Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom or any of the characters. Danny Phantom is the sole property of Butch Hartman, Nickelodeon and Paramount global.
Empowered
Chapter 10: Uh-Oh! Trouble Approaching
Valerie had just arrived home, having just finished her shift at the Nasty Burger.
Now that her work day was done, it was time to finish her homework, and possibly find some time to rest and relax.
She thought back to her day at work and frowned at what she went through, all because of one techno geek and his bizarre obsession with the food from her work place.
"Tucker really needs to lay off the junk food! The tips are okay and all, but he's gonna get sick at this point. If he's not careful, then he'll be a ghost himself at this point too!..."She thought, grossed out by his habits and wondering why he was binge eating so much lately.
Anyway, his risking his health was not her problem right now. She also didn't want to think about anything related to work during her time off. She had homework to do and comfy bed waiting for her to rest on later, as well as a couple of hours of privacy.
Her father was still at work, and the dark haired girl plopped on the couch as she took a rare moment of relaxation. She had some time and after finishing the last of her homework, she tried to unwind a bit.
She turned on the television and soon saw what was going on. It was a news report about the latest ghostly developments and a certain return.
What she saw on the television nearly nearly made the teen ghost hunter do a spit-take, if she had been drinking water that is.
"In other news, Danny Phantom's girlfriend, Starlight Spirit, has made a return..."Lance Thunder said, which Valerie saw and reacted.
"After a long, unexplained absence, the fair haired heroine is back and now working with her ghostly lover, and from what we have gathered, she is certainly making up for lost time..."He said as he showed clips of Starlight fighting ghosts and helping people.
"Will any of the many questions that both the people of Amity Park and Danny Phantom Phan Club have been asking be answered? More on this after sports. This is Lance Thunder saying...why the heck am I even doing this? I'm just a weather man!..."He muttered, as he began to angrily complain to his boss who was off screen.
Valerie was stunned by what she just heard and saw with her own two eyes, being the last to find out.
"Star has powers again?..."She thought, blinking.
Deciding to call her, Valerie checked her phone and saw that she had an unread message.
She checked it, seeing that it was from Danny. The dark haired girl read it and decided to call him, figuring that this and what she saw were connected.
After a few moments, she got an answer.
"Hey Val..."Danny said.
"Hey Danny, I saw the news. So...Star has powers again? How'd that happen?..."Valerie asked, scratching the side of her head.
"We still don't know. It could be anything from Desiree granting some unknown wish or some sort of mutation from having them before. We're not sure yet. All we do know is she has them again and so far, there don't seem to be side effects, but we can't exactly rule anything out yet..."Danny answered, his answer not really satisfying himself.
Valerie recalled what had happened the last time that Star had powers...and how she fired at her.
She felt a gnaw of guilt, due to unknowingly almost harming her best friend that time. Valerie still felt upset about what happened, even though it's been so long since then and she has already apologized to Star about that, and her friend forgave her long ago, like it was no big deal.
Sadly, Valerie didn't see it that way, even today she still doesn't feel as though she has completely redeemed herself for that awful mistake yet.
"It's like the universe wants to remind me..."She thought, feeling lousy at the reminder.
She saw the image of Star's ghostly alter ego on the TV and now that she looked closely, she recognized her hair color and body type. She also noticed that she still had the same height, nose shape, smile and dimples.
It was scary how much she could see the resemblance now, when she couldn't before.
"I still can't believe that I never noticed it before...I mean...it's just a mask, green eyes and a different hairstyle, but it's definitely her..."She muttered.
"That was the idea..."Danny said, not scolding her.
"Still...how could I not have noticed back then? I mean...Star Strong...Starlight Spirit...both are blonde girls who are dating a guy named Danny. She even kept her initials for crying out loud! How did I not piece it together back then?!..."She asked out loud, but Danny heard her since they were still on the phone.
"People think that the idea of a half ghost is impossible, so they have no reason to suspect that me and Star are anything, but full ghosts. People don't really notice these things, since they don't think that there is anything to us, so they just believe what they see on the surface. It's part of the reason that they don't suspect that we're the same people..."Danny said, trying to calm her down.
"Still, Star has been my best friend since middle school and I didn't even recognize her voice, I just saw a monster..."Val said, hating what she had done.
