AN: Drum: Gasp!? Whats that sound..can it...be...an...UPDATE!? OH MY LORD IT IS! Parry wrote must of this chapter, but I did fill in some parts. Hope you all enjoy it.-----------

Chapter 8

"All I'm saying is that he—"

"Look, Viggo, I know you're just jealous and I understand," Allegra said hastily as she leaned over and snatched her beanie Viggo had been holding, nervously fingering the hemming. "But you know...Jean is a really nice guy once you get to know him..." 

Viggo frowned and bit the inside of his lip. He had heard her sing this tune once before.... 

Allegra continued collecting some of her snowboarding gear that littered her room as she briskly walked past Viggo, pulling on a couple wrist bands and grabbing a stray pair of goggles. "He really cares about me, unlike some other guys I've met." 

Viggo snorted involuntarily, "Oh really? Isn't that exactly what you said about Ryan?" 

Immediately after he had spoken those words he regretted it. He gasped, his eyes glancing anxiously from Allegra's back down to the floor, his heart hammering inside his chest. 

Allegra froze where she was and swirled around, fire burning in her eyes, "Viggo, I don't know what's gotten into you this season, but you're being a real jerk!" she hissed, storming out of the room and slamming the door shut, leaving Viggo standing alone beside her bed clutching one of her barrettes. His eyes were shining with such sorrow, his heart racing. What was he going to do now? JP had her now...and the worst part was that she liked him... 

Meanwhile, Allegra sighed and leaned against the door, her eyes closed as she tried to think clearly. Had she just yelled at Viggo? One of her best friends? Allegra frowned and ran an exhausted hand through her hair. But he was right...her relationship with Ryan was somewhat forced and also very brief... 

But... 

Allegra shook her head. No. Jean was different. He liked—loved, possibly—her. He cared for her. That's what mattered in relationships, right? 

 Eddie frowned as he folded his arms over his chest, eyeing Elise wearily. She was focused completely on her M-Comm, watching the Big Air competition intently. 

"Elise?" 

"Huh?" Elise asked absentmindedly, her shades slipping down the bridge of her nose as she watched footage of Nate's fall. "Oh, no..." 

Eddie bit his lip, silently debating whether this was the perfect time. "Elise..." he said quietly, unfolding his arms and running a hand through his afro as he stepped towards the Canadian, "I was just wondering if maybe you'd like to check out some of the cafés in Metro City? I heard there's this really nice one by—" 

"Yeah..." Elise nodded inattentively, "Yeah...that'd be great, Edster..." 

Eddie beamed, his heart lightening a bit. Maybe things would be different this year...maybe fate had let him have a second chance... 

"Eddie-chan!"  

Eddie swirled around and found himself nose to nose with a young Japanese girl, her eyes shining and cheeks glowing. He shouted out in surprise and stumbled back, his hand grabbing onto the first thing he could reach.... 

Elise's boob. 

"EDDIE!" Elise bellowed, her eyes flaming, "WHAT IS YOUR PROBLEM?" 

Psymon looked up from his board and smirked as he watched Elise explode at Eddie, who cowered in terror before her. For once, she wasn't yelling at him.... 

"I'm trying to watch the Big Air before we start this Slopestyle! Can't you see? Atomika is up next!!" Elise growled, her teeth bared, "Look, Ed, you're my friend and all...but I just want to see this! Two seconds! Two goddamn seconds!" 

Eddie nodded shakily and retreated back to his board, trying his best to ignore the glare Elise was giving him. He could practically feel the hatred... 

"Hey," Psymon said under his breath, "Don't you know Elise never allows any boobie touching unless she's drunk? Be a little patient, tiger. Green light on ass grabbing, though. I think she likes that." Psymon laughed and winked, Elise deaf to his voice. 

Eddie didn't respond, he only hung his head low and continued stretching, half of his heart breaking into particles. 

"Eddie-chan?" Kaori approached him cautiously, unaware of the damage she had just caused, "Are you alright, Eddie?" 

