Author's Notes: As I write this, I am so looking forward to spring break. This will probably be posted sometime after that, meaning late-March, early-April. If I post it earlier... yay!

One other quick vent to get out of my system. Why the hell won't people learn basic grammar! The whole site is overrun with stories with terrible formatting. You're not supposed to have two characters talking in the same paragraph, damn it! And while I'm on the topic, are people even trying to properly live up to the character's personalities? So many of these fics portray them all as bland and 2-dimensional or just plain completely out of character. Argh!

Okay, I'm cool.

A Musical Interlude

Chapter 4- Big City Nights

Danny combed his hair out for the fourth time that hour. He kept going back to the bathroom to check on his appearance, even though there was still plenty of time before he had to meet Sam and he had been ready to meet her since 9 AM. That was the first time he hadn't slept in on a weekend morning in two years. And for the Phantasmic Four, it was a little unnerving.

They were all seated in the common room with some of Danny's roommates watching DVD episodes of Mystery Science Theater 3000 on Jesse's TV which they had lugged out of her dorm. Between Tucker's rambling, Bram's laughter which sounded like rolling thunder, Jack's hitting on Jesse, and the plethora of other goings-on in the suite that day, it was pretty chaotic.

"Dude," Paul chimed in with a helpful tone, "relax. The girl's obviously really into you, man."

"I'm fine, really," Danny impatiently tried to assure them. Of course, he wasn't a very good liar.

"If you sweat anymore over this, you'll need to reapply your deodorant." Jack punctuated his statement by stretching out and draping his arms over the back of the sofa he was seated on, one arm strategically going behind Jesse's shoulders. If she noticed, she didn't show it.

Danny quickly sniffed himself. "Eh... I better take an extra spray of Axe just to be sure." And with that he bolted out of the room to retrieve his spray-on deodorant.

Jack could be heard from the common room exasperatedly shouting, "I was kidding, you dumbass!"

Oh... Awkward. Well, it couldn't hurt anyway. After giving himself a quick spray, Danny checked himself in the mirror on his door again. Blue jeans, steel-toed boots, black Foamy the Squirrel T-shirt layered with an open shirt with tribal thorns... If only Dave were here. Danny had little confidence in his fashion sense. For god's sake, he fought ghosts in a haz-mat suit! Even Ghostbusters had better uniforms. All Danny knew how to do was dress like a metalhead/rocker. And Jack and Bram were even better at that than him.

It took some effort, but the group convinced Danny to stay still until it was time to go pick Sam up. He gave himself one last check before grabbing his keys, cell phone, and wallet and headed out the door. It was funny. He'd had butterflies in his stomach all day. Now that he was actually on the way to see Sam, he felt much more confident. He just hoped it wasn't the calm before the storm.

-x-

Tucker waited about thirty seconds after Danny left. There was always the possibility he would come back thinking he forgot something. Once the coast was clear, his face split into a wide grin and he turned to the others in the common room. "So guys, you want to get a front-row seat to Danny's big night out?" he asked mischievously.

Everyone turned to look at him oddly. Jack was the first to speak. "Are you suggesting that we tail Danny and spy on him and Sam on their date? That is without a doubt that most clichéd, trite, juvenile thing I've ever heard you say."

Jesse glanced at Jack from the corner of her eye as if suddenly very impressed with him.

Sadly, Jack didn't notice and promptly blew his window of opportunity to smithereens. "Unfortunately, Paul and I have a study session for our Roaring 20's class at 8, so we're going to have to skip this time around."

Jesse rolled her eyes and crossed her legs away from him with a silent huff.

"Besides," Paul added, "if they caught us we wouldn't live to see the light of another day. Danny's got those crazy moves his mother taught him, and Sam... That woman has some serious violence issues."

Tucker rubbed his shin at the memory of getting kicked yesterday. He actually had a minor bruise there now. "Yeah. All the more reason for me to use stealth. Anyway, what about you, Bram? In or out?"

"No can do, man," Bram answered as he lightly shook his head. "I got floor hockey at 6:30."

