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“You’re too slow, cheesehead! Are you finally reaching that old man stage?” Danny teased, successfully dodging another electric blast to his right. He didn’t know what was funnier; his joke or the way Plasmius puffed his cheeks in anger.
“Hilarious, Daniel. But when are you ever going to stop resolving to your childish insults? They are starting to bore me,” the ghost said and this time, the pink orb made its way directly to the boy and he was thrown back at a nearby wall.
And just like that, Plasmius had the upper hand, again. He always did. The man knew every strength, every weakness he had… he practically stalked him! But he didn’t need to. He could pinpoint all his struggles on the spot without a second glance.
But that didn’t mean he couldn’t try to do the same.
“You know what, Vlad? You could’ve given me a break on my birthday,” the teen growled, getting up and firing back at the man who only smirked at his reply.
“Well, yes that’s what I was going to do until you spotted me and thought I came here to fight,” Plasmius floated to the ground on an empty alleyway near a pizzeria, and Phantom reluctantly did the same.
“If you weren’t busy scheming all the time, I wouldn’t have suspected,” the boy snapped as both halfas transformed back to human. Danny rolled his eyes and fought the urge to feed his enemy more insults, walking away. He really wasn’t in the mood to talk to anyone at the moment, despite it being his birthday. And he didn’t think talking to his archenemy would help either.
The billionaire was surprised at the young boy’s sudden retreat, it didn’t sound like him at all. The Daniel he knew would bicker some more, jab a few insults here and there, and then go onto mocking him about getting a cat, but this was different. And he wasn’t leaving until the boy gave him a solid answer for his weird behaviour.
The boy raised an eyebrow when he saw his enemy following him even after he stopped talking to him, making it clear that he didn’t want to continue fighting anymore; part of it is he ran out of energy. School can do a lot to a person, and he really felt like taking a nap.
‘Now, if only Plasmius would stop following me like a weirdo, that would be great.’ The boy turned around with an annoyed expression when he realized the man didn’t stop.
“What are you doing?”
Vlad didn’t answer and just studied him with an unreadable expression on his face. Danny was now creeped out by the man and masked that by glaring at him one more time before turning around and walking back home.
However, he was unaware that Vlad wasn’t following him to annoy him, but merely because he was curious. But the boy didn’t look like he was going to cooperate with him and spit out any information so he just continued walking behind him. He felt the teen’s anger flare up but was surprised when he didn’t say or do anything else.
“Look, Daniel. Whatever is happening, you can tell me-”
“That’s hilarious, Vlad. But I’m perfectly fine and haven’t felt better, so stop following me,” Danny interrupted, fed up with the man pretending he cared. Couldn’t he leave him alone and go bother someone else? Why did he always visit him at his worst times? It was starting to become annoying.
“I don’t care, I won’t leave until you’re honest with me,” Vlad firmly stated and stopped when they finally reached FentonWorks. He didn’t plan on making a trip to the Fenton’s until later on in the evening, just to see his ‘friend’ and have a chance to talk to Maddie. Also to bother the boy on his birthday, but he might have to cross that out.
“Look if there’s anything I can do…”
“Glad you asked. I would greatly appreciate it if you leave now before my dad sees you and invites you over for a reunion dinner,” Danny said in a dry tone, hoping by now the man had finally got the hint but to no use. Vlad remained stubborn as ever.
“As I said before. I’m not leaving until you give me an explanation for your behaviour,” he restated, growing tired as well. Why was the boy acting so stubborn?
As if Danny could read his mind, he responded with “Yeah, well, you don’t seem like the listening type. And after many encounters with you, I concluded that I can’t talk to you about anything ,” he snarled, ignoring how his eyes flashed green in frustration.
“But you still need to tell someone-”
“Look, I’m fine. It was just a tiring day at school and I woke up in a sour mood,” not to mention the annoying ghosts that disrupted my lunchtime, he added mentally. “I didn’t sleep well last night so I’m gonna do that now. So can you leave?”
