Mystery Meat

(Jared's POV)

Lab...

"So, Danny..." Jack said, standing in front of three teenagers in chairs.

On the far left is Jack's son, Danny Fenton, a black-haired boy dressed in a white-and-red shirt, blue jeans, and red-and-white sneakers. Sitting next to him is a black-haired girl and an African-American boy. The girl, Sam Manson, is wearing a black-and-purple tank top that exposes her midriff, a black skirt with green plaid stripes, purple tights, and black boots. The other boy, Tucker Foley, is wearing a red hat with a yellow shirt along with green pants and brown boots. The entire group is sitting in front of a closed yellow-and-black-striped door that seems to be a portal of some kind. I am sitting in a chair behind Danny, Tucker, and Sam, wearing a hoodie and jeans, while sipping on some Mountain Dew.

"You and your little friends want to hunt ghosts?" Jack asked.

"Uh, actually, Dad? I want to be an astronaut." Danny said, sadly.

"Sorry, Mr. Fenton. I was into ghosts, but they're so mainstream now. They're like cellphones." Sam said.

"Waste these looks and all this charisma hunting ghosts? Criminal." Tucker said.

"Well, if you do want to hunt ghosts, there are a few things you need to learn." Jack said, turning to a table with laboratory equipment and beakers.

A blue mist suddenly escapes Danny's mouth and a blue mist suddenly escapes my mouth.

"Oh no." Danny said, while the portal door is opening. "This isn't good."

"It isn't. I ran away from the Doctor not expecting Amity Park to be real." I said, as two ectopuses escape from the portal, growling. "Now ghosts are roaming around the Earth."

The ghosts grab Sam and Tucker around their mouths and lift them up out of their chairs.

"True, I've never seen a ghost, but when I do, I'll be prepared." Jack said.

"Jared, you take the one on the left." Danny said, looking over at me. "I'll take the one on the right."

Danny and I looked alarmed.

"Got it." I said, happily.

The ectopuses are floating above the floor, Sam and Tucker still in their grasp.

"And so will you. Whether you want to be or not." Jack said, nearby.

Danny got a determined look on his face and I smirked. Jack is still messing with the various items on the lab table while Danny and I jump away, two white lights appearing and disappearing before we begin fighting the two ectopuses.

"It all starts with your equipment." Jack said, obliviously.

As Jack says this, he holds up a thermos. Behind Jack an ectopus goes flying past. Sam and Tucker are flung back into their chairs. Jack goes over to them.

"Sam, Tucker, this is the Fenton Thermos." Jack said, handing the thermos to Sam, and both Sam and Tucker looked at it. Jack turns back around to the lab table. "It's supposed to trap ghosts..." Behind Jack another ectopus goes flying past. Jack doesn't notice. "...but since it doesn't work yet it's just a thermos. A thermos with the word 'Fenton' in front of it."

The ectopuses look defeated and dizzy and fly back into the portal. Two more white lights flashes, then Danny is shown standing where the light came from. The portal suddenly closes and Danny and I jump back to our seats. Jack points at the now-closed portal.

"And that? That is the Fenton Portal. It releases ghosts into our world whether I want it to or not. And someday, I'll figure out how that..." Jack said, tapping the door. "...works too." He turns around and walks towards a trembling Sam and Tucker, towering over them. "Now, who wants to hunt some ghosts?"

Sam and Tucker are trembling and Danny panting and putting a hand on the back of Tucker's chair as I placed my hand on top of Danny's.

"You kids, look at you! You're too excited to speak! So I'll just go on speaking. I was born many years ago in a log cabin in the woods. Don't exactly remember where, but I do remember I wanted a pony. " Jack said, while Sam and Tucker look at Danny who only hangs his head, then over at me as I am sipping on my bottle of Mountain Dew. "Never got the pony. As a matter of fact we had to eat horsemeat during the war. I had a problem with that."

Fenton Works....

It is located on a street where the eccentric-looking rooftop of Fenton Works, complete with various satellite dishes and tracking equipment.

Danny's mother, Maddie, in the kitchen. She puts on the hood of her blue jumpsuit and begins putting some final touches using a blowtorch on a new invention. Danny's older sister, Jazz glances up from a book to look at her mom with annoyance before going back to reading. Danny is busy eating cereal, when his hand suddenly disappears. I am drinking a cup of coffee and eating some chocolate chip pancakes. Danny's spoon drops through his intangible hand as he attempts to take a bite of cereal. He gasps before looking down at his missing hand. Upon realizing his hand is invisible, Danny freaks out and quickly hides his hand under the table. My right hand turned invisible and I hid it in my hoodie, knowing I got my ghost powers at the same time as Danny. That's what I get for hanging out with these guys after being with Neptune and her friends for so long.

"Okay, two more days, and it's done!" Maddie said, turning off the torch and Jack appeared behind her.

"What did you say?" Jack asked, grabbing the invention. "It's done?" He held it dramatically in front of him. "The Fenton Finder is done! This baby uses satellites to lead you right to the ghosts."

"It does what?" I asked, sipping on my cup of coffee with my left hand.

"It uses what to track what?" Danny asked.

"Welcome to the Fenton Finder. Ghosts are near. Walk forward." The Fenton Finder said, beeping in a woman's voice.

Danny walks away with me from the invention while his parents move closer towards us, the invention beeping louder and faster the closer they get. Danny and I are backed into a wall as Maddie and a confused Jack holding the Fenton Finder stand in front of us.

