Chapter 25: Joining the Ranks

Danielle groaned in annoyance as her hand searched for the off button on her alarm clock. After many failed attempts, she finally sat up and opened her eyes enough to slam her palm on the snooze button, effectively silencing the annoying device. As the ringing in her ears began to die out and the light flooded into her room, Danielle sat still on the bed, legs hanging over the edge as her hands clutched her sheets. Her breathing was slow and somewhat even while her long black locks hung around her face, a dark veil hiding her tired features as her thoughts seemed to jumble up and push forward in an effort to be the fore thought that she would focus on first.

As much as she wanted to believe it, Danielle was beginning to question if what she had done last night was such a good idea. If she was being honest with herself, she was still unsure if last night really happened; it all seemed like some kind of strange, though comforting dream. Looking over to her nightstand, Danielle reached out and picked up the wristband she had been given after joining the Renegades. The band was a simple black stretch band. The thing that made it so special, however, was the patch that rested on the top of it.

The patch was a stitched crystal blue shield that held a grinning smiley face in the center. On the right eye was an eye patch with an "R" over it. The symbol was so simple in its design, and yet as Danielle ran her thumb over it, hit held so much comfort and power in it. Of course, she knew that anyone wearing this shield color held no real power in the group, but it still meant a lot to her. Danielle had seen many people wearing the shield on various clothing not only at her school, but when she had gone to the warehouse last night. The one thing that caught her eye was the variety of colors the shield came in, and couldn't help her curiosity which prompted her to ask Ray about it. He explained to her that the shields were colored to help distinguish rank amongst the group. Kids who joined between the ages of 6 and 10 were given yellow shields to show that they were the lowest ranking members, and that they were still in the process of learning their roles. It also helped because the kids were so much younger and needed help getting used to other kids who were in the same type of situation as them, making it easy to make friends.

The rank after that, which was the rank that Danielle had been given, was blue. Kids between the ages of 11 and 13 were given these to show that they were not only a member, but that they were responsible with helping out the younger ranking members. They were to act as older brothers and sisters that the younger kids could look up to, as well as keep them out of trouble whenever they could. Danielle briefly wondered if she shouldn't have been given the yellow shield since she was technically not old enough to wear the blue, but dismissed the thought since she was not even old enough to join, and felt it better not to have to explain her story to Ray, regardless of the hospitality given to her. The next color after that was purple which was reserved for anyone 13 and up. The ones in this ranks had much more freedom then the rest, being allowed to do things in the name of the Renegades without getting permission from the higher ups because they were all more than familiar with the rules and punishments that went along with being a higher rank. Danielle knew nothing about these punishments, and to be honest, she didn't want to know. She had heard from Ray that a few of the other blue shields were older than normal and that they had been lowered in rank again because of something they did.

After the purple shields, there were only two other ranks. The first was the rank of Captain, a rank that was so rare in the group, that most didn't stay long enough to gain that rank, were not qualified enough to handle the responsibility or were not favored enough by the leader. This became obvious when Danielle discovered that the only two Captains were Marina and Nicholas. Ray had explained to her that there were plenty of captain's positions available, but no one had stepped up with enough ambition or skills to be placed into the spot.

"Being a captain is a lot of responsibility, you see. I can't just trust anyone to be in control of a certain group or process here. Especially if they're going to just abuse the power. That's why I select very carefully," Ray explained to her.

Most of the time, a person would have to go out of their way to get the attention need to even be considered a candidate, but every so often, a child would be recommended for a spot. To Danielle's surprise, Ray told her that she was already a candidate for a captain's spot because Nicholas had told him much about her. Danielle was not only flattered, but she was also extremely confused and nervous because now she was going to have to be on her toes and show that she was worthy of such an honor that she wasn't even sure she wanted.

The final rank, to no one's surprise, was leader which was only obtained if you are handpicked by the former leader. The leader's shield was a bright red that signified power and leadership because it took a lot to run an organization like theirs. Ray, who was now 17, had been picked to run the group at the age of 13, making him the youngest leader in the history of the Renegades. Danielle could admire his leadership qualities, especially how welcome and at home he had made her feel, because these were the same qualities that Danny had first shown her when they had met.

