Hey guys. I finally decided to post this up here. It's really old though, so sorry for any mistakes. Um... not much to say right now except that I hope you enjoy. Tell me if you want me to keep posting the chapters.

Danny Phantom belongs to the magnificent Butch Hartman and I wish Nick hadn't stopped making these. The show was awesome.

Ch.1 Home

Rain splattered against the windowpane in an futile attempt to penetrate the ornately furnished office of Amity Park's youngest mayor. The fifteen-year old had situated himself down on one of the plush benches near the window and watched the storm continue its barrage on the city. It was definitely a welcome change to the last few days of sweltering heat.

The town hall was the most deserted the mayor had ever seen it since his time in office began two months ago. The teen smiled wryly. Had it really been only two months since the Disasteroid had threatened to annihilate Earth? Only two months since his two best friends began dating? Only two months since Danny had revealed his secret to the world? It all seemed to have happened eons ago to the official.

A chuckle accompanied the loud pounding of the rain as the boy shook his head. He was only fifteen and he was already talking like his grandparents. I guess that's what happens when you've seen more than most people will ever see in their entire lives, he thought, his sea-green eyes following a droplet trail down the river, growing as it intercepted other droplets. There was something almost poetic about it. Sam would have laughed if she could hear what he was thinking. Tucker, the techno-geek, was turning into a poet.

Turning away from the window , the mayor glanced around his darkened room. His top hat sat on his desk next to forlornly stack of papers needing his signature. He slipped his fingers under his square glasses to pinch the bridge of his nose. That had never been his favorite part of his job. Some days he felt he had signed so many papers that his fingers were going to fall off. The media hadn't helped either when he had first started. It had been hard to find somewhere where the cameras didn't follow him, asking him questions about his position or friendship with the ghost boy. He knew it was worse for Sam. Somehow the scavengers had found out about them and wouldn't leave her alone.

That was a month ago before Danny had gone on his first international ghost hunt. When he had found out about the torture his friends and family had gone through, well, let's just say the media kept away from them as much as possible now. Tucker grinned at the memory of Danny's all-to-innocent face when Sam had asked him what he had done.

Nope. Nothing had really changed. They still spent all their free time together, which was few considering Tucker's position and Danny's fame, but they tried. Danny and Sam's relationship hadn't altered the friendship between all three of them at all, both of the saving the romance for more intimate times. With Jazz off to college, Jack and Maddie continued to invent, making many of the weapons that Danny and Valerie used while hunting, now that Vlad wasn't suppling the Red Hunter anymore. Valerie had taken a hit after discovering both Vlad's and Danny's secret, but had quickly recovered, teaming up with Danny and watching over Amity while he was away, her friendship with Danny stronger than her hate.

Lightening flashed across the sky, illuminating the large statue in the courtyard in front of the town hall. The white and black marble shimmered in the light. The town had been enthusiastic about the creation of the statue, and Danny hadn't even been at the ceremony. And yet, the halfa had made Sam's birthday party a few weeks ago. Danny had already told the techno-geek that he already had gotten him a present, even though his birthday wasn't for another four months. The mayor just hoped that Danny made it back for his own in two months. Maybe that was what had caused Tucker's reminiscent mood.

The halfa had left two weeks ago to get rid of a ghost problem in Europe. When Danny had gotten the call to go to Windsor Castle to get rid of a ghost, the trio had nearly died from laughter. It seemed that the ghost of Queen Anne Boylen had thrown her chopped off head at a tourist that looked like her ex-husband and knocked him down the stairs, resulting in several broken bones and a lawsuit against the owners of the castle. The ghost hunter had called after the first two days to tell his friends and family he would be staying the two weeks to clear the area of any other potentially dangerous specters.

Today was the day he was supposed to return.

Another bolt of lightening flashed across the sky and shook the air. The delicate, antique china in the case by the wall shook as the shock reverberated through the city. Then again, maybe it would better if he stayed in Europe. This isn't exactly the best flying weather. A brown hand leaned against the sill and supported the teen's chin. His eyes searched the sky for his friend.