"Ghosts located. Thank you for using the Fenton Finder." The Fenton Finder said, as Danny gives his parents a weak smile.

"What? Oh, that can't be right." Jack said, sadly.

Danny's whole body and my whole body suddenly turns invisible. He looks down at himself, terrified, and quickly manages to return to normal. He then gives a look of defeat. I looked down at the floor and quickly turned myself back to normal.

"Actually...Jared and I need to tell you guys something." Danny said.

"That's not all you need, Danny." Jazz said, walking over to where her parents, Danny, and I are standing. "You need guidance, and parents who can provide it. And Jared, you need a family to rely on after your previous one treated you badly."

"The Doctor hurt me so badly, Jazz." I said, walking over to Jazz. "And he hurt Clara too. But that doesn't mean I can't see Team RWBY."

"Team RWBY is in another universe. That's what you told me, Jared." Jazz said, happily.

"Sweetie, I know what we do doesn't make sense sometimes, but you're only..." Maddie said.

"Sixteen. Biologically!" Jazz yelled, and Danny backs out with me. "But psychologically, I'm an adult! And I will not allow your insane obsession with ghosts..." She pulled Danny and I back, holding us close to her. "...to pollute the mind of this impressionable little child and his friend!" Jazz looks down at Danny and over at me, who seems a little weirded out by this conversation. "Come, you abused, unwanted wretches. I'll drive you and your friend to school."

Jazz glares at her parents before walking off, arms still around Danny and I.

"Huh. That's weird. Jasmine never offers to drive Danny to school. And she'd never let Jared come with Danny." Maddie said.

"That can only mean one thing. That's not our daughter; that's a ghost." Jack said, suddenly running away. "Danny, Jared, no! It's a trap!"

Maddie follows after Jack.

Casper High School...

There's a hallway full of students. Danny, Sam, Tucker, and I walk through the hallway before going up a flight of stairs.

"I think I should tell them." Danny said.

"Why? Parents don't listen." Sam said, and the four of us stopped walking midway up the stairs. "Even worse, they don't understand!" She throws her head back and yells. "WHY CAN'T THEY ACCEPT ME FOR WHO I AM?!"

"Sam, I-I'm talking about my powers, my problems?" Danny asked.

"Oh, right. Me too." Sam said, embarrassed.

"It's been a month since the accident and Jared and I still have barely any control! If somebody catches us..." Danny said, and he started sinking into the floor while Sam, Tucker, and I watched. "...I go from geek to freak around here!"

"Nope." I said, looking down at Danny. "That's only if we reveal our secret. And right now you're acting scared."

"Jared's right, Danny." Tucker said, raising an eyebrow. "Kinda like what you're doing right now?"

Danny suddenly realizes his lower half became intangible causing him to sink and yelps before Sam, Tucker, and I help him out. His feet and lower half return to normal.

"Gah, darn it! If my dad can invent something..." Danny said, beginning to walk away, Sam, Tucker, and I followed him up the rest of the stairs. "...that accidentally made me and Jared half-ghosts, why can't he invent something that turns us back to normal?"

Danny becomes intangible and walks through a snack machine without paying any attention.

Sam runs towards Danny and his body returns to normal.

"Danny, your powers and Jared's powers make you both unique. Unique is good! That's why I'm an ultra recyclo-vegetarian." Sam said, smiling.

"Which means what?" Tucker asked.

"She doesn't eat anything with a face on it." Danny said.

"Oh, who cares about that stuff? Danny, two words: meat connoisseur." Tucker said, sniffing the air around Danny and I. "Last night, Danny, you had Sloppy Joes. And Jared, you had a burger with cheese and bacon, some fries, and a cola from the Nasty Burger."

"Wow." I said, in awe. "What kind of burger?"

"A quarter pounder."

"Impressive." Danny said, at a loss for words.

"Meat heightens the senses, and my all-meat streak is fourteen years strong." Tucker said.

"...And it's about to end. The school board finally agreed to try a new cafeteria menu. I wore them down." Sam said.

"Wait... What did you do?"

Casper High cafeteria...

Sam and the school board's changes to the menu can be seen; a big banner states that this week is 'Ultra Recyclo-Vegetarian' week. The lunch lady gives what looks like grass on bread to a student, and then one to Danny.

"What is this? Grass on a bun?" Danny asked.

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!" Tucker exclaimed, dramatically to Sam.

"Tucker, it's time for a change." Sam said, holding up the 'grass on a bun' in her hand.

(Open POV)

Fenton Works...

The ghost portal has the door open. An elderly female ghost dressed in lunch lady garb walks out of the portal.

"Ooh! Somebody changed the menu!" The Lunch Lady said, phasing out through the basement's ceiling while Maddie and Jack are working on another invention, failing to notice the ghost at all.

"Maybe this is a bad idea." Maddie said.

"No, it's perfect. When Jazz gets home we suck the ghost out of her..." Jack said, striking a pose with the new invention which looks like a vacuum cleaner. "...with a Fenton Xtractor."

"But what if Jazz isn't a ghost? What if we accidentally hurt her?"

"Maddie, the Fenton Xtractor doesn't hurt humans...unless it gets in your hair..." Jack said, turning the device on and begins yelling in pain as the suction rips most of his hair out. After a few seconds, he is calm. "...See?"

(Jared's POV)

Casper High cafeteria...

Danny has some of the 'grass on a bun' on his spoon and seems to be debating whether to eat it or not, "Don't you think this is a little extreme, Sam?"

