Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom or any of the characters. Danny Phantom is the sole property of Butch Hartman, Nickelodeon and Paramount global.
Court
Chapter 5: Preparations
Five minutes have passed, and Valerie was still hiding in a nearby alley, until her friends found her.
"Here she is..."Danny said.
"Hey Val. No worries. Nathan is gone..."Star said, while her friend got up.
"You sure?..."Val asked, and the others nodded.
"Yep. Look..."Star said and Valerie looked and saw no sign of her annoying admirer.
"How'd you guys manage to do that? Nathan is usually too desperate and stubborn to give up..."Val said.
"You can thank me and Star for that..."Tucker said, full of pride.
"How'd you manage to pull that off?..."Val asked, since she knew how stubborn Nathan can be.
"Simple. I told him that I already asked you to the prom and you said it was a maybe...which is still WAY better than all the million times you said no to him..."Tucker said, being honest.
He did want to ask her to senior prom but unlike Nathan, he'd wait till they were seniors and whether or not they were together. And unlike him, he liked to think he'd be mature enough to handle being told no, even if he didn't like it.
"I also told him that if he didn't stop bugging you, I'd call my dad, the same lawyer who made sure Colette was given a restraining order and tell him to do the same if he didn't knock it off. And it looks like it worked..."Star said, adding her part.
"Though it took a while. Geez, why can't some people just handle rejection with a bit of dignity and move on..."Star said, arms crossed.
"I wish I knew, Starlight..."Danny said, knowing her pain.
"Thanks guys..."Val said in relief, before she sent a curious look to Tucker.
"Why a "maybe", though? If you were gonna tell something to make Nathan leave me alone, why not say yes?..."Val asked, since she figure that might have been more effective.
"I wasn't sure how'd you feel if I said it was a yes and there was a chance Nathan wouldn't believe me, so I basically just reminded him that out of the two of us, I had less of a chance of you saying no..."Tucker said and Val smiled.
"Well, senior prom is still a LONG time away...but I think you're chances improved a lot...at least you have a way better chance than Nathan..."Val teased.
"Is that suppose to be a compliment or not? Since that bar isn't really that high..."Tucker wondered, as he looked to Sam.
"I'm not being your girl translator..."The goth said, while Val was just glad her unwanted admirer was gone.
Now that the annoying lovesick boy is gone, Val and her friends returned to their spot and Danny and Star, and the others began to tell their story again.
"Okay, where were we?..."Danny asked outloud as he thought.
"Oh right, I just told you how Walker "summoned" all my enemies for jury duty or whatever you want to call it. Anyway, I'm going to skip some stuff since you guys made it clear you don't like hearing about mine and Star's dates..."Danny said.
"And I do NOT want to talk about how much my parents were whining all night just because Star's mom and Eleanors like Mrs. Fenton more than her..."Sam said, arms crossed.
"So, I guess we'll all skip to what happened the next day. Brace yourselves, this is where it gets kind of intense..."Star said, as she continued to tell them what had happened.
Story
The Next Day
It was Saturday morning and Danny and Star were excited as they just met up for their date.
"Hey, Boo..."Star said, greeting him with a kiss.
"Hey, Starlight. Now that's a good way to officially start a Saturday full of fun..."He said dreamily, making Star giggle.
"Oh, you..."She said, hugging him. "I can't wait to spend it all with you, Boo..."She said, kissing his cheek.
"Same here, Milady..."Danny said sweetly, kissing her hand.
Star giggled at this, finding it both goofy yet charming.
"He really is something..."She thought, knowing this will be fun.
Star then glanced at her watch and saw the time.
"Okay, it's already 8 in the morning. The waterpark doesn't open until 10AM, which gives us two hours to do...basically anything else we want to do..."Star said.
"As long as I'm with you, I'm always having fun..."Danny said, making him smile.
"He's so sweet..."Star thought lovingly, looking forward to their date today.
Since they already had everything with them and it wouldn't take long for Danny to fly them to the water park, they decided to spend the next 2 hours just hanging out and goofing off around town. Just being teens and having fun.
"This is nice. Just you and me together...and knowing that brat is thousands of miles away from the two of us..."Star said as she kept walking and holding Danny's hand.
"What I'd give for this to be a permanent arrangement..."Danny said, unaware that in a few months time, he would get his wish.
"Yeah, but unfortunately, Colette is really good at convincing my mom and her dad that she's not evil...though I get the feeling that Jean-Puke knows and just doesn't care, and my mom is brainwashed into thinking there is SOMETHING good about them. Plus, it's not like we have proof of the times she sunk her lowest like the amnesia thing. Or when she went full on Plasmius and tried to vaporize me..."Star muttered bitterly.
"At least we don't have to worry about her for a few days. That's always a good thing in my book..."Danny said, knowing Colette is in California right now and likely being a pain in the neck there like she is here in Amity Park.
