A/N: Hi Everyone! We're glad you stopped by and decided to check out our 'little' holiday story (ie 150k words written in three months). Here is how this happened: "hey have you ever read a story where Veronica is an Echolls and Logan is a Mars?" "No but I like it" "me too" "it could be at christmas" "Think we can write it by then?" "sure". What Bondo and KMD discovered - we're crazy, LOL! Our personal favorite was "it could be short" HAHA! So without further ado, here is where that little conversation took us.

Chapter 1: On the first day of Christmas, my father gave to me...a brand new school far away from his infidelity

Early December 2004

Veronica sat on the cool flagstone patio that surrounded the pool of the Echolls' Hollywood Hills estate. Her room was packed and all that was left was for her to stay out of the way of the movers and her dad—

"Veronica, honey, come back inside," Veronica's once beautiful and now overly 'improved' mother called.

Veronica stood slowly and made her way back into the house. Should have gone to the pool house, she thought as she trudged up to her mother.

"Don't look so glum, sugarplum." Lynn pinched her cheek. "You'll like Neptune; you used to love spending summers there when you were little. Think about it—you can be whomever you want to be in a new town."

"I'll still be the daughter of the illustrious Lynn and Aaron Echolls," Veronica replied, sullen. "That's all anyone cares about, anyway."

"Oh, honey, I know it's been rough. Maybe Neptune will be different; it's not far, but it's a whole other world once you get outside the LA bubble. And you aren't a little kid anymore."

"Wasn't that the problem?" Veronica replied, bitterness lacing her words.

Her mother's expression faltered before she continued, "Maybe you'll make friends who'll get to know you for you; it's a normal public school with boys," Lynn smiled conspiratorially, leaned in close and whispered, "And your father will still be here in the city most of the time."

Veronica smiled for the first time in days. Yes, he would be. Maybe I can finally have some room to breathe.

"How about you and I get out of here? The last few weeks have been rough. I think make-overs might be just what we both need." Lynn wrapped an arm around Veronica's shoulders.

Veronica twirled a length of her long blonde hair around her finger. A change sounds just right.

"Thanks, Mom. You just made my day."

Friday, December 3rd

When Veronica entered the lot of Neptune High, she was surprised when she passed a collection of motorcycles and beat up rice rockets that were at least ten years old. Well this is what you wanted isn't it, Veronica? To be far away from LA and its snotty private schools? That wasn't to say that Neptune was poor, exactly. She just wasn't used to mingling with people of different socioeconomic backgrounds at school. A town without a middle class. What a concept.

Veronica parked her brand new, bright yellow BMW M3 convertible near the front of the lot next to a black Escalade and hopped out. Not sure which direction to walk in, she followed the sound of voices until she saw a crowd of people surrounding the flagpole.

Wow, people at this school really take the pledge of allegiance seriously, she thought as she pushed her way through the crowd amidst whispers of 'Who'd that guy rat out?' and 'The biker gang'. When she got to the center of the crowd, she saw a young black man duct taped naked to the flagpole with 'SNICH' painted across his chest.

Who are these people? They can't even spell. "Isn't somebody going to cut him down?" she asked the blonde surfer who was currently taking a selfie while posed with the 'snich'.

"Yeah, I'll do it. I wanna be the guy up there tomorrow," was the surfer's sarcastic retort.

Veronica paused in shock for a moment, unsure of what to do or what she had gotten herself into. Did I move to Neptune, California or am I on planet Mars? Maybe I should have fought to stay in LA after all?

"Okay, everyone; step aside!" Veronica turned to see a tall brunette in an orange plaid shirt making his way through the crowd, an open pocket knife in his hand.

Veronica, still unsure of what to make of the situation, stayed rooted to the spot as the crowd began booing. Are we seriously going to have some kind of gang war right here on my first day?

The brunette gave her a once over, sizing her up in a long look, before he stepped around her to cut the duct tape holding the 'snich' up. "Show's over, people. Feel free to carry on with your meaningless consumer-driven lives." The brunette kept his eyes on hers as he spoke, but she wasn't sure if he was talking to her or the crowd. He turned to the boy on the pole and spoke to him. "Wow, man. Capture The Flag isn't supposed to require adult supervision."

"Sorry to put you out, man. Where were you twenty minutes ago? Just cut me down already!"

The brunette turned back to her and raised his eyebrows expectantly, "Unless you know of something that will remove duct tape adhesive, I'd say you're dismissed. Mush!" He made a shooing motion with his hands.

Veronica flinched, unused to being spoken to in such a way. Usually people kissed her butt. She decided to respond in kind. "Yeah, I hope you manscaped properly. Brazilians are a bitch. I can recommend an aesthetician if you aren't happy with the results," Veronica called out as she took off toward what she hoped was the front office.

Before she reached the doors, she had a change of heart; she did know how to remove duct tape less painfully. She reached into her messenger bag and pulled out a small bottle of baby oil.

"Hey!" she called back to the guys, "Catch." She tossed the bottle at the tall brunette. "Let it sit for at least two minutes. It'll still hurt, but you know...less."

Not waiting for them to respond, Veronica picked up to a jog to get to the front office before the next bell rang.

Logan pulled his button-down off and handed it to Wallace. "At least it covers up the important parts. Do you have extra stuff in your gym locker?" Logan asked while guiding Wallace into the school through a less used side entrance.

"Yeah. I've got some sweats and stuff. Let's get this over with." Wallace sighed in resignation as they entered the locker room.

Logan held out the small bottle of baby oil. "I guess just…" he gestured to where the tape's edge was pulled away from Wallace's stomach.

"Right. She said two minutes. You don't think she'd give me something that would make it worse, do you?" Wallace asked, staring down at the tape with apprehension.

"How should I know? I don't know her." Logan shrugged his shoulders.

"Do you live under a rock, Mars? She's Aaron Echolls' daughter—dating Conner Larkin. Come on Logan, I've seen you watching Access Hollywood with my mom."

Logan felt blood rush to his cheeks...so maybe he had watched some bad celebrity gossip with Alicia, and maybe he did recognize Veronica Echolls. "Doesn't change a thing. So her dad's famous for making terrible movies and her mom did some good stuff when she was young. But that doesn't tell us anything about Veronica Echolls." He rolled the 'r' as he said her name. "In fact, I know less about her now than before. Why would a celebutante know anything about removing duct tape adhesive? And who carries around baby oil?"

"Dunno." Wallace grimaced and then pulled on a piece of tape. He jumped as a bit of tape pulled that apparently hadn't gotten enough oil on it. "But I definitely think you should ask her. Still hurts, but not too bad. Gimme some more of that stuff."

Logan handed back the bottle. "I'll leave you to it then."

Wallace waved Logan off as he poured more baby oil between his skin and the tape. Logan chuckled at the sight, and then left the locker room. This was turning out to be a pretty interesting day.

Veronica looked down at her schedule on her way to third period and groaned in disgust. Pre-calc? I got an 'A' in this last year, she thought as she slowly made her way into the classroom.

"Over here!" a perky blonde called as Veronica looked for a seat. Veronica checked over her shoulder to make sure the blonde wasn't gesturing to someone else. Nope. She's talking to me. She must be a fan...oh, goody! Veronica groaned inwardly and headed to the open seat the girl was pointing at.

"Veronica Echolls. I'm Lilly Kane. I'd heard you were here and was worried we wouldn't have any classes together since you're a grade lower, but here we are!" Lilly smiled brightly and leaned in, "Too bad it isn't a better class. Ugh, I'm only taking this because Vassar requires four years of math."

Veronica did her best not to say something snide. "Actually, I've already taken this class. But I guess there wasn't a Calculus class available with the way they set up my schedule. So you're going to Vassar next year?"

Veronica looked up as the teacher approached her desk. He introduced himself as Mr. Laskey and handed her a textbook before he returned to the front of the classroom and began the lesson. The moment the teacher assigned them some problems to try on their own, Lilly continued their conversation as if they hadn't been interrupted.

"Yep, I'm going to Vassar. My parents wanted to me to go to Stanford, but that's way too close to home," Lilly lowered her voice, "and Vassar has this cool Independent Program where I can design my own degree. But enough of that. So tell me who else you've met."

Veronica stared at Lilly, somewhat bewildered. First she'd mocked taking math, but she was clearly excited about going to college. Veronica decided to hold off on making any decisive opinions regarding Lilly Kane for the time being.

"Well, I think your brother was in my last class. I know there was mention of someone else with the last name Kane."

"Oh, Donut. Yeah, let me guess, he looked at you strangely and didn't say anything."

"Pretty much. I met Shelly? And a Caitlin?"

"Shelly's dad is the ambassador to Belgium. Actually she and Madison are co-hosting a party next week. You have to come. And Caitlin...don't waste your time; she's a vapid whore. I can't believe anyone still speaks to her—"

"Ladies!" Mr. Laskey interrupted Lilly. "Less talking, more problem solving."

Veronica turned in her seat and looked down at her textbook.

"Veronica, eat lunch with us today; and tonight there's a bonfire. I expect to see you there." Lilly gave a little squeal of delight. "I just know we're going to be the best of friends."

"Okay." Well Veronica, sounds like more of the same ol' same ol' fun and games that you're used to. Maybe all high schools are like this...you've seen one, you've seen them all.

Veronica sat down in her last class of the day, Drama. She'd been hoping to have one with the tall guy who got the 'snich' off the flagpole, but apparently it wasn't meant to be. She did however have classes with both of the Kane heirs, the grandson of Gant Publishing and a few other 'important' people. It turned out that the blonde surfer from that morning was the son of some real estate mogul. He was in one of her morning classes and his name, aptly, was Dick.

She wasn't at all amused when she saw him enter the Drama classroom five minutes late and take a seat next to her. "So Ronnie, what'd ya think so far?"

"Too soon to say, Richie," she replied snarkily.

"It's Dick," he corrected her.

This guy just doesn't catch a hint, she sighed, "I know, just like how I told you earlier that I don't go by Ronnie…" At his confused look, she gave up and changed the topic of conversation. "So, Dick, this morning—the kid on the flagpole and the guy who cut him down, who are they?"