Sam smiles before someone puts a hand on her shoulder, revealing a bald, overweight middle-aged man with a light-blue shirt, black tie and gray pants, clearly the vice-principal.

"Ah, Miss Manson. The school board wanted me to personally thank you for ushering in this welcome experiment to our cafeteria." Mr. Lancer said.

"Meat. Near." Tucker said, sniffing the air frantically.

Tucker looks up at Lancer and sniffs the air around him. Tucker glares at him while the man backs away.

"No, no. The rumors about the new all-steak buffet in the teacher's lounge are completely untrue." Lancer said, pulling out a toothpick and uses it, then puts a hand on Sam's shoulder again. "Thanks again."

Lancer leaves.

"Yeah, thanks again for making us eat garbage, Sam." Tucker said.

"It really is garbage." I said, sadly. "Now I know how Jordan Matter felt around Salish when she tried to make their YouTube channel all vegetarian."

"His daughter knows what is good for the planet." Sam said, happily. "It's not garbage." She holds up the 'grass on a bun'. "It's recyclable organic matter."

"It's garbage." Danny, Tucker, and I said, at the same time.

I looked over at the lunch lady behind the counter. She gives a shifty-eyed glance around before pulling a hamburger out of her pocket and sneaking away in order to eat it.

The Lunch Lady Ghost phases through the ceiling and looks at the 'Ultra Recyclo Veggie Lunch Menu'. She glares at it.

Danny is still holding the spoonful of 'grass on a bun'. He gasps as his ghost sense goes off.

"Shit." I said, while my ghost sense goes off. "I forgot about that."

"Uh, guys? We've got a problem." Danny said, as a handful of mud suddenly lands on his head. "UGH!"

"FENTON!" Dash yelled, nearby.

"...Make that two problems." Danny said, turning around, grimacing.

Dash, a jock, storms over to Danny, a plate of mud in his hands.

"I ordered three mud pies. Do you know what they gave me? Three mud pies. With mud. From the ground! All because of your girlfriend!" Dash said, angrily.

"She's not my girlfriend!" Danny said, terrified.

"I'm not his girlfriend!" Sam said, worried.

Dash grabs Danny by his shirt and lifts him a few inches off the ground, "These are the best years of my life! After high school, it's all downhill for me! How am I supposed to enjoy my glory days eating mud?!"

"Actually, it's topsoil." Sam said.

Dash tosses Danny at the table.

"Whatever!" Dash said, and Danny lands on the bench, making the jock walk over and shoves the plate of mud towards his face. "Eat it. All of it."

Danny seems to be about to go through with eating the topsoil, but his ghost sense goes off and my ghost sense goes off again and we see the Lunch Lady floating behind the lunch counter.

"Um..." I said, walking over to a plate and picked it up, preparing to toss it. "Right. Thank you Team RWBY. Food fight!"

I tossed the plate and hit Dash in the face. The other students begin throwing food as well and chaos ensues. Sam peeks out from behind a table.

"It's not garbage! It's..." Sam said, while Danny's hand suddenly grabs hers and pulls her back down towards the floor.

The four of us begin crawling away from the cafeteria. While crawling, Danny turns and looks behind him.

Dash seems angry while the garbage fight continues behind him, "You're gonna pay for this, Fenton!"

"You haven't forgotten Team RWBY then." Sam said, looking over at me.

Dash is hit on the head again (twice) with mud.

"Nope. They had a food fight. Not like this. It was more...intense!" I said, excitedly.

"Great. I'm still his favorite." Danny said, annoyed.

The four of us manage to crawl out the cafeteria door, and Danny, Tucker, and I peek our heads around it to see the Lunch Lady Ghost.

"Huh. Shouldn't be so bad. She looks a little like my grandmother." Tucker said.

Tucker, Danny, and I are now standing in the room and Sam peeks out from behind the door.

"Shouldn't she be haunting a bingo hall?" Danny asked.

The four of us close the door behind us. The ghost turns around at the sound.

"Hello, children. Can you help me? Today's lunch is meatloaf, but I don't see the meatloaf. Did someone change the menu?" The Lunch Lady asked.

"Yup." I said, pointing a finger at Sam. "She did." I then pointed a finger at Tucker. "And he's not happy about it either."

"YOU CHANGED THE MENU?!" The Lunch Lady exclaimed, becoming extremely angry, with her hair flaming on end and eyes flashing red, causing the four of us to gasp. "THE MENU HAS BEEN THE SAME FOR FIFTY YEARS!"

The Lunch Lady yells as green flames surround her and appear circling above her head.

"Get behind me and Jared!" Danny said, angrily.

Sam promptly jumps behind Danny and Tucker promptly jumps behind me.

"Wow. I feel safe." Sam said, sarcastically.

"I'm going ghost!" Danny said, transforming into Danny Phantom.

"It's hero time!" I said, transforming into my ghost alter-ego named the Black Pearl.

After transforming, Danny and I leaped into the air as Sam and Tucker watched wide-eyed. Danny floats up towards the enraged Lunch Lady.

"I command you to...go away!" Danny said, seeming a little unsure of himself.

The Lunch Lady causes many piles of dishes surrounding a sink to begin to glow and float around, before shooting them at Danny and I. He turns intangible, causing the dishes to pass right through us before hitting the wall behind us. Danny and I return to normal, and smiles at our accomplishment of not being hit.

