Danny stiffly walked through a throng of students who were too busy chatting about the latest school gossip and their weekend plans to notice him.
The school year had started a couple of weeks ago, and Danny was struggling to get used to Harry's absence. Sometimes he'd catch himself scanning the sea of students' heads for the familiar mop of dark hair, only for him to realize that he'd no longer see his brother roaming the halls. Catching himself doing just that, Danny hunched his shoulders and strode past the Sanctum without sparing it a glance. Ever since school started, it had been collecting dust and spiders due to its abandonment. Danny promised himself that he'd find another use for it, but so far, nothing had come up.
Unfortunately, Dash's name still made it onto Danny's 5th grade class roster, but since there were fewer of Dash's friends that shared that list, it was easier for Danny to interact with his classmates. Granted, he was still the laughing stock of the 5th grade, there were enough new students to dilute the 'Freaky Fenton' comments that plagued him last year.
"Hey! Don't hurt Sharon!" a desperate voice cried out from down the hallway.
Danny rounded the corner with cautious curiosity and spotted the source of the voice. Dash's two goons, Kwan and Dave, held a struggling new student, Tucker Foley, against the wall. In front of the group was Dash, who held a PDA close to his face for examination.
Wrinkling his face in disgust, Dash glared at Tucker. "Ew, you name your electronics?! You really are a freak!" he sneered. Danny winced at the hurtful comment. Dash was clearly in a bad mood, which usually happened when he failed a test. It wouldn't be a good idea to stick around. I should probably duck out before I'm noticed, he thought to himself, turning to leave.
Just when Danny successfully avoided the potentially hazardous event, Harry's words floated to the surface of his mind. 'One day Dash is going to find someone new to pick on, another victim. Do you want someone else to be treated the same way you are?' This is what Harry was talking about. Danny gulped and peered back at confrontation, terrified of intervening. Could he stand up to Dash? He knew he had promised Harry, but fear clutched his heart. He continued to watch the scene play out.
"If you love your electronics so much, what would you do to get it back?" Dash asked, tauntingly dangling the PDA in front of the shaking dark-skinned boy who looked at it longingly.
"Anything...please! What do you want me to do?" Tucker begged with a sniff.
"I'll have to think about it, but for now, this is mine," Dash said nonchalantly, clutching the device tightly. Looking at his cronies he said cheerily, "Come on boys, Mucker here reeks! Let's give him a shower." He glanced down at Tucker menacingly. "Courtesy of the toilets." Tucker cried out and struggled with renewed vigor, his red beret falling off his head and landing on the floor. The jocks snickered at the display and began dragging the sobbing boy down the hall.
Meanwhile, a horrified Danny stared at the departing boys. Conflicting voices argued in his head and argued whether he should fight or flee.
One voice urged him to ignore the boy, telling him that he wasn't ready and should wait for another opportunity to follow Harry's example. He could always help the kid out after the jocks were finished.
The other voice scoffed at the previous voice and told Danny to take action. That if he didn't help out now, then he never would. He'd let Harry down, but more importantly, he'd leave a poor boy to suffer on his own.
His inner turmoil continued until Danny mentally screamed at them to shut up. Squaring his shoulders, Danny swallowed thickly and sprinted toward Dash in full force. He scrunched his eyes and braced for impact as he crashed full speed into the bully, who gave a girly yelp and hit the ground with a loud thud. The PDA went soaring through the air and Danny jumped up to catch the small device before it could crash to the ground. Clutching the PDA, he turned swiftly, and ran as if his life depended on it. It just might, Danny thought morbidly.
Picking himself off the ground, Dash shouted, "You're dead, Fenton!" and began the chase. Kwan and Dave, who were still holding a shell-shocked Tucker, looked at each other before dropping the boy to follow their leader.
With Danny's scrawny stature and Dash's athletic build, the chase didn't last long. Danny was quickly cornered. Danny continued to run down the dead end hallway until Dash jumped on Danny, causing them both to tumble onto the linoleum tiled floor. Straddling his smaller classmate on the ground, Dash punched Danny in the face, which instantly caused blood to flow from Danny's nose. As Danny writhed in pain, Dash sat there for a moment to catch his breath.
"Ah, Fentina!" Dash finally said in a sickly sweet voice. "I didn't realize you'd be jealous of my attention!"
