickly enough so he never noticed. "Danny, is your computer on?"
He snapped out of his haze that she made. He looked at her, slightly confused. "Uh, yeah, I think so. Why?" She rolled off the bed and hit the floor, ignoring the rug burn that she had just received, and scrambled off the carpeting, hitting the computer chair. She looked at the screen and went rigid, her hands gripping the side of the desk so hard that they turned white. He went up behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders. "Sam, what is it?"
He looked at the screen himself and his jaw dropped open.
Let the games begin.
-S
A droplet of moister fell onto the desk, breaking a silence, the plip of it almost deafening. Danny looked to see more fall from Sam's face, silently falling, her eyes so full of sorrow.
"Please…Don't cry." He wrapped her in his arms, hugging her with all his might. "We'll find the bastard who's fucking with our minds. I promise he'll pay, I promise."
She didn't say anything, but nodded her head. He laid his head on her shoulder and wished more than anything in the world he could stop his Sam from feeling such pain.
But, for all he was, he couldn't.
What would you do if you woke up and the whole world was gone, well?
Would you believe with me is where you belong?
Well there goes the whole world and we're right in the middle
There goes the whole world and we're right in the middle, I said
Leave me here, I said leave me here with you
-In The Middle (Theory of a Deadman)
Is there any significance in it?
Probably, but one should never think too far ahead. One needs to live in the present, not the past, not the future. There is only now.
What could be down now? Nothing, of course, and then what was the point in worrying when it wasn't urgent. The "games" would begin, but in the meantime, they couldn't stress over it and let it rule their lives. No, they needed to bide their time and try to relax. Action would come soon enough, or maybe not, but Sam didn't want suffering, and the only thing Danny could do was try to help her forget it.
After they had both calmed down and decided to investigate when they could get a hold of Tucker, the song had begun playing on Danny's stereo system, a test to see if he had it all worked out, and to their delight, he had. Ecstatic at his triumph over machine, he ordered a pizza (just cheese and black olives. He was respectful of Sam tonight and didn't go with half and half.) and while waiting, they decided to play a couple rounds of DDR so that they'd be hungry enough when sustenance arrived. The TV came on, the pads were plugged in and placed on the floor, and the stereo was suddenly turned off for better concentration.
"Want to start with Light Step?" he asked.
Sam smirked. "Why not? I guess I could use a warm up round."
The two looked at each other for a moment, the prospects of a friendly challenge held. Without shifting his gaze, he touched the pad so the game would start. The music for the level flared to life and they turned their attention to the screen, neither wanting to lose the first round. Lights, sound, color, a total assault on the human mind and both of them loved it.
Up. Down. Left. Left. Left. Jump. Jump. Up. Right.
In perfect unison, they performed the moves, hours of practice finally paying off. The carpet's fibers were short enough so that the dance mats didn't sink into the floor, a problem in Sam's bedroom, for if the mats did sink into the floor, they didn't seem to respond to a tap and had to be smashed repeatedly. Danny's place was perfect for DDR and Sam oftentimes found herself coming over when she was bored and the two would spend their times together like this when Tucker wasn't around.
"About the dance next Saturday…what color dress are you wearing? I'd like to sort of match." He never took his eyes off the screen when he asked, only kept to the beat. Up hold. Down. Down. Right. Right. Right. Jump. "Still haven't decided?"
She had. Black, but since dancing and talking were on different sides of the brain, and she still hadn't had enough practice to fight it, the two parts collided and would either screw up her talking or screw up her game and neither one was an option at the moment. However, she was losing concentration enough and Danny was winning. "Blum…I mean black. Maybe dark violet. I'm still caught between the two." Crap! She was too far behind to get an A, not even a B. She'd have to settle for a C. "Just wear a black suit and a—"
"Violet silk tie," he interrupted. "I don't do bowties and luckily I planned enough in advance to get it all." The level ended and Sam had been right. She got a C, but Danny had gotten a B, so it hadn't been too bad. He didn't press anything to go back to the menu. "I thought you would have gotten it all together by now. You did that one time and you had been going (at this point he tried to mimic her voice, too high in pitch and sounding more like Paulina than anything): What's the point in going? Why do I want to go? Dances are pointless."
His antics faltered under her piercing gaze, the equivalent to a basilisk's. If she had been one, he would have probably turned to stone, but not truly so. He could see beneath the gaze that there wasn't any severity. He sighed inwardly. He was safe from her wrath and safe from any physical harm that might have been induced by her size five steel toed boots (but wait, she had taken them off for the game so he his shins were safe) or her polished nails that had been sharpened to tiny daggers.
"Do I really sound like that?" she asked.
He stopped. But then, he smiled. He smiled such a sweet smile, the kind of smile that she lived for. That was the smile he never showed to anybody but her, because there was a light in his heart that he held for her, only her, and that was why nobody had never seen him smile this wonderful smile. She couldn't get over it, because it stopped her heart. Everything came to a screeching halt. Tears could have welled up in her eyes and would have if time hadn't slowed. A blush rose to her face and she felt a strong emotion surging forth, one that she wasn't sure she could name…or could she?
"Naw. You sound more malevolent." Her eyes almost went down in disappointment, but he felt the impending sense of doom if he didn't say something soon and said, "I'm kidding. No. I couldn't copy your voice. It's too…um…" He scratched his head, embarrassed, but then he whispered, "Beautiful." He looked at her, a blush giving his face new color. "Maybe you should forget that…"
She grinned. "I think I'd rather not." Tension filled the air again and then, Sam did something very uncharacteristic. Slowly, taking one step at a time, until she stood right in front of Danny, she hugged him, as a friend would hug another. Not trying to feel awkward, he hugged back, and deeply breathed in her scent, that surprising feminine touch of lilies and cherry blossom, and the tangy lemon that helped to tie it together. His arms went from being around her elbows to entwine around her waist. His breathing stopped for a moment, but when she placed her arms around his neck, air came to him again. "Thank you, Danny," she whispered gently in his ear, wonderfully warm breath tickling his ear. "You mean so much to me…"
He looked into her eyes, beautiful amethyst. They were like jewels, glittering in the light, but still, that wasn't good enough to describe them. She was like a goddess, and he didn't want to think anymore, so he didn't.
His face lowered to hers, ever so slowly, lips just beginning to touch, flowery soft and warm and—
The doorbell rang. It rang once, twice, thrice.
Sam pulled away slightly, a sigh of disappointment on her minty fresh breath. "I guess that's the pizza man."
"Yeah. I'll get it." He felt like screaming in frustration.
But then, as he made his way down the stairs, Danny realized that he and Sam had been practically kissing. Kissing! And, if it happened once, it could happen again. Maybe things weren't so bad after all.
Maybe he could finally tell the girl of his dreams how he really felt about her.
Still, he was troubled. Who was this S? And, more importantly, could he defeat them when the time came?
End Chapter
Author's Notes: Reviews, reviews, reviews! I love reviews and I love writing! This is my favorite project at the moment. I'm totally hooked on it myself! Can an author be hooked on their own story? Well, anyways, I hope you guys review because this is longer than my other chapters and I've been working so hard. I promise to reply to all you reviewers like I usually do. You guys mean the world to me and I want you to know that. Well, I guess I'll start chapter five ASAP. That's it for now, keep reading for the rest of the ride. Ciao.
