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(*)
Frustrated, Julia stared at her notes and the various web pages she had opened on her computer.
She couldn't solve the enigma before her.
She had discovered that her necklace was called the Necklace of Nyx, and Adeline's mirror was known as the Mirror of Aphrodite.
Both items belonged to a collection that ghost experts referred to as the Relics of the Ancients.
The first person to propose the idea that the gods of ancient times were actually ghosts was Professor Kasimir Aydin, back in late 1892.
Julia even found a picture of him holding her necklace.
Unfortunately, Professor Aydin was not taken seriously, so his dissertations on the subject were not made public; instead, they remained in the archives of Oxford University in England.
Julia wondered how she could go to Oxford and get her hands on those papers.
Sure, she was half-ghost and could turn invisible to read them, but how could she convince her dads and grandma to take a vacation there?
Aargh, it was all so frustrating!
With a sigh, she turned off her computer and got ready for school. Perhaps a day at school would clear her mind and help her find a solution to this dilemma.
(*)
Julia and her friends were walking down the hallways of Casper High as Danny told them his own dilemma.
"You should've seen 'em fighting. My folksneverfight. Well, they fight ghosts, but...that's different."
"Danny, calm down.", said Julia and rubbed reassuring his shoulder. "No one splits up because of a present."
"I'm with Julie, you give this gift way too much importance.", added Sam.
"But it's the thing my dad's gonna use to apologize!", shot Danny back. "They're...right on the brink! I'm telling ya,anythingcould set them over the edge."
"Danny, you're fine. I mean, it's not like your mom actually said the word "divorce." I mean, if she actually said the word, then you'd have to worry.", tried Tucker to calm him down.
It worked the opposite way.
Danny stopped and freaked out!
"Said the word...Oh, man. She did! She said the word!"
Sam turned to Tucker and demanded that he say something to calm Danny down.
"Well...uh...did she say it twice?"
"That's not better!", mumbled the girls.
"That settles it. I'm goingintothe Ghost Zone and get that present back.", swore Danny.
"But not alone.", spoke Julia up. "I will come with you, together we can cover more ground."
"Thanks, Julie, I owe you one."
After school, we find Danny Phantom and Julie Cosmos before the Ghost Portal of the Fentons, decked out with headsets and cameras.
"Isodon't want to do this.", signs Phantom.
"You get in, get the present, and get out. You'll be fine.", said Sam.
"Also I am with you.", reminded him Cosmos and took his hand. "Together we will manage."
This made Phantom smile and squeeze her hand in thanks.
"Besides, with these mini webcams, I'll be with you both every step of the way.", spoke Tucker up and showed his PDA, before he started to play a game on it.
Phantom and Cosmos deadpanned at him and turned to Sam.
"You'll monitor the webcam?"
"I'll monitor the webcam."
The Half-Ghosts hold each other hands tight as they enter the Ghost Zone.
"Wow! This place is amazing!", they heard Sam gush over the headset.
"It's so...green, I like green.", mussed Cosmos.
"You both are so weird, it's creepy. And it goes on forever. I don't even know where to start to look!", grumbled Danny.
"Hey look.", pointed Cosmos with her free hand at floating purple doors. "Maybe we should check out one of these doors?"
"It's a start.", agreed Phantom.
So they flow up to a door and open it, only to get kicked out of the room by the ghost who lives there, who turns into a big red monster.
Frightened Phantom and Cosmos lean on the closed door, while it slowly drifts down to the ground.
"Every one of these doors goes into another ghost's lair?! I'm never gonna find that present. My folks are gonna get divorced and it's gonna beall myfault.", cries Phantom desperate.
The door lands in some dark forest with some tombstones.
Both Halfa's jumps off the door before it reaches the ground.
Before Cosmos can say something to calm Phantom down, the tombstones begin to rattle as some wailing is heard.
Some glowing green skeletons pop out of the dirt, trying to grab them!
Screaming both fly away from the spooky ghost cemetery.
"Relax, Danny and Julie. Weall just have to stay focused.", tries Sam to soothe their rattling nerves.