"Guess I'm goin' it alone, then," Tucker said dramatically with what he hoped was a sly grin. He had always envied Danny that trademark grin of his. He absently wondered if his friend even knew how cool it looked. But that was neither here nor there. Right now, he had to catch up with Danny and let the covert ops begin. Good thing he had his geek tech with him. He could cam-blog this date in real-time.

With that, he quickly snuck out. This was going to be so awesome. Tucker silently played over the Mission: Impossible theme in his head as he left the dorm and followed Danny's distant form which was moving toward Radcliffe Hall.

-x-

Danny quietly approached the gazebo. Sam had her back turned to him, so he couldn't get a very good look at her. All the same, he decided to have a little fun. Checking to make sure no one was around, his familiar sly grin crept onto his face and he went invisible. After the incident with the fake symposium courtesy of Plasmius, Danny had been working hard to learn how to use his powers in human form. It took some time, but he finally got it right and could freely use most of his powers without having to transform or experience some emotional extreme.

Casually strolling up to the gazebo, Danny stopped in front of Sam without making a sound. God damn it, she was hot! She still had her hair styled in that cute top-knot/ponytail thingy, but her clothes... Perhaps most noticeable was the fact that she had chosen to forego the striped stockings he had seen her in before. Guys always had one or more parts of a woman's body that they were particularly attracted to. For Danny, it was legs. And Sam had a pair seldom seen outside of Japanese animation. It was amazing what even the simplest clothing could hide. If that mini-skirt went any higher...

Anyway, the spell was broken when Sam looked at the tiny watch she wore behind one of her bracelets and started looking around for Danny. He quickly straightened himself out and sat next to her, becoming visible once more as soon as he was comfortable. "Hey, beautiful."

Sam jumped and let out a soft "eep" before sighing in relief. She gave Danny a punch in the shoulder and smiled at him. "I'll let that slide this time," she playfully scolded. "Now, any place in particular you wanted to go?"

"I know a little place about twenty minutes from here that serves Mediterranean," Danny casually suggested. "Great place to go for a Greek salad."

"Aw, you remembered I'm a vegan," Sam gushed in a deliberately over-the-top saccharine voice. "That is so sweet."

"I try," he replied in what he hoped was a suave voice. "Do you mind walking there?"

Sam shook her head lightly and took his hand as she stood up, Danny following beside her. It was a nice, warm evening and there were still a couple hours until sunset. The clear sky meant it was going to be a beautiful night out. Though Danny wasn't much of a romantic, he had the advantage of an older sister who had coached him in his senior year on what women wanted to hear. It didn't work, but that was partly because of the years of social stigma he had gone through making it virtually impossible to get a date in Amity Park. Thank god for college and beautiful, politically radical Goth girls.

The walk to the restaurant was spent with the two of them exchanging stories about their experiences in high school. Sam seemed particularly amused by his story of the debate class he'd had and when he got paired against a guy who had absolutely no idea what he was talking about when it came to politics. "So he says, 'It even says in the Constitution that we're a republic, not a democracy. It only makes sense to vote accordingly.' I just rolled my eyes and responded, 'Do you actually know the difference between the two?'"

Sam burst out laughing and shook her head. "I'm assuming he didn't know?"

"Not a clue. His eyes widened and his face went red. Lancer ended the debate right there and awarded me bonus points for not getting partisan hackery. I swear, there's nothing more satisfying than putting stupid people in their place." Danny felt like he'd just been hit by a thunderbolt when he felt Sam's lips touch his cheek.

"Keep talking like that, and you might just 'get lucky' tonight." Her tone was at once teasing and seductive, and Danny tried to subtly adjust his button-down to cover up a certain reaction her voice elicited. Damn it all though, he could listen to her talk all day. It wasn't just the sound of her voice, but also the fact that she was so intelligent and confident. She was everything he tried so hard to be growing up. And in a lot of ways still wasn't. Although... the idea of hearing her voice all night did carry a few... naughty, even kinky connotations...

No! No, it was too early in the evening. He needed to stay focused and think with his brain, not his libido. Of course, hanging around four other guys who turned lewd humor into an art and science didn't help. But for now he needed to stay calm and keep his mind in check. Stay focused on the conversation and just enjoying the moment instead of staring at her oh so sexy legs; deliciously pale skin; and ample, perky- god damn it!