Present Time
"BTW, when Colette came back on Monday, she wouldn't stop whining about her time there and wouldn't shut up about it when she bugged me when she came back...but she did say something I thought was kind of funny if you want to hear it..."Danny said, as he continued.
Back to the story
In California
Colette and her father are now in California, having arrived there since last night.
It was early in the morning there and her father had already gotten ready and left for an important business meeting with the head of some hotel chain that was trying to get his wines onto the menu. That was going to take place for most of the day, leaving the spoiled brat alone for the time being. And Colette was currently doing the same thing she had yesterday when she first made it here.
She complained.
"Ugh! Zhese accommodations are unbearable!..."Colette grumbled, hating this.
She had just finished her 5-star gourmet breakfast and had now had nothing to do after so she was cared for on hand and foot. And yet, she kept whining to herself about her "misfortune".
"This is so unfair! I could have Mon Amore on my arm right now instead I'm here' sitting in a barely luxurious beach house that Papa rented for us for zhee miserable weekend..."Colette grumbled internally as she kept being waited on hand and foot by the staff that were paid to cater to her every whim as per her father's orders.
After eating her fancy breakfast and bossing the servants around, Colette decided to take a walk on the beach and shop in the local luxury boutiques, though in her words, they BARELY met her standards.
She bought several things in that boutique, including a new, three-thousand-dollar, gem encrusted sunhat that she bought to match her outfit.
Even then, she was still whining, even as she was still living in the life of luxury.
"I just hope Papa ends this stupid deal early and we can go back to Amity Park. I cannot stand being here where Mon Amore is NOT and I cannot let him stay around that stupid Estelle as she sinks her claws deeper into him. Besides, zhat peasant hotel owner is a fool if he doesn't accept papas generous offer. He should be on his knees begging for papa to let him serve our family's wine to these unworthy peasants..."She thought arrogantly, still having an overinflated view of herself and her papa.
The sooner they did this stupid business deal, the sooner she could return to her precious Danny.
Colette walked out of the beach house and saw people on the beach having fun. She saw that peasants were laughing, running and enjoying the sun on the beach. She frowned, annoyed.
"Speaking of peasants, why do they have to be so loud?..."She thought, annoyed.
Didn't they know their betters could hear their drivel?!
Another reason to miss France since her grandparents owned a private island near the Coast, where the only peasants were the servants. As it should be.
Not wanting to miss home any more than she already did, the spoiled brat did some more shopping at some of the boutiques, but wasn't satisfied with what she deemed as a limited selection and she remained in a bad mood, even as she returned to her temporary residence that she kept complaining about.
She already sent some of her servants to carry most of her purchases back to her temporary home.
"Vell, at least zhats over now..."She had thought at the time, only barely satisfied with her purchases.
Even so, she had bought something extra on the way and was annoyed that it will be a while before they can come back to carry it back for her.
"Where are zhose lazy peasants? How dare they leave me alone in moi's time of need?..." Colette thought overdramatically as she stormed off, looking for zhose useless servants her papa hired.
However, she found something much more interesting that caught her attention.
She saw a black haired boy nearby who was wearing a white skirt and jeans. She couldn't see his face, but Colette noticed the messy black hair and her heart instantly skipped a beat.
"Mon Amore! You came for me! I knew you'd forget about that useless Estelle!..." Colette shouted as she hugged the boy from behind and kissed his cheek when she tried to reach for the lips.
Unfortunately for her, the guy panicked and pushed her off.
"Whoa! What are you doing?! Who the heck are you?!..."A voice that WASN'T Danny's said in alarm.
It was then that she finally got a good look at him and realize that this guy wasn't Danny. Instead, he has brown eyes and curly black hair, along with freckles.
Colette frowned.
"You're not Mon Amore!..."She complained, as if this was somehow his fault.
It was then that a girl who saw the hug appeared and looked angry.
"Hey, that's my boyfriend! Hands off!..."A blonde with purple highlights called out, carrying a surfboard and looking ticked off.
Instead of apologizing and calmly explaining her misunderstanding like a normal person would, Colette started whining and refusing to accept any responsibility for her actions.
"It's his fault for looking like my beloved Mon Amore Danny! He tricked me into thinking he was my darling, though he is not as good looking as my handsome Danny! Besides, he should be more grateful that accident or not, a girl far more beautiful zhan you are even bothered to even be kiss him, even by accident, compared to a peasant sea urchin like you!..."Colette said in a cruel and snobbish way, angering both teens.
"I'll give you something to be grateful for!..."The girl said, before pushing Colette into the ocean and drenching her in salt water, her makeup and her dye job.
"AHH! My hair!..."Colette screamed as she splashed in an undignified manner and coughed out the sea water and made a disgusted face.
"Ugh! You peasant! Do you have any idea how much this silk sundress costs?!..." Colette screamed as the girl and boy ignored her.
"I don't know who this Danny guy is, but I seriously doubt he's dating you if you jump at any guy who looks like him and if he is, he's clearly nuts!..."The guy she kissed said, rubbing his cheek.
