Ember weaved between buildings as she was flying. Flying out in the open air would be more relaxing, but she really didn't want to run into Phantom tonight. She didn't want to fight. She wanted to scream, or yell, or destroy something.
But she wasn't in the mood for a fight.
She already got into a fight with Kitty today. Ember wasn't the one to usually feel sorry for herself, but for once she did. She knew she had stepped out of line.
For once, she felt like a heel.
Yeah, sure, she probably should anyways (what with the whole take over the world thing) but that was different.
She was snapped out of her thoughts when she heard the song of a guitar-playing through the night. Whoever was playing it was objectively terrible. It took Ember a few moments to realize that she recognized what they were playing, and when she realized what it was, she felt absolutely frozen.
The player was offbeat, and the guitar's low E string was a half step out of tune, but she could have recognized that song anywhere.
She had been listening to it when she died.
She careened through the air, her hair fluttering behind her and casting dancing shadows along the fire escapes and closed windows. She intangibly phased through walls when she thought she found where the music was coming from, only to realize that no it had been above her.
Putting on the last burst of speed, she flew up through several floors to the roof.
Coming face to face with a shocked Danny Phantom.
His eyes were ice blue at the moment since he was in human form. She hadn't seen them this clear before, usually, she saw them glowing brightly as he channeled some power, or green as he geared up to fight her.
She didn't want to fight tonight, and he definitely was going to transform in a moment here to shove her into his thermos, and then back into the ghost zone.
Where Kitty was.
Ember reached out, snatching the guitar off his shoulders, intangibility yanking it off him. She ignored the sputtering shouts that somehow managed to be a combination of her name, "watch out," and "hey" all at once.
He didn't react at first as she quickly tuned the guitar, frozen as he was with her suddenly just appearing . She looked up at him as she wet her lips. "We're taking this from the top!"
Then she started playing.
Her fingers danced along the guitar, playing some opening chords. Normally the song was played on an electric guitar, or rather, several guitars with the opening notes being played on base, but Phantom only had an acoustic.
The chords rang out over the rooftop, and Phantom missed his cue. She shot him a glare and repeated the chord.
And instead of gearing up for a fight, Phantom opened his mouth and started singing. "Tommy used to work on the docks…" Ember bit back a scoff into just a huff as he strained his voice to hit notes way outside his vocal range instead of keeping it where it was natural. He didn't notice at all, not over the guitar and his own caterwauling. "Unions been on strike. He's down on his luck, it's tough…" Phantom tried to add vibrato to his voice, not quite hitting it right. "So tough…"
Ember rolled her neck and looked up at Phantom, catching sight of his eyes. He was watching Ember's hand as her fingers danced along the guitar's neck, focused on wherever the music was taking him, not on her in front of him. That gave Ember some time to actually look at Phantom for a change. He continued singing, "Gina works the dinner all day, working for her man, she brings home her pay for love… For love…"
Ember smirked at him, which made him jump, as he remembered that she was the person in front of him. Before he could react beyond that, she took over. "We've got to hold on, to what we've got."
Immediately Phantom joined in with her. "It doesn't make a difference if we make it or not. We've got each other, and that's a lot for love. We'll give it a shot."
The acoustic version wasn't the high-energy version that Phantom had been trying to play earlier, but he still belted it out like he was the lead singer on stage. He stood up, and threw his head back. "Whoa, we're half way there!"
Ember was not one to be outdone and joined him. "Whoa, livin' on a prayer!"
He looked back at her, with a million-watt smile and held out his hand. "Take my hand, and we'll make it I swear!"
"Whoa," Ember answered, even as she bumped him with her hip. She couldn't take his hand right now, her hands were occupied. "Livin' on a prayer!"
Ember played a bridge and Phantom settled down slightly. She looked up at him as he rubbed at some stubble around his chin. The action reminded her that he had seemed to age rapidly over the past few months. It had brought up some questions from Johnny and Kitty. Had he learned to shapeshift his age? Or did he finally hit that growth spurt growing into his dad's genes?
"Tommy got his six-string in hock," Ember continued as she observed him. A silvery line under his chin caught her eye, a scar she knew she had left on him. It was from years ago, from her. She remembered it clearly, 'cause it was this memory that she wanted to forget. It reminded her that he was human, not dead like her.
"Now he's holding in what he used to make it talk." The next words from him snapped her out of her thoughts and brought her back to the moment. She looked into Phantom's eyes, seeing him staring at her. She slowly lowered herself to actually stand on the ground, which only reminded her of another thing. He'd gotten taller.
"Gina dreams of running away," Phantom started, a few measures early. "When she cries in the night, Tommy whispers," Ember braced herself for him to belt out the next line, but instead, she had to strain to hear it, "baby it's okay."
The words had barely fumbled out of his mouth, weighed down with a thousand little things that gave all music weight. The energy he had seemed to bleed out of him. He started slapping one hand against his leg, and the other against his arm, adding percussion to Ember's guitar.
"We've got to hold on, to what we've got," the two of them sang together again, Ember's hair fluttering as the music reverberated through her. "It doesn't make a difference if we make it or not. We've got each other, and that's a lot for love." Phantom's eyes widened and he ducked his head, looking away from Ember. Blushing as apparently he realized now that he was singing a duet with Ember.
Ember rolled her eyes and bumped him with her hip again. "We'll give it a shot." She took a deep breath, which made Phantom jump before she threw her head back and belted out, "Whoa! We're halfway there!" Phantom's eyes twinkled with a smile as she put the same energy he had into the song.
It clashed horribly with the way she was playing, but it was fun.
"Whoa, livin' on a prayer!" She continued, glancing over at Phantom and trying to give him the same kind of blindingly bright smile he gave her earlier.
It must have worked because a matching smile spread out across his face. "Take my hand, we'll make it I swear!"
"Whoa, livin' on a prayer!"
Ember flew up in front of him and continued playing. "Oh, we've got to hold on, ready or not!" Phantom continued the percussion for her. "You live for the fight when it's all that you've got!"
"Whoa!" The two of them sang out at the top of their lungs, "we're halfway there!"
"Whoa!" Ember couldn't help but smirk as Phantom definitely woke up some people, "Livin' on a prayer!"
Not to be outdone, Ember followed suit. "Take my hand, we'll make it I swear!"
"Whoa-" Phantom tried to match her, but then wound up hacking up a lung.
Ember couldn't help it, she wanted to keep playing but instead, she broke out in a cackle. "Oh my GOD, dipstick, you ruined it! We had SUCH a good thing going here!"
Phantom rubbed the back of his head. "Sorry, sorry!"
Ember sighed dramatically and leaned back in the air, fainting like she was in a regency romance novel. "It's for the best, I'm sorry Baby Pop, but you are a terrible singer."
Phantom folded his arms and raised an eyebrow at her, though the smile betrayed any idea he was actually upset. "Well, excuse me princess, but it didn't seem to bother you any, Rockstar."
Ember chuckled and brushed her hair behind her ear. "You know… no it didn't."