Disclaimer: Yes. You've heard it a million times before, and guess what?You're going to hear it again. . . I do not own Danny Phantom.Oh, and I also don't own MasterCard or Visa. . .Well, THAT disclaimer was new!

Chapter Two

Power Struggle

It was a warm spring day in Amity Park. March had bought cool gusts of wind to ruffle the various flowers that poked their way out of the green grass. Kids retreated to the outdoors more than ever, leaving the dusty indoors to settle with the wood. It was no surprise that during lunch hour everyone was sitting outside, on the worn wooden benches that cluttered the school's courtyard. Sam and Tucker were sitting across from each other, playing with their food absently. They had a case of spring fever that even Sam couldn't deny. Taylor and Danny however were busy scarffing down their salads. They hadn't had time to eat dinner last night; Skulker had paid them a nice visit.

Spring break was looming closer and closer, making the students of Casper High feel even more anxious than before. All around them students with brown bagged lunches sat idly, dreams of football, hotdogs, and weekends at the lake dancing in their eyes. Taylor personally couldn't wait. Danny invited her, Sam, and Tucker on a weeklong camping trip. Hiking along wood cluttered trails, swimming in deep blue lakes, and climbing the tallest trees was great, but what made the said trip even more exciting was that there were to be no parents around. After a few months of clumsy driving, Danny had mastered the art of driving a car. It was a beat up Toyota, but something about the smell of the grass on the worn tires just screamed freedom.

Taylor felt the cool green of the leafy salad in her mouth. She loved mint, parsley, and green bell peppers the most. To her they tasted like spring. To top her ingenious salad off, she made a lemon mint dressing. On the salad were tender pieces of chicken she'd marinated in lemon and spices, and it tasted delicious. Even Danny wouldn't be able to deny that it was superb, which was why she packed him one for lunch.

She looked to Danny, watching as his large blue eyes curiously took in his salad. A small smile tugged at her lips, and she leaned on her hand, watching as his reddened lips smacked together. He was enjoying his food, and it was actually healthy food. She just had to rub this in his face.

"I'm glad to see you're finally eating healthier Danny." Taylor noted casually at her friend who was pouring more of her dressing onto his salad. He glanced back up at her and swallowed his food.

"Ha ha Taylor . . . very funny." He smirked at her and wiped off his mouth.

"You have to admit that you have more energy, at least." she tried to bargain. Trying to get her friends to see the light side of the food pyramid had been difficult, but so far she was gaining small victories every day. She wanted to believe it was because of her speeches about whole grains, but somehow she knew it was because they didn't want to hear her nag them anymore.

"I can admit that." Danny was going to be reasonable today.

"And speaking of which . . . I think we're going to need it." he added, his eyes drifting to a place above Taylor's head.

Dash was lumbering toward them with an evil smirk on his face. The sun was shining on his freshly ironed letterman's jacket, something he'd earned from a mixture of protein shakes and hardcore cheating. She could practically smell his sweat, mixed in with a minty scent, most likely some overrated cologne. There was something unsettling about his presence, even more so than usual. Something was wrong, and Taylor knew it immediately. She could feel the negative energy radiating off him. It might just be a new ghost power, but she couldn't worry about that now.

"Hey look! It's Fentoad and the nerd squad!" he spat in his nasal voice, stopping to stand right behind Taylor, who turned around to glare at him. Dash looked down at her and he slowly frowned. He had very mixed feelings about the new girl, Taylor Hecter. For one thing, she was very pretty. She wasn't as stunning as Paulina; Taylor being so thin took something away from her beauty, but she was still in the popular range, which was why he couldn't understand her very obvious affection for Fentoad and the nerds. The other reason was that like an unskilled animal, Dash had instincts. He could sense a threat a mile away, and Taylor sent the alarm ringing in his head. She looked evil now, and her glare made him shiver inwardly.

