Set 11 years after Leslie's death. Disney movieverse. Not a songfic but current plan is that you will hear a lot from a certain band. :)

A/N: I do not own any Jess, Leslie, Janice, Ms. Edwards, nor any other BtT character or creature. I do own most of the other characters I introduce. Enjoy!

Chapter 1 – The Road Trip

She's blinding, I'm flying

Right behind the rear-view mirror now.

Got the feeling, power steering

Pistons popping, aint no stopping now!

Panama, panama…

"Nothing like a little Van Halen to keep the energy level up", thought Jess as the drive neared its end. It was nearly midnight, and Jess and May Belle Aarons finally pulled into the Canyon Plaza Quality Inn. The two-day, 1900 mile drive had been exhausting but both of them were excited about the next morning – the graduation present Jess had promised her for years. His advances from his graphic novel could have easily bought them plane tickets but they decided they wanted to have the experience of a traditional road trip.

Jess was 22 now, and had just graduated with his degree in Art Education from Virginia Tech University. His job as the new art teacher at Lark Creek Elementary school was already lined up for the fall – Principal Edmunds had offered him the day after he graduated college. He wasn't sure how his love for art would translate into teaching a group of "strangers" but the kids fell in love with him during his student teaching.

The idea of becoming outgoing enough to teach still seemed strange to Jess and his family, but he knew it was the lasting influence of his long-lost friend that allowed him to get to this point in his life. In their short time together, Leslie had given him the key to unlock his imagination. "You're going to make a difference in a lot of lives someday, Jess Aarons…" echoed in his ear again, bringing a smile tinged with sadness. Her reassuring voice was always in his ear when he felt a shadow of doubt creeping into his life.

Too tired to sleep, Jess flipped through the TV channels with a remote control that was annoyingly anchored to the nightstand with a retractable cord. He didn't know why exactly, but he paused on a professional wrestling show. He never watched this kind of stuff and neither did May Belle. It was probably just the exhaustion of the road but they were both sucked in.

Grabbing his opponent from behind, hands clasped behind the opponent's neck in a full-nelson, the larger man on the screen drove his opponent face-first into the mat and rolled him over while the referee slapped the mat three times. He stood up as the announcer bellowed, "Here is your winner, King Richard!" as overdone "royal" music began to play and a ringside attendant draped a purple robe over him, handing him a scepter and his crown. The crown and robe looked familiar to Jess … "Just coincidence", he reassured himself. Jess and May Belle laughed as he addressed the crowd "My loyal subjects" in such a tacky way. The two siblings knew how real royalty would act, and this wasn't even close. The crowd seemed to be eating it up though, chanting "Richard! Richard!" in unison.

Just as May Belle reached for the remote, "King" Richard was interrupted by two slightly smaller guys. Why did the mere sight of these two on an obviously fake TV show send a simultaneous chill down their spines? The two listened transfixed as the leader, the one with a large golden belt, began to speak.

"King Richard", the man said with a sneer… You're no king. A real king is feared by his subjects. You take them out to a redneck bar and and buy them a round of beers. You're a pretender, an out-of-shape piece of crap who will be exposed."

"You don't even deserve a shot at this title. I only agreed to it if you put your "king" paraphernalia on the line so I can do these people a favor and shut your pretentious mouth. You're a glorified curtain-jerker who used your status as a former champion's father to get one last turn in the limelight. And if I had been IN that King of the Ring tournament four months ago, all these people would have already forgotten your name".

"At Hot Summer Nights, I'm going to beat you to within an inch of your life. I'm going to keep my championship, rip up that ridiculous robe of yours, put that crown on my head and make all of these idiots out here bow down to a REAL king."

"Let's get one thing straight. You may have crushed this no-name loser you were up against, but you are no match for the Heartbreakers. You will fall just like all the other challengers and will come to realize that NOTHING can crush us."

Another chill ran down Jess and May Belle's spines at the same time. "He didn't just say 'Nothing Crushes Us'…?" May Belle's voice trailed off into the distance as Jess had a strange look on his face. He'd never heard that exact phrase used outside of Terabithia, where it was the kingdom's motto.

Neither of them were interested in the match between two female competitors, so the two found their way into their queen beds and said goodnight, ready for a long day of sightseeing the next day at the Grand Canyon.