Chapter 18: Returning the Favor

Danny sat down and thought for a minute, which he rarely did. He thought. And thought.

And thought and thought and thought and thought and thought and thought and thought and thought and thought and thought and thought and thought and thought and thought and thought and thought and-

"I've got it!" Tucker said, after thinking a lot more than Danny had. "Dan, remember that weird thermos your dad invented back in Chapter 5?"

"Uh, yes?"

"Well, hand it over!" Tuck said. Danny just happened to have the thermos with him. He took it out.

"Here's the thing," Tucker said. "We don't want Sam's mental breakdown to happen again, do we? And it was caused by remembering her parents! So here's what we do: You trap the parent peoples in this thingy and Sam can keep em!"

"But-" Sam said, "what if it breaks?"

"Knowing Danny's dad, it's probably made of some supernatural ghost glass that- oops!"

Tuck drooped the thermos, and- well, it was just ordinary glass. So it broke. Danny slapped his forehead. "Thanks Tucker. You're the best." He sat down and thought again.

It didn't take much thinking this time. "I've got it!" he said. "Remember Sam's impersonator parents? Mel and Jason could overshadow them, and pass themselves off as her real parents! That way, you're technically not lying!"

"Nice loophole," Jason said.

"But I'm afraid it can't be done," Melanie said. "We would be unlawfully claiming somebody's life. I don't want to do that."

"Weren't your lives unlawfully claimed?"

"Well, okay," Jason said. "But let's get Sam's opinion."

Danny turned to Sam. "I'm okay with it," she said to her parents, and then gave Danny a big hug. "Danny, you're the best friend anyone can ever have! What can I do to thank you?"

"Just consider it as returning a favor," Danny said. "You saved my life. I get your parents back." Sam smiled.

"Ok, this is getting creepy," Tuck said. "Can we leave?"

"Sure."

So they went home. Sam couldn't stop staring at Danny the whole way.

Two things of importance happened that night.

First, the impersonator parents-which lived at Sam's house-, were overshadowed in their sleep. Mr. And Mrs. Manson (aka Jason and Melanie) finally had their life back. When Sam woke up that morning, she would be living with her mom and dad for the first time in 7 years.

And speaking of Sam...

When Danny was sleeping that night, he heard a crash. He went to look, and found a small package. He tore it open- and found his 'I am 100 Klutz Certified' T-shirt, along with everything that had been taken from him during Junior High! In it, there was a note:

I personally got these from Marmel. Thought you might want them. Thanks for getting my parents back.

Love, Sam