Oh jeez another chapter! I can't wait to see what happens in this one! Well... I know what happens in this one... but you don't yet and that's what counts! Enjoy the story!

Chapter 6 (Sam's POV)

Speaking of a trip…

"Okay class! As the official start of the third week of Ghost Defense 101, we've finally been given permission to teach you how to handle a weapon. If you would all leave your bags at your seats and follow me, we're going out to the field where a small practice range has been set up." Danny's boisterous dad skips around the classroom as he talks. Picking up various gadgets and pilling them into a bag.

I share a nervous glance with my two best friends before starting to stand up, hesitating before leaving my first aid kit in my bag. I always have some emergency supplies on me in case something happens, and I can't get to my full kit, but the actual first aid kit has a lot more stocked in it.

"So how badly do you think this is going to go?" I hear Tucker whisper to Danny in front of me.

"Well, they haven't been doing a terrible job teaching so far, to be fair to them they've actually been surprisingly thorough and meticulous. I don't want to get my hopes up, but if they follow the same pattern this might not turn out too bad." I want to be encouraged by my friend's speech but all I can think about are all the times stray weapons wreaked havoc when I was at his house. So long as they don't bring out the Fenton Bazooka…

It takes maybe five minutes to arrange everyone in a line on the field, then the Fenton parents pull all the weapons out for demonstrations.

"Alright I think that's all of them. Okay kids! We're going to introduce these weapons one by one in the same order we did in class. You already know about what they do and how they work. But now we're going to teach you how to use them as well. Each weapon has a different use. That's because not all situations need the same kind of solution. The first one we're going to show you is fairly straight forward, the Fenton wrist ray." Maddie grabs the wrist ray from the pile as she speaks before showing us how to put it on.

"This weapon is really simple to use. All you have to do is aim with your arm, and then push the small button on top to shoot." She points the ray towards a large metal target at the end of the field and lets off a shot, the sound of it ringing in the air long after it stopped. The target smokes where it was hit, dead center.

"See? Not too difficult. We're first going to show you all the weapons and then let you try the first one today. Is everyone on board with that?" A chorus of 'yes's' ring out in answer and the Fenton parents continue their explanation. I turn to Danny to gauge his opinion on today's lesson plan but freeze when I see his face. The muscle in his jaw is twitching from how hard he's clenching his teeth, looking to his eyes I can see the glassy, faraway stare he has. I look down to see him holding his hands tight in a white-knuckle grip. He looks like he's in pain, but why would he be in…

Finally, I noticed what he's staring at. Though cloudy, his gaze is still piercing as he stares at a small device tucked into the bag with the small arsenal of weapons. The Fenton energy converter! That thing sucks the life out of any ghost near it! Fuck… it must've gotten turned on when it fell out of the bag… I need to get Danny-

My thoughts are cut off by Tuckers elbow to my ribs. Looking up I see he also noticed the state our friend is in. Evasive maneuvers time. Putting a hand to my stomach I slowly raise the other to cut off Mr. Fenton's speech about the Fenton Bazooka. That damn thing…

"Uhm… Mrs. Fenton? I don't feel so good… I think I need to go to the nurse…" Danny glances at me without moving his head, I give a tiny nod in return.

"Hm, well… this is important, but if you're really not feeling good you should probably get checked out… alright, take someone with you though. We don't want you to faint or anything on your own." My small smile isn't noticed by the Fenton matriarch as I give a nod and grab Danny by the arm. We walk slowly away from the field until I can feel Danny start relaxing. We really need to make something to combat that device.

"Are you okay?" A raised eyebrow. "I know I know. Standard question. But seriously, you looked like you were really hurting…"

He gives a sigh as we find a spot to sit.

"They really upped the power on that thing. It was almost as painful as someone touching my core. I could actually feel the energy being stolen from me. It was like… well. I don't really know how to describe it to be honest." He watches the ground as he talks. My hand moves on its own accord.

"We'll figure out a way to counteract it. Right now, just try to relax and soak up some energy, I know it probably took a lot out of you." He shoots me a smile and puts his hand over mine. It has been a long time since everyone thought we were lovebirds. We tried it for a while, dating. But it was too stressful knowing any time I see him could be the last. What we do is too dangerous to have a real love life. It didn't help finding out I was more attracted to soft skin and curves then muscles and facial hair. Not that I told anyone. It's kind of funny when you think about it, Danny and I are both gay, Tuckers the only normal one…

Laughing at my thought, I startle Danny from his near meditative pose. Upon seeing his shocked face, I can only laugh harder.

