"And right swim, left swim, right back, left back, and jerk step, jerk twist, jerk step jerk. And bring it to the front, and four, and five, and jump hands up, down, down, down, cruise, cruise, and you bring it to the ground," My voice rings out.

Mrs. Gables put me in charge of teaching the Surf's up dance, since I already knew it, so that she could work with Dallas some more on Surf Crazy. As we finish the first part, I call a water break. But not cause I'm thirsty, but because I can't focus.

I watch as Ally walks over to the drink table and gets a bottle of water. she avoids people, keeping her head down. I have to admit, her acting is top notch.

"Earth to Moon, can you stop making it so blatantly obvious that you're checking her out?" Acacia's voice rings in my ear. I blush and look away, only to realize that she thought I was analyzing her, not checking her out, checking her out.

"Dez anything new on her?" I ask as I lean against the wall.

"Actually, I'm noticing a re-occuring pattern with her history."

"It being," I prompt.

"Everything almost seems fake, it's so perfect. Her father is Lester Dawson, owner of the music store Sonic Boom in the Miami mall. Her mother is Penny Dawson, an author who is currently in Africa for her new book. They live in a quaint little house on the nice side of town. That all seems pretty normal. But it's their finances that throw me. It's almost like their ghosting. No noise complaints, hardly any electrical use, and the bills are all paid on the fifteenth of each month online. No offences, nothing. Not even a speeding ticket in the file."

"Maybe they're all keeners," Lauren says. I scoff.

"Coming from you."

"Like you can talk Moon," She snaps back.

"Guys! Let's calm down before we do something to you Austin that we'll pretend to regret later, OK?" Joella hisses in my ear. I grumble, but comply. "We wouldn't want another Mr. Fuzzy incident."

Mr. Fuzzy was my chukabara. He was the biggest rodent ever. I had him when I was twelve. I had fed the girls fried worms after Dez dared me to when we were younger. It was so funny, you should have seen their faces after I told them what it was they were eating. Unfortunately, that night they màde dinner, an Asian style stir fry.

It was really good, until I got to the last piece of meat and realized that Mr. Fuzzy's leg was still attached.

I haven't had a pet since.

"Zach, does MI6 have anything on record with them?" I ask as I pretend to sip my water.

"Not that I can find. I don't think they've ever left the states."

I frown. This was not helping. "Guys, let's convene a meeting after school, and then head to IMF and see if we can dig up some dirt. Acacia, call Uncle Ethan and see if he can get Zach clearance to the sub levels now, so when we go we won't have to waste time."

"On it boss," she tells me, and I see her leave.

"Dez, keep tabs on Ally when we can't see her. Can you send the camera feed to my phone, and also see if you can hear her entire conversation?"

"Consider it done," Dez tells me before he cuts out.

The rest of class goes fast, and I don't get another moment alone with Ally. Although that's probably for the best seeing as how she already is suspicious, and I act like a blubbering idiot around her. A blush rises to my cheeks the longer I think about it.

"So, how are we going to go about this?" Joella pulls me to the side as we exit the drama room an hour later. I bite my lip while I go through the possibilities.

"Honestly, this one feels different from our other missions. Ally is evidently someone of interest, but unlike usual our info is in short supply. Our best bet is to get as close to her as possible I think," I tell her. She raises her eyebrows and gets a very VERY evil smile on her face. She pats my head.

"Aw, our little Austy is growing up."

"Shut-up."

Her laugh echoes, turning a couple of heads, most of them guys. I shoot them a glare. Do you know how awkward it is to watch people hit on your cousin? Honestly, it's weird. Really weird.

"Where's Lauren, Zach and Acacia?"I ask when I notice that they aregone. Joella shrugs.

"Acacia is probably sharpening her knives orsomething, and hopefully Lauren and Zach are making out in closet."

I stare at her strangely. "Why would I hope for that? That's just hands down gross. Not to mention weird."

Joella looks at me like I'm the stupid one. "Because, if they are making out,then that means I'll have been right, and Lauren owes me thirty bucks."

I roll my eyes. "Joella, your a millionare. You're really serious about thiry bucks?"