Vlad saw the desperate look on the boy’s face, and for a moment, he was going to accept his wishes, but then he remembered the other reason he came here.
“Very well. But I need to talk to your parents.”
“Oh for goodness sake!” Danny groaned and swung open the door in front of him. He squeaked in surprise when he saw the sudden commotion from inside the house.
“Happy Birthday Danny!” everybody excitedly yelled and before he could ask what was going on, he was dragged into the house and forced on a chair while the guests clapped and smiled at him. His two friends were there, and they laughed at Danny’s bewildered expression, grinning widely.
His parents and sister were there too; Jack eating fudge, his mother kissing his cheeks, and Jazz staring at her parents in horror, contemplating whether she should stay or hide in her room.
Danny also noticed familiar faces from school; many people he talked to in class were there, and even a few A-listers. Valerie was also there and she waved at him when she noticed his presence. The boy dazedly waved back, still at shock over what was happening.
This wasn’t what he had in mind on a Thursday afternoon. And even though he predicted he’ll have some sort of a birthday present, it didn’t match the thought of a huge party with lots of people, a DG and decorations everywhere.
Everybody went back to talking after wishing Danny a happy birthday; a few adults attending went to the guest room while the teens partied in the living room with the DJ popping songs. The birthday boy sat in the chair in front of the room, hanging out with his best friends, taking it all in.
“Wow… who arranged this?” Danny asked in amazement, looking at the blinking neon green lights placed around the room. He also took note of the banner behind him and the confetti splattered on the ground that was gonna need cleaning afterwards.
“Jazz did, and us. We noticed how down you’ve been feeling lately and we wanted your birthday this year to be special and a surprise. Some agreed to help organize the room after school, with your parent's permission, and we invited people from our school. Many surprisingly came. If I didn’t know you, I’d say you’re Mr. Popular,” Sam chuckled as Danny smiled appreciatively at his friends. He thanked them and also wanted to thank Jazz too but she seemed to not be there at the moment. However, that wasn’t his main concern right now.
“How did you guys manage to hand out invitations to my birthday party without having me finding out?” he asked.
Tucker rolled his eyes. “Dude, we didn’t even try . The news circulated the whole school and you still hadn’t paid attention. So we decided to keep it a surprise and told people not to talk to you about it. But how did you not hear the rumours?” he grinned.
“I guess I was just out of it,” Danny joked and widened at the sight of a buffet not too far from them. “I doubt my parents paid for all this. Sam, did you have a hand in this?”
“Curious aren’t we?” the goth smirked. “You ask too many questions, let’s go have some fun before it’s too late,” she dragged the teen to the dance floor and winked at the DJ who started playing her friend’s favourite songs.
Danny turned to the technogeek who was grinning at his friends’ antics. This was going to be an interesting party…
“Hey, hey Tuck!” Danny waved his hands in front of his friend’s face, snapping him back to reality. “Are you going to answer my question?”
“Huh? Oh yeah, your parents paid for the buffet actually, Sam paid for the DJ, and Jazz and I were responsible for the decorations. Are you happy now?”
“You guys do realize you didn’t have to do that, I would’ve been happy if you just remembered. And if you wanted it to be extra, a little party between you, Sam and my family would’ve been fun,” Danny said, feeling guilty that everybody he cared about contributed in this just to make him happy.
“Hey, what’s with the sad look on your face? It’s your birthday man, that means partying and girls. And speaking of girls, ” Danny didn’t have time to react to his friend’s comment when he was pushed to the other side of the room where the sophomore girls hung out.
“Hello, there ladies. I don’t know if you’ve heard of me, but the name’s TF. Short for too fine .”
Danny muffled a laugh from his friend’s failed attempt at flirting. He wanted to help him out, but he wasn’t great at communicating with girls. He’d already dated two girls and both ended up being a disaster because of ghosts. So he was stuck in the harsh reality of ever getting one again.
