Author's Note: This is an ongoing project I am undertaking describing Dani Phantom's adventures through High School. It's going to be pretty OC heavy. Fair warning. I do not own Dani Phantom, Vlad, or Maddie. I hope you enjoy my introductory chapter and I look forward to writing more.

A Different View: Episode One - Chapter One

Dani stared around her new living room. It was a relatively small area but it looked larger because of the lack of furniture. The walls were painted white all the way around even in her bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen which were all connected. While it may not have been rundown it was definitely plain. Gray carpeting in her living room and bedroom with tan tiling in her kitchen and bathroom. A good amount of the appliances came with the place such as a fridge, stove, washer/dryer, and dishwasher.

Enclosed in her hand was a small plastic card. "Vlad should really watch his bank accounts better." She thought to herself. Honestly Dani wasn't entirely sure that Vlad wasn't watching his accounts and tracking her but she was tired of running. Two years of it could make anyone tired.

(A week earlier)

Dani floated into the town from the woods. She had been sleeping there the past couple of weeks and needed to restock on supplies. As she floated through the town, invisible to everyone, she sighed. There were families walking down the street with their kids, teens her age hanging out in front of their houses, and a school that was currently empty due to the weekend. Beyond anything else she could have wanted, Dani wanted a normal life. An opportunity to be with kids her own age and for once forget she was on the run.

She located an empty alley and landed behind one of the dumpsters. A halo of white light erupted from her midsection and separated, transforming her into her human state. A shattered mirror sat beside the dumpster and before she left Dani got a look at herself.

She had grown a few inches but she was still short for a person her age. Her body had grown a bit as well but there was room to be filled. As for her clothes a few minor changes had been made since she first met Danny. The red shorts she most commonly wore when she was younger were traded for a pair of jeans. A red shirt was visible under the neck of her turquoise hoodie. Instead of her blue converses she wore a pair of white, slightly stained, sneakers and atop her head rested her ever present red beanie.

In the broken glass her many images looked back at her and they all said the same thing. "You haven't changed one bit Danielle." She shook her head sadly and walked out of the alley and onto the street.

Over the years she had learned how to keep a low profile. Hands in pockets, don't make eye contact, and if someone speaks to you give short yes and no answers. As she walked down the sidewalk, towards the local market, something caught her eye. Across the busy street there was a small one story house. She jogged across the road being careful for cars and gripped the picket fence to get a better look at it. A green lawn with a tree and a small brick walkway led to a white shingled house with a black roof. From here she could see two windows at the front on either side of the oaken door. Her eyes drifted down to a red plastic sign that read: For Sale. 1Bed 1Bath unfurnished. Inquire inside.

As she read the sign her mind started to wander. "There's the possibility I could own a home. That I could stop running, stop fighting ghosts, and just live. Live here!" She smiled at the thought but slowly reality seeped back into her mind. "But they'd never sell to a fourteen year old." She stuffed her hands back inside her pockets and walked back towards the market. The house still on her mind.

Once inside the grocery store her stomach growled annoyingly. As much as she wanted to partake in the shelves of delicious food she had to limit herself to make the trip easier. Walking through the aisles she grabbed a loaf of bread, peanut butter, some jelly, and a bag of her weakness. Apples. After paying with them using the card her hands grasped the plastic bags with a soft crinkle. She headed back down the street in the direction of the house again. Her eyes wandered back towards the house, then she looked back down slowly.

"Spare some change miss?" A gruff voice asked from the alley she was passing. Dani's eyes moved towards the sound to see a filthy man standing next to a dumpster. His wild beard covered most of his face, and he was dressed in a patchwork of different items. He reached a gloved hand out towards her.

She smiled sadly at him and dug into her pocket, pulling out a lonely wrinkled dollar bill. She placed it gently in his hand. "Here you go."

"God bless ya miss." He said smiling back with a slight twinkle in his eye. "Is there anything I can do fer ya? I don't like ta take somefin fer nothin."

"That's ok. I appreciate the offer though." Dani said as she started to walk back down the street. But she suddenly stopped. An idea had popped into her head. She ran back towards the bum. "Uh excuse me sir!"

He turned back towards the girl. "Nobody's called me sir in years. Call me Greg."

"Greg. I have a proposition for you." Dani said in a hushed voice.

Greg raised an eyebrow at her but said. "And that would be?"

She smiled. "How would you like to make two hundred dollars, get a hot meal, a shave, a haircut, and some new clothes?"

His eyes went a little wide at this. "Who do ya want me ta kill?"

"I'll take that as a yes." She said as she looked down the street towards the nearest ATM. It was a risky plan, but if it worked she would have that house all to herself. "Follow me." Dani said as they walked down the street to make good on her promises to Greg.

(A few hours later: The house)

Dani knocked on the wood door and looked up at Greg. It had cost her, or rather Vlad, a grand total of three hundred dollars to fix him up. But it was worth it. Greg looked like a new man. And smelled a lot better as well. The casual suit that adorned him matched a middle age face, around fifty. His beard was trimmed back and he looked very presentable.

