Spencer stepped off the bus and listened to the snow crunch under his boots. A happy trill shot through him and he grinned at the picturesque view. It was like a winter wonderland. The huge, rustic wood and stone lodge glowed with warmth and hospitality amid the frigid landscape. It was nestled in an evergreen forest with a backdrop of majestic snow-covered mountains. A wrap-around deck hugged the lodge and hosted outdoor fire pits where people could sit and enjoy the view. The ski lifts sat a short distance away and Spencer watched as they carried people up the mountains.
"How cool is this field trip going to be?" Shanilla squealed as Spencer joined her and the other classmates to collect their luggage.
"Eh, I guess it's alright," Billy droned, floating above them, "Nothing like the lodges I used to go to in Aspen. Now those are fancy, let me tell ya-"
Spencer stopped listening as he yanked his, and Billys', bags from the bus' storage compartment. It wasn't like Billy really NEEDED anything, but the ghost liked to feel included. Billy also insisted on bringing a guitar, meaning Spencer had to lug two suitcases, a guitar case, and his camera bag. Hopefully, no one questioned why he had so much extra stuff. Or why one suitcase was bedazzled.
With their luggage in tow, the gang made their way to the lodge and bounded up the wooden steps. Spencer dropped his heavy bags once they were in. The lobby was huge! The ceiling went all the way to the top of the lodge so you could see the other floors from the lobby. A candlelit chandelier hung from the ceiling above. On the other side of the room was a massive stone fireplace. Chairs and a couch which sat in a semicircle around it. A stags' head was mounted above the mantle. To the left sat the check-in desk and the staircase leading up to the other floors. To the right sat a refreshments bar, a small dining area, and the kitchen. Large two-story windows sat around the lodge where you could look out at the mountain landscape. Decorations of wreaths, garland, and pinecones fashioned into art pieces adorned the entire lodge.
"Woooooww! This place is amazing!" Shanilla squealed.
"Of course it is!" Lolo said as she sauntered through the doors with the rest of the class. Her poor bodyguard was shouldering her huge, and many, bright pink suitcases. "My dad only books the best for me. He bought out this entire lodge so I don't have to deal with the riff-raff."
"Well, it was so NICE of you to invite us to come along on this trip then, Lolo." Spencer teased, knowing full well that she didn't want them there.
The only reason Spencer had been able to come on this trip was that Lolo's dad was paying for the entire class to go. Normally, the schools' field trips required that each student pay to go on a field trip so Spencer had never gone on any. Despite having inherited Billy's estate his family still wasn't exactly wealthy and the costs of the trips were often too high for his parents to pay for. This was the first field trip he had been able to go on since he came to Beverly Beverly High so he was stoked.
But it was no coincidence either as Class President reelections were coming up. Plain and simple, it was a bribe so everyone would vote for Lolo again. But to Lolo and Ponzi's extreme disappointment, the trip also included Spencer, Rajeev, and Shanilla. Ponzi and Lolo tried to make it so the 'losers' weren't allowed but the superintendent objected to their complaint, stating that field trips included the whole class so everyone was allowed to go provided their ticket was paid for. Lolo's many angry phone calls to her dad didn't change it as he had already paid. Later, she managed to flip the whole 'losers aren't allowed on the trip' scenario around. Now she was playing it off as her being extremely generous that she was 'allowing' everyone to come, even the losers, just so she could try and appeal to as many voters as possible.
She shot him a bitter smile, "You are soooo welcome. I am super generous after all. I hope all of you remember that during class president reelections."
As if they had a choice. Spencer shrugged, "Elections are still a ways away. You'll have to forgive me if it slips my mind."
She glared and eyed his bags, fixating on Billy's bedazzled ones in particular. She smirked as she then looked him up and down. He was wearing clothes he'd borrowed from Billy's stash. A white, puffy, faux-fur lined coat with slightly sparkly snowflakes embroidered on one shoulder, matching boots, and iridescent navy snow pants. NOT his cup of tea, AT ALL. But unfortunately, since he was accustomed to living in warm climates he had no winter clothing. Billy, on the other hand, had plenty to share and had spent a day and a half playing dress up, forcing Spencer into as many ridiculous winter outfits and costumes as possible whether Spencer wanted to or not. Spencer was happy he finally managed to talk Billy into only letting him borrow the simpler pieces of clothing, even if they still weren't his style.