Her male friend heard this and sighed.
"Val, come on. You and Star already made up a long time ago and it's water under the bridge. No need to jump down under it..."Danny said, still trying to help ease her any negative feelings that she might have.
"I know... I know..." Valerie said, still feeling down.
"Anyway, there was something else that I wanted to talk to you about. I was actually gonna talk to call you earlier, before all of this happened..."Danny said.
"What is it?..."Val asked.
"It's about Star, but it's not exactly about her powers. You see...lately, she's been a little self-conscious about her appearance, especially her weight and stomach..."Danny explained.
"Really?..."Val asked.
"Yeah...I'm almost afraid that she was gonna relapse into old habits. The good news is that her powers seem to be taking her mind off that, but she was really bummed about it and no matter what I said earlier, she still made a big deal just because she gained about 5 pounds, even though she's still very thin..."Danny said, still sounding concerned about his girlfriend.
Val heard this and sighed.
"Well, I can't say I am too surprised by that. I mean...even when we were both in the A-listers, Star was pretty insecure about her appearance and weigh and tried to desperately stay as low as she could to keep the perfect figure..."She said, recalling those days.
She hated thinking about her time in the A-listers, but Star was her only true friend there and they always did care about each other. She was also aware of her friends insecurities and how that toxic group just made things worse.
"She went on constant diets and exercising to remain a size small and be as thin as possible...and Paulina didn't help matters by always talking trash about others for stuff like their weight in front of her, as well as her REALLY unrealistic expectations on how an A-list girl is suppose to look and act, and that includes not being allowed to be over 110 pounds and you'd have to be able to fit in really small skinny jeans to meet her standards!..."Valerie said, sounding angry and bitter.
"Paulina said all that? Why am I not surprise that she would give such toxic advice to someone that she claims to be a friend?..."Danny asked sarcastically, even more disgusted with his number one Phan.
Val sighed.
"I'm just ashamed to admit that I was one of those girls who listened and tried to meet her insane expectations, but at least I know better now. Still, it looks like she still has some minor effect on Star, even if she doesn't realize it..."She said, while the ghost boy still didn't understand this.
"But she left the A-listers a long time ago and I ALWAYS try to remind Star just how beautiful and amazing she is. Why is she still so insecure about that?..."Danny asked.
The female huntress sighed.
"It's complicated, Danny. Star probably just hates that she gained any weigh, no matter how little and not have any control over what she eats and how it affects her. I noticed she's been eating a lot more with you..."Valerie said, recalling all the times she had seen them at the Nasty Burger and how her blonde friend no longer felt afraid to loosen up when she was there.
"So, what? It's not like she's been eating as much as my dad does. Plus, people are suppose to eat when they feel hungry. Plus, I will repeat this yet again, she hardly looks like she gained a single pound, but she's acting like she's gaining a muffin top or something! It's ridiculous!..."Danny said, while the dark haired girl just nodded as she listened.
"I know that, but it's a girl thing. Like I said, it's complicated...especially in Star's case. This is just one of those problems that guys can't fully understand. Especially since this was started way before she ever met you, just to be clear. ..."Valerie said, knowing what Star must think and feel right now.
Danny sighed, wishing that this could be as easy to deal with like shoving the Box Ghost into the thermos, but sadly, life never seems to be that easy.
"I see. She has been determined, but I'm not giving up on Star. I don't know how yet, but I'll figure out someway to get her out of her funk soon enough...before she starves herself again..."He said before he momentarily put the phone down to dump some trash.
"In the meantime... well, I'm just glad that, regardless of the circumstances, her being Starlight Spirit is cheering her up and getting her mind off it. Now, I gotta both find out how that happened and make sure that she doesn't get hurt. I also gotta make sure that she doesn't feel insecure anymore about herself. Star is amazing as she's always been in my eyes, with or without powers and I wanna remind her of that fact..."Danny said, meaning every word of it.
"Okay, I'll help in any way that I can..."Valerie said with a nod.
"Thanks..."Danny said, appreciating it.
"Any suggestions on what I should try first?..."He asked.
"Just try and get her to at least eat a sandwich, and if she refuses, then a salad or something. Cause from what I've seen in the news lately, she could stand to gain a few pounds, since she looked pretty skinny from where I'm sitting..."Val said, worried that her best friend might not be eating enough and her sudden desire to diet probably isn't the best option.
