This is starting to shape up. There's gonna be a twist that NONE of y'all see coming.

Although, for those of you who have caught on to my style, you might see it coming.

But I highly doubt it.

We'll see.

I don't own Danny Phantom.

Enjoy (:

All Around Us

Chapter Two: Bunnies Are More Magical Than Blue

December 29, 2011

Music is the movement of sound to reach the soul for the education of its virtue.

- Plato

"Mr. Lancer!" Sam exclaimed. She leapt away from the piano as if it was burning her skin. "When did you get in here?"

"A while ago," he shrugged. "You're very good." He added, gesturing to the piano.

Sam felt her face heating up. "S'not that big of a deal..." She mumbled under her breath.

"Oh, but it is," Mr. Lancer said seriously. "I don't think I've ever heard anyone as good as you play that piano before. It's handled rough abuse, as you can tell." His eyes lingered on the scratched lid. It was in serious need of a new paint job, he decided. "You're incredibly talented. Have you ever considered going into music as a career?"

Sam felt her throat closing. "U-um, no." She choked. She shook her head vigorously. "I don't really like music all that much."

"Really?" Mr. Lancer asked. "Hm...well, for what it's worth, you'd make an incredible musician."

"Thanks. So, do you have my test?" Sam asked quickly, eager to change the subject.

Wordlessly, Mr. Lancer handed her the test. Her eyes darted to the large "77%" written in red on the top right hand corner of the page, and immediately her heart sank.

"Um, Mr. Lancer? Are you sure this is the correct grade?" Sam asked, offering the page back to him. "I studied really hard for this and I thought I did really well..."

"You struggled a bit with the overall concept of Montana 1948." He said, his eyes skimming the page.

"Oh," She glanced down at the page again. "It's just that...I needed a ninety-one to get an A in your class...I have A's in all my other classes...um, is there any extra credit you could offer me?"

"I'm sorry, Miss Manson, but I can't offer you any. Believe me, I want to, but if I offer you extra credit, I'll have to offer it to the rest of my classes...and not all of them are quite as deserving as you. I'm very sorry."

"That's alright," Sam mumbled, feeling her shoulders slump. "I'll see you tomorrow, Mr. Lancer."

"Enjoy the rest of your day, Miss Manson." Mr. Lancer said, watching her jump from the stage. She trudged slowly to the entrance to the auditorium, pausing briefly to pick up her bag and shove the papers in, before making her exit. Mr. Lancer continued standing where she left him, his eyes darting back and forth between the doors Sam had just left through and the piano she had just created some of the most beautiful music he had ever heard on. An idea was forming in his sharp mind. He would need permission from the principal, of course, but that would be easily accquired...and after that, all he would need to do is convince Miss Manson...

Ten minutes later, Sam was parking in an empty spot outside the Nasty Burger. She could already see Danny and Tucker inside, both of them waiting for her. Tucker spotted her as she climbed out of her car.

"There you are!" He exclaimed when she was inside. "What took you so long?"

"I had to drop by the auditorium to pick up my english test from Mr. Lancer," She said, her eyes on the table.

"Everything alright?" Danny asked, picking up on her down mood.

"Yeah, it's just...I made an seventy-seven on that test."

"And that's bad because...?"

"I needed a ninety-one to get an A, which would make me have straight A's." She said, sinking lower into her seat. "I already asked if he could offer me any extra credit, and he said no."

"That sucks," Danny said sympathetically, reaching across the table to gently pat her intertwined hands. She smiled up at him gratefully, doing her best to ignore the surge of warmth that erupted in her body.

"I'll live," She shrugged. He smiled and retracted his hand, leaving hers feeling oddly colder than before.

"Awesome. Can we eat now? I'm starved!" Tucker said, eyeing the menu.

"Tuck, lunch was two hours ago."

"Exactly!"

After they had eaten, they went their seperate ways; Tucker was headed back to his house for dinner, while Sam had agreed to give Danny a ride home.

"You wouldn't ever have to ask anyone to give you a ride if you had your own car," Sam snickered from the driver's seat.

"You're just never gonna let that die, are you?" Danny asked.

"Probably not." Sam laughed.

"What else happened in the auditorium?" Danny asked offhandedly, staring out the window. Sam glanced at him, wondering how he knew.

