Welcome to the fifth installment of Dancing with Dragons! I swear this will be the second to last chapter. It was not supposed to go on this long. I hope you guys are enjoying it! The next chapter will be the dance and the climactic conclusion so stay tuned and please review!

Note: I know that Danny hasn't gotten his overshadowing powers in my version yet, but he will so don't worry!

Sam arrived at school on Friday way too early that next morning.

She walked in with the janitor and sat herself down at one of the library computers. The lights were half-on, the librarian absent. It was quiet, perfect for studying, but there was only an hour before class to do it. Making up for last night was going to kill her, but what else was she to do with an AP literature exam in less than two hours?

By the time the first students began arriving at Casper High, she was no better off than she had been last night. She could only hope something had made its way into her brain and would rescue her at test time.

Sam shut down the computer and scooted her chair away from the table. She packed her notes and books back into her bag and hoisted it onto her shoulder. It was much heavier than usual with the amulet inside.

And speaking of the amulet, it was time to give it back.

Sam left the library and headed to Danny's locker. He wasn't there yet, which was obvious, but she was sure that she remembered his pin. Sam twisted the lock a few times but it wouldn't open, determined to keep out burglars.

"Was it an eight or eighteen? Come on," she scolded the lock. "I'm too tired for this."

Deciding that she would just give him the amulet discreetly at lunch, Sam turned away from Danny's locker, only to be faced with Paulina and Star.

"I bet you're looking for Danny, right?"

Sam frowned. Of course she was, she was just caught red-handed trying to break into Danny's locker. "I am, actually. Have you seen-?"

"So, you must've heard that he's taking me to the dance."

Sam frowned deeper. "Yeah. I heard."

Paulina grinned wide. Star crossed her arms and looked like she was waiting for something, like when Dash got fired up and everyone expected a fight to break out in the halls.

Then, Sam understood.

"Oh, I see," she said slowly. "You think I care."

"I know you do," Paulina purred.

"You're so off," Sam said, turning away. Paulina reached out her manicured claws and grasped at Sam's bag, yanking it from her shoulder in an effort to stop her from walking off.

"Hey-!"

"I bet it's eating you alive that I'm taking your little boyfriend to the dance and that he never even thought about asking you."

"Clearly he's not my boyfriend, Paulina. Let go."

"You wish he was, though. Come on, everyone knows that you've got it bad for him. Since freshman year. Maybe even middle school."

Star laughed. It was a cackling that made Sam's face burn red of its own accord. It hurt how right they were, even if she would go to her grave denying it.

"See, I told you," Paulina said, pointing to Sam's red face and laughing along with Star.

Sam made an attempt to yank her bag out of Paulina's grip but instead, the zipper ripped free, spilling all the contents out onto the floor. Just like when the two of them had collided in the hall days ago.

"Aw, shame," Paulina said, pouting her perfect lips. Star only cackled more and kicked Sam's books across the floor.

Sam stood there, mortified, bullied, and beaten down. She was too tired, too heartsick over everything to even come up with a witty one-liner to send Paulina running.

"Oh, wow," Paulina gasped, no longer looking at Sam. "What is that?"

Sam reached for the amulet but Paulina was faster. She snapped up the necklace and held it behind her back for Star to take.

"I didn't think gold was your style, vampire freak."

"That's not mine, give it back!"

"I bet she stole it, Paulina," Star sneered, flicking the amulet between her thin fingers. "She's that kind of girl."

"I didn't steal it, it's Danny's," Sam snapped. "Don't touch it!"

Paulina's eyes went from viciously mischievous to dark and cold. "He gave this to you?"

Star scoffed. "What a two-timing asshole."

Other students were starting to file into the halls around them. The morning bell would ring soon.

"That's not-" Sam sputtered as other students glanced their way with interest, but Paulina looked determined to finish the conversation her way.

Paulina's voice took on an innocent whine. "Sam! Why did you hit me? All I asked was if you were going to the dance."

Sam's eyes widened. There was no way that Paulina was pulling something so childish.

"I know," Star cried, immediately in on the scam, "what the hell, Manson! So weird!"

Paulina rubbed her arm which was covered in a long sleeve, as though Sam had just punched her there.

"If you didn't get a date to the dance, I'm sorry, I didn't know. You didn't have to hit me like that, you could've just said so..."

More students were staring now. Some were glaring at Sam as though she were a rabid dog that needed to be taken away. Even worse, Dash and Kwan turned down the hall and, zeroing in on Paulina's expression of hurt, forced their way into the scene.

"What did you do?" Dash demanded. He stood in front of Paulina like a knight in shining armor. Sam, surrounded on all sides by students, didn't know what to do.

