FROM THE PAST

AUTHOR'S NOTE

Takes place after the last episode of the series but Kat hasn't graduated yet. All Higher Ground characters belong to Fox Family.

INTRODUCTION

On a quest, Scott's past comes back to haunt him.

CHAPTER ONE

At Mt. Horizon High school, the Cliffhanger group had gathered had gathered underneath a campus tree. All were waiting for Peter Scarbrow and his fiancee Sophie Becker, who had asked the group to meet them there.

"Does anyone know what Peter and Sophie want?" fourteen-year old Jess Merrick asked.

"Not a clue," answered eighteen-year old Katherine "Kat" Cabot replied.

"It's just like him to keep things from us," sixteen-year old Shelby Merrick said half-sarcastically.

"Well, whatever it is, I didn't do it," sixteen-year Scott Barringer declared.

"Feeling guilty, Scotty?" sixteen-year old David Ruxton mocked.

"Don't call me that," Scott snapped moodily. Before David could reply, footsteps were heard. The group turned around.

"Hey, Peter," sixteen-year old Augusto "Auggie" Ciceros greeted.

"I suppose you're all wondering what's going on," Peter said.

"Yeah. You could say that," agreed sixteen-year old Ezra Friedkin.

"You're going on a bonding quest," Peter announced. Everyone groaned.

"Another fun-filled week of hiking, foraging, and bickering," sixteen-year old Daisy Lipenowski said sarcastically.

"Come on. Maybe it'll be good for us," sixteen-year old Juliette Waybourne chirped.

"Yeah, right, Queenie," Shelby sneered.

"You're all being partnered up," Sophie added, ignoring the exchange. "Kat, you're being pared with Auggie and Daisy."

"Okay, sure," Kat agreed.

"Ezra, you're going to be travelling with Jess and Juliette," Sophie continued.

"Hey, wait a second. How come Shelby and I are apart?" Jess protested.

"And why am I paired up with Russton?" Shelby asked angrily, deliberately misprouncing the boy's last name.

"It's Ruxton'," David growled irritably. Ezra grinned.

"Ease up, guys," Sophie said.

"Two reasons," Peter stated in response to Shelby's question. "One: I want Jess to grow more comfortable around guys and two: since I paired Scott and David together, I'm going to need somebody to keep the peace," he told her.

"Aye-aye, Captain," Shelby agreed with a salute.

"Okay, get everything packed and ready. We leave as soon as you're ready," Peter announced. Everyone went back to their dorms. Meanwhile, a young, fashionably dressed woman about twenty-six drove a white sedan up the winding road. She slowed as the sign appeared. MT. HORIZON HIGH SCHOOL 5 MILES it read. The woman smirked.

"I'm back, Scotty," she declared. Then, she drove on.

CHAPTER TWO

Minutes later, Peter, Roger, Jeff, Sophie, and the group convened in the clearing.

"All right. This quest is going to be a bit different. Since you've been broken up into groups of three, Roger, Jeff, Sophie, and I are each going to be shadowing a group. Now, I expect each group to work together. Teamwork is the essence of this quest. I want you all to do your best," Peter told them.

"Any questions?" Sophie asked.

"Yeah. Shouldn't we have somebody shadow Jeff?" Shelby cracked. The kids, except for Scott, Jess, David, and Daisy laughed.

"Hey!" Jeff protested.

"Any pertinent questions?" Sophie asked. Everyone shook their heads.

"Okay, off you go," Peter stated. With that, they all headed out. At different junctions, the groups were split up until each had a different section of the woods. Roger shadowed Kat, Auggie, and Daisy, Sophie trailed Scott, David, and Shelby, and Peter and Jeff followed Jess, Ezra, and Juliette. At their site, Katherine, Auggie, and Daisy sat down.

"So, now what?" Daisy asked.

"Well, we're supposed to bond, so I guess we bond," Katherine answered.

"But we already know each other," Auggie pointed out.

"Well, I'm going to be graduating soon. I'm really going to miss you guys," Katherine reminded him.

"You should be thrilled. You get to escape dysfunctional youths," Daisy said dryly.

"Daisy!" Katherine chided with a laugh. At the second sight, Jess was sticking to Juliette like glue.

"So, how do you identify edible berries?" Jess queried.

"Oh, that's easy," Ezra spoke up. "Here, let me show you," he continued, stepping forward. Jess backed away, leaning closer to Juliette.

