It was dark in Amity Park. Sam and Tucker had come home for the Hallowe'en break from college and were reliving old memories by patrolling the town for ghosts. Danielle had taken over Danny's role as Amity Park's protector. She wasn't as powerful as Danny and hadn't activated her own ghostly wail yet but she was enough of a threat to invading ghosts to keep the town safe. Sam had taken her Goth look to a whole new level. She had shaved half her head and left the other half long, almost to her elbow. She wore black jeans, shirt and her signature combat boots. She wore a black choker and a black bangle with an old, worn remnant of Danny's insignia. True it was also Danielle's but this bangle was five years old and so it was Danny's symbol to her.
Tucker had grown up a lot since Casper High. He wore a red beanie instead of his beret and wore contacts. He had the beginnings of a beard on his chin. He wore blue jeans and a yellow shirt. He'd upgraded his tech too. Slightly reluctantly since he had gotten rid of his PDA. Now he used a high-tech smart phone that he upgraded personally, thanks to knowledge and technology from his engineering and computing course at college.
"And it's officially Hallowe'en," Tucker announced in a bright tone checking his watch showing it was after midnight.
"It's just another day Tuck. Why do you care?" Sam mumbled.
"Because it has such good memories. All those nights walking around and getting free candy. Makes me wish I was a kid again," Tucker reminisced. Sam scoffed.
"Kid? Tuck you trick-or-treated until you were sixteen. You had to stop because everyone refused to give you candy," Sam reminded him. Tucker shrugged.
"And your point is? If I could, I'd still trick-or-treat. It was fun and I got to pig out on free sugar," Tucker replied. They stopped outside Amity Park's graveyard.
"So, what do you say we head home? It looks all clear to me," Tucker suggested. Sam bit her lip and shook her head.
"I haven't visited Danny in ages. I want to go before I head home," Sam decided. Tucker smiled sadly and nodded.
"Alright Sam," Tucker agreed and they climbed over the gate and jumped down to the path below and walked quietly through the gravestones.
"So, how does Ricky feel about you know, Danny," Tucker ventured.
Sam still missed Danny and Tucker knew she had feelings for him still. She was hoping that the Fentons found Danny in the Ghost Zone despite him being dead for four years now. Tucker didn't think Danny was in there, not after so long. It had been a hope for the first couple of years but Danny knew the Ghost Zone so well that if he was a full ghost, he would have come home by now. But Maddie, Jack and Sam argued that they didn't know how long it took for a ghost to form after they died. No one had the answer and so they couldn't say it wouldn't happen.
Sam frowned.
"I broke up with Ricky weeks ago," she recalled. Tucker scowled and checked his phone. Sam had so many boyfriends that it was hard to keep track.
"Oh, my bad Bobby. How does Bobby feel about it?" Tucker amended. Sam sighed loudly.
"He thought it was stupid. Broke up last week," Sam answered. Tucker smiled sympathetically at his friend. Most boys didn't understand. But Tucker had seen them two together. They had to have been soul mates. It was cruel that they'd only been together for a few weeks when Danny had been killed. And it was even worse that they had been there and watched it happen, unable to save him.
Sam turned down a smaller path and Tucker jogged to catch up. Within a few minutes they were standing in front of a four year old gravestone. The town had pitched in for the ceremony out of respect for what Danny had done for them. His gravestone was a beautiful marble, white with black veins. A fitting stone to guard over the deceased halfa. The epitaph written in bold black lettering. Danny's insignia was at the top.
"Here lies Daniel Fenton a.k.a. Danny Phantom. A son, brother, friend and hero. He will be missed and our hearts are with him, wherever he may be. Rest in Peace," The epitaph read. The grave was littered with dying flowers and Danny Phantom memorabilia, gifts from family and fans.
Sam and Tucker stood in the biting cold air in silence. Tucker wasn't sure if he should comfort Sam or leave her alone. He couldn't tell with her gothic poker face always on. Danny had been able to tell. The school dance when he accidently gave Paulina a ghost amulet that changed her into a rampaging dragon when angry, Tucker hadn't realised that Sam had wanted to go but Danny had. Tucker glanced up at the full moon, so similar to the one on the night Danny died. Tucker hated the full moon. He would rather no moon than to have that reminder in the night sky of the worst night he'd ever experienced.
Sam took a deep shuddering breath and Tucker realised that she was silently crying. He hesitantly put a comforting arm around her shoulders. She shrugged it off and wiped away the tears, smudging her thick black mascara and eye liner but she didn't care.
"Come on, let's go Tuck," she whispered and turned away from the grave. Tucker nodded mutely and walked with Sam down the path and hopped over the gate.
They walked to the end of the road, their homes in different directions.
"I'll see you tomorrow," Tucker offered, unsure if Sam would want to meet up. She nodded and gave Tucker a small smile.
"Sure Tuck. Nasty Burger?" Sam replied. Tucker grinned.
"If that's alright with you," Tucker agreed. Just as they were going to go their separate ways, they heard a bloodcurdling shriek of terror from a house nearby. Lights flickered on and they heard a child crying, terrified. Sam and Tucker frowned.
"Ghosts?" Sam asked Tucker. He shrugged.
"Dunno, only ghost I can think of that would attack now is the Fright Knight. But he hasn't been a problem on Hallowe'en since… well since Danny borrowed his sword," Tucker answered, nervous about mentioning Danny. Sam nodded.
"Maybe we should ask what happened. If it is a ghost, we should deal with it," Sam suggested. Tucker bit his lip nervously and nodded.
They ran across the deserted street and Sam knocked on the door. A man in pyjamas answered it a few minutes later.
"Is everything alright? We heard a child screaming. Was it a ghost?" Tucker informed him. The man shook his head.
"It was nothing. My daughter just had a nightmare. She's pretty shaken up about it but no ghosts. Thank you for checking on us though," the man replied, recognising Sam and Tucker as regular ghost hunters in Amity Park. They nodded and turned to leave. Suddenly there was another scream and crying came from the house next door and then lights flicked on. Sam, Tucker and the man watched in stunned silence as the entire street lit up and children cried. Sam and Tucker glanced at each other and nodded. Something was happening. Sam invited herself into the man's house to ask his daughter what happened and Tucker ran next door.
And we see a little of how Danny's loved ones are coping and what option Pitch went with…
Until the next chapter.