"Just...fine..." Eddie said dully, his hand slipping on a visor comfortably on his afro, keeping his hair out of his face, "Just peachy..." 

Kaori put a hand on his shoulder and frowned, "I am sorry if I caused any trouble, Eddie." 

"No trouble at all." 

"Ohmigod!" Elise shrieked, "Atomika's next! Atomika's next! Atomika is going next!" 

Psymon snorted, "That punk? The day he shatters my old record is the day hell will freeze over." 

"Be quiet!" Elise hissed, "Atomika's taking over the slopes!!"  

Atomika beamed as he finished buckling on his board and approached the gates, his heart pouding wildly. He had no idea how demanding a crowd could be... 

The pressure was brutal... 

He glanced over his shoulder and saluted to Mac, his confidence steadily rising as the fellow DJ grinned and did the same. Determined to rank among the best, Atomika fit on his goggles and strapped on his gloves. He raised his hand to the crowd in appreciation for all their support, who roared with excitement, anxious to see the newbie prove his worth. 

Atomika tensed up and exhaled slowly as his arms pumped on the side bars, as if launching himself into the course. He watched the lights above intently, waiting for them to turn green. 

"Ready..." Atomika whispered under his breath, the sweat on his brow running down his face, "I'm ready now..." 

"ATOMIKA!" Mac bellowed, cupping his hands around to emphasize the newbie's name, "Show 'em what you got!" 

Atomika grinned broadly and nodded in Mac's direction to show his appreciation, but turned his attention back to the lights. The signal came suddenly and caught him off guard, but Atomika proceeded down the course as he cursed quietly. His speed steadily increased as he neared two ramps, quickly deciding that the smaller ramp may prove more rewarding. He knew most of these courses like that back of his hand and realized looks can be deceiving. He didn't want to take any chances on this, however. This was the real deal. 

He flew into the air, kicking his board back and doing a meager back flip while throwing his body weight to the left. In mid-air, he caught glimpse of a tunnel high above, carved into the mountain. Making his decision, Atomika went for it, kicking his board back into position and throwing himself towards it in a desperate attempt to reach the small opening... 

Surely that would rank up some points... 

His board touched the icy paved tunnel and suddenly, it was as if his ears had just ripped open. The crowd screamed in praise, Atomika's name chanted over in over again. Atomika smirked.  

Yes. He deserved this. He deserved some glory. He deserved a piece of that pie. He sped along the narrow tunnel, his knees bending as he approached the end, taking a deep breath as he prepared to take off...  

"Ohmigod! Ohmigod! Atomika's got it nailed!" Elise screamed, "Atomika could win this!" 

"Nani?" Kaori blinked and flipped out her M-comm as Eddie only rolled his eyes and continued stretching, trying his best to ignore Elise's cried of admiration as she hovered over her own M-comm. 

Psymon had long been spectating Eddie's predicament, realizing afro-boy had a school boy crush on the flirt. He chuckled as he slapped his hand on Eddie's back, who recoiled in fear.  

"Hey, hey!" Psymon said happily, "No worries! I just see that jealous look in your eyes...that's all." 

Eddie pulled away and grumbled something quietly. 

Psymon let out a laugh, "Ah...intimidation is such a great weapon..." 

"ATOMIKA WON!" Elise's cried of joy drowned out Eddie's cursing a million to one. 

The event was over, even though Atomika had one, Mac still found time to flaunt his second place win at Yuri, who took third.  

"Don't be sore just cause you can't touch my score!" Mac retorted, throwing his goggles onto the snow and approaching Yuri. 

Yuri glared at him and threw her snowboard down, their eyes locked. Griff folded his arms across his chest and glanced nervously at Nate, who shrugged. "You don't know the half of it, Mac!" 

"Aw, don't be sad cause you don't got skills!" 

"SHUT UP! JUST SHUT THE HELL UP!" Zoe roared. "You cause nothing but trouble! All you newbies! You don't do anything right, and most of you newbies are just little kids!" She grabbed Yuri's wrist, and jerked her away from Mac in an effort to separate the two. 

