A/N Oh my world I am SO EXCITED, WE'VE ARRIVED AT MY FAVORITE CHAPTER OF THE STORY! Words cannot express how excited I am for this chapter, and that's saying something considering how ecstatic I was for the last chapter. I could possibly break down every section of this chapter and go into a separate 30 minute rant for each one on what I was thinking as I wrote it. Despite being pretty long, I actually was able to write this whole chapter in one day. I basically dedicated a full non stop day to writing this chapter and it was so much fun. I'll have a lot more to say at the end, so for now I just hope all of you love it as much as me, and please remember to leave a REVIEW afterwards, I'm so anxious to know what you all think about this chapter.
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December 31, 2004
Ember was slowly stirring awake after a good night of sleep. She and Danny had spent a lot of time together the night before and had ended it with a pretty intense make out session before ending up snuggled together like they had done during the two nights Danny had stayed with her in her realm. A little while after they had snuggled together on her bed they both fell asleep in complete happiness holding onto each other. Now Ember was stirring awake and was disappointed that Danny didn't appear to be there anymore. At some point he must have woken up and had to go home, the curse of being a teenager.
"Damn it, I've already been spoiled and want to wake up with him every morning," said Ember to herself as she sat up and stretched, wishing she could still feel Danny's hands on her.
Standing up and pacing a bit back and forth while wishing Danny was still there, Ember noticed a piece of paper on her table that hadn't been there before. Walking over to the table she picked it up and read what the note said, instantly making her smile and very curious.
Ember,
I'm sure you know that if I could I would have stayed all night with you, I hate whenever we're apart. Unfortunately I have to get home before it gets too late otherwise I'll be in for a million questions, and the weird thing is they'll probably be mostly from my sister instead of my parents. Anyway, I can't wait to spend New Years with you tonight, but I'm going to need you to do me a huge favor and stay here until I come and get you later. I know this seems weird and suspicious, but just trust me, you will not regret it if you listen and wait for me. I love you and I can't wait to see you later.
Danny
Ember raised an eyebrow at her boyfriend's words, wondering what he was up to. She put a hand to her chin and rubbed it while she thought of things he might be planning for New Years, but couldn't think of anything that made sense. Although after the amazing gift he gave her for Christmas that was currently in a frame over her bed, she didn't have any problem listening to what he said and would wait for him. She'd just have to make it a day of rocking out on her guitar while she waited, maybe even practice Danny's song. Her own plan for that was coming up really soon.
"Okay Baby Pop, after what you did for Christmas, I'm very eager to see whatever you've got planned and how you're going to top it, but do your best," said Ember as she smiled at a picture of Danny that was on her nightstand. After Sam had destroyed the one she had back at her realm Danny had replaced it when she moved to this warehouse. And this new photo was of Danny with his new look so Ember liked it even more.
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Danny was waking up in his own room and as soon as he realized he was waking up his eyes shot open in excitement. Throwing the covers off of his body he quickly got up to get dressed, fired up for a busy day that would surely be one to remember forever. There wouldn't be any slacking off today, he had a lot to do and time was of the essence. Running downstairs he quickly got himself some breakfast, barely even saying good morning to his parents and Jazz as he shoveled his cereal into his mouth.
"Um, Danny, everything okay over there?" asked Jazz as Danny picked up his bowl to drink the milk from it.
"All good Jazz, just have a lot to do today and need to get going," said Danny rushing his bowl to the sink.
"Sweetie, you've been going out a lot with your friends lately, I feel like we barely even see you anymore," said Maddie with a bit of a pout. Winter break was going to be over soon and she felt like she'd barely even seen her son during the whole thing.
'Yeah, because he's too busy wanting to make out with Ember for eight hours a day,' thought Jazz in her head while smirking.
"Well, ghost attacks have been down all month so it's been a great time for my friends and I to get out more and have fun without danger," said Danny, not entirely a lie. "Actually I wanted to ask if it'd be okay if I stayed at Tucker's house tonight? We're gonna be partying all the way until midnight and beyond."
Maddie pouted a bit in her head at Danny's request. She had suspicions that Danny had been spending time not so much with his friends, but with a girl. He seemed way too happy and eager to go out all the time now, and teenage boys weren't exactly the best at being subtle about things.
"Danny, any chance all this going out you've been doing lately is because you're seeing a girl?" asked Maddie cautiously. She knew questioning teenagers about dating was a pretty touchy subject.
Danny flinched a bit at the question, but only slightly. The only one that actually knew about him having a girlfriend was Jazz, and in Danny's mind that's as far as her knowledge went. He'd intentionally been keeping his relationship a secret from his parents because he didn't want to go through awkward conversations about it, and that was without factoring in that Ember was a ghost and they were ghost hunters. Now what was he going to say with him mom actually asking about it?
"What, me, no of course not?" said Danny, overselling it with his tone. "I'm just enjoying the holiday with Tucker and Sam, that's all."
Jazz, who knew so much more than she let on, was now narrowing her eyes at her brother's lies. While she wasn't going to confront him about them, she knew for some reason that Danny had not been hanging out with Sam lately. In fact she hadn't even seen or heard from Sam in weeks, and that was something she was curious about herself. She figured something must have happened along the way and Danny's relationship with Ember was the source of it. But as long as nothing dangerous happened she didn't see the need to stick her nose in, regardless of how bad she wanted to, and she REALLY wanted to.
"Well sweetie, if you did have a girlfriend I hope you wouldn't keep it a secret from us, because we'd love to meet her," said Maddie softly, not wanting to overstep and freak out Danny. Unfortunately she didn't know how delicate the situation was.
"Um, yeah, of course I would introduce my girlfriend to you if I actually had one," Danny lied again. The odds of him willingly introducing his ghost girlfriend to his ghost hunting parents were not exactly high. "So, back to my original question, can I stay at Tucker's house tonight for New Years?"
Maddie was pretty sure Danny wasn't telling her everything and it made her feel sad about their relationship, but she just sighed in defeat for now.
"Okay honey, I guess that's okay, I'll call Mr. Foley and let him know I said it was fine," said Maddie picking up the phone. Danny quickly turned his head.
"Wait, um, no don't do that, Tucker hasn't run it by his dad yet so, you know, wait until he calls here in a little bit," said Danny pointing his fingers all over awkwardly.