"Kid on the pole—" Dick paused to snort "—get it 'on the pole'." Veronica shook her head, but waited out his laughter. "That was Wallace Fennel, he's our star basketball player or whatever. And the guy who cut him down is Logan Mars. Kind of a scary dude, if you know what I mean."

"Not at all, Dick."

Dick shrugged, "Live here long enough and you will."

"Hey, Logan! Check this out." Wallace held out a wrinkled sheet of colored paper.

Logan accepted the paper from his best friend and considered the series of symbols.

"You want to crash an 09er party after the morning you just had?" Logan asked, incredulous.

"Sure, why not? Lilly Kane is always giving you those 'come-hither' looks. I bet we could crash and no one would kick us out. Basketball season starts soon and you know—you know—my skills are legendary." Wallace ghost shot a free throw.

"Sure, Barkley. Whatever you say," Logan snarked.

"Barkley. Really Logan? C'mon at least go Jordan or you know this century with Kobe," Wallace complained.

"Whatever Skee-loo. Anyway, what would I want with Lilly Kane? She'd just want to use me to upset her parents—me being from the wrong side of the tracks and all. And I like my women more…"

"Homely? Reserved? Wait, let me guess...more flat chested," Mac teased, her arm wrapping around Logan.

Logan leaned down and kissed the top of her head, "I was going to say more badass and less sparkly, but actually now that you mention it, anything more than a handfu—umph."

"Do not finish that statement." She mimed elbowing him again. "So we going to this party?" she asked, snatching the paper from Logan.

Logan turned to Mac, "You want to go?"

"Maybe." She smiled coyly.

"Is there someone that you want to see that will be at this party? Have you discovered a geeky computer lovin' 09er?" Logan teased.

"I'm taking the fifth. But I do think we should go. Wallace needs to work on improving his purity test score." Mac winked at Wallace.

"When the girl's right, the girl is right!" Wallace declared, holding out a fist that Logan and Mac both ignored.

Veronica looked around the beach party. It was exactly what she'd expected and everything she didn't want to be a part of anymore. Kegs, bonfire, rowdy teenage boys. So typical. So predictable. I should have talked Conner into meeting me instead, she sighed, accepting a Solo cup from one of the girls in Lilly's entourage.

"So, Veronica, you must be used to much more glamorous parties than this. Ya know, being from Hollywood," cooed a bleach bottle blonde with a nasally voice.

"I guess...Morgan?" Veronica guessed.

"It's Madison," the blonde sneered.

"Oh, right." Veronica looked around the group; there had to be someone more interesting to talk to, more well-rounded. Someone here had to care about more than lip-gloss and Cosmo. The brunette from the flagpole flashed through her mind for a moment, but she quickly pushed the thought out of her head.

"Madison, don't be so annoying. The teenagers aren't the ones having glamorous parties, that's old people stuff. What I really want to know about are the clubs! Maybe we could all have a girls' weekend up in LA. Do some shopping...maybe meet some boys. Yay, shopping trip. How about tomorrow."

Veronica noticed that when Lilly Kane spoke, everything was a statement rather than a question. The girl exuded charm in a way Veronica was all too familiar with. Lilly would have fit in perfectly with all her LA friends. Friends she had willingly left behind.

But, on the other hand, in her limited time at Neptune High, Veronica had figured out that being friends with Lilly could have its advantages. At the very least, Lilly kept things interesting. And, while Lilly Kane wasn't whom Veronica had envisioned herself setting up an alliance with in her efforts to reinvent herself, she was really the first person that had reached out to Veronica at all since she'd arrived.

"Sure, Lilly. The next time my dad's away we can all go stay at our beach house. We can have the place to ourselves."

"Why do we have to wait for your dad to be away? I'd love to meet him." Lilly actually purred.

"Oh. Me too." Madison tried to copy Lilly but sounded like she was gurgling.

Veronica shook her head. Everyone wants to meet Aaron Echolls. 'You're so lucky, Veronica', 'I wish I had your dad, Veronica'. Suddenly she felt nauseated.

"I'll be right back," Veronica announced. She hopped down off the hood of the car she'd been sitting on and walked as fast as she could down the beach and away from the firelight. She was so focused on her escape that she smacked straight into a hard chest. She would have fallen over if it weren't for the big warm hands that wrapped around her, steadying her.

"Slow down there, Speed Racer." Veronica looked up into a set of warm brown eyes. The brunette from the flagpole that morning: Logan.

"Sorry, I um…" she stuttered, still needing to get away.

"Oh, it's you. Purveyor of baby oil and Brazilian wax advice." He paused slightly, his face searching hers, and for a moment she'd have sworn that he could read her mind. "It worked by the way—the oil. I'm sure Wallace would like to thank you." He smirked at her, suddenly his easygoing self again.

Veronica recovered quickly as well. "As long as he doesn't want to return the baby oil...I know where it's been."

He smiled and laughed. "So do I. And let me tell you, I wish I didn't. I'm Logan by the way." He held out his hand.

Veronica hesitantly accepted his hand, "I know. I'm Veronica."

Logan smiled softly, "I know." His hand lingered on hers a bit longer than was necessary, and Veronica felt little sparks of electricity from the contact before he abruptly pulled back. Did he feel that, too?

"So, how do you like Neptune?" he inquired.

"Um...so far it's okay. I like…" she started to open up and then cut herself off. She didn't know this guy, and she didn't share personal information. Veronica turned away from Logan slightly.

"Hey, it's okay. I was just trying to be friendly." The funny thing was, she thought he was telling the truth.

Veronica didn't know why, but she found herself wanting to know more about him. Say something, already, Veronica. He's being nice.

"Thanks," she looked back at the crowd and then back at Logan. "So I know I'm new here, but this doesn't really seem like your scene. Most of the kids back there were gawking at your friend on the flagpole rather than cutting him down."

"Well, you wouldn't think so, would you? But I've lived here almost all my life and my dad is the sheriff, so that has a certain cachet," Logan said, looking back at the bonfire.

"Indeed," Veronica tried not to look surprised. The sheriff's son, huh? Duly noted.

"I know it's not as cool as say…being the son of famous actors, but he's great. My dad I mean." It was hard to make out his expression in the dark, but from his tone Veronica could tell that Logan and his father were close. What a concept.

"No, that sounds nice," she admitted.

After a pregnant pause, it was Logan who spoke up. He looked at her cup, "You're about empty; want to head over to the keg and get a refill?"

"Sure, I guess." Veronica tried to smile. As reluctant as she was to head back into the heart of the action, she felt herself drawn to him. Pull yourself together, Veronica.

Veronica turned back toward the fire and felt Logan's hand on the small of her back as he guided her to the kegs. Veronica wasn't sure what to say, so she let the slightly awkward silence continue.

Logan reached for her cup and started to fill it. They were closer to the bonfire now, and Veronica could see his features more clearly. She admired the easy smile that graced his handsome face. She found herself tongue-tied. It was an unfamiliar and exciting sensation.

A shrill voice cut through Veronica's reverie.

"Low-gan, fill me up, too." Madison said, thrusting her cup into the space between Veronica and Logan.

Okay, I'm really starting to dislike this girl. Veronica sighed in disappointment at the sight of Madison and Lilly. While Veronica may not have said much to Logan yet, she wasn't ready to invite others into the small space they had been occupying. She'd enjoyed his presence and had felt a connection building between them that was filled with potential. Exactly what that potential was for she wasn't entirely sure, but she wanted to find out, and there was no way that would happen with these girls between them.

Logan handed Veronica her cup and accepted Madison's, filling it quickly and without care.

"It's all foamy." Madison frowned.

"Careful, Maddie, if you keep frowning like that your dermatologist will have to work overtime to fix those wrinkles," Lilly jibed at Madison. "Logan, dear, if you don't mind..." Lilly held her cup out to Logan who accepted it with an exaggerated sigh.

"Ever your servant, Lilly." Logan's response was crisp.

"I hope you're taking good care of our new friend, here." Lilly stepped closer to Logan. Veronica watched as Lilly pressed her chest into Logan's arm. Much to Veronica's surprise, Logan did not look happy about it.

Could she be any more obvious? Veronica wondered.

"I was sure trying to, Lilly." He handed back her now full cup and stepped to the other side of the keg closer to Veronica.

Veronica looked back and forth between the teens in front her. There was an undercurrent of something there, but she couldn't be certain what exactly it was. Is there something between them? she wondered. There's clearly a story there, but what?

A hand landed on Veronica's shoulder, causing her to jump.

"Thanks, Veronica. You really saved my ass this morning with that baby oil...literally. I'm Wallace Fennel, by the way. I figure a formal introduction is appropriate." Wallace winked at her. Then he looked intensely back and forth between Veronica and Logan as if trying to read the situation.

Wallace's genuine smile and obvious gratitude should have put her at ease, but his hand on her shoulder sent a shiver up her back. She wasn't real big on strangers touching her, and despite her efforts, she couldn't get over her distress. She shrugged his hand off of her nonchalantly, trying not to let it show how uncomfortable she suddenly was.

"Um...right. Anytime. Glad to help." Get a grip, Veronica; he's just being friendly. She took another slow breath, but a small tremble shook her shoulders.

Madison and Lilly had started quizzing Wallace about the upcoming basketball season, while Veronica was trying to get a grip on her response to Wallace startling her. She continued to block them out until Logan's whispered voice brought her back to the present.

"Here." He had unzipped his hoodie and was in the process of pulling it off, "Are you okay?" He wrapped it around her shoulders.

Veronica inhaled deeply as she snuggled into the warm sweatshirt, "Of course. Just a little cold. Thanks." She wasn't actually cold at all, but the gesture and his smell were comforting.

He continued to watch her closely, but much to Veronica's relief, he seemed willing to let it go. Though she suspected he was the observant type, so he probably naturally took note of unusual behavior. Son of the sheriff, she reminded herself. Veronica looked down at her full Solo cup and decided that this whole night had been a bad idea.

"Hey guys, you know I think I'm going to skedaddle. I'm pretty tired." Veronica faked a yawn.

"Okay, Veronica Echolls, but we have a date tomorrow! I'll text you in the morning." Lilly leaned in and kissed Veronica on each cheek.

