A/N This is probably just going to be a one or two shot just because I had this idea. I think that the only way Paige will redeem herself is if she saves Ali in some way. This is a short drabble on one way they can take it. Emily and Paige are still in their broken up stage

"Does everyone understand what they are supposed to be doing?" Mona looked around at the team she had assembled. Everyone nodded in agreeance but she didn't seem totally convinced. She walked to the chalk board where she had scribbled out the plan for that evening.

"You two are going to make sure that bucket is in place before everyone gets there." She pointed to two girls in the front row.

"Lucas programmed the shelf to collapse exactly at 5:30. That means that everything has to be perfectly timed. And Paige…" She walked directly to where I was standing, getting in my face.

"You have the most important job here, don't mess it up."

"Mona as much as this is very Carriesque, I don't see how this is going to get back at Ali for years of torture. It seems like this is more of a prank." So far, this was the only thing Team Mona had planned. If I wanted to stop them, I needed to know their end game.

"This is only the beginning. We are going to bury her…" She paused and gave a wicked grin, "again." My skin began to crawl but I smiled back to keep up appearances. They all knew what they were supposed to do and dispersed.

Mona made her way out of the hallway but popped her head back in momentarily. "Paige can you take care of the board?" I nodded. This was perfect because I could now make my own plans. The whole reason I joined Team Mona was because it was better to be on the inside of her game. It also helps to know if she is planning anything dangerous. I am definitely not a fan of Ali but there is a limit to what I can morally let happen. Now, if you would have told me this plan two years ago, I would have been the first volunteer. But I've grown up and I'd like to believe Ali has too. She seems different and if she is really that important to Emily than I at least need to try.

I started to erase the board, mentally going through the mission. Honestly, it's straight out of a Stephen King novel. They are doing a welcome back ceremony for Ali to get her integrated with students. Attendance is practically mandatory which means this will be a public forum in which Ali is the center of attention. I got picked, as a member of student council, to introduce her and represent our school in welcoming her. Yes, the universe has a wicked since of humor. Some of the other people in our new extracurricular club are also in charge of other aspects of the event. Mostly, they are supposed to set up the chairs and the stage. They have positioned the podium and chairs perfectly to complete the plan. Directly over the podium they are going to put a bucket of corn starch mixed with red dye on this collapsible platform. It works like a hinge and Lucas put this little device on it that will move the hinge and release the bucket perfectly. The goal is public humiliation. My "supposed" job is to time my introduction. I need to make sure that she is standing at the podium when the timer goes off. My actual job is going to be trying to break the timer so it doesn't work or put another bolt in the platform. At this point, I wish I would have taken woodshop.

I finished erasing the board and grabbed my things. I had an hour before tweedle dee and tweedle dumb put the bucket in position and two hours before show time. I figure Mona will check everything thirty minutes before so I have that window to foil the plan. I also have to make it look like I didn't do anything. Piece of cake.

I walked out the door and slammed directly into a tall body. Both our books fell on the ground and I reached out to get them. The owner bent down to help as I was getting up and we slammed heads.

"Ow." I recognized that grunt.

"McCullers we're not on the field hockey pitch you could serve to be a little more graceful." Injured and snarky, what a wonderful combination.

"I wasn't the one blindly walking through the hallway." I shot back.

"And I wasn't the one who sold out my girlfriend's best friend." I could see she already regretted that statement but it didn't matter. I shoved her books, and any loose papers, into her chest and walked away.

"Paige…" I didn't give her a second to finish before I turned the corner. Am I the only sane person in this town? The cops could help Ali. The more she ran the more everyone one of her friends was in danger. I did her a service and I'm the one they call disloyal. My blood was on the brink of boiling. I needed to refocus myself before I lost it. I headed past the natatorium into the woodshop and grabbed a nail and a hammer. If I could jam the hinge then it wouldn't release. I put my supplies in my bag and looked at my watch. I still had a good bit of time before I could do anything so I decided to sit in the natatorium. Nobody was in the pool because of the assembly which made it even better. I sat down on the bleachers and laid back, closing my eyes for a nap. Minutes later, the door hinged open. I didn't open my eyes but I could hear feet approaching me.

"We need to talk." I peeked one eye lid open and was met by a seemingly angry Emily. Her arms were crossed and she was sitting back on her heels which meant she was ready to pounce. I sighed and leaned up, giving her my full attention.

"What can I help you with today?" It was difficult to harden my face to her. I still felt so much whenever I see her but that seems to just drive her farther away. I've decided to take the opposite, indifferent approach.

"What are you going to say at the assembly today?" Nope. I wasn't going to sit through this when I could be asleep for another thirty minutes. If she wanted to say that she had a box of my stuff she wanted to give back I would have been fine. If she said she wanted her promise ring back, I would have been fine. But not Ali. No me gusta Ali.

"Really Em? Is that what you think of me? I'm not going to bad mouth your girlfriend to the whole freaking school. One of the teachers typed me up a nice little spiel about how much her presence is going to improve our lives. I will read it word for word." I grabbed my stuff to move to another location, but she wasn't finished with me.

"You don't have to be mean about this. Ali is a different person. She has gone through a lot and deserves a little sympathy. Honestly, you could be a little bit less of an ass." I bit my lip trying to prevent the word vomit from coming out but my mouth always wins.

"Don't tell me what she deserves .Everything Ali has been through she has brought on herself. In her lies and her hatred she has created an army of people who would do anything to get even with her. But you stand here defending her like she died for your sins." I went to leave again but she grabbed my arm and forcefully turned me around.

"You hold on to everything. Nobody can make a mistake in your world. That's why we didn't work, you can't let go."