Jazz wasn't falling for any of this, she could see right through Danny's bad cover up. As Danny ran out of the room and back upstairs to his room to grab his things, Jazz walked to the front door and waited for him with her arms crossed. Sure enough Danny came back downstairs minutes later with his backpack, about to charge out the door.
"So, sleep over at Tucker's house tonight?" said Jazz with emphasis on Tucker.
"What, Tucker and I have been having sleep overs for years, what's with the third degree?" asked Danny, wanting to get out of here quickly before Jazz could interrogate him.
"Danny, I love you and care about you, so I'll just say this. If you're really going to stay at "Tucker's" house tonight, just be cautious of any decisions the two of you make. You don't want to play with fire," said Jazz with air quotes, intentionally being very vague with her last few words.
It was killing her to not confront Danny more on the subject because she was more than confident what he was really up to. If not for her psychology obsession she'd probably have cracked like an egg under a brick already. Even though she supported his relationship, she absolutely did NOT support him spending a night with Ember. But if she tried to stop it he'd most likely just use his ghost powers to do it anyway, so trying to prevent it seemed like a moot point. At least she could try to give him some good advice so he wouldn't do anything stupid. Danny however was in such a hurry to get going he barely even listened to anything she said.
"Yeah, got it Jazz, safety first and all that, we'll be fine, gotta go," said Danny as he rushed past his sister and out the door.
Jazz watched Danny run down the sidewalk for a bit before closing the door behind him.
"Please just don't do anything careless Danny," said Jazz to herself as she walked back into the kitchen.
Meanwhile Danny had ducked into his usual alley to go ghost before he flew into the sky and towards the public park, still excited about how cool his new look was and eager to show it around town. Arriving only minutes later he met up with a few guys that quickly started to go to work on setting up for a big night. Watching them go to work and making quick progress like he'd hoped, Danny flew off again for the next objective. Flying through the city he came to a print store and went inside still as his ghost self, picking up a few large boxes that he quickly carried out of the store and back into the sky. He'd been able to use his hero status to convince the store to give him a good deal and convince them that it was for a good cause. While flying over the city he would grab pieces of paper a few at a time and drop them down to the crowds below. Lots of people were already out and getting ready for their own New Years party, but as Danny was dropping pieces of paper all over and the citizens were taking notice, their plans were rapidly changing. During this time though Danny ended up getting a visit from someone that annoyed him to no end. While he wasn't watching a blue figure in overalls swooped by him and grabbed the boxes from his hand.
"Ah ha ha, beware, for I am the Box Ghost, and I have come to claim the contents of these cardboard containers that you are discarding to the ground below," said the Box Ghost while holding the boxes over his head.
Danny just rolled his eyes and pinched them with his fingers, in no mood for this right now.
"Oh good grief, can't you go bother someone else right now, I'm really busy?" said Danny crossing his arms. The Box Ghost just grinned in what he thought was a malicious way.
"There will not be time to be busy once you have finished suffering my wrath," said the Box Ghost dramatically. "For no mere mortal can resist my..."
Danny didn't give him the opportunity to finish his drawn out speech, using a single finger to zap him with a small ecto ray. Before the boxes could fall to the ground Danny quickly moved forward to grab them, looking at the Box Ghost as he finished stumbling backwards in the air.
"I will give you these boxes later when they are empty if you will leave right now and stop bothering me," said Danny, saying whatever he felt would end this quickly.
"Ahhhh, two mere boxes are not enough to buy me, the Box Ghost, from..."
Danny once again wasn't in a mood to listen, and since it seemed he wasn't going to just leave he zapped him with a bigger ecto ray, sending him off into the distance.
"Just hearing his voice gives me a headache," said Danny gripping his white and blue hair. Shaking his head for a moment he went back to what he was doing, grabbing another handful of papers in the box and dropping them to the citizens below.
One of the citizens among the crowd as Danny was flying overhead just so happened to be Sam. Danny was so focused on spreading his announcement all over town that he didn't even notice her. Once Sam noticed him and realized what he was doing she reached into the air to grab one of the pieces of paper he was dropping and took a look at it, almost blowing her head off her shoulders when she read it.
"ARE YOU SERIOUS?" Sam shouted as she crushed the paper in her hands and grinding her teeth, attracting quite a few looks from others in the process. Looking back up towards Danny she suddenly realized he looked different, causing her to squint to try to see better, but he was pretty high in the air. "What happened to his suit?"
A couple others that were nearby had heard her shout to herself and were now staring.
"Um, are you okay young lady?" asked one woman trying to make eye contact with Sam.
Realizing people were looking she quickly tried to save face with a big fake smile.
"Um, yes I'm okay, just seems like a waste of paper is all, could have been more eco friendly," said Sam gesturing to all the pieces of paper that were blowing around the citizens, all of whom looked rather excited when they saw what was on them.
As Danny kept spreading the word all over town he felt his cell phone ring in his suit. Landing on top of a nearby roof he pulled it out to answer, having a quick conversation with whoever was on the other line.
"Okay, that all sounds great, and you'll be here by nine?" said Danny happily. "Excellent, I'll see you then and we'll go over everything."
Hanging up the phone Danny kept spreading the word until he ran out of paper to drop, hoping word of mouth would keep spreading the message to anyone that didn't see yet. He did keep one piece of paper for himself as he started heading in the direction of Tucker's house, fazing into his bedroom to find his best friend talking to himself in the mirror.
"Well it looks like it's your lucky day girl, because now you get to kiss Tucker Foley at midnight on New Years," said Tucker while pointing to his reflection, not seeing Danny to his side yet.
Danny was trying to keep his guts from exploding as he suppressed his laughter.
"Pucker up gorgeous, the clock is about to strike midnight," said Tucker to his reflection again, leaning in to kiss the mirror. Danny couldn't hold it in anymore.
"Holy crap I think I'm dying," said Danny loudly as he shrieked with laughter, holding his side and falling to his knees. Tucker almost had a heart attack as he turned to see his best friend rolling on the ground laughing at his expense.
"Dude, what the hell, don't you know a guy's bedroom is supposed to be his private sanctuary," said Tucker completely embarrassed and frowning at Danny.
Danny still wasn't able to stop himself from laughing even thought Tucker looked like he was about ready to punch him in the face. Thankfully he didn't actually do anything of the sorts and just glared in way that meant he hoped he'd hit his head later.