"Night, everyone." Veronica handed her cup to Wallace and moved away from the group toward the parking lot. It wasn't until she was almost to the asphalt that she realized that she wasn't alone. Veronica turned to see Logan walking just slightly behind her. "Whatcha doing?" she asked, trying to keep her tone light.

"Escorting you to your car like the gentleman that I am." Veronica could just barely see the smirk on his face in the fading firelight.

"Liar. I bet you just wanted to get away from the 'mean girls' back there," she teased.

"You wound me. I can't be chivalrous?" he asked, clasping his heart.

Veronica had stopped walking and looked him over as he stood there in that ridiculous dramatic pose. "Chivalrous enough to leave Wallace back there with the sharks, maybe." Veronica laughed.

"Nah, I sent him off to save Mac from Madison's boyfriend, Dick." Logan responded. "See! That's chivalry, right there. Are you convinced now?"

"I'm not sure. Logan Mars, son of the county sheriff. Your credentials suggest you could be honorable, but the look in your eyes makes me think you're trouble."

"Can't I be both?" He stepped closer to her.

Veronica's heart started to beat faster and she knew it was time to make an escape. She turned and started walking to her car again. After a moment, Veronica heard Logan's footsteps behind her again. At her car, Logan stepped in front of her and opened her door. She quickly slid into the seat and looked up at him.

"Thanks for the gallantry, Sir Galahad." She realized that she was still wearing his hoodie. She started pulling her arms out, but his hand on her shoulder stopped her.

"Keep it," he said warmly.

"You just want an excuse to see me again," she tried to joke.

"Yes." He shut her door and stepped back, "Goodnight, Veronica. Drive safe."

"Goodnight, Logan." She started the car and backed out. When she glanced back, she saw that Logan was still watching her drive away as she pulled out of the parking lot.

Saturday, December 4th

Veronica trudged into the LA beach house on Saturday evening. She and her mother had mostly lived in the Hollywood Hills house, which had now been sold, but they also had a smaller house in Pacific Palisades close to the water. It was in this house that Aaron was planning to spend most of his time, and Veronica knew that was because it was easier to sneak other women in and out of. Hell, he could just go down to the beach and pick up some aspiring model or actress and be done with it. Wham, bam, don't let the door hit you on your way out, ma'am, she thought darkly. She wondered where Trina would be staying when she was in town now. Surely the stab Trina was taking at Broadway would be short lived, just like that movie in Australia.

"I just love this house. It's so big!" Madison squealed.

"Yes, yes, Madison, we've already heard you. You love this house." Lilly rolled her eyes and winked at Veronica. "So, Veronica Echolls, fill us in on the nightlife. I assume we're going to get to meet Conner," Lilly stated with twinkling eyes.

"Oh, well, there are plenty of places we can go. Give me a few minutes and I'll call Conner. He'll get our names put on at a few different places." Veronica felt a wave of relief as she quickly grabbed her phone as she made her way through her bedroom suite to the small balcony that looked out at the ocean over the Pacific Coast Highway.

"Hey, babygirl! How was shopping with the girls?" Conner asked when he answered her call.

Making sure no one could hear her, she replied, "Miserable. Lilly...as in Lilly Kane, insisted we go to La Perla to pick out lingerie. You'll be pleased to know she picked out some very boosting bustiers for me that apparently will drive you mad."

Conner laughed out loud. "Well, I'll be sure to keep that in mind. Though I think they might be put to better use on the sheriff's son you mentioned."

Veronica snickered, "Yeah right. You think Aaron would tolerate me dating a middle class sheriff's son? For all his talk of humble beginnings…"

"Hey, I know, V. I'm sorry I mentioned it. Let's talk about happier things. Do I get to see you tonight? And meet these horrible girls?"

"Oh, they aren't horrible; just…"

"Gluttons in this consumer era." He laughed.

"You make a living off them, and you know I do enjoy the occasional purchase. Though, if I have to spend any more time discussing the pros and cons of Fred Segal versus Ron Herman…"

"You'll cut a bitch? You know some people think that girl time is a good thing."

"Some people think caffeine enemas are a good thing," Veronica deadpanned.

"How is Trina?"

They both laughed until Veronica's cheeks hurt.

"Okay, okay. Enough of that. The girls want to go out tonight and honestly I'd like to leave the beach house before Aaron gets here. What's fun tonight? Can you pull together a small group of people to meet us?"

"Of course, anything for you. I'll get Gigi to makes some calls. You want dinner, too? Are you thinking super pretentious or just like fun and good?"

"You know my preference."

"What about Gyu Kaku? I'm over at Fox right now, so that one is close for both of us. But would your friends be willing to slum it in West Hollywood instead of the Beverly Hills location?"

"As long as you bring some hot, straight guys and we go to a couple of good clubs afterward, I think they'll forgive it." She tried not to snort.

"It's 5:00 p.m., lemme call and I'll text you with our reservation. Think they can be ready by 7:00 p.m.?"

"Dear God, I hope so."

Logan walked into the sheriff's station the same way he always did, like he owned the place.

"Hi, Inga!" he greeted the receptionist and continued past the front desk toward his father's office in the back. He turned back to gesture impatiently for Wallace and Mac to follow him.

"Hey, Pops, you in here?" Logan called out as he stuck his head into the break room for a quick peek. It was empty.

Logan turned around to see Deputy Lamb approaching them. "Keep it down, okay? Some of us work here."

"Are you the only one here, Donnie-boy? Have you seen my dad?"

"He's in Booking. We finally got the Peterson kid to confess, so everyone else just left. It's just him and me tonight. And it's Deputy Lamb at work, Logan. You know that."

"Lighten up, man." Logan smiled and then did his best to look contrite. "Okay, you're right. I shouldn't undermine you at work." Logan instantly saw that Lamb was appeased. "Would you like some pizza? There's plenty to go around." Logan gestured to Wallace who placed the box of pizza on the break room table and opened it up. Lamb smiled from ear to ear. Like taking candy from a freakin' baby, Logan thought. "Hey, save a piece for my dad. He's armed and potentially dangerously hungry," Logan said with a forced chuckle. "We're gonna go get sodas from the machine."

Logan immediately closed the break room door and nodded to his friends. Mac went back to strike up a conversation with Inga.

"Oh, Inga—I've been meaning to ask about Trixie and Bud," Logan heard Mac lead in.

"Oh, they're wonderful! Trixie just had puppies. There's still one left…"

Logan didn't waste any time. He ran to his dad's office and took the spare set of keys from their hiding place and gestured for Wallace to follow him into the evidence room, carefully opening one of the doors of an interrogation room to block the camera's line of sight.

"Look, I dunno if we should be doing this, man. This is serious." Wallace clearly was having second thoughts.

"No more serious than you pissing off Weevil and his guys. This is one time we have to take matters into our own hands." Logan held his hand out expectantly.

"Okay, okay," Wallace groaned as he grabbed the blank VHS tape out of his backpack and handed it over.

It took Logan a moment to find the evidence file containing the Pac-N-Sac surveillance tape. When he did, he switched it out for the blank one Wallace had brought and closed everything up.

"Hurry, man, your dad could be back any second!" Logan swung the cage door of the evidence locker closed and they hastily retreated back down the hall. Logan re-hid the keys in the sheriff's office and both boys took off back toward the break room. Just as they arrived at the front desk where Mac and Inga stood talking, Keith Mars came bounding in from the holding area, looking tired but satisfied.

"Hey, kids, I didn't know you were coming by tonight."

"We brought you dinner, Sheriff," Mac spoke up. "Pizza."

"Yeah, Dad. It's in the breakroom." Logan added, gesturing to the closed door with a nod of his head.

"Pizza! Perfect. I hadn't even realized how hungry I am; we've been working so hard today." Keith's smile was contagious. Logan knew that look all too well.

"I take it you caught him, Dad?"

"You bet your ass we did. He couldn't keep quiet for more than two minutes. He thought I was working up a whole case against him, but really I was just sitting in there writing a grocery list. You should have seen him squirm. Who's your daddy?!" Keith's voice crescendoed, and by the end of the statement he was reaching to high-five Logan.

"Ugh, I hate it when you say that," Logan groaned.

"Technically, Logan, he might not be your daddy. You've got almost two feet on him. My money's on adoption! I mean look at your hair — it's almost like the two of you are completely different species." Mac grinned.

Logan couldn't help but laugh, If only she knew how many times I wondered that same thing a few years ago. But I'm all Mars, through and through, and I've got the paperwork to prove it, Logan thought proudly.

"Very funny, Mac." Keith was laughing, too. "No, Logan got his height from his mother's side."

At the mention of his mother, Logan felt his happiness wane. He couldn't stop himself from deflecting. He turned to his friends. "He claims that he had hair in the 1970s. I have yet to see photographic evidence, however."

Wallace, apparently, couldn't take a hint. "I don't remember Lianne being tall. Was your mom tall?"

"How would I know? She's been gone so long that I hardly remember." His statement was followed by a long pause.

"So, pizza! Thanks so much, guys! Is there enough for Don and Inga?" Keith sounded jovial again.

Logan took the opportunity and followed along. "Yeah, of course. Sorry, Inga, help yourself. Lamb's already in there." Logan smiled and forced himself to not dwell on his messed up family. He and Wallace had just scored a major victory.

Logan turned to Wallace and gave him a meaningful glare.

"Oh, Sheriff, Mac and I have got to get going." Wallace nodded at Logan before turning back to Keith.

"So soon? Don't you want any pizza?" Keith asked through the slice he was biting into.

"Oh no, thanks though. Mac and I have to finish a project for World History." At Wallace's comment, Keith looked expectantly at Logan, who in turn scowled at Wallace. "Logan already finished his. He's so on top of things! He's really an inspiration to the rest of us, Sheriff."

This had everyone in the room in stitches. Even Logan couldn't help himself. "You're a terrible liar, Wallace," Mac said through her laughter.

"On that note, I'll see you all later." Wallace turned and pulled a still laughing Mac out of the break room and through the station. Logan hopped up and followed after them.

"Nice work there, chuckles." Logan gave Wallace a playful shove as they walked down the corridor.

"Got me out of this office with the contraband. I don't wanna hear another word about it. So, Dog Beach at 8:00 p.m.?" Wallace confirmed.

"I'm coming, too." Mac was never one to be left out.