The ghost boy nodded his head, despite the fact that Valerie couldn't see him do it, and decided to plan a dinner for Star the next time he sees her, whether she wants it or not. It was for her own good and he hoped she'd see it that way.
"Thanks for the idea..."Danny said, already planning what to serve her.
"Happy to help. Make sure she doesn't lose it..."Val said, being serious.
She would help with figuring out Star's powers later. Her weight consciousness would be the first thing she can help with.
"I gotta go now, Val. I got chores to finish and homework to get done. After that, I'm gonna rejoin Star and see if we can find any intel on what's happening...care to join us later?..."Danny asked.
"Sure. Let me know when you do that..."Valerie said eagerly, not wanting to miss out on any of this.
She soon hung up and sighed in disappointment.
"Star, scared of gaining pounds again. That's not a good thing, especially after what almost happened back at the beauty pageant. I just hope she doesn't go overboard again..."Valerie said as she shook her head.
She pondered what exactly she'd do to help her with getting her mind off her weight.
Little did she know, Star was solving her issue in her own way. Namely, taking advantage of her powers and nearly pushing her new limits to the furthest they can go.
Elsewhere
Star had just finished her work out at the railroad yard.
She grinned at her stomach, she was a little sweaty and out of breath, but she felt proud of herself right now.
"I crunched my abs as much as I'd crunch Ember if she gets her hands or face anywhere near my Danny again..."She thought, feeling on top of the world.
With a deep breath, she felt she had returned to her target weight...or at least, that's what she hoped.
"I definitely must have lost something by now. I just know it..."She thought, starting to feel a little better about herself.
That's when she noticed the sun setting. The blonde hair girl knew that she still had a while before she was expected home before curfew.
She decided to have some fun by spending it as a heroine. It didn't matter if it was a ghost or a pickpocket, she'd step in.
"This is gonna be fun..."She thought, cracking her knuckles before flying off.
Meanwhile
Misty was on her way home, bummed that her latest plan to nab Danny failed.
Not only was she not able to grant her own wishes, but no one seemed interested in making any USEFUL wishes, as far as she is concerned. It was really getting on her nerves by the kind of limits these spells and trinkets seem to have.
"I should have just paid someone 10 bucks just to say "I wish Misty Yang-Smith had Danny Fenton as her boyfriend"or something..."She grumbled, frustrated.
However, she knew that was too risky and just settled for going home and trying to come up with a new plan.
As she walked in the direction to the bus stop to take her home, she looked up and noticed something in the sky.
It looked to be a female in a weird yellow and orange outfit that seemed to sparkle. She also had an unnatural color of red for her hair and appeared to have glowing red eyes.
She also had a VERY familiar smug look on her face.
Misty stood there, stunned and rather upset as she saw yet another ghost pop out of nowhere. She also knew this meant she'd have more trouble should she come to Amity Park again.
"Oh great...another ghost? What's with this town?!..."She let out, deciding she should get going.
As she ran faster, she stopped, realizing something.
"That redhead looks oddly familiar..." She reasoned, thought she couldn't quite put her finger on it.
However, recalling that ghosts are normally hostile, Misty hid in a nearby alley, managing to avoid getting spotted by the potentially dangerous being. As she hid, she peaked to keep an eye on the possible threat.
As the young sorceress remain hidden, the ghost stopped, observing her surroundings, as if looking for something.
"Zhat obnoxious blonde bouffonne iz around here somewhere! I know it! I vill find her and make her pay, then Mon Amore will be mine!..." She went with an evil cackle.
She did, however, notice that she just felt like stopping for some reason just to speak to herself.
"Wait...why did it feel like it was okay to just talk to myself while expositing?..."She wondered as she simply scratched the side of her head before leaving.
As she did, Misty was left there, piecing together the voice she heard.
"That even sounded familiar..." She said to herself, staying still as she tried to process why it was familiar.
She knew that she has seen that ghost before, but she can't recall where yet.
"This is so weird, I haven't been in contact with dangerous spirits since that incident with Shi...so why does it feel like I know her?..."Misty wondered, but couldn't find any answers.