"Suddenly I don't know if I'm in the mood to help you out tonight," said Tucker, which quickly helped Danny find his breath and stop laughing, standing back up and taking a few deep breathes to compose himself. This caused Tucker to notice Danny's new look for the first time. "Wow, what happened to your suit?"
"It was a Christmas wish from Ember courtesy of Desiree, and I think it looks totally awesome," said Danny opening his arms wide to show off his new look. "And sorry about sneaking in, I really am, I should have said something as soon as I came in. But I really do need your help with everything tonight," said Danny as he gave Tucker the piece of paper so he could look at it.
Tucker gave it a good once over before looking back at Danny, smiling lightly.
"Alright fine, I'll cover for you with everything," said Tucker as he and Danny gave each other a bro shake.
"Okay, with that in mind I'll be right back," said Danny as he fazed out of Tucker's room and somewhere downstairs.
While he waited Tucker looked back at the paper once more and at his reflection.
"Don't worry handsome, your day will come when all the girls recognize your suave," said Tucker winking at his reflection.
About five minutes later Danny was fazing back into the bedroom and looking pretty pleased with himself.
"All done, I overshadowed your dad to call my mom so as long as nothing bad happens I should be in the clear until tomorrow morning," said Danny smiling while Tucker nodded. "Okay, I gotta head back to make sure everything gets set up before it's time to pick up Ember later. Wish me luck Tuck."
Tucker gave his best friend a thumbs up as he fazed out of his room to head back outside, happy to be able to help his best friend out and looking forward to what was coming in a handful of hours.
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Ember had spent the last several hours having a blast jamming out on her guitar and giving herself a manicure, making her sharp purple nails really shine. She was however really starting to get annoyed waiting for her boyfriend to come pick her up for whatever New Years surprise he had cooked up. But she said she would wait so she was staying put, even if she hated being told what to do. Looking at the clock that Danny had brought her she saw that it was about 9 pm, only three hours until midnight. As much as she loved shredding her guitar she could only do it for so long while wondering what was taking Danny so long to come get her. Thankfully it seemed her waiting was at an end as Danny was at that moment fazing into the warehouse, finding Ember with crossed arms and a curious smile.
"I was beginning to wonder if you were going to leave me here all night Dipstick, don't suppose you're going to tell me what's going on out there are you?" asked Ember, pretty sure he wasn't going to say anything.
"Not a chance gorgeous, you're just going to have to come with me and find out for yourself," said Danny smirking back as he lowered himself down to her so they could embrace.
"Well first I need to make sure you understand what a bad idea it is to keep a girl waiting all day," said Ember as she grabbed Danny by the logo now on his chest and flipped him over her head, slamming him down on the bed.
Quickly hopping on top of the bed to straddle him, Ember grabbed his hands and pinned them over Danny's head, who was not resisting.
"Guess I'm completely at your mercy once again aren't I?" said Danny getting pretty excited.
Ember smiled down and slowly started to lower her lips towards Danny's, making him eager to taste them once again. But this time around she had other plans and stopped just shy of making contact with them. Danny had closed his eyes in anticipation of Ember kissing him, but when he suddenly didn't feel anything he opened them again wondering what was going on. All he saw was Ember smirking about an inch away from his face.
"Oh, I'm sorry, were you under the impression that you would be rewarded for making me wait all day?" said Ember smirking just out of reach of his lips. "Silly Dipstick, only boyfriends that are good to their girlfriends get that kind of reward."
With that little tease Ember made sure to press her hips hard against Danny's body before she floated off of him, and boy did he feel it and it left him wanting so much more. To him that was cruel and unusual.
"That is so low to pull something like that, you're lucky I love you," said Danny while swinging his legs off the bed, his body now very uncomfortable since it was craving every bit of hers.
"Well let that be a lesson to you in keeping me waiting for now on," said Ember running her finger down Danny's chest, tracing the flame that now sat on it.
"Noted, but right now I have somewhere I need to get you, so we better get going," said Danny grabbing her hand as she slung her guitar over her back.
"Alright Baby Pop, let's see whatever this big thing of yours is," said Ember as the two of them took off out of the warehouse.
Flying overhead they could hear the sound of people setting off fireworks prematurely even though midnight was still a few hours away. Ember looked down at the town and noticed that the streets seemed pretty empty, hardly anyone was out and about at all celebrating. But as they kept flying towards wherever they were going she thought she could hear the sound of a loud crowd, screaming for something. Looking straight ahead it seemed Danny was taking her towards the city park, and a huge crowd seemed to be gathering in it. Once they cleared the trees at the edge of the park they got a perfect view of the entire setting, and what Ember saw almost made her lose all feeling in her body.
"Why...why is there a stage set up in the park?" asked Ember with wide eyes, wondering if this was going where she thought it was. Looking at Danny, he looked back at her with a small smile.
"You're the headliner tonight for Amity Park in the countdown to midnight," said Danny as he pulled out a piece of paper from his suit's pocket and handed it to Ember.
Ember took the paper and unfolded it, and almost shrieked when she read what was on it. It was a picture of her with a rock and roll like pose strumming her guitar. Sparks and flames were surrounding her in the flyer, and the caption at the top of the page was announcing a special one night only event.
TONIGHT, EMBER MCLAIN ROCKS IN THE NEW YEAR FOR AMITY PARK, FREE ADMISSION
Ember looked at Danny in shock, wondering if this was all a dream and someone was going to cruelly wake her up. Somehow he had set it up so that she would get to play a concert for New Years Eve, and she was currently speechless. Down below several people were slowly starting to take notice of the two in the sky, pointing and slowly starting to cheer, which was getting louder by the second. Ember looked from side to side at all the citizens down below that were starting to cheer, most of them college students or younger.
"EMBER EMBER EMBER EMBER EMBER," the entire crowd started chanting as they noticed she was there with Danny. Ember instantly started to feel her body grow stronger as it glowed, her strength and power rising with the chanting of the crowd as well as her hair roaring on top of her head. Among them was Jazz who had heard about this like everyone else and got pretty excited about it.
"I don't know how you pulled this off so quickly Danny, but I'm really excited for whatever is about to happen," said Jazz to herself while looking up at her brother and his girlfriend, pumping her fists with the rest of the crowd.
