Veronica had experienced her second embarrassing pledge ritual in the BCD, otherwise known as the Bikini Campus Dash. She hadn't known what to think when she had been texted to bring a swimsuit to the house. Of course now that she'd hosed off in the student center she had to admit that she was a bit out of shape, with all the muscles of her body aching she plopped down her tray and body while she waited for Mac. It seemed like they never saw each other anymore, maybe because she was no longer just down another corridor in the same hallway. They didn't have any of the same classes, and while Mac's dorm room was a hostile environment she would have to settle for the brief time their schedules allowed.
Mac soon joined her but she seemed very listless as she picked at the food on her plate. "Okay Mac, what's up. It's not like you to pick at your food." Veronica said as she popped another fry into her mouth, mentally reminding herself that if she wanted to be in shape, she'd better cut down on the crunchy delights.
"Veronica, this is probably an irrational stupid line of thought, but still I'm thinking it."
"What are you thinking Mac?" Veronica said, wondering if her friend was having some residual grief for Beaver.
"Are we eventually going to just stop being friends?" Mac said looking at her tray, not wanting to seem too vulnerable, yet unsure how to convey her actual thoughts to Veronica. They hardly spent any time together, and while they had never been glued at the hip, it seemed like they were shifting into two separate worlds.
"Mac, you are talking crazy. You're my best girlfriend, and I better be yours or I have to challenge someone to a duel." Veronica said, with a sarcastic, yet sincere smile. She was glad that it wasn't some talk about Cassidy Casablancas because she doubted that she could talk about the guy who had raped her and killed a bunch of their classmates and others the previous years.
"I'm sorry, I'm just worried that you're going back to old Veronica, and I don't think me and old Veronica would have ever been friends."
Veronica frowned as she traveled down the same line of thought that Mac must have been in recent times. She agreed that the two of them probably would never have been friends, in fact if that dream she'd had about her not being friends with Wallace had been reality, it was even more of a certainty that she would not have been friends with Mac. Granted Lilly would be alive, but she had no desire to trade her current friends for some rose colored reality.
" It's true that you and old Veronica would have never become friends. She would have been much too boring for you to actually connect with. And our friendship, like most of mine lately, was built on mutual need, and it grew as we got to know each other's secrets. Frankly Mac, I can't go back to old Veronica, even if the people around me are starting to resemble her friends. They have to take me as I am, tragic past, with the computer geek and the baller for my best friends." Veronica said looking into Mac's eyes, she wouldn't trade Mac for her entire pledge class, and that was a fact. "Besides I would have to kill you before I stop being friends with you. You know far too many of my secrets."
"That I do, that I do." Mac said as she exchanged a knowing look with Veronica. She'd never really had friends that weren't virtual before Veronica, and she was glad she wasn't losing her.
"Now let's go do something fun, like Wireless Fishing!" Veronica said with a mischievous smile on her face.
"I'll go grab my laptop, so long as I can do a little firewall cracking. I heard they installed a new one at Neptune High." Mac said as she wiggled her eyebrows.
"Mackenzie you are a wild one!" Veronica said as she shoved her last fry into her mouth.
'I need your help, can I meet you somewhere?' appeared on Veronica's phone , and obviously the message itself was not the problem, but Veronica was shocked at the name on the screen of her cell phone. It was Jessica from her pledge class, a girl who seemed so obsessed with impressing the sisters that she was starting to alienate the rest of the pledge class. Kim had already said some disparaging remarks about not being sure if she could get through the pledge process much less being sisters with someone who had such a brown nose. Which was why Veronica considered ignoring the text, especially since this was the time she was supposed to be hanging out with Mac, who she was making progress with, to say the least. Still Jessica was a sister in trouble and that mattered more than her feelings towards her sometimes better than thou route.
"Mac, do you mind? One of my pledge class is having a crisis, and I'm still very much so that Veronica Mars." Veronica said as she looked at Mac who had been having fun hacking through another town firewall.