Automatically Phantom and Cosmos hold hands again and fly slowly and carefully around the Ghost Zone, while they hear how Tucker and Sam are discussing why they didn't take the Specter Speeder.
"Danny! Julie! I think we can guide you to the present.", shouts suddenly Tucker.
"There's a doorway coming up on your left. Take it.", informs Sam.
They do as they are told and find themselves in a Ghost Lair full of human items.
"So *this* is where all that stuff ends up.", musses Phantom.
"Wait, you mean when you lost something it ends up here?", ask Cosmos surprised.
It isn't Phantom who answers but the Box Ghost!
"Yes!", shouts Box Ghost. "It all ends up in the possession ofTHE BOX GHOST!"
Cosmos and Phantom deadpan and say together: "Ugh, what are *you* doing here?"
"I am The Box Ghost! Where do you two think we go when you release us from your round, cylindrical traps?"
"You mean the Fenton Thermos?", choruse Phantom and Cosmos so done with the situation.
Stupify the Box Ghosts stares at them before he shouts again: "I am the Box Ghost! And beware! For I am merely *ONE* of your foes who reside in this realm! In fact, you might say, we're a package deal!"
The Box Ghost laughs, while Cosmos groans. Phantom puns are way better.
"Ugh. Look, We're looking for something important, we don't have time for your box puns.", tells Phantom straight.
That's when they all hear...police sirens?
What?
"Flee! Lest you be hermetically sealed and shipped to your doooom!", warns Box Chost and flies away.
Far away the portly ghost doesn't get, because a green laser encloses him and turns into handcuffs.
"Hey, what's going on?", wonders Phantom.
"Who cares?", yells Cosmos, grips tight his hand and flies away from the lasers that are coming towards them. "We need to make it like a tree, Danny!"
Luck is not on their side since both get captured too.
A white ghost with a skeleton face and 50s clothes, who Phantom knows, takes their headsets away.
"Possession of unauthorized recording equipment.", says Walker and crushes the items. "That's against the rules. Or at least it is *now*."
"Wait! This is all a big misunderstanding!", yells Phantom.
Walker doesn't care and leans towards him.
"There may be chaos everywhere in this Ghost Zone, but there'll be order in *my* prison. You should've heeded my warning, punk. Now you and I and your mate have a problem."
Unceremional the Halfa's and the Box Ghost get tossed into a ghostly van and drive to Walker Ghost Prison.
"Great. My folks are splitting up, my sister's a basket case, I'm going to ghost jail and dragged you, Julie, with me.", laments Phantom.
"It's okay, Danny, we will come up with something!", tries Cosmos to stay positive.
But as they reach the prison and see all the ghosts they have fought before in prison uniform and ready to pumple them, the Halfas say together: "This is the worst day of my life."
"I am the Box Ghost!"
"Willyou stop that!"
(*)
Cosmos feels sick.
She was sitting with Phantom in Prison Uniform before the Skelton-Face Ghost who told them all of their rule breaks.
" . Creating a disturbance. And, possession of real-world contraband."
The anniversary gift Phantom searched for flies behind the warden and he tried to grab it.
"Excuse me, sir, but-but-"
The ghost grabs him by the shirt.
"Name's Walker, son. Know it. Fear it. Obey it. I am your judge, executioner, jury, executioner, jailer, and, if necessary, your executioner."
He let's go off Phantom.
"Uh, you said "executioner" three times."
"Danny!", hissed Cosmos, it sure wasn't a good idea to be a smart-ass with this Walker.
Lucky for them Walker only says how he likes the part of the job and that's why he repeats it so often.
Then Phantom tries to get the present and them free by swerving so they would never again come into this part of the Ghost Zone.
Walker admins since that's their first rule break, they will get a lighter sentence.
1000 years!
Yep, they were screwed.
Only more as guards showed them to the cafeteria of the prison.
All their enemy sat on a table, glaring at them.
"Wow,heh, pretty much everyone who hates us all at one table.", chuckles Phantom weak.
"Just like high school.", adds Cosmos nervous.