"Of course," She looks offended. "But it's not for the money, it's just nice to say that I was right. Those two are destined to get together someday."

"Oh yeah," I drone, "If they ever manage to get past the strangle eachother phase, then maybe they can move on to the tolerate eachother phase."

She rolls her eyes, but doesn't say anything back.

Class passes quickly, and in no time at all, wefind ourselves walking towards the Hale. I keep on fidgeting the entire way. I'm missing something, I can feel it. I just don't know exactly what it is, and it's bugging me.

Kira, Cassidy, and Brooke walk up to us. The expression on the girls faces is pricless. I would have laughed, had they not made a lame excuse of having to use the bathroom and ditched me and Zach. Thankfully Zach looks as uncomfortable as I feel.

"Austin! Zach! What a coincidence to find you two here," Kira cooes as we wait in line at the front of the museum. I grit my teeth.

"Yeah, seeing as how we have the same class next," I mumble. Kira turns to Zach.

"Zach right?"

"Yes," Zach replies in an american accent. Kira points between the two of us.

"How do you guys know eachother?" She asks as the line surges forward. She interlocks our arms with hers, and Cassidy takes my free arm, and Brooke Zachs. They drag us forward.

"Zach is Lauren's boyfriend," I blurt. Zach's eyes go wide, and I hear Lauren screech through the comms. I wince as she starts muttering threats in my ear.

"Oh, really?" Kira pulls her arm away from Zach's. His flustered face only lasts a second before he replaces it with his charming smile.

"Ah- yes! Mm-hmn. She's my... girlfriend," I can see the cringe in his eyes as he sputters the word out. I can't help but smirk a little. Kira puts on a pouty face.

"Fine. But hopefully you'll be available soon," She winks. I gag in my mouth. Even though I hate Zach, I would never wish upon him the fate of having Kira as a girlfriend. That's jujst hands down wrong.

"We'll see you ladies after," I save after I realize that Zach has gone slightly pale. "We need to go find our girls."

I'm pretty sure we run away faster than we did that timme in Mozambique, and that is definitely saying something. We dodge pedestrians, and I lead us around the outside of the building to a workers entrance.

"You do realize that with all these employees milling about," Zach gestures to the men and women sitting around the entrance smoking cigarettes or eating lunch, "That breaking into this door isn't the smartest idea yeah?"

I roll my eyes, and don't respond to him. I walk up to the door, and the guard shoots me a suspiscious look. Zach and I smile casually at him, like we belong there. I pull out my ceit card from my wallet. Zach watches in confusion and then amazement as I deftly change the settings to that of a Hale employee. I scan the door and it beeps open.

"Where'd you get that gadget?" Zach mumbles as we slide from the bright sunlight into the dark hall way.

"Where do I get all my gadgets?" I roll my eyes. Zach whistles low.

"Good thing Dez is on our team, eh?"

"This time," I mutter. He doesn't respond. He knows how quickly loyalties can change. This mission IMF and MI6 might be working hand in hand, but next week you never know.

"So, I'd strangle you in your sleep tonight," Zach starts, "But I think the girls are going to beat me to it."

I chuckle awkwardly, the noise echoing in the work corridor. "Yeah, about that. Sorry. First thought that popped to my mind."

Zach makes a face as we near the entrance to the museum foyer ahead. I push the door open just in time to catch Zach muttering, "Why would you even have that thought in your head?" Before his voice is drowned out by the buzz. I easily spot our class, and Zach and I make a beeline that way. We arrive just as our names are called. Mr. Derk assigns us a painting to study in groups before he sends us off.

I look at my list of people. Kira, Brooke, Acacia, Connor, Dallas, and someone named Trish. I sigh. At least I have Acacia with me. Joella, Zach and Lauren are in a group with Cassidy, Ethan and a couple other people I don't recognize. I mentally moan. None of us are in the same group as Ally.

My group is assigned the Le Dejeuner sur l'herbe By Claude Monet. We make our way to the Monet section of the museum.

"Austin, Ally was The Concert. And if my eyes aren't decieving me, she's without a group." Dez's voice rings in my ear. My eyebrows scrunch together.

