Twelve Days of Christmas

Saturday, December 16th

(Nine days until Christmas)

When Tucker rapped a Christmas carol on her bedroom door before ten in the morning, Sam decided that it was quite possible that she only needed one best friend. She was sure of it when a supremely morose Danny followed Tucker in as Sam struggled to bury herself back into her bed beneath her blankets. No matter how high her parents were willing to set the thermostat it was always cold in her room; the drawback to the large window seat she often made use of. Most days she thought it was worth the trade. The rest, she loathed the cold with a passion unequaled.

"Come on, get up, Sam," Tucker ordered as he tugged off his knit cap and flipped the snow on it at her.

She shrieked at the sudden wet cold and yanked three blankets over her head. "Not a chance in hell," she told him coldly. "I'm not going out in that."

Tucker gave her a Cheshire grin. "That's why I have a bucket of fresh snow outside your door. Get up, get dressed, and come out and play, or you're wearing it."

"You wouldn't dare."

"Try me," he grinned back.

"You bastard," Sam huffed, having no doubt that he meant it. She gathered up her blankets around her before disappearing without a word into her closet. It wasn't the first time one or the other of her boys had enforced her leaving the house, and she was almost accustomed to changing in the walk-in with them stalking her silently from outside it.

When she emerged, warmly dressed in jeans, a sweatshirt and jacket (complete with thermals underneath and heavy gortex lined boots) she stalked over to Tucker where he lounged on her bed and delivered a harsh kick to his shins. As he howled she growled at him. "Don't you ever threaten me with snow again or I'll make sure you need crutches."

Behind her Danny chuckled and she whipped her head about to share out the glare. "I can't believe you fell for it," he told her as he chucked an airplane folded five past her head to Tucker. "I bet you'd refuse no matter what."

She was as silent as Danny as she followed Tucker, Danny once again trailing behind. This time though Sam got the feeling that Danny and Tucker were bracketing her to cut off any chance of escape. Not that she had anywhere she could go to hide from them without spending the rest of the day freezing. She couldn't go home; it was the first place they'd look for her, and she couldn't go to either of their houses because that would be her next logical move. But she really didn't want to be around them, especially not Danny. She needed to think, and she needed to think away from them.

It was pure autopilot that led her to the park, her thoughts turned inward. It was so confusing to think about a stranger giving her these gifts. The flowers were one thing, anyone could have done that. The tickets, too, were something that anyone could have guessed that she might like. More than difficult—fucking impossible—to come by. Connections, money, and discretion. Sam didn't know anyone she might know who was capable of that.

But the earrings? Those were the real mystery, one that she hadn't allowed herself to think about for days. Not many people knew that her favorite gemstone was actually sapphire, not even her parents. She'd told Danny and Tucker, both once, and what Danny knew Jazz knew. But not even her own parents knew—they were predisposed to diamonds. Even Jack and Maddie, one the occasions in the last few years they'd given her amethyst, a complement to her favorite color.

She was utterly confused, and she hated it. She was hurting Danny, and she hated that more.

There was a piece of her that had hoped it was him behind it. She'd wondered, even through is silence and moodiness after the first two gifts. It was possible; even given his inadequacy to lie. Being quiet about it and acting moody didn't necessarily mean that he was lying, that he hadn't been behind the gifts. But yesterday with the tickets had driven doubt inside. Not just doubt, Sam could admit. Even if she wanted it to be Danny, how could he afford four tickets to a concert that wasn't even on sale yet? Not even that, a concert that was probably going to sell out the first day?

And still, it was nice that there was someone who liked her enough to take the time to do this. Even if she didn't know who they were, it was nice that someone wanted her. Unless her parents were behind this somehow. Sam had no idea how she would figure out if that were the case, but she was sure she'd come up with something.

She was fully prepared to do so, but at that moment a snowball hit her square in the face making her stagger back, slip off the sidewalk and into a snow heap. She shrieked outrage but when she started to rise, hands already gathering snow, she got nailed in the side of the head, sending her back into the snow.

"Too slow, Sam!" Danny shouted, and she rolled to her stomach, hands tucking together before she regained her feet, sending the freshly packed snow straight at Danny.

He flashed intangible, and she writhed as more snow came her way, this time splattering across her shoulder, pieces of the icy ammunition hitting her neck and making her shiver. "No fair!" she cried, turning to Tucker. "Two against one isn't fair unless we're up against Danny!"

"All's fair in love and snowball fights, Sam," Tucker shot back, as well as two more snowballs while Danny got her again from behind.

She shrieked as she tried to duck, and only Danny's hit, between her shoulders instead of her lower back. More snow scattered in her hair sending damp chills along the back of her neck, and Sam shrieked again, this time a mixture of fun and mortal terror as her best friends gave chase. She ran zigzag, aiming for the gazebo on the far side of the park near the main entrance. If she could make it there she was sure she stood a chance against the two of them.

Two more snowballs hit bit Sam ignored them, and the cold they brought, as she already started mentally mapping how she could fortify her chosen fortress. She skidded to a stop, ducking inside, hands already pulling snow in as she fell to her knees. In the few minutes it took her to make a small pile of halfway decent ammunition Sam expected at best a hail of snowballs, and at worst, Danny and Tucker overrunning her position, and when it didn't come, she dared to peek her head up over the edge of the ice covered wood. She had a snowball at the ready in each hand, and was already planning to duck back down.

Until she saw a large brown truck parked at the entrance in the corner of her eye. She turned, not even thinking that she was vulnerable, but she needn't have worried; no attack came. In truth, even if one had come Sam would have been incapable of fighting back, because the selfsame courier who'd delivered to her the last two days was walking up the path, scanning the park until his eyes lit on hers.

He waved, Sam waved back tentatively, in habit more than actually to welcome him.

"Miss Manson," he said, smiling as he passed her a small brown box. "You keep having a merry Christmas."

"You too," she echoed back as she stared down at the box. She felt more than heard Danny and Tucker come up from behind.

Tucker muttered softly, "Another one?" and she nodded without looking at him. "Open it then," he told her. She complied.

The package itself was a plain box, but inside was a wrapped box, green with metallic holly leaves on it, and a red bow that sparkled in the sunlight. She didn't even appreciate the wrapping as she scraped her nails across it, ripping it open before attacking the carefully taped box within. With that opened she looked curiously at the contents before lifting out a pretty wolf plush doll, and then the rolled certificate inside.

"I've adopted a wolf named Lakota at Yellowstone park," she said helplessly, the box falling from her hands as she held out the certificate to her friends.

Danny bent to pick up a gold card, looking at it for a moment before holding it out to her. "That's great, Sam? He said, his voice strained, and Sam stared the pencil sketch of four birds and musical notes. Danny looked sick as she took it from him.