Justin knocked on Mackenzie's door with a sigh. He had been sleeping, had being the key phrase. Then Mackenzie had called him and told him to meet here in there. She opened the door, and looked to either side in a conspiratorial way, and pulled the unimpressed Justin inside. "Sexy P.J.'s," she said.

He looked down at his baggy pajama pants and white wifebeater. "Okay, okay, why am I here? By the way, sexy teddy." he asked.

She blushed. "It's my teddy bear. I've had him since I was little. And I have a way we can get back at JC," she said. "But we're going to need the other guys' help..."

"Shh!"

"Be quiet!"

"Be careful," Mackenzie said. "Don't hit his head, he'll wake up."

"He might wake up anyway," Lance pointed out.

"Thank you for pointing out the obvious. Now elevator or stairs?" she asked.

"Elevator," Chris said. "We might drop him if we take the stairs."

"Good point."

She hit the call button, and waited patiently for the elevator to open. They all sucked in a breath when JC stirred, but did not wake up. They all fit in the elevator when they held the sleeping JC diagnolly, and Mackenzie laid below him. "Let me tell you, if you drop him on me, you guys will be finding things you don't want to be finding in your suitcases for a very long time."

But they got out of the elevator without a hassel, but scored a couple strange looks, but no questions from the people at the front desk. Mackenzie opened the door to the pool, allowing them to carry JC through the door. "Why don't you help carry him?" Chris asked tiredly.

"Chris, who would open the door?" Mackenzie asked with a look that said 'duh'.

"Oh," was all Chris said.

"Spitfire," Justin hissed at Mackenzie while he passed her.

"Brillo pad," she hissed back.

With delight, Mackenzie then opened the door to the basketball court. The guys laid the amazingly still sleeping JC at half court. With laughs and high fives, they left him there, to observe him from some bushes along the court.

About twenty minutes later, JC stirred. Mackenzie and the rest of *N Sync held their breaths. JC opened his eyes to the bright sunlight and closed them to go back to sleep. But with a start he sat up. "Where the hell am I?" he wondered outloud.

They couldn't hold it in any longer. The group burst out laughing, and JC saw them coming out of the bushes, and he rolled his eyes. "Watch out, that's all I have to say. Watch out."

Mackenzie came back to her room after going down the hall to the vending machine. She had decided to congratulate herself on her wonderfully carried out prank. Thanks to the rest of the guys, of course. There was no question that she couldn't have done it without them. She flopped down on her bed, but something was wrong. Something was missing...

Her teddy bear. Her eyes darted to the top of the TV, to the desk, to the bedside table where she had left it. In it's place was a note.

He he. A wonderful trick, that's to be sure
Don't you worry, I told you to watch out!
Your teddy doesn't like you anymore
He's run away to see the world
But he'll be back don't you worry
We just don't know when!

And it was signed, *N SYNC. "Oh, the little traitors," she muttered angrily. All she had wanted was a bag of Skittles.

"Oh dear," Justin said. "This is not good," he said. "JC, can you grab my gel out of my suitcase?" he asked. "My hair isn't behaving itself."

JC rolled his eyes. "Sure. Just a minute," he said, walking over to the other bed, zipping open Justin's suitcase. He dug around for a few seconds, and found something rather suspicious. "Umm, Justin..."

"What up?" he said, coming out of the bathroom. "Don't tell me I left it in the last town," he said.

"Uh, not exactly," JC said. He held up a navy blue lace bra, and Justin's eyes popped out of his head. "Justin, if there's something that's going to effect the band and it's performance, we need to know," he said gently with mock seriousness.

Justin grabbed the bra from his friend and glared. "Mackenzie, that little spitfire," he growled.

"What about her?" JC asked innocently.

"She did this," he said, digging around in the suitcase some more.He found a note written in Mackenzie's handwriting.

JC, I want my teddy back
As for the rest of you, you stupid sell outs!
Why'd you do that to me?
And Justin, I hope you enjoy your little present. Ha ha.
I have three words for you: THIS IS WAR.

Justin crumpled the paper up. "She wants war, we'll give her war."

The next few weeks were prank war. Mackenzie found her wallet missing sporadically. Joey found honey instead of shampoo at the most inopportune time. Mackenzie found her room T.P'd. Lance found his bed short sheeted. Mackenzie found her not being able to make outgoing phone calls from her telephone. The guys were unable to get out of their hotel rooms because the doors were tied together from the doorknobs. Mackenzie woke up and discovered herself covered in shaving cream. She washed her face, and wrote another note.

Guys, this has gone too far. I woke up this morning and there was SHAVING CREAM IN MY HAIR...

"'...and if this doesn't stop, THE PICTURES go to every teenie mag from here to kingdom come and back. If you agree with me, bring my teddy bear tonight at ten and I'll bring the pictures," Justin read. He looked up. "Guys, those are THE pictures we're talking about here," Justin said urgently.

"But this is so much fun," Chris said. "THE pictures will be interesting for the public to see."

"What pictures?" Joey asked.

"What do you mean, what pictures?" Lance asked.

"Exactly what I said: what pictures?" he repeated.

"THE pictures Joe. Think really hard," JC prodded.

"What pictures?" Joey persisted.

"Tell me Joey," Justin said. "Got milk?"

"Got milk..."Joey mumbled. "The pictures...OH. THOSE pictures. She wouldn't! Would she?"

"Yeah, those," Chris said, hitting Joey over the head. "Duuuur."

"Ow," he complained."In that case, we don't have a choice. Give them to her!" he urged.

"Okay," Justin said. "Tonight we call a truce."

Mackenzie impatiently waited in front of her room, wondering where they were. But the door down the hall opened, and only Justin came out. He was holding Mackenzie's teddy bear, and Mackenzie thought with a laugh. Oh yeah. Now THAT'S masculine. Justin didn't waste anytime. "Where are the pictures?" he asked. She held up the developing envelope. "Right here Curly. You want them?"

"Yeeees I do," he said. "We'll switch on three, Spitfire," he said, holding out Mackenzie's teddy bear. "One."

"Two," she said.

"Three," they said and took a deep breath, switching their articles. Each breathed in a sigh of relief when their items were safe in their arms.

"What do we do now?" Justin asked.

"How about we shake on it?" she suggested.

"Oh right," he said. He stuck his hand out, and they shook. A warm sensation radiates up his arm, and he quickly withdrew it.

He couldn't tell, but he thought that Mackenzie felt it too, because she also withdrew her hand. "Truce," he said.

"Truce," she agreed. He held up the pictures and smiled before running back to the room.

She smiled. That's what he thinks, she thought. The negatives were in her back pocket.

Justin got back to his room and silently shut the door. JC was already asleep, so he put the pictures on the bedside table. He turned on the radio, and tried to sleep. And he heard a song. And old one that his mother used to sing to him when he was little, about finding the right person. He had always loved that song...

God, where had his time with Mackenzie gone? It had been roughly ten months, and he was getting to know and love her more each day. She was fiery, and where had his nickname, Spitfire come from anyway?

He continued to think about her, and fell into a deep dreamless sleep.

Well, it's more than a feeling
When I hear that old song they used to play...
When I'm tired and I think I'm cold
I hide in my music and forget the day
And dream of a girl that I used to know
Close my eyes and she slipped away
-- More Than A Feeling by *N SYNC