Immediately, Griff hurled himself at Zoe, who let go of Yuri's wrist in surprise. Yuri stumbled backwards into Mac, who shoved her away from him in disgust. 

"Keep off me!" 

Yuri reached back, her hand open as she slapped Mac in the face, whose left cheek began pulsing with fire. On instinct, Mac gripped Yuri's wrist and wrenched her forward, his face mere centimeters away from hers. 

"You touch me again, I'll be damned if you live to see another day." 

Zoe threw Griff off of herself in defense and prepared to lunge at him, but felt someone's stiff arms grip her shoulders and hold her back. She glanced upwards, prepared to launch a verbal assault upon the intruder, but instead bit her tongue. 

Drum. 

He was frowning somewhat, his eyes narrowed. 

"What's gotten into you?" Drum asked hesitantly, weary of any sparks he might start, "Did...did something happen between you and Moby? Was—" 

"Why don't you just mind your own goddamn business and quit rubbing your nose into mine?" Zoe hissed as she jerked away and left, walking briskly towards the lift with her snowboard under her arm. Drum watched as Atomika approached her, grinning broadly. Zoe merely stepped to the side and ignored him, who stared at her in horror as if he had just been slapped in the face. He turned round and waved at Drum, motioning towards Zoe. Drum only shrugged, not very keen onto answering any questions. 

"Hey, punk!" 

Drum looked down and raised an eyebrow when he saw Griff staring up at him, his nose scrunched up and his eyes narrowed.  

"I could've handled it! I had it under control, man!" 

"Griff!" Yuri yelled, the snow crunching under her as she padded up behind him.

"Calm yourself down, Im pretty sure he didnt mean any harm, Geez" she took his hand in hers, which seemed to instantly calm him down. Yuri motioned Griff to return to the lift, she took one more look at Drum, who still didnt change the expression on his face and shook her head, she knew it would of been pointless to ask questions now. That, however didnt stop Mac.

"Yo, D!" Mac yelled, trotting up behind him and slapping him on the shoulder.

"D?" Mac said again, "You okay?"

Drum shook out of his semi-trance and looked down at Mac, and nodded, heading towards the lift. Mac followed, his board under his arm.

"I cant belive Atomika beat me, seems he was practicing." Mac tried to strike up a conversation, Drum just nodded.

"Yo...You sure you okay, man?" Mac asked again, something about Drum was bothering him.

"Im fine, really. Just sort of...I dont know...confused." He finally confessed, shaking his dreads out of his face as he sat down. Mac sat across from him, thinking.

"Its about Zoe and Moby isnt it?", Mac mumbled."

Drum jumped at his accuracy, and nodded. For some reason he seemed to trust Mac.

Mac nodded.

"You can tell me anything, D. Whats on your mind?" Mac said again, in a serious tone.

Drum nodded and sighed.

"I think thier break up was my fault, I mean...the night it happened Moby came up to Happiness and tried to take my head off, saying that Zoe was fed up with newbies, and she took her anger out on him."

Mac's eyes widened. "Wait wait wait, Moby told you that!?...Dude, I was there. She dropped Moby beacuse he was moving too fast, she didnt even mention your name."

Drum blinked, unsure of what he just heard.

"So...what would Moby blow up at me then?...Better yet..why would Zoe blow up at me?"

Mac chuckled.

"I almost forget that I am talking to a newbie, Moby never likes to blame himself...and I think Zoe is just hurt, I mean...she and Moby have been buds since the first season" Mac nodded again.

"Don't even think about it, man. Just enjoy your time here." Mac added as the lift landed, everyone was outside, cheering for Atomika.

Drum stepped out, only to hear Moby's voice ringing over the crowd.

"Its it me, or did that lift get alot lighta!?" Moby yelled, laughing.

Elise rolled her eyes, and kept her arms around Atomika, she gave him a small peck on the cheek as Eddie walked back into the lodge, pulling his goggles down over his eyes.

