"We will be landing in just a few minutes," the captain said over the loudspeaker

"We will be landing in just a few minutes," the captain said over the loudspeaker. "The current time is 1:40 PM, and the temperature is a chilly 27 degrees."

Heather was almost bouncing in her seat with excitement. So were most of her friends. She went to a private school, so there weren't nearly as many kids there as a public school. To go on the skiing trip you had to have a B average in all of your classes. Several of her friends had to stay behind, but there were still half a dozen members of the "in" clique there. The best part was that Daniel wasn't going to be there. She was really on her own for the first time. This was fabulous!

"Just wait until you see the ski instructors!" Nina said. "They are *fine*!"

"I thought you said you knew how to ski," Beth teased.

"Yeah, but they don't know that," Nina said back. She put her hand on her head dramatically. "Oh no, I fell again, please pick me up and give me some very close instructions!" She illustrated with a little seated bump and grind that had them all screaming with laughter.

"Yeah, the boys here are planning to sneak in our rooms," Heather said confidentially. "We'll have to put up the 'so sorry, had to party' signs while we're with the real men!" The other girls laughed again. There were a couple of "right on sister!" from some of the others. If Heather said there was going to be a party, chances were, there was going to be a par-tay. She could sneak out of anywhere and not get caught, especially at night. At summer camp she never needed a flashlight, and could run through the woods without making any noise. Her ability to not get caught would make her annoying if she wasn't so much fun.

They landed and got their luggage, a group of teens laughing and playing, determined to suck out every bit of fun they could during this weekend of freedom. There were several teachers there, and three kids had the misfortune of their parents being chaperones, but the rest were going to make this the best ski trip ever in the history of all school skiing trips.

"All right girls, get your things and get on the bus," Ms. Miller said. She was the youngest chaperone there at twenty-eight, and she was pretty, but she was always all business. She'd had just started teaching gym at Haywood Academy this year, so she was hard to read if she'd be fun on this trip or not. None of the girls' thought that she'd even for a second contemplated having some fun in a steam room with some strapping muscular skiing instructor. It was speculated that she was on the all-girls team, but Heather didn't think so. She just seemed a little guarded. Whatever. Didn't matter. Heather wasn't going to let her get in the way of serious fun.

From two different points in the airport two different men were watching the herd of kids, both of them focused on the lovely redhead at the center of a group of girls. She didn't notice either of them. They both watched her get her luggage and board the bus to the ski lodge. Neither man noticed the other as they both left a few minutes after she did, each man intent on his own agenda.

Heather had made plenty of remarks about picking up an instructor, but she was really more intent on Jonathan Hamilton. He was so adorable, and she was pretty sure he liked her too. He was on the shy side, and really reminded her more of Uncle Logan than anyone else. She had seen him looking at her more than once, and was so frustrated that he wouldn't ask her out. She was dying to say yes. Well, she'd said she didn't know how to ski, and then he "casually" mentioned that he'd been skiing a thousand times when he knew she could hear it. That was a signal!

In the general confusion to get on the bus, somehow she accidentally ended up sitting next to him. Oh darn the luck. She smiled at him, and he smiled back. In a small school, everyone knows everyone in a general sort of way.

"I'm a little nervous about being up on the slopes," she said after a little while. "I'd hate to fall and break my leg or something." Okay, she'd thrown out the hook, and it was baited.

"It's not hard," he said, blushing a little. One of the prettiest girls at school was smiling and talking to him! Actually he thought she was the prettiest by far. "I go with my uncle to his place in Park City, Utah and we ski there. It's a lot of fun actually."

"I'm probably going to kill myself on the bunny slopes," she said, trying to look a little morose. Come on and bite! "I guess I'm going to have to get an instructor and waste half of the day waiting for my appointment." She sighed.

"Well, if you want, I mean you're coordinated, you know from gymnastics so it shouldn't be hard to…" he was blushing beet red at showing he knew her schedule that well. He'd started, he might as well finish. "I could get you started. Before I go to the advanced slopes," he finished quickly, trying to reassert his teenage masculinity.

"Well, I suppose that would be a help. You wouldn't mind?" she asked, playing it cool. Time to boat this bass. "I really want to get up there. I've heard it's so much fun."

He smiled wider at her, his blush diminishing. She did want him around. He was going to be THE envy of every other guy there tonight. Even some of the seniors had been checking Heather out. "It wouldn't be a bother at all," he replied. "Why don't we meet at the lift right after breakfast," he suggested.

"Sounds good to me," she replied, grateful her mother and her had gotten her some new clothes. When you wear a uniform to school, clothes aren't the highest priority, but they had gotten her a new skiing outfit, and some other nicer things. She knew she looked great in them. There was this black leather skirt and vest combination with a long-sleeve blouse. Maybe she'd wear that when they went to dinner together the next night.

The got to the lodge and got into their rooms. They unpacked, the three girls Heather was sharing with all giggling about her "date" the next day. "I never thought you'd ever get him to ask you out!" Madison exclaimed.

"Yeah," Nina agreed. "You are the queen!" They'd all wanted to be asked out by Jonathan. He wasn't Mr. Popularity, but he was so hot, and they all thought he'd be the type to write romantic poetry and leave a rose at your locker.

After exploring the place, and getting dinner the four girls ended up staying up late into the night, going over what Heather would be wearing, and how she would do her hair and makeup. She was so excited. Of course Dad would give him the third degree when he met him, but she just knew Jonathan was the type to survive that. He was so sweet and sensitive. One by one the other girls fell asleep, but Heather was too keyed up to make herself sleep. Not that she needed much anyways. A few hours every couple of days was plenty for her.

She finally decided to go for a walk. It was almost three in the morning, so nobody should be around. She just needed to work off some excess energy. They weren't supposed to get up until six, so she'd be back in plenty of time before they got up. She was bored just lying here pretending to be sleeping anyways. She got dressed in the dark, not needed any light anyways.

She went outside. It was cold, but she wasn't freezing. She'd inherited her parents' ability to tolerate extreme temperatures. Not that she'd want to be running around out here in shorts, but in a heavy coat and thick pants with boots and a ski cap she was comfortable. She slipped away from the lodge, and walked the grounds a little. She looked at the sky, naming the constellations blazing from above.

The lodge was nestled in a wooded area. Forest surrounded it rather cozily, and the mountains were practically right in the backyard. She went to the edge of the forest and leaned against a tree. It was a pretty little place. Maybe she could convince her parents to come up here. Of course, of things went well, maybe they'd let her bring along a special guest. That would rock.

She was about to go back when she heard voices in the woods. Had someone snuck out? Oh this was too much! She listened closely. They were a distance away, and only her enhanced hearing could pick up on the whispers. No, they weren't in her group; to be honest they sounded British. "The girl is in room 317," a man said. That was her room. "Tranquilize her immediately. Be very cautious and do not try to take her on one-on-one. We do not know the extent of her abilities. Remember, we must have a live capture. Understood?"

"Understood!" she heard several other British voices agree.

Oh my God, she thought. I have to call home. I have to get my parents. Her racing heart came to a crashing halt when a strong hand grabbed her shoulder and spun her around.