The dark haired also felt a strange vibration and glowing come from her backpack.
"Huh?..."She let out, as she checked.
She saw that it was the necklace and for some reason, it was glowing.
"It's glowing like when it granted that girl's wish..."She thought, pondering.
She looked back up, recalling that ghost had red hair as well. Misty also couldn't help but notice that the strangely familiar ghost was flying in the direction that Misty was familiar with.
The dark haired girl pondered with a deep sense of worry in her chest as it started to bubble.
"Why do I feel like something bad is about to happen? And...that I might be the cause of this?..."She thought, feeling uneasy as she looked at the necklace.
She suddenly run after the redheaded ghost without much hesitation. She had to find out if what she was worried about was true.
She had yet to realize what "getting rid of Star"actually meant...or that this wish would do more damage than she intended.
With Star
The blonde heroine was feeling on top of the world.
She just finished her "work-out" and was now soaring the skies, taking in some of the freshest air that she could get.
"I see now why Danny sometimes like to fly up here to cool his head..."She thought, feeling great.
Once she had enough fresh air, she lowered to do some good. She was feeling free from her previous worries and she wanted to continue to experience it.
She flew by the park, admiring it from up above. She also soon spotted a cat in a tree, and a little girl and boy calling out to what appears to be their pet, looking worried that the little feline might get hurt.
Starlight wasted no time in flying there, helping the cat out of the tree and returned it to the little kids.
"Here he is. Don't worry, your kitty is safe right now..."She said, as she held the feline and handed it to the children.
"Petey!..."The little girl said, happily as she took her kitten.
"Don't let him out of your sight again, okay?..." She said in a gentle way to the children.
"We won't..."The little girl said, and her brother nodded.
"Thanks, Starlight Spirit..."The children said as they thanked the heroine and then took their cat home.
Starlight smiled and felt proud of herself before taking off to the skies.
Unknown to her, Dash, Kwan and Paulina had been in the park at that time and had been enjoying some frozen yogurt. They also spotted the heroine taking off again.
"There she goes!..." Kwan went.
Dash saw Starlight Spirit in the air, instantly smitten with her. He thought of her, questioning where she had been all this time, but instantly forgot about it when he saw her and those thoughts came back.
"It's her again. She's even hotter than last time! Man, does Danny Phantom know how to pick them or not?..."Dash said, drooling over the heroine and admiring his hero for having good taste.
Kwan noticed the female heroine hadn't noticed them, smiling. He blushed as he saw her soaring in the air.
"Yeah, she sure is cool..."He admitted, finding her attractive and familiar in a strange way.
It was clear that both boys were happy to see her still around. The only one who wasn't happy was Paulina, who was fuming with rage.
"DON'T DROOL OVER HER! THAT HOMEWRECKER IS GOING TO PAY FOR STEALING MY GHOST BOY!..."Paulina yelled, acting hysterical while her voice being very painful to hearing.
Dash and Kwan both winced at hearing her, before the blonde jock just rolled his eyes.
"Oh please, Paulina. Starlight Spirit is, like, way hotter than you and she's a super hero. Danny Phantom would be nuts to let all of that go just to settle for you..."Dash, being the idiot that he is, replied very bluntly to the already emotionally unstable girl.
Paulina responded by screaming and throwing her low fat frozen yogurt at him, hitting him right on top of his head and knocking him off his feet.
"You're both traitors! And I'm gonna claw your eyes out later, I have other things to deal with! I'm gonna go workout and built an even better figure than that air-headed blonde ghost girl! And them I'm gonna assemble enough people to ban her from ever entering this town again!..."Paulina said as she left and went to exercise like there's no tomorrow.
She also planned on ranting about her least favorite hero on the internet and hope others share her opinion.
Rants and promises of bodily harmed which would either be ignored or left with unsupported comments that clearly are trolling her. She wouldn't see it that way until later, when it was explained to her by others.
Anyway, her friends saw her leave, and one of them thinking she'd get herself in dangerous situations, but was too chicken to do anything about it.
"Geez, she's getting worse..."Kwan said, nervous to be around her now.
"Who cares? What I just wish that she would give it a rest already so we don't have to listen to anymore of her whining. Just like how I wish that I could see Starlight again in person..."Dash said, grinning in her direction.
