A/N: This is how lateVMlover and I picture the reunion will go in the upcoming Veronica Mars movie. Bar brawls and drunken hook ups ensue. This is a future-fic set during their 10 year high school reunion. Eventual MaDi. The first chapter is from Mac's Point of View. Be sure to read the companion piece, Veronica's POV written by LateVMLover, and also entitled High School Redux. It will be eventual LoVe. lateVMlover and I are working on this together, she'll do all the LoVe parts, & I'm handling the MaDi perspective, so don't be confused when she posts her Veronica POV in a few days under this same title. We will both be posting the entire story under our own name and under the same title, remember all chapters in Veronica or Logan's POV are written by lateVMlover and all chapters in Mac or Dick's POV are written by me. Enjoy! Reviews, as always, are appreciated. lateVMlover and I will each do 3 chapters total, this story spans the weekend of Neptune High School's 10 year reunion. (As a special bonus, we may do an epilogue too!)

I hope you enjoy it and are not too confused by my rambling explanation. If you see lateVMlover's story posted with the same name, just know it is the same story basically. The chapters are just in different order. It doesn't matter if you start reading mine or hers. It's the exact same story. The only difference is the order. I hope you like it! If you story alert to one of them-mine or hers-you will get any updates we have.

Obligatory Disclaimer: No, I don't own anything, it's all owned by the genius himself, Rob Thomas.

Chapter 1: Mac's P.O.V.

Cindy "Mac" Mackenzie took a deep breath and pushed open the double doors to the Casablancas' Ballroom of the Neptune Grand. She rolled her eyes, like she did every time she heard the pompous new name of the ballroom. Dick's company owned the entire chain of Grand hotels, and several other commercial properties up and down the coast of Southern California. This little piece of gossip came straight from Logan. She and the "obligatory psychotic jackass" (Veronica's pet name for Logan Echolls) had been friends since their freshman year of Hearst, and it had continued on past the college years and out into the "real world." Basically, though, Mac didn't pay much attention to Logan's bytes of gossip about the womanizing surfer dude she was never really friends with anyway. He was just someone she used to know, a long time ago.

Veronica Mars, Logan Echolls, Eli "Weevil" Navarro, and Wallace Fennel. That was it, her entire reason for dragging ass to the Neptune High's Class of 2006 ten year reunion. Which, if she thought about it, and she really did, was kind of silly because she was still in regular touch with Veronica, Logan, and Wallace. Eli had recently accepted her Friend request on Facebook, too, so really, why was she bothering to show up at the reunion at all? A momentary lapse into insanity probably, but perhaps not so momentary, she thought.

We Used to be Friends, by the Dandy Warhols was blaring through the speakers placed strategically around the vast open ballroom. Mac fought the desire to jump up and rip the big Welcome Back, Pirates banner. She never had been one to embrace school spirit.

"Well, well, look who the cat dragged in," came the snide, nasally whine of Madison Sinclair.

Mac sighed. Here was one of the many reasons she had hated high school. Steeling herself, she turned to face the woman who, by a twist of fate, had lived her life. Mac wasn't the shy, geeky girl she'd been in high school. Madison she could handle. Mac was no longer easy prey for a girl like her. "Well, well, look who is still winning awards for being unoriginal," Mac said with an eye roll. "How's it feel to know you peaked ten years ago?" Dammit, there went her resolve to ignore Madison. They were adults now, no need to stoop to Madison's level. That was a funny way to put it though, being that she had almost a half a foot over Mac.

"How's it feel to know that you were a weird, misfit loser in high school, and you haven't changed in ten years?" Madison snapped back.

"Liberating," Mac said, moving on past Madison. She headed straight to the bar and was happy to see the tall, lanky frame of the co-owner of EM Squared Enterprises. She tapped him on the back. "Hey, favorite business partner. Buy me a drink? We can expense it."

Logan turned around with a big grin. "I'm your only partner. Expense it? I'm the money man, remember? I'll need a receipt, thank you." He waved over the bartender and proceeded to order a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon for Mac.

"I'll have it to you by the fifteenth of never," Mac rejoined, smiling. Being with her friend and partner caused the irritation she'd felt with Madison to fade away.

"Remind me again why we're partners?" Logan tapped a finger on his chin as though he was deep in thought.

"I'm the brains of this operation," Mac said.

"Oh, that's right. I forgot." Logan smirked at Mac.

"And no one else would have you," she added, giving him her own smirk.

He handed her the drink and chuckled. "Very true."

"Thanks," she said before taking a big swallow of the dry wine.

Grade my Ass had been wildly successful through the years since it got a less than stellar reception as Logan's class assignment. That D project had gone on to make Mac and Logan millionaires several times over. Grade my Ass was still up and running, and as Mac had predicted, it proved to be very easy to franchise the idea. They'd spawned a whole network of sister sites interconnected with click advertising. After a couple of years sitting back and collecting checks for obscene amounts of money, four years ago EM Squared Enterprises was born. Mac liked to think of it as phase one of their bid for world wide (web) domination. However, there was still a lot of the web left for them to dominate, and they were constantly working on new ideas and ways to branch out.

"Echolls, bro. Who's the hottie you're chatting up?" Dick Casablancas shouted to be heard over the music as he came over to his best friend.

Logan and Mac turned around at the same time. One look at the surfer boy's unabashed look of surprise with a trace of something more, and Mac almost spit out her wine. She was disappointed-though really that wasn't the right word either-to see that Dick had not gained 100 pounds, and he still had a full head of blonde hair. The only concession he seemed to make toward the inevitable process of aging was his hair was short and well trimmed. He looked good, she had to admit. Though if she were honest with herself, Dick Casablancas had always looked good. Even when she didn't want to be forced to share the same air as him, she still enjoyed the view. His shoulders were broad, his body toned and fit. It was obvious that surfing was still a daily part of his life. The last time Mac had seen Dick was four years ago at the launch party she and Logan had co-hosted for their business.