As expected, the teen girls looked at each other and rolled their eyes, getting up from the couch to leave. However, he was surprised that they spared a glance to wish him a good birthday, and one even winked at him.
“How did you do that ?” Tucker asked as Danny looked at him in confusion. “I mean, they actually paid attention to you and you didn’t even say hi.”
The halfa rolled his eyes. “Maybe because it’s my birthday?” he then grinned and leaned over to whisper something to his friend. “The secret is to not say anything. If I did open my mouth, I would’ve said something stupid.”
For the rest of the evening, the trio partied and forgot all about their problems. Surprisingly, no ghosts showed up to ruin the moment, and he wasn’t complaining. After all, he had loads of ghosts barging in during school hours so it didn’t seem like they were ready for a round two.
The boy had also forgotten that the billionaire was also at the party, just in the room next to him, talking with the adults. And he also didn’t realize the music suddenly stopped until something unexpected started playing, causing his blood to go cold.
“ Sam, what’s up with the music!? ” Danny whispered frantically, the goth looked as confused as him. She didn’t tell the DJ to play this , it wasn’t even in the playlist!
“Hey, isn’t this Danny Phantom’s theme song?” someone yelled from the crowd as everybody cheered in excitement, jamming to the change of music.
However, the three teens were the only ones who stood there stunned, and grateful there weren’t any lyrics in the song. If there was, Danny’s secret would’ve been revealed to everybody in the living room, and he was sure it wouldn’t take long for the news to circulate the school, and then the town...
Danny looked over at the DJ, and his look darkened, noticing who it was standing next to him. The man noticed the boy glaring at him and smirked in response.
Vlad , of course . Who else would find any way to make his day miserable other than the mayor himself? Danny cursed under his breath for not confronting the man sooner and was about to head there and give him a piece of his mind when he felt a large hand on his shoulder.
“Danny boy! It’s time to cut the cake!” Jack’s voice boomed among the loud music.
“But-” Danny didn’t have time to say anything else before he was pushed to the kitchen. He stole a last glance behind him only to notice the billionaire was gone.
Danny sighed but deciding it didn’t matter right now, he smiled at both his parents and followed them to where the cake was sitting.
The rest of the party was great. They sang “Happy Birthday”, ate cake, and shared jokes. Danny was happy being surrounded by his loved ones, and he just felt like a… teenager, something he hadn’t experienced in a long time. He really wished the day would go on forever and be able to cherish the moment, but unfortunately, all good things must come to an end. And before he knew it, guests were leaving and it was time to clean up.
“Hey mom, have you seen Vlad?” Danny asked, remembering their encounter as Maddie pursed her lips.
“I saw him at the beginning of the party gloating to the Manson’s, but then he came by at the end of gift unwrapping and told us he had to leave for mayor work.”
“Are you two talking about Vladdie?” Jack exclaimed joining in at the conversation with a grin as the mother and son forced themselves not to frown. “What a great friend he is! He came to wish you a happy birthday, he was the one who paid for the cake! He didn’t even know about the party and was surprised like you when we jumped from the door. Yet, he managed to get the cake in time.”
Danny smiled nervously, feeling the urge to throw up. He was afraid that the man might’ve played with the cake beforehand. Literally nothing given from Vlad was to be trusted; he could’ve even poisoned him although he later doubted that. If he did, he would’ve poisoned a whole bunch of people, including his mother. And Danny knew how much Vlad adored his mom to the point where it was creepy.
“I think I’ll retire for the night,” the hybrid weakly smiled, getting up from the wooden chair and exiting the room, forgetting to take the unwrapped presents with him that were left on the table.
“Goodnight sweetie!” his mother’s voice bellowed from downstairs as he opened the door to his room, ready to jump in bed when he heard his sister call him from down the hallway.
“ Psst. Danny, come here,” she silently said, gesturing for her brother to walk over to her. Danny obeyed, with a confused look on his face. He hadn’t seen his sister since the party and he wanted to ask her many questions about her disappearance. But first, he wanted to hear what she was dying to tell him.
