Disclaimer: Don't own Sky High or anything in the movie.
A/N: Slow start, but the more you review, the quicker you get the next chapter.
"Exchange?!" The morning cereal Quinn had been shovelling into her mouth came spraying out onto the kitchen bench top. "Exchange?!?" She repeated, after cleaning up the mess she had made.
Quinn's mother bustled about the kitchen, making lunch, answering her phone and dusting. She really was the queen of multitasking, "Well, yes dear. It's the only option I can think of. I'm sorry, but, duty calls."
"Yes… But mum, EXCHANGE?!?! What about Bryce?! Why doesn't he have to go?!" Quinn was on the verge of falling off her stool.
"Because. Harry's mother is nice enough to allow Bryce to stay at their house while I'm overseas, of course I've left her enough money to take care of all the groceries, Bryce is a growing boy after all," She paused for a moment to hand out orders on the telephone, hung up, and resumed talking very animatedly to Quinn, "Besides, I'm not going to let you stay at home by yourself, I mean really!" Quinn's mother chuckled to herself as she finished packing a couple apples into the paper bags that sat on the bench.
"Well, why not?! I'm old enough!" Quinn was sure to finish off the cereal in her mouth before she started to talk this time.
"Of course you are dear," replied her mother with false sincerity, "But, there are other factors, such as… how will you get to school?"
"That's an easy one! I won't." Quinn jumped off her seat and strolled over to the kitchen sink to rinse out her bowl.
"Oh no, you won't. You're going to Maxville and that's final," Quinn knew that when her mother used that tone, there really wasn't anymore conversation on the matter.
"Now go up and pack your bags, your plane leaves at 3 tomorrow morning."
Quinn frowned, about to protest why her mother had only told her about this plan of hers 20 hours prior to her leaving, but decided against it as Quinn's mother recommenced talking on the phone and started out of the room.
------------------------------------------------------------
Quinn sighed heavily as she trudged upstairs to the spare bedroom closet and dragged out a large suitcase. She dragged it into her room and chucked it onto her bed. She walked over to the wall and took the remote for her air conditioner out of its holder. It was late November and it was already sweltering. Her room was right in the firing line of the sun, making it even hotter than the rest of the house.
Quinn took a long look around. Even though her room was small – so much so that if she were to put any bed larger than a king single into it, there would be barely any room left to walk, and opening her dresser drawers would be completely out of the question, it was still her room. Her overly messy, comfy room. Quinn hated spending more than a couple days away from her room, let alone… 'Come to think of it, mum didn't tell me how long she'd be away'
Quinn stuck her head out of her door and yelled down the hallway, "Oi mum! How long am I going to be away for?"
Quinn's mum's voice echoed up the stairs, "I'm not sure honey, however long it takes to save the world! You know these things, can't put a time limit on them. I'll let you know when I'm finished via something, letter, phone call, email, whichever is easier at the time!"
"Alright, thanks." Quinn stepped back into her room and rolled over the end of her bed to her stereo.
'Ah… ear abuse, my saviour.' She thought as she scrolled down her iPod for her latest addiction. 'Heh, I can't remember what life was like before mp3 players' she thought, smiling to herself as she pulled open several drawers, yanking things out to brutal music.
"Underwear, check. Shorts, check." Quinn started going down a mental check list of things to bring. A sudden though made her stop as she mused out loud. "Wait a minute, if it's summer down here…" Quinn sighed and pulled out a few of the pairs of shorts she had packed and replaced them with her stockpile of hooded jumpers and flannel shirts. Quinn hadn't been packing for more than five minutes when she gave up on deciding which clothes to bring specifically and emptied her pants, shirt and underwear drawer into her suitcase.
She walked into the bathroom next to hers, grabbed her straightener, curling iron and hairdryer, packed them up and shoved them into her bag.
"Hmmm.. that's essentials," she thought aloud, "What else?"
Quinn jogged back into the bathroom, grabbed her toothbrush and toothpaste, and placed them into her cosmetics bag, along with her makeup. She put that into her messenger bag along with her iPod charger, phone plus charger a couple of reading books and a sketch pad. Quinn opened her bedside drawer, pulling out a wad of cash hidden in there. She made a mental note to change the money to American dollars as she stowed it away into the front pocket of her bag.
She chucked her suitcase and bag onto the floor jumped onto her bed, laying her head back on her arms. Quinn felt the cool air move across the room and her overheated body as she took in her last day spent in her treasured room for what could be months.
------------------------------------------------------------
A family friend teleported Quinn and her mother to the airport that next morning. Quinn bid them both goodbyes after her mother handed her a credit card. "Essential things only, okay? Or else I'll cancel it." Quinn laughed in agreement and made her way to the terminal to board the plane.
She sat down in her seat, putting her headphones on, and glanced out the window. It was only a matter of time before the plane started to taxi down the runway. Quinn took a deep mouthful of air and muttered under her breath, "Sky High, here I come."