"Say again?"

"Ally. Is. On. Her. Own. Mr. Derk didn't assign her a partner. I'm going to send you the feed. Stand by."

For a second static fills my ear, but it's quickly replaced by Ally's voice.

"Mr. Derk, may I go on my own please? I study better independently," the voice of an innocent and shy Ally says.

"Of course Ms. Dawson. Shall I assign you the Vermeer again? You didn't seem to make much progress yesterday." Mr. Derk's voice is almost cynical, and something about the tone throws me. I listen carefully.

"I'm sorry. I'm doing my best, and trying my hardest. Honest." Ally's voice sounds almost frightened, only I can't tell if she's acting or not.

"Very well, Ms. Dawson. I just highly recomend that your best become better. Get along with it now."

The feed cuts off, and is immediately replaced with Dez's voice. "See what I mean?"

I nod, knowing that he can see me through the cameras. "Dez, the camera in the Vermeer room I need looped to my phone. Let me know of any suspiscious activity," I mumble. Acacia slows her pace so she's walking beside me.

"Something wrong?"

I shake my head. "Ally, got assigned the target. On her own. Dez is going to loop me the feed."

Acacia nods stiffly. "Keep me posted," She starts to materialize back in to the crowd. At the last moment she looks back at me. "And boss?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't do anything stupid."

I chuckle as she starts to chat up a conversation with Connor. I scan over the group, and my eyes fall on a short Latina who's reading Cheetah Beat rather than taking notes like what we're supposed to be doing. I immediately recognize her as Ally's friend. This must be the girl Trish. I smirk to myelf. Maybe something was going our way.

I casually walk by her, 'accidently' dropping my note papers by her. She looks up at the ruckus I'm causing.

"Watch it Blondie," She growls at me.

"Sorry," I say, quickly picking up the last of my papers. "I'm Austin."

"So?"

I'm thrown a bit by her frankness, but quickly re-compose myself. "What's your name?"

"Why do you want to know?" She scowls. I raise my hands in innocence.

"I'm sorry, I thought it was polite formalities to introduce yourself when you're the new kid," I don't know why, but this chick really gets on my nerves. Not even my cousins get under my skin like her. They just make me crazy. This girl makes me frustrated.

She rolls her eyes, sighs exasperatedly, but puts her magazine away. "I'm Trish."

I take the seat on the bench next to her, and pull out my notes. She pulls out hers as well. I start writing down some stuff, only to look up and see that she's not taking notes. She looks at me expectantly, and I just show the confusion on my face. She rolls her eyes.

"Well, can you hurry up so I can copy?" She asks me impatiently.

"Copy?" I ask. The concept was foreign to me. Not once in Oxford did anyone ask to copy my notes. Then again, none of them trusted the work of a twelve year old. Their loss.

"Yes dingbat. Copy," She says again really slowly. When I don't move, she sighs and snatches my papers out of my hand.

"Hey!" I reach for my papers, but she puts them out of reach. I could knock her out cold right now in seven different ways. I could call Acacia, and she could kill Trish six ways to Sunday with her magazine. One word and Joella would bust in here and scar her for life with her lipgloss. Even Lauren can be deadly when I need her to be. And yet, I just watch helplessly as she quickly jots down the answers I wrote.

"There," She hands me my papers back, reading over her copied answers and nodding in approval. I roll my eyes.

"Aren't you supposed to get the answers yourself? You know, so you actually learn?" I ask. She looks at me like I'm the crazy one.

"Why would I do that?"

I'm about to retort, when Dez's voice crackles to life in my ear. "Austin she's been joined."

Immediately I stand up, forgetting where I am. Trish looks at me weird. "Uh, sorry. I, um... uh, have to use the bathroom," I say, quickly running to the mens room. I bump into a boy coming out who I would put around my age. His bag goes flying, spilling the contents. Papers and electronics go flying.

"Oh, I am so sorry dude," I say, bending down to help pick up his papers. He waves me off.