"Didn't know this sort of thing was your taste. I'm afraid tacky and garish went out of fashion last year," Lolo taunted.
Spencer could feel Billy's white-hot glare from behind him. "I'll show her who's tacky and garish!" The ghost growled.
"Later," Spencer hissed at him.
"Talking to yourself again, loser?" Kleet joined in.
He glared at them.
"Listen, Wright. Nothing weird better happen on this trip or you're gonna regret it," Lolo said.
Ponzi walked in and stood in front of the bickering students, "Alright, class, settle down and listen up! We're here for three days and I'm in charge, so that means you gotta do whatever I say. Listen to your skiing instructors, stay with your chaperones, follow the rules of the lodge and the slopes. DO NOT go near the restricted slopes. Curfew is promptly at 8 pm, meaning you have to be back here INSIDE the lodge. No exceptions. Break the rules and you'll SORELY regret it. Now take your things to your assigned rooms. Anyone interested in skiing lessons: report to the slopes in half an hour to meet with the instructor. As for the rest of you, find something to occupy yourselves and don't disturb me. Lorenzo and I have an appointment." The principal stalked off to his room with his bird, a novel, and luggage in tow.
Spencer sighed and went to pick up one of his bags only for Kleet to kick it out of reach.
"See you on the slopes, LOSER!" the jock chuckled.
But unfortunately for Kleet, it was Billy's bag he kicked. The ghost retaliated by tying Kleets' shoelaces together and watching the jock trip and fall on his face. Spencer, Rajeev, and Shanilla laughed before grabbing their stuff and running up to their rooms.
Spencer deposited Billy's stuff on the far side of the room before setting his own on his bed and starting to unload it. The ghost flew into one of his bags and began rummaging around. Spencer had gotten lucky enough to have Rajeev for a roommate. At least that way they could still talk and interact with Billy without getting weird looks or taunts. Shanilla was on the other side of the lodge where the girls' rooms were.
"Ok, bromigos, what do you think?" Billy grinned as he zipped out of one of his bags and into the center of the room. He was decked out in one of his flamboyant winter outfits.
"It's very, uh...you," Spencer said.
"But totally in this season!" Rajeev complimented.
"THANK YOU. Finally, someone who speaks my language."
"But I don't get why you're all dressed up, dawg. It's not like anyone besides us is going to see you."
"Oh really?" Billy grinned. He swooped around Rajeev, deftly removing his belt.
"What-hey! Billy, I can't see you!" Rajeev protested to the floating belt in the room.
Spencer could still see Billy and watched the ghost concentrate for a moment. He appeared to look a bit more solid.
"Whoa, that's so cool! How are you doing that?" Rajeev cheered.
Spencer blinked, "Wait, you can see him without the belt?"
"Yeah!" Rajeev cheered.
Billy chuckled, "Been working on my ghost skills. This way people can see me and drink up this sexy outfit with their eyes."
"How exactly do you plan on getting away with that if Lolo bought out the lodge meaning you shouldn't be here?" Raj asked.
"All her dad bought out was the lodge. Not the slopes," Billy grinned as he pointed out the window.
Spencer and Rajeev looked out. He was right. In the distance, they could see people on the slopes. Other cabins and lodges dotted the distant hills and mountains as well.
"The Cobra is gonna wow some chick-a-dees when he shreds on the power." Billy tossed the belt back to Rajeev. He went back to being transparent, only being seen by anyone wearing his gear again.
Spencer rolled his eyes, "You have fun with that, Romeo. We have other important things to do."
They finished unpacking their stuff, Spencer grabbed his camera bag, and Rajeev grabbed his backpack. The trio exited the room to meet with Shanilla downstairs and head up to the slopes with the rest of the class.
Once they were outside Spencer was happy he'd borrowed Billy's winter clothes, even if they were a bit garish. Man, it was cold! He was not used to this type of weather. But it was worth it for the view. On the lift up the mountain, he filmed wonderful establishing shots of the forests and cliffs they passed. Billy, not being fond of heights, AT ALL, clung to him, Rajeev, and Shanilla the entire time nearly crying.
Honestly, Spencer wasn't interested in skiing at first but it turned out to be pretty fun. He'd never done it before and the group had a lot of laughs at one another's expense when they fell. Billy had spent all of two minutes making himself visible and flirting with a random curvy young adult female skier before a gust of cold wind hit him. It made Billy shiver violently and disrupted his powers, making him invisible again. Of course, this caused the woman to flip out and go racing down the hill. The ghost then proceeded to wrap himself like a snake around whichever member of the trio was available for warmth.
