[Third Person's PoV]
Location: Fenton Works
Date: February 28th
Time: 1:21 Pm
"Danny! Danny! Look! Look! Are you seeing this?!" Ember exclaimed, practically shoving Danny's computer monitor into his face. He had just finished up in his parents' lab, training and mastering the art of engineering, surrounded by the old designs and gadgets his parents left behind.
"No… it's too close to my face," Danny muttered awkwardly. Ember had floated down from the ceiling, hanging upside down as she pressed the screen right against him.
"Oops." She corrected herself and floated upright, hovering above his workstation, which was littered with wires and half-dismantled gadgets.
She pointed excitedly at the glowing blue text above the title of her posted song. "Do you see this? It says Number 1 Trending. Me! I'm number one trending!" Her voice pitched up an octave with excitement.
Her lips trembled, and her fingers shook as she kept pointing at the screen.
Danny noticed her teary-eyed expression and smiled. "Congratulations. You've worked hard for this—it's well deserved."
"You saying stuff like that is cheating! You're trying to make me cry on purpose!" she accused, quickly tilting her head back to keep the tears from falling.
"Just make sure none of those tears land on my monitor. It's still brand new," Danny said, gently taking it from her hand. He glanced up at the long, tangled cord now hanging from the ceiling.
He floated upward to fix the setup, Ember following close behind.
"Be sure to thank that friend of yours for me, alright?" Ember said, wiping her eyes. "Maybe humans aren't all that bad after all."
"It's just number one trending. Aren't you overreacting a little? I'm sure this won't be the last time." Danny shrugged.
Ember shook her head. "Even if you're right, I'm counting this as my victory! It's only been four days since I uploaded the video and it already has close to a million views and like a hundred thousand likes! That's insane! And the comments were all so nice, too!"
Then, with a determined look in her eye, she added, "I need to keep going. More songs, more fire—I can't get complacent now."
She smiled at Danny. "But first—what I promised you. You kept your end of the deal, so it's time I kept mine. I'll teach you that teleportation technique."
She grabbed Danny's hand. "Come on."
With a puff, they vanished in a swirl of pink smoke.
---
"Alright, so how did that feel?" Ember asked.
"Weird… I can't really describe it…"
"Try to remember the feeling," she said, hands on her hips, floating a few inches off the ground. "That's step one. You've gotta imprint that sensation—like muscle memory, but for your ghost core."
Danny raised an eyebrow. "You realize I barely even understand how my ghost core works, right?"
"That's what I'm here for, dummy," Ember said, bonking his forehead gently with her finger. A tiny spark of ectoplasmic energy fizzled where she touched him. "Now, close your eyes. Focus. Remember that feeling—like your body's stretching and folding in on itself at the same time, but not in a painful way."
Danny blinked. "That sounds horrifying."
"It kinda is at first, but you get used to it. Now concentrate. Visualize where you want to go—like… ten feet to the left."
Danny closed his eyes, hovered in the air, and furrowed his brow. "Ten feet to the left… fold in… stretch out… become a weird ghost burrito…"
A puff of smoke popped.
Nothing happened.
He opened one eye and looked around. Still in the same spot.
Ember crossed her arms. "…Danny, that was your attempt?"
"I think something popped. Internally."
"Yeah, that was probably your pride," she said, smirking. "Again."
Danny grumbled and tried again, gritting his teeth.
Still nothing. Not even a spark.
He repeated the process, again and again, with no results.
Finally, standing with his legs spread, fists clenched, Danny began to glow. A green aura of ectoplasmic energy swirled around him. His snow-white hair defied gravity, strands waving in the air. His eyes pulsed with eerie green light.
"Mmmmhmmm…" he rumbled. "Ahhhhhhhh…"
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!"
Ember just stood there, staring at him blankly, blinking slowly.
"WHY ARE YOU SCREAMING?!" she finally yelled, clearly annoyed.
"I thought if I screamed loud enough, I'd unlock a new power. You know, like with the ghostly wail last time," Danny explained with a shrug.
He let out a sigh and stood back up.
Ember pinched the bridge of her nose and floated over to Danny, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Have you ever considered that maybe you just have zero affinity for teleportation?"
"Nope," Danny said confidently, shaking his head without hesitation.
Ember blinked at his unwavering certainty. "As much as I admire your self-confidence, maybe it's time you start doubting yourself. Just a little?"
"Nah," Danny waved her off. "If I don't have an affinity, I'll just make one."
Ember tilted her head, frowning. "Danny… what does that even mean?"
"It means I'll work hard enough until my ghost powers have to adapt and give me teleportation," he said with a grin and a thumbs up.
"That's not... I don't think that's how it works, Danny."
"As a great man once said—'and who decided that?'" he shot back proudly.
Ember raised her hands and sighed. "You know what, Danny? Knock yourself out."
"Why would I do that? That sounds highly counterproductive," Danny replied, his lips twitching as he tried to suppress a smile. Ember stared at him, deadpan and unimpressed.
"Sorry," he chuckled. His expression softened as he looked down at his hand, opening and closing it slowly into a fist. "Maybe it's my ectoplasm control. Or maybe the teleportation method you're teaching just doesn't mesh with me. But I'd rather explore a hundred different possibilities than sit around saying I don't have talent."
Ember raised an eyebrow, her expression shifting slightly.
"I'm not saying this out of arrogance," Danny added quickly. "I just believe hard work beats talent. Every time. Blaming a lack of talent feels like a cop-out to me. If I give it my all and still get nowhere, fine—at least I'll know I tried."
Ember looked at him, her gaze drifting down to the serious way he clenched his fist. Her ghostly heart skipped a beat as she quickly shut her eyes, trying to push away the feeling. 'Damn it… Why does he have to look and sound so cool when he says stuff like that?'
She sighed and dropped her hands to her sides. "Alright. Maybe you're onto something. Maybe it's not you—it's the method. There are other ways to teleport. I sometimes use the fire in my hair, for example. So let's figure out the style that works best for you. I'll help you however I can... at least until the end of today. I won't be available next week."
"Huh? Why not?" Danny asked, curious.
"I want to focus on writing a new song," Ember said. "Like I said earlier, I gotta strike while the fire's hot."
"That works out, actually. I won't be around next week either," Danny replied with a nod.
"Seriously?" Ember asked, a little surprised.
Danny nodded. "Batman told me to clear my schedule. I'm going on a business trip. To where? No clue."
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