"But she's Danny Phantom's girl..."Kwan commented.
"I know that, and I'm not planning on taking my hero's girl, but I'm allowed to admire from a distance..."Dash said, wiggling his eyebrows in her direction.
"I'm sure Danny Phantom wouldn't like that..." Kwan muttered, knowing Dash had just the response.
"Well, what he doesn't know won't hurt me. Besides, that ghost babe might know any other hot ghost girls that are available..."Dash said, rubbing his hands in anticipation.
The two jocks then realized what time it was, deciding it was time to go. It was late and they were each expected home, so they didn't see what happened to Star next.
With Star
The super powered girl was grinning, feeling light as a feather.
"So far so good..."She said, feeling her wind in her hair.
She had her powers, and she felt herself feeling lighter and stronger than as a human. She also thought back to what she has accomplished so far.
She had defeated Skulker, did a monster work out, saved a cat from a tree and she was still ready for anything else to be thrown at her.
"I forgot how fun this was!..."She thought as she looked down, admiring her town.
"I don't know what brought these powers back...but I did miss them and with Danny having his, we'll be an even more amazing couple that before. Heck, we'll be the most amazing POWER couple in town!..."She thought, giggling at her own pun.
However, something unexpected happened that would make her good time come to an end.
The sound of a crash and a blast caught her attention.
"Huh? What was that?!..."Starlight said, before she went to investigate whatever caused it.
Unknown to her, things were about to get really crazy for her...even by her standards.
Meanwhile
Colette, now in her new form, appeared at downtown Amity Park and frowned at her surroundings.
"Such a plebian location. If I am forced to remain here, I must make improvements..."Colette said as she pondered what to do, before she went back to what she had been doing.
She had been practicing with her powers, as well as flying and perfecting her aim.
It had come much easier than she expected, and she only accidentally missed her target twice, breaking some peasants windows in the process but she didn't care.
What mattered to her was that she had these powers...and the means to get what she wants
"I think that's enough practice for now...time for the next step..."She considered, ready to "visit" someone very special to her.
However, her plans would be put on hold for a moment. She was distracted when a certain someone spotted her from up here.
It was Starlight, who care to investigate the crash and soon saw a figure floating around. One that she has never seen before.
"A ghost? But why didn't my ghost sense go off?..."Star thought.
She then saw the kind of damage that this ghost must have caused and she frowned.
"Hmm... answers later, butt kicking now!..." Star thought to herself, as she got ready to give this ghost a total beat down.
The blonde heroine then sped up, arriving behind this new figure. The ghost didn't seem to notice her yet, so the blonde heroine made the first move.
"Hold it, ghost!..."Starlight Spirit shouted.
Colette turned around and frowned when she saw her.
She saw one of the people whom she despised most in the world and felt a spike of anger that she usually only feels around her step-sister. However, Colette composed herself, long enough to use her words...for now.
"Starlight Spirit. So you actually showed up. Strange, you have been so absent in month that I thought Phantom dumped you for a new partner...maybe even trading you for that one hit wonder singer with flaming blue hair with questionable taste in fashion..."Colette quipped with a snide tone.
Starlight was annoyed by that tone before regaining her heroic attitude.
"Okay, I don't know who you are, but you best not be up to anything awful!..."She warned, ready to fight if she needed to.
"The only thing awful is that I haven't had my rightful revenge on you!..." Colette stated, her eyes glowing brighter red as she glared at her enemy.
Starlight was going to retort, but was confused by her choice of words.
"Revenge? What are you talking about? Do we know each other?..."She asked, feeling that she has seen her before, but she couldn't put her finger on it.
"You don't even know you ruined me?! Well, it no longers matters. Now I know I must destroy you..."Colette said as her eyes and hands glowed bright red. "You got me in trouble and I have come for my, as the Americans say, payback!..."She said, firing a beam from her finger towards her enemy.
Star bobbed her head out of the way in time, and the blast ended up damaging someone's car. Thankfully, no one was inside it but the blonde heroine didn't like how careless her new enemy is being.
"Watch it! If not careful then you might end up eating through a straw!..." Starlight said with raised tone in her voice, angry and confused by this ghoul's hostility, as well as her lack of concern for the well-being of others.
