Hi, everyone! So, this is my first Danny Phantom fanfiction. Me and my little brother had a Danny Phantom marathon last week, and I totally fell in love with the series again (and can I just say: if he was a real person, wouldn't he be a sexy beast). Especially Danny - see previous note. But this story isn't about Danny. This is about Ember, who was all of a sudden an intriguing character. Her story came to me in the shower. I'm not kidding. Anyway, this is going to be a collection of snapshots of Ember's life, and like an old photo album, it's hopefully just going to keep building and building. I'm like 75% done with writing it, and will hopefully finish the rest. So, here it is!

Hit And Run

A Small Story About Ember McLain

For The Love Of A Daughter

"Oh, father

Please, father

I'd love to leave you alone

But I can't let you go"

Demi Lovato

Ember was eight when she first discovered the old guitar – thrown in the attic like an old photo album, left to die and collect dust. She picked it up gently and took in its written on, scratched wooden surface. It was an acoustic guitar, like the ones she saw in the romantic movies her older sister Fawn loved to watch. It was delicate and strong and hollow and full and awesome.

But when Ember tugged it downstairs to proudly show her family, the reaction was not what she expected. "Mom!" she called as she trudged down the stairs, guitar in arms. "I found this in the attic and I really want to play, it's so cool! Can I take lessons?"

Her mother's smile faded away as she looked up from the carrots she was chopping, her face freezing. Fawn, who was twelve, shot an angry glance at Ember that seemed to say, "Now, look what you've done?" Even her Uncle Harley, who was normally way cool to Ember and gave her lollipops, seemed to be disappointed.

That was a bad day. Ember, even years later, remembered bursting into tears when Fawn furiously told her to quit nosing around and to stay out of the attic, and why did she always have to be such a nuisance and she was the mistake child…

Uncle Harley told Fawn to can it, and gently took Ember upstairs to have a 'talk' with her while her mother silently succumbed to tears in the kitchen. Ember fidgeted nervously as she followed Uncle Harley, knowing how having a 'talk' with someone was never good.

"Ember," said Uncle Harley as he sat Ember down on her bed. "You know the attic is off limits. You could have gotten a splinter."

"Is that why my mom started crying?" asked Ember, still wary. "Because she was scared?" Moms always cried when they were scared.

"Sort of," admitted Uncle Harley. "The guitar used to be your dad's."

Ember glanced up from her knees, her interest piqued. "Why did he forget it here?" No one ever talked about her dad. She'd never met him, and when she was little, she was convinced that he had been a superhero. But besides her dreams, she really didn't know who he was or what he looked like.

"I dunno, kid," shrugged Uncle Harley, looking angry. Even when he was angry, he still looked just like Ember's mom, who was his twin sister and never got angry. Just sad.

"He must be coming back for it!" exclaimed Ember, suddenly ecstatic. Here it was – the proof that not only was her dad a real person, but that he would come to see her sometime.

Uncle Harley made a strange face that Ember didn't know the name for. "No, Ember –"

"He is!" she insisted. "He's coming back!" She clambered over Uncle Harley and laughed and stood on her bed and pretended she was a rock star. All the while not noticing how Uncle Harley seemed to be getting more and more tired.