Hello, lovely people! I am SO terribly sorry I haven't updated in a while. Life has been crazy these past two months, and it's not a good kind of crazy. For example, I've been sick with the flu for almost a week. But at least the good news is I don't have a fever anymore! Yaaaay! Eh, but who cares about that. Onto the story!

xxxxxxxx

Amity Park: Present Day…

Danny sat on the bench outside of the DMV with his hands fisted under his chin. He stared with a vacant expression at the parking lot.

"They're sure taking a while."

Sam looked at him and pulled out an earbud. The sounds of the screeching electric guitars and screamo singing pierced the air.

"What was that, Danny?"

He blinked a couple of times. "Huh? What?"

"Did you say something?"

"Oh, uh…I think I said they were taking a long time."

"Yeah, all this waiting's a little boring." She handed him her earbud. "Here."

He smiled and accepted the earbud. "Thanks, but do you mind turning it down a notch? I think I'll go deaf in my left ear listening to it this loud."

"I like this volume. It helps me to tune out the world."

"Well, when the music's this loud, what else can you focus on?"

She shrugged and closed her eyes again.

Suddenly, Danny spotted a blue, four-door sedan driving into the lot.

"Looks like Tucker's back."

Sam snapped her eyes open. "Really? Maybe he passed!"

The car inched into an empty parking space and stopped. After a few minutes, the car doors flung open, and out came Tucker and a small Asian lady.

Tucker threw the door shut.

"Uh oh," Sam said. "That's not a good sign."

Tucker thrust his hands into pockets and walked up to his friends.

"Dude, you okay?" Danny asked.

"I failed the parallel parking portion miserably."

"Oh man…"

"Everything else was going so well! I turned where she wanted me to turn, I used my signals, I stopped at red lights and stop signs, I drove at the speed limit…but then I had to parallel park and, well, I hit the curb. A lot. I scratched up the hub caps pretty bad."

"Aw, Tuck, that sucks," Danny said.

"Parallel parking's the hardest," Sam said. "But hey, at least you get two more chances, am I right?"

"Yeah, I guess, but…darn it, I was so close!" Tucker said.

"Wooooowww," a familiar voice said. "So this is what the past looks like!"

They turned to find a wide-eyed Vanessa behind them, taking in the sights of Amity Park, and Dani right beside her.

"Vanessa? Dani?" Tucker said.

Vanessa looked back at him and grinned. "This is so, totally savvy. Everything's so retro!"

"Vanessa, what are you doing here?" Danny said.

Dani shrugged her shoulders. "She showed up by the house and asked me where you guys were!"

"I just thought, you know, why does everyone get to see the past, but I don't?" Vanessa said. "So…okay, now don't be mad…last time I saw you all together at Tara's house…I might've borrowed a time portal ray from the basement."

"You what?!" Tucker said.

"Borrowed?" Danny said. "Don't you mean stole?"

Vanessa put her hands up. "I'll return it once I get back!"

"What is it with our kids and putting their hands on things that don't belong to them?!" Sam exasperated.

"I promise I'll put the ray back! But, hey, do you guys want to see something savvy?"

"Not me," Dani said as she turned back into her ghostly self. "It's my shift. Catch you guys later." She flew off.

"Me neither," Sam said. "Vanessa, if you're thinking of showing us the future, we shouldn't do it. It could mess up the timeline, or…"

"I'm in!" Tucker said and ran off with his future daughter.

"Tucker, wait!" Danny called out.

Sam folded her arms and shook her head.

"I'll go after them, Sam. I'll make sure nothing bad happens." He then followed them.

xxxxxxx

Danny, Tucker, and Vanessa stepped out of the portal onto a hardwood floor. Framed photos hung on light blue-painted walls, and in front of the television were leather couches.

"Where are we?" Danny asked.

"My house. Well, actually, we're in the living room right now," Vanessa said.

She skipped towards a small door and opened up a closet.

"Here," she said as she tossed a couple of sweatshirts towards the boys. "You'll need these if we don't want people to recognize you."

xxxxxxx

Danny, in a black hoodie and dark sunglasses, walked alongside Vanessa down a sidewalk in the city. Tucker, in a white hoodie, trailed behind them.

"Whooooooaaaaa! All these electric cars? Drones? The future's amazing!"

"Shhh! Keep it down, wouldya, Tuck? We don't want to stick out like a sore thumb," Danny said. He pulled the hood even more over his eyes.

"Dude, are you seeing this?" Tucker called out. "There's a hologram person coming out of that guy's cell!"

"Tucker! Shush! Oomf!"

Danny crashed into a frozen Vanessa.

"Ow!…Hey, Vanessa, you okay?"

"Oh, man," she said. "Bad news at twelve o'clock."

Danny looked towards the group of teenagers lounging at the end of the block. Right in the middle, a brunette-haired girl with tan skin and dark blue eyes laughed.

"We should cross the street…"

"Who are they?" Danny said.

Vanessa sighed, then quickly glanced at the bunch.

"Okay, that girl in the middle?" she whispered. "Her name is London Baxter."

"Baxter? That's one of Paulina and Dash's kids?"

"So that's London," Tucker said.

"Yup. The meanest, little witch…come on, let's just go."

Tucker grabbed Vanessa's wrist before she could walk away.

"No. We're walking right through."

"Excuse me?" Vanessa said.

"Yeah, Tuck, I don't think that's the smartest…" Danny began.

"I don't want some bimbo chick to scare you, Vanessa. She's not even worth your fear. Now I'm going, whether you'll follow me or not." He marched forward.

"Oh, crud!" Vanessa said, and she and Danny followed behind.

The sounds of their conversations grew clearer as the three walked towards the group.

"If you ask me, I bet Paige is sleeping with Mr. Garner to get a good grade," London said.

"Ew, Paige and Mr. Garner?" a tall boy in a baseball cap asked.

"Have you heard that girl talk? She is as dumb as dirt. It's the only explanation I can think of—Hey, Kara, pass me a cig, will ya?"

"Hey, London. Check out the failed drones over here," another boy said.

"Excuse us," Tucker said as he strode through the crowd.

"Ugh, rude!" London said to Tucker, who did not even look back at her.

She then spied Vanessa sneaking through with Danny.

"Hey, Vanna! Where's Tarantula at?" The group of friends burst into laughter.

"Not with me," she murmured.

"Oh, really? For once, you two aren't glued to the hip! I swear, it's almost like you failed drones are a thing."

"We're not a thing."

"Don't talk to them," Tucker said. "That's what they want, your attention."

"Yeah, your friend's a rat!" a boy in a football jacket said. He turned to London. "Get it? 'Cause, like, her name's 'Tara,' and 'Tara' backwards is 'a rat'?"

"Yes, Aaron, I get it. Now, give me a sip of that beer."