"Don't look at me ugly!" he spat at her. She remained unfazed, and the cold look never left her eyes. Beside her the two nerds, Sam and Tucker, looked up with irritation.

"What do you want Dash?" Danny said defensively, crossing his arms and scowling. He wasn't in the mood for Dash's crap, especially being so tired and hungry.

"Me and the guys were thinking about practicing for the big game tonight! And we need a tackle dummy." he trailed off suggestively, looking at Danny like a solid object.

Like Taylor, Fentoad was confusing. He fought back with him all the time, even though his biceps were about the width of Dash's own wrist. Dash never got when Danny would help him, especially after he would be so nasty. There could only be one reason why someone would behave like Fenton, and that was craziness. Dash hated crazy people.

"Then go to the gym geniuses." Sam perked up, coming out of her stupor.

"No, we want to practice out here, and I think we've found the perfect dummy!"

"You can say that again. . "Taylor muttered darkly, her eyes turning red a brief moment. An evil smirk slowly formed on her face as she stood up. Some kids around them had taken notice and formed a small circle around the group. Taylor disappeared into the crowd, and Danny looked after her helplessly. Some of the football players came up behind Dash, fists pounding into their beefy hands.

"And Fentoad bites the dust." Dash squeaked nasally, slowly moving toward Danny. Danny gritted his teeth and looked toward a nervous Sam and Tucker.

This was not good.

Just moments of now he would feel horrible pain. . . no doubt a bloody nose. Danny wouldn't give in. He kept his eyes on Dash's much larger body with determination. His shadow loomed closer and closer, and his beefy face was scrunched up into a wide, evil grin.

Then something happened, something strange. Dash stiffened for a minute, his body going rigid. He twisted and turned and gagged, spitting and spatting, seeming to choke. Then he hit the floor, hands pounding on the grass as though he was fighting. All of the sudden he was still. And when he looked up his eyes had turned a bright red. He grinned sinisterly, and looked back at his football friends.

"No, Fenton isn't a good target today! I think I'll tackle you guys instead!" came Taylor's echoing voice from out of Dash. Danny watched, stunned as Dash ran toward his friends. He tackled one, causing them all to fall one by one like dominoes. Her evil echoing laughter trailed out of Dash's body as the whole school watched the jocks fall into a perfectly neat pile. Then, Dash fell back, eyes turning back to their normal shade.

"Ugh. . ." he groaned tiredly, sitting up. What faced him were several angry football players.

"What happened?" he choked out. They responded by slowly getting up, each one of them as mad as the next. Everyone in the courtyard began to laugh, waves of it floating all around them as Dash pulled on his hair, scared. Danny felt a smile spread across his face, and he heard an amused whisper against his ear.

"I wonder how well Dash can fight?" came Taylor's smooth voice. Danny turned around to see her standing behind him, hair messy, dark circles beneath her eyes as she smiled sinisterly. Danny's smile faded as he noticed how sick and suddenly demented she looked.

"Taylor. .. are you okay?"

She looked over at him, a smile gracing her lips. "I am now."

She pulled on Danny's hand, beckoning Sam and Tucker to follow.

"Let's get out of here. .. let the idiots fight among themselves." she muttered.

Once they were out of earshot, Sam casted an enraged look at Taylor. "What is wrong with you? They could have seen something!"

Tucker and Danny however were still laughing.

"Oh man, that was the best." Tucker stated with an approving nod to Taylor. She looked very pleased, and was starting to regain some of her color.

Danny grinned down at her and wrapped his arm around her lovingly. "You never cease to amaze me, you know that?"

Taylor turned a slight shade of red. "I couldn't let anyone bother my Danny now could I?"

Sam rolled her eyes at her two friends. "Well the point is, you can't do that anymore."

"Why not?" she asked with a pout. "It isn't like anyone will discover it's me." she added, her eyes glowing red for a brief moment before settling back to their brown shade.