"Of course he loves me! He just won't admit it!..." Colette declared angrily.
"You should get waterproof dye next time, considering how much you swim in denial..."The girlfriend said before looking to her boyfriend.
"Let's go, Tyler..."She said.
"Right behind you, Marcie..."Her boyfriend replied as they walked off.
Colette wanted to go after them and get back at them but ended up tripping and landed face first in the sand. She coughed and spat it out, in both disgust and her bad mood got infinitely worse now.
"Such insolent peasants! I'm going to tell Papa to find out where their parents work, buy the place and fire them! I vill make them pay!..."She shouted in anger as she stormed out of the ocean, ruining a thankfully empty nest a seagull had just finished.
"Out of my way, you rat with wings!..."She snapped, too angry to even think rationally right now.
The seagull squawked in anger.
Its nest was ruined by the nasty human who had tried to steal that boy who had a mate already and yelled at him for no reason. The bird was angry that his new home was ruined. He then spotted the sparkly gem encrusted hat that the human was wearing, and he immediately wanted the shiny thing.
"Squawk!..."It let out as it tried to take her hat as compensation and make a new nest.
Colette saw this and panicked as she tried to protect her new and expensive hat.
"AHH! Get away from me you winged thief!..."Colette shouted as she tried to get away from the angry bird who chased after her, while the other people at the beach watched this and laughed as she tried to run from the bird and tried to keep her hat away from it.
She didn't have much luck as the seagull managed to snatch her hat and fly off with it. Colette shrieked as the seagull flew off with her new, three-thousand-dollar hat and she tried to get it back.
"INSOLENT VERMIN! I will make my papa order his chefs to cook you and serve you to our dog!..."She ranted in French, while the other patrons on the beach looked at her like she was crazy.
Colette didn't notice or care as she was too angry because her new hat was stolen. She tried to throw something in anger, only to be chased by more angry seagulls in response.
"AAAHHHH!..."She yelled as she tried to get away from the angry seagulls, running and screaming to get away as she shouted more obscene things in French
Present Time
Once Danny was done, everyone was laughing loudly at that.
"Oh my gosh! I really wish I was there to see that!..."Val said, laughing so hard that tears began to form.
"Same here!..."Star said, doing the same.
"Apparently her stay there wasn't fun, and she was so upset that she basically whined about it to anyone who would listen to her when she got back. It was actually one of the few times I ever found anything she said to be funny..."Danny chuckled.
The best part is that the girl whose boyfriend she mistook for Danny was actually the hotel owner's daughter. Things got nasty when both their dads tried to have a business dinner and brought them along and the two got into another fight there..."Star said, smirking as she recalled that story.
"From what I heard, that hotel owner decided he didn't want to business with someone who did such a terrible job raising a child, so he terminated their deal and went with someone else. Jean-Puke got angry at Colette since her little stunt made him lose out on millions and grounded her..."She said, since that was one of the rare times he grounded her on his own accord.
"She actually told all of me that word for word. Why? Don't know. Maybe she thought I'd sympathize with her or whatever. Not that I did..."Danny said, recalling how much he laughed when he heard that story.
"Of course, she tried it to make it sound like the guy tricked her by pretending to be me. Not that I bought it for a second..."Danny said, rolling his eyes.
"Because the psycho thinks she's smarter than everyone and she's nuts. She'd probably yell at the wind if her hair got a little messed up... Sam added, knowing how unrealistic that brat is.
"Probably..."Danny said, and Star nodded.
"It was hilarious hearing about the seagull thing. I wish that I could have been there to see it..." Tucker added, chuckling.
"Me too..."Star said, also finding that part of the story amusing.
"So, what happened next?..."Val asked, finding this story more entertaining than before now.
"Okay...well, since I doubt you guys want to hear about what me and Danny dating while we waited until it was time to go to the waterpark...my mom and his mom were discussing game strategies and practicing...and let's just say my mom's over-competiveness isn't exclusive to beauty pageants..."Star sighed, as she kept narrating.
Back to the story
At the country club
Maddie yawned, tired.
She had been on the country club's tennis court since early this morning, as Stella had showed up at 7 on the dot and basically dragged her here for training.
It's been over an hour, and she was starting to lag behind as Stella kept insisting that they train and didn't even look even remotely tired right now as she hardly even broken a sweat yet.
"Now Maddie, to properly do a forehand, you need to hold your racket like this and keep your eyes on the ball as you swing if you want to hit..."Stella said, as she demonstrated for the fifth time and Maddie lost her patience already.
"Stella, enough. You already told and showed me every basic tennis move there is, and we've gone over them three times already. I know I got the basics down now..."Maddie said tiredly, while the blonde woman let out a chuckle and walked to the pitching machine.
"Oh, Maddie, Maddie, Maddie. You know that practice makes perfect, and the basics are essential. Without them, you won't stand a chance since the basics are the foundation to the advanced stuff. We need to make sure you know all of this if you want to do well in the tournament..."Stella pointed out, as she held her racket in her hand.
