Chapter Text
"The second brightest one there is Hamal, if you look to the right a little you can see Sharatan and Mesarthim. Those are the ram's horn," Danny said, pointing at the sky above them.
"So, that really bright one isn't a part of Aries?" Sam asked.
"Exactly. I'm glad you brought it up, it's what I wanted to show you next! It's actually not even a star at all. That's Jupiter! It's close to Aries right now but it moves throughout the year. In January, it's going to be right in the middle of Pisces. Jupiter is in opposition to the sun right now. That means tonight it's the brightest it's going to be all year..."
Sam smiled to herself as Danny told her more about Jupiter. It was a bit cold at the park tonight, but she didn't mind. It was early October, almost three weeks after the menu trial. Sam had recovered from the food poisoning (it turned out Fenton-aid might actually be magic) and the pain in her ribs was much better. Now, they only ached when she ran.
Tonight, they were supposed to be on one of their first ghost hunting patrols. But the one ghost they'd found had been easily caught in the thermos, leaving them without much else to do for the evening. Instead of going home, they laid out on the grass to look at the stars. Tucker had grumbled about being bored and almost immediately fell asleep. Astronomy just wasn't interactive enough for him.
Sam, however, would happily sacrifice sleep to keep listening to Danny tell her about space. She loved stargazing with him. He always had something new to show her, another fact to share, or one more story to tell and she drank up every moment of it. The enthusiasm in his voice made her feel warm and peaceful the way she did in her greenhouse. It felt like home.
Sam's watch beeped loudly, pulling their attention back down to Earth. She sighed and pressed the button to silence the alarm. "Time to go home," she said regretfully before turning to wake Tucker.
They walked together to Sam's house first, which was a bit silly considering her house was the furthest from the park. Despite the fact that her bruises had faded and she was no longer in pain, her friends were still a bit protective. They'd been concerned when they learned how no one but them had noticed her absence when she had been kidnapped. Since then, they checked in on her a lot and always insisted on walking her home. Sam now understood how Danny must have felt when she and Tucker had arranged for him to never be alone at school. They hadn't told her directly, but she could tell her friends had an agreement to keep an eye on her; as if to make sure she didn't vanish with no one noticing.
"So we won't see you until Tuesday, right?" Danny asked as they approached her house.
Sam nodded. "Yup, Grandma's visiting and I'll be with her over the weekend. Then Monday I'll be out of school for Rosh Hashanah."
"Which one is that again?" Tucker asked around a yawn.
"Jewish New Year," Danny answered before turning back to Sam. "Mom wanted me to make sure you're sure that you don't need her to cook this year."
Sam smiled. "I'm sure, Grandma's making food that I can eat. Although if she really wants to make apple cake again, I definitely won't turn it down."
Four years ago, Sam had turned up at the Fentons’ house angry and hurt after a particularly nasty fight at home. Her mom had outright refused to accommodate her diet for the holidays. Sam had only become an ultra recyclo-vegetarian a month before and Pamela insisted she wasn't going to give up her favorite holiday foods just because Sam was "going through a phase."
Maddie Fenton, who had never even heard of Rosh Hashanah before, stayed up all night making vegan versions of traditional dishes to send to Sam's house for her to eat the next day. Each year since, Mrs. Fenton had sent Danny to deliver a basket full of eco-friendly, vegan food the day before the holiday.
"You know my mom, she'll have to bake something. I'll drop it off on my way to school. Want me to fly to your window again?" Danny asked with a grin.
"No, bring it to the door like a normal person," Sam said with a roll of her eyes. "Don't make me regret telling you which window is mine."
When they got to her door, Tucker gave her his usual one-armed hug and kiss on the cheek (He was the only person in her life that Sam allowed to do that) before he yawned again and started walking home. He didn't even pretend to wait for Danny to walk with him, making it obvious that they only considered Sam to be in need of an escort.
Danny waited as she unlocked the door, hands in his pockets. "You'll be back at school on Tuesday though right, you don't have to miss the whole ten days?"
She nodded. "Yeah, I'll just be gone this Monday and then next Thursday." She turned to face him again and paused when she met his eyes. She quickly turned away and continued, talking a bit faster. "But I'll keep my phone on, so keep me updated on any ghost stuff!"
"Sound's good. G'night Sam."
"Night Danny." Sam closed the door and leaned against it. For just a moment, she had been thinking about kissing Danny goodbye...in a much different way than Tucker's brotherly kiss on the cheek.
Oh no. Where did that come from?