However there were also a couple individuals that weren't as happy as everyone else scattered throughout the crowd.
"Why won't my precious ghost boy realize that Ember girl is not good enough for him, he should be holding me up in the sky with him and everyone should be cheering for us," said Paulina to herself sadly while holding her heart, but the crowd was too loud for anyone to hear her.
One other girl had also come by and was looking at the two ghosts through a pair of binoculars, and was horrified by what she was seeing.
"His suit, it looks...more like her now, and his chest, that logo," stuttered Sam while zeroed in on Danny's new look. The new D on his chest with the blue flame around it along with the blue outlines with the white areas and the blue accents in his hair. Sam was trying to form her thoughts as she took in Danny's new look, and she was having trouble processing it. She just couldn't believe that he had a completely different look that was clearly inspired by her greatest rival for his love.
But both Danny and Ember were completely oblivious to either of the girls down below that didn't look too happy because there were thousands others that were drowning them out, and Danny was making sure Ember took it all in.
"They can't wait to hear you perform, there's only one catch," said Danny as Ember looked at him. "No mind control, I know you can do this on your own, they're already chanting for you without it. Your bandmates are backstage waiting for you, so you'll have to put a playlist together fast that'll last until five minutes before midnight. Better do it quick so you don't keep all these fans waiting." Before Ember could say anything or react Danny leaned in and gave her a soft peck on the lips. "This is your night Ember."
When Danny leaned in to give Ember the quick kiss, several fans down below cheered even louder for the ghost couple. Seems they have quite a few supporters for their relationship minus Sam and Paulina. Ember was frozen in midair for a few moments as Danny flew away towards the stage, on the verge of tears. She had so many questions she couldn't process them all. How did he do this, how did he set it up, how did he spread the word, how did he keep her from finding out, how did he know her band mates, so many more. She had half a mind right now to blow this whole thing off and take Danny right back to the warehouse and give him the reward she'd just teased him with and so much more. But she needed to pull herself together right now, because this was her chance to be a real rock star without having to brainwash people. The chanting of the crowd was fueling her with newfound power and she was loving it, starting to get over the shock and smile down, raising her arms to encourage the crowd to keep getting loud.
"ALRIGHT AMITY PARK, HOPE YOU'RE READY TO ROCK OUT THE NIGHT, THE SHOW WILL BE STARTING IN TEN MINUTES," shouted Ember to the crowd before darting towards the stage, fazing through it to find her band mates in the back. "Alright boys, I don't know how this happened but I'll figure that out later. Let's put together a playlist quickly and get out there."
Danny watched from the side as Ember and her band quickly were discussing songs to play, both songs that were her own and songs that they knew from other bands she loved. As they were finishing up their discussion, Ember watched as her band mates went out ahead of her, the crowd starting to cheer loudly again as they took their places on stage. Ember gave a big smile and wink towards Danny as she heard the band start playing an extended intro to the first song, heavy on the guitar and drums.
Going intangible and flying through the stage, a puff of purple smoke suddenly appeared right in front of the microphone at the center of everything, letting Ember fly right into it and making herself solid again. Once the smoke cleared and everyone saw her, the cheering erupted once again as Ember took hold of the microphone.
"HELLO AMITY PARK, TELL ME WHO YOU LOVE," shouted Ember as the band kept playing behind her. While the crowd chanted loudly and pumped their fists into the air, Ember started strumming her guitar with the band. "NOW LET'S ROCK IN THE NEW YEAR."
YOU'VE HEARD ABOUT THE ROCK FOR SOME TIME, I KNOW
IT'S EASY TO DO WHEN YOU FEEL THE ROLL
MAKE YOU WANNA GET UP
MAKE YOU WANNA MOVE YOUR FEET
NO MATTER HOW IT'S DONE YOU KNOW IT CAN'T BE BEAT
AND I CAN'T STOP ROCKIN'
NO I CAN'T STOP ROCKIN'
WELL I CAN'T STOP ROCKIN'
BABY TILL I LOSE MY MIND
Ember was quickly and smoothly working her way into the hearts of the crowd who were cheering and fist pumping like crazy. She took a few seconds to step away and pose while strumming her guitar before stepping back to the mic with her hair raging out of control.
SOMEBODY SAID IT'S WRONG BUT I KNOW IT'S ALRIGHT
THEN IT REALLY HITS YOU LIKE A SHOT IN THE NIGHT
I'M NEVER GONNA STOP AS LONG AS I CAN STAY
LISTEN TO ME NOW, CAN'T YOU HEAR ME SAY
'CAUSE I CAN'T STOP ROCKIN'
NO I CAN'T STOP ROCKIN'
WELL I CAN'T STOP ROCKIN'
BABY TILL I LOSE MY MIND
Ember felt like she was somehow in a fantasy world as she stepped away from the microphone for the guitar solo, rocking her body and nodding her head with a huge grin on her face. While stepping in front of the microphone to walk out onto the catwalk area of the stage, people were reaching out hoping she'd touch their hands. She gave a pure rock and roll grin to everyone she walked past while hitting every note on her guitar, power flooding into her from the cheering. Making her way back to the microphone as the solo was ending she put her hand out to low five everyone she moved past. Recomposing herself quickly she got ready to bring the song home, all of it feeling so natural to her.
I LIKE TO WORK IT DOWN LOW
I LIKE TO WORK IT TO THE TOP
AND WHEN IT STARTS ROCKIN', I NEVER WANNA STOP
YOU GET YOURSELF LOOSE, GET YOURSELF HIGH
I LOVE TO FEEL THE MOTION AND I'M TELLIN' YOU WHY
'CAUSE I CAN'T STOP ROCKIN'
NO I CAN'T STOP ROCKIN'
NO I CAN'T STOP ROCKIN'
NO MATTER WHAT THEY D-D-D-D-DO OR SAY
YEAH
Ember was bringing the song to a close as she stepped away from the microphone and scooted over to her lead guitarist, both of them facing each other so they could play their guitars together for a few moments before she slid back over to finish up the song.