"It's ok." As I pass him what looks like a microchip that popped out of his computer or something, I catch a good look at his face. For some reason, he's oddly familiar looking. Light brown hair, dark eyes. He seems pretty average Joe, but behing his thick black frames, something about the tilt of his cheek bones, or the slant of his nose. I just can't put my finger on it.

He collects the rest of his papers as I run to the bathroom. It's empty, and I lock the door. I pull out my cellphone after putting the toilet seat down and sitting on the lid.

As soon as I punch in my code, give a retinal scan, and do a DNA confirmation (My phone holds some VERY sensitive information) Dez's feed pops up. I turn the volume so that it wires to my ear piece, and turn it up loud.

The first thing I notice is Ally, writing in her journal. She looks exactly how she always does. But there's a boy sitting beside her. He's wearing a tailored suit, and I don't need Lauren to deduct that this guy is rich. Perhaps even as rich as me.

He has brown hair and blue eyes, and for some reason, I feel a spike of emotion as I see how close he sits next to Ally. I immediately lock the feeling in the deep recesses of my mind. No need for emotions to get involoved now.

"How is it going?" He asks with a charming smile. She smiles, but continues writing in her book.

"I'm working on it."

"That doesn't answer my question. I need to know, so I can alert Sammy. He won't get off my haunches about plans," The boy rolls his eyes.

"I'm sure you'll think of something, Elliot," Ally mutters. So that's his name. "What are you doing here anyways? I thought you and Sammy had another job."

"We took care of it. Uncle Eddy wasn't all that impressed with how we took care of it, but we took care of it all the same."

Ally stiffens, and I see Joella's group pass by. "You need to go. I'll call you later."

"Don't forget, Ally-Cat," Elliot says before disappearing. For some reason that hurt.

Just as Elliot is about to turn the corner, he stops and joins a boy waiting there for him. My eyes widen in recognition, but the feed cuts out, my phone returning to my screen saver.

"No, Dez! I need the feed again," I whisper shout. A few seconds later it pops up again, but it's too late. Elliot and the boy I bumped into coming into the bathroom are gone. Ally's left in her normal position, scribbling away in that book of hers.

"Damn it!" I curse as I punch the wall. My knuckles turn red and I shake my hand. It doesn't matter though. I know what I saw.

And then I know what I remembered.

I immediately scan the bathroom. The boy was in here right before me with a bag of papers and gadgets. School work? Probably. But possibly not.

"Dez, are there any other break ins on the surveillance?"

"None that I can find. I'll do another check and let you know."

"Good," I say as he cuts out. My eyes expertly scan the area, picking up on everything. It's a classic public restroom. White walls, white stall, white sink. The mirror is five by five, the light a flurescent one. Nothing out of the ordinary.

I shake the garbage, and nothing but paper towel rustle about. A piece of pink catches my eye on the top, and I grab a paper napkin and pick it up. The gum is still soft and warm, indication that it was thrown out recently. I smile and wrap it carefully, before sticking it in a pocket of my bag. As I exit the bathroom, Dez's voice returns in my ear.

"No other breaches."

"Keep an eye on it."

"Gotcha dude."

He clicks out as the clock strikes five, indicating that class is over. As I walk out to go find the others, Kira stops me. I personally stop a groan. "Hey Austin! Look, this next Friday I'm having a party, and it would be completely amazing if you and your cousins and Zach came," She bats her eyelashes at me.

My first instinct is to say no. And then I remember that I have to fit in.

Stupid cover.

"We'd love to come Kira!" I fake enthusiasim. Once again she doesn't seem to quite pick up on the fake part.

"Cool! See you later," She winks before disappearing with her posse. I breath a sigh of relief as the girls and Zach materialize beside me.

"What did the she-demon want?" Lauren wrinkles her nose. I roll my eyes.

"She invited us to her party next Friday, and we are going. And secondly, I'm pretty sure she doesn't have a donkey leg."

"First, why would you tell her we are going, and secondly, you wouldn't know if she was an empousa. You're a boy." Acacia says the word with slight distaste. Once again I roll my eyes.

"I thought you were against Percy Jackson."

Acacia blushes. "Well no one told me how awesome it was," She defends herself lamely. I just ignore her.