A loud knocking on the door brought her out of her thoughts as well as startled Cujo, who had been sleeping in the corner on his small mattress.

"30 minutes, Danielle. If you're not downstairs in the next 20, you won't have time to eat breakfast, so get a move on," Jazz said from behind the closed door.

"I'm coming, I'm coming," Danielle said before letting out a sigh and placing her wristband under her pillow. Hopping off her bed, she bent down to pet her puppy and made her way out of the room and toward the bathroom to get ready.

As she climbed down the stairs, now fully dressed, Danielle could feel her stomach as it flipped repeated. She subconsciously pulled on the left sleeve of her shirt, checking that it was covering the band properly. Even though she knew for a fact that she had checked her arm numerous times in her room to be sure that it could not be seen, she could not get the feeling of uneasy to go away. To do her credit, it was understandable. Her family was full of ghost hunters, superheroes, a future doctor and the Mayor of town. If they knew that she was hanging around with the Renegades, that would be the end of any freedom she had left. If they knew she had joined them, that would be it for her; that would literally be the end of her because she knew that her parents would kill her and take the other half of her life before hunting her down in the Ghost Zone and locking away what was left of her. Just imagining what her mother and father would have to say sent a shiver down her spine. But there was literally nothing she could do about it other than cover it up because all members were required to wear at least one piece clothing with their shield on it.

"Might as well dig my own grave at that point," she mumbled as she walked in the kitchen. "Morning."

"Morning," the three teens said as they ate their breakfast. "Someone's in a good mood this morning," Sam said as she eyed Danielle who gave a nervous laugh.

"Yeah. I guess that being able to fly around last night really did the trick. Especially since I hadn't done it in a while. So what's for breakfast?"

"We, just had eggs. You, are getting a pop-tart," Jazz said, handing her the small packaged pastries. Danielle groaned as she took them, examining the package with distain. "Hey, I warned you that needed to get down here on time. Now, get going before you're late."

"Fine. I'm going."

"Do you want us to walk with you, Ellie?" Danny asked as she made her way for the door.

Danielle stopped dead in her tracks as a nervous sweat began to build up on her forehead. She had to think of a way around this as quickly as possible. Ray had told her that a few of her fellow rank members would meet her outside of the school in the morning so that they could help to establish that she was not to be harmed or messed with because she was under the protection of the Renegades, but there was no way in hell she could tell her parents that. If she told them that she was meeting with friends, they would question who, seeing as she no longer had any friends. She knew she couldn't say she was going to see Mrs. Otree; her parents where too close to her and would definitely find out she was lying which could only make things more complicated. Swallowing, Danielle put on her best confident smile, and turned back to face her family.

"No, that's ok, Daddy. I need to get used to walking to school by myself again, and the walk will be a good way to help me clear my head and to prepare myself for school. It'll help me set a calm mind, you know."

"Are you sure?" Sam asked.

"Yeah, I'm sure. Besides, I can get to school on time from here if I walk. You two are gonna be late if you don't fly there now." Danny looked down at his watch and almost swore as he and Sam grabbed their backpacks and transformed while Jazz simply shook her head and walked out the door to her car. As the two stood in front their daughter in their ghost forms, Danielle had to laugh at the slightly panicked look on her father's face.

"Are you sure you don't want us to drop you off at school?" Danny asked one last time which caused Danielle to roll her eyes.

"Yes, Dad. I am sure. I'll be fine. Besides, you two can't even touch me as long as you're in your ghost forms and I'm wearing this belt. Now, get going before you get a detention."

"Alright. We'll see you after school, Ellie," Sam said. With a wave, the two turned intangible and flew through the roof, leaving the preteen in the kitchen alone. Danielle let out a loud sigh of relief before wiping her forehead and heading out of the house herself.