"Danny!" I said, looking at Sam when a bunch of dishes are heading right for her. "It's Sam!"

Danny sees what I told him and flies in front of the dishes to catch in neat stacks with his hands and arms. The Lunch Lady uses her powers to send even more dishes flying towards Tucker.

"I got Tucker!" I said, catching these dishes in stacks like Danny did.

Tucker stops wincing after realizing I stopped the dishes and smiles. Danny and I flew off to put the dishes back on the counter.

"That was a close one." I said, showing Danny his reflection in one of the dishes.

"Well, if this superhero thing doesn't work out, I can have an exciting career as a busboy." Danny said.

"You could. And I could have a career as a superhero." I said, while Danny is looking at his reflection in the plates. "I don't mind it. Considering I'm an Avenger in the future."

Danny and I noticed the stoves behind us beginning to move around.

"What's an Avenger?" Danny asked, frowning.

"I control lunch! Lunch is sacred! Lunch has rules!" The Lunch Lady yelled, suddenly changing back to being calm. "Anybody want cake?"

Sam and Tucker nod their heads in shock.

"Too bad! Children who change my menu do not get dessert!" The Lunch Lady yelled, phasing up out through the ceiling while the three stoves begin to emit green flames.

The green flames fire out of the ovens towards Sam and Tucker who dodge out of the way. Danny and I dodged a blast of flames as well. The three stoves look angry and fly at Tucker and Sam, who flinch. Danny and I fly up behind them, with the two of us grabbing their shoulders, and we make the entire group intangible.

"How did we get in? In-tru-da window?" I asked, and Danny and I flew us through the wall out of the kitchen.

The stoves hit and crack the wall where the trio just flew through. The four of us turn tangible again and roll out into the middle of a hallway. We look behind us in shock.

"Hey! It worked!" Danny said, looking down at his hands in amazement.

"Of course it worked." I said, smiling. "I followed what you did."

"This is the thanks I get for thinking like an individual?" Sam asked, irritated.

"Unfortunately. Yeah."

A loud crash is suddenly heard and Tucker, Danny, and I turn to look for the cause. The hallway begins shaking violently and the lights go out. Danny looks worried and then looks at the row of lockers closest to him. Two of the lockers open and a bunch of school supplies come flying out. Sam looks on in surprise. Suddenly, a locker next to her does the same thing, and now many lockers are doing the same. The supplies fly to the Lunch Lady, swirling through her and then behind her. The four of us looked shocked. Tucker's eyes suddenly widen and he sniffs the air.

"Steak...! Rib-eye...! No, porterhouse! Medium-rare!" Tucker said, while various meat products fly past him.

The meat products begin attaching themselves to the Lunch Lady's body until she is completely covered and only her mean green eyes are showing.

"But where did it come from?" Tucker asked, glaring and turns to look behind him. "Lancer!"

A piece of paper hits Tucker in the face.

(Open POV)

Casper High's Teacher's Lounge...

"Esteemed Casper High faculty, I present your all-steak buffet." Lancer said, Speaking to several teachers and staff members.

Lancer pulls off a tablecloth covering the supposed buffet, but the meat is missing. Some eager staff members with forks and knives gasp at the sight. Lancer realizes something's wrong and looks down at the table in shock. All that's left is a rattling bone.

Lancer slams his hands on the table, "PARADISE LOST!"

(Jared's POV)

Hallway...

The meat-covered Lunch Lady towers over the trio.

"Prepare to learn why meat is the most powerful of the five food groups!" The Lunch Lady said, suddenly loses her rage and goes back to 'innocent lunch lady mode', holding up a cookie, before asking a question politely. "Cookie?"

Sam shakes her head 'no'. The ghost seems surprised she was turned down for a split second before reverting back to 'evil lunch lady mode'.

"Then perish!" The Lunch Lady said, raising a clawed hand to attack Sam.

Danny slides backwards towards Sam to protect her.

"Forget it! The only thing that has an expiration date here is you!" Danny said, pointing at the Lunch Lady before he accidentally reverts to his human self. "Whoops! I didn't mean to do that."

"Danny!" I said, as the Lunch Lady roars and grabs Danny before sending him flying into Tucker and I. "Damn!"

The three of us hit the lockers behind them and a pile of papers covers us up. The Lunch Lady grabs Sam off the ground and flies off down the hallway, taking Sam with her. I turned intangible and flew up into the sky after Sam.

"Come on! Danny! Change back! We gotta go with Jared!" Tucker said, worried.

Two hands suddenly grab both boys by their collars.

"You two aren't going..." Lancer said, pulling Danny and Tucker up off the ground. "...anywhere."

Dash, still covered in mud, is standing behind Mr. Lancer, smirking in victory, "Told ya you'd pay Fenton!"

(Open POV)

Lancer's office...

Dash, Danny, Tucker, and Mr. Lancer are gathered. Lancer is sorting through files in a file cabinet while Danny and Tucker sit in chairs in front of his desk. Dash is leaning against the wall, looking pleased.

"Tucker Foley." Lancer said, pulling out a file and reads it. "Chronic tardiness, talking in class, repeated loitering by the girl's locker room." Tucker smiles slyly. "Danny Fenton. 34 dropped beakers in the last month, banned for life from handling all fragile school property, but no severe mischief before today. So, gentlemen, tell me..." Lancer slams file on desk before angrily yelling. "WHY DID THE TWO OF YOU CONSPIRE TO DESTROY THE SCHOOL'S CAFETERIA?!"

