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"… and when I turned around there she was! Jessica all reformed and looking absolutely stunning. Do you know what she did right after?" The sounds of the Casper High were muted around the duo, Sam unenthusiastically chewing on her alfalfa toast. Tucker's words washed over her as she listened with a half ear.
"Earth to Sam? Are you even listening to me?"
Okay, maybe less than half an ear. She gives Tucker an apologetic smile, but from his face it might come off as more of a grimace.
"Did she confess her undying love to you?" Snarking usually could cover up a blunder like this, and it seemed to work as Tucker gave her a disapproving glare.
"No, she said *Hello World*, but don't think that will distract me from what's going on with you." Sam couldn't help the grimace as Tucker leaned in. "Are you still avoiding your green house?" He asked, tone softening but Sam still flinched. She wished Danny was here instead of chasing down the Ghost of the day. He would help distract Tucker.
She debated briefly on lying to him, on deflecting like they've done so many times before. Instead what she found herself saying was, "Later.. After school okay?" He didn't look happy but eventually Tucker nodded.
"After school," he says like a threat, pointing his chili dog to her, meat slipping from it much to her disgust. Falling into the same familiar patterns of banter and this time Sam committed to listening. Tucker's developing powers were exciting and she could see the joy it sparked in him. She only wished she could feel the same.
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Sam tried not to feel bad as she dodged around the other students of Casper High. The last bell had just rang, signaling the end of a school day and Sam's last class wasn't with Tucker. Danny appeared to be dealing with whatever ghostly mischief for the day. It wasn't either that she didn't want to talk to either of them, more that she was worried. Worried they would mock her or scoff at her and brush it off, but perhaps the biggest worry of all was that they might believe her.
It'd been months since her and Tucker had began to develop powers, from what Danny could pry out of his mentors was due to the continuous exposure to the ghost zone, both by the portal and their trips into the zone with the GAV.
It was exciting at first, both her and Tucker swept up in the fact they were essentially getting leveled up. Their strength growing and eyes glowing, occasionally Sam almost felt like she could fly. She should have known other powers were going to sprout as well.
She was thrown from her thoughts by a sudden arm thrown over her shoulder, feeling a chill in the air as Danny hugged her. Tucker was such a tattletale. As if summoned by her thoughts Tucker appeared on her other side, pinning her in between them. "You ass, you called Danny in for this?" She growled to the techie.
"Hey you were the one running, I'm just making sure you keep up your part of the bargain." He defended as the three made their way down the street.
The trio walked in silence for a long while, bypassing their usual turn off and instead heading to a scrap of land not far out from city limits. It was uneven ground, dipping low with trees struggling to compete with recent housing developments and resources. A small beaten path led them deeper into a proper forest, trees gaining height the further they got from town. At this point Sam knew exactly where they were going.
Further into the forest, when the last sounds of the city had finally dropped to an almost whispering hum, they arrived at the Ditch. It had probably been a riverbed before Amity Park had been made, but now it was just a gentle dip in the ground, adventurous saplings taking root in the bottom. The three of them hung out at the Ditch a lot before Danny's accident, either helping clear the area or picking up any garbage that found it's way here. Now it looked quite overgrown, bits of litter strewn through the Ditch. Sam felt indignant on nature's behalf, turning to Tucker to find him already taking out a trash bag and handing it to her.
"You just have trash bags in your pocket?" She asked him slightly amused as she watched Danny take one as well.
"Not pockets, in my pack, never know when they'll come in handy." Tucker grins, sliding down the small slope to get to the bottom of the Ditch. Following after him Sam felt herself get lost in the familiar motions of just taking care of nature.
"Sooo… Wanna tell us a bit of what's going on?" Danny asks, breaking the fragile peace Sam felt. She bites back a scathing retort instead shrugging as she shoves more soda cans into her own bag, how can someone chug this much soda was anyone's guess.
"Nothing much to talk about," She mumbles, only for Tucker to snort, turning from his corner.
"She's avoiding her green house," he shamelessly tattles on her.
"Tucker!" Sam hisses, swatting at him as he chuckles and dodges out of the way. "I'm not avoiding it… I'm just… focusing on other things right now."
"You're not going to become Undergrowth." Sam whips her head to Danny who had his back on her, leaning down to continue to pick up the litter in the Ditch. She could see the tips of his ears, which were a bright red as he continues to face away from her.
Sam scowled, turning back to her own trash. "I know that," She snaps, shoving everything she could reach into her own bag. But her hands shook as she did, remembering how smothered under the power Undergrowth had given her felt, how intoxicating to be in control of plants, twining her deeper into the flora. She had felt something… similar budding the last few weeks when she made her rounds in her green house. Sam wasn't sure she wanted to know what it would bud into, feeling like she already went down this path before.
She could still hear Danny shuffle behind her and out of the corner of her eye she could see Tucker fumbling with his own garbage bag, all amusement sucked from his face.
"I know you know it, but do you believe it?" Sam swore she almost snapped her neck looking back to Danny, but he still hadn't turned towards her. "Jazz would say the same thing to me about Dan, and logically I knew she was right… but I couldn't bring myself to believe her." The woods were completely silent as Danny spoke, "I worried that if I relaxed, if I didn't keep myself in check, then my worst fears would come true and Dan would be back."
"Danny…" Sam started before Tucker jumped in.
"I still avoid the Egyptian section of the museum," he blurts out, flushing darkly as Danny and Sam look his way. "I still can't believe that… that the Pharaoh looked just like me, that I'm probably some sort of descendent or maybe even a fucked up reincarnation of some evil king thousands of years ago. Sometimes it feels like that's all I'll ever be or if I slip up then I'll become King Tuck all over again."