"Um, nothing, really. Mr. Lancer was talking about how he really didn't want to organize Battle of the Bands this year. That's all."

Danny turned and stared at her, as if trying to find a hint of dishonesty. Sam kept her eyes on the road, praying that her face wasn't giving anything away. Apparently, it didn't, because Danny turned back to facing the windshield looking satisfied.

"Sounds like fun." He said finally, a hint of a smile in his voice.

"Yeah, no, not really," Sam chuckled. "God, I'd hate to be in a stupid band."

"You really don't like music, do you?"

"I find it disturbing that you even have to ask that question to me anymore. Of course I don't like music."

"Why?"

Sam thought. Why don't I like music again? "It's just...music has kind of died. There aren't really any good musicians around anymore. Music has no heart, no soul anymore. Music died." She repeated. She could feel Danny watching her thoughtfully. "I mean, don't get me wrong, there are still a few acceptable songs out there. But...for the most part..."

"I get it," Danny said. "Nowadays, music is kind of...nonsense. Like, there's no meaning behind it."

"Exactly!" They were in front of Danny's house now; Sam put the car in park and idled. "I hate it."

"Well, that makes sense," Danny said, unbuckling his seatbelt. "It's too bad, you look like you'd be a good singer."

Sam blushed. "Um...thank you?"

"It's a compliment, trust me," Danny laughed, climbing out of her car. She popped the trunk so that he could get to his backpack. "I'll see you tomorrow!" He called as he walked up the front steps to his house.

"See ya!" Sam called as he closed the door behind himself.

Later that evening, after Sam had gotten home, she locked herself in her bedroom with the trunks full of her musical past. She read over each lyric sheet, laughing at some of the random phrases she had come up with ("teapots are the most wonderful things in the world" and "bunnies are more magical than blue" to name a few) in her younger years. The electric keyboard had long-since ran out of battery power; she plucked the single string of the ukulele, smiling fondly at the worn sound it made. She fell asleep with a smile on her face that night watching old videos of herself performing various children's songs.

The next morning went much like the first, besides Sam tripping over one of the tubs that was still pulled up beside her bed. She hummed quietly to herself as she dressed that morning; her mother poked her head around the corner and smiled at the obvious chipper her daughter had. Their argument was skipped that morning, putting Sam in an even better mood that morning than the last.

"It's not that I think we should keep trying to map out the rest of the Ghost Zone," Danny was explaining later that morning as the trio walked to homeroom. "It's just that I don't think you guys should come with me anymore."

"And your reason for that is..." Sam prompted him.

"It's starting to get more and more dangerous! I mean, we're past Clockwork's tower now. There's absolutely no telling what's beyond Clockwork."

"How do we even know that the Ghost Zone has an end?" Tucker asked quizzically. "It's supposed to be a mirror of our universe. Our universe has no end, it's constantly expanding. The Ghost Zone could very well be the exact same thing."

"The only way to find out is to keep investigating," Danny shrugged. "Which I will do by myself."

"You have such a hero complex," Sam muttered as they entered their homeroom.

"What do you mean?" Danny asked sharply as they sat in their respective desks.

"You're so afraid of something happening to people that you take all the responsibility of protecting everyone on by yourself," Sam said shortly. "You need to learn to let other people help you."

"I would feel terrible if anything happened to you or Tucker out there," Danny said quietly, glancing between his two best friends. "Especially since I have a say in the matter."

Mr. Lancer had entered at that point. Danny shot Sam one last meaningful glance before turning to face the front.

"Miss Manson, a word?" Mr. Lancer asked without addressing the class. Sam felt the blood rush to her face as she stood. She avoided eye contact as she shuffled down her row and followed Mr. Lancer out into the hallway for the second day in a row.

"Miss Manson, I would like to offer you extra credit," Mr. Lancer said when she had joined him in the hallway.

She felt her heart leap. "Really?" She asked hopefully. "What would I have to do?"

"Compete in Battle of the Bands."

Music is the movement of sound to reach the soul for the education of its virtue.

- Plato

Hehe. So fun.

Stay tuned for more!

And if y'all haven't checked my other story, Darkness, out yet, go read it. It's my brainchild right now. Although, this one is gettin gmore and more fun (:

And I know I have those other two to work on.

Blah.

I'll get there when I get there!

Thanks for dealing with my randomness.

I'm listening to ABBA.

:D

- Tori