"Dash started it! He threw..." Danny said, defensively.

"Four touchdown passes in the last game is thereby exempt from scorn." Lancer said, while Dash is shown looking smug. "You two, however, are not. I'll map out your punishment when I return." He stands in the office doorway. "Mr. Baxter, watch the door."

Lancer leaves and Dash smirks before closing the door. Danny and Tucker stand up from their seats.

"We gotta find Sam and Jared. For some reason, I feel like I got her kidnapped and have Jared try and find her." Tucker said.

"Maybe because Jared told the ghost she changed the menu? How about that?" Danny asked.

"That steak is still in the building. 200 yards, tops." Tucker siad, suddenly sniffing the air.

Danny glances over at a wall of TVs showing different security camera views of the school. Several cameras show a storage room filled with boxes of meat. The last one shows a trail of meat juice in front of the boxes leading off-screen.

"Check it out." Danny said, pointing at the screen. "Meat trail."

Danny goes ghost and grabs Tucker's arm, then turns them both intangible and phases them down through the floor.

"Whoa!" Tucker said, excitedly.

The office door opens and Lancer enters carrying a broom, Dash right behind him.

"Gentlemen, your punishment will be..." Lancer said, realizing the boys are gone from the room, before speaking angrily. "...WORSE THAN YOU CAN IMAGINE!"

(Jared's POV)

Meat Storage Room...

I turned my back to see Danny and Danny and Tucker entering the meat storage room from the security footage.

"Took you long enough, Danny, Tuck." I said, and Tucker looks elated from all the meat. "My steak was cooked to perfection, it was a rare pleasure."

"Sweet mother of mutton!" Tucker said, hugging the boxes of meat. "I'd dreamed of it, but...I never thought I'd live to see it!"

"How is it that Jared and I both have the ghost powers and you're the weird kid?" Danny asked.

"I never thought I'd have ghost powers to be honest. Like, I have powers based on the Railgun." I said, while our eyes widened as we heard cackling nearby. "Electricity, electromagnetism, hacking skills, and something called iron sand. I also have teleportation powers similar to Shirai Kuroko."

We peer around the corner of a stack of boxes and see the Lunch Lady, who is floating in front of Sam who is trapped neck-deep in a large pile of meat.

"My dear child...meat is good for kids! It helps them grow and makes them smile! Why won't you eat it?" The Lunch Lady asked, offering Sam a chicken leg.

"We don't need meat. That's fact!" Sam said, angrily.

The Lunch Lady suddenly reverts back to her evil lunch lady form, with wind blowing around her.

"SILENCE!" The Lunch Lady said, pointing at Sam. "You need discipline, manners, respect! You know where that comes from? MEAT!" The wind stops suddenly, and the Lunch Lady reverts back again, before speaking politely. "Chicken? Or fish?"

I looked between Danny and Tucker.

"Jared and I will take care of the ghost. Tucker, you just find a way to get Sam out of that pile of meat!" Danny said.

"Right!" I said, happily.

"Waaaay ahead of you." Tucker siad, holding up a fork and knife.

Danny flies off to punch the Lunch Lady, who turns around surprised, but notices Danny too late. She is sent flying and crashes into a nearby wall before collapsing to the ground. Danny lands in front of me and the Lunch Lady glares at me.

Sam stops looking in Danny's direction and my direction and then looks at Tucker who is cutting away pieces of the meat with his knife.

"I'll have you free in no time, Sam!" Tucker said, enthusiastically.

"You've gotta be kidding me." Sam said, frowning in disbelief. "This was the plan Jared agreed to with Danny."

Danny is crouched on the ground. He jumps up and somersaults in the air before preparing to kick the ghost. The Lunch Lady catches his foot in her hand right before he hits her, then dangles a surprised Danny upside-down by his foot.

"Don't you see? This is why you need meat! You're skin and..." The Lunch Lady said, tossing Danny towards me. "...bones!"

As Danny is sent flying through the air towards me, we turned intangible, phasing halfway through a nearby wall, up to our waists before falling to the ground. The Lunch Lady summons shish-kebabs from a box, their pointed ends heading straight for Danny and I.

"So much meat..." I said, sadly.

Danny and I, who are now out of the wall, see this and we split our bodies in two. The meat passes through the stretched intangible area of our bodies we created.

"It really is a lot." Danny said, smiling at the new power but the smile quickly fades as we see what the ghost is up to now. "Did you stop things like these with the Doctor?"

The Lunch Lady yells and summons meat out of all of the boxes. Danny and I piece ourselves together again and watch the meat go flying towards the ghost.

"Less ghosts. More aliens." I said, frowning.

Meanwhile, Tucker is about to take a bite of meat but the piece as well as the meat pile that was covering Sam goes flying off towards the ghost. The meat soars around and attaches to the Lunch Lady to form the meat monster she was earlier. She fires meat fists at Danny and I, capturing us in her grasp.

"Help's on the way, buddies!" Tucker yelled, striking a determined pose, fork and knife handy.

The Lunch Lady sends Danny flying towards me. Danny yells and we turn intangible, with the two of us passing through a wall. The Lunch Lady looms over Sam and Tucker and growls at them loudly. Sam and Tucker look scared.

"Run?" Tucker asked.

"Run." Sam said.

Casper High...

Sam and Tucker yell as they head for the door, but the ghost sends a pile of meat that blocks their exit, knocking them both away.