Dave, who had caught up to the boys first, snickered. Danny responded to Dash with a glare.
Dash ignored the look and continued viciously, "So, what kind of treatment should we give you today?" A spike of fear went through Danny, but he refused to let it show. He chose to follow in his idotic brother's footsteps, now he will face the repercussions just as Harry did - head on.
Running footsteps distracted the group as Kwan rounded the corner urgently.
"Coach Tetslaff is looking for us. Whatever you're gonna do, do it quickly," Kawn gasped as he caught his breath. Dash swore and looked down at Danny.
"Looks like it's your lucky day, loser. Locker treatment it is." He pulled Danny up and shoved him violently into a locker. Closing the door he said, "I wonder how long you'll be in there this time, now that your loser brother is gone to some loser school. Perhaps I'll check up on you Monday to see if you need anything."
"Let me out Dash!" Danny cried as his fist hit the locker door. There was a round of chuckles from the other side, then silence. Danny struggled to find a less uncomfortable position in the claustrophobic locker. Great, he huffed resting his forehead on the cool metal surface. This is my price for playing the hero.
The silence from the hallway was deafening. Everyone had cleared out early for the weekend, not wanting to stay another minute in school. Someone will find me , Danny thought desperately. Someone always finds me. He shifted uncomfortably in his spot as despair loomed over him. But that someone was always Harry. Would anyone come to his rescue? No, because I did the rescuing this time - and I can't even do that right ! He sighed, letting the self deprecating thoughts sink in.
What if Dash was right and no one would look for him? Danny broke the silence with a soft sniff. Tears began to well up in his eyes and he cried out, "Someone help me!" When no response came, he let the tears pool over. If only Jazz wasn't at a sleepover this weekend, she'd probably know something was up right about now; if not then, certainly around dinner time. As the silence grew, so did his insecurities. It would take mom and dad a couple of days, but eventually they would notice someone's missing - right? Maybe he could last a couple of days without food, but he'll need to use the restroom at some point. I wish Harry was here , he thought sadly.
Eventually, his tears receded and he mustered up some strength to think through his predicament logically. Harry always had a knack for working through Danny's problems. Now that Harry asked him to take up his mantle at school, he must've thought that Danny could work through them on his own. There's a latch that holds the locker together. I wonder if I can move to reach it.
"Danny? Are you still here?" a timid voice came from down the hall.
"Help!" Danny yelled, "I'm stuck in a locker!" Danny heard scurrying footsteps from the other side.
"Don't worry, Danny, I'm pretty good at breaking into lockers," came the voice in a more confident tone. Danny heard the lock jingle and light flooded into the locker. Danny squinted in the light and smiled at his savior.
"Thanks!" he said appreciatively. The voice chuckled.
"I should be saying that." When Danny's eyes adjusted to the new lighting, he saw the beaming face of Tucker Foley in front of him.
"No problem! Swirly treatment is the worst," he replied, returning the grin.
"Oh! I have your PDA." Danny began fishing in his pocket and brought out the electronic.
"Sharon!" Tucker cried out with joy and hugged his PDA. Danny chuckled at the scene, causing Tucker to turn to him and exclaim, "This calls for a trip to Nasty Burgers! Let's go!"
Danny blinked in shock at the blunt invitation. "S-Sure!" he said with nervous optimism. He had never been asked to hang out with anyone unless it was a cruel joke. Tucker smiled and gestured for Danny to follow him. The pair began walking out of the school.
"Sam was going to meet me down there anyway," Tucker continued awkwardly. "Do you know Sam Manson?" he asked.
Danny thought for a moment. "Is she the goth who sits in front of you at school?"
Tucker nodded. "That's the one. Usually she helps me get out of Dash situations, but today she had to leave class early for a dentist appointment. Said she'd meet up with me at Nasty Burgers when she was finished."
The two made their way over together. During the trip they made small talk, discussing ways in which they both avoided the bullies at school. As they walked into the fast food joint, they were flagged down by a dark-haired, purple-eyed preteen wearing black clothing and dark make-up. She gave Tucker a wide grin when they walked up to her table.
"Geez, Tuck, you took so long I thought I was being stood up." She glanced over at Danny and raised an eyebrow.