“Jazz, why are you still up? I thought you went to sleep early…?” Danny asked, worried that his sister might be sick. That would explain her tired and pale face.
“I had a fever so I went upstairs to take a nap but as you can see, I couldn’t sleep,” the girl grinned and then paused. “I’m sorry I didn’t get to celebrate with you, Sam and Tucker. I knew you’d get all worried and stuff as soon as you saw me so I decided to stay hidden.”
“Yeah, well, I’m worried now. You look dead, and that’s something coming from me,” he joked.
“Hilarious Danny,” the 16-year-old rolled her eyes. “But you look dead too, I can see that the party was chaotic?”
“Only a bit,” he smiled goofily but then his eyebrows furrowed. “But you should go to sleep now and get some rest. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
“It won’t take long,” she said, quickly grabbing his arm when she saw he was about to leave. “I saw Vlad.”
“Yeah, he followed me, I know,” Danny muttered. He preferred to ignore the fact the man had ever shown up in the first place. He still didn't’ know what his latest scheme was and he was sure Plasmius hadn’t decided to pay them a visit out of the goodness of his heart.
“But he talked to me. I went downstairs to get some punch and we bumped into each other,” she said.
“Really?” Danny was now intrigued and looked at his sister nervously. What did they talk about? Did he tell her his plan? Did he hurt anyone, and was he mentioned?
“Don’t worry little brother, it was just small talk. He asked how I was doing and why I wasn’t hanging out with you guys while wearing his signature smirk,” Jazz rolled her eyes. “The man acted like his usual self and tried flirting with mom again. Luckily, he didn’t try to hurt dad and overall, I didn’t think he was planning anything…”
“Sounds like Vlad alright. I’m beginning to think he only came here to bother me and chat with mom,” Danny shook his head. Even if that was his only motive in visiting, he wouldn’t be surprised.
“Yeah, but he said something weird, about you,” the girl trailed off as Danny raised an eyebrow, curious. “I heard him say this and I quote, ‘Daniel doesn’t need the moon if he has it with him .’ It was really weird,” she quoted.
The boy was confused at first by the man’s bizarre comment and blanked out for a second. But then, he remembered his encounter with Plasmius two weeks ago, after dinner. He had gone outside when he was supposed to be asleep because he felt constricted and needed to catch air. After flying for a while, he ended up landing on top of FentonWorks, completely forgetting the fact that if his parents caught ‘Phantom’ lurking around their house, they would blast him to pieces. On that same night, however, Vlad had also gone on a little trip and he saw him…
“I don’t know,” Danny hesitantly replied, avoiding his sister’s locked eyes, not believing him. But before she could question more, the hybrid smiled and patted her shoulder.
“You’re tired Jazz, and I’m tired. Let’s go to sleep,” he said and walked back to his room. Jazz wanted to follow her brother but she suddenly got a wave of dizziness and realized her fever wasn’t over yet.
Danny also felt dizzy, for different reasons. Sam had made him dance to every song in her playlist and Tucker forced him to try all the desserts. Thankfully, soda has managed to bring him temporary comfort to his stomach, and he made sure to use the restroom before going to bed.
The boy closed the door behind him and leaned over on a table, deep in thought. What Jazz told him made him remember their conversation and although it wasn’t terrible, it was still awkward and he may have revealed too much about himself to his enemy. At this point, he didn’t even know if he considered him as an enemy anymore, even if they did just ‘fight’ this afternoon.
~Flashback Time~
Danny stared at the stars glistening in the pale dark night, many thoughts swirling in his head. Should he talk them out or keep them inside, he didn’t know. Jazz would tell him to talk out loud even if it made him look crazy and Danny was about to follow her advice… but he felt them dim the more he admired the stars, twinkling like ornaments on a Christmas tree.
He wished to be one of those stars. Just there, for people to sit and admire.