NO MATTER WHAT THEY D-D-D-D-DO OR SAY
NO, NO
CAN'T STOP ROCKIN'
NO MATTER WHAT THEY D-D-D-D-DO OR SAY
As the song came to an end and the music stopped, the crowd out in front of her was exploding with cheers, and Ember couldn't believe it. Her face was acting all on its own as her lips formed into a huge smile, just taking it all in. She wasn't even paying attention to all the power flowing into her from the audience or the bonfire on top of her head. She had a huge crowd cheering for her, and she didn't have to use mind control on any of them to make it happen. Her dream had come true, she was a true rock star.
While she was taking in the cheering and getting her composure back for the next song, Danny was off to the side of the stage watching her and smiling just as big. The person right behind him was enjoying it too.
"I gotta say, you weren't kidding when you told me about your girlfriend, I'm quite impressed," said the person nodding his head.
"She's just getting started, before this night is over she's going to blow the minds of everyone within a hundred miles," said Danny as he looked over his shoulder.
"I'll admit, when I first heard about her a couple months ago when that whole global concert thing was going on I was skeptical," said the man while watching Ember pump up the crowd. "Especially with how it just ended all of a sudden when that other kid started singing so terribly, made me think it was some kind of publicity stunt or such. But now I see she's the real deal."
Danny chuckled at how crazy it was having a girlfriend who he met while she was trying to take over the world, only to stop her thanks to Tucker's disastrous singing. All of that felt like a fake memory now considering where they were, but Danny was still glad it all happened, otherwise they probably wouldn't be here tonight. Now he got to watch as his amazingly beautiful girlfriend rocked out to a huge crowd just like she'd always wanted, and it was all legit.
Ember played a couple strums on her guitar before raising a fist to the crowd, encouraging them to keep cheering.
"LET ME HEAR YOU OUT THERE, GET LOUUUUUUUUUUUD," shouted Ember to the crowd as the next song started, this time one of her own.
For the next hour and a half Ember and her band kept shredding on stage, and the crowd kept cheering non stop. The whole time Ember felt like she was having an out of body experience because prior to tonight she never thought anything like this was possible without using her powers. It was as if she had overshadowed some other rock star and was performing in their place. Yet the whole crowd kept chanting her name throughout the night and her power kept rising higher and higher, but all of that was an afterthought compared to the feeling of finally achieving her lifelong dream.
Placing her guitar on a stand off to the side, she walked back to the microphone and took it out of the holder.
"Alright everyone, we're getting pretty close to midnight, less than thirty minutes to go," said Ember as she slowly walked out onto the catwalk. "So this next song I want to do has meant a lot to me for a very long time. It was the song I sang the first time I performed in front of people and ended up taking first place in a talent show. It's one of the most special memories of my life, and I'd like to share it all with you tonight."
As Ember finished talking, one of her band mates had moved to a grand piano on the side of the stage and started fingering the keys, giving Ember the que she needed.
AT FIRST I WAS AFRAID, I WAS PETRIFIED
KEPT THINKING I COULD NEVER LIVE WITHOUT YOU BY MY SIDE
BUT THEN I SPENT SO MANY NIGHTS THINKING HOW YOU DID ME WRONG
AND I GREW STRONG
AND I LEARNED HOW TO GET ALONG
AND SO YOU'RE BACK
FROM OUTER SPACE
I JUST WALKED IN TO FIND YOU HERE WITH THAT SAD LOOK UPON YOUR FACE
I SHOULD HAVE CHANGED THAT STUPID LOCK, I SHOULD HAVE MADE YOU LEAVE YOUR KEY
IF I'D KNOWN FOR JUST ONE SECOND YOU'D BE BACK TO BOTHER ME
GO ON NOW GO, WALK OUT THE DOOR
JUST TURN AROUND NOW
'CAUSE YOU'RE NOT WELCOME ANYMORE
WEREN'T YOU THE ONE WHO TRIED TO HURT ME WITH GOODBYE?
YOU THINK I'D CRUMBLE?
YOU THINK I'D LAY DOWN AND DIE?
OH NO NOT I, I WILL SURVIVE
OH, AS LONG AS I KNOW HOW TO LOVE, I KNOW I'LL STAY ALIVE
I'VE GOT ALL MY LIFE TO LIVE
AND I'VE GOT ALL MY LOVE TO GIVE AND I'LL SURVIVE
I WILL SURVIVE, HEY, HEY
As the song went to a musical break Ember lowered the microphone and smiled out to the crowd. Since she didn't have her guitar for this song she walked along the catwalk to touch the hands of her fans. As she was making her way through them she noticed a little girl, maybe eight or so years old, and she was wearing a blue wig and had her face painted just like hers. Ember stopped for a moment and looked at her, giving her a wink and a thumbs up to say how hardcore she thought she looked. With the musical break about to end Ember stood back up straight and brought the mic back to her lips, making hand gestures with her free hand to match the lyrics.
IT TOOK ALL THE STRENGTH I HAD NOT TO FALL APART
KEPT TRYING HARD TO MEND THE PIECES OF MY BROKEN HEART
AND I SPENT OH-SO MANY NIGHTS JUST FEELING SORRY FOR MYSELF
I USED TO CRY
BUT NOW I HOLD MY HEAD UP HIGH AND YOU SEE ME
SOMEBODY NEW
I'M NOT THAT CHAINED-UP LITTLE PERSON STILL IN LOVE WITH YOU
AND SO YOU FELT LIKE DROPPING IN AND JUST EXPECT ME TO BE FREE
WELL, NOW I'M SAVING ALL MY LOVIN' FOR SOMEONE WHO'S LOVING ME
GO ON NOW, GO, WALK OUT THE DOOR
JUST TURN AROUND NOW
'CAUSE YOU'RE NOT WELCOME ANYMORE
WEREN'T YOU THE ONE WHO TRIED TO BREAK ME WITH GOODBYE?
YOU THINK I'D CRUMBLE?
YOU THINK I'D LAY DOWN AND DIE?
OH NO NOT I, I WILL SURVIVE
OH, AS LONG AS I KNOW HOW TO LOVE, I KNOW I'LL STAY ALIVE
I'VE GOT ALL MY LIFE TO LIVE
AND I'VE GOT ALL MY LOVE TO GIVE AND I'LL SURVIVE
I WILL SURVIVE
OH
Ember bent her knees to lower herself to the ground as the stage got really quiet for a moment, preparing for the big finale of the song. Giving the same girl a quick look and grin, she jumped back to her feet to finish it.