"How annoying were the aliens?" Danny asked, holding the back of his head as we phased partly back into the room. "As annoying as this?"

"Yeah." I said, while Danny and I see Sam and Tucker yelling as they run past us, and we determinedly go flying after them. "That's how things normally are."

The Lunch Lady makes fists with her hands and prepares to slam down on Sam and Tucker, but Danny and I quickly flew down and he grabbed Sam in his arms while I grabbed Tucker my arms before we turned all of us intangible and flying through a wall. The Lunch Lady is surprised and can't stop herself in time before the meat splatters all against the wall.

Outside Casper High...

Danny, Sam, Tucker, and I phased through the wall outside and floating, turning tangible again. Danny and I looked tired.

"Gee, Danny, Jared. Fighting meat monsters, flying through walls...You two must be exhausted." Sam said, looking between Danny and I.

"What?" Danny asked, defensively. "Of course not! What would give you that idea?"

"Danny...." I said, watching Danny trail off.

The four of us fell to the ground as Danny and I passed out from exhaustion. Danny and I return back to our human selves, and Sam and Tucker look at each other.

(Open POV)

Fenton Works...

Jazz opened the front door.

"Mom? Dad?" Jazz asked, puzzled.

Jazz steps into the room and the door suddenly slams closed behind her. Two smoke bombs roll in front of her covering the scene with smoke.

"Now, Maddie!" Jack said, hidden by the smoke. "Hit her! I'm moving in!" Jazz shrieks. "Get my back!"

The smoke clears to show an irritated Jazz with her arms crossed as her parents have latched themselves onto her legs, the Fenton Xtractor attached to her hair. Maddie and Jack let go of her legs.

Jazz walks off, the Xtractor still on her hair, "This is all going in the memoir."

Maddie and Jack get up off the ground. The front door opens to reveal Sam and Tucker carrying the still-unconscious Danny and Jared.

"Hey, Mr. and Mrs. Fenton! What a school day! Poor Danny nodded off with Jared. We figured we'd just carry them all the way home and tuck Danny into bed and let Jared sleep on the floor..." Tucker said, while he and Sam start carrying Danny and Jared upstairs. "...without any parental interaction whatsoever."

"Don't get up! We know where to go. Bye!" Sam said, worried.

"Hmm..." Jack said, looking up at the ceiling in thought.

"Jack, Danny and Jared are not ghosts." Maddie said, looking at Jack.

"You're right." Jack said, thinking about Jazz trying to get her hair out of the Xtractor. "Jazz is."

(Jared's POV)

Danny's bedroom...

Danny is sleeping on top of his bed. He suddenly wakes up with a yelp. I opened my eyes to see that I was lying down on the floor in Danny's room.

"Ah! Aah! Wha? What's going on?" Danny asked, confused.

Tucker and Sam are looking down at Danny and I.

"You and Jared passed out. We took you home with Jared in tow. You and Jared have been asleep for four days!" Tucker said, excitedly.

"Four days?!" Danny exclaimed, sitting up quickly, alarmed.

"Nah. It's only been a couple hours." Tucker said, chuckling.

"A couple hours isn't that bad." I said, happily.

Danny lays back down, still a little shaken.

Sam puts her hands on her hips, "Knock it off, Tucker. This is the second time today your carelessness almost got Danny and Jared killed."

"Me? I almost got him killed? The only reason this happened is because you had to be unique. You had to take the meat away!" Tucker said, as Sam crosses her arms, turning away from him, and he storms off. "And I'm going to get it back!"

"You want to change that menu back?" Sam asked, yelling angrily, going over to the door to the bedroom. "YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE TO GO THROUGH ME TO DO IT!"

Sam leaves, slamming the door closed.

"Oh well. I'm sure everything will be back to normal by tomorrow." Danny said, looking over at me.

"If this is anything like Jordan Matter and his daughter Salish. Probably not." I said, laughing a lot.

"Jared, it can't be that bad. Where a girl forces a boy to become vegetarian."

Outside Casper High...

A few students are looking at something.

Danny walks up with me, a look of disbelief on his face, "Or not. Maybe it'll be worse."

"It can't get worse than this. It is the early 2000s after all." I said, looking at a bunch of meat lovers decked out in meat merchandise. On a stage, some girls are dancing in hot dog outfits. The girls dance offstage and Tucker appears carrying a microphone in his hand. "During the age of Twitter and YouTube, it would be a lot worse, Danny."

"What do we want?" Tucker asked, shouting into the microphone.

"MEAT!" The meat lovers yelled.

"When do we want it?"

"NOW!"

Danny and I looked over at the other side of the protest. Pan over the vegetarian equivalent of the meat-protest side full of hippies, laid-back people, and goths. Sam is standing on top of a school bus yelling into a microphone while carrying a sign that reads 'NOW!'

"VEGGIES NOW! VEGGIES FOREVER! VEGGIES NOW! VEGGIES FOREVER!" Sam and the veggie lovers said, chanting.

Sam and Tucker come to stand on opposite sides of Danny and I, glaring at each other.

"You guys put together two protests in one night?" Danny asked, with disbelief.

"This is Jordan and Salish. Taken to the extreme." I said, letting out a sigh. "But in an early 2000s style."

"Meat-eaters, Danny, Jared. Always ready to fight. And our high-protein diets give us the energy we need to do it quickly." Tucker said.

"Ultra recyclo-vegetarians are always ready to protest. And because we don't have to waste time cooking our food, we can move even faster." Sam said.