Today, the moon was his focus. There were a million stars, it would be hard to tell them apart only if he had his telescope with him. But there was only one moon, and he appreciated special nights like these.
It was a full moon, and Danny chuckled at the fact of hearing wolves howling soon. The moon really did attract many things in the world, and in space. It was what intrigued Danny the most about it.
He wondered how astronauts felt when stepping on the moon. Did they like it, floating around the glittered rocks? Did they feel small but free at the same time? And would they go back just to experience the same feeling again?
The hybrid wanted to go up there, badly, just to touch the surface, to look at it up close, and be one of the many stars decorating the sky. Even just a small peak would make his day.
He heard the rustling of leaves and soon realized he wasn’t alone anymore. Danny blinked a few times upon staring at the last person he expected to show up.
‘What the hell is Plamius doing here?’ he asked himself as he prepared to fight when the man decided to blast him, but held back when he sat next to him.
The young halfa was surprised by his calm gesture but didn’t comment on it. He instead sighed and went back to looking at the sky that brightened upon the full appearance of the moon. This indicated it was getting late but Danny was in no hurry to go back home. He’ll wait a little longer, just a bit more. And at that, he completely forgot someone was sitting next to him until Vlad coughed.
“You know, if you want to stare at the sky for a longer period of time, you should come back in the early morning. It’s much brighter and you can see the sun,” the man commented.
“That’s missing the whole point. The reason I come here late at night is to look at the moon, not the sun. Plus, the dark sky is what brings out the lights around us,” Danny paused and sighed. Why was he telling the man this, he sounded ridiculous.
“Why don't you live there then?” Vlad grinned seeing the boy roll his eyes.
“Yeah, let’s just go fly to the moon-” Danny dryly replied but then pondered over what he said. Fly… he would fly. But could he? It wouldn’t be long till he’ll be able to reach the exosphere, he was fast enough. And there was also nothing stopping him from doing so…
Vlad seemed to know what the boy was thinking about by the mischievous beam in his eyes, and he immediately frowned. Daniel couldn’t possibly go up there, alone, with no oxygen supply, and not get lost on the way back. No, the idea was stupid. Sure they were ghosts, half-ghosts at that, and they had indescribable abilities, but that didn’t mean they were immortal. They were still half-human, and it could be very dangerous to do such a thing.
“I suggest that you get rid of the idea. I don’t want to be the one to deliver your dead body to your parents and explain what happened,” he said in a serious tone.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“ Blasts , Daniel! You know very well what I’m talking about! Travelling at such a long and fast distance will have consequences, and I’m not even talking about what could happen there when you reach space. I know how stubborn you are and would rather go against everything I just said, but I also know that you’re not dumb to risk your life.”
“I know, okay?! It’s impossible and with my poor grades, it’s even harder to become an astronaut. But can you leave now? I came here to distance myself from stress, not interact with people like you who always make my life hell,” he snapped, crossing his arms downhearted. The idea was good while it lasted, and even though he had a great urge to do the opposite and disobey his enemy, he couldn’t. He hated to admit it, but the man was right. He wasn’t immortal, and he could die a second time if he tried to carelessly travel to the moon, even if he took precautions. But he couldn’t help himself, it wasn’t that far from him and all he had to do was take a leap...
The billionaire sighed, feeling the younger halfa debating mentally with himself. He too, at one point in time, wished to go up there and get close to the sparkling silver planet. But he was scared. Space is a huge place, and dangerous. And he didn’t want Daniel to experience it.
“Look, I won’t stop you from doing it, I know it’s tempting. But… what if the moon was just something here?”
“...I don’t get what you’re trying to say,” Danny said, genuinely confused but curious to hear what else the man had to say. The fact that he hadn’t made any move indicating to a fight and was just sitting next to him felt weird but comforting. Even though the older halfa wasn’t a person anyone would feel comfortable sitting next to.
“Look, I’m not good at being deep but what I’m trying to say is… Okay, what do you like about the sky right now?” he asked, clapping his hands, looking at Danny right in the eyes.
