Disclaimer: I still don't own Danny Phantom as it's the property of Butch Hartman, Nickelodeon and Viacom International. I am just a loyal fan and nothing more.

Unshattered Bonds

Chapter 11: Confusion

Danny didn't understand where he was or how did he get here. He noticed that he was in his ghost form, in a dark room that seemed to go on forever.

"What the?..." He wondered as he tried to move but couldn't.

He looked down to see a pair of chains on both his wrists and ankles. He couldn't help but notice that the chains were pink and blue respectively. He tried to break free but they were too strong, even with his ghostly super strength. Not even a budge.

"What is going on here?..." Danny shouted as he tried to struggle free.

Suddenly, he noticed a light appear in the dark room. He noticed that it was a blue fire in a circle that seemed to glow so brightly and beautifully.

"What?..." Danny blinked in confusion. Where did that fire come from?

Suddenly, he saw that within it was a set of keys and he realized that maybe they were the keys for these chains. He tried to reach for them but they were a little out of his reach. He tried to be careful not to touch the fire but to his surprise, it didn't feel too hot.

"Just a little closer…" Danny said as he tried to stretch his arms to reach the keys that were within the flames.

The chains were pulling him back but he just kept moving forward, his hands only a few inches away from the key to his freedom.

"I almost got it…but it's so far…" Danny said as he panted a bit, feeling tired from his struggles.

"Don't give up, you will be free soon…I promise…" A feminine rang and Danny looked around but he saw no one. Suddenly the flames started burning brighter and then got a little smaller, to give him more room to reach for the keys.

Danny tried to reach again and was only one inch away from grasping the key to his freedom.

Danny was suddenly jerked awake as he felt someone probing at his arm.

"Wakey-wakey darling~..." Paulina said in a sing-song voice as she tried to make him wake.

"Ugh…Good morning Paulina, what are you doing here so early?..." Danny asked as he rubbed one of his eyes.

"Don't forget that tonight your father is coming home to celebrate our engagement banquet, the entire town is going to be present…" Paulina said happily.

"Oh, I didn't forget…" Danny said before yawning.

"But isn't that at six?..." Danny questioned.

"Duh! It's 7:00am, that only leaves us about 11 hours to get ready and you promised to help me pick out my new ring…Now come on and lets get breakfast, I need you to help me pick out a dress that won't clash with whatever your wearing this evening…" Paulina ordered.

Danny merely shrugged, used to Paulina's orders by now. He got up and went to the bathroom to get dress but felt uncomfortable that Paulina was still in the room.

"Uh…honey, I'm going to have to change…" Danny said, feeling a little awkward.

"So, we're engaged…" Paulina said with a smirk while Danny blushed.

"It's just…We're not married yet and well…" Danny trailed off when Paulina suddenly walked up to him and gave him a long, French kiss.

"You know, why don't we skip breakfast and get a little sneak preview of our wedding night…" Paulina said seductively as she kissed him on the neck.

Danny felt his face get red but felt pretty unconfutable right now.

"Honey, I thought we agreed that we would wait until we were married…" Danny reminded as he tried to pull her away.

'When did we do that?..." Paulina stupidly questioned out loud, earning an eyebrow raise from her fiancé.

"Paulina, you know I love you but I'm just not comfortable doing this yet…I rather wait and you said that you would wait for our first time too…" Danny reminded.

"I did?..." Paulina thought in shock as she tried to think back.

She recalled when she teamed up with her younger self to get Danny, she remembered that she ordered her younger self, after the job was done, to do anything and everything to keep Danny in love with them and that meant doing whatever it was to keep him happy. Paulina almost had her jaw drop. She had only been living this new life for about a week but she knew that Danny and her in this timeline have been together for a decade striahgt.

"Ten years together and we still haven't done it yet?!..." Paulina thought in dismay but tried to look cute.

It was a little irksome but maybe there could be some benefits here. I mean, at least now she would get the chance to experience taking his virginity, like she always wanted.

And what better time than now…

"Come on darling, you love me don't you…" Paulina said as she kissed his neck.

"You know that I do…" Danny said as he felt her keep kissing his neck…but he felt strange, he wasn't feeling very…he didn't know but he just kept feeling uncomfortable.

"Then prove it…" Paulina said as she pushed him against the wall and slipped her tongue in his mouth. She pulled away only for a moment to start kissing him all over his face before attacking his lips yet again.

"Oh Danny…" Paulina purred into his mouth as she was getting very much in the mood. It's been a long time since she has felt a man's embrace; especially her beloved ghost boys and she loved every moment of it.

She was unaware that Danny, despite not resisting her advances, wasn't exactly enjoying himself.

"Maybe she has a point, we have waited a decade and we will be married soon but..." Danny thought, trying to sort out his own emotions.