"Ghostworld? Is that you?" Dick's face gave away his surprise.

"And I thought I'd left that nickname firmly in the rear view mirror," Mac stated with a grimace. It was her turn to be surprised, though, when he embraced her. It was just a quick hug, but she found it unsettling that the heat of him still lingered long after he'd let her go.

"Yes, your rear view is still very firm," Dick said with his trademark leer.

"Same old Dick," Mac stated, rolling her eyes.

"Admit it Ghostworld, you missed me," Dick said with that arrogant grin of his she both hated and found appealing.

"Who are you again?" Mac feigned confusion.

"Wow, as much as I'm enjoying being on the outside of this scintillating conversation, I think I'll go mingle," Logan interjected. He flashed Mac a knowing grin.

She hated it when he left her to deal with unwanted people. Although if Mac was honest with herself, she wasn't sure exactly how unwanted Dick was at the moment. However, she kept up the pretense and glared at Logan, hoping her look would telepathically tell him that he was in big trouble if he left her alone with Dick.

He either didn't get the message or was willing to risk it because he continued on his quest to find other classmates. He'd always suspected Dick had a little crush on Veronica's best girlfriend and felt no guilt at leaving the two of them. "I've got to go see about a blonde," Logan called over his shoulder.

"You can keep hunting, but she's not here yet. If you leave me alone with Dick, you're dead to me. Dead I say!" she hollered after him.

Logan continued his trek to the other side of the room, but Mac could tell he was laughing. He probably wouldn't be laughing much longer when he discovered Veronica came with a plus one. Turned out, there never was a good time to break it to your BFF/business partner that your other BFF, AKA his one true love whom he never fully got over, was in a serious adult relationship.

The plus one was named Joshua Specter. He was a big shot criminal attorney in LA, a heavy hitter with the Hollywood types. He was called The Closer. Mac had met him a handful of times during the three years Veronica had been dating him. A warm and fuzzy type he wasn't. Though she could certainly understand the appeal at the same time. Tall, full thick head of black hair, cerulean blue eyes, Joshua was easy on the eyes. The problem was he knew it. Arrogance was not a trait Mac found particularly attractive in a man, especially not one that had the bad habit of looking through her. Mac hated talking to the guy. He only ever seemed to be truly interested in talking to Veronica. That was good, Mac supposed, since she was his girlfriend. Still, it didn't make him the kind of guy Mac hoped her best girlfriend would end up with.

The subject of Veronica didn't come up much between Logan and Mac. From the start of their friendship she had made it clear that she would not get in the middle of their on again/off again epic, star-crossed lover tragedy. She loved them both, but she would not become their collateral damage.

Now Dick, on the other hand, was a different story. Logan seemed to be under the misguided assumption she was interested in the life and times of the number one catch of Balboa County. The guy in question, a big fish in the quasi-pond of Neptune, was looking at her with a combination of wistfulness and longing. That didn't seem right. They hated each other. True there was the almost kiss on Dog Beach their freshman year at Hearst, but she'd quickly put the kibosh on that idea. They both seemed to have developed amnesia after that. Nothing was ever said about it afterward except Dick's plea that she not tell Logan. Nine years later and counting, she had kept that pledge. As soon as she thought she'd identified the expression on Dick's face, it faded, and she dismissed it as a trick of her eyes.

After trading barbs a couple more minutes, Dick gestured to a table that had just opened up to the left of the bar area. He grabbed her glass of wine and his vodka tonic, leading the way to the table. Mac climbed up onto the tall high backed bar chair, and even though they had the table to themselves, Dick chose the chair next to her.

"So, how's the real estate gig treating you these days? I'm going to guess pretty good," Mac asked, breaking up the looming quietness that had set in once they sat down. She gestured to the room they were in.

"Oh, referring to the self-aggrandizing name of this ballroom, huh? It's okay. It's a living, I guess." Dick grinned. "Go ahead, admit it, you find it egotistical, naming this room after myself."

"No, not me," Mac said in an exaggerated, sarcastic tone. "Actually, the word I like is pompous."

"Much better." He winked, then said, "So tell me, how's the ass business treating you?"

"Funny. I was just going to ask you the same thing, Casablancas." Mac felt Dick's foot brush against her leg; she did nothing to discourage it.

"Touché, Mackenzie, touché."

"So, what's the gossip around these parts?" Mac asked.

Dick filled her in on the people they went to school with that were still calling Neptune home. Mac and Logan had decided to set up EM Squared Enterprises in San Diego, which wasn't that far away distance wise, but still felt quite a bit removed from the place they grew up. She didn't have to constantly deal with class warfare or worry she'd turn into an elitist simply because she now had money. Neptune had a bad effect on the rich. When she thought about the sense of superiority that the Madison Sinclairs of Neptune had, she was grateful to have been raised in the lower zip code.

Dick launched into a funny story about bumping into Corny at the Sack N Pack a couple years ago and then just a couple months ago he saw him again at Cho's Pizza.

"I almost didn't recognize the dude. Maybe he'll be here tonight. Seriously, he's rocking a full mountain man beard. I asked him if he was planning on living off the grid. Scary dude these days. I missed the Corny who offered to bring baked goods to AlternaProm." Dick put extra emphasis on the word baked.

"So, he's clean now?" Mac inquired.

"Who the hell knows?" Dick said with a shrug.

"Aw, Cho's" Mac said, smiling. "That brings back good memories. Many late night study sessions were fueled by a large veggie pizza no cheese from that Neptune institution."

"Only you would put good memories and late night study sessions in the same sentence," Dick said with a smile. "You know, Cho's is for sale. I think the owners are planning to retire. I'm considering making an offer on the place. I can get it pretty cheap, but I don't want to totally low ball the family either. As you say, Cho's is a Neptune institution. I can't let some corporation come in, franchise it and piss around with what makes it such a great place."