"Of course, Mackie; we're a team," Logan winked. "I'll call Weevil. Don't be late!"

Logan closed the door behind his friends and jumped a mile when he turned to see his father standing ten feet away, looking serious.

"Did you need something?" Logan asked, slightly concerned. What did he hear?

"Wallace and Mac are like an open book. Did you really think you were going to get away with that?" It was clear to Logan that his father was going to stand there until he got an answer.

Logan began to wrack his brain, looking for a way out of getting in trouble. "Look, I can explain. Wallace was—"

"Covering for you, yet again. I know. So you really thought you could manage this hand-off by yourselves?" Keith approached Logan.

Hand-off? Wow, I don't think I give him enough credit. He's good! Logan would have been more impressed if it weren't for the fact that he was about to be grounded to the end of the century. "Listen, I had to do it. I had to do something after—"

"Logan, I don't mind you having a hobby. But this is getting out of hand. These are criminals, Son! These cases should be handled by the professionals. You can't just go to the beach at night alone. This isn't Bayport; you and Wallace aren't the Hardy Boys. And now you're involving Mac!"

Wait, what? "Wait a minute. Let me get this straight. You're mad at me because I'm going without you tonight?" Logan was truly baffled. "I thought you'd be way more pissed off about me and Wallace—"

"Not involving me from the start? Yes. If you would just tell me about these things, I could help you. I get that you want to help Mandy, and that's admirable, but you should have included me in this whole dognapping business from the get-go."

Logan finally exhaled the breath that he had been holding. Dognapping! Mandy!

"I assume you've got a lead. So, spill." Keith's voice sounded final.

Logan theatrically buried face in his hands in an effort to hide his beaming smile and pass it off as disappointment at having just been busted.

"We think that someone is taking the dogs and returning only the ones that have a high reward. We were going to try to get Chester, Mandy's dog, back tonight." Logan peeked through his fingers at his father, trying to gauge if Keith was buying the story. I almost have him. "It'll be fine. Mac is going to keep Mandy calm."

"I don't like it. I want you to stay out of things when they get past investigating." Keith's words were harsh, but his tone was soft. Logan instantly felt bad for lying. He hadn't worked Mandy's case at all since things had gone sideways for Wallace.

"I will, Dad. I'm sorry." Logan's guilt was genuine.

"All right, kid, I love you. And I'm proud of you. You are a great investigator, and those are my genes at work there. I can see you as Sheriff one day."

Logan damn near teared up at his father's words. "Hmm...I see myself as more of a ruggedly handsome PI type. I think I'm more cut out for taking down millionaires rather than answering to them," Logan answered truthfully.

"Well that may be true. All right, I should be home by 1:00 a.m., and I'd better see you safely tucked into your bed, sound asleep, when I get there." Keith pulled Logan in for a hug and then stepped back and held his son at arm's length by the shoulder. "And, Logan?"

"Yeah, Dad?" Logan looked down to meet his father's eyes.

"When you meet these dognappers at the beach tonight...take Backup!" Keith smiled and reached up to ruffle Logan's hair.

"I always do!" Logan chuckled and hugged his dad again.

A few hours later, Veronica found herself at Skybar with two very whiny Neptunian debutantes.

"I want to go dancing!" Lilly said a little too loud for comfort, considering the chill atmosphere.

"I thought we'd be meeting celebrities," Madison added.

"Conner's friends are all celebrities," Veronica sighed. She could feel her patience waning when her cell phone started vibrating. She frowned. "I have to take this."

Veronica walked away from the group over to a slightly quieter corner, "Hi, Dad." Veronica cringed when she said the word.

"Veronica. Harvey just got a call asking if you were out in West Hollywood. I said 'no my daughter is in Neptune now'. And then he texted me a picture of you at Skybar…"

"I called and I left a note at the house. I'm in the city shopping with friends and visiting Conner." She kept it simple.

"Well, maybe you should move to a place that is more appropriate for your age–I don't want you on a cover with Lindsay Lohan."

Veronica shuddered. No, she didn't want that either. "You're right. I'll have Conner get us a limo and we'll go somewhere more age-appropriate." She felt familiar arms wrap around her, offering comfort.

"Good. I expect to see you for breakfast tomorrow. Do not leave before we speak." Aaron's voice was very serious. The line went dead.

Conner's arms tightened around her middle, "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, but we need to go somewhere else. Paps must have seen us. Harvey called Aaron."

Conner nodded. "Okay, location change. And we're all staying at the beach house."

Veronica woke to mellow filtered sunlight coming into her room. She slowly sat up and found Lilly in bed next to her and Madison asleep in the big window nook. Careful not to wake anyone, Veronica tiptoed to the guest bedroom where Conner was sleeping.

She knocked lightly.

"Come in," Conner's familiar voice called.

Veronica pushed open the door and headed straight to the bed, crawling in next to Conner. She settled her cheek against his shoulder.

"Did you have have fun?" he asked softly.

"I guess."

"Has the cute sheriff's son called?" he asked, twining their fingers together.

"No, but I never gave him my number. I don't even know him," Veronica replied.

"Well that was stupid; how are you supposed to get to know someone if you don't share contact info. Veronica Echolls, have I taught you nothing about networking?" Conner laughed lightly.

"You'd think all my dad's lessons would have sunk in by now," Veronica said sadly.

Conner pulled her closer, "Don't think about it." He pushed a loose strand of hair behind her ear, "I'm still not used to this."

"Do you not like it?" she asked, self-consciously touching her choppy short hair.

"I like it a lot. I was just surprised. It's sexy, I'm just used to you looking more…"

"Naive? Innocent? I'm neither of those things anymore."

"I'm not sure you were ever naive. But I was actually thinking more along the lines of young." Conner shifted until Veronica was looking into his eyes again, "You have to have breakfast with him?" She nodded. "Okay, we'll get up in a few. You'll put in your face time and then you'll get out of here. And please please please give the boy your number. 'Cause if you don't, I just might." Veronica couldn't help but giggle. "There's my girl. You kept his sweatshirt?"

She nodded.

"Good. Make him ask for it back. Spray some Promises on it." He kissed the top of her head, "He'll never be able to resist you."

"What would everyone say? I can see it now 'Daughter of Aaron Echolls stepping out on longtime boyfriend Conner Larkin with unknown tall, dark and handsome in Neptune.' You know I could never actually date him. Not that I want to, but…"

"One step at a time, babygirl, one step at a time. You know we could have a lot of fun with it. Like a super dramatic public breakup. You rip my heart out and I get a bunch of sympathy hookups off of it."

Veronica couldn't help but laugh, "Why do I have to be the bad guy?"

"Come on V, you know I can't play the villain. I'm the hero."

"My hero." She squeezed him tightly.

"You know it. Now let's get up and get this over with. I don't want you here alone with him, so the sooner you go down and 'talk', the sooner I can put your cute little ass back in that hot new car of yours and send you back to Neptune."

A knock on the door startled them both, "Veronica, are you in there?"

Veronica shared a look with Conner, who nodded with resignation, "Yes, Dad, come in."

The door burst open, and there stood Aaron Echolls in his latest fashion don't...faded blue jeans with matching jean shirt. He looked ridiculous.

Veronica sat up, "We were just getting up."

"What have I said about you two sharing a room?" Aaron looked livid.

"Sorry, Mr. Echolls, we were just talking. Veronica only came in to wake me up a few minutes ago," Conner responded contritely.

"It's a good thing I like working with you, Conner. I expect you both downstairs in five. Sophia is setting out breakfast now. Veronica." He held out his hand, a clear signal that she was supposed to follow him out of the room.

Veronica hesitated, but she knew that not doing as he wanted would only cause more problems later. She rolled off the bed and followed Aaron into the hall.

When the door clicked shut, Aaron grabbed her arm roughly. "What were you thinking, Veronica?" he hissed. "You think it's okay to bring a group of people up without speaking to me first? Take a bunch of underage girls you hardly know out clubbing? What if I had been entertaining?"

"Well, then you'd have had some 'splaining to do," she retorted, regretting it immediately as his hand gripped her tighter.

"You and that smart mouth of yours. You're lucky your friends are here or we'd be having a discussion about this in my study." Aaron abruptly let go of her arm, causing Veronica to lose her balance and stumble into the wall.

Veronica shuddered and nodded from where she leaned against the wall, "I'll get dressed and come right down."

"Bring your new friends. I want to see what type of people you're spending time with in Neptune," he ordered.

Veronica quickly escaped into her bedroom. She plastered a smile on her face, "All right, ladies. Breakfast is ready and my dad wants to meet you."

"I can't meet your Aaron Echolls with bed head," Lilly complained.

"Lilly, you're not meeting 'Aaron Echolls' movie star, you're meeting my dad. Just relax." Veronica spent the next five minutes pushing the girls to get dressed and was finally saved by a knock on the door.

"Is it safe to come in?" Conner called through the door, and Lilly and Madison shrieked.

Veronica walked to the door and squeezed through it. "No, it is most definitely not safe in there." She turned and called back through the door, "Hurry up, let's eat and hit the road." Veronica sighed and leaned her forehead on Conner's chest.

Conner gathered up her hands, "You got this. Let's go see what Sophia made."

Aaron was sitting waiting for them at the large dining room table, and as promised, there was a large selection of breakfast foods spread across the sideboard. Veronica and Conner quickly filled up their plates and joined Aaron at the table.

"Where are your friends?" Aaron asked.

"Nervous about meeting you. They're both still getting dressed," Veronica replied neutrally.

Aaron's eyebrows rose, "They're fans? Do you think they'd like a signed head shot?"

"I'm sure they would." Veronica nodded.

Aaron jumped out of his seat and practically danced his way out of the room.

"Ugh, I hate this," Veronica said under her breath.

"He loves meeting fans; it'll be fine and keep him distracted." Conner rubbed her knee under the table.

A few minutes later, Madison and Lilly appeared in the doorway, both looking impressively polished considering they'd only spent about fifteen minutes getting ready.

Veronica looked at Aaron to see his reaction and she did not like it. He was clearly checking both of the teenagers out and Veronica found it incredibly creepy. This was one of the many reasons she hadn't wanted to bring them up when he was home.