"You remember the plan right Greg?" She asked a bit nervously.

"Don't worry yer head off Dani. I've done tings like dis before ya know." He cleared his throat as the door opened.

A man in his late thirties and casual attire answered the door and said. "Hello. Can I help you?"

To Dani's utter surprise Greg's voice changed from the gruff and grating voice she knew to a more mild and smooth voice. "Yes my daughter and I just moved into town and we were looking for a house to move into. We saw your for sale sign and thought it might be nice to take a look. May we come in?"

"Oh certainly! Please come on in. Janice! We have potential buyers!" The man said as he pressed himself up against the wall giving the two plenty of room to enter. Dani looked around the small house. Boxes were piled high in the corners with furniture close by them. Out of the kitchen came a brunette woman who looked to be about the same age as the man. Her stomach was swollen and round obviously pregnant. She stood next to him as his arm wrapped around her back.

After Greg and Dani walked through the house looking at the rooms, the disguised vagrant spoke up. "So why are you selling this house?"

"Well for the two of us it worked just fine but with the little one on the way we needed more space." The woman said rubbing her belly affectionately.

Dani watched her and asked. "How far along are you?"

"Eight months. Which is why it's so important for us to move. But we can't do that until we've gotten the money from this house." The man said holding his wife's hand in his.

Greg smiled knowing they would be less likely to ask questions if it meant getting a fair price on the house. "Well I think I'm gonna go ahead and take this house off of your hands."

"Really! Thank you so much." The man said as his wife kissed his cheek in joy.

"No. Thank you sir. Now can we sit down and discuss payment?" Greg said with a quick glance down at Dani who was grinning from ear to ear.

(Outside of the house: Thirty minutes later)

"Oh my god! That was so awesome! Greg how did you do that thing with your voice? That was incredible!" Dani asked excitedly as they walked down the driveway and out of earshot of the young couple.

"Well ya didn't tink I was a bum as a perfession didja?" He laughed as his voice returned to normal. "But it's not always easy getting a job actin."

"You're an actor!" Dani asked with a bit of shock.

"Not entirely. You 'ave ter 'ave a job actin afore ya can call yerself an acter." He replied smiling sadly to himself as his right hand loosened his tie. "Oh I almost fergot. Here." Greg reached into his coat pocket and pulled out Dani's credit card and the paperwork which legally made the house hers. Well it was actually her 'fathers' but she would cross that bridge once she got to it.

Dani took the papers and stuffed them up her hoodie and said. "Thank you so much Greg. You have no idea how much this means to me."

He beamed at her and gestured to his new clothes saying. "Ya 'ave no idea how much dis means ter me. Stay safe kid." The man parted ways with Dani and once again she was alone.

(The Present: Inside Dani's house.)

Dani wiped her brow. Setting up an entire house by yourself is hard work. Although there were a few things still in their boxes she had already put together all her furniture and most of her electronics.

Just as she leaned back to fall into the blue papasan chair she had purchased earlier that day, her doorbell rang. She groaned a little and answered it. "Yes? Who is it?"

A middle aged woman stood at the door holding a casserole dish and flashing a toothy smile. "Hi I'm Carol from across the street and I just wanted to welcome you and your father to our neighborhood."

Dani watched the woman a little stunned as she spewed all these word from her mouth in an extraordinarily fast fashion. After a second all the words came together in Dani's brain and formed a coherent statement to which Dani replied. "Oh… well thank you." Accepting the casserole dish as the woman walked or rather barged inside. "Please come in…" Dani mumbled as she peered over the dish at Carol who was currently looking around her sparsely decorated apartment with a hint of disdain on her face.

"Is your father home? I'd like to speak to him." She asked as that same smile came over her face.

Dani tensed up as Carol mentioned her non-existent father. "He um… he works… odd hours." She said grateful she was able to come up with something as plausible as that.

Carol's eyebrow rose but she shrugged and smiled sadly. "Oh you poor dear. Well when you do see him could you tell him I stopped by and give him this. It's a simple little list of rules and guidelines for our neighborhood."

The ghost girl stared at the three sheets of pink paper in her hands now. All three pages were used up and stapled together. Dani thought. "Simple little list? I'd rather read the dictionary. It would probably be shorter." Instead of voicing this opinion she looked up at the older woman, smiled, and said. "I'll be sure to give that to him. You have a nice day Mrs…" Dani realized Carol had never given her last name.

"Thompson. And you have a nice day as well miss…" Carol replied equally uninformed.

"Fenton. Danielle Fenton. But you can call me Dani." She said back smiling a little as she showed her guest to the door.

"I suppose I'll see you around the neighborhood Danielle." Carol said smiling oblivious to the fact she had just used the name Dani disliked. Well ok so Dani never said she couldn't call her that but usually when someone offers you a nickname it's understood they prefer that name.