Tucker wrapped an arm around Danny and smiled. "Nah, Danny here just saved me from enduring the toilet treatment, and the horrifying loss of my one true love." He brought out Sharon and began stroking her tenderly. Sam and Danny looked at Tucker, mildly disturbed.
"Wasn't Deborah your one true love?" Sam asked with a raised eyebrow. Danny looked at Tucker, wracking his brain to recall if there was a Deborah in their class he should know about.
"Deborah wasn't waterproof, Sam," Tucker stated, in a matter-of-fact tone. "Plus, Sharon has a 3G network!" He continued to caress the device lovingly.
"Bleh!" Sam exclaimed, and Danny gave him a half-hearted "You have issues dude."
Turning to Danny, Sam stuck out her hand with a smirk. "Thanks for saving my technophile. I'm Sam."
"Danny," Danny grinned back, shaking her hand, "though 'save' is a strong word for what actually happened. All I did was run away from Dash… who ended up catching me anyway." He cringed, rubbing his nose at the memory. A pang of embarrassment went through him when he realized he probably had dried blood on his face and shirt.
Tucker stopped creepily stroking his PDA and faced Danny. "You're selling yourself short, dude," Turning to Sam he continued enthusiastically, "He totally pelted Dash before he ran, snatching Sharon right from his hands!"
Danny's cheeks tinged pink and he rubbed the back of his neck. "I caught him off guard," he said sheepishly.
"Wow! I would pay money to have seen that. I bet Dash's face was hilarious," Sam mused.
"It was! Just wait, one day they'll make a movie on it. They'll name it, 'The Bullied Strikes Back'," Tucker said, moving a hand across the air in mock awe. "Or better yet, 'The Nerds Awaken'." The three snickered at the idea.
Standing up, Sam looked at the boys with a smile. "Well I've waited long enough. Let's grab some grub." The boys nodded in assent and the three headed over to the register. Taking Tucker's advice, Danny ordered the Double Nasty Burger with fries and a milkshake. Tucker ordered the same, while Sam ordered a veggie burger.
A comfortable silence fell on the group as they began eating. After his first bite, Danny thought he was in burger heaven. His family didn't eat out very often, and when they did it was usually pizza or Chinese takeout. He had never tried anything as delicious as the juicy, meaty luxury before him, the buns slightly toasted and cheese melting between the patties.
Sam and Tucker gave Danny an amused look. "So what does Dash's number one target do for fun?" Sam asked after swallowing a bite of food.
"Yeah, since you clearly don't partake in the joys of deluxe fast food," commented Tucker with a mouthful of fries, looking over at Danny who was still among the clouds in his heavenly burger abode.
Sam wrinkled her nose in disgust at her friend. "I don't think deluxe and fast food should be used in the same sentence, Tuck."
Danny chuckled at the comment, then stopped when he noticed them staring. His hand went to the back of his neck. "I, uh, play a lot of video games like DOOM. I know it's an old game, but it's my favorite," Danny said sheepishly. "And in Tucker's defense, the 'Spicy Nasty Deluxe' is a burger on the menu," he added while pointing to the menu board. He turned back to the pair and was startled to find them gawking at him.
Tucker shook himself out of his stupor first, and victoriously jabbed a finger at Sam. "Ha! It's settled- fast food and deluxe are one and the same!"
"That's not exactly what I meant..." Danny trailed off.
Regaining her composure, Sam looked at Danny with enthusiasm and said, "Nevermind that! - Though you're clearly wrong, Tuck - Danny, you play DOOM? What level are you on? What's your username? Tuck and I play too!"
Danny looked back excitedly. "Seriously? You play too?! The name's SpaceAce and I'm on level 8. What about you guys?"
"We're on level 8 too!" Tucker shouted ecstatically. "Dude, we should totally team up! I'm Fryer_Tuck, and Miss Goth over there is Chaos."
Danny paled and gaped at Sam. "You're Chaos?! No way! You're a legend!"
"And a girl," Sam said proudly. "Proving to ignorant boys like Tucker here, that girls can be just as good at video games as boys."
"Dude, it was one comment!" Tucker said indignantly, throwing his hands in the air.
"A horribly sexist comment! But it was fun proving you wrong," she retorted with a smug grin.
