Danny flew at high speeds towards his destination. He smiled as he heard the hustle and bustle of the big city. Some people might think he's weird to want to come here for a relaxing vacation, but this was a place he's always wanted to visit.
"Hello, New York City!" exclaimed the half-ghost boy before flying down for a landing.
Going invisible, he flew into an alleyway to transform back into his human half. Stepping out from the alley, he grinned.
"Time to hit the town!"
Walking down the sidewalk, and making sure not to bump into anyone, he made a mental checklist of all the landmarks he would need to visit.
'Let's see, there's the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, Rockefeller Center, Central Park, Times Square, and of course…'
It was then his stomach let out a growl. Letting out an embarrassed chuckle, he made his way over to a nearby hot dog vendor.
"One with everything please," he said as the vendor got started.
As he waited, a familiar voice spoke up that caused Danny to freeze in place.
"Hey mister! Give me three dogs with everything!"
Whipping his head around and looking down, he found a little girl who was pretty much a mini version of him.
"Danielle?"
It was the little one's turn to whip their head around and her blue eyes widened in surprise before she smiled at the sight of the one person she trusted above all others.
"Danny!" exclaimed the child as she glomped the older boy. "What are you doing here?!"
"I should be asking you that," replied Danny, reaching down to pat her on the head. "I'm actually on vacation."
"Oh," was the response he got. He watched as she looked around for something. "Does that mean the rest of your family is nearby?"
"Nope. It's just me, Danielle."
"If that's the case, can I hang out with you for awhile?"
Danny could tell just by looking at her eyes that she was lonely. He really wished she would just stop traveling the world and come home. She might not think it, but she did have family, a real family. Not whatever Vlad was.
"Sure thing, Danielle," replied Danny with a smile as he paid the vendor for the four hot dogs.
Giving two dogs to Danielle and holding the other two, the halfas went on their way, eating as they conversed.
"Never would have guessed I'd meet up with you in New York City of all places, Danielle," said Danny before taking a bite. "So why are you here anyway? Sightseeing?"
"I wanted to see a gorilla!"
The older halfa looked at the ghostling with a raised eyebrow. "A gorilla?"
Danielle nodded excitedly. "Yup! Like the one that climb that tall building!"
Danny could feel his mouth twitch, wanting to become a smile. So Dani must have heard of or even seen King Kong at some point, although it seemed that she didn't know the difference between reality and a movie. He'd have to fix that later. Right now though…
"Well I don't know about that, but I do know a place where you could see a gorilla."
The little one's eyes lit up as she followed the older halfa.
-:-
Danny had to grin as he watched the little one look at the primates in awe. He had taken Danielle to the Central Park Zoo, knowing that she would enjoy it.
"How come they're so small?" asked Danielle, looking up at Danny.
"Real gorillas don't get as big as you think, Dani. King Kong is just a movie character and not real," explained Danny.
"Aw, I was hoping to see a giant gorilla," she said with a pout.
Danny chuckled as he ruffled her hair. "What? Are these gorilla's not good enough?"
"I didn't say that," mumbled out the girl with a slight blush. She then turned back to Danny. "Can we see the other animals?"
"That's what a zoo is for, isn't it?"
A few hours later, the two left the zoo and walked through the park, with Danielle talking adamantly about all of the animals they saw.
Danny smiled as he listened to her excitement, but the good times had to end when a wisp of blue came out of their mouths.
"Just great," said Danny, pinching his nose in frustration.
"Hey, we can take 'em!" stated Danielle, ready for a fight.
"I was hoping to enjoy my vacation," stated Danny. He then gave Danielle a look. "And we're not going to just rush in. We're technically in unfamiliar territory, so who knows what we'll be up against. Just follow my lead and wait for my signal."
Danielle pouted, but followed Danny anyway. They were lucky to find a place to transform away from prying eyes. Now in ghost mode, the two went in the direction their ghost sense pointed them to.
As they got closer they hid behind some trees when they found them. Peaking out from his hiding spot, Danny's eyes widened by what he saw. There were four ghosts. Three of them were dressed as old-school mobsters, with the short one in the middle the apparent leader, but they weren't what surprised Danny. It was the familiar fourth ghost.
I hope you realize that since you've come into my territory, girl, that you'll have to pay a fee of sorts, see," said the short mobster ghost in the stereotypical mobster accent coming from his fat lips.
Green eyes narrowed as blue flames flickered in agitation. "What the hell makes you think I'll give you any money, shorty?"
That must have been the wrong thing to say as shorty's thugs, who looked like they could be twins, aimed Tommy guns at the girl. Shorty then narrowed his own red eyes at the girl. "You want to hold a concert here in my city, you pay the price, McLain."
She grit her teeth in anger. She wanted to beat the ever afterliving hell out of these dipsticks, but she was pretty sure she wouldn't be able to dodge those ghost bullets of theirs without people chanting her name.
