AN: Here's the second chapter...I know the first was kind of short, but it was really just to get it started. I think that this one should have more quantity. And some one tell me what you think. Love it or hate, I'd like to know whether I should invest my time in writing more or not. Anyways, onward!

Disclaimer: I own nothing from National Treasure. Jane, she is really the only thing I own.

The next couple of days I spent preparing for the trip. There was so much to do! I hadn't taken a vacation in a really long time. I had no idea how much work actually went into taking one. First, I had to inform my bosses at the museum that I was going to be taking that two-week paid vacation that my contract said I was entitled to. As event coordinator for the Washington National Museum, I had to make the last preparations and leave instructions for any scheduled event that had been scheduled during that two-week period. Last but not least for my office, I had to organize it and get it straightened. Most people can leave to go somewhere for a while and not be bothered by mess when they get back. Not me. So I had to make sure that everything was in it's right place and looked half way decent.

Then I had to hit my home. The same rule applies for my home as it does my office, so I spent the weekend cleaning it. Aside from that, I had to pack. The trip was only supposed to take around three days, but I'm a girl, so packing was a long, arduous process. Ben told me to take "only the bare necessities." Well, it was hard deciding what exactly those were. When it came down to it, I ended having to go shopping for most of what I was going to need. I don't own snow boots or snow jackets, so I ventured out to some shops that sold blizzard-like apparel. By the time Sunday came around, I was ready for my vacation.

Ben called me Sunday night to make sure I was prepared and to leave instructions for the following morning. "You and I will rendezvous inside Dulles at the Starbucks around 4:30a.m."

4:30 in the morning?! The flight didn't leave until 6. Whatever, I kept my mouth shut.

"You got it Ben." He went silent for a moment.

"Do you need me to call you?" I laughed at that.

"Yeah you might." What can I say? I suck at waking up to alarms clocks.

"I'm glad you're coming," Ben blurted out.

"Yeah, me too Ben. I'll see you in the morning." We hung up the phone, and not long after I was asleep.

All too abruptly, I was awoken by some pretty intense ringing. My alarm clock, the alarm on my cell phone, and my telephone were all going off or ringing. Without thinking, I picked up the phone first. "Hello?" I said huskily.

"Morning sunshine."

"Ugh. Ben. You can only call me that if the sun is actually shining."

"Well you better get shining. It's 4a.m." Crap.

"I'll be there in a minute." I jumped up, turned off the alarms and got in the shower. I got myself semi-prepared-no time for makeup-got my luggage together, and flew out the door in world record speed. Calling a cab took longer that me getting ready. By the time I finally got a cab, it was 4:20.

"Dulles airport, as fast as you can go." I lived across town. I doubted the cabby's ability to actually get me there on time, but surprisingly enough, I was only two minutes late. I got my luggage and made a dash for it. Ben could be a pain in the ass when you're late.

As I rounded the corner of the Starbucks, I saw him. And then the excitement hit me. It had been so long since I had done anything like this.

"You're late."

"I'm here an hour and a half before the actual flight. What were you expecting? Weirdo." I knew he was going to give me crap. Ben just smiled.

"Let's go get some breakfast while I catch you up to speed on everyone before they meet us." We walked over to the airport restaurant, took a seat then ordered. After our waitress left with our orders, Ben handed me a black binder which he had been carrying.

"This is the information on the crew." He turned the page to page four and pointed at it.

"Ian Howe?" I read then looked up at him baffled.

"What about him, Ben?"

"That," he said still pointing, "is our meal ticket."

"Ah, I see. He's the unlucky bastard whom you finagled into this little trip." Ben made a funny face.

"Ha ha. No, he's the very generous man that actually knows a good deal when he sees one." I rolled my eyes, but said nothing else. I began flipping through the other pages. "And who are these other people?"

Ben flipped a couple of pages from where I stopped, then said "Riley Poole. He's the one I was telling you about. Remember, the tech specialist in the cubical?"

"Right, right." I pointed to the other pages in the binder. "And these guys?"

Our food came at that moment, so I closed the binder, put it away and then thanked the waitress.

As soon as she left, Ben answered my question. "Those are Ian's associates and our crew." I had to laugh at that.

"Ian's associates? What does he do?" That's when I saw it, that flicker of agitation. It was only on Ben's face for a split second, but that was long enough for me to pick up on it. I gazed at him.

"Ben, what does Ian do?" He hesitated before answering.

"Ian is a treasure hunter, a historian in some respects. Much like us." He quickly scooped a bite of egg onto his fork and shoved it into his mouth.

"How did he get the money for this trip?" I asked, not willing to back down on this.

" I don't know."

"How can you not know! We're taking a trip to Antarctica with this man and you have no idea how he acquired the funds to take us all on this excavation? For all you know he could be a convict!" This was entirely reckless of Ben. How could he be so desperate? Ben looked past me then put his hand over his face.

"Actually that would be ex-convict," a deep, foreign voice said behind me. I turned to face the speaker. "And actually I'd like to know how you came up with that assumption."

It was Ian Howe.

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