"Didn't know you were such a sentimentalist. Make that an entrepreneurial sentimentalist."

"The things you don't know about me would fill a book," Dick said. He touched her arm briefly. It didn't escape Mac's notice that once again the heat of him lingered long after he'd let her go.

"A picture book, perhaps," Mac joked.

"I'm a complicated man," Dick insisted.

"Yes, sure you are, kind of the way quadratic equations are complicated," Mac stated.

"There you go," Dick said triumphantly, as though she had proven his point.

"They sound complicated, but are really easy once you learn the basic formula," Mac explained. She mentally shook her head at herself. She really needed to get out more if this was how she flirted with a guy. Flirted? Was that what she was doing? No. Not flirting exactly, but she wasn't looking for a way out of talking to Dick either.

"Easy? Are you saying I'm easy," Dick asked.

"Well, I might have heard a few stories that would indicate that you're not exactly discriminating when it comes to the ladies," Mac stated.

"Logan has a big mouth," Dick grumbled.

"Yes, he does," she agreed.

"I haven't seen you since the launch party four years ago. Do you get up to Neptune much?" Dick asked, changing the subject.

"Not much. And when I am, it's just to hang with the 'rents and go see Ryan. He's at Hearst now, on scholarship," Mac said proudly. She couldn't believe her baby brother was in college. Suddenly, she felt old.

"Guess there was brains to go around in the Mackenzie genes," Dick said. He reached across the table and gave her a playful punch on the arm.

Mac narrowed her eyes and just looked at Dick for a moment before realizing there would be no way he could know that genetically, at least, she wasn't actually a Mackenzie. Veronica was not a gossip. She opened her mouth to explain about the baby switching but stopped herself just in time. What the hell was wrong with her? This wasn't true confession time with Dick Casablancas.

She decided it was time to Jedi Mind Trick Veronica. If she was anywhere in the vicinity, she should come running. If she didn't get some back-up stat, who knows what would tumble from her mouth?

Mac was surprised, however, to look up and find Veronica and Joshua making their way towards her and Dick.

"It's like I conjured you," Mac said as way of greeting. The two girls hugged as the guys just watched.

"How's it going, Mac-Attack? You having fun? I brought re-enforcements in case you need them," Veronica said. Then turning to Dick she clarified, "My taser. You remember Mr. Sparky, right?"

Joshua went to a neighboring table to poach a couple more chairs, so they could join Mac and Dick. He brought them back and helped Veronica climb into hers and then sat in the one next to her.

"I don't think you guys have met yet," Mac said to Dick and Joshua. It was obvious Veronica wasn't going to make the introductions.

"No," Dick said. "I'm Dick Casablancas. Veronica and I go way back." He stuck out his hand to Joshua, and they shook.

"Joshua Specter. Veronica and I go way back." Joshua smiled, but it was more predatory than friendly in Mac's opinion.

"So, you're in the law game, too?" Dick asked.

"Yes. Though Veronica prosecutes them, and I defend them. What about you? Are you in the ass game?"

"Not professionally. It's more of a hobby really. I was a consultant actually at Grade My Ass' inception, but my expertise wasn't appreciated. I dabble in commercial real estate these days," Dick explained.

"Oh. That's nice. Real estate. Not the best business to be in these days, I wouldn't think," Joshua said. "So, like convenience stores and things like that?" Joshua had a smug expression on his face that Mac really wanted to wipe off.

"Like hotels. This one, in fact. Are you staying here this weekend?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact Veronica and I are staying here," Joshua informed Dick. "In one of the Grand Deluxe rooms, I think."

"I'll talk to the front desk, we'll get you upgraded to a Grand Suite." Dick said.

"Thank you," Joshua muttered. It seemed as though the conversation didn't go the way he expected.

Mac was impressed with the way Dick handled Joshua's arrogance and air of superiority. She loved seeing Joshua get his ass handed to him. She really needed to reign in her bad opinion of him, but Joshua just grated on her.

"So, V, did Logan come find you?" Mac asked to change the subject.

"He was talking to Gia, so I decided not to interrupt," Veronica explained.

Mac glanced over at Dick when Veronica mentioned Gia's name. He flinched a little, but it was so slight she didn't think anyone else noticed. She reached out and gave Dick's hand a brief pat and then quickly withdrew her hand, folding them both on her lap. The action seemed almost involuntary. What the hell was wrong with her? What was wrong with both of them? Had they been replaced with pod people? She didn't have a flirty, touchy-feeley thing going on with Dick Casablancas.

"Saving him from Gia would've been the humane thing to do, Ronnie." Dick glared at Veronica.

"He's a big boy, Dick. He can handle Gia just fine," Veronica defended her decision.

Mac decided to engage Joshua in conversation as Veronica and Dick continued to snipe at each other. She easily felt as though she could have been sitting outside on one of the stone picnic tables in the quad of Neptune High wasting the lunch hour listening to the conversations of the 02'ers versus the 09'ers.

As they chatted about some difficult case he'd just wrapped up, Mac noticed Joshua's eyes rarely strayed past Veronica. He seemed to be keeping tabs on her, even when he tried hard to act as though he was entertained by something Mac had said. It almost seemed like, if given the option, he would have planted a flag on Veronica, staking his claim to her. She wanted to like Joshua, really she did, but if she had to sit through one more story about his legal prowess and how he just owned the jury, she would probably stand up and yell, "Fire!" at the top of her lungs. Maybe it was time to evoke the Jedi Mind Trick again, she'd been successful at it the first time. But before she could begin Dick was shouting across the room.

"Logan! Hey, Echolls, join us man!"

"Real smooth, there, Dick. It's like you think you own the place," Mac teased. He smiled.

"I do." Dick directed the statement to Mac, but looked at Veronica while he said it.

"I figured that out," Veronica interjected. "It was hard to miss the name change on the plaque by the door. I thought it was a little pompous myself."

