...More short chapters.

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In contrast, the morning seemed almost too bright at Camp Skull and Crossbones. Jake slept soundly, gratefully taking this opportunity to recover from the long trip yesterday. Sadly, this was not to be.

"Yo! Night creature, wake up!" D.J. called, tossing a pillow at Jake's head.

The so-called "night creature" sat up exhaustedly and rubbed his head. Dazedly, he answered, "Wha'?"

"Wake-up call was five minutes ago," Eric reported amusedly, leaning against the wall by the door.

"Someone's a heavy sleeper," D.J. snickered. "Better hurry up or you'll be late."

Jake watched as his sister's best friends exited the cabin. That's when he realized where he was, why, and what would happen to him if he didn't get up right now.

"Uh-oh."

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Jake was still tugging at the edges of his shirt when he arrived at the group meeting.

"Ah, and here's comes our newest camper," a wiry-muscled female councilor said. "Nice of you to join us, Fenton."

The mention of his last name did not go unnoticed.

"Wait, Fenton? Like, the Fentons?" a girl asked curiously.

"Uh…no?" Jake replied hesitantly.

That's when D.J. decided that there was no way Jake was going to be getting a peaceful stay in anonymity.

"Aw, don't be shy!" the tanned boy exclaimed, wrapping an arm around Jake's shoulders like they were good friends. "Besides, lying isn't nice."

Jake felt an eye-twitch coming on, but held it back. "Shut up, D.J. Just because you're my sister's friend does not mean I won't get revenge for this."

D.J. chuckled, slapping the shorter male hard across the back jokingly. "Whatever you say, Jake!"

Wincing, the marked man turned to the crowd. A few of the girls were whispering and squealing.

"Alright, campers!" the female counselor, Mrs. Brady, announced. Thankfully, this forced the whispering teens to be quiet. "Group up! It's mountain hiking time!"

"Hey, Chris," Jess greeted, backed by the two other girls from the previous night. "Can we talk to you?"

"Sure," Chris answered cluelessly. She was dragged out of Jake's sight, who was trying to find her.

"Ten minutes, huh?" Jess scolded instantly. "We had to sneak out and look for you!"

"Yeah, and we found you. Seriously, secret boyfriend much?" the girl on the right interrogated in her heavy Valley Girl tone. Normally, she would have flipped her magazine model-like blonde hair back over her shoulders, which were bare due to the fashionable pink tank-top she wore. The fact that she didn't signaled trouble.

"Shut up, Lisa," Chris muttered, ducking her head a little, avoiding their gazes. "He's just a friend from home."

"A friend from home who came all the way out here to see you?" the tanned girl with spiky black hair cut to her chin asked. Her green-blue eyes bore into Chris like lasers.

"I agree with Layla," Jess said to top it all off. "And not only do you have a secret boyfriend, but secret boyfriend is Jake Fenton."

"Darn, you're lucky," Lisa said, a dreamy look on her face.

Chris sighed for the umpteenth time that day. "He's not my-"

"Lisa's just jealous," Jess commented off-handedly. "Still, how did you meet him in the first place?"

"We just ran into each other," Chris replied. Thinking about it, she added, "Literally."

"And now you're---what?---best friends or something?" Layla inquired, gaze not any softer.

Chris's shoulders sunk in exasperation. "I don't know. Maybe. Why can't you guys just let it go?"

"'Cause he's hot, duh," Lisa replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"It's an injustice that you're not already going out," Jess agreed.

"I told you, he's into someone else," Chris snapped, getting fed up.

"And what's so great about her?"

This was going to kill her self-confidence to say, but Chris responded, "She's strong, smart, independent, and they've know each other since they were born."

"So you're going to give up just like that?" Jess scolded.

"Guys, he's a person, not a thing. Besides, for all I know, this is just a phase. He was the first guy I met coming to Amity Park and he helped me a few times. Maybe that's all it is."

"Fine," Jess gave in, "but when you're ready to stop living in denile-ville, we'll be right here."

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Jake was waiting patiently for Chris to return. The group was already starting to head up the mountain.

"Fenton, Baxter, Dellone, get moving!" Mrs. Brady ordered. Reluctantly, the three started walking.

This was only made worse when D.J. enthusiastically called, "Who's up for 'I spy?'"

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Both Danny and Abby panted tiredly, having been subjected to an onslaught of nature-based torture. Vortex and Undergrowth stood tall, cackling.

"We told you," Undergrowth claimed. "You can't win."

"That doesn't mean we can't keep trying!" Danny shouted, closing in for another attack. He was swatted away by a vine and dragged to the ground. Desperately, he froze the vine, causing it to shatter. Abby looked on with wide eyes.

"Well, what do you think?" Vortex asked his partner. "Is it time to (gasp) expand our domain?"

"Yes," Undergrowth agreed. "I believe it is."

Still laughing in triumph, the two fled into the distance, leaving a trail of destruction behind them. Danny and Abby watched after them tiredly.

"Should we follow them?" Abby wondered, noticing how wiped her father was and doubting how much more he'd be able to take. After all, being the one with the ice powers and the ghostly wail, he was the one using the most energy.

Danny was about to reply when a ringing interrupted him. He took out his cell phone. "Hello?"

"How's it going over there?" Sam asked from the other end.

"Oh, it's…um…fine," Danny lied.

"You sound exhausted," Sam commented.

"Yeah, well, just doing the usual. Since Jake is gone, I was trying to give Abby some more training."

"Just wanted to check up on you. I know from experience how much havoc you can wreak when left alone."

Danny gave a strained laugh. "Don't worry. We're fine. Is the job interview going alright?"

"Yep, the boss just left for a second. Oh, wait, he's coming back. See you later, Danny."

The man breathed out heavily as he hung up.

"Dad," Abby asked, "why did you lie?"

The father frowned. "This job is a big deal for your mother. I don't want to ruin it by having her worry about us. We can take care of ourselves. Now, let's go catch those ghosts."

Consenting, Abby darted after her fast-retreating father.

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Just a piece of advice: For any of you who have NOT seen the new Transformers movie yet, I highly suggest watching the first one again. That's all.