Danny floated invisibly through the school and before he knew it he was in front of Dumbledore's office. He nervously knocked on the door, hoping that Dumbledore was in the school that day. He wanted to know how to play this. Did he keep it quiet and only announce it to the ghosts? Did he shout it from the rooftops and command respect? He felt numb. While he waited for permission to enter, his mild shock was still there. He hadn't placed the crown on his head again. It hung limply from his hand. He heard the call to enter. He turned himself visible and opened the door to enter. Dumbledore looked up and smiled before he actually saw Danny's dishevelled appearance.
"Danny? Are you alright?" he asked worriedly. Danny blinked and nodded numbly.
"Ye-yeah. Just… teleported from the Ghost Zone. First time I tried it. Got… got really sick," Danny explained. Dumbledore frowned in concern.
"Is that what you came to tell me?" Dumbledore inquired softly. Danny shook his head and lifted the crown into view.
"Just got coronated," Danny informed the wizard. Dumbledore blinked in shock and got to his feet.
"Congratulations Danny," Dumbledore offered with a smile. Danny nodded.
"Thanks. But… I don't really know where to go from here," Danny admitted. Dumbledore raised a silver eyebrow.
"When you say "just got coronated", how "just" is that?" Dumbledore wondered.
"Um, less than an hour I think. I teleported straight here and got sick. So er however long it took for me to recover," Danny answered uncertainly. Dumbledore crossed the room and guided Danny to a seat.
"It hasn't sunken in yet, has it?" Dumbledore realised. Danny numbly shook his head.
Dumbledore waved his wand and conjured a pot of calming tea. He then called for one of the house elves and told them to clean Danny's room for him. Danny reverently placed the crown on desk. Dumbledore pressed a mug of hot tea into the teen's hand. Danny numbly sipped the beverage. Dumbledore sat in his own seat with a mug for himself.
"It is a big change for you I'm sure," Dumbledore commented. Danny nodded.
"Well. Now you can order Voldemort's ghost army to disperse. But I understand that you need to find them first. Do you want your new status to be widely known?" Dumbledore mused. Danny shrugged.
"I don't really know how else to tell the ghosts that I'm king now. We need to get word to the Death Eaters and Voldemort. Could… could Severus help?" Danny muttered after another sip of calming tea. Dumbledore hummed softly.
"He could. But I think that this is something you need to announce Danny. I suppose you need to understand how you want to rule and start as you mean to go on. So… do you know yet?" Dumbledore replied.
Danny gently swirled the tea in his mug and shrugged.
"I-I guess I want to be fair to all the ghosts. I don't want to be like Pariah Dark. Um, I don't really know how to do that though," Danny answered quietly. Dumbledore nodded in understanding.
"I suppose your first move should be establishing a justice system. Then you can figure out what you want to be illegal and what you will allow," Dumbledore suggested.
"There's already a legal system. But I guess I could ask Walker for a copy so I can go through all the rules," Danny mumbled. Dumbledore nodded encouragingly.
"And I guess I could ask my ghost friends for ideas. You know, get an idea of what the little people actually want," Danny added, slowly wrapping his mind around his new station.
"If you need any advice, my office is always open to you. And I'm sure Remus and Severus will be there for you when I'm gone," Dumbledore offered kindly. Danny gave the wizard a small smile.
"Thanks Professor. I'll-I'll keep that in mind," Danny muttered. He hated when Dumbledore said things like that. It threw the inevitable in his face that Dumbledore would be dead soon.
"Do you want the students to know? If there's anyone in particular you don't want to know let me know," Dumbledore inquired. Danny shrugged.
"I suppose I could start by letting the castle ghosts know the news. And Wulf can keep searching for Voldemort's ghosts," Danny replied. Dumbledore nodded in agreement.
"Until I've told Voldemort's ghosts, I think it would be best that no one else knows. If word gets to Voldemort before we're ready, it might put people in danger, especially my family," Danny decided.
"Very good. I'll hold off informing the order for now. Do what you must," Dumbledore concluded.
Danny nodded and smiled. He put his now empty mug on the desk beside the crown.
"Thanks Professor. The tea really helped," Danny remarked.
"I know Americans have a reputation for preferring coffee, but I, myself, enjoy a good brew, especially when things get stressful," Dumbledore commented with a smile. Danny smirked. He turned to the crown and hummed in thought. If he was going to keep it quiet about him being Ghost King, then he'd need to keep the crown hidden. Walker's words echoed in his mind. He had to know where the crown was. If he didn't know where it was, then he lost the crown and so the throne.
"Professor, is there anywhere in the castle where I can keep the crown and it won't be in danger of being moved?" Danny asked.
"I'm willing to cast a spell on a location to protect the crown. There are dungeons that are no longer in use. And we have plenty of classrooms and offices not in use that you could utilise," Dumbledore offered.
"I think a dungeon would be best. The school might need a classroom in the future and if you cast a spell, it might stop the classroom being used ever again," Danny reasoned. Dumbledore nodded in agreement.
"A dungeon it is. A small, practically forgotten dungeon, yes?" Dumbledore confirmed. Danny nodded. Danny and Dumbledore left the office and journeyed to the dungeons to find a suitable dungeon. With a few well-crafted spells, Danny felt satisfied that the crown was safe. He put the crown into a dark, easily missed gap in the dungeon.
The next day Danny returned to his previous duties but that night he gathered as many ghosts as he could and informed them of his new role and instructed them to keep his rule secret for now. As king, the ghosts were bound to obey him. Going against his word was treason. Danny made sure to check on his crown every day to ensure its safety. The next weekend, Danny teleported to Amity Park and took a trip into the Ghost Zone to fetch a rule book from Walker. The ghost gave the halfa one with a frown. Then Danny, much to Vlad's surprise, visited the mayor having grown fond of the visits. They were one of the very few things Danny could rely on to help him unwind and relax. He was under a lot stress from following Malfoy, school work with Miss Fisher, searching for ghosts all while keeping his cover at Hogwarts and not tipping off Harry and others that knew he was in the order to what he was actually doing in the school. Vlad admitted that he had feared that since Danny got what he wanted, the teen wouldn't bother visiting Vlad anymore.
And the rule of Phantom begins. Sorry, I had to say it.
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Until the next chapter.
