... *Looks around, blinks, bows, leaves* ...'Nuff said.

Work right after school was not something Valerie Grey looked forward to. Especially after the crappy day she was having. It wouldn't have been such a crappy day if work didn't decide to take up most of her afternoon and late evening yesterday. Maybe then she would have had time to study for that test she probably failed, actually woke up on time today, and wouldn't have gotten into trouble for falling asleep in health class due to exhaustion from chasing around the Box Ghost the night before.

Valerie didn't mind ghost hunting. It was her job, just like the Nasty Burger. Unlike the Nasty Burger, however, ghost hunting didn't give her cash, and without cash she couldn't pay for college, or clothes… or food. Bottom line, ghost hunting kept the city safe from ghosts… but to Valerie, it acted more like a past time than and actual job. Community Service - she rolled her eyes at the thought of THAT. The community didn't seem to notice or care that she defended the city (better than the Guys in White OR the Fenton's mind you), in fact, to some 'Phantom' fans, they found Valerie a little more annoying than helpful. One such fan – and ex-best friend – was first in line at the Nasty Burger.

Paulina was staring at the menu above Valerie. Her left hand index finger was to her thinned out lips and her right hand was on her hip which jutted out to the side as she leaned on her foot. She opened and closed her mouth every so often and shifted from side to side, staring intently at the menu the entire time. Finally, after about a good four minutes, she spoke.

"Do you have any food that's not… greasy?" she asked, her eyes snapping from the board to Valerie. Valerie looked up lazily. She was leaning on the desk next to the cash register, her right arm propped up her head like a kickstand and her fingers were lost in her curly hair. She was tapping her finger impatiently on the desk and trying hard not to attack the popular Latina girl in front of her.

Forcing a smile, she gritted her teeth. "No."

"Not even, like, salad?" the cheerleader asked.

"Not even napkins."

"I don't know if I want to eat here if it's so… gross."

Valerie's eye twitched. Every day. Every freaking day, Paulina came here after school to order something, and every freaking day it was the same routine: over and over and over again. It was almost like her encounters with the –

'BEEP' 'BEEP' 'BEEP'

Speak of the ectoplamic devil…

Valerie looked at Paulina and actually considered not going this time, but the girl did seem a little occupied and she took a wild guess that she wasn't going to notice if she just… left. Whatever, she had steam to blow off and a ghost kid to help her with it.

"Hold that thought, Paulina." She said before running into the kitchen and out the back door. Paulina either didn't notice she left or she didn't care, for she continued to look up at the menu making obnoxious humming noises at her pathetic attempt to think…

Danny wasn't quite sure what drew him to the funny building. It may have been the funky shape of the fast food restaurant, maybe it was the dancing mascot outside that caught his attention (okay, the mascot was kind of freaky, especially when some little kid came and kicked him in the knees. The man chased the boy around until his friends noticed and he was being attacked by at least six little kids. Yeah… it definitely wasn't the mascot…), or maybe it was the gigantic burger that was advertised on the sign that reminded the toddler of how hungry he actually was. The majority of his diet today only really consisted of ice cream and coffee, and actual, solid food sounded really appetizing right about now.

Happily, he skipped toward the building with a small smile plastered on his face. This place was going to be fun.

"Where are you?" Valerie asked herself, staring at her scanner in her visor. The target kept changing, Phantom was probably invisible, but why would he come here? Just to annoy her? To ruin her life more? Make her lose her job? With each approaching thought she got more irritated at the Ghost Kid.

She was flying a few feet off of the ground in the back of the building so no body noticed her. She didn't want to spark up a disturbance before she knew where the ghost actually was, after all, she wasn't Amity Park's 'favorite'.

"FINALLY!" an over exaggerated scream filled the air as the Box Ghost appeared from the concrete to her left. Valerie didn't even bother looking up. "I have escaped the Ghost Zone, and now I – THE BOX GHOST! – shall send Danny Phantom to his DOOOOOM!" Without much thought, she extended her arm and shot the Box Ghost in the gut. The blast opened a portal and sent him straight back to the Ghost Zone.

"Now, where are—"

"HI!"

"AHHH!" Valerie screamed. She fell off her jet sled and landed painfully on the concrete.

"Danny Phantom. Found." The electronic voice buzzed in her ear. Angrily, she grabbed a weapon from her side.

"Don't think you can sneak up on me you…" She stopped in her tracks. "Phantom?"

A little boy, a toddler actually, stood in the way of Valerie. "Oh, I'm sorry little boy." She started, lowering her weapon and ignoring the scanner in her helmet. It was practically screaming in her ear that this was the ghost boy. Valerie looked him over. It looked like the ghost boy – a small tiny version of him, but it couldn't have been. …Right?

"You'we floating." The boy stated, giggling madly. "I can do dat too."