"You okay?" Sam asked with a concerned voice and a strange look.

Oh shit. He said that last expletive out loud, didn't he? Damn you, Freud! Okay, think fast. What else could possibly cause you to scream out an obscenity out of nowhere... other than Tourette's syndrome? "I, uh... I left the door to my dorm open by accident when I left. The guys were over at the suite, and they're probably rummaging through my stuff right now for some sophomoric prank." Nice save.

Sam rolled her eyes and muttered, "Men. Typical."

"Present company excluded?"

Sam gave Danny a flat look that spoke the answer for her.

"Aw, now you've wounded me," he pouted. This was too much fun. He was so lucky to have a girl like her just being in his life at all.

-x-

Sam hadn't had this much fun with just one person in... well, ever. She was never one to believe in love at first sight, but a part of her really wanted to change that. Danny was someone who had learned how the world worked by taking his lumps. He admitted to mistakes and that's how he got where he was today. And besides that, he was a hero. He risked his life for people who denied that beings like him even existed. How could you not admire that? How the hell was he still single?

They turned a corner and Sam saw the restaurant Danny spoke of at the opposite corner. The name "Antony's" was written on the plate glass window beside the door in a flowing script and accented with olive leaves. She glanced over at Danny and saw him peering at something suspiciously from the corner of his eye before they crossed the corner and he lost sight of whatever he had seen. "That sneaky little bastard," he growled.

"Danny, what are you talking about?" Sam asked curiously.

"Watch." Danny pulled out his cell phone as they crossed to the restaurant and hit one of the numbers on his speed dial. He held it to his ear for a second until Sam heard a faint greeting on the other end. Danny abruptly pulled the phone to his mouth, shielded both with his hands, and let out a blood-curdling, drawn-out scream into the receiver, which took the brunt of the sonic assault.

Abruptly, Tucker staggered into view from the corner they had just passed and leaned against a street lamp, holding a cell phone of his own out at arm's length and putting his free hand to his abused ear. Why that miserable little...!

Danny stopped his scream and glared over in Tucker's direction, gesturing for him to put the phone back to his ear. Danny spoke again into the cell phone instead of shouting across the way, "I'm already going to break both of your legs when I get back tonight. If you don't turn around and head back now, I'll also gut you with a wooden spoon. Got it?"

Tucker nodded visibly, still nursing his ear, as he mumbled something into the pone that Sam didn't catch and stalked off from whence he came.

"I know he's your friend," Sam stated flatly, "but for that, I'm going to have to hurt him."

"Get in line," Danny replied as he rolled his eyes. "That last kick you gave him actually left a bruise, you know."

"Good. I can give him a matching set." Sam raised a brow as Danny gave her a sly smile. "What?"

"You're hot when you're violent," he said bluntly.

Sam smiled back and playfully punched him in the shoulder before taking his hand again and walking into the restaurant.

Dinner passed much as the walk there did. The two swapped stories and laughed, played a little game of Favorites, and talked about their classes. Apparently, a part of Danny still hadn't let go of his childhood dream of being an astronaut, so he was currently a physics minor. If music didn't pan out, he could probably get a job at NASA in some way, shape, or form.

Sam herself minored in Poli-Sci. It was kind of embarrassing the way Danny looked at her with such admiration when she described all the work she had done for her agendas in her teenage years. "But it's not really a big deal," she dismissively added when she finished describing a protest she had attended boycotting cosmetics that used animal testing.

"Don't sell yourself short," Danny said assuringly as he took a sip of his coke. "Not everyone has the balls to stand up like that. Hell, I didn't until a couple years ago, and I've got superpowers."

Sam blushed and stirred at the remains of her food. Danny had recommended the briam, which was a Greek vegetable casserole. She had to admit, he had surprisingly good taste in greens for someone who still ate animal flesh. "Anyway, any particular movie you want to see?"

Danny shrugged. "You seen Sin City yet?"

Sam shook her head and finished the last of the casserole.