"Sorry," Ezra mumbled. He had kind of forgotten. Jess had been so friendly when she was with Shelby that he had figured that she had moved past her bad experience with her stepfather. Juliette looked at him sympathetically.

"Here, Jess. I'll show you," the older girl stated. She then went on to show the girl the various ways to identify an edible berry. And at the third site, Scott, Shelby, and David had gathered fistful of berries and were eating them.

"If this is one of Peter's ways of trying to get me to talk, he can forget it," Scott mumbled through a mouthful of berries.

"You know, not everything is about you, Scotty," David snapped.

"Don't call me that!" Scott cried.

"David, why don't you just shut up?" Shelby snapped. Sophie watched, ready to step in.

"Hey, what's your problem anyway, Barringer? I heard all about your football hero lifestyle before you came here. What'd you ever do? Wreck daddy's car?" David mocked.

"Shut up," Scott muttered.

"Scott, ignore him. He's just being a jerk," Shelby said, glaring at the other boy. Meanwhile, no one was aware of the lone figure traipsing towards their site. She paused a moment, trying to get her breath.

"Oh, Scotty. Why did you try to leave?" she muttered. Then, she continued on.

CHAPTER THREE

In the middle of the night, Scott jerked awake. He panted. He had been having one of those dreams...about her. He lay back down and stared at the sky. It was littered with stars a small moon. Back home, it never got like this. It was so beautiful. He loved it. He sighed, then looked at the sleeping forms next to him. David was sleeping pretty soundly and so was Shelby. Scott could feel his lips curving into a grin. Shelby. His Shelby. The girl who kept him sane. Kept him grounded. And just maybe, she'd help him make it through this quest without killing David. All of a sudden, he heard a twig snap. The boy tensed. What was that? He looked out into the night. However, there was nothing there. He shrugged, then closed his eyes. There was nothing there. He might as well get to sleep. Then, he heard it again. His eyes flew open and he tensed. There was something out there.

"H---hello?" he asked. He was met with silence. Disturbed, he unzipped his sleeping bag and stood up.

"Who's there?" he demanded. Again, only silence greeted him. This is crazy, he thought. Maybe he should wake David or Shelby. Nah. He was just being paranoid. He walked forward.

"I know you're out there," he said.

"Very good, Scotty," the voice stated. Scott paled.

CHAPTER FOUR

Scott watched in horror as Elaine stepped forward. She stopped directly underneath the moon's light, which cast an eerie shadow on her face.

"Go away," he managed to croak out.

"Wake them up, Scotty," she demanded.

"What?" he asked, confused. Usually, she told him to be quiet so no one would hear. Granted, usually the only one around was his father, but still. This was weird.

"Wake them up, Scotty. Now," Elaine instructed harshly. Scott's Adam's Apple wobbled, but he did as he was bid. Hearing their names, Shelby and David awoke.

"Hey, what's going on, Barringer?" the latter grumbled.

"Sssshhhh," Elaine hushed, a finger to her lips.

"Elaine," Shelby realized. "What are you doing here, skank?" she demanded.

"Scotty, you need to teach your girlfriend some manners," Elaine said disapprovingly.

"Don't call him that. He hates it," Shelby snapped.

"Come here, Scotty," Elaine instructed, ignoring the girl.

"No," Scott responded.

"Scotty," Elaine said warningly. The boy stared. He wouldn't go to her. No way.

"Come on, Scotty," Elaine whined.

"No," Scott said.

"Do it, Scotty. Now," Elaine snapped. With slumped shoulders, Scott stepped forward.

"Scott, no!" Shelby cried.

"Sssshhhh!" Elaine scolded. Scott stopped when he was right in front of her.

"Good boy," Elaine cooed, putting a hand on his cheek.

"Don't," Scott said pleadingly.

"Ssshhh," Elaine responded. She kissed him. The boy struggled. Feeling the fight, the woman slapped him.

"Scotty, you know the rules," she said sharply.

"I---I'm sorry," he whispered. She kissed him again. David stared. What in the world was going on? Elaine reached down to the bottom of Scott's shirt, intending to take it off. However, the boy slapped her hand.

"No," he told her forcefully.

"Scotty," she said in surprise.

"I won't have sex with you," he continued. "You can't make me."

"Oh, Scotty. How wrong you are," she smirked.

"I won't do it with you. Never again," Scott repeated. Without warning, she reared back a hand and slapped him! Shelby gasped.