"Let go? That's my answer to all of this." I took of my jacket and rolled up my right sleeve. The scars had long since healed but the white outlines were still very present. She had seen them before but she thought I got into an accident. This was a part of my past that I have learned to accept but I still have that reminder, every day, of what I have almost done.

"This is what I associate with Allison. Every one of these marks is a different time that she threatened to send that letter to my dad, or publish it in the school paper, or tell all the people in school that my rashes were herpes. That's what she did to me. Every time I wanted to make he go away, I would add another notch to the totem poll. You want me to let it go but there are some things etched so deep that they won't disappear." She was stunned into silence. I put my jacket back on and picked up my bag.

"Do you know what the worst thing is? I would have given anything to have you defend me like you just defended her…to stand up for me to your friends. But we all have to make a choice and Ali is yours. Face it Em, I was always your second choice. With Allison, with Maya, with Samara, even with Nate, I was always the afterthought. But it's okay…" Her head dipped down to the floor. I put my finger under her chin and lifted it up for one last moment. "…I'm letting go."

I walked out. As soon as the door closed behind me, I put my back to it to catch my breath. I looked at my watch and saw that there wasn't much time. Even after all of that, I am still willing to help her. If Emily is the happiest right now then I will do everything in my power to keep that. I made my way to the auditorium and snuck in the back door. The room was dimly lit but I could see the set up for the evening. It was exactly as Mona had drawn out. I hopped on the stage and made my way to the podium. The bucket was already in place. I looked around to see how I was going to get it down but a noise caught my attention. I scanned the room but didn't see anything.

"What are you doing here so early?" Mona's voice made me crawl out of my skin.

"I was putting my notes up here so I don't have to bring them later." Believable. She gave me a once over but didn't seem suspicious. She went over to the side of the stage where the ropes were attached and made sure everything was sturdy.

"The best plans are truly the simplest." She made her way back over to me. "You get into someone's head, you control them. It's that simple." She looked back up at the bucket and ran her hand through the air to make sure it would hit the target. She seemed satisfied and began to walk away. All I needed was 15 minutes and I could fix this.

"Paige, why don't you come with me? If we walk in together they won't be able to connect us to anything." I knew I was visibly panicked.

"I think I'm going to stay here and get a feel for everything." She reached out her hand to me. "I insist." I followed her out mentally cursing myself. I looked back to the bucket and knew this could only end badly. We waited outside one of the classrooms for a while until people started filing in. We followed right behind them until the whole auditorium was full. Everyone was making small talk. Mrs. Balk called me over to go up on stage. Everything was just as it was before but it felt different. I took my seat in between the teacher and the empty chair. Looking out into the crowd, I saw the guest of honor make her way through the door with her old crew. I turned my face away, to avoid eye contact with Emily. I just kept repeating in my head that this was all for her. Allison made her way up stage and sat next to me. This is the closest we've been in years.

"Hey."

"Hey." I gave a wave back.

"How have you been?" Well that was a loaded question.

"Good. You?"

"Good." For two people who have had more happen to them in the past two years than the entire rest of the room, those were weak answers.

Mrs. Balk started the event with an introduction of what the school stands for. I noticed Allison playing with her fingers nervously. For a person who haunted years of my life, it was nice to see her nervous. She really has probably changed. Damn it. I was going to thoroughly regret everything I was about to do. The teacher began the introduction to me and I knew I only had a limited time. My watch read 5:20 and the package was to be delivered at 5:30. I leaned my head down trying to cover my hair with my face.

"Ali I need you to trust me." She was slightly caught off guard.

"Just don't move." The applause from the audience signaled that the introduction was done and it was my turn.

I took my time getting to the podium and pulled out the paper.

"Good evening, teachers and students. Thank you for attending this assembly. As a tight knit community, Rosewood High is able to accommodate every type of student. For that reason, when a student is lost, their absence is felt throughout the whole group. It is a very rare occasion that we get to welcome people back but today Allison DiLeiurentis is back in our midst. Her spirit is something that many of us have felt and as a student body we welcome her back. The space where she once resided is still open and even though there are new faces, we all are happy for her return." I was supposed to say thank you and be done but the clock only read 5:36. I tried to hold it out longer but there was an obvious awkwardness.

"I think there is a lot to learn from Alison. It takes a very strong person to be a survivor. For some people, the battle is on the inside. We are at war with what we think of ourselves and what others think of us. Sometimes, that war gets so strong we don't think we can win. Alison waged a very physical war. She fought for her life and she is here today because of that. So, think about that when you feel like giving up." 5:29. I looked down in the front rows and found Emily. Her eyes were already on me. "Even if you are holding on by a thread, think of Alison and maybe that will give you the strength to never let go." I heard the latch click which was quickly followed by a rain of red liquid on my head. The initial impact spread it throughout my top but it was the moments after that soaked me. There was a gasp throughout the crowd but besides me, not many people were hit. I wiped it out of my eyes and assessed the damage. Teachers were shouting at people to be quiet but nobody really had control over the situation. I did the only think I could think of and began laughing. I continued and some people picked it up as well. The whole auditorium erupted in laughter. I adjusted the microphone with my sticky hands and tapped the front to get everyone's attention.

"So this is not the most comfortable feeling in the world." Everyone laughed again.

"I guess when my swimmers say that I push them till they bleed they weren't kidding. I guess I had this coming." It was a nice save.

"Well, I think I am going to get cleaned up but I would still like to have Ali up here to say a few words of what it feels like to be back." I looked back at her and she seemed frozen to her spot. I gave her a nod to indicate she could move and she went to the soiled microphone. I decided to stand in the back instead of going to get cleaned up.

TBC