"This is for charity, and we need to make sure that you remember all the rules and moves by Monday if we want any chance of winning. While you are fit and have more stamina than anyone I know...I'm kind of jealous of that actually...we still need to go over the basics before we go over the advance moves of the game and then get into our REAL training..."The blonde woman said, acting like she knew what was best.
Maddie sighed, already feeling tired of this.
"Remember, this is for a good cause..."She reminded herself as the mother of her son's girlfriend then decided to give a demonstration of some more advance moves.
"Watch me..."Stella said as held her racket in her hand, barely hiding a determined smile on her face.
They were now in front of the tennis ball launchers and one of the club's workers prepared everything.
"Place it on the advance setting. The highest possible, please..."Stella ordered, before she then turned to Maddie.
"Watch and learn..."Stella said as she held her racket tightly.
The club worked did as told did just that.
Soon, tennis balls were flying, and Stella used her racket and suddenly her hands were a blur as she hit every ball, sending it flying into the fence in record time. Never missing a single ball and moving with a speed and grace that one would not expect from such a snobby and pampered woman.
Once she was done, Maddie blinked as Stella smirked.
"Tada!~..."She said in a perky way, while the female ghost hunter was briefly speechless at what she just witnessed.
"Huh...that was actually pretty good..."She admitted, actually impressed at how well the blonde woman did that.
"Thanks. I practice a lot. And I play to win. It's how me and Eleanor kept our seven-year winning streak..."Stella said, semi-bragging.
"You're turn..."She said, as she wanted Maddie to try this now.
Maddie sighed as she held her Fenton tennis racket and got into position.
"Okay, hit me with your best shot!..."Maddie ordered and the club worker did the same with the advance setting.
The tennis balls were launched, and Maddie grinned.
"Take this, and this!..."She said as she got into the zone, imagining each ball was a ghost and she wasn't going to let a single ghost get past her.
She used the same strength, speed, energy and zeal she used in her ghost fighting as she hit each and every one of these tennis balls.
Once she was done, she grinned.
"HA! How do you like that?!..."She gloated, only to snap out of it once she noticed her surroundings.
She saw some broken some pots, damaged topiary and a terrified worker hid behind a chair nervously and a speechless Stella. Recalling this wasn't ghost related, Maddie felt a little embarrassed at getting carried away like that.
"Oh my...I'm so-..." Maddie said nervously began and was going to offer to have them send her the bill, only for Stella to cut her off.
"Wonderful! Love that killer instinct, Maddie! That's just what we need to win!..."Stella said, looking determined while Maddie was speechless at this reaction.
"True, you might have to tone down and keep the ball inbounds but that's what you have me for. We'll refine this into a tennis winning machine in no time!..."The blonde woman said, already seeing a victory as inevitable.
Maddie blinked and seemed at a lost for words as the blonde woman turned to the worker and smiled.
"Send the bill to me. Just tell Eleanor to put it on my account..."Stella said, and the worker nodded nervously before running away like he was scared.
Maddie wanted to say something, but Stella interrupted her and was talking excitedly now.
"Oh, this is so much fun. A few more hours of training and we'll have you swinging your racket like a pro in no time and that trophy and the donation will be ours..."Stella said in a perky manner as their training became more intense now.
Maddie was also second guessing some things.
"It's for a good cause..."She reminded herself as the tennis lesson continued.
Present Time
"Wow...I don't know who was more intense...your mom with her ghost thing..."Val said as she pointed at Danny. "Or your more with her competitiveness..."She said as she pointed at Star
Both teens looked embarrassed.
"Yeah..."They both said.
"Anyway, let's just said that those tennis lessons were something else..."Danny said.
"That's probably the G-rated way to describe it, from what I heard..."Star muttered as she knew how competitive her mom could be when she really wants to win.
The blonde girl sighed as her boyfriend continued.
"Yeah, but apparently my mom wasn't the only one having a tough time that day...or at least, that's what Starlight here told me after she overheard her dad complaining to someone over the phone..."Danny said, as he continued with the story.
Back to the story
Johnathan Strong was NOT in a good mood right now, but he hid that by using a professional smile on his face while he dealt with his latest client and his complaints.
His client was a young man in his mid-twenties, dressed in flashy and expensive clothes and had a snobby and impatient look on his face as he told Mr. Strong what he wanted.
"Mr. Weasley, I-..."Johnathan tried, but the young man cut him off.
"It's Westly!..."The client said, sounding irritated.
"... Right. Mr. Westly, I'm afraid I cannot act as your attorney..."Johnathan tried to explain.
Unfortunately, this client didn't like hearing that.
"And why's that?! I'm willing to pay top dollar! My parents are loaded, and you know it. Money is no issue here!..."Mr. Westly said, not seeing what is wrong.
Johnathan tried to remain patient, hiding his increasing anger and frustration.