"Jared's right with the comparison to the influencers he watches in the future. Don't you guys think this is a little extreme?" Danny asked.

"No choice, buddies. You're either with me!" Tucker yelled, continuing to glare at Sam.

"Or you're against him!" Sam said, glaring at Tucker.

Sam and Tucker lean over Danny and I and we ducked a little.

"So whose side are you on?" Sam and Tucker asked, at the same time.

A wind suddenly starts blowing and the sky turns gray. Sam and Tucker's eyes widen.

"I'm on the side that knows what is right." I said, and cackling is heard and Danny's ghost sense and my ghost sense goes off. "And it involves not fighting between being a carnivore or herbivore."

The crowd looks bewildered and confused. A voice yells angrily as the contents of a meat truck fly out in various directions. The meat swirls around and eventually forms a gigantic version of the meat monster the Lunch Lady Ghost was the previous day.

"It's lunchtime!" The lunch lady said, angrily.

Both groups of protesters run away while screaming in terror.

"Meat! Why have you betrayed me?!" Tucker exclaimed.

"Guys, time to makeup. Now!" Danny said, looking around.

"You two can fight as Jordan and Salish another day!" I said, annoyed.

Sam and Tucker hug as Danny transforms and I transform beneath their cover. They break their hug to reveal Danny Phantom and me as the Black Pearl, who flew towards the Lunch Lady.

Jazz is talking with a goth sitting at a picnic table away from all of the chaos.

"Spike, you have to open up to your parents! Be true to yourself and them." Jazz said, looking at Spike, who is wearing all black, has a mohawk, and is covered in piercings and tattoos. "Tell them how you feel! I mean, it's not like they're gonna attack you or anything."

A green net suddenly captures Jazz. She yells in surprise. Spike watches as Jazz is dragged away.

Jack is reeling in the net while standing behind some bushes.

"I've got her!" Jack said, while Maddie pokes out from the bushes, and her husband looks at her. "And the Fenton Grappler is working like a charm!"

"I don't understand. If Jazz is a ghost, why isn't she phased through the net?" Maddie asked.

"Because I am not a GHOST!" Jazz yelled, now standing under the net, before throwing the net off. "You've ambushed me, suffocated me with smoke, and worse, I was pulled away from Spike before he had his breakthrough! What do you have to say for yourselves?"

Jack suddenly holds the Fenton Thermos out in front of him, "Eat hot Fenton Thermos, ghost gal!"

The thermos simply sparks and does nothing. Jazz looks down at the thermos, then glares up at her parents. Jack scrutinizes the thermos.

"Hmm." Jack said, shaking the thermos back and forth. "Darn thing still doesn't work!"

Danny and I looked alarmed in front of the meat-covered Lunch Lady. The ghost yells ferociously before attempting to punch Danny and I, with the two of us flying out of the way. The ghost then tries slapping Danny with the other hand, but he dodges again. She then tries an uppercut which I dodge. Danny then kicks the ghost hard and I punched the ghost hard, with the two of us knocking her over. Sam and Tucker smile as they watch this.

"Danny really is getting better. And Jared is using the skills he used from traveling and having adventures to his advantage." Tucker said, happily.

Danny looks down and smiles, then frowns as he turns back to the ghost. The ghost punches him and he goes sailing towards me.

Sam runs forward as she watches, "I sure hope Danny can take a punch!"

A jet airplane is flying overhead. Danny and I are sent flying upward toward it.

Inside the plane...

A businessman and a flight attendant are doing what usually happens on a plane.

"There's your water, sir!" The flight attendant said, happily.

Their eyes widen as Danny and I suddenly phase through and up out of the ceiling. Danny and I then phase back down through the floor again, with Danny Phantom grabbing the businessman's water cup out of his hand and I grabbing the bottle of water that is in the storage space in the seat.

"Thanks!" Danny yelled, while phasing through.

"Thank you!" I said, as I'm phasing through.

Outside Casper High...

Danny flies back towards the ghost with me, splashing the cup of water on his face before throwing the cup aside. I drank out of the bottle of water, making it completely empty, and throwing it to a trash can below.

Jack and Maddie are looking at Jazz, who has her arms crossed, irritated. Jack suddenly smiles before looking at the thermos in his hand.

"I, Jack Fenton, from this day forth..." Jack said, and Danny and I are flying toward the school. "...do hereby turn my back on ghosts."

Danny and I slam into the ghost sending meat flying everywhere. The meat explosion lets off orange smoke in the distance behind Jazz, Jack, and Maddie. I weakly helped try to pull Danny out of a crater the explosion created.

"Oh, dear! What a mess! Are you both okay?" The Lunch Lady asked, standing before Danny and I.

I finally pulled Danny out of the crater and my friend rubs his left arm a bit.

"Yeah. I think so." Danny said, sadly.

"I'm fine. Everything's fine." I said, frowning.

The ghost has a small smile on her face, but suddenly reverts back to evil lunch lady mode.

"TOUGH! BECAUSE YOU TWO BEING OKAY IS NOT PART OF MY BALANCED DIET OF DOOM!" The Lunch Lady said, angrily.

Meat suddenly pours out of the crater forming five small piles in front of Danny and I, which turn into little meat monsters. Danny and I flew away, with the meat monsters jumping after us. Danny does a flying kick that slices through all of the monsters before landing back on the ground with me. We looked up only to see the meat monsters form themselves again.