"That's what I said, V," Mac said, grinning. The two friends high-fived.

"What? You're not keeping tabs on me? I'm hurt Ronnie." Dick dramatically put his hand on his heart.

Logan took another chair from the same neighboring table and squeezed it between Veronica and Joshua. Mac tried, and failed, to hide her smirk. Joshua did not seem happy about that. He undoubtedly knew who Logan was and the history he shared with Veronica. Good, maybe that would knock ego boy down a peg, Mac thought.

Their little party was fast outgrowing the table, but no one seemed to care.

Logan shot Mac a look full of censure; it seemed to say, you forgot to mention that Veronica was dating a tool. She just shrugged and mouthed sorry.

"So, what's Gia been up to?" Veronica asked.

"Not much. Same old Gia. She went to college on the East coast. After, well, graduation night, her mom moved them as far from Neptune as geographically possible. College was a bust though, so she did some traveling through Europe for a couple years, managed to burn through millions. She was a little sketchy on the details of her life now though."

"She told you she's poor now?" Veronica asked.

"Not in so many words, but I got that impression," Logan explained.

"You know, guys, things haven't been that great for the Sinclairs lately either," Dick cut in. "Word on the street is that the crash in 2009 was not kind to Mr. Sinclair."

"Word on the street?" Veronica wondered.

"Boardroom actually," Dick clarified.

Mac felt the blush creeping up, painting her face red. Veronica and Logan looked over at her in concern. They both knew about the Sinclair Mackenzie baby switching; it was V who had discovered that fact. She had finally confessed her secret to Logan a couple years ago. They'd been celebrating a new acquisition with a little too much Cristal when she found herself blurting out her biggest, most Gothic secret. It felt good to have a couple close friends to share it with.

"Macster, you okay?" Dick leaned over to whisper in her ear. She shivered a little at the contact.

Mac had always hated the fact that she totally lacked a poker face, and she still blushed easily. It was one thing to have that trait in high school, but the fact that it continued on now into adulthood annoyed her.

"I'm peachy," she whispered back. Even though there was no love lost between her and Madison, and she didn't keep in touch with the Sinclairs, she still felt bad about their tough times. There was a funny, mishmash of emotions circulating through her.

"So, what's Madison been up to?" Veronica asked, wincing slightly as she said Madison's name, like she'd just bit into a lemon. "Shaking her ta-tas for money?"

"I haven't seen her upchucking the boogie to the beat at Bottom's Up Gentleman's Club. Not that I go there or anything," Dick quickly added looking over at Mac and grinning.

"Right, I believe that totally. Neptune's most eligible bachelor would not go to a club and generously donate 100 dollar bills to the down on their luck dancers." Mac smirked.

"Donate. I like that. Yes, I do like to give back to my community. It's my civic duty," Dick claimed with a wide grin.

"Ah ha, Casablancas. You admit that you have patronized the club before," Veronica said.

"You sound like a lawyer, Mars," Dick teased.

"Funny you should say that," Veronica said.

"I thought you'd be a Feeb by now. But I wasn't really surprised when Logan told me you were practicing law these days. You always did like to argue. We can just ask Logan all about that." Dick said pointedly.

Instead of replying to the dig though, Veronica reached for her purse that she'd hung on the back of the chair. She dug through it and found the taser. She pointed it towards Dick and acted like she was going to click the on switch. Everyone laughed as he held his arms up in surrender.

"I held my own in that department," Logan admitted.

Joshua looked back and forth between his girlfriend and Logan then drained his drink. He stood up and announced, "I need a refill on my scotch. Anyone else need something?"

Veronica pointed to her nearly empty glass of wine. Joshua gave her a curt nod and proceeded to the bar.

"Gee, I hope it wasn't something we said," Dick feigned innocence.

Logan snickered, clearly enjoying Joshua's reaction. "I kind of hope it was," Logan interjected then copied Dick's mock surrender when Mr. Sparky was pointed at him instead. "Stand down, Mars."

"Same old Superfly," came a familiar voice.

Everyone looked up and smiled when they saw Wallace standing there, flanked by Weevil, and his wife, Allison.

"Cuz," Logan greeted Weevil.

"How many times have I told you never to say that in public?" Weevil said in annoyance. He looked around as if he were afraid someone would overhear him.

"I think we need a bigger table," Allison noticed that everyone was squeezed in practically on top of one another. She leaned in to hug Logan and kissed his cheek.

"I'll handle this," Dick said rising. He looked around and saw a table across the way with only one person there. Mac heard him tell the guy, "I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to take this table out of service."

"What the hell?" The guy, whose name escaped Mac at the moment, complained. She'd always thought he looked like Fivel from An American Tail, and that obviously hadn't changed in the past decade. If anything he looked even more rodent-like now, she hadn't even thought that was possible.

"It's wobbly." And then Dick proceeded to shake it. "See? I can't afford a lawsuit. Though I think Mars would provide adequate counsel. Tell the bartender drinks are on me the rest of the night."

"Thanks man. Wait, it's an open bar, dude. Man, you always were a dick," the Fivel-look a like complained in a squeaky voice. Mac had to control the urge to go over there and offer him a piece of cheese.

"My mom named me correctly. But anyway, since I own the place, I'm just exercising my rights here. And keeping my patrons safe, of course," Dick replied with an unapologetic grin.

The guy just shook his head and headed over to the bar, grumbling about how the freaking '09ers never change.

Wallace helped Dick move the table next to the other one, and they rearranged all the chairs to accommodate the expanding group. Conversation weaved details of their current lives in with bits of memories of their high school days. The story of Weevil ultimately marrying Logan's cousin was a popular topic.

