Chapter 2: Not so Different

Danny Fenton couldn't believe his bad luck. Of all times Dash Baxter could appear. He still didn't know those monsters well enough to trust they wouldn't harm Dash more than the bully deserved.

"Fenturd, what's with those chicks?" Dash asked. "Especially the Egyptian Mummy Princess."

"We're tourists from New Salem, Oregon." Draculaura replied.

"Don't tell him those things, Draculaura." Cleo ordered. "We don't even know him."

"My name is Dash Baxter and I'm star quarterback for Casper High." Dash said under the belief it'd impress the mummy.

"I'm Cleo De Nile." Cleo introduced herself.

"And I'm her boyfriend Deuce Gorgon; and co-captain of my school's casketball team." Deuce intervened.

"Casketball?" Dash asked in mild confusion. "That's Halloween spirit. But what's with the shades? I don't think they existed during Medusa's time."

"I need them to avoid turning into stone everyone I see." Deuce explained, unknowingly reminding every human around him about a comic book hero.

"We'll see about that." Dash replied, removing Deuce's sunglasses and ignoring every monster's horrified scream as Dash was turned into stone.

"What did you do?" Danny asked with a frown as every human there not in Team Phantom ran away in terror.

"What I just said I need my sunglasses to avoid doing, Danny." Deuce answered and Danny understood it was Dash's fault.

"Will he stay like that forever?" Tucker asked with a hint of hope.

"No, he'll be back to normal in about 24 hours." Deuce answered.

"In that case, let's buy some corn." Tucker eagerly said.

"Tucker, this is not time to think about food." Sam scolded her friend.

"It's not to eat." Tucker explained. "I want to cover Dash with corn so pigeons will come and..."

"TUCKER!" Everyone loudly interrupted him.

"He'll be furious when the transformation is undone." Deuce warned Tucker.

"Who'd tell him?" Tucker asked.

"He already knows." Clawdeen replied. "Everyone affected by Deuce's power is aware of their surroundings while being a statue."

"In for a penny..." Tucker commented.

"He deserves it but it's not worth it." Sam replied.

"And we should leave before an angry mob arrives." Draculaura suggested, remembered what happened the last time she ate a tomato in front of normies.

Fortunately, they left on time as the mall was soon surrounded by Guys in White. "I'm impressed by how similar that place was to the maul where we fang-out." Cleo commented. "I almost hoped to find a store that sold Jean Maul Ghostier's creations."

"I know, right?" Clawdeen asked in excitement. "I probably would be looking for the new Bouis Buibbon purse now had that Dash Baxter not been in the way."

"Moan?" Ghoulia asked.

"No, I wouldn't buy knockoffs from that shop with a similar name, Ghoulia." Clawdeen replied.

Team Phantom couldn't believe how, aside from being monsters, those ghouls practically sounded like typical valley girls. Especially Sam. "Why're you talking like that?" The goth asked.

"What's wrong with the way we talk?" Lagoona asked in reply. She was starting to dislike how judgmental Sam was.

Danny and Tucker were worried. They knew how Sam enjoyed the 'classical' way people perceived monsters and how she hated the idea of monster girls being like the human girls she hated the most. "She's just surprised, that's all." Danny quickly said, hoping Sam would take the hint and avoid offending the monsters.

Also wanting to stay away from that topic, Tucker approached Deuce. "So, are you all from New Salem?" The technogeek asked.

"That's where Monster High is located at." Deuce answered.

"And you play basketball there?" Tucker asked.

"Casketball." Deuce corrected Tucker. "Clawd and I are co-captains."

'Somehow the fact Clawdeen's brother is a jock makes me more afraid of him than the fact he's a monster.' Danny thought.

"Don't tell me your school has cheerleaders." Sam asked. It was already bad enough in her opinion that some monsters were jocks or valley girls but monsters being cheerleaders would be the final nail in the coffin.

"No." Cleo replied, temporarily making Sam relieved. "We have fearleaders. I'm the head fearleader."

"Moan?" Ghoulia asked.

"What did she say?" Danny asked upon realizing none of the monsters would say anything in reply.

"She asked if you want to see videos of us at the Monster Mashionals." Draculaura translated.

"Monster Nationals?" Danny asked in confusion.

"Monster Mashionals but your way of calling it isn't necessarily wrong since it involves fearleading teams from the whole Boonighted States of Scaremerica." Clawdeen explained.

While Danny and his friends were digesting the idea of a whole nation of monsters, Ghoulia showed a video of Monster High's fearleading squad's performance at the Monster Mashionals. "Monsters or not, they're still hot." Tucker commented.

"Are they performing while wearing high heels?" Danny asked.

Sam, on the other hand, was having an existential crisis. "How can this be?" She asked in horror.

"It wasn't easy." Lagoona answered, thinking Sam meant how they won the Mashionals. "We spent lots of time practicing."

Tucker became afraid of how the monsters would react if Sam told them her real reason to oppose monster cheerleading. "Would you like to see Casper High's cheerleading team's performance?" Tucker asked while showing his PDA.

"Yes, I would." Spectra answered.

The ghouls and the mansters were disappointed by what Tucker showed them. "Do they win contests with that?" Cleo asked with a tone that made it clear to Team Phantom why she was Monster High's head fearleader.