True, Mr. Westly's parents are quite well off, as his father is one of the heads at Axiom labs and this law firm has done business with them many times before. That's why Johnathan couldn't just order him to leave and tried to explain things in a delicate manner without causing any trouble.
"Because you're clearly the one at fault for hitting the old man's car and it's not his fault someone put the hook on your car before the tow truck left. I mean, how would this man have had the strength to do such a thing? Besides, you have no auto insurance..."Johnathan explained, but his client refused to accept this and kept making demands.
"Well...sue the guy who hooked my car! Sue the tow truck guy! My beautiful new Gi-normo 6000 got a scratch on it and someone needs to pay for that!..."Mr. Westly shouted, sounding more like an immature and pampered teenager than an adult.
"Stay calm. Remember, the law firm handles a lot of his father's business. Just remain calm..."Johnathan thought, trying to mind his words and be professional here.
"Do you have an idea who it was? Do you know the name or business of the truck driver?..."Jonathan asked and the guy scoffed and shook his head.
"No...I don't waste time o-..."Mr. Westly didn't even get to finish that when Johnathan spoke next.
"Then I can't help you. Please leave or I will call security, and have you escorted out of the building..."The blonde man said in a stern yet professional tone.
The rich man heard this and stood up, growing impatient.
"Excuse me? Do you have any idea who I am? My dad is the vice president at Axiom labs! One of your biggest clients, ya know!..."Mr. Westly said, sounding angry.
"I know and my colleagues and I are currently in the middle of handling some business for your father. So, if this is all you have to say, then goodbye and I wish you a good day..."Johnathan said, while the young adult looked ticked.
"You have no right to say no to my request, you glorified ambulance chaser! I'll tell my parents what you just said to me. You don't want that, do you?..."Mr. Westly threatened, trying to intimidate him.
Johnathan was certainly not intimidated at all, just annoyed but he managed to hide it with pure professionalism and indifference that he has mastered over the years.
"You are free to do so if you please. In fact, you are free to call them right now and I can calmly explain to your father the same thing I explained to you moments ago..."Johnathan said, knowing how this will play out.
Mr. Westly then angrily stormed out in a huff.
Once he was gone, Johnathan let out an exasperated sigh and felt another migraine starting to form up.
"I don't know what he expects from me. I'm a defense attorney for goodness' sake, not a psychic!..."He thought as he rubbed his temples.
"If this is what spoiling your kids does, then I should count myself lucky that Star is such a good and levelheaded girl..." He muttered under his breath.
That's when he heard the intercom beeped and he heard his secretary, Janet, on the other end.
"Mr. Strong. Mrs. Lewis is on line 1..."Janet said.
"Oh joy. This is probably about her neighbor's house again. How many times do I have to tell her that he didn't do anything illegal?..."Johnathan thought, before he accepted the call.
Sure enough, his client called to complain about the house again and demand to schedule a meeting. Johnathan reluctantly ordered Janet to handle it and he dealt with the rich woman's complaints before she finally hung up.
Once done, Johnathan sighed and already felt tired, and it wasn't even noon yet.
"What a day..."He mumbled, as he glanced at the clock.
He knew he had a lot more clients to work with today. Some with actual issues and problems, and others who just want to waste time and money on something ridiculous, or at least that's how he saw it.
The blonde middle-aged lawyer sighed, as he looked out the window.
"What happened to the days when I was actually helping people who needed it?..."He thought, feeling a bit frustrated.
He loves being a lawyer and he was successful and made a lot of money at his career, but he just can't help but feel like he's not really doing anything truly productive with some of his clients. Or at the very least, not as much as he wished he could have done.
He recalled his early days as he served as a newbie lawyer and helped proved the innocence and clear the names of a lot of unfortunate people and made sure that real justice was served the right way.
And now?
Now he's dealing with some clients who are either too rich or too careless to use common sense and some basically don't know or care about the most basic principles of law to know any better. It was enough to make him rip his hair out at times.
Sure, not all of his clients are like that. Some of them have legitimate reasons for requesting him as their lawyer, but unfortunately, some of his clients were exactly like Mr. Westly and that was one too many in his opinion.
"I at least can't complain about not getting enough clients...and the pay isn't something to complain about either..."He thought, trying to see the positives of his career.
Regardless of how annoying some of his clients are, he makes a lot of money at this job, money he needs to properly take care of Star, and he was making a living here. That was what he tried to focus on the most.
"Not every day is going to be full of major justice-seeking courtroom drama like in the movies. And days like this also help pay the bills..."He reminded himself.
The intercom sounded again, and Janet told him more clients were waiting to speak with him.
"Mr. Strong...Line 1..."Was heard.
Johnathan went back to his work, just trying to stay positive and focus on his work.
Present Time
"Seriously? Your dad was feeling that?..."Val asked, surprised since Mr. Strong is a great lawyer and never seemed unhappy with his job.
"That's what I gathered when I was eavesdropping. My dad would never tell that to me to my face though. He doesn't want me to worry..." Star said, as she stares down with a sigh.