Danny chuckled at the pair. "We should definitely team up," he agreed. He nervously added, "That is, if you don't mind having 'Fenturd' on your team."
Sam and Tucker stopped their glaring match and stared at Danny.
"As long as you don't mind Sucker Tucker or Goth Freak over there, then I don't think we'll have a problem," Tucker said, breaking the silence. He smiled at Danny. "We all have it rough with the bullies. I know, we'll name our guild DOOM's Nerd Squad!" he said excitedly. "And our motto will be 'Kicked asses, and godawful nicknames.'" Sam snorted in her seat and a warm feeling of acceptance crept through Danny.
"I don't think that's how the saying goes, but it'll have to do," Danny said, smiling back. Then reality sank in. "But we shouldn't team up at my house; that's asking for a disaster," he winced.
"You mean because your parents believe in ghosts?" Sam asked curiously. Tucker perked up at the comment.
"No, because you'll end up with a head full of glowing goop if you're mistaken for a ghost, which would most likely happen," Danny deadpanned. Sam and Tucker chuckled in disbelief.
"Man, your parents are pretty eccentric! Ever since I've heard about them, I've wanted to check out their lab. Sounds like they have some unusual pieces of tech," Tucker said wistfully.
Danny sighed in frustration. "Of course you've heard of them already! You moved here, what, 3 weeks ago?" he said exasperatedly.
"Four, but don't worry, people were talking about your crazy family by the first week," Tucker said with a playful smirk.
"Perfect," Danny grumbled sarcastically, putting his head in his hands.
"I think they're great," Sam said suddenly.
Looking up from his hands, Danny saw her eyes twinkling. "Their passion is inspiring and their findings have some pretty solid research behind them," she continued to say as shock went through Danny. Sam has read their research? And she doesn't think it's stupid?
Realizing she was rambling, Sam blushed and shrugged, looking away. "Also, ghosts are pretty gothic," she finished offhandedly to save herself some embarrassment.
Danny swallowed. A new appreciation for the people he was eating with filled him. Grinning widely he said, "Yeah, they're crazy, but they are great."
With that, the discussion turned back to their Nerd Squad team up. Tactical plans were discussed and future hangout sessions were made. Danny left Nasty Burger feeling like his new school year was looking brighter.
He walked up to his home with a bounce in his step. Maybe this year won't be as bad as I originally thought! Danny thought to himself. As he opened the door, an owl wooshed inside above his head.
"Hedwig!" Danny shouted with delight. He ran to the snowy owl and pulled her into a hug. "I've missed you!" he crooned. Hedwig hooted indignantly, and pecked at his arms to release her. Danny let her go and took a moment to look at the owl. She had four letters tied to her foot, along with a small parcel. Each letter was labelled with a Fenton's name on top. Hedwig raised her leg expectantly and tiredly, and Danny quickly untied the mail. Giving the owl an appreciative pat on the head, he said, "Thanks Hedwig! There's food and water in my and Harry's bedroom. You did a great job!" Hedwig gave a tired but happy hoot before flying off to Danny's room. Danny placed Jazz's and his parents' letters on the kitchen table, then sat on the living room couch with the parcel and his letter.
Dear SpaceAce,
Hogwarts is amazing! The place is a giant fortress in the middle of nowhere! To get here we had to run directly at a slab of concrete which was secretly an entryway to the train platform. Insane right?! Anywho, I met a new friend on the train. His name is Ron Weasley and he has super red hair (kinda like Jazz!). I've already seen and done so much magic! I can now lift really heavy things effortlessly by pointing my wand and saying an incantation. The teachers are a hit or miss. I swear Professor Snape is out to get me. Tomorrow we're going to learn how to fly on a broomstick. I don't have a broomstick, so I'll be using the school's supply of them.
Get this, there are ghosts at Hogwarts. I'm being completely serious here. Ghosts are real and I see them everyday. They're not malevolent at all. Well, there's one ghost named Peeves who is arguably a pest, but for the most part, the ghosts are really nice.
In the parcel is some wizard candy. Be careful though, the chocolate frogs are enchanted to act like real frogs (they're not alive - I checked!). There's enough for you and Jazz to share - don't even think about eating them all Danny!