Allison had come out to visit her cousin Logan during his sophomore year at Hearst. One day while walking by the Pi Sigma Sigmas a senior jackass, whose name Allison later found out was Chip, started shouting obnoxious comments about her big breasts and short shorts. Dick had been there, too. He had kept telling Chip to knock it off but had been ignored. Then Weevil had came out of the Pi house after fixing the A/C, and overheard Chip's last comment. His reaction had been to jump in Chip's face and start wailing on him. Dick had to pull him off of Chip. Allison had never had anyone come to her defense like that. She had introduced herself to Weevil and offered to buy him a coffee for his chivalry.

After a lengthy suspension, Weevil was ultimately fired from his job as Maintenance Manger of Hearst College, but he didn't care. By then he and Allison were dating. She had been raised in Toledo, Ohio; her dad and Logan's mom were first cousins. She might have initially gone out to California to visit Logan; however, she stayed there for Weevil. It wasn't long before she transferred from Ohio State University to Hearst College. After their tale was shared with the group, Allison took a sip from her glass of water and rested her hand on her belly. Mac couldn't help but notice her dreamy expression. It made Mac happy that Weevil had found someone who so obviously adored him.

Wallace mentioned his wife, Jocelyn, a lot. She had to stay back in Chicago with the boys. He passed his iPhone around. Everyone ooh'ed and aw'ed about how cute his growing family was. Dick teased him about starting his own little league team. Wallace quickly corrected him. It was his own basketball team, of course.

"So, bro," Veronica said to her now stepbrother, "how's work going? Making anymore toy planes?"

"Toy planes? Is that what you think I do? Sit in a big room and make model airplanes?" Wallace feigned outrage.

"Yes. That's what you did when we all went to Dog Beach for The Sea Monkey's maiden voyage," Veronica reminded him.

"This is the real world, Vee. We use computers now. I actually do a lot of flight simulations, finite element analysis, and structural analysis. Really cool stuff, I don't get to sue people, but I like it." He grinned really big.

"So, it's like rocket science or something, right, dude?" Dick asked.

"Or something," Wallace replied at the same time Mac said, "Yes, exactly like rocket science."

"What's rocket science? Owning an ass website?" Joshua said as he returned to their table. He placed Veronica's wine in front of her.

Mac knew it was a snipe directed at Logan rather than her, but she felt slighted, too.

"Rocket science is rocket science," Logan clarified talking slowly and enunciating carefully.

"I could totally be a rocket scientist. Building rocket models and drawing on the computer all day. I'd totally rock that. Crayon comes off computer screens, right?" Dick said it straight-faced, then waited a beat before laughing at everyone's incredulous expressions. "I'm joking. I think I'll stick to owning hotels, especially this one." The last sentence was said softly, a little wistfully. He drained his vodka tonic. "Now I need another drink. Who wants a refill? Macster, another glass of wine for you; we need to get you drunk. Weevil, another Killians? Logan, scotch? I'm buying."

"I thought it was an open bar," Wallace said pointing to his empty glass. "Another rum and coke."

"It is. But who the hell do you think is paying the tab?" Dick pointed out.

"Uh, the committee?" Wallace guessed.

"Me," Dick said.

"In that case, make it top shelf."

"Well brand it is. Logan, Ghostworld, will you guys give me a hand, please?"

"Who says chivalry is dead? Making Mac carry her own drink, such a gentleman Casablancas," Veronica said.

"Yes, I am such a delicate flower, V. Sure, no problem." Mac got up and followed the guys. She looked around the room as Dick placed the drink orders with the eager to please bartender. As her eyes panned the room, she noticed Madison staring at Dick with a predatory gleam. Mac hoped that Dick knew Madison's renewed interest in him wasn't anything deeper than a way out of the poverty line.

Madison seized upon her opportunity to corner Dick as he waited for the drinks. She didn't even look Mac or Logan's way. "I haven't seen you in ages, Dick. You look exactly the same. I love what you've done with The Grand."

Logan looked over at Mac and rolled his eyes. He started mimicking Madison's head toss and mouthed along as she continued to try to engage Dick in memories of their so-called glory days at Neptune High. Madison had her back to them and was too focused on her prey to notice the comedy routine she inspired. Mac just grinned.

Madison threw her head back again and laughed. She put a hand on Dick's arm and leaned in to whisper in his ear. Ignoring her, Dick stepped back and pressed a glass of wine in Mac's hand. Then he handed Logan a glass of Macallan.

Mac gritted her teeth. It was just her aversion to all things Madison Sinclair, she told herself sternly. No other reason was behind her sudden urge to dump the full glass of red wine over Madison's blonde head, to watch it rain down like blood. "Oops," she'd say, "my hand slipped." The only thing keeping her from doing just that was her belief that waste was wrong, especially when it came to good wine. She brought the glass up to her lips and took a sip, mainly to keep her hands busy. It wasn't the typical cheap wine they served at most open bar functions. Of course with Dick in charge of the libations, she'd expect no less. Being an 09'er, he had Dom Perignon taste with the bank account to match.

Once all the drinks were ready, everyone headed back to the table, leaving Madison just standing there. Mac was a little surprised that, despite Dick's lack of encouragement, she didn't follow them back. She suspected that Madison was still slightly intimidated by Veronica, but whatever the reason, Mac was grateful to not have to listen to her pathetic attempts at flirting.

Back at the table, Logan started once again taunting Weevil with the "cousin" label.

"Stop it, man. I told you, we can be family anywhere else, but not here. It would ruin what was left of my reputation," Weevil said, rubbing a hand over his still bald head. His obvious uncomfortableness amused the onlookers, which, of course, was why Logan kept doing it.

"As a former leader of the PCH'ers? Yes, that's one title I wouldn't want to tarnish," Logan said sarcastically.

"Eli, baby, love me, love my family," Alison interjected.

"No, Alison, love you, tolerate—barely—your family. Vee, dig out your taser again. Echolls here is a little slow on the intake."