"Wasn't expecting that." Danny said, suddenly turning human again. "Or that."

The meat monsters grab Danny and I. We tried fighting them off but they kept their hold and flew up with us. Two of the monsters let go of Danny while three dangle me upside down by my legs. Danny yells.

I looked down at Jack and Maddie. Jack is looking down at the Fenton Thermos.

"...And this Thermos can't trap ghosts because ghosts don't exist." Jack said, tossing the thermos towards me.

The thermos suddenly whacks the still-dangling me in the face and I catch it.

"The Fenton Thermos! But Jared, how are you going to get it to work?" Danny asked, looking over at me.

The three meat monsters dangling me suddenly let go of me and tossed me toward Danny.

"I don't know!" I said, holding the Fenton Thermos. "I haven't been with the Ghostbusters in ages!"

Danny yells as we plummet toward the ground.

"Change back! CHANGE BACK!" Danny said, while a light flash and he turns ghost again.

The meat monsters look surprised, then become furious before chasing after Danny and I.

Danny and I fall and phase through the ground between Jazz and their parents.

"Thanks for the thermos!" Danny said, while phasing through.

"We really appreciate it!" I said, while phasing through.

"HA!" Jack said, happily. "Ghost kids! I was right!" He spoke in a sing-song voice. "You were wrong! Ghosts exist!" Jack laughs. "I never doubted for a second!"

Jazz doesn't look pleased. Jack laughs and a large amount of meat lands on top of them.

Danny and I made it back to the Lunch Lady. Danny phases out from the ground with me, the Fenton Thermos in his hand.

"NO! Soup's not on today's menu!" The Lunch Lady said, angrily.

"I'm changing the menu, permanently!" Danny said, grabbing the top of the thermos, he spoke in a small voice. "Please work." He pulls the top off of the thermos and aims it towards the Lunch Lady. "I hope I'm right!"

"You are! The Fenton Thermos! The modern day version of the Ghost Trap and the Proton Pack the Ghostbusters and I used back in the 1980s. We used those to hunt ghosts around New York City!" I said, as a blue aura surrounds Danny and then the thermos, which powers up before releasing a stream of energy. The energy forms a net that surrounds the surprised Lunch Lady and traps her. "It's now smaller and more compact in the form of the Fenton Thermos. I loved this!"

"NOOOO!" The Lunch Lady said, struggling.

The energy swirls and sucks the Lunch Lady into the thermos and Danny and I, who have turned human again.

"You used to hunt with the Ghostbusters?" Danny asked, putting the lid back on the thermos.

"Yeah. I did. A long time ago." I said, and Danny smiled and looked up. "We hunted a lot of ghosts. It was fun too."

Danny and I then go over to Sam and Tucker, who were trapped under one of the protest balloons. Danny helps Sam up.

"What happened? Where's the ghost?" Sam asked.

"My parents have their moments." Danny said, smiling down at the thermos.

"They do." I said, smiling.

Danny suddenly hears a faint beeping noise and he hides the thermos behind him.

"Ghosts directly ahead." The Fenton Finder said, nearby.

The meat-covered Jack and Maddie walk up to the four of us, Jack holding the Fenton Finder in front of him.

"You would have to be some sort of moron to not notice the ghosts directly ahead." The Fenton Finder said.

Danny and I, standing right in front of the device, with us smiling weakly. Jack and Maddie look up from the Fenton Finder towards Danny and I.

"Oh, sorry, Dad." Danny said, pointing behind him with his thumb. "You just missed them."

"We got runners!" Jack said, excitedly.

Jack and Maddie run away revealing Jazz with her arms crossed.

"Great." Jazz said, irritated, grabbing my hand, and walked away with me. "Back to square one."

"So, you're not gonna tell 'em?" Tucker asked.

"Nah. I think I might've finally figured out what these powers are for. They make me..." Danny said.

A hand suddenly grabs Danny by the shoulder. His eyes widen and he glances upward at Mr. Lancer, who looks furious.

"In a world of trouble." Lancer said.

Fenton Works...

I am sitting in the living room, playing on my Nintendo Switch docked to a TV nearby through some cable management, happy to get out of that situation. I am drinking some Mountain Dew, feeling safe away from the Doctor after what he did during the events of Kill the Moon.

"I don't mind hunting down ghosts." I said, holding a Nintendo Switch Pro Controller. "Being a part of the last hurrah. It is still too early to tell."

(Open POV)

Outside Casper High...

It is nighttime. Mr. Lancer appears with a megaphone in his hand.

"Manson!" Lancer yelled, looking at Danny, Sam, and Tucker, who are cleaning up the mess from the protests and ghost fight. "Pick up that T-bone!"

"With my hands?" Sam asked, disgusted.

"Foley! Pick up that Turfwich!"

"With my hands?" Tucker asked, equally disgusted, holding the Turfwich by its corner.

Mr. Lancer seems pleased and takes a bite out of a turkey leg before turning around and walking away.

Danny is sweeping up some meat. Dash is watching him sweep, looking pleased while leaning on the dumpster where the meat is being collected. He laughs. Danny looks over at Dash and then goes to the side of the dumpster. He grabs it, turning it intangible. The dumpster's contents phase out and fall on Dash, who gets trapped under a huge pile of meat.

"FENTON! A little help?" Dash asked, poking his head out from the meat pile.

"Whatever you say, Dash." Danny said, looking pleased before looking at Jared. "Whatever you say."

Danny's eyes glow green.