Paulina was so very gorgeous, sweet, loving and affectionate and he could understand that she might be feeling a little impatient…but he just wasn't sure that he was okay, having their first time like this instead of on their wedding night like they had both agreed. Danny was aware that any other man in the world probably wouldn't have a problem with doing this. He should feel lucky that a woman as beautiful as Paulina loved him so much. He felt Paulina's hand start caressing his chest underneath his pajama shirt but he didn't feel what he was supposed to be feeling right now.

It was weird but it almost felt…wrong to do this.

This was ridiculous, Paulina was his FIANCÉE! He was supposed to like doing something like this with her.

"What's wrong with me?..." Danny thought as Paulina continued to do the tongue tango and feel him up and he just didn't even move.

He was unaware of the kind of thoughts she was having right now.

"Oh, I'm going to ride you like no tomorrow…" Paulina thought dirtily as she felt so excited.

This was everything she could want and what she always deserved.

She was living in luxuries lap, being treated like royalty and in love with her handsome, strong, muscular, sexy ghost boy. This is what she always wanted, to be with the ghost boy as half of the most famous power couple on earth with millions of people worshipping them and her beauty. Best of all, soon they would be married and she would get to become a princess to boot. She couldn't wait!

Before she and Danny could go any further, the door suddenly opened to reveal one of the maids, looking surprised.

"Oh…Oh my…Please forgive me sire, I-I had no idea…" Delia, one of the older maids, said apologetically as she was blushing bright red.

"You idiot! You have the worst timing!..." Paulina barked, enraged that her special moment with Danny was being interrupted before they would even get to the good part.

"Calm yourself Paulina…It's alright Delia, it was just an accident…" Danny said with an understanding smile.

"I had just come here to inform you that breakfast has been served…" Delia said, not daring to look at them in the eye.

'We will be down right now…" Danny said before dismissing her. He turned to Paulina who had a frustrated, pouty look on her face.

"I know your upset but this is for the best that she came in…" Danny said and flinched when she sent him an angry scowl.

"Oh, so making love to me is something horrible?!..."Paulina accused, too angry to notice what she was doing exactly.

"N-No…What I mean is…It's better that we wait until we are married…I want our wedding night to be the most special night of our lives, that was what we promised each other Paulina…" Danny said, trying to calm her down.

"When I told my other self to do anything to keep him happy, I didn't think she would NOT be doing something…" Paulina thought frustrated

She wondered if there was something up with the love arrows but Vlad was the one who had them in control. She would have to talk to him tonight but until then, she would have to give Danny what he wants…which isn't what Paulina expected it to be.

"Alright…" Paulina sighed.

Danny soon left to shower and get dressed while Paulina waited for him in the hallway. Once he was done, they both went to join the family to eat breakfast together, his family completely unaware of what almost had happened but thankfully didn't happen.

Elsewhere

Ember, still using her temporary hostess, yawned in both exhaustion and disappointment. She had been up all night, looking through every nook and cranny of the castle, trying to find the time staff, Aphrodite or even Clockwork as well but nothing.

"I can't give up, they are here somewhere, I know it…" Ember thought.

There were over 100 rooms in this castle and Ember looked in every single of them but nothing even remotely useful came up. She wasn't going to give up, she was going to save her man if it was the last thing that she did. Suddenly she saw Danny up ahead, with Paulina clinging to his arm as some guy came in carrying several boxes. Paulina looked excited while Danny didn't look to happy as they entered another room.

'Oh no way! They are not actually replacing my ring…" Ember thought in fury but just barely refrained herself from doing something stupid and reckless.

She couldn't afford to let her temper get the better of her now. She had to make Danny get away from Paulina and she had to find the time staff and Aphrodite if she wanted any chance of undoing any of this damage.

"I better keep an eye on him…" Ember thought as she, still using her hostess body, became invisible and was forced to watch her beloved trade away her beautiful engagement ring in exchange for a gaudy one that only someone like Paulina would want to have, since it basically screamed "I'm expensive, look at me!".

All the while, she saw the look on Danny's face and she knew that he wasn't happy, Paulina didn't notice at all as she was too busy gushing and marveling over the size of the diamond of her new ring while Danny pulled out his credit card to pay for it.

"Poor Danny…" Ember sighed as she felt her hear longing for him.

She was going to free him soon, she swore it.

Danny had just paid for Paulina's new engagement ring and the jeweler had just left. He turned to his fiancé who was smiling a mile wide at the sight of the diamond ring.

"It's so big…" Paulina said in a dazed voice.

"Yeah, it is…" Danny commented, glad that at least now she had the ring that she wanted.

"It's absolutely perfect Danny and it will look so great when I wear my wedding dress…" Paulina said as she kissed him on his cheek.

"I'm glad that you're happy…" Danny said as he felt that weird emptiness from yesterday once more.

Suddenly Paulina's cellphone rang and she picked it up, and answered it. She got excited as well.

"No way, you mean it?! I'll be on my way…" Paulina said excitedly as she hung up.

"Good news darling, my wedding dress has just arrived; I got to go meet with my mother to try it on…" Paulina said happily.