The new villainess didn't care. In fact, she seemed to take some sort of joy from the actions she caused. After all, she already had no inkling of empathy prior.
"You watch it, you made a fool of me and you vill pay! I had to dress like some idiot comic book character, but it'll be worth it to get my revenge! Espèce de blonde stupide!..."Colette shouted, ironically speaking just like a character in a comic book right now.
Star was stunned, realizing how familiar that sounded...and the villain was speaking in a French accent.
A French accent that Star knew all too well...
It suddenly hit her like a ton of bricks, as the usually confident heroine was now at a loss for words as it all dawned on her.
"Wait...that accent...that attitude...insulting in French...that gaudy, extravagant taste in fashion...there...there's no way...it can't be...C-Colette?!..."Star stammered with a question, floating back with her hands up.
She even screamed the last part, her hated step-sister's name in pure shock, while said step-sister was getting impatient right now.
"So, you know my real name? Oh vell, it doesn't matter. Now you know who you've ruined and who will ruin you!..."Colette said, eyes glowing and lip curling.
Star was speechless and shocked at this sudden realization, that her hated stepsister was with powers and fighting her.
"There is no way...how...HOW DID YOU GET POWERS?!..."Starlight demanded as she didn't think it were possible.
"As if I would tell you, even though I am unsure myself..."The new villainess said, reluctant to admit that. "But it does not matter in the end, as...I am not complaining..."She said, smirking darkly as she now had one of her targets in sight.
Star was at a loss as things seemed to have gotten much, much worse than just gaining weight.
Oh man.
-To be continued-
Next time on Empowered
Trouble, thy name is Colette
A/N(1): I dedicate this chapter to my family, my friends and my love for God :)
A/N(2): Special thanks to NeoMark, Jay The Average Fanboy and BeConfuzzled Writer for all his help. You guys rock :)
A/N(3): YAHOO! I JUST MADE IT TO 100 REVIEWS! Thanks everyone, you are all amazing! :)
A/N(4): Special thanks to Jay The Average Fanboy for sending 9 reviews in a row. You rock :)
REPLIES to my loyal and totally awesome reviewer:
RonaldM40196867:
1) Yeah.
2) I guess we will have to wait and see what happens.
3) I guess we will have to wait and see what happens.
4) Sorry, no spoilers. I guess we will have to wait and see what happens.
5) Totally.
6) Yeah.
7) Maybe, but knowing how much of a Fruitloop that he is, he probably wouldn't even care.
8) Star probably didn't tell because of the circumstances on how she found out since it was related to ghost business. Besides, she was satisfied with at least getting rid of the doll and Danny vandalizing the shrine as payback.
CZS4: Yeah.
Jebest4781: Thank you :)
Pokemon fan 1991: Thank you :)
Invader Johnny and Luiz4200: Yes, Star's training was inspired by that scene.
Guest: Thanks for the suggestion. I will think about it.
JDF Legacier Morphicon: Thank you :)
Here are my responses to your questions:
1) Poindexter probably did, since he THOUGHT that he was protecting nerds from bullies.
2) She most likely died of old age, given her TRUE appearance.
3) Any time that Dash gets away with his bullying. I absolutely can't stand that.
4) Hard to say, they might be equals when Pariah Dark is without his crown of fire and his ring of rage, but he would have more of an edge if he fought with them.
5) I don't know. I guess it depends, but there are certain places I would like to visit.
Danifan3000:
1) I don't think Danny or Vlad had ever been able to sense each other though. Still, you did bring up some good points.
2) Probably.
Eecobeo: Thanks for the suggestion. I will think about it.
Jay The Average Fanboy: Thank you :)
Here are my responses to your questions:
1) I think Star would like and relate to Carol Danvers.
2) I think Danny would relate most to Spiderman.
3) She probably doesn't know them well enough.
4) She probably isn't into comic heroes.
5) He probably never reads comic books.
6) He's a dog. A ghost dog, but still a dog, so I don't think he has any favorites.
7) I think that she'd might relate to the Black Widow.
8) Iron man.
9) She'd probably not like the Avengers, either seeing them as mainstream or think a rich guy would make a terrible superhero.
10) I'd say I am tied between Spiderman and She-Hulk.
:) I hope you enjoyed this! Remember to read and review :)