"Yeah, Eli. You've got to love me. We are family," Logan said, grinning. He then launched into a full verse of the old Motown song of the same name. Weevil showed his appreciation for Logan's serenade by giving him a rude finger gesture. Then Alison joined Logan in the off-key chorus.

"Stop it, you two," Weevil said, placing his hands over his ears."Why, oh why, did the one woman perfect for me have to share the same blood line as the biggest asshole of Neptune High?"

"Actually, I've always been partial to the title 'obligatory psychotic jackass', myself," Veronica corrected.

"You're just lucky, dear. Anyway, like it or lump it, now that we're married, you and the biggest asshole of Neptune—or obligatory psychotic jackass—take your pick, are cousins now. No matter how much you deny it," Alison said, patting her husband on his arm.

"I could feel the love all the way over at the bar," Dick said as he set to work passing the glasses around.

"We also witnessed some love at the bar," Veronica added. "Looks like Madison was hoping to do a little rekindling."

"Try hunting for a baby daddy," Dick corrected.

"What?" Mac and Veronica screeched simultaneously.

"Someone actually spawned with Madison Sinclair? He must have been real hard up," Wallace added.

"Word on the street is she has a fifteen month old son at home," Dick added. "She's probably on the prowl for a Baby-Daddy."

"I think she's already mentally cast that role," Mac hypothesized.

"I'd make a great choice for a Baby-Daddy."

"Have you met yourself?" Veronica snarked.

"What? Just because I can't keep a goldfish alive doesn't mean I can't raise a child. How hard can it be? They cry and whine and shit when they want to eat, right?" Dick said trying to hide his grin but wasn't successful when Wallace, Eli and Allison started snickering. "Just kidding. I think I'll wait a few more years before I sic a Dick the third on the unsuspecting populous of Neptune. Plus, I can think of better baby mamas than Madison Sinclair."

"Your first wife?" Logan cut in.

"Right. Melinda, um something," Dick said trying, and failing, to remember her last name.

"I see the former Mrs. Casablancas really made an impression on you," Mac pointed out.

"We were married less than 24 hours."

"She got to know you?" Veronica guessed.

"No. The annulment was my idea actually. She had freaky feet. I can't be married to anyone with freaky feet," Dick rationalized.

"But you'd sleep with them?" Veronica asked, a look of repulsion on her face.

"If they wear socks, cover up the feet, sure, why not?" Dick clarified.

"That's noble of you, Casablancas," Veronica said sarcastically. She rolled her eyes.

"You know it, Ronnie," Dick replied, grinning knowingly.

Mac noticed that Joshua wasn't saying much of anything. He was staring down at the table, sucking down his scotch. She once again tried to involve him in conversation, but he didn't answer her in more than monosyllabic words. She'd had better conversations with her Venus Flytrap. Veronica finally quit sniping at Dick and started trying to get her boyfriend to talk, but she didn't have any better luck than Mac.

Finally, Veronica excused herself from the table. "Mac, come on."

"I'm fine. I don't need to use the facilities."

"So? What does that have to do with anything? We're girls. Aren't we supposed to go to the restroom in packs?" Veronica went over to Mac and started pulling on her arm.

"Is that in the rulebook? I lost my copy." Mac snarked back, but she allowed Veronica to pull her up. They made their way to the restroom located on the other side of the massive room, dodging groups of people milling about. Sadly, Mac felt like she'd never really left Neptune High. The cliques of people that were friends in high school were the same social groups flocking together ten years later. It really was Neptune High School, redux.

After completing their business, Veronica and Mac washed their hands and then checked themselves out in the mirrors hanging above the sinks, making sure their make-up and hair still looked good.

Mac liked the way Veronica wore her hair these days—a sleek blonde bob that just brushed her shoulders. As for her own hair, she was still getting used to the fact it was now chin length. She'd cut it short for her twenty-eighth birthday, figuring it was time for "grown up hair." By her junior year of college, she'd quit dying her signature streaks of purple, green, or fire engine red. Now, however, she was back to putting streaks of red in her otherwise black hair, but the shade she chose these days was more mahogany than fire engine.

Mac's eyes met Veronica's in the mirror. She looked as though she had something she wanted to tell Mac but stayed silent for a long minute.

"Do you think Joshua is mad?" Veronica finally asked.

"I think he's overwhelmed. And probably feeling outnumbered," Mac replied thoughtfully.

"He has just been in a really pissy mood all night," Veronica complained.

"In other words, exactly your type," Mac said.

"Pissy?"

"Tall, dark, broody," Mac stated matter-of-factly.

"Just because that describes Duncan, and Logan...Well, maybe," Veronica finally admitted.

"Definitely," Mac stated, her tone didn't leave any room for arguments.

"Well, your type these days seems to be tall, blonde and dumb." Veronica said flashing her friend a knowing look.

Mac opened her mouth to retort when just then the door swung open and Madison strode in. Her eyes met Veronica's in the mirror. "Speaking of tall, blonde, and dumb..."

"You're not his type, you know," Madison hissed at Mac.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Mac was confused.

"Dick. I've known him a lot longer than you have."

"I'm not interested in Dick. I never have been, and unless I've entered the fifth dimension and didn't know it, I never will be," Mac snapped.

"He needs someone who gets his life. Who has class and comes from a good background." Madison said as she headed into the first bathroom stall.

Mac couldn't even think of a reply, and she was rarely without a sharp retort. Her mouth just hung open. Veronica, on the other hand, didn't have the same problem.

"Well, how do we account for you then, Madison?" Veronica asked loudly, to make sure Madison clearly heard her.

"I have a theory," Mac said, finding her voice after all. "Actually,..."

"No. You're the one with class, remember. She's not worth the effort," Veronica said

"We're just going to do nothing?" Mac complained.

"Come on, Mac, let's get out of here. No more letting her pollute our air space," Veronica dragged Mac out of the restroom. She accented the word "her" with over a decade's worth of venom and bitterness.

"Why won't you let me have any fun?" Mac grumbled.