"It doesn't matter. .. it just feels . . . wrong." Sam explained with a shiver. Suddenly the air around them was cold.

"If you only knew what it felt like, then you could understand." Taylor gave same one of her signature looks of evil, then turned back to Danny.

Sam looked at Taylor with disease. She knew there was something dark inside of her, and it was times like these where it would surface. As she watched her hair blow in the wind, she wondered how good it was that she had ghost powers. It wasn't that she didn't like Taylor, it was the very opposite. She was like a sister to her, and to see her sister use her powers over people for fun wasn't very good all. Even if Dash was a jerk, it was just plain wrong, and she wanted to get that across.

"Anyway, we'd better get back to class." Danny said, looking back toward the school. The crowd had dispersed, leaving a few nurses to tend to a very beaten up Dash.

"Wow. . he looks bad." Taylor said in a venomous voice. She laughed slowly and cruelly, her voice trailing toward Dash like a somber music. Dash groaned and turned to her slowly. Her eyes flashed red at him and she let out a breathy hiss, her ghostly fangs gleaming in the light for a few moments. His eyes widened fearfully, and he moaned in defeat, looking the other way and snapping his eyes shut. Danny gave Taylor yet another uneasy look.

"We'd better get inside." He placed his hands on her shoulders and moved her toward the door. The kids walked in, feeling as the cool air conditioned air of Casper High hit them head on.

"Taylor can I talk to you?" Danny asked a bit nervously. Taylor looked up at him, the look in her eyes warm again, he was relieved to see. "Yes Danny?" Danny turned to Sam and Tucker.

"I'll see you guys in Bio. .. " They nodded understandingly and took off together down the hall. Danny watched them disappear, and looked down at Taylor.

"Sam is right to a degree . . . it isn't good to use your powers like that. . . "he said gently. Taylor's face suddenly turned sour, and Danny cringed."Are you going to lecture me too?"

"No. .. but you have to try to listen, please, for me. .?" he pleaded with her, trying to reason. Taylor took one look into his bright blue eyes and fell silent. "Fine."

"We're heroes in this town . . . and heroes have to do the right thing." Taylor bit her bottom lip, trying to take in what he was saying. Some part of her was, but the other part was still feeling the rush. Having control over someone was indescribable. . empowering, brilliant. She knew it was wrong, but if felt so damn good.

"Sure, what you did to Dash was funny. . ." Danny smirked lightly, "But in all honesty, it isn't always the best thing to do. Trust me, I know." He turned serious again and looked down solemnly.

"Will you promise me you'll be good?"

Taylor closed her eyes gently and chuckled. Danny felt himself shiver. "I promise I'll behave myself."

Somehow, he knew that she was struggling with herself. He gazed down at her satisfied brown eyes and felt a hint of fear. He knew that she knew what it was like to use her powers the wrong way, and he hoped that she wouldn't take it to heart. . .

They both began to walk down the hall, until Taylor's ghostly red breath escaped her lips. She looked up to Danny, who obviously had the same reaction.

"Ghost." Taylor breathed, looking around cautiously. It was eerily silent now, the kid having went to class upon the bell. Danny looked around, his eyes focusing on any disturbance. It was then they saw it, in the shadows of the hall, a small boy with a large hat on, riding a skull like horse. He cackled evilly then emerged from the shadows.

"Youngblood!" Danny cried out.

"Youngwho?" Taylor asked with a raised eyebrow. She was answered when a sharp black rope caught her foot, knocking her down and dragging her into the shadows. .

Fear as she never knew it before took hold of her and began to strangle. Taylor was afraid, and she knew that her next move could determine if she lived or died. Someone was screaming, a very shrill and loud shriek. It took Taylor a moment to realize that the scream belonged to her, and that she was whizzing down the hallway at 50 miles an hour. She closed her eyes and clawed at the ground, trying to stop herself, but it was no use.