Both Halfa's start to sweat as their old enemies stand up and come towards them.
"Sorry, We can't stay and catch up on old times!", tells Phantom and grips Cosmos' hand.
They walk backwards, till they hit the counter of the food line, turning around.
"CanI get you anything, dearies?", says the Lunch Lady Ghost to them sweetly. "Coffee?Pudding? An extra helping ofDOOM?!"
As she says this, she reaches over the table with the ladle, her hair flailing under her hairnet.
Phantom and Cosmos lean backwards in fear.
The Lunch Lady lunges at them with her ladle, laughing as she continues to fly forward.
The teens fly away from her, only for Phantom to smack against Skulker and Cosmos against Technus.
Their old foes slap them away and all the imprisoned ghosts form a circle, where they slap both Halfa's around.
Phantom and Cosmos land in the arms of the Lunch Lady Ghost, who puts them into a headlock with her ladle.
"Payback time, ghost childer!", growls Skulker, creaking his knuckles.
"Wait!", shout Phantom and Cosmos together. "We are not the enemies here."
"I mean, yeah,We sent you all back to the Ghost Zone.", continues Phantom.
"But we didn't lock you up here, did we?", finish Cosmos.
Supringly the Box Ghost came to their aid.
"It is true! They did not package us in this box of iron! I amtheB— "
He is interrupted as a metal arm pushes him away.
It's Skulker who seems curious.
"Go on."
"If we work together we could all bust out of here. And you could always kick our butts later.", offers Phantom with Cosmos nodding along.
"The enemy of my enemy is my friend, for now.", agrees Skulker for all the ghosts.
Finally, the Lunch Lady Ghost lets them go and the two halfa's gasp for air.
"Alright then, that's what we do!", says Cosmos and picks up a surprised Phantom, holding him over her head. "Riot!"
Immediately all the ghosts start to fight each other.
"How did you know this would work?", wonders Phantom flabbergasted.
Cosmos smiles smugly.
"I saw it on TV."
Of course, the guard ghosts appear and that's when all the prison ghosts work together to fight them.
Thanks to the Lunch Lady Ghost and her giant chicken leg, the way is free and all escape.
Well, besides Phantom and Cosmos who run to Walker's office, after Skulker calls after them about how happy he is to hunt them again.
They hear Walker talking behind his metal door, asking his guards what is happening.
Both kick down the door.
"How about saying "please"? Saying "please" is a rule.", says Phantom.
"It is?"
The warden opens his beloved rule book, searching for this rule, as Phantom closes the book, hurting his fingers.
"It's now a rule!", tells Cosmos.
They see the present and try to grab it, but Walker slams them both on the ground and puts his foot on them.
Walker starts a monologue about what happens when you cross him, ably pressure on both their chests when out of nowhere the Specter Speeder phases through the wall with Sam and Tucker inside.
"Tucker, Sam! How'd you get in here?", asks Phantom surprised, while Cosmos stares at them in disbelief.
"Check it out! Real-world stuff just phases through everything in here.", explains Tucker.
"In the Ghost Zone,we'rethe ghosts!", adds Sam smiling.
"We're the ghosts?", repeat Phantom and Cosmos together.
Their eyes meet and they grin.
"So... maybe it's time to stop fighting like ghosts...", begins Cosmos.
"And start fighting like kids!", ends Phantom.
Both turn into their human selves and indeed Walker's foot just phases through them.
They stand up and walk to the present, while Walker desperately tries to catch them.
Danny takes the present and smugly tells Walker how this is the Ghost Zone, but he and Julia aren't just Ghosts but also humans.
Both grip the edge of the Specter Speeder and fly away, hearing Walker's screams of no.
(*)
Later that night Danny sends into the group chat how the divorce was all a big misunderstanding and actually a party for his Aunt Alicia's 10-year Anniversary of her divorce.
Julia couldn't help but giggle, however, she was glad that all was good with Danny's parents.
Then she turns back to her computer.
Another night of research awaits her.
Oh, joy.
Well, better than 1000 years of prison!
(*)
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