Sam knew she should say something reassuring, but what comes out of her mouth instead is, "We're all a little fucked up and evil aren't we?" As soon as the words are out Sam stiffens, feeling heat quickly flush over her face and down her neck, knowing she was probably as red as a cherry. Yet her mouth keeps on running, "I think I have a lot of catching up to do as I was just coerced to the evil side instead of seeing it was my past or future."
Thank fuck it worked as Danny cracks a smile and Tucker shakes his head with a soft huffing laugh. They had did some good work on cleaning the Ditch, the three of them unceremoniously flopping down on a nearby log to rest, their trash bags carefully set next to them. It was an easy silence, Sam feeling tension bleed from her shoulders as she sits between her two boys, letting their presence ground her.
It was quiet for a bit more, the soothing sounds of nature filling their silence before Danny's impatience got the better of him and he leaned gently against Sam, nudging her. "So with us here to keep you in check maybe you can show us your powers?" He asked looking to her with hopeful eyes, wanting to know what Sam kept wrapped up so tightly.
Glaring half heartedly before rolling her eyes, Sam just nodded, ignoring the tight coil of dread in her heart. She had her boys here, they wouldn't let her go to far.
"Awesome, now come on show us what you've got." Sam could only smile at Danny's enthusiasm, but his confidence was infectious and she found herself closing her eyes. Reaching for the tight bundle she had shoved down as soon as it had tried to sprout. Fear still pulsed within her, dozens of what if's and horror scenarios running through her mind but she felt… quite okay. With Tucker's warm hand in hers and Danny's leaning on her side, Sam felt even if she did somehow turned into a jerk like Undergrowth, her two boys would beat some sense back into her.
With that reassuring thought Sam let her power bloom. She was instantly overcome with it. The forest around her seemed to come alive with music, or rather like she had turned a dial on the radio, finding herself swept up in the song of Nature. It was beautiful and Sam found herself swaying with the music of the forest, a soft humming slipping from her as she felt immersed in her gift. She could feel her boys gasp beside her, Tucker's hand tightening on hers as Danny shoved himself closer but she was too far gone to care.
Her and the forest were in complete harmony, the forest felt delighted by her presence, brushings of *friend/protector/new friend* like leaves against her consciousness. It was nothing like the power of Undergrowth, she felt the plants but there was so much more to it, as if the entire forest fauna and flora both were combined and sentient. She was about to explore this even deeper when she was drawn from her musings by a shaking on her shoulder. Feeling slightly irritated with the interruption, Sam sent a scowl to Tucker's way, "What--," before cutting herself off, seeing or rather feeling what has both Tucker and Danny so stiff next to her.
Animals had completely surrounded the three of them, looking as if the whole fauna of the forest had come out to sit around Sam. She could even see a few black bears hanging back, sitting placidly by some white tailed deer. Coyotes by rabbits and mice and even a glimpse of a cougar in the trees. Birds of all shapes and sizes were in the branches as well, from eagles to hawks and owls. Smaller hummingbirds Sam could feel begin to land on her arms and head as mice begin to climb onto her lap. They were all here for her, she could feel it now, the forest reaching out to greet her as she opened her heart up to it. She had cared for this forest, for all of nature and she could feel it's solid presence and acceptance, like a steady rough tree bark against her skin.
Her boys relaxed beside her, seeming to sense this was Sam's power, as more animals clustered closer. Tucker gave an sudden exaggerated gasp. "You're a fucking Disney Princess!" He shouts, causing some of the more timid animals to scamper away from him. Danny let out a choking laugh as Sam gave Tucker her best withering glare, but he only smiled wider.
Sam growled, "I am not--," then stops feeling a few more birds land on her head, mice curled up in her pockets and even a frog that landed on Tucker's head making him fall back and scream. She really was a Disney Princess now, she thought with horror. The forest tittered in her ears, amusement curling around her and Sam found she didn't mind being a Disney Princess. Those ladies were still kickass, she could be the first goth princess, plus if she was a Disney Princess then she could do this.
Turning an evil grin onto Tucker who froze on the ground seeming to realize how much he fucked up, "Sit on him," She told her new animal friends and there was a flurry of fur as Tucker shrieks before he's buried under the bulk of the large bear, only his poor arm flailing around as he tried to shift the bulk of probably 200 pounds of black bear off of him. Sam and Danny sniggered before Sam gestured for the bear to get up, revealing a Tucker who gave Sam a glare. It only served to make the two of them laugh even harder falling off the log by him.
"You're already mad with power," Tucker intoned ominously, before dissolving into giggles as well.
The animals slowly began to disperse as the three continued their break, finally relaxed and a new understanding of themselves and each other.
"You know, with my control over tech, Danny's control of blob ghosts and Sam's control over nature, we totally could be a world dominating club." Tucker mused, making Sam and Danny groan as they begin to sit up, their introspective mood broken. "What I'm just saying, we've got all the makings of it! We could just start small and overthrow Vlad!" At that Danny paused, looking thoughtful while Sam sighed again.
"Let's table it for later, for now want to come over to my place to drop this garbage off and make my mom lose her head as we play Doomed?" Fighting off a smile at the two whoops of joy, she picks up the trash bags, a hand gliding gently over the bark of the nearest tree and feeling the whole forest brush once more against her, like a warm and dewy cat. With her boys at her back and the nature around her, she finally believed.