Danny had already slammed into action, throwing his two thin arms up and screaming," GOING GHOST!" Two bright beams of light washed over him, turning into the white haired, neon green eyed Danny Phantom.

And then it hit her.

What am I doing? I have ghost powers too!

Youngblood let out another shrill cry as Taylor's thin body slammed into the wall. Being a super hero in a sense, she had super strength. It was a good thing she did. If not, all of her bones surely would've broken on contact. Taylor gritted her teeth and got up, her body wobbling for a moment before settling. Youngblood looked pleased, and his skull-like horse cackled with amusement.

"You're out of luck kid!" Taylor snarled, her brown eyes narrowed with hatred. Without further hesitation, she sprang into the air acrobatically and threw her arms up. Two black rings sped over her body, turning her into her newly found alter ego Taylor Specter.

Taylor couldn't remember what happened the night she got her powers. All she could remember was horrible pain, and neon, the color of Danny's eyes. But she figured that she shouldn't let Vlad win. . .and now she should use his deadly mistake against him. And she had done just that, training for hours a day with Danny. She still wasn't at her peak, but she was moderately proficient.

She aimed her catlike eyes at the now completely startled Youngblood. His ghostly eyes took her in. She looked pretty tall to him all of the sudden in her black jumpsuit. The only thing that broke up the black was white boots, gloves, a belt, and the crafty letter "T" she had plastered on her abdomen. Her hair was flaming white as if on fire, and her eyes had turned neon green, but he noticed that they would flicker to red quite often.

She smiled evilly at him, her fangs showing in the dim light of the hallway. Danny floated up behind her protectively, and glared.

"What do you want Youngblood? A cookie?" Danny said as though talking to an annoying little brother. To Danny's surprise, Youngblood bursted out laughing. Taylor became immediately irritated.

"What's so funny brat?" she spat, the temptation to destroy him beginning to drive her to be cruel. Youngblood wiped a few tears from his eyes before pointing tauntingly.

"I knew Danny Phantom had a girlfriend! Oh this is just too good!"

His horse looked up at him and showed his yellowing teeth. "Indeed! It is rather amusing!"

The young ghost laughed again and pointed at Danny. "Phantom's gotta girlfriend! Phantom's gotta girlfriend! Phantom's gotta girlfriend!"

Danny scowled, his mouth becoming a thin line. He clenched his fists, trying not to explode. Taylor however moved forward bravely, her eyes crimson now.

"Yes, he does have a girlfriend, and she happens to be very very dangerous!" She yelled menacingly. Then she lifted her hand almost leisurely, and large pink rays whizzed nosily out of her hand. The laughter silenced as he tried to duck, but it was too late by then. When the ectoplasmic fog settled, Youngblood sat there with a large hole in his hat.

"What the?" Youngblood blinked a few times, holding onto his hat before looking at Taylor with hatred.

"You're going to pay for that!" he threatened.

"Sorry! Taylor doesn't do Visa, MasterCard, or YOU!"

"Nice one!' Danny commented with a sly smirk to her.

"Thanks Danny!"

"Now let's kick some serious YoungBUTT!" Danny cried, and the two flew into action.

Youngblood's eyes widened and he turned the other way, riding his horse with speed through the school. Seas of lockers filed past the two halfas as they chased down their annoying prey, coming closer and closer to pouncing. Taylor looked to Danny with a fang filled smile before shooting another pink ray. Youngblood ducked successfully this time, and instead it hit the ceiling. Large crumbles of ceiling began to fall, and Taylor was still a bit confused on how to become intangible. Danny took her by the arm and they both turned to air.

"Thanks!" she gasped, seeing the ventilation fall through her body. They became solid once again, and Danny shot another ray. It hit Youngblood this time, and he went flying off his horse onto the ground. He hit the wall, where he was officially cornered.

"Well well well! It looks like the tables are turned now!" Taylor said as they flew down to stand in front of him. Youngblood looked alarmed, until her realized something with an evil smile.