"That's code for worry. Though if he had to deal with people like Psycholette, Jean-Puke or Toadman for clients, I can't blame him for feeling that way..."Sam said, actually feeling some sympathy for the lawyer.
"Let's get back to the story. While all that was happening, a certain control freak warden was still up to no good..." Danny said, as he continued with the story.
Back to the story
Walker was in his prison, smiling the first genuine smile he had in months.
And it was NOT a good thing.
The evil warden looked around and smirked as he saw everything was in place. As vans of ghosts were driven in, rattling as the captured ghost struggled from the inside, guards were on high alert as ever little detail went off without a hitch.
"Good. Very Good. Looks like everything is all set..."Walker said, smirking.
He glanced at his watch and smirked even more now.
The courtroom is ready, and his jury is all here, the observants will be here in exactly one hour...and all that is left is getting the defendant and witnesses for the trial.
"Bullet!..."Walker shouted.
"Yes, sir..."The vice-warden said as he appeared.
"It's almost time. I think it's time to get jury in place. While you're at it, go get the defendant...and issue a...subpoena while you're at it..."Walker said with a dark smirk, eager to finally arrest that punk and throw him behind bars.
Knowing what that really meant, the second in command of the prison nodded.
"Yes, sir..."Bullet said, before he ordered several of their men to go with him.
"Be sure to be here in an hour. You know that the observants don't like tardiness..."Walker warned.
"Understood..."Bullet said as he left with his group to carry out their assignments.
Walker grinned menacingly.
"Almost there. Your times running out, Punk. I'll be seeing you in court real soon.."He said in a malicious manner, grinning and cackling to himself.
As he was plotting his scheme, his "jury" was talking and sitting around, waiting for this "trial" to start. There was nothing much to do until it officially starts.
The dozen of ghosts were all waiting and chatting, while waiting for the so-called trial to begin.
"How much longer until this whole thing starts? I do have better things to do, ya know..."Johnny complained.
"Just be quiet until this is done! The sooner we do thing, the sooner that brat Danny gets what he deserves..."Spectra snarled at her, while Kitty glared at her for the jabs at her boyfriend
"Can we hurry this already? I'm not getting any younger ...not without some teen misery that is..."Bertrand said, actually looking forward to this.
"Maybe if we are lucky, we might be able to convince that warden to let us waste the boy personally after we win...I certainly hope so..."Technus said darkly, wanting the chance to play executioner.
"Just remember that we're supposed to convince the OBSERVANTS to make that happen. So at least TRY and not be so obvious about our hatred for that brat..."Desiree reminded, since those cyclops aren't exactly stupid.
"Oh, we will, Dearie. But first..."The lunch lady said, before she conjured up some food. "Cookies and coffee anyone?..."She said, as she took it upon herself to be in charge of refreshments for the jury.
The Box ghost grinned.
"Oh boy, chocolate chip! My favorite!..."The box ghost said as he took one.
"Can I have some chocolate milk instead of coffee? I don't drink coffee..."Youngblood said, since he is still a kid, technically.
Everyone expected the lunch lady to snap at him for refusing something she made...but she just smiled.
"Of course, Dearie. Here you go..."The lunch lady ghost said as she summoned the dairy drink for the child-like ghost to go along with his cookies.
"Awesome!..."Youngblood said as he began to eat it with gusto.
"Milk, cookies and a chance to make that Dweeb get sent away behind bars. This is a great day, why haven't we done this before?..."He asked as he ate the cookies.
"Youngblood, eat slower. You'll get a stomach ache..."His skeleton minion, who was currently a dog to go along with his latest disguise as a detective.
As the ghosts continued eat, chat and make their own plans of revenge once this trial is over, Ember was deep in thought.
"I do wonder how Baby-pop plans to get out of this one..."The ghostly diva thought, curious as to how this will turn out as she ate one of the cookies.
Present Time
"I'm assuming one of them told you about all of that in a brag, am I right?..."Val guessed.
"Yes. Now you're getting it..."Danny said to his one-time girlfriend-now-friend and fellow hero.
He was about to continue with his story, only for something to happen to get their attention.
"Crackers!..."A squawking voice was heard.
Star and the others blinked, and the blonde girl then spotted something caught her attention. It was a bright blue parrot with yellow wing tips, who happened to have a bandana around his neck. But what's weird is WHERE it came from.
"Uh Boo, I think a natural portal might have opened near here..."Star said.
"Why do you think that?..."Danny asked.
"A parrot that I don't think is native here just flew through and is flying around the neighborhood...and it doesn't look it's from around here..." Star asked, cautiously pointing at the parrot.
"Normal parrot or ghost parrot? BTW, my ghost sense didn't go off..." Danny said.
"Normal, I guess..."Star said, as it flew over and it didn't look like a parrot that she has seen before.