"That's nice…" Valerie trailed off, looking at her scanner again. It was beeping madly. She looked up and jumped, screaming slightly. The little boy was hovering in front of her, his behind was higher than his head and he grinned down at the girl who stared back horrorstricken.

'Danny Phantom, found.' The scanner repeated. Danny began doing somersaults in the air and giggling madly. Valerie recovered quickly.

"Outta my way, GHOST!" She shouted, grabbing the boy by his foot and swinging him to the ground. The entire motion was responded with a 'WEEE!' from the boy, and even when he hit the ground, it didn't seem to phase him.

"You's funny! I wike you!" He got up and laughed at the girl. She was about to shoot him before he ran under her glider.

"What the—!" She flew backwards in hopes to find him again, but no matter how far she reversed, he wasn't there. She was about to give up before frustration got to her, but giggling from under her glider made her freeze.

White hair popped up from under the sled and the two-year-old grinned up at her.

"Dis wasn't impowtant was it?" He emptied his hand near her foot and about five different colored cords and wires were revealed. Valerie swore and jumped off her glider before it sped off into the other direction. The toddler's tiny voice faded away as he disappeared from the girl's view. She ran to try to catch up with him, but tripped over something and fell on her face.

Valerie whipped around and saw a jetpack, Axion Lab's jetpack to be exact, tangled up into her feet. Quickly she snatched the vehicle and checked the sides. It was a little dirty and held a few scratches, but it lacked dents and seemed okay to operate.

"Just enough fuel…" She mumbled, strapping it on her back. She flipped the switch and flew forward so fast, she actually passed Danny and her glider. Growling, she turned around and crashed into the rocket-propelled, surfboard. Both Valerie and Danny crashed to the ground, one moaned from injuries, the other giggled like a madman.

"Dat was fun!" Danny chuckled, as he watched the jetpack spit out the rest of the fuel it had. He grinned, easily recognizing the object from earlier. He grabbed it and propped it upright, instantly shooting off into the sky. Valerie moaned and rubbed her sore spots as she slowly got up; trying to remember what just happened.

A crash to her side caused her eyes to shoot open. The jetpack landed, but the ghost boy was no where to be found.

Ghost boy…

"Paulina!" Valerie shouted as shock overtook her. She had completely forgotten. Snatching up the jetpack, she jumped on her glider and sped it back to the Nasty Burger, crashing into the dumpster when she landed. Slapping her wrist, she deactivated her suit and ran into the kitchen, only stopping when she noticed she still had her father's jetpack.

"Crap!" she muttered and frantically looked around as to where she could stash it until she could return it to Axion Labs. Running to the cash register, she slid into the desk and tossed the pack below her. Gasping for breathe, fixing her hair, and brushing dirt off of her, she looked up at Paulina with an 'I-hope-you-didn't-notice -that' grin. Her smile fell when she saw Paulina in the same position as she left her – hand-on-hip, finger-to-chin, pretend-to-be-smart expression…

"How many calories does water have?" She asked blankly. Valerie gave an exasperated sigh, and leaned on the desk, propped up her head with her hand, and dug her fingers through her hair. It was going to be a long day…

"SAM!" Tucker called, running over to his friend. They finally caught up after splitting up a few hours prior. "Any luck?"

The goth-girl shook her head no and sighed. "Jazz isn't answering her phone! Have all the Fenton's gone MIA?"

Tucker shrugged. "No reports of 'Danny Phantom' either, do you think he might be in the Ghost Zone?"

"I was thinking that when I found the Fenton Thermos," She said, holding up said object. "It was occupied, so he was catching ghosts, but…" she stopped and sighed, sitting down on a nearby bench.

"But…" Tucker edged on. He sat down next to her, wondering about her temper in the back of his mind. Sam looked at him through almost watery eyes.

"I found it in the woods by the park."

Tucker's brow furrowed. "He'll be okay, Sam. I promise. We're going to find him, okay?"

Sam suddenly looked angry again. "How, Tucker? We've looked EVERYWHERE! It's not like he's going to just…" She threw her hands out in front of her and swung them around wildly. "Fall out of the sky!"

She was interrupted by a small scream of excitement. And a black and white blur fall on the ground a few feet in front of the two.

"HI! I'M DANNY PHANTOM!" it shouted, getting up off the ground waving and grinning cheerfully. Sam's eyes widened, her mouth opened and closed.

"DANNY?!"

The boy smiled and ran up to the shocked Sam. He slapped her arm and giggled wildly.

"YOU'WE IT!" He shouted before running away.

So... sorry, guys... I know it's been like... a few years, but a lot of stuff happened to me that changed my life DRAMATICALLY! I was about to give up on a lot of stuff, but I was cleaning out folders on my computer and I found this. It was practically done so I just finished it and decided to post. Please, please, PLEASE do NOT ask me about any of my other stories, I'll get to them... eventually.

With Love,

-Jess