Later on in the day, a snowball fight broke out among the students. While the gang had fun Billy ended up retreating to the ski operators booth at the top of the lifts for warmth. The ghost even had trouble floating the short distance to the booth. The snow really was affecting him and Spencer pondered the effects that the cold had on his ghost powers. Unfortunately, with Billy out of the way, it opened up for Kleet to bully the group non-stop as they no longer had their ghostly intervention. The jock was really out to get them today.
When the snowball fight got too out of hand the chaperones stepped in to break it up and Spencer's group used this chance to slip away. They went to the top of the ski lifts where the ski operators' booth was to retrieve their stuff and Billy before heading into the woods.
"Why are you dragging me all the way out here? I told you ghosts and freezers don't mix and as far as I'm concerned, this is nothing more than one big freezer." Billy shivered against his current unwilling host, Rajeev.
"Hey, you were totally on board with coming out here earlier just to flirt," Spencer retorted. "You should have gone back to the lodge. Besides, did you really think all I was going to come all the way out here and not shoot an abominable snowman movie?"
Billy balked at him as he unwound from Rajeev and floated back. "Seriously? This is a field trip, dude! A vacation. We should be resting and relaxing in front of the fire. Making smores, drinking cocoa. Not working."
"But this can be fun too," Rajeev added, "No chaperone, no rules out here. Just fresh air and freedom to do what we want!"
Spencer nodded, "Besides, when exactly am I going to get another chance to shoot a movie like this again?"
"When you're rich and famous from making your other movies and old enough to fly the plane to Aspen. Now come on, let's go back where it's warm and cozy."
"You can go back if you want, dude, but we're going to shoot a movie," Spencer grinned as he continued on with Rajeev and Shanilla.
Billy grumbled, looking back and forth between the trio and the ski lifts. With a groan, he conceited and followed them.
Spencer glanced back at him, "Joining us after all?"
"Who else is gonna protect your little butts when something bad happens like it always does?" Billy shivered.
Rajeev snorted, "Looks like we didn't escape our chaperone after all."
"Haha, very funny," Billy mocked sarcastically.
The group approached the woodline. Signs were nailed along the rows of trees saying things like: 'Ski area boundary. No skiing past this point.', 'Danger, steep slopes.', and 'No trespassing'. Spencer continued ahead anyway.
"Uh, dudes, didn't you read the signs? We shouldn't go any farther," Billy said.
"Maybe Billy's right," Shanilla muttered, "Didn't principal Ponzi say to stay away from this area?"
"Just a little further, don't worry. We'll stay away from the slopes and it's not like we're going skiing. I just want a more wooded area to film in."
Billy grumbled but floated after them.
"Legend tells of an abominable snowman that stalks these mountains, scaring tourists and skiers away from the forbidden trails. But if he gets you then he's going to freeze you like an icicle! Mwuahaha!" Spencer taunted as they walked.
Billy screamed and dove into Spencer's camera bag to hide.
"You don't think it'll freeze us, do you?" Rajeev quivered.
"Pffft, please. It's not real, it's just a myth. There's only one article of a skier going missing up here years and years ago but that predates the sasquatch stories. The rumors are only scary stories to keep kids away from the dangerous slopes. But what could be better fuel for a horror movie than that, huh?" Spencer grinned as he panned the camera around at the scenery.
The further they went into the woods the darker it became. The trees had grown so close in this area that they blocked out most of the natural sunlight. Every now and then they came across steep clearings that once were ski slopes. They've since been closed and nature has started to take over again. Old ominous warning signs still clung to trees here and there, decaying and rusting. It was the perfect atmosphere for his movie.
They settled at a small clearing which branched off in four different directions towards different closed slopes, all surrounded by woods. Spencer made sure his equipment had the waterproof coverings as Rajeev took out the yeti costume from his backpack.
"This is gonna be awe-tastic!" Rajeev cheered as he put the suit on. Then he ran behind some bushes to hide. Shanilla, who had agreed to help star in the movie, took her cue and Spencer started filming.
For about half an hour they shot scene after scene for Spencer's horror movie. They were cold as the snow was starting to melt against their clothing, making them wet, but they kept shooting. It grew darker and darker, enhancing the atmosphere for his movie, and he was really digging the silhouette he was getting for the sasquatch monster.