He was interrupted from his search by a knock at his office door. Sighing and cursing whoever had chosen today to bother him, he pushed himself from his seat by the window and stood next to his desk, elegantly sitting down behind his desk. "Come in," he said, watching his door open to reveal his assistant. Wavy brown hair with blond streaks swayed around her small shoulders. Usually tied professionally into a bun, the teen was surprised by its length, nearly halfway down her back. The navy jacket she had been wearing this morning had been removed to reveal a white blouse with a navy skirt. The woman in front of him was always very strict about the way the politics of Amity presented themselves, it was nice to see even she could ease up a little bit once in a while. "Katherine?"

"I'm sorry to interrupt Sir, I know how you wanted to keep this day free," she slipped in the door and snapped it shut behind her. "There is someone who wishes to see you, but he refuses to give me his name. I've already tried to tell him that you are busy with paperwork, which I see you still haven't finished," she said reproachfully, eyeing the stack of untouched papers on his desk. Tucker repressed a smile. His assistant was too much like his mom. She knew how to make you feel guilty without accusing you of anything. The mayor waved his hands dismissively and smiled.

"Sorry, but you know I can't concentrate. Not when he could be trying to get through this," he motioned toward the storm raging outside his office. Katherine frowned, her body language showing what she thought about his lack of concentration. Then she looked at the boy's, the mayor's and her superior's expression, and her feature softened. Paperwork could go unnoticed just this once.

"He'll be fine Sir. I admit he might be a bit reckless sometimes," she smiled as a smirk pulled at the teen's mouth. It was amazing that three teen's she had gotten to know since Tucker had become mayor could even be capable something like saving the town and the world. The all seemed so young, but strangely, that did not seem to deter them from their tasks. Mayor Foley had immediately set to improving the town as soon as he was elected. Sam Manson was now beginning to train with the Fentons so she could fight with Phantom and the Red Hunter. Danny... The kid was still a mystery to her. As Danny Fenton he was clumsy and shy, but as soon as he switched personas, he became cool and levelheaded. And the thing that connected all of them: something as simple as friendship. It was that friendship that she saw right now as her boss worried over his best friend. ", but he does know what he is doing. 'He may not look it, but he can handle himself' is what you said to me once. Now, about your guest, what shall I do?"

The teen looked out the window, his eyes glassy as he thought. "Send him in. Hopefully it will be fast." The assistant turned to leave but was stopped as the mayor began to speak. "You'll tell me when Danny gets here?"

"As soon as I know, you will know Mayor Foley."

"I've told you Katherine. You can all me Tucker. Mayor Foley makes me sound old." A smiled tugged at the assistant's lips.

"Very well... Tucker. I will send him in." She left, barely opening the door for her lithe form to slip through. The sound of her heals on the tile faded away as she went to find his guest. I wonder who it is. Sam knows to just come up here. Someone knocked at the door, and the hinges squeaked as the guest entered the room in a sopping wet trench coat.

" I'm sorry for the wait, it's just that I wasn't expecting any guests." He pushed himself out of the chair and walked around the desk to shake hands with the stranger. Two months with Katherine teaching him the way of politics had definitely paid off.

"Ouch! That hurts Tuck. After all the trouble I went through to get here on time." Tucker could feel his jaw drop as he gawked at his guest and best friend. A gloved hand reached up and tugged the dark hood of the coat down revealing a mop of black hair. The familiar locks were plastered to the teen's face and threatening to cover shockingly blue eyes. "So I don't even get a 'hello' from my best friend?"

"Danny!" Grasping his friend's hand and pulling him into a bear hug, the mayor patted him on the back. "Welcome back! How was you're flight," the mayor joked, eyeing Danny's windswept hair.

"Torture. I swear I'm never flying through a lightening storm like this again. The coat hardly did anything, my cloths are so wet I might as well have not even bothered with the extra weight. And I thought the weather in England was bad!" He pulled the dripping coat off and placed it on the coat hook by the door. Tucker raised his eyebrow and bit his lip as he took in the appearance of his friend.