Before anything else could be said, a strong ecto blast collided with the mobsters, sending them crashing into the nearby trees.
"Didn't anyone ever tell you not to point guns at anyone?" taunted Danny as he floated in the air and glared down at the mobsters.
Ember's eyes widened in shock at seeing her enemy here of all places. "B-Baby-Pop?!"
He ignored her, keeping his focus on his opponents. He watched as they stood and the short one glared up at him. His two goons seemed to be scared though.
"B-Boss! Th-That's…"
"I know who it is, you idiots!" hissed out shorty. He glared up at Danny. "What are you doing in my territory, Phantom?!"
"Ah, so you've heard of me! Too bad I have no idea who you are," replied Danny with a taunting grin.
"They call me Louie the Lip and I want you out of my territory!" replied Louie with a growl.
"Last I checked the Big Apple was a public place that anyone could enjoy. So why a two-bit thug like you thinks he owns the entire city is beyond me."
It was clear that Louie was losing his temper. "Bugsy! Mugsy! Break his kneecaps!"
"Right, Boss!"
Before the two goons could fly up to Danny, they were shot down by more ecto blasts.
"Danny! I thought you said you'd give a signal!" squeaked out the mini Phantom as she glared at the original.
Ember had a blank look on her face as she watched the scene. First Baby-Pop comes out of nowhere and picks a fight with Louie the Lip and now there's a baby version of Baby-Pop right before her eyes. What the hell was going on?!
The green-skinned mobsters looked at Danielle in curiosity.
"When did Phantom get a sidekick?" asked Bugsy.
"And why does she look like Phantom?" asked Mugsy.
"Never mind that, you idiots! Just get them!" yelled out Louie, angry that things weren't going his way.
Unfortunately for them, Danny was on a higher level. He was able to outmaneuver them and fight back with punches and kicks. Needless to say, they were losing.
"B-Boss, I think we need to get out of here," stated Mugsy, looking ready to fall over.
Gritting his teeth, Louie made a decision. "This ain't over, Phantom!"
With that, the mobsters escape, much to Danny's chagrin. With a sigh, he made his way over to the fiery-haired girl.
"You okay, Ember?" he asked, looking concerned.
She narrowed her eyes at him. "What are you doing here, Baby-Pop?"
"Glad to see you're doing fine, Ember," he replied in a deadpan tone.
"Answer the question, Baby-Pop! Why are you here and what's with the Mini-Pop?!" demanded Ember, pointing at Danielle. This caused the little one to pout.
"Believe it or not I'm here on vacation," replied Danny as he crossed his arms, giving Ember a look of suspicion. "Why are YOU here though? Louie mentioned something about a concert?"
The rock diva grit her teeth in frustration. Why did Baby-Pop have to be here? He'll ruin everything! "So what if I am?!"
"Ember, I might not have known you were here in New York, but if you're planning to brainwash people again I WILL stop you," stated Danny, looking serious. "I don't know why you even need to brainwash people in the first place considering how talented you are."
That caught Ember's attention. Baby-Pop thought she was talented? She felt her core increase in temperature. Unbeknownst to most people (aside from Kitty. Damn her curiosity!), Ember had a crush on the halfa before her. To hear him admit that she was talented made her happy. Of course she wasn't going to let him know that just yet.
She let out a huff. "Fine, if you must know I had planned on a world concert tour and New York was my first stop. And before you say anything, no, I was not planning on brainwashing anyone."
It was true, too. After the last few times she tried to brainwash people and losing to Baby-Pop, Ember was fed up with it. Every time she tried, Baby-Pop would ruin it. So she figured if she tried to perform legitimately, maybe she could achieve her dream for real. She just hoped Baby-Pop would believe her.
"A concert? Danny, can we go see it? Please? Please?" asked Danielle, turning towards her current guardian.
Danny had a blank look on his face as he watched his little clone bounce up and down in excitement. "I don't know, Danielle…"
"But Danny!"
"…Okay, seriously, what's with the Mini-Pop, Baby-Pop? And don't avoid the question this time!" yelled out Ember, giving the boy a narrowed look.
He pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. "I'll…I'll explain later. Right now, it's starting to get dark and I need to find a hotel for Danielle and I to stay at."
"I get to stay at a hotel? I usually have to find a bench or an alleyway for the night!"
The two ghostly teens looked at the ghostly pre-teen with wide eyes before Danny scooped her up and held her under his arm like a sack of potatoes as he started to walk away. "Definitely need to find a hotel."
"Hold up, Baby-Pop!" called out Ember, following after them.
"Not now, Ember."
She merely rolled her eyes. "If you need a place to stay, I've already got a room."
He looked over and gave her a suspicious look. "You're offering us your room?"
"That's right," replied the rock diva. "You did scare off Louie for a bit, so it's the least I can do. Besides, if what Mini-Pop said was true, there's no way I'm allowing that to happen."