"Cool," Danny replied with a grin. "I wanted to check it out last weekend, but I had to study."

Danny insisted after they were done on getting an order of baklava for the road since they were walking to the theater as well. Sam came from a very wealthy family and had no shortage of cash, though she didn't like to make a big deal of that fact. She had tried to pay her own way through the evening, but Danny had been adorably insistent that he cover the check. If nothing else, Sam certainly gave him credit for one thing: he was stubborn in an endearing sort of way. Of course, being pretty mule-headed herself she could sympathize.

Once they were at the theater, Danny once again seemed hell-bent on covering expenses. "Really, you don't have to do this," Sam tried to convince him.

Danny just gave her that sly smile she had come to love in such a short amount of time. "Let me put it this way. I may not be your boyfriend yet, but that doesn't mean I can't dote on you a little."

Her face went bright red at that. "W-well..." Damn it, why did she have to stutter?

"For the sake of my male ego," Danny continued. "Come on, let me have my little 'Hey, I did something nice for a beautiful girl,' fantasy." And of course, he just had to punctuate that with soulful eyes and a boyish pout.

Damn. She was going to have to build up an immunity to that before he ended up draining his bank account on her. "Alright, you big sap," she conceded.

The movie was awesome. On that they both agreed. But Sam decided she'd have to see it again, since she blanked out at several parts as her hand became intertwined with Danny's and she leaned up against him. They didn't separate even at the end of the movie, and as they walked down the street back to the campus in the warm summer air, Sam could swear she had never felt so peaceful in her life.

The sky above was a velvety black and the stars winked and shone softly with the full moon. Sam felt Danny slip his hand from hers, only to snake his arm around her waist and gently pull her against him. She smiled and leaned her head against his shoulder, loving the feeling of warmth and safety she found in his touch. It's funny how just one person can change your views on life, especially in such a short amount of time. Sam didn't want to say it just yet, but she was beginning to become a believer in love at first sight. It seemed for all the arbitrary prosperity and misfortune, illusions of good and evil, and indifferent unfairness that made up life, there was still a hint of something magical behind that crushing veil of the mundane.

Much as she hated to admit it, this night had been really... romantic. As they reached Radcliffe Hall, Sam turned to Danny and wrapped her arms around his neck with a soft smile. "Only one last thing to make this date complete," she said in a singsong voice.

Danny blushed lightly and circled his arms around her waist with his own gentle smile. "I think I see where this is going."

Sam normally considered herself a patient person, but at this point she was tired of waiting. She stretched up and pulled Danny down into her, kissing him with all the longing and passion that had been building up since she had first seen him the other night. Every nerve in her body went into overdrive as he kissed her back, and she became hyper-aware of every minute sensation from the touch of their lips, to the feeling of his body pressed against hers, to the comfort of his strong arms enveloping her in a warm embrace.

Sam gently opened her mouth, her better judgment leaving her as she wanted to deepen the kiss. The opportunity was stolen however as a sudden rush of cold flooded her mouth and Danny pulled away with a gasp. Sam opened her eyes in time to see a pale blue mist passing out of both their mouths.

Danny's eyes went wide and his hold on her suddenly became very protective as he looked around apprehensively.

"Danny?" Sam blurted out in confusion. "What's going on?"

"Ever see The Sixth Sense?" Danny asked as his eyes darted across the lawns, sidewalks, and rooftops of the surrounding campus. "Whenever there's a ghost nearby, I can see my breath in the air like it's really cold out."

"You mean... there's a ghost here? Now?" Sam had always kept an open mind about the paranormal, but that didn't mean she felt particularly inclined to face it head-to-head.

"Stay cool," Danny reassured her. "I doubt it's anything I can't handle. Get inside once I transform and I'll draw it away from campus."

Before Sam had the chance to respond, a massive hulking humanoid creature landed in front of them after leaping off the roof of the dorms. It stood nearly eight feet tall and had massive claws like daggers. The legs were triple-jointed and thick as tree trunks. The head was like that of a wolf with a thick neck, triangular ears, and sharp teeth. Its whole body was covered in green-grey fur and the eyes glowed softly of their own light. A pale aura surrounded the creature, giving it an ethereal appearance.