"Don't fight, Scotty. We both know you want it," the woman said.

"No," he told her. She ignored him and forced him to the ground and on his back. Shelby squeezed her eyes shut, not wanting to watch. However, it didn't block out the shaky panting and the scared begging.

"No. Please. Please, stop." David looked at the ground, trying to fight the sick feeling in his stomach. He couldn't believe this was happening. No wonder Scott went ballistic whenever he heard the name "Scotty". Suddenly, the boy couldn't take it anymore. Without realizing what he was doing, he rushed the two and yanked Elaine off of Scott.

"Get away from him, skank!" he roared. Elaine stared in surprise and Shelby's eyes flew open. "Don't you ever touch him!" he continued. From her site, Sophie jerked awake.

"What in the world?" she wondered. Hearing the continuing shouts, she climbed out of her sleeping bag and walked to where Shelby, David, and Scott had ended up. To her surprise, Shelby was standing in a frozen position, while David was facing off with a young woman. Sophie grew concerned when she realized she couldn't see the third member of the group.

"David...don't," a hoarse whisper said. It was Scott!

"What do you mean, 'don't'? She had her hands all over you," David pointed out. The woman smirked.

"Scotty remembers what happens when a scene is made. He knows the rules," she responded. Sophie bit back a gasp. It was Elaine! The counselor walked into the camp.

"What are you doing here, Elaine?" she demanded.

"I'm just visiting my stepson," Elaine answered.

"He's not your stepson anymore. And he never wants to see you again," Sophie told her. She positioned herself that she was standing in front of the boy. No matter what, she would protect her kid. For that's what the Cliffhangers had become to her, surrogate kids.

"Scotty, explain it to her. Tell her we didn't do anything wrong," Elaine instructed.

"I...hate...you," was Scott's whispered hoarsely.

"Scotty," Elaine said threateningly. She moved forward, but was shoved back by Sophie.

"Get...out," the woman growled. "Get away from my kid and leave him alone!" she continued.

"He's not your kid. He's mine," Elaine corrected. A rustling noise told the others that Scott had stood up. He came to stand beside Sophie.

"I am her kid. She protects me, she listens to me. She doesn't hurt me," Scott stated. "And I want you gone, skank," he finished. Elaine tried to step forward, but Sophie thrust a menacing fist into the woman's face. The woman that was formerly Scott's stepmother had no other choice but to leave.

"I'll go get Peter," Sophie said.

"Don't leave me here!" Scott exclaimed tightly.

"Come with me. All of you," Sophie instructed. They gathered up their things, then followed her silently. Hearing footsteps, Peter awoke.

"Wha---wha---" he asked groggily.

"You sure can sleep, Moutain Man," Sophie said half-jokingly.

"You missed all the excitement," Scott added weakly.

"What's wrong?" Peter asked, noticing the abnormal demeanor.

"Let's get back to Horizon. I think Scott would rather sleep in his own bed tonight," Sophie stated. Then, she, David, and Shelby explained what had happened, while Scott just looked at the ground.

"Okay," Peter said. With that, he proceeded to wake everybody up. After explaining that their quest was now being officially cut short, he asked them to get their gear. They all did so and made the long trek back to Horizon. When they finally got their, Sophie took Scott to the infirmary, where the physical confirmed that Scott had indeed been raped. The boy let out a shaky breath as he put his clothes back on.

"Let's get you to bed," Peter suggested.

"Okay," Scott said softly. Peter led him to the Cliffhangers dorm, where Ezra, Auggie, and David were waiting.

"How you holdin' up, Meat?" Auggie queried.

"I've been better, Muchacho," Scott answered with a weak.

"I want you all to try to get some sleep," Peter told him. "Scott, I'm going to put a sleeping pill here in case you need it," he continued. He looked at them. "I trust you all to behave responsibly where this is concerned," he told them sternly.

"You got it," they all agreed. Auggie didn't remind Peter that he hadn't done drugs, but instead kept quiet. Peter left. Shortly after, everyone but Scott got into their beds. Scott just stared at the wall.

"Scotty. Scotty. Scotty. Scotty," Elaine said. The boy's face twisted in pain. He grabbed the pill and washed it down with water. Then, he climbed into his bed. Auggie, Ezra, and David fell asleep to the boy's rhythmic breathing.

THE END

AN

I know the ending is lame, but I can't figure out what to do. Please send in suggestions. If you or someone you know has been raped or sexually assaulted, call RAINN's national hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).