"I didn't," she said. "I didn't do anything."

"Hey," Valerie Gray said, pushing past Kwan and Dash, appearing as if from thin air. She held Sam's books and papers in her hands, "here's your stuff, nerd."

Sam looked at her in shock. Valerie's face was cold and stern.

"Go," Valerie whispered. "You'll just make it worse."

Paulina smirked from behind Dash's shoulder and watched as Sam tucked her tail and ran. A few hallways away was a side door to the auditorium. She yanked it open and stepped inside. It was dark and empty. Sam sank down into one of the red velvet seats and stared into space, tears threatening to fall down her cheeks.

Her reputation was already solidified as a goth, emo, weird chick that shouldn't be socialized with. Now they were going to add "violent" to the list of names to call her - all because Paulina had thought Danny liked Sam. She'd gotten jealous that her dumb-boy plaything had gone behind her back and given Sam jewelry.

The amulet, Sam thought.

What was she going to do? Paulina and Star would probably throw it away, or break it. Maybe they would wear it around for a few days or pawn it downtown at a "we buy gold" shop. Either way, she, Danny, and Tucker were all screwed if the dragon ghost decided to come for it.

Paulina was screwed.

"Good, let the dragon eat her," Sam said, crossing her arms and sniffling once.

No, she couldn't let that happen. She was a good person, even if Paulina wasn't. Well, not good enough to tell Danny and Tucker about it if she could help it.

She'd have to get it back by herself.

.

.

.

Danny aced his Frankenstein exam that day.

"It's almost like, I dunno, actually studying helps get you good grades or something," Tucker joked.

The two of them stood in front of Tucker's locker as he put away the books he didn't need for the weekend.

"It also helps when dragon ghosts decide to stay away and leave me alone." Danny agreed.

"Hm," Tucker smiled, "that's a good point."

Danny paced back and forth anxiously. Tucker frowned.

"Dude, what is your deal?"

"I didn't see Sam at all today. I need that amulet back."

"What do you mean you didn't see her," Tucker asked. "Don't you see her every day at lunch?"

"She wasn't there."

Tucker went cold. "What do you mean?"

"Yoo-hoo, Danny!"

From down the hall, Paulina's voice cut between them and echoed over the sounds of students leaving for home. Their classmates parted for her like waves off the red sea as she made her way over to them. Danny's palms began to sweat.

"H-hey, Paulina. What's up?"

"I just need to know that you'll wear a pink tie to the dance tomorrow night. That or a pink shirt and a black tie, obviously. You will, right?"

She batted her eyelashes at Danny and reached out to fix his hair. Tucker looked between the two of them like he was watching a low-budget stage play. It was bizarre and a little uncomfortable to see Paulina running her hands over Danny's hair and shoulders, her eyes on him like she was about to eat him.

"Yeah, of course. I'm assuming your dress is pink?"

"You would have known that if you'd called," Paulina said, a mock-pout on her lips. "I mean, come on Fenton, I give you my number and you don't even text?"

Jason Fett, a boy in their year who always wore a baseball cap and hoodie, pushed it down over his eyes and muttered, "lucky bastard," before skulking down the hall away from them. Tucker almost burst out laughing, but Danny didn't even notice.

"R-right, sorry, I guess I didn't know... I mean, you want me to text you?"

Paulina crossed her arms and stuck out one hip before she raised an eyebrow as if to say, are you an idiot?

"Got it. I'll text you tonight," Danny said. She smiled.

"Good. Seeya tomorrow!" She waved and ran off.

When she was gone, Tucker turned to Danny and cringed.

"I thought I was jealous, but now I'm just wigged out."

"I know, it's totally strange. I mean, I'm not complaining, but..." Danny shrugged.

"It's like the world ended and you were the only guy left on the planet for her to pick from."

"Thanks, Tuck."

"I promise that was a compliment." Tucker shouldered his backpack, and they began walking out of school. "So, wait, Sam isn't here?"

"Not that I know of. I didn't see her at lunch and Valerie says she wasn't in AP lit today. The way Valerie said it... I dunno it made it seem like something was wrong."

"But she was studying for her exam all night!"

"Exactly, it's weird right?"

Tucker frowned. "That is weird. I'm calling her."

Tucker pulled out his phone and went to his "favorites." Danny, Sam, and his parents were the only ones listed there. He'd thought about graduating Mikey from "friend" to "favorite" but hadn't pulled that trigger yet.

"It's ringing," Tucker said.

"That's a good sign."

They waited for a few seconds before the phone went to voicemail. Tucker looked up and frowned again.

"Maybe she's not feeling well?" Danny shrugged again.

"She was perfectly fine last night," Tucker argued.