"Aren't you going to introduce us, Veronica?" Aaron asked, bumping her foot with his own under the table.

"Of course, sorry. Madison Sinclair, Lilly Kane, this is my father Aaron Echolls."

Aaron stood up and greeted each of the girls with a bright smile and a two-handed handshake. "It is so lovely to meet Veronica's new friends. She mentioned that you were both fans."

"The biggest, Mr. Echolls," Lilly flirted.

"Please, call me Aaron. No need for such formality." It took all of Veronica's self control not to snort.

Veronica spent the rest of breakfast trading snarky comments with Conner and pretending not to notice that her father was obviously hitting on a sixteen and seventeen year old.

"Well, we should really be going," Veronica said, seeing the time and knowing that Conner had a fitting he needed to get ready for.

"It was lovely meeting you both," Aaron smarmed. "I thought you might each like a signed head shot." He held out the signed photos.

Veronica watched as Lilly let her hand linger longer than was appropriate on Aaron's arm. Veronica turned away and headed up the stairs to grab the last of her belongings, not wanting to see anymore of her father interacting with Lilly and Madison; it was disgusting.

Conner helped her load up all their things and waited by the car while Veronica, unhappily, went back in to say goodbye to Aaron.

"Well, Dad, it was nice having breakfast together. Guess I'll see you next time you're in Neptune." Veronica tried to keep her tone pleasant.

"Yes, and next time there'd better be some more warning when you're coming up. I know you and your mother have hatched this little 'move to Neptune' scheme to keep you out of my way, but if you don't keep your nose clean I'll make sure you're back in LA so fast your head'll spin."

"Yes, sir."

"Good; I like your new friends, so maybe it wasn't a completely terrible idea."

"I'm glad you approve." She looked down at her watch, "Okay, I need to hit the road. I've still got homework when I get home."

"Fine, fine. Drive carefully; that thing you picked out is practically a paparazzi beacon." Aaron waved dismissively as he left the room.

Veronica turned on her heel and threw open the door, coming face-to-face with Madison.

"Oh, sorry, were you looking for me?" Veronica asked.

"Ye-yeah, we're all ready to go." Madison fumbled over her words.

Veronica put on a smile and lead the way back out to the car. Madison got in and Veronica walked over to Conner.

"That go okay?" Conner asked in a low voice.

"Yes." She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly, "I miss you."

"I miss you, too. I'll try to come visit next weekend. We have an audience...Hollywood kiss?" he asked.

"Take my breath away," she whispered and Conner bent her back and kissed her. To anyone looking, it was a passion-filled mini makeout session, but the truth was something else entirely. Conner pulled away and placed a chaste kiss to Veronica's lips before opening her car door and saying goodbye.

Logan sat at his desk bouncing back and forth between a celebrity gossip page and the pictures he'd taken of the 'lost dog' reward posters from the park. Logan stared at the pictures of Conner Larkin with his arms wrapped around Veronica Echolls; Lilly Kane and Madison were in the background. She has a boyfriend, a famous actor boyfriend. What were you thinking flirting with her at the bonfire? Logan sighed heavily and turned his attention back to the dognapping of Chester. Despite what he'd told his father the previous night, they'd actually been at a standstill with the case. From the calls he'd made earlier in the week, all the dogs with high rewards had been returned, but each person he'd spoken with gave a completely different description of the person who returned the dog.

He drummed his fingers on the desk with one hand and clicked a pen with the other. thunk-thunk, click-click

"You considering taking up percussion?" Logan spun in his seat to see his dad watching him.

"Yeah, I thought you and I could be like The White Stripes; you'll play guitar and I'll be the drummer," Logan quipped.

"I take it that last night didn't go as planned?" Keith asked.

"No, wrong dog." Logan hated lying, but he'd be dead meat if his dad knew what he'd really been doing last night.

"You'll get it. Now come have some breakfast and tell me everything you know. Maybe another mind on the case will help."

After a full breakfast of pancakes and bacon, Logan explained what they'd discovered and waited while Keith considered the information.

"I think you're right, Son. It's too big of a coincidence. You know, whomever is behind this could be using other people to drop off the dogs and get the reward. It'd be easy to give someone a small cut for their services. That person might not even be in on the scam."

"Interesting. And all those people should be able to tell us who had them return the dogs. That's great, Dad." Logan stood up from the table grabbing their empty plates. "I need to assemble the team. We've got work to do."

Monday, December 6th

Veronica looked at her schedule again and scoffed. She'd made it through the first two classes of the day and now it was the mid-morning break, but if she was honest she was dreading her next class. They'd put her in pre-calc but at her old school she'd been in Calculus. She liked math, and taking the same class over again wasn't something she wanted to do. What idiot thought having me in Drama was more important than putting me in the right math class...oh that's right, my dad. Friday had been her first day at Neptune High, and it had taken her all of five minutes in Drama to know that it was the last place that she wanted to be. Her schedule left a lot to be desired.

Veronica shut the door of her locker with a little too much force and it slammed. She was halfway to Pre-calc when a realization hit her. I don't have to take Drama if I don't want to. Dad won't know for months, and by then it will be too late. Her face lit up at the thought. I could take something that I actually enjoy! And then maybe they can get me into Calculus, too. The beautiful nearly-new SLR digital camera that Conner had gotten her for her birthday flashed in her mind. No freakin' way. I can take Photography!

She practically skipped off to the office, trying not to get her hopes up too much until she spoke with the registrar.

Before she could reach the office, however, Lilly, with an entourage of Madison and some other nameless, faceless, rich mean girl blocked her path.

"Veronica Echolls, just the girl I've been looking for," Lilly cooed. "Thanks for the fab weekend. Everything was amazing. It was just what I needed in terms of both lingerie and fun."

"Yeah, no problem. It's nice to have new friends." Veronica realized that it was true. Lilly, Madison and the girls weren't any worse than her friends from LA. She could work on more genuine connections in the upcoming weeks.

Lilly pulled her arm and brought Veronica in close. "So, I know it's the middle of the year and all, and tryouts were like," Lilly rolled her eyes theatrically, "forever ago. But, we're all on pep squad and thought you might like to join us."

Veronica swallowed back the bile rising in her throat. She'd been a cheerleader back in middle school in LA. She'd begged off in high school because she travelled with her mom so much. Okay, what excuse have you got in your bag of tricks this time, Veronica?

Lilly must have seen a tell-tale look of distaste on her face, because she cut in before Veronica could think of a single thing to say. "I know what you're thinking, but pep squad isn't like cheerleading, or anything that requires much actual….effort. Pep squad gets together and bakes cookies before big games..stuff like that. We do occasionally," Veronica scoffed at that word, but Lilly continued, "put together cute cheers for our teams, but it's low-key. Hardly any coordination is necessary. Just ask Madison here," Lilly indicated Madison, who looked liked she was positively fuming.

"But, Lilly, she just moved here. And, like you said, tryouts are long over," Madison said through gritted teeth.

This can't be good, Veronica groaned.

"Yes," Lilly replied, staring down her friend, "but tryouts are just a formality that we use to keep undesirables out. And Veronica is not of that ilk."

"But you made me wait two whole years before you let me on the squad," Madison was practically yelling now.

"Exactly!" Lilly replied, flipping her hair over her shoulder and pulling out her lip gloss.

Oh God, Veronica. Figure out how to back out of this one. Hallway politics suck. You can't just say 'no', but there's no need for them to start World War III when you don't even want the part.

"Oh...I—" she started.

"Wait!" Lilly reached out and held her arm up like a policeman directing traffic, "Don't answer right now. There's a practice after school today. Just come and check it out." Lilly didn't wait for an answer. "Perfect, I'll see you at lunch or in class, but I can't wait to introduce you to the rest of the pep squad girls. They're going to love you as much as we do!" Lilly squeaked when she spoke, visibly bubbling with excitement. Madison and her clone looked murderous.

"See you then," Lilly sing-songed and then turned and disappeared into the crowded hallway.

Veronica sighed and sent her mom a quick text to explain that Lilly had commandeered her afternoon and that she'd be coming home late from school. She shook her head as she headed down the hall in the opposite direction and pushed her way into the school office.

The woman behind the front desk looked up at her as she entered. Veronica remembered her as Mrs. Finch who had given her her schedule on Friday. Time to pull out the ol' Echolls charm, she thought as she put on her brightest smile.

"Mrs. Finch! Do you remember me? You were so helpful Friday when I was roaming the halls like Moses lost in the desert. I really don't know what I would have done without you." Veronica did her best to look beholden.

"Ah, yes. Veronica Echolls. I'm glad I was helpful. What can I do for you today?" Mrs. Finch put down the work she'd been doing and gave Veronica her full attention.

"I was just looking at my schedule and hoped I could make an adjustment. I actually took Pre-calc last year, so if we could change that to Calculus, I'd really appreciate it. And, about my elective—"

"Oh, yes, I remember this now. I spoke to your father at length about your schedule." Mrs. Finch blushed a little. "Such an enchanting man. There was a conflict with Drama and Calculus, so he said—"

"Yeah, my dad is the best! He's always looking out for me," Veronica had to forcibly stop the gag that threatened. "But, you see, I took a lot of Drama in LA and was hoping to kind of branch out in Neptune. I've spent so much time on set with my parents and I was hoping to try my luck at something more behind the camera. Photography perhaps…" Veronica trailed off, hoping Mrs. Finch bought the story.

"Well Photography is a very popular elective at this school. There's been a waiting list since Fall. I could check on—"

Suddenly a commotion in the hallway caught the registrar's eye. "Mr. Clemmons!" she called out to the closed office next to her. "It's Navarro and Casablancas going at it again." When no one emerged from the office, she turned and shouted toward the back room, "Wallace!" Veronica turned expectantly and saw the guy from the flagpole striding toward the counter. "Wallace, use the course plan I showed you to find Miss Echolls, here, an open elective," she barked at him before she turned back to Veronica. "I have business to take care of in the hall. Wallace here will find you something and I'll register you when I have time." With that, Mrs. Finch took off through the office's outer door and into the hallway yelling "Mr. Navarro! Mr. Casablancas!"

Veronica turned her attention back to Wallace and let out the laughter she'd been holding in.

