BVQA: Yeah, I'm finally writing more. On with the story!
Dani stared at the two forms outlined in the dust, and knew all too clearly who they were.
"Danny! Hide!" She hissed, and she didn't need to look over to know that he had slipped into invisibility with barely a thought. Youngblood, however, wasn't having the same amount of luck. He hadn't gotten a shield up in time, and his nose was dripping ectoplasm from where it had been slammed with a particularly large chunk of wood. What's more, he was too dazed to even stand up, much less hide from the party crashers.
"Alright, Fentons! Put your hands in the air!" Agent K of the Guys In White said. Dani scowled, annoyed. She not only did not 'put her hands in the air', she stood up and clenched them into fists.
"This is a birthday party, fellahs, and I'm thirteen now! So you had better watch it! I own the planet for twenty-four hours, and you are not going to mess it up for me!" She snapped, glaring. The second agent- Dani had no idea what his code letter was- trained a gun at her. Dani found her hand slipping around the tiny silver ghost that was nestled between her collar bones. It was cool to the touch, but her skin was rapidly warming it up. Figuring that she couldn't exactly pound on these guys without first finding out what they were here for, she waited for them to speak.
They did. Lots of words spilled over their tongues and into the room, loud and annoying, like the buzzing of bees. She resisted the urge to swat at them.
"Mr. and Mrs. Fenton, we are here to convict you of harboring ghosts and sheltering a criminal! We have the authority to drag you into a holding cell and throw away the key!"
Sam pursed her purple lips, and Dani knew she was about to play a legal trump card. "And I suppose you have a warrant signed by three dignitaries and/or a court of law, proof that they're harboring ghosts in violation of the human/para treaty, and a legally binding court order stating the crimes that said criminal has been accused of."
The Guys In White stared at her for a while, long enough for Danny to put his invisible mouth to Dani's ear and murmur, "They talk a lot, but they have no idea what any of the words really mean. Throw a lot of information at them, and they'll back down. Hit them with an ectoblast, and they'll go crying to their superiors."
Dani nodded, barely perceptibly, and took this information to mean that Danny wouldn't be able to help them without making the situation worse. He was a self-confessed fighter, someone who's first reaction to conflict was to come in swinging. His life had taught him that, the various ghost fights encouraging this line of thought. Dani, however, was slightly different. She hadn't had the life experience to feel like he did about conflict, and she was him in his raw, unrefined, courageous and simple state. She felt that she could solve anything just by talking and hitting at the right times, and now was the time to talk.
"Exactly who are you accusing of being a criminal, and who are you accusing of being in violation of the human/para treaty?" She asked. The second agent blinked a couple times before answering.
"The ghost fugitives would be Danny Phantom and Youngblood, of corse, and the criminal would be you."
Dani blinked. She'd been accused of many things in her not-so-lengthy life, from mistake to traitor to a blob of protoplasm, but criminal? Dani had never, ever done anything illegal, not as far as she knew. Well, there were the couple petty thefts she'd done during her life on the street, but no one would send in these goons for that. Dani wasn't even sure that anyone had noticed the thefts. So why were they here?
Sam chose the moment to butt in, probably realizing that she was the only one there that had any idea whatsoever what the human/para treaty was.
"Danny Phantom and Youngblood are in no way in violation of the human/para treaty. Youngblood was invited here for a specified period of time and for a specified reason, and as stated in paragraph two, section three, line eight of the treaty this is a sanctioned practice. Danny Phantom is half human, and therefore can be treated as an exception to the treaty. Weather or not he chooses to occupy the premises is entirely up to him, and therefore the Fentons are free from any charges regarding harboring ghosts in violation of said treaty." Sam realized she had to breathe at some point and there was a sudden gap in the speech as she got her wind back. "Furthermore, you have caused damage to the property and to said child ghost, which is in of itself a violation of the treaty and is punishable as such. Danielle is innocent until proven guilty and therefore cannot be arrested without first being read her rights or without cause and a warrant, and considering you have neither I suggest you leave before the Fentons decide to sue."
Agent K straightened up. "But we do have proper cause. Danielle Fenton/Phantom was seen during a bank robbery earlier today."
Dani blinked. What? "But that's impossible!" She blurted. "I was here the whole time!"
Agent K looked at her disdainfully. "Doing what, exactly?"
"Listening to my ipod and playing air guitar while spinning in circles."
The words were out of Dani's mouth before she could stop them, and even as she said them she realized how weak they sounded. She was absolutely certain they wouldn't hold up in court.
Luckily, Sam would hold up in court. "Do you have any proof it was Dani?" She asked, the word 'proof' dripping from her mouth like an accusation. The two agents looked sheepish.
"Uh. . . not as such, no."
Sam smiled, a sickly sweet smile that would warn anyone who knew anything that she was in a dangerous mood. "Then I suggest you get the #%% off this property!"
The two agents left, tripping over their own feet in their haste. Danny popped back into existence, looking very relieved.
"That. Was. Awesome!" He said, smiling at Sam. Dani looked up at him.
"Hey, Danny, what did you mean about the necklace protecting me?" She asked. Danny shrugged.
"Clockwork said to say it."
"And you didn't ask why?" Dani exclaimed.
Danny rolled his eyes. "Of corse I asked. You know Clockwork, though, he's about as willing to give out information as a brick wall."
Dani touched the little silver ghost and wondered what it meant.
LINE BREAK
Dani trudged up the stairs, yawning. Her party had been loads of fun, but now it was time for bed. She flopped down, waiting for her parents to come and tuck her in. Her hand drifted to the silver, green, and black thermos that had been a present from Sam, and she glanced down at the silver platform sandals from Tucker. Youngblood had given her a water gun that would never run out of water, and her parents had told her that their present was a little too big to fit in a box. They also said they'd tell her when she went to bed.
Jazz had, in her Jazzish way, given Dani a book. But it wasn't just any book, it was a book written about famous women throughout history. To anyone else, it would have been stupid, but to Dani it was an amazing thing. She'd grown up believing she was useless, a mistake for being a girl, and here was a book that proved exactly how useful girls could be. Dani smiled through her sleepy haze. She vaguely registered her parents entering the room and gently lifting the comforter over her. A warm hand smoothed her hair back, and somebody planted a kiss on her forehead.
"Sleep tight, Dani." Her mother whispered. "Tomorrow, you start school."
The lights clicked off and Dani's last waking thought was that she'd gotten her birthday wish after all. . .
BVQA: What do you think Clockwork meant?
