Disclaimer: I don't own Danny Phantom or 6teen.
Stumbling from his bed, Danny raced to prepare for the day as he already wanted school to end, yet not having started classes yet. Checking off his list of priorities, the ghost boy made sure everything was ready: getting dressed, brushing his teeth, and packing his books and homework. With any luck, no early morning ghosts would side-track him, allowing the day to go by with some normalcy, and yet that familiar mental strain to come was surprisingly pleasant. But the biggest surprise came when he went downstairs.
A regular morning consisted of hi's, bye's, and rushed breakfast. Still, a start at the Fenton household could mean anything, from inventions exploding to breakfast coming alive. However, this morning seemed more like the world was putting Danny through the ring on live television with no gloves.
"Morning, mom! Morning, dad! Morning, Jazz! Morning, Dash!" Danny paused at the last one, almost crashing into the ground as he saw the quarterback, stopping before the jock could try anything. Yet he was ignored, only seeing his parents hand over some anti-ghost gear to his bully.
This would be the part where questions were asked if not for the fact asking for details could mean something worse that's being shoved into a locker. That was enough to shut the ghost boy as he watched the jock hand his folks some money and leave.
Jack gripped the payment, shaking his fists at his first ghost gear sold. He was now celebrating, remarking about expanding business as his wife shook his head in uncertainty. While this visit was understandable, nobody had taken the Fentons seriously until the first ghost invasion. Maddie had been content with working on new inventions and upgrading existing ones.
Danny blinked, backing away into the kitchen, where he saw Jazz wearing the same confused expression. Grabbing his usual cereal breakfast, he sat down at the table.
"I don't know what's scarier: the fact Dash came here or that he'll probably be worse at school," Danny said, his voice full of grimace as he took a bite of his food.
"How about the fact he bought Fenton gear? I think he bought the Fenton creepstick," Jazz replied, never taking her eyes off her brother. While their parents were more oblivious, primarily due to their obsession with ghosts, the elder sister knew how much Dash bullied Danny and that he was the jock's favorite target.
Danny gulped audibly as he dreaded the school day, knowing this would not be good.
To the surprise of the ghost boy, it seemed he had been wrong about Dash as the school day came close to being done. With only one last period left, the day seemed almost normal.
The school bell rang as Amélie got her books, still with a horde of admirers as they stared. Her slim yet voluptuous figure seemed to be emphasized by her neutral expression and wavy hair, giving off the appearance of a model down the runway. Her long legs took swift, gliding strides with a straight back as her hips strode to the side with each step, her oversized chest bouncing, emphasized by the top buttons undone, drawing many of the boys' attention.
Danny knew these traits had made her the most popular girl in school, if not the entire town. It was obvious no one could compare to the French beauty in this town, even with Paulina trying at times to outshine her. Today was no different, yet not indistinguishable as the boy stared at Amélie. After almost being hunted by SKulker again, only with the French girl accompanying him against her will, there was a new light on the foreign exchange student.
"Danny, what are you doing?" Sam's tone snapped him out of his thoughts. The ghost boy stuttered nonsense before he turned to notice the glare/stare on his gothic friend.
"Sorry...I was just—"
"Staring at Amélie like everyone else?" Tucker had his eyes glued to Amélie. While he did have a brain, it had been exhausted by the school day, migrating blood away from the head on his shoulders as his eyes stared at the half-open blouse and cleavage.
"And teenage hormones claims another victim," Sam remarked, her voice going beyond sarcasm before returning to Danny. "But what's with you? Why are you suddenly staring?"
Danny mildly blushed, rubbing the back of his head as he spouted half sentences. Unable to make eye contact, the ceiling was the next best thing to see as thoughts tried to make enough sense to satisfy the goth.
The topic of Amélie has become a complex matter of perspective from the teens. From what was known, the French beauty was more than just an Amazonian hourglass figure, but that didn't mean conversation was simple, made evident by the fact Tucker was not helping matters.
"Let him be, Sam. It's just puberty," Tucker quipped. "Besides, it's not like Danny would peep on her."
Danny slapped his forehead, slowly shifting his eyes to see the stern detective stare from the goth girl. If there was one thing the boy had been learning, hormones and wants do not justify blatant misuse of powers for personal matters, although some, like using them on Dash, were debatable. Still, the glare he was receiving was scary, more so than any ghost right now.
"Sam, ignore Tucker. You know he's just being an idiot right now," Danny defended with his hands up.
"Hey!"