Alright, question time. How's 5th grade treating you? Do you have Mr. Falluca? Is Dash in your class? How's the 'Find a New Friend' campaign going? I don't like not being there and not knowing what's going on.
I love you Danny, and I can't wait to see you over Winter Break!
Sincerely,
LightningStrike
P.S. I sent Hedwig on September 5th, please let me know how long it took her to reach home. It'll help me know when to expect your letters.
Danny smiled at his brother's words, but winced at how long it took Hedwig to fly over- 2 weeks! Communicating with Harry this way will take forever! Danny thought. Looking upstairs he added, I should give her a big treat for her efforts.
One part of his letter concerned Danny. Harry believes in ghosts now? He shook his head. How could he be following in Mom's and Dad's footsteps when he's not even here to receive their daily dose of crazy?
He then looked over at the parcel with a greedy grin. Jazz doesn't need to know how much was in here to begin with, he thought mischievously. Snatching the parcel he ran upstairs, a feast of candy on his mind and a letter to write.
A few days later, when Jazz returned from her sleepover, she knocked on Danny's door and poked her head inside. "Harry wrote saying that there's some wizard chocolate for us and that you've probably already eaten it all." She stared at Danny exasperatingly. "Please tell me you left me some." Without looking up from where he was playing with Hedwig on the floor, Danny pointed to the open box on his desk.
"You can have the rest, but watch out for the chocolate frogs; they're a little jumpy." He smirked, which only confused Jazz. "You'll see," he added cryptically.
Jazz rolled her eyes at Danny's antics, then moved to sit on his desk chair. Digging through the box of mostly empty wrappers, she found some toffee and popped one in her mouth. "I saw you leave school with that new kid on Friday…," she began cautiously, waiting for him to respond. When she received silence, she pressed on, "How'd that go?"
Danny sighed. Did she always have to psychoanalyze him whenever he interacted with anyone that didn't have the last name Fenton or Potter? He smoothed Hedwig's feathers, causing her to coo softly. Danny weighed whether he should tell Jazz about his new friends. He wanted her to know about them, but as a sister - not a psychologist. Danny looked back at her suspiciously to see if she was carrying any notebooks or recording devices. Seeing nothing incriminating, he decided that perhaps she was just curious.
"It was fine,"he relented, looking back down at Hedwig who was nipping at him for attention. "We went to Nasty Burgers after Dash shoved me into a locker." Jazz furrowed her brow, but Danny continued before she could comment. His face was breaking into a wide grin. "Then I went to Tuck's house yesterday and spent hours playing DOOM. I can't believe I found someone else who still plays that game! The three of us made a team and we're unbeatable!"
"Three of you?" Jazzed sputtered.
"Tucker, Sam and I," he replied smiling. Jazz regained her composure and beamed with pride at Danny.
"Danny, that's great!" She grabbed him a hug and started ruffling his hair aggressively. Still smiling, she put on a fierce face. "I knew you had it in you!"
"Ow! Jazz, get off! It was one day!" he shouted back, swiping his hands at her. Hedwig looked at the pair in disgust and hooted indignantly at Jazz, who had stolen her coddling manservant.
"Yeah, one day in how many years?" Jazz retorted. She did not stop her noogy attack until she was satisfied. Sitting back she glanced at Hedwig. "We should probably send her back to Hogwarts." It took Jazz a while to warm up to Hedwig after the hair incident with the Hogwarts owl. Now she was often seen reading with Hedwig resting on her shoulder.
"Do you think she can manage a long trip after just finishing one?" Danny asked with concern, his hair poking out in all directions from the tussle. Hedwig glared at Danny and screeched loudly.
Wincing from the loud noise Jazz said warily, "I think that's a yes."
Hedwig's glare remained on Danny and he raised his hands up in surrender. "Alright, alright, I didn't mean to offend you!" he exclaimed placatingly. Hedwig ruffled her feathers and puffed out her chest. Rolling his eyes at the prideful owl, he stood up. "I'll go get Mom and Dad's letter. Do you have yours ready?"
Jazz stood up as well. "I just have a couple of things I want to add, so give me a few minutes."
"Okay, I'll include the date so he knows when we wrote it," Danny added as he left the room.
The two finished their tasks and sent Hedwig off to their distant brother.