Billy had emerged from his hiding spot in the camera bag and was currently coiled around Spencer for warmth. He shivered violently and looked bluer than usual.
Spencer cocked an eyebrow at him, "You ok, dude? You don't look so good."
"C-C-Cold…"
"I don't get how you can even feel the cold, you're a ghost."
"Oh, s-s-so you're an expert on ghosts now?"
Spencer hummed in thought. No. But he did want to learn more about ghosts, especially after what happened at the hospital. He still got the chills when he thought of that incident. Maybe a visit to Frank could help. Billy's head snapped to the right and he stared off into the woods. Spencer was about to ask what was wrong when something strange sounded from the woods.
A whistle. Like someone calling for a dog. A high whistle, then a low one.
Everyone stopped what they were doing. The woods were dead quiet. They listened. Again, there was the whistle. Billy let go of Spencer and drew up to his full height, floating a few feet up into the air. Wide-eyed, he started looking around into the woods.
"What? What is it?" Spencer asked.
"Shh! Something...doesn't feel right."
"It's probably just someone trying to scare us. Or someone out on the slopes," Shanilla reasoned.
Shanilla was probably right. Spencer was about to agree but stopped. Something clicked in his mind. "Wait...what did you say, Billy?"
Rajeev snickered, "Didn't you hear him? He said he's about to ecto his pant-"
Spencer slapped a hand over Rajeev's mouth, "Billy, what did you say?"
"Something doesn't feel right," The ghost repeated but kept his eyes fixed on the woods.
Something doesn't feel right. He had the exact same thing when Spencer tricked him into taking them to the old hospital. He didn't say something felt 'weird' or 'super Creepshow' or even that he was scared. The phrasing was very different than anything he'd usually say. Only back then Spencer hadn't listened to him and Billy had been right. A chill ran up his spine.
Billy and Spencer locked eyes. Billy didn't say anything but his expression was confirmation enough. They weren't alone and whatever was out there them wasn't something natural. The curious filmmaker in him wondered if it was another ghost and if they should try to contact it. He had joked about making a 'ghost hunter' found film series before but at the moment he wasn't so sure. Regardless of the positive outcome last time they encountered a ghost it had still been extremely dangerous and Spencer nearly got them all killed.
"What's wrong?" Rajeev asked.
Right, Rajeev and Shanilla had gone ahead to the hospital back then. "Back at the hospital before I followed you guys in Billy said the exact same thing to me. What if he can sense when there's a ghost around?"
Billy blinked, "Really?"
"That's amazing!" Shanilla said.
Spencer nodded. It made sense. Billy was a ghost and he could already tell there was going to be trouble before the gang had gone inside the hospital. The more his powers developed the more it made sense that he could tell when another ghost or something supernatural was around.
Something rattled in the bushes. The group turned so they stood back to back in a circle looking out into the woods.
The rattling sound grew louder and louder from the woods, rushing towards them. The gang braced themselves. Something burst out from the bushes, gliding in front of them and throwing snow in their faces. Everyone screamed and stumbled back to the ground, except for Billy who dove into a nearby bush to hide.
"Ahahaha!"
Spencer brushed the snow from his face. He knew that dumb laugh.
"Having a nice TRIP, losers?" Kleet taunted. The jerk had been the one to scare them and used his snowboard to fling the snow at them.
"Very funny. How long did it take you to come up with that one?" Rajeev spat, pushing himself up off the ground and brushing the snow off his clothes. Spencer and Shanilla did the same.
Spencer shot a glare at Billy who was staring at Kleet with confusion before turning to look back into the forest.
Ok, maybe it wasn't ghostly intuition.
Spencer turned his glare back to his daily bully. "What do you want?"
"To make your life miserable. What else?" He laughed, "Just wait until I tell Ponzi you losers were trespassing in the restricted area."
"Oh yeah? And how are you going to explain that you knew we were here? You'd be giving yourself away that you were here too." Shanilla shot back.
The bullies' face fell and he stuttered as he tried to think of an excuse.
Rajeev smirked, "Yeah, that's what I thought."
"Just you wait! I'm going to get a chaperone to bust you losers!" the jock shouted and boarded away.
Once Kleet was out of eyesight Spencer let out a sigh. "Guess we better head back before we're caught…"
"Yeah. Better safe than sorry," Shanilla agreed.