As she walked down the sidewalk, Danielle couldn't help but feel a bit jealous of her parents. Even though she only had to wear the belt for a couple of hours, watching the both of them transform and go freely like that annoyed her that she couldn't. But she knew she couldn't dwell on that. When she said she was going to prepare herself for the day, she wasn't lying. Things were going to be changing for her soon, and she needed to be ready.

As she came upon the school, she ignored the sneers, insults and glares from people she passed, and began to look around for…whoever the hell she was supposed to be looking for.

"Great. Ray didn't even bother to tell me who I'm supposed to meet up with," she said as she looked around the school yard.

"Danielle!" Turning around, Danielle felt relieved as Nicholas made his way over to her with a group of kids that she knew were all blue ranked shields like her. "Glad to see you up and about on such a lovely day. How's everything going?"

"Ok, I guess. I nearly had a heart-attack trying to hide my shield from my parents," she said, sliding her sleeve up to reveal the wrist band.

"That's understandable. It can be a bit nerve-wrecking when you're first starting out, but it'll get easier, and one day, you probably won't even care if your parents know. But more about that later. I'd like to introduce you to a few of your fellow shield members," Nicholas said, turning to the first one, a girl with dark brown hair that held blue highlights in it. The girl had dark jeans with a black belt matching her kicks and a cut off mid-drift black shirt with a patch on each shoulder with her rank shield on it. "This is Amanda Bindley."

"Mandy, age 13, 8th grader, been in the group since I was 8. Nice to make your acquaintance, Dani," she said, holding out her hand to her. Danielle smiled and shook her hand.

"Nice to meet you too. I really like the highlights in your hair."

"Thanks. A lot of us older girls like to color our hair as we rank up. It drives the boys crazy too," she said with a wink.

"Yes, yes. Can we please move on before she gets too full of herself," A boy said, adjusting his square glasses on his face. His dark blonde hair fell into his eyes as he held his books in his opposite hand. Danielle took in the plain white shirt, digital watch, baggy sweatpants with shields over both pockets and black boots, and recognition hit her.

"Hey, I know you. You're Darren Wright. You're in my class, and you're really smart."

"You are correct, Danielle. I am Darren Wright, age 12, 7th grader, and you are also correct that I am smart. Smarter than almost everyone in class, you being one of the few people who I am of equal intelligence to in our class. Unfortunately, it was because of my knowledge and lack of physical strength that I used to get beaten up by the football team. After joining the Renegades, and learning a good amount about self-defense, I no longer have that problem."

"Wow, that sounds really-" Danielle paused as the third member, a girl with long blonde hair held back by a head band with her shield on it, fell over, laying out in the grass. Danielle looked at her in confusion. With her short sleeved pink shirt and plaid skirt, this girl didn't seem like the kind of girl who would just fall out on the ground, sound asleep. "Um…is she alright?"

"Oh sure. She's fine. She does that a lot, which is probably why she's such an air head," Mandy said. "She's Cassandra Justave, but everyone calls her Cassie. Age 11, 6th grade, resident airhead and bum, likes to fall asleep often, mostly in class."

"Ok, does everyone seriously have to do the name, grade and info thing?" Danielle said with a look of annoyance.

"Generally, no, but it's customary to do so when introducing yourself to new members, members who don't know you or members of higher rank who ask you," Darren said. "For example, Danielle Fenton, age 12, 7th grader, newest member of the Renegades, known for having other worldly powers."

"Yeah, I think everyone already knows about her powers, Darren," Nicholas said, shaking his head. "Anyway, just thought I'd introduce ya to a few of the others in your rank. You guys take good care of her, ya hear. Ray's putting a lot of faith and trust into you all to teach her the ropes and help her through this. Got it?"

"Of course we do, Nick. You of all people should know, based on-"

"Yeah, yeah, I get that you got it, Darren."

"Leave her to us, Nicky boy. By the end of the day, we'll have her strutting around like she owns the place," Mandy said with a smile as she hooked an arm around Danielle who could only smile awkwardly.

