9/6/2024: And another chapter! This one is quite short because of where I needed to cut it. Also, it's really just kind of filler stuff, but some important info here. We start to see the public's reaction to Danny as well as more info on the pregnancy. The public and townspeople are going to be semi important to this story.

I have a lot planned out for this sequel, so it might end up being longer than its predecessor. I have an entire outline written to try and keep it all straight, but I keep thinking of new ideas and new events and boy, it's becoming a behemoth. The beginning will be…slightly slow as we explore family life, but trust me, there will be action coming. Some of these beginning chapters will also be shorter.

Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom!

–

Chapter 3: Doctor

–

Once Sam explained the situation, the OBGYN made an emergency appointment for her to go that very day and she was extremely nervous. Danny went with her, no longer caring if anyone knew Danny Phantom was back now that those closest to him knew.

It did make for quite a scene at the doctor's office, though.

Danny had changed out of his hazmat into regular clothes. Now that he didn't have a human half to morph into, there was no way he was going to stay in that hazmat all the time. Even with the normal clothes, him walking into the office with her drew everyone's attention immediately. A t-shirt and jeans didn't hide the fact that he was clearly a ghost, not with the glowing eyes, glowing skin, and sudden drop in temperature.

The whole town knew that Danny Fenton was Danny Phantom, and that Danny Fenton had died three weeks prior, so it didn't take long for the whispers and speculation to start.

Sam shrunk into herself and walked to reception to check in. She smiled at the receptionist, who was trying very hard not to stare at the tall, muscular, and intimidating ghost, and gave the poor woman her information. The receptionist handed Sam a clipboard with paperwork, before Sam went to find a seat, turning around to find most of the women had moved to the other side of the waiting room.

Danny Fenton/Phantom was regarded as the town hero, and while this ghost looked like Phantom, none of them were sure of it.

The goth groaned internally and found a seat, keeping her head down and filling out her information. Danny took a seat next to her, seemingly unphased by all the attention.

"How are you so calm?" she asked, voice a whisper. She knew he would hear her, but no one else would.

She felt the rumble of his mostly quiet laugh. "They'll figure it out eventually," he answered softly, voice just loud enough for her to hear. "Besides, it doesn't matter what they think. I'm here for you and the baby and they can't make me leave."

The goth continued to fill out the paperwork, annoyed at herself for letting it get to her. She was stronger than that, and didn't usually let things go to her head. Maybe the hormones were making her soft. She made a face at that thought.

Danny watched her, noting all the different faces she was making and wondering what was going on in that mind of hers. Sam had never really been good at hiding facial expressions, almost always wearing what she was thinking on her face. He remembered often reminding her to check her face when they were teens.

She finished her paperwork and walked up to turn it in, saying 'thank you' when the lady said they'd be right with her.

As she returned to her seat she sighed and Danny reached over to take her hand. The action caused more whispers. Sam couldn't tell what was being said, but the ghost's sensitive hearing could.

"Is that Danny Phantom?"

"Didn't he die?"

"Yeah, but can't humans come back as ghosts?"

"Heck if I know. Why is he holding her hand?"

"Isn't that the Manson girl who was best friends with Fenton before he died?"

"Oh! Maybe they're together?"

"That's gross, he's dead!"

That one made Danny growl low, a noise only Sam could hear. She raised her brow at him, but he didn't acknowledge it. He did stop, though, not wanting to upset her more.

A nurse emerged from the door. "Manson?"

Sam stood, Danny standing with her. The nurse stepped back, keeping the door open. She eyed the ghost, but Danny had to hand it to her as she remained professional, not giving away any of her thoughts.

They went through the door and were led down a hallway and passed several doors before she took them into a room.

"You can have a seat in those chairs," she said, indicating two chairs in the room across from the exam table. She shut the door behind them and went over to the stool, sitting on it and placing the tablet on the counter.

Sam and Danny each took a chair, the ghost taking her hand to alleviate her nervousness.

"I'm going to ask some preliminary questions and take your vitals before the doctor comes in," the nurse started. "I see you're here on an emergency appointment. You think you're pregnant?"

Sam nodded. "I took a test and it was positive."

"When was that?"

"Yesterday."

The nurse nodded, jotting that down on her tablet before standing. "Can you hop up on the table so I can get your vitals?"

The nervous goth stood and did as asked. She waited patiently as the nurse listened to her heart and lungs, then took her blood pressure. "When was your last cycle?" the nurse asked.

Sam went beat red. "Uhm…I don't remember. It's been a while."

The woman nodded. "Your blood pressure is a little low. Can you come stand on the scale for me and we'll get your weight?" she indicated towards a scale against the wall.

This was the part Sam was dreading. She went over to the scale and stepped on it, biting her lip. Her stomach dropped when she saw how much weight she'd lost.

The nurse tsked. "90 pounds. You're far too light for your height. Have you lost weight recently?"

Sam nodded, hiding her face from Danny. "I've been really nauseous and unable to eat."

The nurse nodded again, writing that down. "Okay, have a seat. The doctor will be in shortly."

She left, leaving the goth trying not to look at Danny and have to acknowledge his sad and worried look. She hated that she felt so embarrassed over this.

The ghost, for his part, kept quiet and just put an arm around her shoulder. Sam felt a pang of guilt when she briefly found herself missing his warmth.

After a few minutes there was a knock on the door and the doctor entered with a smile. "I'm Dr. Dorr. I hear someone might be pregnant?"

"Well, it's not me, Doc," Danny said, trying to lighten Sam's mood.

It worked somewhat, the goth cracking a smile as the doctor laughed. Sam nodded in answer.

"I hope that's good news?"

Danny grinned. "It is to me."