"That's great to hear…" Danny said as he escorted her back to her limousine. She said that she would be back this evening for his father's arrival.

He would have offered to fly her home but Danny wanted to be alone for the moment. He felt his head spinning and a headache begin to form.

"It feels like everything is moving so fast…" Danny thought as he grabbed his head, trying to ease his small migraine.

"Are you alright?..." Kate, the new maid, asked in concern as she approached him.

"Huh? Oh, I'm fine…Just a little headache…" Danny said softly. Kate however looked like she didn't completely believe him and Danny was confused by that.

"Are you sure that you're alright?..." She asked again and Danny could detect the amount of concern in her tone.

Danny sighed, he couldn't explain why but even though he had only met her yesterday, he felt that he could be honest with her.

"I am fine…I'm just a little overwhelmed… The wedding is in a month and everything feels like it's moving so fast…" Danny confessed.

"You're having doubts?..." Kate asked and if Danny didn't know any better, she almost sounded excited.

"What?...' Danny thought in confusion… 'No, not doubts…I…What I mean is that…Have you ever really wanted something and waited such a long time for it…but when it's finally coming…you feel...confused about something?..." He asked, vulnerability clear in his voice.

"Confused about what?..." Kate asked and Danny felt that strange feeling from yesterday once more.

What was about this girl that made him feel so…confused?

"I'm not sure…It's nothing really…I'm fine…" Danny waved off, surprised that he actually said such a thing to one of his servants.

"Listen Kate, I'm going to retire to my room for a bit, if anyone asks, tell them that I'm busy…" Danny said as he left the spot.

Unknown to him, the person whom he thought was Kate, just kept looking at him with a mixture of sadness and longing, but also a bit of hope as well.

"He's feeling confused…That might be my chance…I got make him remember but I also have to find Aphrodite…Come on Ember, think…Vlad is bitter, delusional narcissist who acts like some big shot Saturday morning cartoon villain… If I was him, where would I keep my most valued prisoners and artifacts?..." Ember questioned to herself.

She had checked in every single room in this castle but nothing came up. She also tried to think about what Danny has always told her about his battles with Vlad. She knew that he was the kind that would still leave his stuff in a place that was heavily guarded and in a secretive location.

The question was where?

Suddenly she noticed some commotion coming from outside. She ran and using invisibility saw Walker and some of his ghostly goons arresting a human protestor.

"Walker is working for Vlad? Why am I not surprised?..." Ember thought as she kept her distance but listened in.

"Trespassing on royal grounds and slandering his highness name, that's against the rules…" Walker said to the human protestor who growled.

"Plasmius is a tyrant! I regret nothing!..." The protestor shouted, not willing to show weakness.

"Get this punk out of here, maybe some time in time in the dungeons will shape him up…" Walker ordered as his men took the human away.

All the while, Ember had watched the entire exchange and got an idea.

"A dungeon, that's must be where Vlad is keeping Aphrodite and Clockwork….'Ember thought in a eureka moment. Still holding onto Kate, she became invisible. She followed the goon guards drag the human protestor to a secluded part of the castle grounds that she hasn't seen yet and she knew that this had to be the place.

She watched Walker walk up to the secret door that was behind one of the walls, with his men behind him with the protestor, who was knocked out after trying to break free, in their arms. She noticed that it was a door and Ember half detected that it had some anti-ghost elements to keep intruders out…but that would also mean it probably only had one way for the ghosts who were loyal to Vlad to get in.

"Password…"The robotic, monotone voice asked automatically.

"Packers1967…" Walker said automatically.

'Ember raised an eyebrow at that combination, until she recalled that Vlad was an avid football fan and a total Packers fanatic as Danny so eloquently called him.

"Password accepted…"The voice said before the automated door opened

She waited a long while before Walker and his men approached, with the protestor presumably locked away. She watched Walker punch in some numbers and the doors locked again.

"That'll learn him…" Walker sneered as he and his men walked away. Once they were long gone, Ember, still deciding to use her human host, walked up to the secret door.

"Password…"The robotic, monotone voice asked once more.

"Packers1967…" Ember/Kate said quickly, making sure that no one was near to see this.

"Password accepted…"The voice said before the automated door opened.

"Finally…" Ember said as she quickly ran inside.

To find and free Aphrodite, her beloved and the entire planet from Vlad and Paulina's clutches.

To be continued-

Next time on Unshattered Bonds

Prisoners of Love

REPLIES to my loyal and totally awesome reviewers:

Feurrige: As I said before, Walker just likes arresting people if he can get away with it, as shown in 'Claw of the wild".

Invader Johnny: We ALL felt sickness…I was even queasy WRITING that scene.

Jasonvoorhes: That would be a nightmare for both of them….

Guest: I remember that episode, I think it was called "Frightmare".

Janelle sy: . Nice to have you on board.

Spectrer: Aw, thanks Spectrer.

:) Till next time beautiful people, remember to read and review :)