The gang grabbed their stuff and started heading back for the ski lifts. After a moment Spencer noticed his ghostly friend wasn't next to him like usual so he stopped and looked back. Billy was hovering in the middle of the clearing they had been in. His back was to Spencer and he was still looking out into the woods.
"Billy, come on, let's go! We're heading back. I'll get you a cup of hot cocoa."
Billy didn't answer right away. Huh, that's odd. Spencer was sure bribing him with cocoa would work. A beat later the ghost turned around and joined him, uncharacteristically stone-faced and quiet.
"You ok dude?" Spencer asked.
Billy looked at him and gave him a quick nod. He glanced behind them quickly before floating ahead. Spencer stopped and stared at his friend before looking back over his shoulder. He didn't see anything. Only the same snowy, cold landscape from before. But it was quiet. Very quiet. He turned back around and ran to join the rest of the group.
The fireplace at the lodge was so very nice after a long, cold day of playing in the snow and filming. Meals were included with the field trip plan and after the students had eaten Spencers' gang decided to sit by the fire. A few other wayward students also sat nearby.
Spencer sipped at his cup of cocoa as he reviewed the days' footage on his camera. So far so good. He glanced over at Billy who was sitting in one of the chairs and staring into the fire. The ghost had barely touched his cocoa which was enough of a red flag indicating something was wrong. Every now and then he'd glance out the window. He had been that way since they got back. At least he was looking better now that they were in a warmer area.
"Still pouting?" Spencer teased.
Billy blinked at him before shooting him a soft glare, "I'm telling you there was something else out there."
Rajeev rolled his eyes, "As if. You're just upset because you don't have a ghost sense."
"But you felt something though. Maybe you do have some kind of 'threat' detection ghost ability," Shanilla offered.
"Like a Spidey-sense?" Spencer laughed.
"Doubt it. He just got scared from the whistling," Rajeev chuckled.
Billy grumbled at them, "Yeah, yeah, laugh it up." He glanced out the window again for the twelfth time since they got back. Still...that little spark of doubt was in Spencer's mind saying 'what if he's right?'. He was right last time. Spencer looked out the window too.
Then he shook his head. No. No, no, no. Honestly, he didn't want to think about that sort of thing right now. They were on vacation, even if he was working on a movie. But still…Billy did seem really uneasy.
"What do you say we pay Frank a visit when we get home?"
Billy looked at him, "What? Why?"
Spencer shrugged, "What could it hurt? We could pick his brain for more ghost knowledge. There's lots we don't know."
"Oooh, that's a good idea! Could we come?" Shanilla asked.
"Yeah! I'd love to meet a new ghost!" Rajeev said.
"Uh, I dunno. He's kind of a recluse. Not very social," Spencer said.
Billy snorted, "That's one way of putting it. He probably won't even give us the time of day if we do go back."
Spencer sighed. It was worth a shot. He returned to reviewing his camera footage. Then something bumped into him, jostling his cocoa and spilling it all over his clothes and camera. He jumped up with a shout, frantically grabbing a nearby napkin and rubbing the cocoa off of the camera.
"Oops!" came the familiar lug-headed voice, "Careful not to be so clumsy, loser!"
"What is your deal?!" Spencer shouted at the bully. "Do you have any idea how precious this thing is to me?!"
"Duh! Which is why it's so much funnier!"
"Do you have any idea how much that coat cost?!" Billy shouted although Kleet couldn't hear him.
Spencer glared at Kleet, tired of being tormented all day by this moron. But before he could say anything the lights throughout the room dimmed. Spencer looked at them but Kleet didn't seem to notice. Then Kleets' own cup of cocoa exploded in his face. The jock yelped, trying to scrub the hot liquid and whipped cream off his face as he ran to the bathroom. The lights returned to normal.
The gang all blinked before bursting out laughing.
"Nice one, dude!" Spencer said as he nudged Billy.
Billy blinked in confusion, "How did I do that…?"
"Who cares how?" Rajeev laughed, "It was awesome!"
When their laughter finally died down Spencer stood up. "Come on, I better make sure my camera is ok and get cleaned up."
They went upstairs to their rooms. Billy took the coat from Spencer to the bathroom and started to wash the stain out while Spencer checked his camera. Thankfully, it was still ok, the waterproof cover he had yet to take off did its job. Then he started going over the scenes he wanted to film tomorrow with Rajeev.
The wind outside began to pick up and snow began to fall. Spencer caught Billy staring out the window. Yet again that little voice in his mind began to bother him and wonder if something was out there.