Star wasn't an expert or a zoologist, but she was pretty sure parrots didn't have green eyes or could survive the ghost zone. The bird squawked loudly as it flew over and landed next to Danny.
It started squawking again, even louder now.
"Ghostly...ghostly..."It let out, sitting on Danny's head now.
Team Phantom and Valerie all blinked, since this was weird...even by their standards.
The bird kept squawking "ghostly" over and over and wouldn't leave Danny alone, much to his dismay. And due to what they experienced up until now, they doubted that it's some sort of coincidence.
"That is not a normal bird. I don't know even know what breed it is ..."Sam said as the strange looking parrot began to preen himself.
Before they could do or say anything about it, someone else showed up.
"River! Get back here and stop flying away!..."A shrill voice was heard.
They turned around and saw Misty running in their direction towards them, and from the same portal as well.
"Misty?..."The all went.
"Ah!..."Misty yelped, as she landed on the ground as the parrot flew off Danny's head and now landed on her head.
"Buddy, my buddy..."The strange bird chirped cheerfully, while Misty sent it an exasperated expression.
She then saw her friends and smiled as she got up and her mood lifted a bit
"Oh, hey guys..."She waved, like nothing odd just happened.
"Hi Misty...uh...what happened?..."Star asked, cautious.
"Nothing major. I was just trying to get River home before my Mom or Max starts to worry about her..."Misty explained.
"Whose River?..." Tucker asked.
"This is River..."Misty said as the bird flapped her wings and then started posing dramatically.
"River! I'm River!..."The parrot squawked, flying around all the heroic teens before flying itself back towards Misty's direction of the staff that she had been holding on too the whole time.
To the other teens surprise, it suddenly started transforming into a parrot topped staff that Misty held in her hand as if she had done it many times before.
Everyone blinked in surprise.
"Uh..."They all went, and Misty noticed their reactions and could guess what they must be thinking.
"Yeah, you probably all have questions. Sorry, me and my family went to the pawn shop to get rid of some of our non-magical junk and my little brother Max somehow came across this thing being sold for the criminally and conveniently low price of two bucks..." Misty said, as the staff glowed before the wooden bird became a living parrot again and landing on her head yet again.
Everyone blinked, questions going through their heads as the teen sorceress tried to use the magic staff to get the apparently magic bird to climb off her head. Which lead to failed results of the parrot staying perched on her head like a nest, even though Misty sternly but calmly tried to tell the bird no.
She saw the looks of the other teens and realized they must be confused about this.
"I know what you're all probably thinking. Is this thing secretly evil too?..."Misty said.
"I was worried about that too at first. Especially given my past with magical objects and creatures..."Misty said, before she continued.
"But don't worry. I did some extra some research and so did my mom, Laolao and Martin. And we are 90% sure that this thing is safe, but our only source of anything magic related are old dusty scrolls and books. So while I wanted to be optimistic about, it never hurts to double check about this kind of stuff. Anyway, it turns out this is a magic staff that was carved from the limb of a tree by a witch and basically served as her familiar until she passed away. Then the staff went inactive, and River went dormant through the centuries until someone resonated with her. My family's magic must have called to her and Max pretty much wanted to adopt her on the spot as soon as he saw her. She has been with our family since then..." The young sorceress explained, while River busy itself by preening it's wings on top of Misty's head.
She had been a little cautious at first and due to past experiences, but she didn't want to just assume things with River, especially since she didn't do anything bad...well nothing harmful to anyone. That's why her family was careful with her and did some double checking on anything that could be helpful about this situation. Mostly because she knew how much her brother really wanted a pet and magical creature or not, River acts like an innocent bird and she at least wanted to give her a chance, though it will take a while before she or anyone else in her family (sans Max) would fully trust the bird they are caring for.
Even so, she tried to be optimistic for her little brother's sake and give the bird the benefit of the doubt.
"And to make a long story short...my little brother was really excited about River and since he has always wanted a pet, he and River basically became inseparable. But since Max is still really young and doesn't have full control over his magical power and sometimes he gets carried away with said magic. My family and I don't want to risk anything remotely close to what I went through with that talk magic book a while back happen to Max in any way. So...my Mom and Martin basically asked me to keep an eye on her for now, until we can figure out what she really is and figure out what to do with it afterwards. But since I love animals, I don't mind...Unfortunately, I later found out the hard way that River does have a habit of flying off to the most random of places and usually me or my family has to chase after her...which basically explains what happened earlier during my portal summoning practice...and that's why I am here..." Misty said, as her eyes looking a little tired, while the bird was still preening itself.
"Buddy, Best Buddy, Max Bestest Buddy..."As the blue parrot squawked happily.
"As you can all tell, the bond between Max and River is still pretty strong..." Misty said, as the bird kept looking around curiously while the young sorceress explained things to her friends.
The other teens watched the display between the magical bird and the teen sorceress, but they still had some questions.
"Why a parrot?..."Sam asked, curious though she couldn't stop herself from scratching under the bird's chin due to her love for animals.