"This place sure takes some getting used to," she smiled at him.

Wallace was struggling to put the papers he held into alphabetical order by teacher. He'd had this job in the office all year and he still had trouble reading several teachers' handwriting. Attendance wasn't his favorite task, but he liked working in the office. It would look good on his college applications, and he needed all the scholarship money he could get. And the fact that it helped Logan get student records from time to time was just an added bonus.

Wallace heard Mrs. Finch call him up to the front and bark some orders at him before she stormed out of the office. He met Veronica's eyes and grinned as she began to laugh.

"This place sure takes some getting used to," she said.

"Oh, yes, Mrs. Finch is terrifying," Wallace responded with an exaggerated shiver. "So, what did you need?"

Veronica handed him her schedule. "I want out of Drama class. The halls of Neptune High are dramatic enough for me. She said something about checking Photography? And maybe I could get into an actual Calculus class, too?" Veronica smiled hopefully.

"Photography sixth period is totally full." She's cute; really cute if you're into tiny blondes, which I am. But the way Logan's been looking at her, I don't think I have a chance. Hmmm...though come to think of it, Logan has… Wallace had to hold back a smug smile at the scathingly brilliant idea that popped into his head. Maybe I should throw the two of them together. Logan's got it coming after how long he left me on that flagpole. Watching these two circle each other would be like watching a social experiment. Either they'll kill each other or be dating by Christmas. "But…" Wallace drew out the word like he was preparing a great reveal, "there happens to be a spot available in third period Journalism. They need photographers sometimes." Wallace looked over the rest of her schedule and saw that with a little maneuvering he could put her in Logan's Calculus, Journalism, and World History classes. "You'd just need to swap to sixth period World History, which yours truly is in, and there's a first period Calculus. Journalism is third. Sound good?"

His heart beat a little faster at the huge smile that spread across her face. It was a genuine smile, rather than the teeth she'd been flashing earlier. Oh, Logan is in so much trouble with this one. Wallace hadn't been sure until now, but he was beginning to think that Logan Mars may have finally met his match in Veronica Echolls.

"Journalism sounds perfect! So you'll set it up with Mrs. Finch?" Wallace noticed she was dancing a little bit, bouncing up and down. He half thought she was going to jump over the counter and hug him.

"Yeah, but it might take a while, so just go to your normal classes today. Finch'll have this all cleared up by tomorrow. I think this schedule will be a lot more...interesting for you!" Wallace couldn't help the smirk that spread across his face.

"I'm sure it will be, Wallace. Thank you." Veronica smiled and bounced out the door.

Once she was out of sight, Wallace pulled out his phone and sent a text to Mac.

Wallace: 'just spiced things up. lunch? i'm buying.'

Well, this is a complete waste of time! Veronica groaned inwardly as she stood next to the field and watched the girls struggle to get themselves into a line from tallest to shortest. It's December and they haven't figured this out yet? Madison clearly wasn't as tall as she thought that she was. Veronica laughed on the inside but kept a patient smile on her face. Overall it had been a good day, and she was determined to make the best of this situation.

At least the mascot is cool, she admitted, looking at the pep squad uniforms. It could be worse...at her last school they were the Beavers. Which had been an unfortunate choice considering it was an all-girls school. The green pep squad outfits with the pirate were almost cute. She still wasn't interested in joining, however.

Okay, Veronica, you have exactly twelve more minutes until this practice is over and you get to bow out gracefully.

Having finally lined up properly, the girls were attempting a simple grapevine step where their two lines had to mesh into each other.

"Hey, Veronica!" Lilly called over to her from the line. "Come join us."

Here we go.

Veronica reluctantly set down her bag and made her way over to the group. "Girls, this is Veronica Echolls. She just moved here from LA and I think she's a perfect fit for pep squad. Let's show her what we can do." Lilly turned back to Veronica. "Just join in since we're still learning." Then she whispered, "Don't worry, I'm kicking off Yolanda next week when you officially join."

Veronica's eyes got wide. "Oh, no. That's not necessary. I might not even have time to practice—"

"It's really no problem," Lilly winked at her and then pushed her into place between Yolanda and Madison.

"Now it's time for a pyramid. I'm on top as usual," Lilly announced and Veronica heard half the squad snicker.

"Hey, Veronica," Madison smiled sweetly at her. "A little help would be great."

Veronica hadn't done a pyramid in years, but she knew the basics. She moved behind the girls to try to boost Madison up, but once Veronica had given her a leg-up, Madison suddenly shifted. The force of Madison's weight sent Veronica backward and she tripped over another girl, spinning around to land on all fours just as Madison landed gracefully on her feet nearby.

"Oh, gosh! I guess Lilly was right about me and coordination. So sorry!" Madison held her hand out to help Veronica up.

Veronica waved off Madison's outstretched hand and got up onto her feet. She brushed off her scraped knee and turned to fix her gaze on Madison. Veronica narrowed her eyes at the girl, but couldn't get a read on her. Madison, did appear to be sorry, but Veronica couldn't be sure. "That's all right. Hazard of the sport, I suppose. I'd better wash off my leg, though."

Veronica brushed off Lilly's protest, grabbed her bag and quickly made her way into the school's main building.

Veronica took a wrong turn while looking for the central girls' bathroom and found herself outside the computer lab. There was a small group of people around the computers and she could hear laughter. She had just turned to head back down the hall when she distinctly heard her name. She paused and pivoted back so that she was facing the room, but took a half-step back to ensure that she couldn't been seen.

"Guess that's why she and her mother moved to Neptune. Looks like her dad is getting busy in LA and doesn't want them in his way," a girl announced. Veronica peaked her head in and recognized her as Carrie from one of her classes.

"You don't know that. Tabloids are always full of crap. It's probably all just made up." Veronica was not close enough to see the boy who spoke, but she thought it was Duncan Kane. "You remember all that stuff about my family and how I had run away—I was actually doing a UN internship."

They were all still occupied and Veronica decided to get out of there before anyone saw her. She'd check up on the tabloid when she got home and hope that Aaron wouldn't decide to come to Neptune to avoid the paparazzi.

Logan collapsed onto his bed. "Well that was a complete waste of time," he huffed.

"Not a complete waste," Mac chimed in, "We have a description: he's a 'dog man', he drives a white van, or maybe a white horse, and he likes to spank busty women."

"So basically, that's any male living in Neptune," Wallace countered, taking a seat at Logan's desk.

"I'll admit it isn't square one, but Mandy is going to be so disappointed. If it was Backup, I'd be breaking down doors, but she just looked so…"

"Defeated. Yeah. You'll figure it out. We're just missing something," Mac said.

"We should talk to those guys at the pound again. We can show them pictures of the guys from today; maybe we'll get lucky and they'll recognize one of them or the description." Even as the words were coming out of his mouth, Logan had no confidence in his own plan.

"Maybe what we need is to take a step back and let this new information marinate for a while," Wallace offered. "Let's call it a night; maybe tomorrow things will be different." Wallace looked pointedly at Logan.

"Why do you keep looking at me like that?" Logan asked. He was getting tired of Wallace's cryptic comments about the next day.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Wallace appeared all innocence. "Mac, am I looking at Logan in some unusual way?"

"Not as far as I can tell," she smirked.

They are definitely up to something. "Whatever it is you're thinking of doing, don't, okay? It's almost winter break and I'm looking forward to a couple of 09er-free weeks." Logan reached under his bed and pulled out a thick workbook, "See this SAT prep book. I have some quality time planned with it. No surprises." He looked at Mac. "And no setups!" Logan pointed at Wallace. "I've had enough of it. I'm not Mr. Darcy; I'm neither rich nor in want of a wife."

After overhearing the group in the computer lab, Veronica was in no mood to have to talk about her family's 'issues', or about anything else for that matter, with any of the pep squad girls. She slipped out to the parking lot and headed straight home. Much to her relief, there were no paparazzi stalking the house's outside gate. This is a nice change from LA.

Veronica parked and headed into the house in search of her mother.

"Veronica, darling, I'm in the kitchen," Lynn's voice drifted into the entrance. Veronica dropped her backpack on the couch and took a seat at the bar that looked into the kitchen. "How was school? Did you have fun at the pep squad practice?"

Veronica was shocked. Her mother was sober and appeared to be making cookies. "School was fine. I changed my class schedule. Pep squad was not for me; one of the girls actually knocked me down while attempting to do a pyramid..."

"Oh my, are you all right?" concern narrowed Lynn's features as she walked out of the kitchen.

"I'm completely fine. It's just a little scrape and a bruise; nothing I can't handle. Though on that note, I overheard some people talking about Aa—I mean Dad. Have you heard anything?"

The look on her mother's face was answer enough. She had heard, and like all the other times, it meant they would have to play the roles of supportive wife and daughter. Veronica sighed. "Will he be coming down here to 'reconcile' with his heartbroken family?"

Lynn nodded, "Tomorrow night or maybe Wednesday morning; he wasn't sure."

"Great, just great." Veronica felt her phone vibrate in her pocket, and she pulled it out and checked the caller ID. "It's Conner."

"Go ahead, honey. I'm going to finish these cookies." Lynn smiled tightly, but she wasn't headed for the liquor cabinet, which was a solid improvement. We'll see how long that lasts after Aaron gets here.

"I am so sorry," Conner said as soon as Veronica answered the call.

"It's okay. None of us has control over Aaron. Mom just told me he'll be here tomorrow or Wednesday."

"I'll be there as early as I can on Friday. Call if you need me."

"I will. It'll be fine. I've kept a low profile here. No rocking the boat, just going to class and making a few friends. I haven't done anything to upset him...yet."

Tuesday, December 7th

Logan awoke the next morning to the sound of his father pounding on his door.

"Logan, this is your last warning. Up now, or I'm feeding your breakfast to the dog." Keith's threat was real. He had, in fact, fed Logan's entire breakfast to Backup the previous week when Logan had slept through his father's wake up call. What his father hadn't known at the time was that Logan had been up all night on the trail of Mandy's dognapper and trying to finish a lab report for Chemistry. This time, Keith apparently wasn't taking any chances. He opened Logan's door and flipped on the light before he retreated back down the hallway.