"Right-o, then. I've got work to do, so I'll see you lot at lunch. Danielle, if these knuckle heads give you too much of a hard time, you let me know, alright," Nicholas said. Danielle nodded her head, though it was a bit hard to with Mandy's arm still around her, but Nicholas under stood. With a quick tip of his hat, he turned on his heels and made his way into the school building.

"Well, now that that's been settled, let's get ready for school," Mandy said, finally releasing Danielle and turning to the still sleeping Cassie. "WAKE THE HELL UP ALREADY!" She screamed, startling Danielle as she gave Cassie a swift kick in the side. Darren rolled his eyes at her antics while Danielle looked at her as if she might be slightly crazy, though this wasn't the first time she's seen someone do that to their friend. Her mother was known for having very hard kick, especially with her boots on.

Cassie gave a soft groan as she turned over onto her side and pushed herself into a sitting position. Rubbing her tired eye, she turned to Mandy and gave her a small glare.

"Why do you always do that?" she asked tiredly.

"Why are you always such an airhead and fall asleep everywhere?" she retorted.

"Well…why are you so…stupid and…stupid."

"Exactly," she said, turning to Danielle. "Sorry about her, but you get used to it. Now you two can be formally introduced."

"Hi, Cassie. Nice to meet you, Dani," she said with a bright smile that Danielle couldn't help but return.

"Nice to meet you too," Danielle said just as the warning bell rang. "Oh…looks like we'd better head inside…" her hesitant look did not go unnoticed by Darren or Mandy, who only smirked before grabbing Danielle and Cassie's arms and began to start hauling them toward the building with Darren bringing up the rear.

"Well, then we'd better get a move on. Don't wanna be late," Mandy said.

"Wait, I'm not sure if I can do this!" Danielle said, now in a full on panic as she tried to pull away from the older girl. "I can't go through that again! I can't face what happened again, not after yesterday!"

"Danielle, it's alright," Darren said, placing a hand on her shoulder and pushing her forward. "Just stick close to us, and I promise, everything will be ok."

Danielle didn't get another chance to retort as she soon found herself in the hallway of her school. Walking at what she considered an agonizingly slow pace, Danielle averted her eyes as everyone was, once again, staring at her. Danielle kept her gaze to the floor as people began to whisper all around her.

"Why is the freak with some of the Renegades?" "One freak being taken in by other freaks." "She's wearing one of the shields! She's in their group!?" "No surprise that she would fall in with those guys. She obviously has problems."

Danielle was starting to wonder if joining the Renegades was a bad idea when she felt a hand her shoulder give a light squeeze. She didn't have to look back to know that it was Darren, trying to help reassure her. She was, however, surprised when she felt someone grab her free hand. Turning her head slightly, she was met with a smile, though it was tired, from Cassie.

"Danielle," Mandy said, still facing forward. "Hold your head up. Renegades always hold their heads up because we don't let what other people say get to us. You have to show people that you are not to be messed with. Show them your confidence. Especially if you're a blue shield; set an example for the yellow shields."

Danielle was speechless. Mandy was right, though. She couldn't cower like a little girl forever. If she ever wanted to get back to normal and to have everything go back to the way it was, to her having the confidence and power she had felt before, she needed to hold her head up for everyone to see. Swallowing down her nervousness, Danielle finally raised her head and tried to put a confident smile on her face, though it didn't last long.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't the crappy clone, come with a bunch of freaks of her own," Tootie said as she, Chester and AJ stood in front of the group of blue shields.

"Can't say that I'm too surprised that they would want to taken in a broke little freak like you, Fenton," AJ said with a sneer.

"Of course not. Freaks of a feather flock together," Chester said, elating a laugh from the other two. Danielle stood there, frozen in place, as she tried to find a rational thing to say or do, but found herself unable to come up with anything. The same could not be said for the others as Darren placed his books on the floor and adjusted his glasses, Cassie cracked her slightly stiff neck and Mandy placed a hand on her hip.