"Sure Veronica, it's not a problem, I already figured out remote access, so I'll finish this back in the lab." Mac smiled, much more at ease than she was before their earlier conversation, and that's just how Veronica liked to see her friends.
"Thanks, I'll tell her to meet me on campus." Veronica said as she revved up her engine. She wasn't sure what would face her once she met Jessica, but she just hoped that it was at least interesting, and did not involved a dead body, or that she was the latest victim of the Hurst Rapist.
Back again in the commons, Veronica was greeted by a very anxious looking pledge sister, and so she would try to curb her snarky, at least until the panic mode was off.
"What can I do for you Jessica?" Veronica said reviving her helpful nature, rather than the cold indifference she usually had towards Jessica.
"It's true that you work as a private investigator?"Jessica seemed desperate for that to be true. Making Veronica wonder what exactly had happened.
"Yes, I work with my dad, haven't taken my exam yet though. What's wrong?" Veronica said taking a seat next to Jessica, watching as the other girl's shoulders slumped a little less.
"It's my pledge book, it's missing." Jessica said and suddenly the geyser exploded, and the tears started flowing.
"What do you mean missing?" Veronica was surprised that Jessica would ever let it out of her sight, much less misplace it.
"I put it in my bag this morning, did the bikini dash, went to the library, got my homework done, then when I went to pack up I realized that it was missing." Said as her face twisted as she relived her memory.
"And you're absolutely sure that you put it into your bag. It's not in your room somewhere?"
"I practically ran to my room and tore it apart, but there was absolutely no sign of my book. I don't know what happened to it. I never even left my bag alone today."
"Well let's check in with the rest of the class to make sure that no one else was targeted. I won't mention your name. I'll just send a mass text, make them think that they are doing random pledge book checks." Veronica said as she pulled out her cell phone and started to set up the phone so that they could check in with the rest of the class. While they waited Veronica walked her back through her day, making a small joke about Jessica had at least looked good in her bikini. Soon the answers came in, and it seemed that no one else in the class was missing their pledge book. Of course, then the text that said that they were expected to be at the house at 9pm, giving them just 6 hours to find Jessica's pledge book.
"What am I going to do Veronica? Either I confess and get kicked out, or I lie and still get punished, possibly with the rest of the pledge class." Jessica said as her tears flowed down her cheeks.
"So did anyone you know bump into you today? And I mean hard, hard enough so that you'd drop your books and bags." Veronica had done that maneauver so many times she knew that it was often the standby when you wanted to get something from someone else. She also knew that unless her wallet or maybe some expensive electronic was stolen, it was most likely not a stranger who had taken the book.
"I don't think so. It could have happened on the way to the library, but I'm pretty sure all I remember from that walk was the wolf calls and recants of how hot I looked in my bikini." Jessica said as she rolled her eyes . Veronica tried to empathize with her, but she didn't have those obnoxious wolf calls after Logan had punched that guy during their first pledge week. The boyfriend accessory came in handy when dealing with the college male species.
"Okay then, who would want you to not continue pledging Theta Beta?" Veronica asked the question that she had been thinking since she had first heard that Jessica's pledge book was missing. Since the information in the book wouldn't cause a big scandal if released to the public, she was sure that no one had gone after it so that they could expose Theta Beta secrets. Given that the rest of the pledge class hadn't been targeted, it seemed that it was personal to Jessica.
"You mean besides our whole pledge class?" Jessica boldly stated, giving Veronica a look that said that she knew what the other girls thought of her.
"Yeah besides us, uh sorry about that."
"It's fine, I can be a bit, uh, over eager about being a Theta Beta." Jessica said making an awkward face.
"So anyone else, someone who you also saw today?" Veronica said, suddenly finding herself more eager to find the book, making herself one less theta beta pledge who wanted to see Jessica go.
"Well there is my sister…" Jessica said, seeming like she wanted it to be anyone else but her sister. But anyone who could get close to her and wanted her to not be a Theta Beta, was a likely suspect.
"Okay, let's go see your sister." Veronica said deciding that time was ticking, and any lead was a good lead at this point.