GO ON NOW, GO, WALK OUT THE DOOR
JUST TURN AROUND NOW
'CAUSE YOU'RE NOT WELCOME ANYMORE
WEREN'T YOU THE ONE WHO TRIED TO BREAK ME WITH GOODBYE?
YOU THINK I'D CRUMBLE?
YOU THINK I'D LAY DOWN AND DIE?
OH NO NOT I, I WILL SURVIVE
OH, AS LONG AS I KNOW HOW TO LOVE, I KNOW I'LL STAY ALIVE
I'VE GOT ALL MY LIFE TO LIVE
AND I'VE GOT ALL MY LOVE TO GIVE AND I'LL SURVIVE
I WILL SURVIVE
I WILL SURVIVE
As the song got quieter and quieter, it was all replaced by more thunderous cheers from the crowd. Ember raised both of her hands and encouraged them all to get louder, and they did. Despite cheering non stop for almost two hours they were still crazy loud and excited. Ember looked to the little girl in the crowd and gestured for her to come up on stage with her. The little girl looked so shocked for a moment and hesitated before the fans around urged her forward, helping her up onto the stage. Ember put her hand up to ask the girl for a high five. Once she did Ember picked the girl up and put her on her shoulders, fist pumping the air and telling the girl to urge the crowd to keep cheering. Looking at the girl's face on her shoulders she looked like she was also living a dream just like Ember was, pumping her fists into the air with so much energy.
Ember lowered the girl back to the ground and got a surprise when she turned around to give her a big hug, which she slowly returned once she quickly got over the shock.
"I love you Ember, you're my favorite singer," said the little girl in the sweetest voice Ember had ever heard, almost bringing her to tears.
"What's your name little rock star?" asked Ember taking her hand.
"Ashley," said the little girl happily with a huge smile.
"Well Ashley, if there's one thing I've learned tonight, it's that no matter how out of reach your dreams might seem, they can come true," said Ember, too touched to even care that she wasn't in her usual hard core don't fuck with me attitude. "So follow your dreams Ashley."
"Thank you Ember, I will," said Ashley as she hugged her one more time before the crowd helped her back off the stage to where she had been standing.
Standing up straight Ember walked back off the catwalk towards the microphone stand, putting it back in the dock before going to retrieve her guitar again. But as she was walking back to the mic to play the next song, she got a surprise as Danny was also walking out towards her. She stopped at the mic and looked at him, silently asking what he was doing. Danny just walked up and took the mic out of the dock to address the crowd.
"Alright Amity Park, how have you been enjoying the night so far?" asked Danny, and the crowd responded with an eruption of cheers. "That's good to know, because it's time for the last big surprise of the night."
Ember looked at him with a confused look. Last big surprise? What else could there be that he hadn't already revealed to her.
"Now this is something that even Ember doesn't know is about to happen, so brace yourselves," said Danny, cautioning the crowd. "As you probably all know, the flyers around the city said at the bottom 'featuring surprise guest', well the one flyer I showed Ember earlier didn't have that on it, so she actually had no idea that someone else was going to be here tonight."
Ember's mouth slightly opened as she recapped what was on the flyer that Danny had showed her. She did not recall seeing anything about a surprise guest at the bottom, surely she'd have seen that had it been there. Had he intentionally made one of them different specifically to show her? Who was this so called surprise guest that was about to reveal him/herself? She was so distracted by Danny's words she didn't even notice that a second microphone stand was being set up beside hers.
BOOM
Ember heard the crowd gasping as the giant screen overhead was flashing something.
BOOM
Ember looked towards the screen but missed whatever it was showing.
BOOM
One more pound and the screen showed a giant black star on it, but she couldn't figure out what that was supposed to mean. Suddenly the crowd started erupting into cheers again as a new person started walking out onto the stage, and when Ember looked and saw him she almost dropped her guitar. The only reason it didn't fall is because of the strap around her shoulder. It was Paul Stanley.
Paul Stanley opened his arms towards the crowd to embrace their cheering while he walked towards Ember, smiling big to all of them with his white face paint and black star over his right eye. Stopping right beside Ember he took the microphone out of the dock and brought it to his lips.
"Good Evening Amity Park and happy New Years," shouted Paul while facing the crowd before looking at Ember, who was completely star struck. Ironic considering what was on his face. Turning back to the crowd he spoke again. "A few days ago I was visited in New York by a very unique individual who was there wanting to do something special for his girlfriend. As he told me her story and what he was planning to do for her, he mentioned how much she loved KISS and how much of an inspiration we've been to her. So naturally when he asked if I'd be willing to come to Amity Park and play a song with her, I thought how could I say no to that?
Ember's voice was practically shaking as she listened to what Danny had done and how her idol was standing mere feet beside her. Paul turned to face her again before continuing.
"Ember, all of this tonight is because of the boy that loves you more than anything, Danny Phantom," said Paul as he gestured over towards where Danny was standing, smiling at Ember lovingly. "You are one lucky girl to have someone that cares about you this much."
Ember let all thought fly out of her head right then and there. Taking off her guitar she placed it down and marched right over to Danny, not caring that who knows how many people were staring right at them. Grabbing his face she crushed her lips against his in a deep and passionate kiss, causing the whole crowd to cheer once again for the two of them, cameras also clicking away like crazy. While cheering along Jazz was also shaking her head with a grin.
"Oh Danny, you are going to have so much explaining to do when the time comes," she mumbled to herself while clapping.
Ember kept kissing Danny for several long moments, soaking up the cheers as she did so. Finally pulling her lips away from him she looked into his eyes deeply.
"I love you," she said longingly, to which Danny smiled and placed his hand over hers on his cheek.
"Alright, that's one thoughtful boyfriend wouldn't you say everyone," said Paul to the crowd as a stage assistant brought him his own guitar. "But now that I'm here there's only one thing left to do. We're gonna ROCK AND ROLL ALL NIGHT, AND PARTY EVERY DAY!"
With that the drummer started up the song as Ember snapped out of her daze, looking back towards the center of the stage where Paul was motioning for her to join him. With her mouth dropped open she quickly picked up her guitar as Paul started strumming his own like the legend he was. Putting her own guitar back over her shoulder Ember took her place at her own mic as Paul started singing.