"Can't you lay off of him for just one damn day?" Zoe grumbled, holding her head. That was the first time she spoke to Moby since thier falling out.

"I agree with the lady" Drum added, walking passed Moby.

"No one asked your opinion" Zoe snapped at Drum, causing him to stop.

Everyone fell silent, everyone watched the three of them.

"What the hell did I do to you? OR you?" Drum asked harshly, starring at the both of them.

Moby grinned.

"You just moved in on my turf, mate."

Zoe said nothing, she just shrugged.

"I dont have time to deal with you right now." Zoe began to walk away, but Drum called out behind her.

"And why exactly is that!? Just beacuse Im new that means im not worth your respect?" Drum yelled, obviously getting frusterated.

"Thats EXACTLY what it means, Tubby." Moby snorted, bumping his shoulder into Drum.

"Now why don't you go back inside? Im pretty sure the fridge is missin its best friend." Moby smiled again, this time poking Drum's stomach.

Drum lost it, he balled his fist and swung at Moby's head, hitting dead on. Moby slumped back into the snow, quickly getting to his feet, a purple bump beginning to form.

"HOLY SHIT!" Psymon yelled. Nate, Atomika, and Mac ran towards Drum, trying to restrain him, meanwhile a cackling Psymon held Moby back.

Drum almost flung the three of them off before he heard the blow of a whistle. Rahzel stood, whistle hanging from his mouth, the expression on his face showed he was not happy at all.

"WILLIAMS, JONES! WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE!?" Rahzel howled, looking at the group.

"That bloody fatass punched me for no reason!" Moby yelled, still holding his face.

Yuri and Kaori jumped.

"He DID have reason, you should of never started it Moby!" Yuri yellled, taking Drum's side.

"Oi, I didnt throw a single punch, did I?" Moby grunted, everyone fell silent, as much as they knew he deserved it, Moby was right, he never did hit Drum.

"Is this true.....Elise?" Rahzel turned to Elise, he figured if anyone was going to tell the truth, it was going to be her.

Elise just nodded.

"In that case..." Rahzel sighed, pulling out his clipboard.

"Drum, you are suspended from your next race." He spoke coldly, this was routine for him now.

Drum jumped, "WHAT!? BUT I HAD THIRD PLACE!"

Rahzel shook his head, "Not anymore you don't, you are stripped of your rank, and it will go to the runner up, Kaori." Rahzel tipped his head at her.

"Oh this is just bullshit!" Drum groaned, stomping back into the Lodge, ever stood for awhile until Psymon broke the silence.

"That was a nice punch" he snickered, letting go of Moby.

"Yeah, it might of been, but the bloke had it commin, he cost me the place I had in my race, so I cost him his, it coms full circle" Moby grinned.

Inside the lodge, Drum took off towards his room, almost tripping over Viggo who sat against the wall in the hallway, Allegra's dogtags in his hand, his hair a mess, and his face unshaven.

"S-Sorry" Drum muttered, and headed into his room, slamming the door. Viggo didnt look up, he just sat against his room door, inside he could hear JP's voice, and little spurts of Allegra's they were both speaking in french, laughing loudly at eachothers jokes. Viggo held his head, if Allegra really did love JP...he didnt know what he would do...

-------

AN: Drum: There ya go!? Are you happy now? Well, here is some more news for you.

The original "SSX: Snow Gods" was an idea by me, it was originally going to be a whopping 30 chapters, but I really didnt want to make it that big, so you all get this.

"The Snow Gods Trilogy".

Notice how this stories name has changed? That is just stating that this is the first part of this three part series. In later additions expect some romance, some action, some more fighting, some tear jerking moments, and even a hint of lemon!. I hope you all stick around and read this trilogy, we wont take as long as we did to update next chapter. So dont worry!

Also, for you SoS(Sounds of the Snow) fans, Psymon's SOS will be updated by the weekend. Hurrah!!

You know the drill, read and review.