"Sam? What's so funny?" I calm at the worry in his voice, trying to reassure him.

"Nothing, nothing. It's just. You're half ghost, we're both gay. Tucker's the normal one." This set me off again with a new wave of laughter, Danny joining me as he caught up with the situation. Suddenly stilling, Danny's eyes grow wide as he goes over what I just said.

"Wait. You're gay?" I pause as I realize what I admitted. Fuck.

"Uhm… yeah… I was going to tell you guys… but I didn't know how to… and it honestly just didn't seem that important…" As soon as the words were out of my mouth I was being crushed in a tight hug. Danny has both arms around me holding me tight to his chest as he breathes the words in my ear.

"Sam, everything in your life is important to us. There's always time and I hope you know we accept you. We always do, always will. That'll never change." I can feel something in my chest release at my friend's words. Breathing a deep sigh, I hold tight to my friend.

"Thank you… I know that, but it still means a lot to hear it." My reply is a whisper in the space between us. Suddenly Danny is pulling back with a shit eating grin on his face and I know to be concerned.

"So," he starts, "How'd you figure it out?" my groan is both loud and full of annoyance as Danny begins his attack. Starting with light poking at the bare skin of my side where my shirt was riding up, he continues to speak.

"Did you find yourself attracted to any girl in particular? Did you figure it out when we dated, and you weren't into me that way? Was there someone you like? Oh! Did you have a crush?!" His bouncing around and attempts at tickling my sides were getting to the tipping point of extreme ridiculousness so I push him to his back, laughing as he pouts on the ground.

"I'll answer your questions, on one condition." His curiosity always was his greatest curse. "I'll tell you how I figured out I'm gay, if you tell me how you and Walker finally got together." At this he turns pink from his ears to his chest, and I know I used the right bartering piece.

"If I tell you that, one, you can't laugh at me, and two, you have to understand it wasn't… it wasn't my fault…" I honestly didn't know a person could get redder than a tomato, but every once in a while, I do so enjoy being wrong.

"Okay, I won't laugh, but neither can you. And as for the other thing, I'm sure it isn't that bad. Just tell me already." I'm rolling my eyes at him while he shifts and tries to figure out how to start. Finally, he looks me square in the eye and sets his jaw.

"It was late, I hadn't slept in three days. He asked if I would be able to make it home after we were working late on the rulebook and of course I said I'd be fine. He didn't really seem convinced but still let me go. Turns out I couldn't make it home. This was around the time some protests were starting up in the lower seventh quadrant, you remember that, right? Anyway, that directly intersected my path back to the portal, and I forgot to go around. It was a whole thing. But anyway, apparently, he was following me because he didn't think I'd be safe on my own, and when he saw me get dragged into a losing fight, he dashed in like prince charming and rushed me back to the castle… where he proceeded to yell at me for being stupid and reckless. And I was, as I said, sleep deprived, so obviously the only way to get out of a fight was to kiss him. And then… he just… kissed me back. After we kissed everything went blurry and I passed out. I woke up the next day to a note from him saying we needed to talk and an order to sleep more regularly…"

At some point during his story, he looked to the ground, but now he looks up to find me covering my mouth and holding back laughter.

"You said you wouldn't laugh!"

"I know but that's just so cute! I never would've guessed the big strong Danny Phantom needed saving, Not very kin-"

"I hadn't slept in three days! That's not fair!" His pouting only caused me to laugh further, which only caused him to pout more. I took a deep breath to get myself back under control.

"Seriously though, that is really sweet. I'm happy for you." He gives me a soft smile for my comment before the devilish grin replaces it.

"Okay, your story now." Hiding my face in my hands I think about the millions of other things I could be doing at this moment, other than this. Deep breath, a deeper sigh, and I pull my hands from my face.

"Okay, you wanna know the truth? It was Paulina." I take a moment to appreciate the true look of shock and horror mixed upon my friend's face.

"P- Paulina? H-How did… what did… what?" I almost want to laugh, but then I realize I have to answer, and the grin is wiped from my face.

"So, you remember all those times I got angry when she was hitting on you?" I see his nod to continue, "apparently I wasn't so much upset about the "you" aspect, but about the I-want-her-to-look-at-me-like-that aspect. It wasn't so much a crush as… lust? She's really hot, annoying as all hell, but such a fine specimen…" I do giggle at the look Danny gives me this time. Somewhere between understanding, horror, and amusement. Suits him, actually.