The boy didn’t know how to answer the question and turned away, looking up. “I guess the stars that are illuminating from the black clouds, but mostly the moon.”
“Good, and why do you like the moon?”
Danny looked puzzled. “I just like it?”
“Nonsense Daniel. You don’t just ‘like’ something,” the man rolled his eyes. How was he going to have the boy understand the concept?
“Hey, it was you who started the weird questions!” Danny grinned, crossing his legs and cocking his head. “I guess it’s just comforting, you know? It’s something you look up to.. And you can always be sure it’ll be there, shining on the sky.”
“Do you feel like that sometimes?” Vlad asked quietly and Danny raised an eyebrow. “Do you feel like Amity Park looks up to you like that?”
The boy processed the words, slowly nodding. “I guess… But now that I think about it, that’s also how I feel towards my family and two best friends,” he said and grinned. “That sounds kinda cheesy, don’t you think?”
Vlad nodded. “Isn’t it? So then, why do you need the moon? ”
“I don’t need it Vlad, it’s just something I admire from afar,” he sighed. “But I guess you’re right, for the first time,” he smirked.
“I’m always right, but I’m flattered that you think so,” he dryly said. “I’m also glad that you finally get it, you do have brain cells after all.”
“Hey!” the boy glared at the man for his insult, reminding himself to never compliment him again. Meanwhile, Vlad wore a smug look on his face and got up, lifting his cape dramatically.
“Glad we could talk Daniel. But that doesn’t mean that I’ll go easy on you next time,” Plasmius said.
“Wasn’t counting on it, fruitloop!” the boy smirked and slipped through the roof before the man can blast him for the nickname.
‘Who knew the cheesehead could offer deep insight?’ Danny thought to himself, finally sleepy.
~End Flashback~
Danny had forgotten all about their conversation due to the insane amount of ghost attacks the following week. But that didn’t mean he’d forgotten what the man had said.
And now that he was in the comfort and security of his room, he had space and tranquillity to organize his thoughts. But before he could remember other parts of their conversation, he noticed something gleaming right on top of his desk. And that something wasn’t his.
Danny slowly approached it and studied the object. It was a transparent cube. The object had been placed on an expensive stand so it wouldn’t trample over. It contained excessive glitter and a sparkling orb, shaped like a moon. The background had stars, green swirls and gems around the cube.
The boy gasped when he picked it up, noticing how the silver water splashed around the cube and for a moment, he was lost in a pool of wonder. He didn’t even realize there was an envelope attached to it until he felt something hit his foot. He looked down to notice a card, unopened, and he could faintly tell his name written in cursive at the front.
The boy picked it up, wondering who would have sent such a special gift. All the presents he unravelled during the evening were downstairs but this one. And he was sure he hadn’t accidentally brought one up; he was too tired to do so.
Now eager to figure out the sender, Danny gently ripped the envelope open and took out the letter, immediately knowing who it was by first glance. He didn’t even need to read the name on the back to know who could’ve possibly given him an expensive gift. The picture of a badger in the front of the card said it all.
“He really couldn’t resist,” Danny muttered to no one in particular and opened the card, scanning through the short letter.
~~~
Happy birthday little badger,
I hope you liked the gift I sent you, it’s one of a kind and I thought you might find it interesting. You don’t have to go to the moon anymore, it’s right in front of you. I know you didn’t like the little joke I pulled on you with the DG, but what can I say? You seemed to need a bit more excitement for today. Anyway, congrats on turning 15, and please, refrain from future childish banter. You don’t know the headaches I get from our fights!
Sincerely,
V.M
~~~
Danny rolled his eyes at the last bit but couldn’t help but let out a smile. He looked back at the gift and then to the letter, not feeling ill towards it. Even though the man could really get on his nerves most of the time, he wasn’t all bad. After all, there was more than what meets the eye, and he did learn something new about Plasmius.