"What's this? Ember McLain showing compassion for someone else?" questioned Danny with a teasing grin.
She glared at him, but the slight blush diminished the threat. "Even I'm not heartless enough to let a kid sleep in the cold, Baby-Pop!"
"Yeah, yeah…Thanks, Ember."
"No problem. Now follow me."
Doing as he was told, he followed after Ember while trying to keep Danielle from squirming.
-:-
The next morning, Danny let out a yawn as he stretched out the kinks in his body. Despite how big Ember's room was it still only had one bed, meaning he slept on the couch. He was fine with this, considering he wasn't going to force Ember to give up her bed.
He looked over at the other couch where Danielle was still sleeping, curled up under the blankets. He couldn't help but smile, although he then frowned when he realized this was probably the first proper night's sleep she had in awhile. Hopefully she'd stick with him until the very end so he can keep watching over her.
Standing up, he walked over towards the phone. He and the others needed breakfast.
"Hello, room service? I'd like to place a breakfast order."
Meanwhile in the master bedroom, Ember let out a moan as she sat up in her bed. Rubbing her eyes, she thought back to the events of last night. Was that all a dream? Was Baby-Pop really here in New York and staying with her?
"Knowing my luck, it was a dream," muttered Ember to herself with a slight pout.
Getting out of bed, she put on a robe and headed out to the living room…only to find Baby-Pop accepting a cart of food from a waiter.
"Morning, Ember," said Danny, before turning back to the waiter.
Ember's eye twitched in anger. Did this idiot just order room service on her dime?! Yeah, she could afford it, but that's beside the point, damn it!
"Baby-Pop!"
"Yes, Ember?" questioned Danny as he signed something and sent the wait on his way.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" she demanded, her hair rising in anger.
"I ordered the three of us breakfast," replied the halfa as if it were obvious. "I even paid for it."
Ember blinked in confusion. "Wait, YOU paid for it?"
"Well, yeah," said Danny with a shrug. "I wasn't going to charge it to your hotel bill when I can pay for it myself."
He held up a piece of plastic. Ember looked at the black card with a blank look as she took in the "DP" symbol on it.
"…Really? You have your own credit card?" questioned the girl with a deadpan tone.
She was surprised when Danny grimaced. "Trust me, I didn't want it to begin with."
"Then why the hell do you have it in the first place?"
"…Ever since I revealed my identity to the world, Phantom merchandise became a thing and I was more or less rolling in the dough."
"Oh poor you," replied Ember, sarcasm front and center.
He glared at her. "Hey, unlike you I don't like being in the spotlight! Anyway, with all of the money I was making, I originally wanted to just donate it all to various charities, but my mom convinced me to keep at least half of my earnings in an account just in case I ever needed it."
"…So how much money do you actually have?"
"More than enough to support myself through life, I guess. I'd rather not be rich, if I'm honest."
"Why would you NOT want to be rich?" questioned the diva, looking at him with wide eyes. Everyone she knew would love to be loaded!
"Trust me, being rich is not what it's cracked up to be," he muttered out, a certain memory coming to mind. "Not only that, but I have this annoying admirer back home who would only cling to me more than she already does if she knew I was rich."
Ember could feel annoyance, anger, and jealousy build up in her. If she ever met this "admirer" she's knocking out some teeth!
"Mm, what smells so good?" asked a tired voice.
The two teens looked over to find a tired Danielle looking at them over the couch. She was currently rubbing the sleep sand out of her eyes.
"That would be breakfast, Danielle," replied Danny with a smile. He then took off the coverings from the plates. "Let's dig in!"
Ember and Danielle stared wide-eyed at the food consisting of bacon, eggs, hash browns, toast, sausage, and a pitcher of orange juice. It was pretty nice looking spread.
"You sure know how to treat a girl, don't you, Baby-Pop?" asked Ember with a slight grin.
Danny merely rolled his eyes as he set the plates on the table. The three then began to eat, although the two older ghosts had to keep the little one from inhaling her food.
-:-
Elsewhere, Louie the Lip was scowling in anger as he threw darts at a picture of Danny Phantom that was taped to a dartboard.
"So what are we going to do, Boss?" asked Bugsy.
"Yeah, how are we going to get the money if Phantom is here?" asked Mugsy.
"You leave that to me, boys. If McLain thinks she can hide from us behind Phantom, she has another thing coming," replied Louie as he threw a dart.
It hit the mark right in the middle of Danny's eye.
TO BE CONTINUED
-:-
First stop on the vacation is New York City, where Danny has met up with both Danielle and Ember. Unfortunately, Danny will have to deal with a mobster trying to extort money from the rock diva.
As for Ember's feelings for Danny in this, unlike in "A Phantom and His Baby Girl" where Danny outright doesn't trust Ember, he'll be on more friendly terms with her here.