Danny had grown. They all had for that matter, but Tucker had always been the tallest after his growth spurt shortly after being elected, now roughly around 6'2. Sam had grown a few inches, staying around 5'5. Danny was about two inches taller than Sam the last time the techno-geek had seen him, but he must have had a growth spurt when he was gone because now he was about two inches shorter than the young mayor. His hair was pretty much the same as it had always been, albeit a little longer and scruffier from the lack of time tending to it. The reason for Tucker's amusement was in the teen's clothing. He wore dark blue jeans, or they could just be wet from the rain, and a black t-shirt with the word "I saw the ghost of Windsor Castle and lived" printed in oozing green letters across his chest with the picture of a disembodied head.

The halfa saw his friend's amusement and smiled, looking down at his chest and raising his hands in surrender.

"The director insisted I take one, and who was I to say 'no'? I thought you'd like it. That's why I got you and Sam one." He stuck his hand into one of the pockets of his coat and withdrew something wrapped in wet brown paper. He unwrapped it and unfolded the shirt. It was identical to Danny's except the word said "My friend saw the ghost of Windsor Castle and (unfortunately) lived". Tucker chuckled and appreciatively took it from the halfa.

"This is great! Wait 'til Sam sees these! She'll die!" The African American teen struggled out of his shirt and eagerly pulled on the gift. "So what took you so long? I thought it was one ghost." Danny sighed, exasperation clear in his voice.

"It was. Unfortunately, the ghost heard I was coming and recruited a bunch of other ghosts to try and pick me off before I could capture her. One came close," the blue-eyed boy confessed wincing at the memory. "It took some time before I actually got to fight the Queen. Who would've guessed that so many people in Europe turned into ghosts." The halfa shrugged.

"Are you alright? No serious damage?" The hybrid shook his head and added an assuring smile just in case. "You're not going to tell Sam about that part of it are you?" Again the teen shook his head but was guilt evident in the movement. Silence filled the room as the boys made a silent pack to not tell the goth just how dangerous her boyfriend's mission had been.

"So you want to go down to the Nasty Burger and have a real 'welcome home' party this time? I can cancel all my meetings and such for tomorrow."

"No you can NOT! You already missed an entire day of paperwork, and I cannot allow you as your assistant to miss some extremely important meetings!" Katherine stood in the door, arms crossed over her chest, with a disapproving frown on her face. She turned to Danny and dealt him the glare Tucker had been getting a lot recently. "I'm sorry Mr. Fenton, but I cannot allow him to miss even more work just because you have returned. Welcome back by the way." Her brown eyes glanced at the coat on the hook and returned to glaring at the halfa. "I don't know why you had to hide your identity from me either. You know I would have let you in right away if I'd know it was you. The guards never bothered to tell me either."

"I asked them not to Miss Webb. Sorry, I just don't want a lot of publicity right now. The less people who know, the less chance it gets out that I'm home until I get to see my family," he covered a yawn behind his hand and excused himself, "and maybe get a bit of sleep." His lips twitched into a quick smile.

"You chose the wrong business if you don't like publicity Mr. Fenton." The teen chuckled.

"I didn't exactly get to chose if I wanted the powers or not. Again I'm sorry for bothering you. Maybe later?" He asked over his shoulder toward the young mayor. The techno-geek nodded and looked expectantly at Katherine.

Taking her cue, the assistant opened the door wider and revealed another person. "You have another guest Mayor Foley." Sam walked through the door and nodded her thanks to the woman who did the same and left the room.

"So where you planing on letting me know you were here, or are you really just avoiding me?" She assumed the same stance that Katherine had just been in and glared at Danny. The halfa flinched under the stare and unconsciously took a step back.

"No! Of course not! I just had to stopped by to see Tucker. I was planning on visiting you right after. I mean how could I ignore..." He stopped and rubbed the back of his neck self-consciously. "I missed you. Both of you. You don't how hard it was to stay there and not coming rushing home."

Sam's expression softened and she walked up to the her boyfriend, wrapping her arms around him in a warm hug. "I've missed you too, but," she drew away from him and looked at his shirt with a pointed look, "what are you two wearing?" The boy laughed and pulled the second package from his coat handing it the girl.

"I got you one too." The goth took it and shook her head in exasperation.