YOU SHOW US EVERYTHING YOU'VE GOT
YOU KEEP ON DANCIN' AND THE ROOM GETS HOT
YOU DRIVE US WILD, WE'LL DRIVE YOU CRAZY
With a strum on his guitar during the short musical break, Paul gestured to Ember for her to take the next part. Putting her lips close to the mic Ember sang one of her all time favorite songs.
YOU SAY YOU WANNA GO FOR A SPIN
THE PARTY'S JUST BEGUN, WE'LL LET YOU IN
YOU DRIVE US WILD, WE'LL DRIVE YOU CRAZY
Looking back to Paul they both silently recognized the next part was for both of them, so they sang it together.
YOU KEEP ON SHOUTIN', YOU KEEP ON SHOUTIN'
Turning to grin at each other, Ember and Paul smiled as they sang together with perfect synchrony.
I...WANNA ROCK AND ROLL ALL NIGHT, AND PARTY EVERY DAY
I...WANNA ROCK AND ROLL ALL NIGHT, AND PARTY EVERY DAY
I...WANNA ROCK AND ROLL ALL NIGHT, AND PARTY EVERY DAY
I...WANNA ROCK AND ROLL ALL NIGHT, AND PARTY EVERY DAY
Both singers backed away from their mics to give a short strum on their guitars, Paul gesturing to Ember to take the first part of the next verse.
YOU KEEP ON SAYING YOU'LL BE MINE FOR A WHILE
YOU'RE LOOKIN' FANCY AND I LIKE YOU'RE STYLE
YOU DRIVE US WILD, WE'LL DRIVE YOU CRAZY
Looking over to Paul while she strummed her guitar once again, she gave him the opening to take the next part, which Paul did happily.
YOU SHOW US EVERYTHING YOU'VE GOT
BABY, BABY THAT'S QUITE A LOT
YOU DRIVE US WILD, WE'LL DRIVE YOU CRAZY
Ember stepped forward again so they could once more sing the best part together.
YOU KEEP ON SHOUTIN', YOU KEEP ON SHOUTIN'
I...WANNA ROCK AND ROLL ALL NIGHT, AND PARTY EVERY DAY
I...WANNA ROCK AND ROLL ALL NIGHT, AND PARTY EVERY DAY
I...WANNA ROCK AND ROLL ALL NIGHT, AND PARTY EVERY DAY
I...WANNA ROCK AND ROLL ALL NIGHT, AND PARTY EVERY DAY
Both rockers stepped out from behind their mics and walked out onto the catwalk together as the drummer set them up to melt the faces off everyone in the crowd. Paul went first by expertly strumming his guitar like he'd been doing for decades, shredding the first half of the guitar solo while arching his back to look straight up at the sky. During the short break in the solo he gestured to Ember to take the second half. Bending one of her knees she shredded the solo just as flawlessly as Paul, pointing her guitar neck straight up and flicking out her tongue just like Paul's partner Gene Simmons. Having a ghost tongue made it look extra hardcore.
Finishing the solo both of them strummed their guitars in sync once more as they made their way back to their mics, singing together one more time.
YOU KEEP ON SHOUTIN', YOU KEEP ON SHOUTIN'
I...WANNA ROCK AND ROLL ALL NIGHT, AND PARTY EVERY DAY
I...WANNA ROCK AND ROLL ALL NIGHT, AND PARTY EVERY DAY
I...WANNA ROCK AND ROLL ALL NIGHT, AND PARTY EVERY DAY
I...WANNA ROCK AND ROLL ALL NIGHT, AND PARTY EVERY DAY
With one last section to strum their guitars together, Ember and Paul turned to face each other and put their guitars up close while they finished out the song to thunderous cheers, the loudest of the night. Lowering their guitar picks the two rockers looked at each other for a few moments and smiled, amazed at how perfect they seemed to play together. Paul looked towards the crowd with one hand up before gesturing to Ember, encouraging them to keep cheering for her. Ember felt so much power flooding into her body she felt like she could take over the whole solar system right now if she still desired it, but those feelings had been long gone for months.
While Paul encouraged the crowd he took off his guitar to stand next to Ember, putting a hand around her shoulder as he took it all in.
"Thank you for having me Amity Park, it's been a blast, and I have a feeling this isn't the last time Ember and I will perform on stage together," said Paul as he waved goodbye to the crowd while walking off stage.
Ember joined in the applause for Paul as he left, waving back at her one more time before stopping next to Danny, who was also applauding wildly. Now having the stage to herself again, there was only about ten minutes left until midnight. Walking back to her microphone, Ember prepared for one last song, and there was only one she felt was appropriate for this moment.
"This has been one of the most surreal nights I've ever had, and I can still barely believe it's actually happening. We're about to hit midnight and enter 2005, and it's been the best year of my entire existence. So how about we finish the year with a song that ensures it'll be a night we'll always REMEMBER!"
With her last word the drummer and bass player started up a tune, setting Ember up for her signature song. The crowd recognized it and started screaming like crazy.
YEAH! OHHHHHHHHHH!
With a smooth strum of her guitar Ember began singing the song that almost helped her conquer the world.
IT WAS, IT WAS SEPTEMBER
WINDS BLOW, THE DEAD LEAVES FALL
TO YOU, I DID SURRENDER
TWO WEEKS, YOU DIDN'T CALL
YOUR LIFE, GOES ON WITHOUT ME
MY LIFE, A LOSING GAME
BUT YOU SHOULD, YOU SHOULD NOT DOUBT ME
YOU WILL REMEMBER MY NAME
OHHHH EMBER, YOU WILL REMEMBER
EMBER, ONE THING REMAINS
OHHHH EMBER, SO WARM AND TENDER
YOU WILL REMEMBER MY NAME
With a quick twist and head bob away from the mic, Ember leaned back into it and proceeded to the second verse, fueled by the endless love of the crowd.