"You know, if you were smart, which you obviously aren't, you'd back off and leave her alone," Mandy said in a low tone.

"And what'll you do if we don't, Bindley?" Chester said with a smirk as he got in her face, his breath assaulting her nose and causing her to scrunch it up in disgust.

"This," she said before punching him in the stomach and grabbing his head where she brought it down to connect it to her knee. Chester stumbled backwards as a large red mark appeared on his forehead where she had hit him, and soon lost his balance. AJ was stunned that his friend had been beaten so easily, and had little time to notice when he feet had been swept out from under him. Landing on the ground with a thud, AJ felt as all his air left his body and his lungs paused before resuming their normal flow again. Darren stood over him, grinning down at the boy with a look that some might call sadistic, but made no move to hit him again, only keeping the boy frozen in place on the floor. Tootie was shocked as her mouth hung open, and turned to run as Mandy's gaze turned to her. However, she didn't get far as she soon found herself tripping as well, courtesy of Cassie whose foot was still out. Tootie groaned as she was yanked up off the floor by her Mandy who had one hand on her arm, twisting it behind her back, and the other on one of her pigtails, forcing her to look at Danielle who was still stunned. "Listen and listen good, you pathetic trash. She is with us, now. She is one of us, now. That means if you don't want to get your asses kicked on a daily basis, you're going to lay off of her, because if I have to come back here because of you, I promise that next time, there will be blood. Got that?" Mandy said in a low, intimidating voice that made Tootie shake in fear as she tried to nod her head. Looking up at Danielle, Mandy smiled. "Got anything you wanna say to her, Dani?"

Danielle blinked as she realized that these people, her feel members, had just beaten up the A-Listers, just for her. And based on the smiles on their faces, they were not only happy to do it, they held no fear of repercussions for their actions. No fear at all. Just like she used to feel. Just like she wanted to feel again. Walking up to Tootie, Danielle raised a shaky had, and slapped Tootie across the face, just like she had done to her the day before.

"That was for hitting me yesterday, you bitch!" She said, anger flaring a little at the pleasure of seeing Tootie now cowering before her. Raising her hand again, Danielle brought the back of her hand across her other cheek. "And that was for all the torment you and your stupid friends put me through! All the hell that you've been giving me ends here! Never again!"

Tootie nodded her head vigorously as tears fell from behind her glasses while Mandy had another sadistic smile on her face at Danielle's actions. Licking her tongue against Tootie's ear, causing the girl to nearly scream in disgust, Mandy turned her around and gave her a good shove, causing the girl to trip over Chester who was just coming to while AJ tried to help him up.

"Now scram, all of you. I don't wanna see or hear anything out of you for the rest of the day," Mandy said. The three populars got up and ran away from them as quickly as they could. Darren adjusted his glasses once more before picking up his books while Cassie leaned against a locker and let out a loud yawn. Turning to her newest rank mate, Mandy smiled, proud of her progress already. "So, Dani, how does it feel to have power again? How does it feel to get back at them?"

"You know, my Dad always used to tell me that getting revenge was never a good thing, especially when you have powers like ours, and I gotta say, he was wrong," she said with a smile as she slowly stopped panting. "The rush I felt, the feeling I got from getting back at her and the look in her eyes…it made me feel so much better! It feels good to be able to feel like my old self again. Thanks guys."

"It's no problem. You're one of us now, and Renegades don't take crap from anyone. We get back at those who have wronged us, and now, everyone will know that you're under our wing now."

Danielle smiled and started to walk with her new friends down the hall, now completely oblivious to the looks of fear and disbelief on everyone's faces. As she passed one girl, a young blonde, the girl could only gape at the young Phantom, denial in her mind that the once sweet girl was now really part of this gang. Lin shook her head, bringing her out of her trances, but kept her eyes on her former best friend's back as she walked down the hall and away from her.

"Why, Danielle? Why?" she asked quietly, praying that she hadn't just led the girl down a road she couldn't turn back from.