Twenty minutes later, we find ourselves on Joella's private jet, zooming towards Washington D.C. An hour later we walk through the pristine doors of IMF's HQ.

"Name," The lady at the front drones.

"Miss Potts should have brought an umbrella with her today," I say in the same voice. She looks up.

"Whatever for? There's not a cloud in the sky."

"Even Peter rabit knows better," I tells her. She goes back to typing, before the elevater in the far back of the room opens. The five of us enter, and the doors close. Joella punches a bunch of the buttons, in a random order. The lights go off for a moment, before flickering back on as we continue our decent pass the basement level.

"Austin what did you get today?" Joella asks as she twirls a golden lock on her finger.

"Ally is definitely not a normal student. I had my doubts, but now I know for sure. She wants the painting too, although I'm not sure why. There are three people together. Ally, a boy named Elliot, and another one named Sammy. I think that must be their team."

"Guys," Dez's voice rings out in the elevater, "The Elliot boy isn't just anyone. He's H. H. Elliot the VI. As in a Elliot."

Joella gasps. "Are you serious?"

"I thought he looked familiar," Zach muttered. I must be the only person who doesn't know him.

"Wait," I let my incompetence show, "Just who is this Elliot?"

Acacia rolls her eyes. "The Elliots are the owners of Elliot Industries, you know, only the biggest company ever? He's the heir to the company."

"Oh."

"Yeah, oh." Lauren rolls her eyes too.

"Any ways, I found this, in the trash can," I hold up the piece of gum. They look at me like I'm crazy.

"That could be anyones," Lauren tells me.

"But it's not," I snap back. "I'm pretty sure it's this Sammy kid's gum. See, I bumped into him when I went into the bathroom. He was the only one there before me, and the gum was still warm when I got it. Then throught the feed Dez sent me, I saw the kid meet up with Elliot after Elliot finished talking to Ally."

The elevater doors beep open, and I'm greeted by my father. He smiles and hugs us.

"Kids! I saw that you had checked in. New mission?"

We nod. "We're going to use the DNA scanner and retreiver," I tell him. He nods and hugs me once more.

"Alright, I'll catch you later then."

I sigh as he walks away, immediately lost in the sea of workers. We make our way to the lab. I know I should be used to never having my parents around, but I miss them. Sometimes I wish we were just a normal family for once. And then I feel horrible. At least my parents are mainly lab workers. They are hardly ever in danger. Unlike Lauren's folks.

I stick the gum on the scanner, as we all make ourselves comfortable in the room.

"So, I think there's a possibility that Mr. Derk is in on this too somehow," I admit. They nod.

"We heard the feed too," Zach tells me. "Definitely a POI."

"And we need to check on this Sammy guy," I mutter. "He was so familiar. Lie I've seen himbefore."

"Where?" Acacia immediately sits forward. I shrug.

"I dunno." the machine beeps. "But I guess we're going to find out."

I pull up the file on him. His face fills the screen, as words fly to the side. I read his name. Samuel Goode. But that isn't what catches my attention.

Deceased.

"Is it just me, or does this file say that this guy is dead?" Joella asks. I shake my head.

"This is him, well, younger," The picture was that of a twelve year old, but it was unmistakably the boy I ran into by the bathroom. "Positive."

"It says here that he died in a car crash," Lauren reads ahead. "Body was mangled beyond recognition. Father dead, Mother disappeared..."

I turn to Zach, noticing that he's very quiet. His face is passive, but slightly pale. I don't know if it's the lighting, but for the first time, I see Zach in a new light. The curve of his cheekbones, the slant of his nose...

It suddenly hits me before Lauren even reads it from the file.

"...And twin brother of Zachary Goode."

Wassup? Hope you liked this chapter, and before you can ask, yes, Sam Goode from The I Am Number Four series. I realized he had the same name as Zach, and is one of my favourite characters, and he was perfect to fit this upcoming roll. Anyways, thanks for reading, and let me know what you think!

Oh yes, and thank you for ONE HUNDRED REVIEWS! Woot-woot! Thank you guys! Please feel free to check out some of my other work!