YOUR HEART, YOUR HEART HAS RENDERED
YOUR LOSS, NOW BEAR THE SHAME
LIKE DEAD TREES, IN COLD DECEMBER
NOTHING BUT ASHES REMAIN
OHHHH EMBER, YOU WILL REMEMBER
EMBER, ONE THING REMAINS
EMBER, SO WARM AND TENDER
YOU WILL REMEMBER MY NAME
OHHH OHHHH EMBER, YOU WILL REMEMBER
EMBER, ONE THING REMAINS
EMBER, SO WARM AND TENDER
YOU WILL REMEMBER MY NAME
YEAHHHH YOU WILL REMEMBER MY NAME
With one last shout into the microphone, Ember brought the last song of the night to an end and soaked in the feeling while the crowd cheered. Looking from side to side at the entire crowd, Ember put both of her fists up and leaned her head back, letting the power of the crowd fuel her, even though she wasn't going to do anything with said power. But it was still an incredible feeling whenever her strength rose like this. As she waved and thanked the crowd for being such an incredible audience, the giant screen behind her changed to show a countdown to midnight, which was only five minutes away. Turning to walk off stage with the rest of her band, she walked right up to Danny and threw her arms around his neck, squeezing him tight. However she didn't factor in her increased strength when she did this.
"Ohhhhh, Ember...too...tight," said Danny gasping, feeling like his neck might snap.
Ember realized what she was doing and quickly let go of Danny who started gasping. Paul was right there as well with his arms crossed and smiling at the couple.
"You two might be the most unique pair I've ever see, and believe me in my years of music I've seen a lot," said Paul as the two ghosts looked at him.
"Mr. Stanley, playing with you on stage is something I've dreamed of for longer than I can remember, thank you so much for this," said Ember, for once being formal which was odd for her. But she was in the presence of a rock legend, so it was understandable.
"Well I was very intrigued watching you perform, and that's not something I say very often," said Paul reaching into his pocket, pulling out a card to hand to Ember. "This is the business card for Doc McGhee, one of my closest friends who also happens to be the manager for KISS. Give him a call sometime and he can help you on the road to rock and roll."
For about the tenth time that night Ember's mouth dropped open as she hesitantly reached forward to take the card, looking at it as if it was gold.
Danny put a hand on her shoulder and gave her a supportive smile, silently telling her that it was going to happen, she was going to become a famous rock star. Ember felt like she could break down in tears of pure happiness right there, but she didn't. She had one more thing to do before the night ended.
"Let's go Baby Pop, we still need to close out the year," she said, grabbing his chest and pulling him into the air back out to the crowd.
The crowd started cheering again loudly as the two ghosts floated about twenty feet into the air over the catwalk, the countdown in the last thirty seconds. Both Danny and Ember looked into each other's eyes longingly, huge smiles on their faces as they prepared for the countdown. While the crowd was cheering and preparing to count down, there were however a couple individuals that were not looking so happy about the two ghosts.
"That should be me the ghost boy is longing for, I'm way prettier than that diva," said Paulina with clenched fists, wishing she could be where Ember was and about to share a midnight kiss with her beloved.
"I can't watch this, I have to get out of here," said Sam, holding back a tear as she turned around and tried to push her way out of the crowd. As painful as it was for her to see and contemplate everything, she couldn't deny that even she thought Ember sounded incredible while performing. She also wasn't blind to how happy Danny looked with her, a very painful sight for her to see since it wasn't with her.
Meanwhile Ember was stroking Danny's cheek and holding her face inches away from his while Danny's hands were around her waist.
5
4
3
2
1
Right at the stoke of midnight, Danny and Ember leaned in for a kiss full of passion, hearing cameras clicking once again all around beneath them. But they didn't care, they were too happy.
"Happy New Year," they both said together in perfect sync as a firework show was going on right above them, making it a perfect angle for pictures.
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Songs used for this chapter were Can't Stop Rockin' by ZZ Top, I Will Survive by Gloria Gaynor, Rock And Roll All Nite by KISS, and of course Remember from the Danny Phantom Show.
A/N I can't stop my face from sporting a huge grin. I've read and reread this chapter myself so many times already even before posting it and I love it just as much every time. Writing this chapter is the closest I'll ever come to being a rock star so I fully embraced it. I'm not a musician, hell I'm not even a writer, what I really am is a chef, but the saying is every kid dreams of becoming a rock star, and this was my way of trying to simulate it. From planning out the way it was going to go, to figuring out how it would all make sense, to bringing Paul Stanley himself into it, to the songs I would use and listening to them on repeat while writing the lyrics, to writing Ember's body language and mindset while she was performing, to Danny supporting her throughout the whole thing, to the chapter title, to the New Years kiss at the end, EVERYTHING! I basically spent a whole 14 hour day writing this chapter and not doing anything else because once I started I couldn't bring myself to stop until I finished it. I wanted to post it immediately once it was done but with great reluctance stopped myself so I could stay true to the planned schedule I enjoy having this story on. I very carefully chose which songs I would use in this chapter and filtered through a lot of options since I am definitely NOT a songwriter capable of writing my own, lol. I wanted to start with something aggressive that would hype up a crowd, and ZZ Top is one of my favorites. I chose Can't Stop Rockin' because I think it's a very aggressive and underrated song that many aren't even aware of besides their most dedicated fans, and it's always been one of my favorite songs of theirs. I picked I Will Survive because earlier in the story I mentioned how Ember performed it when she was alive and how it was one of the greatest memories she had, so it made an easy choice for this. I wanted to bring Paul Stanley himself into the story because I want to have Ember go down a path where she can be a legit rock star, and this is what I came up with to start her down that path along with making a dream of hers come true. And naturally if Paul Stanley is going to show up, how can the chosen song not be Rock And Roll All Nite, which also just so happens to have perfect pause moments within the song to also have it sung as a duet. And of course naturally it would all end with Remember, the song title also being the perfect set up for Ember to use as a metaphor to wrap up the year. To cover my bases I made sure last chapter that Danny had the opportunity to speak with Ember's band mates but kept it very vague so it would make sense how he set all this up and also not be so obvious that I was setting this whole thing up. Naturally in real life setting something like this up would take way longer than about a week, but this story is based on a cartoon and when do cartoons ever do stuff that's realistic? Just like last chapter there's so much other stuff I want to address, like Maddie asking Danny if he has a girlfriend or the little girl that Ember invited to join her on stage, to others like Sam and Paulina in the crowd watching the two lovebirds kiss, and so on. I could rant all day on this chapter but I guess I should go ahead and wrap it up. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE leave me a REVIEW, this is my favorite chapter of the story and I anxiously and eagerly want to know what all of you thought about it. And if you have questions feel free to shoot me a PM. Love you all and see you next week, REVIEW! lol