"So, what you're saying, is that you figured out your gay, by having the hottest girl in school paying attention to your best friend, who was a guy, just to annoy you?" I actually hadn't thought about it that way…

"You know, I actually hadn't thought about it that way…" We stare at each other for a couple of silent seconds before the damn seems to break and we both burst out laughing.

"We have the absolute strangest lives, but somehow that feels the strangest for being so normal." He speaks through his laughter and it fills me with such joy to see him so unrestrained like this. Our lives are usually so hectic and crazy it's rare to get a moment of peace. I miss when we could relax and be kids, but things change, I guess we know that better than anyone…

I hear footsteps from around the corner and shove Danny to stand up. Right as we straighten ourselves out Tucker walks from behind the brick.

"Hey guys, I was sent to check on you since you hadn't come back yet. I got the energy converter turned off while Mr. and Mrs. Fenton were distracted handing out wrist rays. It's safe to come back now if you want." Tucker looks straight to Danny as he speaks, trying to gauge his reaction. I watch as Danny slowly nods his head and tries for a smile.

"Yeah, might as well try to get some practice in, right?" He jokes with a self-deprecating smile, walking past Tucker to get back to the field.

"Danny, your parents taught you a little bit about ghost hunting, you could do okay in class without causing too much suspicion…" I know my attempts at persuasion are useless, but I always feel the need to try. He motions us to follow before replying, Tucker and I stepping up behind him.

"I could probably do better in a couple of my classes without causing too much suspicion, but if there's even a small chance of blowing my cover I can't risk it. You know that Sam. What we do is too important for me to jeopardize it." It's said quietly but the weight in the words still settle heavy in my gut. What we do is too important to risk. But it's not fair what Danny sacrifices for people when he's treated so horribly by those same people…

My train of thought is interrupted by the loud muttering and cheering coming from the group of people at the edge of the field. My eyes narrow as we draw closer to the group. Everyone seems to be huddled around one person. She's one of the people I don't know very well. What's her name again? Cheryl…?

"Chey that was awesome!" I hear one kid in glasses yell from next to the obviously very embarrassed girl. Looking over to Danny and Tuck I see the same confused expression adorning their faces as I know must be on my own.

"Okay kids calm down! Everyone back to your places! This is practice time remember?" Mrs. Fenton appears in front of the group with her hands up slowly dispersing the teens until only the one girl remains. She seems to shake off her embarrassment as a determined look takes over her face. I watch distracted as she lifts her arm towards the target. The glow from the wrist ray really brings out the amber in her eyes… her hair is pretty too… looks soft… I wonder what it wou-

My thoughts get cut off as I see her face light up in a grin- she has such a beautiful smile- and she looks towards her wrist ray. I glance at her target to see a smoking spot right in the middle. Bullseye, and she's a good shot too… damn…

Suddenly I realize I've been standing staring at this girl for an inappropriately long time, Danny confirming this when I see his smug grin and raised eyebrow. I huff and stick out my tongue, because that's what mature people do.

"Danny, Sam, Tucker, you're back! We don't have enough targets so do you mind sharing the one on the end? You can just switch between the three of you." Mrs. Fenton was speaking as she directed us to the last open target next to the (beautiful) girl. Handing each of us a wrist ray, Mrs. Fenton did a quick debrief on how to fire before walking off.

"So… who wants to go first?" Tucker was lazily pointing at the target while he spoke, Danny gazing at it hesitantly. Looking briefly at the girl beside us I took a moment to despair my situation. Not only did I have to suck at something I could normally do blindfolded with my hands tied behind my back. But I also had to do it in front of a really hot girl who was going to laugh at how bad I am. Might as well just get this over with…

"I'll go…" my sigh was not at all fake as I step up to the shooting point, rolling my eyes at the target twenty feet away. I took a moment to find a spot on the target to aim for- ecto rays are light, aim higher, upper left corner- before bringing my arm up. The shot goes off and I start walking back from the front without looking to see where it hit. I know my aim is good, I've been doing this for years.

"Nice shot Sam." Tuck sounds sarcastic, so I shoot him a glare as I finally arrive back with my friends. Just as I thought, my shot was perfect, upper left corner. To my utter horror I hear a small chuckle to my left before someone clears their throat. I look sharply to the – very attractive, fuck – girl who's now facing me with a small smile.

"That was pretty good for your first shot. My first shot didn't even hit the board. I could give you some tips if you like…" the girl, trailing off as she registers the shock on my face, quickly turns red and starts to apologize before I stop her.