The doctor turned to him. "You're Phantom, correct?"

He nodded. "Yes, ma'am."

"And you were Danny Fenton, the man who died a few weeks ago?"

The young ghost nodded again.

Dr. Dorr smiled. "I'm very sorry to hear you passed away. Obviously, you came back and if Sam is pregnant, I think it's wonderful you're here to see your child."

Danny was taken aback a bit by the statement but gave her a friendly smile. "Thank you. You're the first to actually say something to me, instead of just whispering about it."

She waved her hand. "Don't let others get to you. Just enjoy your family."

Both Danny and Sam were starting to like this doctor.

"Now," Dr. Dorr started. "We'll need to do a blood test to confirm how far along you are, but I can also do an ultrasound to confirm and give a good guess. If you'll hop up on the table, please."

Sam did as instructed and laid on the table, pulling her shirt up. She shivered a bit at the cold gel the doctor put on her belly.

Danny stood and came over, extremely interested in seeing what might show up on the screen.

Dr. Dorr put the wand on Sam's belly and then turned the screen on before moving the wand around a bit. Sam held her breath, realizing for the first time that she was actually wishing for this, instead of dreading it, especially now that she didn't have to be a single mom.

Finally a dark circle showed up on screen and in the middle was a little white blob. The doctor smiled. "There it is. Doesn't look like much now, but it'll grow very quickly."

Danny stared in wonder at the tiny life on the screen. "Is that the heart beat?" he asked, pointing to a little area that was rapidly moving.

Dr. Dorr smiled. "Yes, and it's healthy. Since we can see it, I'm going to guess you're at least 7 weeks along, but a blood test will better determine that."

The ghost grinned, unable to control the elation he felt at seeing his baby's heartbeat. He looked at Sam and noticed the tears rolling down her face as she looked at the screen. He grabbed her hand and squeezed.

The doctor took a few photos and printed them, handing them to the father-to-be. "Your very first photos of your little one."

All too soon, they were done and Sam was cleaned up and sitting up on the table, the doctor looking through the chart with a concerned look. "The baby is healthy," she started. "But you need to put on a lot of weight. If you stay this small, or continue to be unable to eat, you could lose the baby."

Sam cringed. "I hope you have something that can help with that?"

The doctor nodded. "I have some medications I can give to help the nausea and vomiting that are safe for you and the baby. You're at 90 pounds right now, but you should be at least 115. I would say it's healthy to gain at least twenty pounds during the pregnancy, which would put you at 135. That means you really need to put on 45 pounds in the next few months, preferably with at least twenty of that in the next two."

Sam groaned. It seemed so daunting a task to do that when she couldn't even stand the smell of food right now. Dr. Dorr gave her a sympathetic look and patted her knee. "This stage won't last forever. In a few months, you'll be eating everything in sight."

The goth groaned again, covering her face in her hands. Danny rubbed her back. "You'll do great," he said.

That earned him a glare. "You're not the one going through this."

The ghost looked a little wide-eyed at her hostility and the doctor laughed. "You'll need to get used to that," she said. "Women's hormones are all over the place for the entire pregnancy, and even a little after."

"Is there any good thing about pregnancy?" Sam asked, incredulous.

Dr. Dorr nodded. "You get a baby out of it," she shrugged. "It's also pretty awesome when you feel those first little flutters of movement. At least until they kick your kidneys."

Danny surreptitiously held Sam to the table, instinctively knowing the historically violent goth was going to smack the doctor. The doctor, however, was observant and chuckled. "It's really not that bad. I've been through it twice, and while it's not always sunshine and roses, it's all worth it once you get to look at the face of your newborn."

Sam calmed a little at that, giving the woman an apologetic look.

"We're all done here for now. Right before you get to the waiting room, there's a door on the left, that's the lab. I'll have the results probably tomorrow and can give you an idea of a due date then. Otherwise, I'll see you in a month!" Dr. Dorr grinned as she opened the door. "I'll send the meds over for you. Make sure to call me if they don't work."

With that she left. The couple went to the lab where Sam got her blood drawn and then they headed out.

The goth simply couldn't miss the bounce in Danny's step, the grin that was plastered on his face, or the way he kept humming to himself. He was completely ignoring all the people gawking at him as they made their way to Sam's car.

"I take it someone is happy," she said with a hint of amusement.

Danny turned around and walked backwards through the parking lot to look at her. "Are you kidding me? You can't tell me that wasn't just the coolest thing. It was the best thing ever! It was better than pizza, cooler than ghost powers, more awesome than…than space!" he said excitedly, arms in the air.

The ghost's enthusiasm was infectious and Sam smiled, shaking her head. "Alright, space-man, let's get in the car."

The ghost stopped at the car before looking to the sky. "Do you mind if I fly along? I'm not sure I can be cooped up in a car right now."

The goth nodded, understanding that flight for Danny was freeing. "Yeah, I'm okay now that the appointment is over. Meet me at the pharmacy?"

He grinned at her, leaning down for a kiss, not caring at all who saw a ghost kissing a human, before shooting off into the sky with a "woohoo!" and a somersault.

The goth opened her car door but took a moment to just watch the elated ghost. He was shouting for joy before throwing his hands up and yelling "This. Is. Awesome!" before continuing to do flips through the air.

Sam smiled at the display, and could actually imagine a younger Danny, a teen Danny, flying without a care in the world. She could even hear his cheers in his childhood voice. She felt guilty for the pang of remorse that went through her at the loss of that Danny, but reminded herself that this was still that Danny.

With a final tender smile, she got in the car.

–

9/7/24: This one is pretty short but where I wanted to go next just didn't fit here.

Hope you liked seeing some of the old, happy-go-lucky Danny!