Jazz grimaced as she walked down the sidewalk and to the park. As to why she was unhappy at the moment…
"Why am I the one who has to walk Cujo?" questioned the eldest Fenton child as she glared down at the happy ghost puppy on the other end of the leash. "He's Danny's dog!"
"Well your folks were busy and Danny's not here. So that just leaves you, I guess," replied Tucker with a shrug.
A groan escaped from Jazz while Sam and Valerie rolled their eyes.
"Can we not talk about dogs right now?" asked Johnny, who had a grimace of his own.
The human teens each raised an eyebrow in question before Sam turned to Kitty. "What's with him?"
Kitty merely rolled her eyes. "Oh he's just upset because he hasn't got any sleep."
"Ever since we learned about where Cujo came from, Kitty's had me searching the Ghost Zone for the rest of the Axion guard dogs," explained the biker ghost with a frown.
"I want to give those puppies a REAL home, Johnny," stated Kitty as she gave her boyfriend a look.
"But I need sleep!"
As the ghost couple continued to argue, the human teens could only let out sighs.
"I still can't believe these two are like this," stated Valerie, shaking her head.
"Why do you think Danny is friends with them? Compared to a lot of the other ghosts we've dealt with, Kitty and Johnny are harmless," replied Tucker with a smirk.
"If only some of the other ghosts were like that," added Sam as she thought of the likes of Skulker, Technus, and Ember.
It was then that Cujo's ears perked up, the puppy having sensed something.
"Arf, arf!" barked Cujo as he started to run further into the park. This of course meant he pulled Jazz with him since she was still holding onto his leash.
"Wah! Cujo! Slow down!" cried out Jazz, barely able to keep up.
The others quickly followed to make sure Jazz didn't get hurt. Luckily they didn't have to go to far as Cujo led the group to the park's fountain.
"Why did Cujo bring us here?" questioned Kitty, looking around.
Sam and Tucker knew. They've had to deal with this fountain multiple times before. Before they could warn the others though, a puff of smoke erupted before them and when it cleared it revealed a certain wish granting genie ghost.
When the genie opened her eyes and saw who was near her fountain, she frowned.
"Oh, it's you. What do you children want?" questioned Desiree, crossing her arms under her large bust.
Sam glared at the woman. "We didn't want anything from you, but if you're here then that must mean you're causing trouble like always."
"Or, you know, granting wishes with side effects," added Tucker, waving his hand in a "so-so" motion.
Desiree looked at her nails, not bothering to take these children seriously. "Uh-huh. If that's all you have to say, then leave. There are others who I'm sure would like to make a wish."
The Goth girl could feel her eye twitch in anger at being dismissed like that. "You want to grant a wish? Then grant this! I wish you were back in the Ghost Zone!"
A mixture of pride and smugness filled Sam at the moment, mainly because she was able to defeat one of the more troublesome ghosts all on her own and in record time. Except…
"Um, Sam?"
"What is it, Tucker?"
"There seems to be a problem."
When Sam opened her eyes, they widened in shock when she saw that Desiree was still there, looking at her with a bored look.
"Wh-What? But how?!"
"I'm confused. What was supposed to happen?" questioned Valerie.
"I'm actually just as confused," said Kitty. "Desiree here is supposed to grant ANY wish, no matter what, and can't refuse a wish. So how were you able to refuse Sam's wish, Desi?"
A look of content replaced Desiree's bored look. "I have Daniel to thank for that."
FLASHBACK
Desiree floated around the fountain, waiting for some unsuspecting fool to come and make a wish. Unfortunately for her, a certain phantom decided to make his appearance.
"Still trying to get in some wish fulfillment, Desiree?"
And there goes what little good mood she had left. She glared up at the white-haired boy, who looked back at her with a smirk.
"Leave, child. I have no time to deal with you."
"Now is that any way to treat someone who wants to make a wish," replied Danny, causing Desiree to tense up.
"I said leave!" snapped the genie, her glare becoming fiercer. She had an idea what his wish would be and she would NOT go back to the Ghost Zone. "I will NOT grant your wish!"
"Last time I check, you don't have a choice in that matter," stated the halfa. He saw how Desiree clenched her teeth in frustration. "Besides, this is a wish I should have made a long time ago."
Desiree wanted nothing more than to end Phantom's existence. "Just get it over with!"
"Alright then. Desiree, I wish you were no longer cursed to grant EVERY wish and could CHOOSE which wishes to grant."
Red eyes widened in surprise as Desiree's body glowed with a bright light. When the light faded, she looked herself over before looking back at Danny.
"I guess we now test to see if it worked," said the boy as he pulled out the familiar thermos, making Desiree go tense again. "I wish you'd get into the thermos!"
Desiree flinched back, clenching her eyes shut. When she didn't feel the usual "urge" that came when someone made a wish, her eyes snapped opened to find that she was in the same spot she was with Phantom still floating across from her.
She watched as he rubbed the back of his head in nervousness. "Like I said, I should have made that wish a long time ago, but when you're fourteen and still learning how to be a hero you tend to overlook things. The point is you shouldn't have to be a prisoner to your own powers."