At the sight of the monster, part of Sam wanted to scream. The rest of her had forgotten how. She was thrown for even more of a loop however when Danny visibly relaxed, even smiled! There was a flash of recognition in his eyes and his face showed surprise but also relief and happiness.

"Wulf!"

-x-

Author's Notes: Looks like I've got more time than I thought. One of my classes doesn't have a midterm to study for. Still, I should be sleeping as I type this. Oh well. Spring break at the end of the week.

Anyway, I'm hoping Public Enemies comes on again soon. I missed several parts of it, and most of them involved Wulf. I was immediately intrigued by the character, and just had to find some way to work him in. Though I'd like to see the episode again before I write anything further about him. Here's to hoping we'll see more of him in the near future as well. Unfortunately, it looks like he won't be back until next season... Which should be starting up within a month or so, since season one only has two more episodes to go and Butch Hartman has already revealed that the first episode of season 2 is titled Memory Blank. That and the fact that the show debuted April of last year. Glance back at chapter 1 to catch the little reference I snuck in there.

Anyway, just in case anyone took any umbrage toward Danny and Sam's conversation in this chapter about the debate class, let me just clear things up. I wasn't trying to insult anyone, I was just expressing my distaste for the growing trend of partisan politics in modern America and the tendency of people these days to latch onto asinine arguments fed to them by the media without any actual clue what they're talking about. I voted Kerry for president, but I also voted Specter for Senate. I did my research and made sure I made an informed decision on Election Day, so it really pisses me off when people just vote party line because they assume their party is automatically right all the time.

lab1152: I would hope so.

LaBOBuren: It was about the only analogy I could come up with. Which is weird, because I'm normally good at that. Life Lessons was about Skulker trying to decide whom to hunt down, Danny or Valerie. He ends up hunting them both in a contest reminiscent of "The Most Dangerous Game." If you haven't read that story, I highly recommend it. Anyway, long story short, they escape from Skulker and call an uneasy truce. Not one of the better episodes, but it did its job.

Divine-Red-Crayon: Sam probably liked that name because Lilith was (depending on who you ask) the first vampire and the one who taught Caine how to "live" with his curse. Yes, it's true, I'm a storehouse of useless information. Speaking of divine retribution, the second time I watched Life Lessons, I noticed that one of the empty flour sacks had its corners pinned up putting it in a pose like it was crucified. I'm hoping that was just my imagination. As for Painkiller... I actually regret using that title and I'll probably change it by next week. All of the chapter titles in the story are metal songs, and they all have something to do with the chapter. Painkiller is a Judas Priest song about a metallic hero who saves the world from Armageddon. It's one of my favorite Priest songs. I wish I could play guitar like that.

Dreamstress Itako: I find myself sympathizing with Danny's character in more ways than I care to admit. It's easier for me to write his dialog at least because of that. For one thing, I have a very dry sense of humor like the character does.

getfuzzyfan04: I don't watch VH1. They have no idea what the hell they're talking about. But seriously, an energetic stage presence is one of the hallmarks of many metal acts from Iron Maiden, to Judas Priest, to Manowar, to Children of Bodom. You go to a concert for a show, and damn it, these guys deliver.

Ocean-Poweress: I'm hoping I managed to keep the characterization consistent in this chapter. These are surprisingly complex characters for a Nickelodeon show.

Short 'n Simple: It would be great if stuff like that did happen. That would mean my Carpathian ancestry would give me unholy superpowers. Then I could really turn into a wolf, instead of just looking like I was about to in the morning before I got my shower.

robin and star fan: The next chapter of TLotS will definitely be up some time after I finish writing it. At this point, that's the best answer I can give you. Sorry.

Aurora Linada: That alone makes me feel good to know that I've appealed to other metal fans out there. Most of the Danny Phantom stuff up now that features music is pop, pop/punk, or similar material. I honestly can't picture Sam being a fan of Good Charlotte instead of The Cure. Especially since she talks about her disdain of all things mainstream and popular in the show itself. If anything, she'd probably be a huge supporter of the indie rock scene.

bbmylove: Good timing.