The Rocky Road

AU One-Shot. D/S. What if one little thing, one little word, was a mountain to your whole life? What if you changed it? (alternate scenario beginning during Shades of Grey)

"Sam, Hide!"

"No time!"

She tackled him, and Valerie, with the air of a jaguar finding a fat old rabbit, ripe for the picking, slid into the bush. Her words were lost, however, when she saw Sam and Danny... locked together in a way that they had to deny every second of every day. Danny was pounding his fists on the ground, still in shock, when Sam withdrew, screamed and said, "Can't two people get a little privacy?"... Valerie left with that disturbing image in her mind, and, under her faceplate she grinned- a new bit of gossip would be running around the school by morning.

Sam, her heart still pounding, slowly shifted her vision back to Danny. "That sounded like Valerie" She saw, however, the blatantly...hungry look in his eye, the spark of love that she'd thought was there now a flame, as it was in her own heart. Swallowing her emotions, she said, "Danny... Danny? You didn't think it was a real kiss... did you?" At that point, Danny's heart was crumbled on some impossibly sharp rocks, but he had to save face... but, as he was about to deny it fiercely, he realized, why? Why was it so important that he maintain this? Why torture himself every day with what cannot be? Why wait for fate to roll the dice and crush his heart again? So, he looked away, and sadly confessed his feelings. She smiled and said "Well... that wasn't. This is." With that, she got down to his lips again, and they continued like that until their phones went off... It was Tucker on both lines. He did that sometimes. How? They have yet to figure that one out. He said "Guys, what's wrong? That ghost mutt is running wild, and I don't know why Danny hasn't stopped him yet." They decided, mutually, to freak Tucker out at that point. Sam started.

"Well, we got a little distracted."

"This's why."

And without further adieu, they saw Tucker hurl from two angles.

The next day, they discovered that it was the talk of the school. They decided to make it an announcement in the cafeteria. They got permission from Lancer to do so, and when lunchtime rolled around, they stood at the side, and the loudspeaker crackled into life, with the dry wit of Mr. Lancer saying, "Attention: Lunch room students. Please listen to the announcement of Samantha Manson and Danny Fenton."

They began, "As you all know, Valerie began a rumor today about our... relationship. And we'd just like to say to her, you have no photographic proof. So please feel free to use this as said proof." Then, they kissed. They achieved the hoped for reaction- convulsions, choking, and generally very extreme reactions of surprise.

Three years later, three months after Danny's 18th birthday, they were standing in that same cafeteria. Sam was sitting down for this one...

"Now, as you all know, today is mine and Sam's three year aniversary of finally getting over ourselves and realizing our relationship... I have a few more things to say to everyone today. First of all, I'd like to thank you all for taking that announcement in stride. Also, I would like to thank you for finally realizing that not all ghosts are evil... just the ones I fight! You are all so open-minded, ever since those attacks on the town began, I would ask you to stop eating, and to make certain your airways are clear... Now that I have realized that Sam has always been there for me, in sickness, in health, no matter where, when, or why, she never stopped loving me... So I must make one more request of her, one final request that is so much more than I deserve" he got down on one knee, and pulled a box from his trowsers. Opening it, he showed it to Sam. " Samantha Manson, will you marry me?" She threw herself at him, and Tucker, who had said pretty much the same spiel to Valerie, said, "I may be no expert in women, but I believe that's a 'yes', Danny." The whole cafeteria went from shocked to hysterical. A bond to eternity had been started.

All by taking the rocky road.