It turned out that Jessica's sister was a senior who had once been a Theta Beta herself, but had been forced to be inactive after what was called 'disorderly conduct' when she had been caught in a lewd position in a campus building. Ever since then she'd hated anything that was to do with Theta Beta, including her freshmen sister who was now pledging the sorority. Now as they drove to her off campus apartment, Jessica seemed to not look forward to the upcoming confrontation.
"We were never close, and since I started pledging, it's pretty chilly in siblingville." Jessica said as they knocked on the door of her sister's place.
"What?" Said a girl who Veronica had assumed was Jessica's sister roommate. While they both had brown hair, the similarities stopped there. Jessica was usually dressed on the more conservative side, while this girl wore a tight top and lots of makeup. Her hair had bleach blonde streaks in it, and she was on the petite side, while Jessica had a natural honey tone to her own hair, and stood at about 5'10.
"Katie, um, can we come in?" Jessica said awkwardly as she stood beside Veronica, somehow avoiding eye contact with the other woman.
"Whatever, lil sis, you've already invaded my world, why not my place." The other girl said as she stood aside so that they could come into the small apartment.
"You look a little shocked, did my sister not tell you that she was adopted?" Katie sneered at Veronica. Veronica was indeed shocked, but now the explanation made sense at how the two girls could be so different and be siblings. "Let me guess, from that pin on your shirt, you're another one of those Stepford Sisters? Bad enough I have to have one worm in my apartment but two? To what do I owe the pleasure?"
"Well, you see Katie, um…" Jessica stammered, and Veronica felt for her, and could see why Jessica would want to be sisters with anyone else besides this woman who obviously loathed her.
"Your sister is missing something, and we were wondering that when you saw her earlier if you 'accidently' walked off with it." Veronica said, not intimidated by Katie, hadn't she afterall been alone in an elevator with the late Aaron Echolls, the unconvicted murderer of her best friend, who had already once attempted to murder Veronica. Compared to him, Katie might as well be a fluffy bunny rabbit.
"As if I'd want anything Jessie here has. What happened, little Ms. Perfect lose her pledge book? That would be so rich, hope I'm there when you tell my mother!" Katie hooted, glad when she heard Jessica gasp, knowing that she had guessed right. Veronica could tell that they would not be winning any sibling awards any time soon.
"And you're sure that you don't have it. Jessica here thinks that you would not want her to be a Theta Beta." Veronica said while she scanned the place for any sign of a recent concealment of a book the size of a binder.
"Yeah right, I don't want anyone to be a Theta Beta, but if the house catches on fire. Make sure I'm the first on your suspect list. Besides little Ms. Perfect shouldn't even be a Theta Beta. So if you don't mind, I was just about to go out."
Jessica jumped up, but Veronica slowly rose, gave the place one last sweeping glance before making her way to the door. "By the way, if you hate the Theta Betas so much, why do you still have your pledge book on the shelf?" Veronica said, receiving one last sneer and the door slamming behind her.
Jessica's shoulders slumped as she walked back to Veronica's SUV. She always hated encounters with her sister, though it was interesting that Katie still had her pledge book. "My sister's a real joy, right?"
"Oh absolutely, we must do tea with her sometime soon." Veronica said as she too climbed in, put on her seatbelt and started up the engine.
"She's right though, I'm not supposed to be a Theta Beta…"Jessica said, causing Veronica to look over at her as she pulled out into the street headed towards campus.
"What do you mean, are you secretly a guy?" Veronica said as tried to lighten the heavy mood Jessica was in.
"No, but I got bidded as a legacy, when I wasn't born a legacy. My mother is on the national board, but after what my sister did, she must of pulled a lot of strings to get me that bid. I don't want to disappoint her too. That's why I try so hard, because I don't want them to think they made a mistake." Jessica said as she looked down at her hands, feeling like she had failed to prove to them that she was a worthy sister.