"Shut up, Tucker!" Sam leaned into her friend, staring into his eyes. A momentary sting of jealousy gone as they locked eyes. "So you're telling me you wouldn't, I dunno, go ghost and tour around in the girl's locker room? The thought never occurred to you?"
"Honestly, I've been too busy to think about it till Tucker brought it up." Danny pointed a thumb over his shoulder. A sigh left him as his shoulders dropped. "And besides, you told me what almost happened at Halloween. I have hormones, but I'd feel terrible."
"Especially since I think Dash and the other still have plans." Tucker dropped his stupor as he joined in. "I mean, I think Dash's is getting worse."
"You're telling me. I saw him this morning, buying stuff from my parents."
"Yikes!" Sam and Tucker said in sync with wide eyes. Their mouths cringed as they wondered about the diabolical intentions of the jock.
"You gonna be ok, dude?" Tucker asked.
A blue mist escaped Danny's mouth before he could answer. The sound of students screaming echoed as they ran like wild animals, almost trampling over one another as they fled.
Everyone turned around to see a more pestering ghosts invade the school, much to the displeasure of the ghost fighting trio.
"Beware!"
Danny stared in disbelief as he and his friends watched most of the campus flee, mainly because they knew stepping into the danger zone would cause more trouble than it was worth or a trip to the hospital.
The only students that stayed behind were lying on the floor, holding out their phones to post the attack on social media or waiting for Danny Phantom to swoop in and save the day. A small fan club was seen at the corner, with Paulina at the head as they looked around.
"Sheesh. You'd think seeing the scarier ghosts would've made the Box Ghost seem like a kitten," Danny dryly snarked as the annoying pest continued his maniacal laughter.
"Tell me about it." Sam was lying against the lockers as Tucker focused on his PDA, fiddling with an app that had been slowing down.
"Tell me about it." Sam was lying against the lockers as Tucker focused on his PDA, fiddling with an app that had been slowing down.
"Let's just get this out of the way," Danny muttered.
"Get what out of the way?"
Danny froze as he turned to see Amélie standing behind him. The French girl looked down at his slouching figure, making him a deer in headlights as he stared back. Glancing at Sam and Tucker, he pointed his head at the buxom girl.
Sam and Tucker nodded as they came between the ghost boy and the French girl, but another voice caught their attention.
"Alright, ghost, time to leave."
Danny and Amélie went wide-eyed, along with Sam and Tucker, as they turned to see Dash cracking his knuckles. While the latter was shocked and partially wanting to see the jock thrashed, the ghost boy had a realizing face as he saw his casual tormented, wearing Fenton ghost gloves before pulling out the Fenton Anit-Creepstick. The quarterback swatted the bat as he walked over with a cocky smile.
"Who are you to tell the Box Ghost to leave!?" The Box Ghost's ego prevented him from recognizing a challenge, even from someone who outclassed him, but to see the teenager walk up and try to fight back was a foreign concept. Like many ghosts, none had taken a stand, only if someone was scared enough or stupid enough. At those moments, it had mostly been with the ghost in question, mostly enticing a victim for fun, an act of power to put a human in place.
Dash stopped a foot away, putting the bat down like a sword, and flexed an arm. He glowed, "in case you forgot, Im Dash Baxter: quarterback, king of Casper High, and now the next ghost...fighter...hero..." that last self-imposed title took a good minute to come up with, evident in the jock's uncertain tone.
The Box Ghost stared in disbelief, looking over his shoulder with an is-he-serious? face to Danny and his friends. The teens shrugged, Tucker getting out his PDA before the ghost looked back.
After kissing his arm, Dash wiggled an eyebrow at Amélie, where everything became apparent as he picked up the Fenton Anti-Creepstick.
The French girl saw this and rolled her eyes. All the jock did was make her scoff, a sentiment the Box Ghost shared as he yawned.
"I believe the saying is, Ithink his grade point average is showing," Amélie snarked.
"And people call me an idiot," The Box Ghost added. With stretched arms, he bent backward and then rolled his shoulders. "Alright, let's get this over with."
"Shut up! Now hold still while I kick your butt and show Amelia how cool I am!" Dash said as he readied the Fenton Anti-Creep Stick, positioning himself like a batter.
His audience held no reaction as they watched. This was more like channel surfing than breaking news.
"Doesn't he know that the creep stick is just an ordinary bat?" Sam whispered.
"Eh, he'll learn soon enough." Danny shrugged, knowing how this would end. The catharsis overcame him, preventing him from doing anything about the fight.