". .. Somehow I don't think this is good." she whispered to Danny who nodded unwillingly.

And indeed it wasn't. Youngblood whistled, and before Taylor knew it she was hit in the back head on by the Skull horse. Danny had gone intangible, but Taylor still wasn't used to it.

"GAH!" she hit the wall, her face slamming into it head on. "Ow. . ." she muttered, her eyes watering painfully.

She didn't understand how ghosts could feel pain. Apparently Danny did. "Ouch!" he shouted sympathetically. He glared, turning to Youngblood with hatred.

"Don't hit my girlfriend!"

He wasn't going to play anymore. It was time for him to pay. Danny closed his eyes, separeted his legs, got into a stance and opened his mouth. What came out was no ordinary scream. His devastating ghostly wail pulsed out of his mouth with brilliant green waves. The noise was low, and sorrowful. Screaming, the young ghost was hit hit on, and so was the skull-horse, who didn't look so smug now.

"LET'S GET OUT OF HERE!" he shouted to his fallen comrade, who whinned in understanding. The two faded into the wall before blurring out of site.

Danny stopped, out of breathe. He collapsed on the hard floor, and turned back into Danny Fenton again, only a very tired looking one. "Ugh. . ." he breathed heavily as he wobbled to his feet. Taylor, her eye blacked, ran over to him, apparently she had turned back into Hecter when he used his. . . greatest defense.

"Danny. . ." she gasped rubbing her side.

"That. . . that was amazing!"

Danny had told her about that special power, and she had heard about it so many times. Never did she think that it could be so powerful. She had asked Danny to show her so many times, but he always said that he wouldn't; he used it in emergencies. . .or when he was really "pissed off. "Now was one of those times apparently, and Taylor was too amazed to say much of anything.

Then it hit the both of them head on as Taylor crawled to her knees beside Danny.

. . .Danny had wrecked the C hallway.

The dingy lockers of Casper High hung off their hinges, the lights were flickering chaotically, smoke issued out of the heater that was against the baren wall. The floor tiles had been destroyed, a few of them implanted into the wall.

"Oh shit. Shit shit shit." Taylor grumbled, looking around at the destroyed area.

They would be dead for this, and not just half dead. It was only a matter of time before someone caught onto this. . . the worst case being Lancer.

Lancer and Taylor had become sworn enemies since the first day Taylor made him look like an idiot in front of the class. Like the dramatic story lover he was, he held grudges, and his for Taylor ran deep. It also didn't help that she was best friends with Danny. She distracted him, just when he was starting to get on track with his school-work. Taylor hated him, and seeing him at a time like this wouldn't be very good.

"Language Miss Hecter. . ." came the voice of Lancer, his old eyes wide with anger.

Taylor and Danny looked to their middle aged teacher with two gasps of fear. There he stood, in front of them, eyes bloodshot, his face red. He looked angrier than he had ever been before. Taylor gulped, watching as kids started to form around them, looking at the area with amazement. Their voices drifted into Taylor's petrified ears.

"What happened?"

"I dunno. . .dude.. look at the wall!"

"Oh man!"

From the pack came Sam and Tucker, their eyes wide as they looked at the damage. Taylor looked to them fearfully, trying to explain with a few quivers of her lips. Sam placed a hand over her mouth and shook her head.

"My office Hecter. .. Fenton. ..now!" came the strangled voice of Lancer who was pulling on his ears insanely.

Danny stumbled to his feet, Taylor holding onto him for support.

"But we. ." Danny tried to explain.

"Now Fenton!" Lancer wasn't going to hear it.

Taylor looked to Danny, who was still shaking with weakness from his ghostly wail. She gently took his hand in hers, feeling the warmth of his fingers. It comforted her in a sense. Danny looked to her with a soft, nervous smile. Then they looked ahead, dissapearing down the crowded hallway to their impeding doom.