Disclaimer: The concept is mine, the rest belongs to Disney.

A/N: This time the Cassidy/Mercer relationship is taken up a notch. Alright, a few notches. This one taking place during a winter holiday in Aspen organized by Anton himself. Oh, and if you're looking for morphs and battles, etc. this isn't that kind of story. Hope you enjoy!

---

"I can't believe we're actually going to Aspen," Conner said as he sat with the others at Hayley's Cyberspace.

"Yeah, I know," Ethan said as he looked to Trent. "How'd you convince your dad to do this?"

"I didn't," the mostly white clad young man answered. "He just said he wanted to get out of Reefside for a while and asked if you guys would be interested."

"Did he really think we'd say no?" Kira asked him, her honey brown eyes shimmering with her disbelief.

Trent only shrugged with a slight laugh. "I don't know, but he's glad we're all going. Really."

"Any idea why he asked Cassidy and Devin to come with?" Conner asked as he watched them come into the Cybercafé.

"Well, there's supposed to be this snow boarding thing up there and when Cassidy overheard she asked if they could come along to film and he agreed."

"Are you sure we have everything?" Cassidy asked Devin as they continued towards their table.

While it was true this trip was only for four days and three nights, it seemed Cassidy was bringing enough to last her a month and it was obvious as Devin sank into a chair from having been the one to load her luggage into her car. Though he had been thankful for the driver's help in moving her things from her car to the car Anton had arranged for them to ride to the airport in.

"Yeah, Cass, everything's in the trunk," he answered.

"Even the camera?" she asked suddenly, fearing that it could freeze.

"No, that's here," he told her as he lifted what would be his carry-on for the plane.

"So who has our plane tickets?" the young woman dressed in pink and white asked as she looked to Trent.

"I do," Anton said as he walked in. For once he was out of his usual suit and tie, instead wearing a pair of dark slacks and a dark green, long sleeved, form fitting sweater. "Are we all here?" he asked as he glanced around.

"Guess we all are now," Tommy answered as he came in, seeing the others.

"Good then," he said confidentially as he turned to him. "Here is yours," he told him as he handed him both his plane ticket and the ticket for his rental car.

"Thanks, man," he told him.

Anton walked over and handed out the other tickets. He had arranged for three rental cars in Aspen, one for himself, one for Tommy and another for Trent, leaving the others to decide whom they wanted to ride with from the airport to the ski lodge.

He knew some of the treatments he had been using to keep Mesogog at bay had been successful thus far. Granted there was no true telling just when that fact would change, Anton was still confident he would be in control throughout this vacation.

"When's our flight?" Cassidy asked.

"In about three hours," Anton answered as he glanced to his watch.

"Shouldn't we be going then?" he heard the young woman dressed in yellow and black seated beside his son ask.

"Soon, yes."

"Alright!" the tall, slim, dark haired young man dressed in red and blue said as they began to stand.

"Just a few rules first," Anton said loudly enough for them all to hear as they started for the doors. When they stopped and turned to him, he continued, "One, no one goes off alone. Two, no side trips. When we get to Aspen you are to go directly from the airport to the lodge. Finally, if you decide to leave the lodge for any reason make sure either Dr. Oliver or I know where you're going. Is that understood?"

"Don't worry, Dr. M, you can trust us," Ethan told him with a smile.

The other students agreed in unison.

"You wanted them to come along," Tommy told him quietly with a knowing smile.

Anton sighed to his black clad friend, but soon looked to the others and asked, "Are you sure you've got everything? There's no turning back once we're in the cars that are waiting for us outside."

"I'm good" and "I've got all I need," resounded from each of the future travelers and with that all were soon on their way to the airport.

"Finally," Conner sighed as he plopped down into his seat in the middle of the center row of seats in first class, watching the others come closer as he waited for company from his friends.

Ethan was the first to join him, Devin just a few travelers behind.

"This is gonna be so awesome, guys," he told them. Just think about all those cold babes we'll get to warm up."

Ethan sighed and smiled while nodding his approval. Devin enjoying the notion equally.

"Dream on, guys," Tommy told them as he took his seat at the end of the row.

"We're just having some fun, Dr. O," Ethan told him.

"Uh huh," he said skeptically with a subtle laugh. He knew they would be a hand full, he just couldn't believe they were starting so soon.

"So what are we gonna do first?" Conner asked, deciding to change the subject.

"I already want food," Devin chimed as he sat beside him.

"I can't wait to see their cyber café. I hear the signals up there are awesome," Ethan told them.

Conner rolled his eyes. "Dude, is that all you ever think about? There's skiing, snow boarding, ski bunnies. I have no idea where to begin when I get there."

"Conner, there's still more to Aspen than those things," Kira told him as she took her seat near a window just across the aisle from him.

"Like what?" he asked her.

"Aspen's a pretty big place, you should at least consider something more than the women," she told him.

"Kira's got a point," Trent said as he managed to hear their conversation from a few rows away, a number of passengers keeping him from his seat.

"Whatever, man," Conner replied with a shake of his head.

Within seconds with other passengers securing their bags in the overhead compartments were keeping Cassidy from getting to her seat as well.

She was supposed to have been sitting with Kira and Trent was supposed to be sitting with his father, but with this amount of people taking so much time it was seeming impossible for that happen.

"Move!" she cried out to a few people in front of her. She was greeted only with filthy looks.

"And here I thought I was the one who needed to get laid," Conner muttered to Ethan who only laughed.

"How did you ever get that thing approved?" Cassidy demanded to the young woman ahead of her who was trying to shove her oversized luggage into the overhead compartment.

"I'm screwing the pilot, how do you think?" the tall, slender bleached blonde asked sarcastically with a roll of her eyes.

"I'd believe it," she said under her breath.

"What was that?" the woman demanded.

"I said I'd believe it," she repeated so the woman could hear it, her own blue orbs narrowed into the other woman's.

Sensing a fight was about to break out across from him, Trent spoke up. "Cassidy, I've got an idea."

"What?" she snapped, growing more irritated with those ahead of her.

"Why don't we trade seats?"

"I think Trent's right," Anton spoke from his seat, having seen what was going on. "It doesn't seem as though you will be able to get to your actual seat right now and by the time you can the plane is likely to be in the air."

Seeing how close she was to his and how close he could be to hers, she found herself wanting to agree. "You're sure?" she asked both of them.

"May as well. It'll get us to Aspen faster, right?" Kira asked with a smile.

Cassidy gave a soft laugh and started walking again, this time towards what would have been Trent's seat.

"Hey," Trent told Kira as he took the seat beside her. "Sorry about this, but -"

"No, it's okay," she told him with a soft smile. "Besides, I don't think I could've taken Cassidy talking for the next couple of hours straight."

Trent laughed. Both out of thankfulness and understanding.