Logan's stomach growled, but he just threw his arm up to cover his eyes. He figured he had time for a few more minutes of sleep before his father made real on his promise. If I just lay here for thirty more seconds...he'd just drifted back off to sleep when his face was attacked by slobbery, wet kisses courtesy of his pitbull. Logan sputtered and spat as he wiped his face off with the sheet and shoved the dog off of his bed. "Backup, get out of here!" he ordered. Keith's laughter could be heard echoing all the way from down the hall.

Logan stalked down the hall and flopped onto the kitchen table in front of his plate of waffles and bacon. "You know, I think there are laws against torturing children. Seems to me like we've got a clear-cut case for 4th degree child abuse." Logan stabbed the waffle and bit a corner off without bothering to cut it.

"Lucky for me, that's a misdemeanor," Keith replied, setting a mug of coffee on the counter between them. "I think I can live with that."

"Maybe I could get you for corrupting a minor, too." Logan smiled at his father and took a sip.

"I'd hardly call Backup a corruptible minor. Besides, I just told him to give you a good morning kiss; it was his idea to drink the water first." Keith stole Logan's coffee and took a sip as he ate his own breakfast.

"By the way, Wallace called this morning, bright and early. I wish all boys your age were as eager to get to school as Wallace is," Keith stated.

Well Wallace wasn't up all night planning a stakeout and catching up on homework, Logan mused. "What did he want?"

"He said to tell you something about having arranged a present for you and you're welcome."

"Huh? What the hell does that mean?" Logan said through a mouthful of food.

"Watch your mouth. And I don't know. I asked, but he said it was a surprise and you'd thank him later." Keith shrugged and swallowed his last bite of food. "It's Tuesday; you'd better get a move-on. Don't make Mac late again."

Logan nodded. Crap, I forgot it's Tuesday; I promised Mac a ride today. His shower would have to wait until after school.

Fifteen minutes later, Logan hurried out his front door to find Mac waiting for him on the front stoop.

"Glad you could make it," she deadpanned as she followed him to his car car and slipped into the passenger seat. "Not that I don't enjoy morning cardio in the form of racing through the halls and dodging rich kids in an attempt to not be late for first period, yet again."

"That's me, always looking out for your general health and wellbeing." He paused for a minute, trying to not sound overeager. "So, is this present Wallace has for me nine months early or three months late?"

Mac gave him a blank look and then realization must have dawned on her because she smiled conspiratorially. "Oh, yes. I'd almost forgotten about Wallace's little rearrangement."

"Yeah, feel free to spill the beans. Surprises aren't really my thing."

"Oh, this one will be. Suddenly I'm glad we live close to school, so you don't have time to weasel it out of me." Mac smiled. Then she giggled, actually giggled. This is serious, Logan surmised.

"So what's the deal with you and Beaver then. I saw you two talking at the bonfire before Dick accosted you. Come on, let's hear it, Mackenzie." Mac turned and glared at him. Ah, yes, that knocked the smug right out of you. Keep your secrets, Mac; Wallace and I are on to you.

Mac was saved from further torture, because a moment later, Logan pulled into the Neptune High lot and parked in his typical spot near the back. The two of them got out of Logan's SUV and walked into school together.

Logan spotted Wallace in the hallway on his way to his first class, but his friend managed to evade him. He just waved at Logan and then winked before he disappeared into the throng of people.

Curiouser and curiouser.

When he walked into Calculus, he was surprised to see that his usual seat was taken by none other than Veronica Echolls. What did Wallace do? Against his better judgement, he felt himself drawn to her the way he was every time she was near. It bothered him. She wasn't in his plans. He'd made a place for himself in the delicate balance of 09ers and non-09ers. He'd managed to steer clear of their world while living amongst them, which was hard to do in a town like Neptune. Veronica Echolls threatened that balance, and he wasn't sure what to make of it. At that moment, all he wanted was for things to be back to the way they used to be.

He approached her and unabashedly set his books down on the desk she was sitting at, causing her to jump in surprise and look up at him. He felt bad for a moment; it hadn't been his intention to scare her, but then her eyes narrowed at him and his remorse quickly faded.

"You're in my seat," he bent down and moved her bag over to the empty seat next to her and patted the empty desk there affectionately. "This one's got your name all over it."

She huffed and looked up at him. "Are you seriously trying to tell me these seats are assigned?" Veronica clearly wasn't fooled. They had a staredown, and he was shocked when she gave in.

"Fine, I relent this once. Far be it from me to stand between you and academic excellence," Veronica snapped as she moved over two feet to take her new seat.

Logan hadn't actually expected her to move, he just hadn't known how to react when he'd seen her sitting there. She didn't have any classes with me on Friday or Monday. Not that I was looking for her or anything, Logan assured himself.

When the Calculus teacher told Veronica that she'd have to go to the library to get a textbook after class, Logan offered to share his own as a peace offering. She agreed, albeit reluctantly.

When the bell rang, Veronica snapped his book shut, pushed it over onto his desk, stood up and strode purposefully out of the classroom before he had time to get a word in.

Nice work, Mars. This girl is the only interesting thing that has happened in Neptune since middle school and you just blew it because you were blindsided. Way to go with the flow.

Veronica left the classroom as quickly as possible after her run-in with Logan Mars. He'd been so nice at the bonfire that she'd thought he might be a potential...something. She suddenly missed Conner again. Things were so easy when it came to Conner. Logan Mars, on the other hand… She shook her thoughts back to the present. She'd been so excited about her new schedule that she'd gotten up early that morning in anticipation, and she was determined not to let his mood swings ruin her day.

AP English flew by and Veronica soon found herself on her way to Journalism. She'd resisted the urge to bring her camera to class today, not wanting to get her hopes up that she'd actually get an interesting assignment. She saw Duncan when she walked in and quickly crossed the room to find an open seat near the back. Just as the second bell rang, she saw a flash out of the corner of her eyes as Logan Mars ran into the classroom and took the only open seat in the room, which happened to be located next to hers.

"Do you need me to move again?" She gave him a hard glare and watched as he took a deep breath.

"Look, I'm really sorry for what I said earlier this morning. I was surprised to see you and and didn't get much sleep last night. I was trying to be, I dunno, funny or something. Can we start over?"

"Really? You were surprised? I find that hard to believe considering your BFF, Wallace, was the one who arranged this whole thing." Logan opened his mouth to respond, but Veronica cut him off. "How do you expect me to believe you had nothing to do with us suddenly having two classes together?"

"How could I? You weren't in my classes before today; I'm the one who's been here been here all year."

"So this isn't you and your friend's grand attempt to play yenta and throw the two of us together?"

"I can't speak for Wallace. I mean, he's not dumb; I sincerely doubt this was his elaborate way of getting you to return my sweatshirt."

Veronica couldn't help but snicker at that, but she kept it short. She was determined to get to the bottom of this. "So, can I expect to see you in any of my other classes? Wallace put me in 6th period World History with…" she checked her schedule, "Mr. Rooks. Should I save you a seat?"

Logan's eyes opened wide and then he ducked his head. At least he has the decency to look chagrined. Is it possible that he's really not be behind this? Veronica didn't believe in coincidence.

"Wallace is in there, too, if it's any consolation. And Mac. Along with like twenty-five or so other students." He smiled at her hopefully. "Is it really that bad? Having class with me, I mean. I promise not to freak out over which seat you take. I'm an excellent student; some people even find me charming."

"Well, after witnessing the Friday morning flagpole incident, I think it's safe to assume we both can agree that the students of Neptune High aren't the best judges of character. And, as far as you being charming, I think we've already exhausted that topic, as well." Veronica smiled up at him, but refused to let her guard down. Logan Mars was trouble with a capital 'T', and she wasn't going to let anyone screw up her chances of staying in Neptune. Even Logan. Even if he is cute, and clearly smart, and… Veronica caught herself thinking of him again. No, this wasn't good at all.

During sixth period, Mr. Rooks stopped class when an office aid arrived with a handful of office summonses. "Mr. Mars, Ms. Bishop, Ms. Echolls your presence has been requested by the Vice Principal."

Logan stood and headed for the front of the room, accepting the hall pass and leading the way to the office.

"Logan, what's the deal?" Carrie asked.

"Got me, but did you see that stack? If I were a betting man, my money'd be on locker searches." Logan shrugged.

"I thought you always knew about those in advance." Carrie sounded disgruntled.

Another 09er thinking it's my job to keep them informed...kinda hope she has something in her locker that she shouldn't.

"Only if Wallace happens to be in the office when the calls goes out. It just so happens that these things are usually set in the morning—not this late in the afternoon." Why am I explaining this to her?

When they reached the office, Logan spotted Deputies Lamb, Sacks, and the new guy—Tomato?—in the office.

"D'Amato, you take the sheriff's son. It'll be good practice. Sacks, take Ms. Bishop; and I've got our town's newest celebrity," Lamb announced.

"Sending in the big guns this afternoon. I'm flattered," Logan quipped.

"Don't be a smart ass, Logan. This is serious," Lamb replied.

"Oh, come on, Don. We all know this is just an elaborate scheme to spend more time with me."

"That's enough Logan!" Lamb's response was terse.

Surprised at Lamb's stony-faced expression, Logan considered the group; Carrie was far more likely to be a problem, so why was Lamb handling Veronica's check? Logan took a moment to look at Veronica. He did not envy her having to deal with Don. Logan took a step toward Veronica and leaned in to whisper in her ear, "Don can be an ass; don't do anything to provoke him. He'll haul you in for kicks."

"I'll keep that in mind," was her quiet reply before she followed Lamb out of the office. Logan hoped that, for her sake, she did.

"Okay, Mr. Mars, let's get this over with," Clemmons said, waving over the newest deputy.

"You got it, big guy." Logan walked out of the office and to his locker which was just around the corner. Over the course of the semester there had been so many locker inspections that Logan had started taking pleasure in screwing with his dad's deputies. Logan was pre-warned of the searches almost every time, so it gave him time to prepare. He knew that his dad was aware of his antics, but Keith didn't seem to mind little pranks being pulled on the less experienced deputies.

A wide smile spread across Logan's face. Even without the usual warning, he had a special treat for them this time.

"Open the locker," D'Amato commanded with Clemmons standing just behind him.