"No! I mean. It's okay. You're fine. I'd uhm… I'd love some tips… if you don't mind…" I'm pretty sure my own face is a vibrant shade of scarlet by the time I finish getting the words out. But she smiles at me again and nods, so really it was worth it.

"Sure! Anytime you're free I'm sure I will be too. I don't really make a lot of plans, and if it's school related it's pretty easy for me to get permission." The attractive brunette spoke really quickly, nervously playing with the cuff of her jacket.

"Uhm… I'm usually free after school for about an hour? If that works for you?" I see Danny giving me a smug grin out of the corner of my eye and watch as Tuck looks confused between me and the new girl. Please ask later, I don't want it to be that obvious, please Tuck…

"Yeah! That works great! I'll just let my mom know I'll be home late. Oh! My name is Cheyenne by the way. Nice to meet you, officially." Cheyenne… that sounds familiar… wait. Officially?

"Officially?" I can't really help the small smile that tugs at my lips when she gives a light laugh.

"Yeah, we sat next to each other in sophomore year, but we never spoke. It was only in one class, and Danny was sitting in the desk in front of you. You two were inseparable in sophomore year so I didn't get a chance to introduce myself." Cheyenne says the last part to herself, but it's still loud enough for me to hear. I smile a bit sadly and nod in understanding.

"Of course. Well, I'm glad we're meeting now, officially. I'm Sam." Holding out my hand for her to shake I take a moment to size her up. Curvy, not super muscled but definitely not weak. Been in a few fights, nothing major. Capable, able to handle herself in a fight, not at our level though.

"I'm Cheyenne. Which I just told you, but uhm… you can call me Chey. It's a nickname." She gives a shy smile as she takes my hand, the soft skin fitting perfectly against my own.

"See you after school then, Chey. Guess we should uhm… get back to practice." My embarrassment turns to amusement as I look back towards my friends. Tuck has an intense look of concentration on his face as he aims his wrist ray. I watch as he adjusts his aim, horribly, and want to snort when he fires off his shot. It doesn't even hit the board. Or at least, it doesn't hit our board…

"Hey! Watch it!" I hear the yell from the guy two spaces down and I have to take a moment to compose myself before I can answer.

"Whoops! Guess Tuck is gonna need to practice more too." He only huffs at my amused face and lets Danny take up his spot. I hold my breath as I watch my friend aim for the target. Just by watching him I can see the tension in his shoulders. His aim is set to miss the target, but not by much. So, he doesn't want to look too bad at this…

The shot goes off and I breathe a sigh as it misses the target by a good foot of space. I see the look of annoyance on my friends face as he walks back to us and am about to ask when Tucker speaks.

"A bit different with a weapon huh?" Danny nods and I make a soft noise in realization. Right, Danny never uses weapons, he is the weapon.

Walking back to the front I correct my stance a bit, so my next shot lands a bit closer to the target. Middle left. The shot goes off. The next forty-five minutes seem to pass in a blur of botched practice and annoyed glances. By the time the bell rings we're thoroughly exhausted of having to be bad at something we're naturals at, and ready for the day to be over. I'm grabbing my backpack from my chair when a voice calls out to me.

"Sam! I'll see you after school for practice, right?" I sigh internally. I forgot all about that.

"Of course! Wouldn't miss it!" I say as cheerfully as I can. Another hour of pretending I'm incompetent, what fun!

"I know it might be a little late, but I'm pretty sure a park meeting is absolutely necessary after the class we just had. Everyone good with that?" Tuck asks us while walking backwards towards his locker. I sigh and nod, looking up at Danny as he hums.

"I think we should just go right after school Tuck; I can tell you what I know, and we can talk a bit about the class. Sam can join us after her… practice." He says the last word with a wink to me and I can feel the blush taking root in my cheeks. Groaning I nod my approval.

"Yeah, you can tell him everything, obviously. Just uhm… be done before I get there. I really don't want a repeat performance of that story…" Danny laughs at my discomfort and Tucks confusion, so I shove him into the locker he's standing next to.

"Okay, okay. I'll be brief. Hopefully, the rest of today will go by quickly…" We all nod in agreement with the very wishful thinking.

Oh boy that was a lot of fun to write. I hope everyone enjoyed it! The next chapter should be coming out soon(ish) too. I've been on a bit of a writing spree and have a bunch more chapters written, they just need to be edited. Can't wait to share them with you though! See you soon!