She could feel herself tremble and her vision get blurry due the oncoming tears. She then shot over to where Phantom was and brought him into an embrace.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you," repeated Desiree as she cried into his shoulder.
"You're welcome, Desiree," he replied as he rubbed her back in comfort.
FLASHBACK END
The humans and Johnny couldn't believe what they just heard, if their dropped jaws were any indication. Kitty on the other hand was bouncing in happiness.
"Aww! That was so sweet of Danny!" squeaked out the biker chick, her eyes sparkling.
"Yeah, real…sweet," said Sam through clenched teeth. She was angry because Danny never mentioned this and jealous because this woman HUGGED Danny!
"Why does Danny have all the luck?" questioned Tucker, with Johnny nodding in agreement. This earned them glares from Sam, Valerie, and Kitty, while Jazz rolled her eyes.
Jazz turned back to Desiree. "So does that mean you're not an enemy of my little brother anymore?"
"Correct, child," replied Desiree with a smile, ignoring the pout she got from Jazz. "I owe everything to Daniel for freeing from my curse. Speaking of Daniel, I should visit him soon and see if he's doing well. I haven't seen him flying around like he usually does."
"Danny's not here. He went on vacation recently to get away from the vultures," said Kitty, making it her turn to get glares from Sam and Valerie.
Desiree frowned at this. "I see. Daniel has told me before how those people have been bothering him. I offered to get rid of them for him, but he declined saying that he didn't want to take advantage of my magic to solve his problems."
"Sounds like something Danny would say," replied Jazz, proud of her little brother.
"Out of curiosity, do you happen to know where Daniel is at the moment?" asked the genie.
Before Sam could snap and tell her no, Tucker's phone went off.
"Now we do," said the tech geek as he opened his phone. Everyone gathered around as he opened the message from Danny.
Still enjoying my vacation and I recently even got to walk amongst the stars.
The set of photos that he had sent showcased the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Venice Beach, Santa Monica Pier, Griffith Observatory, the Hollywood Sign, and the Hollywood Bowl.
"Aw man! He went to Los Angeles?!" exclaimed Johnny. "Do you know how many hotties are there?!"
This of course earned him a punch to the arm and a glare from Kitty.
"Danny's not a horn dog like you are!" hissed out the biker chick, while her boyfriend rubbed his sore arm. "He's actually interested in the history and landmarks!"
"This Los Angeles looks quite nice," said Desiree as she looked over the photos.
"You should see some of the other places Danny has been to so far," stated Jazz, peaking the genie's curiosity.
Kitty gave Johnny one last glare before turning to Desiree. "But before that, I have a favor to ask, Desi!"
"…That all depends on what that favor is, Kitty," replied the genie, glancing at the younger woman.
The biker chick bent down to pick up the little green fuzzball of the group and showed him to Desiree.
"This little cutie is Cujo! He used to be a guard dog at Axion Labs along with a bunch of other dogs before they were unnecessarily put down," explained Kitty as Cujo panted and wagged his tail happily.
"And you want me to bring the ghosts of the other dogs here, is that correct?" asked Desiree, having a feeling that was where this was leading.
"Yes, please!" beamed the green-haired girl. The others glanced at each other, wondering if this was a bad idea.
Desiree merely shook her head in amusement. "You know the words that must be spoken."
"I wish the ghosts of the Axion Labs guard dogs were here right now so I can give them a proper home!"
"So you have wished it, so it shall be!" said Desiree as she worked her magic.
In a puff of smoke, a dozen ghosts dogs had appeared, with all of them wearing Axion Labs dog tag. Upon seeing the other dogs, Cujo wanted down, to which Kitty complied. She couldn't help but giggle when Cujo started to play with the other puppies.
"Aww! He's happy to see his family again!" squeaked out Kitty, her eyes sparkling at the sight.
"Uh, Kitten? Where exactly were you planning on keeping all of them?" asked Johnny, knowing he wasn't going to like the answer.
"With us, of course. I did say I was going to give them a proper home."
"But I thought you meant you were going to find people to adopt them!"
"Oh shush, Johnny. We have more than enough room to keep Cujo's family. This way, Cujo can always come over for play dates!"
Johnny could only groan as Kitty led the dogs and puppies towards Fenton Works where the Ghost Portal was. The others, Desiree included, followed after with the genie wanting to learn more about the places Danny had visited.
Jazz just hoped her parents wouldn't freak when they come back with a few more ghost than they left with.
INTERLUDE END
-:-
When I learned that Desiree is now labeled as a FORMER enemy of Danny's, I had to put her in the story at some point. I'll probably have her appear in other DP stories as well because of this.
And since I keep forgetting, I mentioned in an earlier AN that the city chapters are named after songs, so for those who ARE curious here's the soundtrack so far…
"New York Groove" (3:03) – Ace Frehley
"Turning Japanese" (3:45) – The Vapors
"The Paris Match" (3:47) – The Style Council
"London Calling" (3:20) – The Clash
"Vancouver Shakedown" (4:01) – Nazareth
"L.A. Woman" (7:51) – The Doors