"Five bucks says the Box Ghost gets bored before beating him!" Tucker reached into his pocket, pulling out the money. He took off his beret and placed his bet inside. "Who's in?"
"You're betting on wether ze blaireau loses?" Amélie watched as Danny and Sam took money out, placing their bets.
"I say Dash gets turned into a box," Danny whispered.
Sam rolled her eyes, her smile still showing as she placed more bills. "Ten bucks he chickens out after seeing how the bat doesn't work," she said
"Incroayable." Amélie pinched her nose with a shake of her head.
Dash bit his tongue, aiming at the floating Box Ghost, who shrugged while putting on a menacing grin as he cracked his knuckles.
"BEWARE AND TREMBLE BEFORE THE AWESOME POWER OF THE BOX GHOST!" The hammy ghost yelled.
"Prepare to have your head knocked around like a dork!" Dash yelled as he swung the Fenton Anti-Creep Stick through the Box Ghost's chest. The bat went straight through the sides of the square spirit, going around in a full circle with the jock, who now stared dumbfounded with a dropped jaw.
Seeing Dash's fear growing, the Box Ghost's eyes glowed as he waved his hands. The locker doors opened instantly as their contents were vacated, swirling together in the air. From books to pencils and makeup, the specter grinned as he threw the objects, pushing back his victim and sending him into a nearby trashcan.
"Get me out of here!" Dash had been pushed deep into the confines of the wastebin, flailing his arms in despair as the Box Ghost flew over. The bat was dropped, rolling down the floor and away from the duel.
"Ha! Ha! Now you see the awesome power of the Box Ghost! Let this be a reminder that all who oppose the Box Ghost shall perish!" Box Ghost taunted, pointing exaggeratedly as he guffawed.
"Wow...I'm speechless," Danny said in a blunt tone.
"Same here," Sam added.
"I mean, I won the bet, but that was just sad." Tucker gave his friend their money back before putting his beret on.
Calling the duel, or even acknowledging its existence, a fight was an overstatement. This disheartened the ghost boy. The entire ordeal was demoralizing as he knew the Box Ghost would win, but not in such an easy matter. He could recall a time when the jock was fighting with him during another ghostly invasion.
"Why did he use a bat to hit the pathome?" Amélie was staring with will a puzzled expression. "I thought it was obvious that it wouldn't work."
"He bought it from my parents, but it's just for hitting human creeps," Danny explained, glancing over his shoulder. His eyes met momentarily with Amélie's but that was enough to make him blush. Whipping his around, he made sure the French girl could not see his small blush, but Sam could.
"He must've thought it would work on ghosts," Danny added.
Shuffling echoed down the hall as Dash climbed out of the trash can as the students began flooding the halls. Tucker had not been the only geek to record the fight. And once the video was shared, the corridor was being filed by victims of the jock's past misdeeds.
The quarterback ignored the student body's laughter as he dusted himself off. The boy stormed to the nearby nerds, intending to fix his damaged ego. The ghost gloves, forgotten to be used for n the fight against the Box Ghost, would at least serve to increase the hurt of whoever he'd grab first. A hand came on his shoulder, triggering the boy's rage with a swirl and a fist as he felt his anger buried in a soft stomach, dispersing the feeling as the jock saw he had just hit Mr. Lancer.
The teacher fell as the students were stunned silent, viewing this as the bully's low point. Dash gasped, now realizing he had not only hit a teacher but registered the ghost gloves worn. Taking the gloves off did nothing as Lancer got up, snarling at the quarterback as he took him by the arm.
Whatever trouble jock had gotten away with had always been due to his status in sports, but not even winning the state championships would have protected him from the Vice Principal's wrath. Not only had he hit school faculty, but the ghost glove's design could be written off as brass knuckles, at least, and the school would not allow this to go unnoticed.
"Mr. Baxter," Lancer spat those words like a curse as he pulled the boy away. "I believe you've crossed into a new meaning of the word pain and suffering! You are to come with me to my office as I call your parents!"
Dash struggled against the grip of the teacher as he disappeared.
Flabbergasted by what he saw, Danny felt a strike of happiness stronger than lightning, though it came as fast. With a smile, he wondered if this meant the bully lost the teacher's favoritism and his ability to boss around anyone.
"I don't know what just happened, but I'm relieved," he said, now happy. It seemed karma brought more joy when it did not feel like overkill.
"I can't say I feel bad for him, but c'est la vie," Amélie shrugged. While she did not partake of the catharsis, part of her was glad to see her biggest ogler punished, even if it was not for the reasons she wanted.