As Dani closed the door she breathed a sigh of relief at that ordeal being over. She walked into the kitchen and pulled back the plastic wrap on the warm casserole dish releasing a burst of cinnamon and apple smells. Dani immediately grabbed a fork and tried a bite. Her eyes went wide with pleasure as she admitted to herself. "Well she may be annoying but she sure as hell can bake."

Dani picked up the apple crumble and started digging in, easily consuming half the pan in a matter of minutes. As she finished, she burped happily and set the fork down. Once she replaced the cover on the dish, the chair was calling her name again. Dani shuffled over and was about to sit when, once again there was a knock at her door.

"Damn it." She muttered as she straightened back up and went to answer it. She opened the front door and looked up at the woman who was standing before her. She wore a slimming black office dress with her blonde hair pulled back in a tight bun and a pair of matching black flats. Her age was difficult to determine but she was probably in her mid thirties. In her left hand she clutched a briefcase and she reached her right hand out in greetings.

"Hello. My name is Crystal. I'm with CPS. Is your father home?" She asked as Dani shook her hand warily.

"Uh… no he's working. Why would child protective services need to talk with my dad?" Dani asked.

Crystal's smile faltered. She wasn't used to being called out on who she worked for by a child. Normally the adults would ask the questions while the kids remained oblivious as to what CPS stood for. "Well as we understand it you and your father moved in here not too long ago. I just have a few questions for him regarding you and your… *ahem* circumstances."

Dani didn't like the sound of that one bit. "I'm sorry but like I said he isn't here. He's at work."

"Oh I see. Um may I come in?" Crystal asked attempting to reassert herself as the dominant one in the conversation and possibly get a look at her living conditions.

"My dad said not to let anyone in yet. It's dangerous because we haven't finished packing." Dani lied flawlessly, with a touch of surprise at how good her own words sounded.

Crystal raised an eyebrow. "I see. Well can you give me your fathers place of work or cell number?"

Dani blinked and said. "We uh don't have cell phones… Yet. But we plan to get some soon. And I really don't know where he works. Never really paid attention." She conjured up a fake smile at the older female who was watching her carefully.

"Hm. Very well then. In that case I'll have to return at a later date. When does your father usually get home from work?" She asked with a growing impatience for the teens excuses.

"Well I don't really know. We just got here and he said he would be working strange hours so…" Dani replied shrugging her shoulders.

Crystal couldn't help grunting with a bit of disgust. "Ugh. Could you at least tell him I stopped by and to try to contact us as soon as possible?"

"I sure will." Dani said, a little relieved that the conversation was ending.

"Oh and I have something for you." She opened her briefcase and handed Dani a manila folder. "We noticed you weren't enrolled in school yet so we took the liberty of assigning you. Classes for you start tomorrow if I'm not mistaken at 7:30. Please don't be late."

Dani clutched the envelope with wide eyes. "School?" She said with a hint of fear but also excitement. The ghost girl certainly hadn't expected this.

"Yes school. Have a nice day miss Fenton. I look forward to meeting your father." Crystal said as she walked to her company car parked in the driveway. Dani only managed to nod as she closed the door.

Crystal pulled out of the cement driveway and sped out of the neighborhood, dialing her supervisor as she drove. "Yeah it's Crystal. I think the anonymous tip we got was correct. There's something strange going on at this house… Yes I'd like to do a follow up. And unless I missed my guess this guy Fenton is one controlling manipulative guy. She looked so thin it was unbelievable… Thank you sir. Goodbye." She set the cell phone down in the seat next to her and shook her head sadly. "That poor girl."

(Dani's House)

Danielle's hands trembled as she opened the envelope and started viewing all the cards, forms, and brochures for her new high school. "Lincoln High School." She said in a bit of awe. Dani had never attended school but she had always wanted to. Desperately. She read through her class schedule sixteen times before setting it down and smiling wide. "I can't believe it. I'm going to school."

(Three Days Earlier: Amity Park - Vlad's Mansion)

"Excuse me sweetheart. But there have been several large charges on your bank account the last few days." A virtual Maddie informed Vlad. He raised an eyebrow in interest and looked at the charges that had appeared on his main screen.

He smiled maliciously. "Oh very clever Danielle. Keep the charges low so I wouldn't be informed. So why the sudden change?" He looked closer at the newest transaction. "It would appear my little clone has bought a house using my money. After all these years of running I can't believe she'd do something like this." He said smirking. "Maddie. Triangulate the location of this cards last transaction. Then cancel it and…" As he paused another evil smile curved over his face. "And call the CPS for that area under an anonymous line."

"Of course dear one." Virtual Maddie replied setting about these tasks.

"One way or another, my little girl is coming home to daddy." Vlad said under his breath as he opened up his ghost database searching for the few that would still be willing to help him. An image of an armored ghost with fiery green hair materialized on screen. "One way or another."