On the way back to their group they passed several long tables pushed up against the far wall. Each table held picture collages and little mementos of a life gone too soon. There was one makeshift memorial for victims of the bus crash and also for other classmates that died after graduation. They stopped at the Meg Manning spread.

Mac had mixed emotions about the whole idea. On one level, she thought this reunion was about reliving the happy times, those more innocent times. The irony did not escape her, though, that her Neptune glory days were darker than most, as was Veronica's, Logan's, and even Dick's. On the other hand, she appreciated the sentiment—these classmates were gone, but they would never be forgotten. They would always be a part of the class of 2006.

Veronica's eyes were locked on a photo of her and Meg in matching yellow and green spirit squad uniforms, arms around each other. She just stared at the picture, not saying anything. Mac, however, knew her friend was feeling guilty about something that really had been out of her control anyway. Sometimes she thought V enjoyed putting the weight of the entire universe firmly on her shoulders, a Neptunian version of Atlas. Mac reached over and briefly squeezed Veronica's hand.

"Meg was just nice to you because she felt sorry for you," Madison said, her whiny voice cutting into Veronica's reverie.

"What the hell is your problem, Madison? You've been stalking me all night." Mac launched into her before Veronica had the chance to say anything. "When you weren't stalking Dick, that is. Now you're trying to involve Veronica in your little game. Just grow the hell up! This isn't high school any more, in case you hadn't noticed."

"I knew you wanted Dick," Madison said in a triumphant voice.

"No, I don't actually. But neither do you. You just want him as a meal ticket." Mac snapped.

"What do you know about me, you stupid bitch. You're always the last to know anything. You were screwing a murderer and didn't even know it. Your best friend was the biggest slut of the school. You've always been on the wrong side of the tracks, Cindy." Madison managed to make the name Cindy sound like a dirty word.

"It's the right side of the wrong side of the tracks, thank you. And you have no idea what you are talking about. As usual." Mac said through gritted teeth.

"I've always been so sick of your air of superiority, thinking you're smarter than everyone else."

"No, not everyone. Just you, Madison. It must be the Sinclair genes that make me the more intelligent one."

"What the hell are you talking about, Mackenzie?" Madison snapped, looking confused.

"Neptune Memorial sent us home with the wrong families," Mac blurted out, her anger forcing the confession out of her. She couldn't even look at Madison as she said it. Of course, Mac of all people knew what a life changing thing that statement was, but in that one moment of time all she wanted to do was knock the smug expression off Madison's face.

In every single year Mac had the misfortune of knowing Madison Sinclair, she never seemed to be good for anything other than bullying those she deemed beneath her, which Mac figured was probably every other person she ever came across. If there wasn't some kind of benefit to her, she wouldn't deign to talk to you. Mac had to work twice as hard for anything and everything she had while Madison had had a silver plated childhood. Sometimes, like now, it really pissed her off. She'd tried hard to move beyond the feelings that she'd been cheated in life. Hell, her parents were wonderful, loving people who were so proud of everything she had accomplished, but she never truly felt she'd belonged with the Mackenzies. It was a gut feeling, one that had stayed with her most of her childhood. So in a lot of ways, it had been a relief when Veronica discovered the truth of her parentage during their junior year at Neptune High. Although it was a relief, it was also the one millisecond in time where she could look back and say nothing would ever be the same again. After all, once you learn something, you cannot unlearn it. A part of her couldn't help but wonder "what if".

Mac looked over at Veronica, who gave her an encouraging smile.

"You're lying. I don't know what your game is, but I'm going to end you." Madison said waspishly.

"Oh, it's not a lie. It's not a game. I was the one who discovered the lawsuit against Neptune Memorial Hospital," Veronica said. There was an edge to her voice, a dare for Madison to argue with her.

"When? How...how long did you know?" Madison seemed at war with herself, one part wanted to stay firmly planted in denial, the other part of her seemed to believe it was possible.

"Our junior year in high school," Mac said, again unable to look into Madison's green eyes, the ones so much like the woman she grew up calling mom. The woman who was still her mom, who would always be her mom. The very same mom that raised her, that loved her.

"I'm just finding this out now? How could you keep this from me? It affects me every bit as much as you. You've always been a bitch. Now you're a selfish one!" Madison screamed.

Mac looked around the room to gauge if anyone else in the room was looking at the scene they were beginning to cause. She didn't feel like admitting to herself that it was Dick she was looking for. She didn't want to acknowledge that somehow during the course of the reunion she'd completely revised her opinion—for the better—of the overgrown child. So while Mac was busy scanning the room looking for the lanky blond surfer dude, she didn't notice when Madison reached out and slapped her cheek. She certainly felt it, though, and heard the sound of the slap echo through the room. Damn, it stung. Mac quickly recovered and with an angry shriek launched herself at Madison.

"I don't know what the hell you're complaining about," Mac said as she fisted her right hand and jammed it into Madison's stomach. "You lived the life of privilege, the one that was supposed to be mine. You stole my life."

"You know what, Cindy, Boo fu-," Madison started in on Mac, then suddenly stopped mid-sentence when Mac's fist hit her for the second time. Winded, she waited a beat and then grabbed a handful of Mac's hair and yanked it hard. Mac struggled to get free, but it only made her scalp hurt more. She reached out her right hand to punch Madison in the face. Madison saw Mac's hand coming out of the corner of her eye and threw her head back. Mac's hand ended up smacking the side of her nose, making a crunching noise as the cartilage snapped and blood rained down.

"I just got my nose done two years ago, bitch." Madison said, or at least that's what Mac thought she said. She let go of her iron grip on Mac's hair.