"You're so cheesy. You know that right?" Tucker guffawed and doubled over. Danny shot him a glare and smiled at the girl across from him. "You should go home and tell you're parents you're back. They've been working on something and seem a little too enthusiastic for my taste. Plus you're sopping wet." She pulled her gift away from the continuous drips that were falling off of Danny.

"Guess you're right." He walked over to the coatrack and pulled his wet coat on, the material squeaking as he rubbed against it. He walked back over to his friends, smiling as he willed his ghost-self to take over. The two rings of light slowly moved over his form. Sam and Tucker squinted as the light intensified when the rings got closer. When the transformation was complete and all light diminished, Danny Phantom stood in front of the two, smirking back at them.

"I'll call you guys tomorrow. You've got to fill me in on how things have been going around here, and I won't take 'fine' as an answer." He high-fived the other boy and turned to his girl-friend. Leaning forward, he placed a quick, chaste peck on her lips and smirked. "See you guys tomorrow." He turned intangible and lifted off the ground, phasing through the roof and back into the storm. Suddenly, the weather didn't seem like such a big deal anymore.

The ghost took off in the direction of Fenton Works at a speed that he only saved for special occasions. The familiar buildings and streets he had known for his entire life passed by him in a blur. A smile spread across Phantom's face as he preformed a loop and let out a cry of delight. Making sure no one was on the street, he slowly drifted to his front steps. Fenton Works towered over him, the neon sign proclaiming its name turned off.

He jumped up the steps, feeling his heart race with each bound. His gloved hand rested on the cool metal of the doorhandle. Producing a small key from inside his jacket, he unlocked the door. The wood slab swung open and he quickly entered and shut it as rain began to wet the tile. He sighed in content, the ever-present smell of metal and fudge calming him already. He let his power slip away as he returned to his human form and turned around...

And saw nothing but orange. He felt his bones creak as is dad pulled him into a crushing bear hug, while his mom tried to calm her husband down and kiss Danny on the forehead. "Welcome home sweetie!"

"We're glad you're home son!"

"It's good to be home."

The room was dark, half of the room thrown into midnight-black shadows. What little light that crept through the small tinted glass window at the top of the thick dark oak door only spilled across two feet of the carpeted floor. The walls were granite and seemed to extend into the endless void that was the rear of the room. Maroon drapes covered the unseen windows and stopped any hope of light filtering into the circular room.

A soft knock resounded in the silent room. Several moments of silence filled the room before the soft click of the lock announced someone's entrance. A growl of frustration and squeak of a chair came from the shadows as a man entered the room. "I thought I told you not to interrupt me today. Or have you decided that you are so high and mighty that my orders no longer affect you and your organization? Because let me tell you, you'd be nothing..."

"I'm sorry sir," the tall, fit man said. Red hair was cut close to his head in the traditional military fashion. Green eyes that seemed to belong to a cat's looked into the middle of the darkness, focusing on the hidden person. He was dressed in a white suit that seemed to generate its own light in the darkness and made his lightly-tanned skin look deathly pale. "But you wished to know when we've made success on Project Drogo."

A minute of noiselessness filled the room as the man waited for a response. "Very well. Tell your teams to execute the experiment again and report to me again if the results are the same."

"I'm sorry sir, but I believe that we are ready to start the last stages of our plan now. The experiment went better than any of us could believe. The scientists believe we can execute a full scale experiment in two weeks if we have all the elements. We have an asset ready for your command."

"No! Do the experiment again. We don't know what this could do yet and I'd rather not waste lives unnecessarily if I have the choice. Remember what happened last time." The hidden speaker stopped to let the implications sink in. The man nodded solemnly. "No mistakes this time. Pass the message on to the scientists. Continue the research then send it to me to review. Only when I give the signal can you commence the last part of the project."

Taking this as the dismissal that it was, the employee turned to leave. He only stopped when his boss's voice called out from the darkness. "Although, I'll be needing that asset. I think I'll grant the scientists' wishes and collect the needed components. There's no need to slow the project down any more than it already is, is there?" The man smirked. He could almost here the grin in his employer's voice. The fun was about to begin.

"Indeed sir. I will make arrangements immediately."