"They don't even enter contests, Cleo." Danny replied.

"That I can believe." Clawdeen commented. "And I now understand why you won't call it fearleading but I wouldn't call it cheerleading either since what those normies do is only cheerful to those who care more about their looks than their skills."

"Which is why they're still cheerleaders." Tucker commented while imagining himself dating one of the cheerleaders.

"Is there a place in this town other than the 'mall' where we can have dinner?" Draculaura asked. "Preferably a place with vegetarian meals."

"Really?" Tucker asked. "Don't you vampires prefer some juicy meat so you won't have to suck blood from us normies?"

'And I thought Sam would be the one to offend the monsters.' Danny thought upon seeing their reactions to Tucker's question.

"I drink some nutrients to avoid the need for... b-b-b-blood." Draculaura explained.

"Don't take it the wrong way." Sam said. "I'm glad you won't suck my blood but a vampire who can't even stand the mention of the word?"

"Yo, take it easy." Clawdeen demanded.

Tucker then turned his attention to Spectra. "Look, I know it's Halloween but, aren't you concerned people will figure out you're not someone with a ghost costume?" Tucker asked.

"In any other normie town, I would but, based on what is said in the Ghost Zone about the local ghost hunters, they're more likely to go after normie kids who wear bedsheets and calls them 'ghost costumes'." Spectra answered.

"Hey!" Danny protested. "My parents aren't so..."

Danny's protests were interrupted by the sounds of Jack's ecto-weapons. "Take that, you putrid piece of ecto..."

"Jack," His wife interrupted him. "I'm afraid this is another kid with a bedsheet."

"At least we didn't attack the Chief's son." Jack commented. "Again."

"Danny, your parents know how to make an entrance." Tucker commented, earning a glare from Danny.

"Your parents are ghost hunters and don't know you're part ghost yourself?" Frankie asked.

"Yes." Danny uneasily answered.

"Just for curiosity: who came up with the idea of calling you "Inviso-Bill"?" Spectra asked.

"I don't know." Danny answered, upset that stupid nickname was brought up. "Someone in the media came up with that name after the first time humans saw me in public in ghost form until I announced my name during the Ghost King's attack."

"And it's a good thing you did because Invisi Billy was becoming worried that he'd be blamed for some of the things you're accused of." Cleo commented.

"True." Danny replied and then it clicked on what Cleo just said. "Is there a ghost who really goes by that name?" He was now worried that Invisi Billy would attack him over the misunderstanding.

"No, Danny." Cleo answered. "Invisi Billy is not a ghost, or a spirit, or a phantom. He is invisible."

"The best ghost power ever." Tucker said with a dreamy expression.

"I prefer flight." Danny replied, disgusted at Tucker.

"Nasty Burger has a vegetarian option." Sam said.

"Nasty?" Clawdeen said. "I like that name."

Team Phantom just shrugged at someone liking that name.

Meanwhile, Dash Baxter was taken to Fentonworks out of hope Jack and Maddie Fenton would find a way to reverse the transformation. "Did Medusa become a ghost or something like it, Maddie?" Jack asked.

"No, it was a male Medusa who did it." Dash desperately tried to answer but, in spite of being aware of his surroundings, he was as unable to do so as a real statue.

"It could be another gorgon but either way we should call Danny and have him come home before the monster attacks him." Maddie replied.

Maddie made that phone call as Danny and his friends (old and new) were about to enter Nasty Burger. "Mom?" Danny asked.

"Danny, you and your friends must go home immediately!" Maddie exclaimed in horror. "There's a monster turning people into stone! Dash Baxter is a victim and we're trying to figure out how to undo it! I don't know if it's a ghost or a gorgon but it's not safe outside!"

"Okay, Mom." Danny replied, knowing there's no way he could make up an excuse. After the call ended, he explained the situation to his friends.

Deuce couldn't help but get worried. "Danny, will you parents do anything that could hurt Dash Baxter while not being a statue?" He asked.

"Uh, maybe?" Danny hesitated. "Why do you ask?"

"Because, if they're doing such a thing to him during the time the transformation wears off..." Deuce answered and didn't need to finish it.

"I gotta go!" Danny shouted, went ghost, and flew away.

"I'm so glad we already exchanged contact info." Clawdeen commented.

When Danny arrived home, his parents were using lasers on Dash. "Mom, Dad, what happens if the transformation wears off while he's under all those lasers?"

"Danny, how can you believe it'll wear off?" His mother asked.

Danny knew he couldn't tell them as Danny Fenton because he'd have to explain how he knew; and that his parents wouldn't take Danny Phantom's word for it. "As scientists, you should be ready for all possibilities regardless of which one is the mostly likely to happen, right?" He asked, appealing to the fact they were (or considered themselves to be) scientists.

"I suppose so, Danny." Maddie conceded.

"I even tried to chip off a piece of his jersey but I couldn't get anything." Jack added. "Anyway, those lasers are for analysis only since we don't want to cut up a fellow human. Albeit all readings we got so far suggests we couldn't do it even if we wanted to."

'Phew.' Dash thought upon hearing the last part.

Danny was also relieved even if only partially. He still had to make sure nothing too harmful would be happening by the time Dash stopped being a statue.

End chapter

Answer to Guest: Yes.