"Hey , there's nothing wrong with being a legacy, just means that you have more scoop to the process." Veronica said, but then she remembered something else that she had heard about legacies, something that made her think that she might know who had taken Jessica's pledge book. Normally she was right about these things, but she had to do this part alone.
"Well Veronica, I guess I'll go turn in my pin, it was nice knowing you, good luck with the rest of process." Jessica said as she climbed out, wearing a forced smile.
"Wait Jessica, promise me you won't do anything until 9 okay." Veronica needed to check out the her hunch first.
"Um, sure, who doesn't like an audience…"Jessica said pulling a face.
"Trust me on this, we are going to wearing those crazy teal dresses together okay?" Veronica said, knowing that maybe this was the first time she really had felt like a sister in this process, because despite their differences, she wanted to really help Jessica out, and to keep getting to know her better. Everyone had a story to tell, sometimes it was just buried under more fluff than others.
Pulling out her cellphone she hit a familiar speed dial button and waited for it to be picked up. "Hey Mac, you still near your computer?" Said though she figured Mac would be.
" But of course, what can I do for you?"Mac said with a smile, she loved when Veronica gave her something to play with, even if she never told Veronica that.
"I need you to 'look' something up for me…"
Veronica arrived earlier than usual to the house, and was not surprised to see that Jessica too was anxiously awaiting her fate. Veronica put on a smile and strode over to Jessica, glad that her hunch had played out.
"Here, I believe you 'misplaced' this." She said as she covertly handed Jessica back her pledge book.
"Oh thank you Veronica, thank you!" Jessica said wrapping Veronica in a close hug. Veronica was surprised at first but eventually returned the squeeze. "Where did you find it."
"Let's just say I played a hunch, and the odds were in my favor. Speaking of favor, I had a friend look into it. Adopted children of Theta Betas cannot be accepted as legacies, board members or not. They actually chose to give you a bid. They already like you, no need to kiss up. And to tell you the truth, they aren't the only ones who like you." Veronica said, and they exchanged another hug and smile.
Veronica watched as the other pledges came in the door waiting for one in particular to show up. As one came in there was a certain amount of shock that played over the face as she saw that Jessica was smiling waiting for their next instructions.
"Kim can I speak to you for a minute?" Veronica said, as they moved into the desserted kitchen."
"So I was wondering if Jessica's sister didn't take her pledge book who would wanted her to not be a Theta Beta even more. Then I remember someone saying that she hated legacies. That she wished that she could make it a way so we didn't even have to deal with them. I also remember someone who is on the school's cross country team, and made it back to the house and had toweled off and was in her sweats long before most of us made it back to the house, and our pledge books. I also noticed this same someone had a shocked expression on her face when she saw that Jessica was smiling tonight, instead of being in a dreaded state over her pledge book." Veronica said she pointedly looked at Kim, waiting to see how she would react to the confrontation.
"So what now Veronica? Did my roommate let you in so that you could retrieve Jessica's pledge book? Are you going to tell the sisters what I did?"Kim's face was unreadable, only showing that she wanted to know what Veronica knew.
"Roommate, RA, same thing really. They really don't know the faces all too well in the halls yet. And no I'm not going to tell, because I'm trying this new thing where I trust that people aren't always going to disappoint me despite the obvious." Veronica said as she turned back towards the room where the pledges were gathered. "By the way, Jessica's adopted, she wasn't accepted as a legacy, even if you were." Veronica said as she walked out of the door.
Veronica went into the living room where there were sixteen bags with each girls name on it, waiting to be open. Soon everyone was in the room and Debra and the anchors were now standing in the room. "Good evening Cocoons, tonight is a night all about family, specifically about your sister moms. If you have been studying family history and unlocking the secrets in your quilts, this will be easy. If not the anchor sisters are here to answer only your yes and no questions. Your moms are waiting for their daughters, so they have goodies, fun and secrets waiting with them. Grab the bag with your name on it, and let the quest begin…"
Note: I know, I know. But it's life, and we all have to deal with it. Apparently anger unlocks muse though, who would have thunk. I'm excited to write the next chapter. Please review.