"Well...like I said, me and my brothers always wanted a pet of our own, but my mom said that they were too expensive and a big responsibility. But she finally relented once Martin pointed the many benefits of having a bonded familiar with a magical creature. It also helps that River's staff was cheap and she's low maintenance, unlike an actual animal...and Max really loves birds..." Misty answered as the parrot stared at the ground of the table curiously.
"Unlike real birds, she doesn't need to eat but food it more of fun treat than a requirement. And she can't get sick being made of wood. Plus, none of us ever have to clean up after her, which is part of the reason my mom agreed to let her stay..." She said, as the parrot chirped happily.
"How does she go around, as a parrot or a big staff?..."Tucker
"There is this trick between a magic user and their familiar's that allows the creature to change its shape to suit it's master's needs. River has the ability to become anything that anyone in my family needs her to be. She can become a keychain or any other object we can imagine, even a hat or a watch if we feel like it. As for why we are here...like I said earlier, I was experimenting with portals and she got away through one of them. She's curious about pretty much everything..."Misty said apologetically as her family's new pet looked around at stuff.
"River like crackers..."The bird squawked as she noticed some and Sam, being an animal lover, gave her some.
"River says thanks..."River said, munching down the crackers.
"Anyway, that's what happened and now River is basically part of the Yang clan for now..."She said, as River kept eating more crackers.
"Why name her River?..."Danny couldn't help but ask.
"No real reason. Max and Martin spent a while thinking up names and decided on a game of rock paper scissors. Max won..."Misty said, shrugging while said bird started to feel cheerful again, especially after hearing her brother's name.
"Misty is River's buddy. Max is BESTEST buddy! Misty bring River to bestest buddy..." River added, before the young sorceress answered her.
"In a minute, River. Chasing you down is more exercise for my legs than I'm used too..." Misty said, wanting to take a break and relax her leg muscles for a bit.
The bird sent her an innocent and apologetic look and Misty sent it a tired yet somewhat understanding expression, while Sam and even Valerie patted River on the head, since the goth girl wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt.
"BTW, he calls everyone in my family "Buddy", but he always calls Max his "bestest buddy". And while this situation is a little bizarre, it is pretty sweet when you think about it..."Misty admitted, while the bird chirped happily.
Team Phantom blinked at this, while one was smiling at the sorceress girl.
"Nice to see that Misty's family now has a magical friend who thankfully ISN'T evil...at least I doubt this one will cause trouble like the last two..."Star thought as she understood why Misty was a little cautious, while Sam continued to dote on the magical bird who chirped happily.
"So, what are you guys doing?..." Misty asked, as the parrot sat next to Sam and pecking at another cracker the goth her offered.
"Oh, nothing big. Just listening to the story of how Danny got put in a crazy and rigged ghost trial by one of his worst enemies, only to have Star's dad as his lawyer...also something about his mom in a tennis tournament with Star's mom for charity and some of Colette's suffering. That's about it..."Tucker said in a blunt way, summing things up.
Misty blinked in surprise, hearing what her new friends were doing.
"Really? Can I hear it? Sounds way more interesting than how my day has been..." Misty asked curiously, as the bird/familiar squawked.
"Story! River like story!..."The magical bird chirped, bobbing her wings as she then flew on top of Danny's head to get the best seat to hear the story.
"Sure..." Danny answered, not minding another person here or the magic bird on his head.
"But we might need to fill you in on what you missed so far..." Star said to the Yang clan's young sorceress.
"Get comfortable, you'll be here a while..." Sam playfully warned.
"I don't have any plans today. Plus, I can text my Mom that I found River and where we are. I don't mind, really..." Misty replied, not minding as they began to tell her what she missed.
-To be continued-
Next time on Court
I'll See You In Court
A/N(1): I dedicate this chapter to my family, my friends and my love for God :)
A/N(2): Special thanks to 61394, Luiz4200, Jay The Average Fanboy, NeoMark and BeConFuzzled Writer for all their help. You guys rock :)
A/N(3): Edited on 10/02/2024
REPLIES to my loyal and totally awesome reviewer:
Luiz4200: Maybe.
RonaldM40196867: Thank you :)
Here are my responses to your questions:
1) Thanks for the suggestion but I don't think I will create a new Many Dates story. At least not now. I can't make any promises.
2) I don't think Star would try and convince him to tell his secret unless he was ready to do so.
3) I thought tennis would work for this story, and fit with the "Court" theme.
4) As Danny said, Spectra is even worse than a vampire.
5) The anti-ghost security system is the same one Eleanor used in "Barked".
6) He is still upset at having lost the election and is working hard to become mayor again.
7) Walker basically acted like judge, jury and executioner until now.
8) Thanks for the suggestion, I will consider it and let you know.
Invader Johnny: Yes, it will be interesting.
Soggy Fysher Woods: Hi. I'm sorry about that. I meant to but I will fix it soon.
:) I hope you enjoyed this! Remember to read and review :)