"Amélie!" the teens turned to see Star running over, panting when she reached them. "I've been looking everwhere for you. Are you alright?"
"Oui. It seemed the ghost was happy to thrash ze...quarterback and left afterwards." Amélie pointed in the direction Baxter was taken, still hearing the jock's wailing.
Star snorted, holding her hands to her mouth before calming down. Her mood dropped as she noticed Danny, Sam, and Tucker nearby, scowling at them as her hands were placed on her hips.
"And just what are you three doing around Amélie?" Star asked.
"I was just en train de regarder the fight with them. They did nothing wrong." Amélie tried to defend the trio, but Star got in front of her, operating the Fenech beauty from the unpopular bottom of the social pole. Ghost or not, she was still the kind of person that would stick to the order she knew well.
"Amélie, listen. You're popular and Fenton and his friends are losers. They shouldn't even be, like, allowed to be near you without being somewhat popular, at least," Star said, wanting to follow the A-list rules and also thinking that she was helping Amélie.
Amélie sighed, shaking her head. These lines had been repeated to her before, but the girl did not mind. Contrary to what some might believe, she regarded Danny and his friends as good associates, at least, but Tucker's stares were not as subtle as he thought. The ghost boy himself was another matter on its own, but she never gave it much thought.
"Can we not talk about this? Paulina already is têtu about this...order. Can't we finish class and go dancing?" Amélie began rhythmically moving her arms as she swayed side to side. Smiling, she was incredibly mesmerizing as boys began staring, already starting to drool. A stern stare from Star did not dissuade them, so the girl brought her attention to Danny and his friends.
"Alright, you three-hey! Where's Fenton?" Star looked around as Sam and Tucker noticed they were missing one friend.
Danny had long left the group, going after the Box Ghost. Despite the spirit's action earning some respect, the fact remained that he was on the loose, doing whatever he pleased to general annoyance. The first stop was in the basement, where boxes of meat were kept in a freezer, something the Box Ghost had taken notice of weeks ago.
"Alright, Boxy. Let's get this over with." Danyn phased from the ceiling, where he took out the Fenton Thermos. The room was freezing cold and dimly lit, with boxes scattered everywhere. "The sooner I shove you back into the Ghost Zone, the sooner I can get on with my day."
Looking around the cold room, a quick survey gave the idea this room was devoid of any ectoplasmic activity besides the ghost boy. Or that was the initial idea until he heard a loud groan from the corner.
Arriving at the source, Danny was surprised to see the Box Ghost, only he was in great pain, knocked out and lying on the floor. His body was bruised, surrounded by cracks in the floor.
"Box Ghost?" Danny leaned closer, noticing the black eye. A blast hit him in the back. The ghost boy gritted his teeth, turning around with the thermos aimed.
"Sneaky. I take it you're not a fan of the Box Ghost?" Danny snarked, only to be met with silence. "The silent type, huh? Good thing I'm the strong type."
Another blast came from behind. This time, Danny dodged in time to twist a one-eighty, seeing something move along the shadows swiftly and quietly. This was never a good sign to him. Typically, these fights were more like in the movies, with the ghosts only revealing themselves for the big fight, but the moment seemed like the opening scene.
"Alright, gruesome, why don't you show yourself!" Danny yelled.
Silence met him again, but the moment was shortened by one statement.
"Next time..."
A creepy voice drew out the sentence, a common trait heard when against the ghost boy's supernatural foes. But this tone was gargled, course, whiny, high, and low, all simultaneously. The words echoed in the room. Danny out down the thermos, convinced by instinct that whatever spook haunted him was gone. Walking towards the Box Ghost, he sucked the spirit into the containment unit before leaving.
A chill ran down his spine, looking into the darkness, unblinking. His glowing green eyes looked for anything out of the ordinary, only to find nothing. The ghost boy would play detective if he could, but the bell for class rang, signaling him to leave.
"Great. Just what I need: another ghost to the long list of people who hate me," Danny groaned, going through the room. He never saw the four red eyes that appeared from the shadows as a raspy voice gasped in rage.
Happy New Year! I'm back! And I've got an update for Amélie in Amity to boot! It seems despite the win for Boxy, he was beaten past his life by another. But more on that in the coming chapters, obviously.
Special Thanks! to Flower Princess11 for all her help!
Reviews:
Jebest4781: That won't be a for a while. But I have made something of a timeline.
Invader Johnny: Indeed ;)
RonaldM40196867: And more ;) Well, she is targeted by boys too. I think he likes hunting prey in his domain.
qazse: Indeed ;)