If Mac thought a broken nose—and now-botched nose job—would cause Madison to retreat she was wrong. It actually had the opposite effect, it galvanized her into coming back at Mac with even more venom and hatred. Despite the blood pouring out, Madison pushed into her. Mac stumbled back, knocking a nearby bar top table over. The first casualty was a half full pitcher of beer, spilling down on the ground. The scent of the spilled beer wafted up and wrapped itself around Mac, making her want to gag. Flashes of former classmates surrounding them, sounds of their cheers and shouted insults, the yeasty smell of the spilled beer, everything was swirling around her at once-she was in sensory overload. Her dad's advice from his military service days popped in her head, stay alert, stay alive. She knew she needed to stay focused on her opponent, but Dick's voice soon pierced its way into her thoughts.

"...whole new side of Ghostworld, who knew she..."

She heard Veronica say something about Madison having it coming.

Dick answered back something about mud and wrestling, and how hot it was that they were fighting over him.

Logan grumbled something to Dick about not getting the whole back story, and then Dick replied that he was starting to understand the brawl was about something more than just Mac and Madison just wanting the Dickster. But they both definitely wanted the Dickmeister, too. Mac turned around and caught a quick glimpse of Dick's smug smile.

Seeing an opportunity to catch Mac unaware, Madison waited until Mac got up and shoved her again so she fell back into the tipped over table. Mac reached up and frantically grabbed onto the closest thing she could, Madison. They both fell down on the beer soaked carpet, Mac on the bottom, getting the brunt of the fall. The yeasty smell of the beer mingled with the metallic tang of Madison's blood, which wasn't showing any signs of stopping. Madison kept pummeling Mac, shrieking about ruined lives. Mac reached out with her left hand and was about to flip Madison around to once again gain the advantage when she heard a buzzing noise. She lifted her head up and saw Veronica coming up behind Madison.

"Be still, Mac," Veronica hissed.

Mac cringed a little when she heard the sizzle of the taser connecting with Madison's shoulder. Taking advantage of Madison's distraction, Mac scooted out from under Madison. She didn't even have the energy to get up from her prone position on the floor. She watched a couple security guards push Veronica out of the way and slowly help Madison to her feet.

"Jeff?" Mac heard Veronica say. "Jeff Ratner?"

"Veronica Mars. Why am I not surprised to see you in the middle of this fracas? You haven't changed since our freshman year at Hearst." Jeff Ratner did not look happy at the impromptu reunion.

"You obviously haven't either. Still working at the Grand, I see," Veronica observed.

"Head of Security now, actually. The new owner promoted me. As much as I'm enjoying catching up with you, I need to earn my pay now. The boss is watching, you know." Jeff smirked.

"I know. I'll leave you to earn your minimum wage," Veronica said.

Mac shut her eyes, no longer interested in watching Jeff Ratner and his team handle Madison. The adrenaline was starting to wane, leaving her acutely aware that she wasn't totally unscathed herself. Suddenly, she felt a presence and opened her eyes. Dick was looming over her.

"You okay there, Scrappy Doo?" he asked.

"Peachy," Mac said. "Get me off this floor. You really need to wash the carpets."

She lifted up her right hand, so Dick could help haul her up.

As soon as he grasped it though, she let out a scream. "Stop," she said when she could speak through the pain.

"You okay, Macster?" Dick had let go of her hand the second she screamed. He was looking at her with concern.

"No. Definitely not. Turns out punching someone really hurts. I always knew she had rocks in her head. I think I just proved that hypothesis." Mac gently cradled her injured hand against her chest. She was still lying down.

"And only you would you use big words after a fight," Dick observed in admiration.

"True," Mac agreed with a sheepish smile.

"Any other injuries?" Dick asked, obviously worried.

"Probably. I have no idea what though," Mac said.

Dick knelt down beside Mac and slowly helped her sit up. Then once that finally happened, he stood up and still leaning over, picked her up and carried her over to a chair by the bar.

"I'm fine, I can actually walk on my own. You don't have to hover," Mac tried to assure him.

Veronica, Joshua, Logan, Wallace, Allison and Eli had been gathered around the scene of the fight, watching Ratner continue his interrogation of Madison. Around them a couple of other Neptune Grand staffers were starting to clean up the remains of the fight by cleaning the beer soaked carpet, and picking up the overturned furniture. Feeling in the way, they turned around and saw that Dick and Mac were seated at the bar. They went over there and gathered around Mac's stool in concern.

"I'm okay, " Mac assured her friends. "You should see the other guy." She smiled weakly.

Veronica then filled them in on what was going on, leaving out the baby swapping story. Mac found out that Dick had instructed Ratner and his team to just deal with Madison and that he'd handle Mac himself.

"I guess that's one benefit of knowing the owner of the hotel," Mac said to Dick.

"Hang with me, I'll show you a lot of benefits," Dick said suggestively.

"Geez, Casablancas, your timing sucks." Veronica said giving Dick a peak of the taser she was still holding.

"I was going to say, benefits like free ice packs. Once again, Mars, you've badly misjudged me," Dick said smugly as he signaled the bartender over and asked her to fill a couple bags with ice. When that was done, he handed them to Mac. She groaned a little with the weight of the ice on her sore hand, but then the cold seeped in, soothing it a little bit. Her groan morphed into a sigh.

She tried to pay attention to the conversations around her, but the adrenaline was wearing off and a dull aching was starting to set in everywhere, not just her injured hand. She was just starting to consider getting up to start the (long) trek to her twelfth floor suite, when Dick whispered in her ear. "I have a spare room, Ghostworld. Stay with me."

Mac had every intention of saying no when she heard a "yes" instead coming out of her mouth. She would have considered that she'd received a bump on her head, too, but she'd been acting flirty with Dick all night. What the hell did they put in Neptune's water supply?

After saying goodbye to everyone and steadfastly ignoring the pointed looks her friends were giving her, Mac allowed Dick to help her down from the bar stool. She was walking very slowly and didn't have the energy to object when Dick put his arm around her, giving her something to lean against. "Come on, Oscar de la Hoya, let's get you back to my place," he said.

TBC...