Logan spun the combination and let the door fall open as he took a step back, his arms opening wide as if to say 'welcome!'. Unlike most of his classmates, Logan didn't keep anything special like pictures in his locker, but after the last search he'd been inspired. Now in the center of the door was a heart shaped cutout of Vice Principal Clemmons. It looked like a Valentine, all decorated with red glitter.

"Wow. This is a little embarrassing," Logan said shyly, which elicited a laugh, disguised as a cough, from the deputy.

"The bag, too, Mr. Mars," Clemmons replied, his composure remarkably maintained.

Logan couldn't help but smile as he handed over his backpack.

D'Amato opened the bag and pulled out a red and white striped hat that was reminiscent of Cat In The Hat. He continued to paw through Logan's bag and finally gave up after finding nothing else of interest. "Nothing," D'Amato told Clemmons.

"There's a couple of suckers," Logan smirked at Clemmon's bemused expression and D'Amato's confused one, "In the bag—if you want one."

"That won't be necessary. Come on, Deputy. You didn't do to bad for your first try. Mr. Mars, you may return to class."

Logan saluted them and headed back to catch the end of Rooks' class.

Veronica followed the deputy out of the office and away from Logan. I don't get that kid. We've been snipping and baiting each other all day and then he offers me advice for dealing with a locker search?

"Ms. Echolls, lead the way to your locker. Principal Moorehead will be observing."

Veronica nodded. She knew the routine, they had plenty of these back at her last school as well. She walked down the hall, stopped at her locker, spun the combination and stepped back.

Veronica stared agape as a cascade of blank IDs fell out of her locker. "Those are not mine."

Veronica looked up at the deputy; he had a smirk on his face and popped the gum he was chewing. "Manufacturing and distributing fake driver's licenses—that's a second degree felony."

"No! Wait a minute. Those aren't mine," Veronica yelled.

"Open your purse, too." The deputy held out his hand.

Shit! Resigned, Veronica handed over her purse. The deputy pulled out her wallet and lifted out a small stack of cards.

"Driver's license for a twenty-two year old Veronica Echolls. Pepperdine student ID. Licensed massage therapist?" The deputy raised his eyebrows.

Like I'm going to tell you why I have that one. "Oh yeah, those are mine."

Veronica never did make it back to World History that day. The bell rang and there was still no sign of her. Logan was a bit disappointed. After their tumultuous morning, he'd wanted to end the day on a good note.

Bringing his thoughts back to the problem at hand, Logan turned to Mac and Wallace. "So what's the plan?" he asked as he packed up his things, hoping for a distraction.

"No plan. I've got practice and then work," Wallace answered as they left Rooks' classroom.

"As much as I love thinking about kidnapped dogs...dognapping...whatever, I actually have familial obligations this evening," Mac droned. "Ryan has some kind of school play or something that I was told I would be attending. But I think it might be helpful if you looked through the mug books to see if you can find anyone who matches the descriptions we have of the dog returners."

"Seriously? You want me to look through books of mug shots to see if I can ID anyone based solely off of descriptions?" Logan asked as they arrived at his locker.

"It could work." Mac grinned.

"Right, it could work, just like it almost worked when I pretended I didn't see the sheriff cozying up to my mom the other night," Wallace said.

"Lalalala...remember, we do not speak of it!" Logan stuck his fingers in his ears dramatically.

"No, the rule was we don't discuss it while we eat. We've already eaten lunch, and dinner is still several hours away," Wallace explained.

"Fine, fine. I'll go get a stack of mug shots and see if I can identify anyone who returned one of the dogs," Logan finished, grabbing what he needed for the night. "I'll see you two tomorrow."

Logan jogged out to his truck. He had a plan in mind: he'd drop by the station, see if he could talk the new guy into letting him have the new digital version of the mug book and maybe, just maybe if he was lucky, he'd be able to talk Mac into writing some kind of program to narrow down his search.

The drive to the sheriff's station only took a few minutes. Logan was amazed at how much the mission-style municiple building always evoked a sense of calm in him. Years of early mornings and late evenings spent in this building had made it more than a place he spent time...it was almost like he was coming home every time he arrived.

"Hey, Inga! So what's the word today?" Logan asked, smiling pleasantly at the middle-aged brunette who sat at the reception desk.

"You'll never believe it, Logan. They brought in the daughter of Aaron Echolls! She had fake identification in her locker at school," Inga said in a low voice while leaning over the counter.

Logan stood agast. They what?! "Do you mean Veronica Echolls?"

"Yes, she's in interrogation two. You're dad is still talking to Deputy Lamb and the Principal." Inga pointed toward his father's office.

"Thanks, Inga, I guess it's been an exciting afternoon." She nodded, and Logan took the lull in the conversation as his cue to leave. He gave Inga a small smile and wave as he walked past her desk and farther into the office.

The door to his father's office was shut, but upon further inspection Logan, realized that Keith was actually sitting in the break room staring at something on the table. Logan quietly approached.

"Hey, Dad," Logan said softly, "What are you looking at?"

Keith looked up from the small pile of white cards sitting in an evidence bag on the table, "Counterfeit California driver's licenses." Keith carefully made sure that the bag was sealed before he held it out to Logan.

"Are these what they found in Veronica's locker?" Logan asked.

"How do you know Veronica Echolls?"

"We have classes together. She helped Wallace out. We've...talked a few times," Logan answered non-committally.

"What'd you think? She seem like the type to you?" Keith inquired.

Logan shook his head, "Honestly, not at all. She's smart, Dad. And if you had asked me about her before this," Logan waved at the fake IDs, "I'd have said she was more the keep-to-herself type. She was at the bonfire last weekend but she left early. She didn't drink and she barely spoke to anyone."

Keith nodded and continued to stare at the pile of cards, "You think she'd do this?" he indicated the cards.

"No. Did you dust them for prints yet?"

"Not yet, but we will." Keith sounded grim. Logan knew that his dad hated busting kids.

Logan stared into his father's concerned face. "Can I talk to her?"

"You know that's against policy."

"Policy, schmolicy...lemme talk to her. Just gimme five minutes; I promise to respect the laws of the land."

"Five minutes," the sheriff stated, shutting the door behind Logan.

Veronica rolled her head back and forth across her arms as she stared at the scarred table in the interrogation room. This is utter BS, she thought as she waited for daddy dearest's pet lawyer to show up.

"Well, if it isn't the famous Veronica Echolls caught with fake IDs and intent to distribute...poor little rich girl," a voice Veronica recognized spoke from the doorway.

How did he even get in here? Veronica wondered. One would think that being arrested might, at the very least, buy one's self a little privacy. But, apparently, one would be wrong. This is Neptune, where Logan Mars feels free to waltz in for a little meet-and-greet visit right here in my interrogation room. "What do you want, Logan? In case you hadn't noticed, I'm a little busy right now."

"As it so happens, Veronica, I did notice. I've made better fakes on my home printer and the laminator when Inga wasn't looking." He laughed as he took a seat across the table from her.

Veronica gritted her teeth, "Did you see that crap? I can afford better—hell I own better."

"I've seen better kindergarten IDs."

Veronica couldn't help but snort at Logan's comment.

"They aren't really yours, are they?" Logan asked.

"What do you think?"

"What do I think? I think that you've managed to make an enemy in," he looked down at a watch that wasn't on his wrist, "less than one week of attending Neptune High. That must be some kind of record."

"We Echollses do strive to stay ahead of the pack."

Logan nodded, "Any idea who might want to set you up?"

"Can't say that I do. Do you have any thoughts on the matter?" she asked.

"I might. What do you say I do a little poking around? I'm pretty sure they aren't going to actually press charges against you if they don't find your prints on any of the blanks," Logan said, fiddling with the bottom of his shirt.

"I hope not. If they don't press charges they can't suspend me. But at this rate, it may not matter; people were taking pictures of me being walked out of school in handcuffs. How much you wanna bet they're already gracing Page Six?" she sighed, feeling miserable. Aaron's going to kill me.

"Maybe Lindsay Lohan will get another DUI."

"One can hope. So, let's recap. You'd really look into this for me?" Veronica asked him.

"Well, only if you ask nicely," he rebutted.

Call me an LA cynic, but nothing's ever free in this world. "And you'd do this...what...out of the kindness of your heart?" Veronica was skeptical.

"No, there's usually a fee for my services...but I think we can work out a family and friends rate."

"Is that what we are now?" Veronica cocked her head to the side and smiled up at him, "Friends?"

"Well, that remains to be seen. But I figure the new girl in town who has the balls to help out the kid on the flagpole deserves the benefit of the doubt."

Veronica was wracking her brain for a good response when a figure appeared in the door.

"Veronica, sweetheart, what happened? I brought Barry; he's out speaking with the sheriff right now." Lynn pulled her sunglasses off, revealing her concerned expression and then surprise. "I'm sorry I didn't realize anyone was in here with you," she said, walking up to Logan.

"I'm Logan Mars, the sheriff's son...and maybe your daughter's friend." Logan smiled, holding his hand out to Lynn.

"Hi, Logan. Lynn Echolls. Friend is it?" Veronica watched her mother inspect Logan. When she stepped out of Logan's line of sight, Lynn winked at Veronica. "Well, I'm always happy to meet my daughter's friends. Logan, maybe you could give us a minute." Lynn walked back around and smiled at Logan.

"Of course, and don't worry, their case is fuzzy and circumstantial." Logan winked at Veronica.

What is with all the winking today, she thought.

"You know, the odd thing is that those were also his very first words…I've got a future high paid defense attorney right here," the sheriff chuckled, clapping Logan on the back. "All right, Son, you got your five minutes. Why don't you head home and I'll see you when I get there later tonight."

"Okay, Daddio. Catch you later, V." Logan waved as he walked out of the room.

Veronica waved back and found herself feeling jealous over the easy relationship that Logan seemed to have with his father. She was going to be in deep shit when her father found out about this. She just hoped that he wouldn't decide to ship her back to LA immediately.

A/N: Thank you everyone for reading! Next chapter will post tomorrow :) And here are a couple of little fun things for you. The Beavers are the actual mascot of an all girls school attended by a sibling of one of the writers and the other went to school with a Muffin (a person not the food). And in a pinch baby oil really does help remove duct tape.