Danny stopped in his tracks as they made it to the exit of the school.

"The ghost necklace," he said quietly. "Remember, we left it at her house?"

"What are you saying? You think that thing came for her?"

"I don't see why not! She's the one who has it in her possession."

"But how would it have gotten, you know, out!?"

Without another word, they were sprinting down the stone steps of Casper High and toward the corner bus stop, the one that was for the city bus. As they boarded the bus headed for downtown Amity Park, Tucker felt himself buzzing with nervous energy.

"She would have called," he kept saying. "If something had happened, she would have called us last night."

It felt like ages for the bus to arrive in downtown Amity. When it stopped, the boys jumped out and ran the last two blocks to Sam's brownstone. Once there, they leaped up the steps and started banging on the door.

Henson the butler was none too happy to be opening the door for a pair of panicked teenagers. His aged face pinched in slight frustration - no doubt they had interrupted an important task of his.

"You wish to speak to Miss Manson, I presume?"

Both boys nodded wildly.

"She is not here."

"What?" Tucker raised himself up on his toes to look over Henson's shoulder, as though Sam were hiding behind the butler's back.

"I assure you, Mr. Foley, she is not here. You will have to try to call her on her phone. Thank you for your inquiry, good afternoon."

Henson shut the door politely in their faces.

Danny pulled out his phone and Tucker looked unhappy.

"We've already tried, there's no way-" Tucker began, but Danny's eyebrows raised up in surprise.

"Sam? Where are you, are you okay?"

"Put her on speaker," Tucker said. Danny did as he asked.

"I'm fine," Sam said, her tone anything but. "I just almost got nabbed by Lancer for trying to break into Paulina's locker."

"W-what?" Danny cried.

"Meet me at your place, I'll be there in ten."

Then she hung up.

.

.

.

Ten minutes later, the three of them were in Danny's room, sitting cross-legged on the floor. Sam wasn't looking them in the eyes.

"I didn't have any choice," she said again, defending herself. "What if the dragon ghost attacked her? I had to try to break into her locker."

"But why won't you tell us how she got the amulet?" Danny asked.

Sam rolled her eyes. "She snatched it off me and wouldn't give it back, what more do you want to know?"

"But I don't understand-" Danny continued, but Tucker cut him off.

"Whatever, the point is that Paulina has it and we need to get it away from her. Anyone have a backup plan?"

"Danny takes her to homecoming," Sam said simply. Her lips were pursed as though she had just sucked on a particularly ripe lemon as she said it.

Tucker ignored her expression and what it meant. "Right, Danny, you gotta act like it's a really big deal and you need it back ASAP. Like you'll get in trouble if it gets lost."

"What do I even say?"

"You say, 'Hey Paulina, that's my mom's necklace. Sam was borrowing it. Can you give it back?' Easy as pie."

"I just don't understand why she would have stolen it." Danny looked at Sam. "I mean I know you guys don't get along but that's totally weird right?"

"Yeah. Super strange." Sam crossed her arms and looked away again. "If you can't ask your perfect princess of a date to give back the amulet, we can always wait for the dragon to eat her."

"Hey, that's not fair."

Sam understood how big of a deal it was for Danny to be asked to homecoming, especially by his longstanding, one-sided crush of four years. She wanted to be supportive. She wanted to be happy for him, but she just couldn't be. She was too heartbroken, too furious at being bullied in front of the whole school at the ripe old age of seventeen.

"We'll go with you," Tucker suddenly blurted out. "I mean, I was going anyway, but Sam you can come and help Danny with me. We can all corner her if we have to."

While Danny was picturing the horrific image of the three of them cornering his date, Sam was too busy worrying at the excited look on Tucker's face.

"You want me to go to homecoming?"

"Yeah," he said, his green eyes on hers. "You know, with me. As friends."

Sam blinked. It was hard to process what he was saying; she didn't even have a dress. How was she supposed to be ready to go to homecoming in one night?

Oh no, she suddenly realized, I'll have to ask mom to take me shopping…

"Okay but this is all contingent on the hope that Paulina would even bring the amulet to the dance," Danny said. "We have no idea if she would even be wearing it!"

"She will be," Sam said. Somehow she just knew. "We just have to hope that nothing happens to her in the meantime."

Tucker's expression became even more excited. "Wait, is that a yes?"

He was looking at Sam so intently that she actually flushed. "Yeah, sure, Tuck. That's fine. I'll come."

Tucker beamed. Danny thanked her. He knew that she had secretly wanted to go and was glad Tucker asked her, but this wasn't exactly the most fun of circumstances.

"Don't thank me yet. I still have to take my mother shopping to get a dress on short notice."

"She'll love it," Tucker said.

Sam looked ill.