SPOKANE, Wash. -- Just when Michelle Kwan thinks she's going to kick back and relax a bit, the lure of competitive skating pulls her back.

Originally expected to sit out this season -- or at least skip the Grand Prix events -- Kwan is at Skate America, a last-minute replacement for Sarah Hughes.

''It's kind of unexpected for both you and I,'' the four-time world and six-time U.S. champion said Wednesday, smiling. ''It's kind of like that Godfather-Al Pacino thing. Just when I think I'm out, they pull me back in!''

That doesn't mean she's committing to the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in January in Dallas.

At least, not yet.

''I've got a short program and a long program. If you have to make a decision, you have to be prepared. You can't just walk into it blindfolded,'' she said.

''I want to be there,'' she added. ''That's the key.''

Kwan's addition gives Skate America some badly needed star power. Hughes had to withdraw with a torn muscle behind her right knee, leaving Alexei Yagudin as the only Olympic gold medalist in the field. Competition begins Thursday.

But skating being skating, there will still be plenty of intrigue as the International Skating Union unveils its new judging system at Skate America.

In an effort to prevent scandals like the one that rocked the Salt Lake City Olympics, judges will now be selected randomly by computer, and no one -- not even the judges themselves -- will know whose marks are being used.

''I wouldn't want to criticize the new judging system because it hasn't occurred yet,'' Kwan said. ''You'll have to ask the same question after I compete.''

There was a time not too long ago when Kwan wasn't sure when her next competition would be. She'd gone to the Salt Lake City Olympics as the favorite only to watch yet another spunky American teenager grab the coveted gold medal. A few weeks later, Irina Slutskaya took her world title away.

''It was devastating because I wanted to win. But in another way, it's OK,'' Kwan said of the Olympics. ''It's a little strange, because I thought I would feel differently. Life moves on. I learned a lot from the tour.''

Kwan knew she didn't want to turn professional, but she wasn't sure she wanted to get caught up in the post-tour whirlwind right away, either. Normally, she finishes a tour and immediately starts work on her long and short programs and before she knows it, it's time for the season's first competition.

So she decided to just chill out and see what happened.

''My mindset this year was a little unclear,'' she said. ''I kind of liked it that way. ... I took it at my own pace and it's a lot less stressful.''

She didn't commit to any events, and most figured she'd sit out this season -- or at least skip the Grand Prixs like she did in 1998. Just in case, though, she learned a new short program and free skate.

''In case I changed my mind,'' she said. ''It seems that I have changed my mind.''

About a few things.

After skating on her own last season -- she dumped Frank Carroll as her coach right before Skate America -- she's working with Scott Williams, the 1986 U.S. men's silver medalist.

Like everything else this year, the partnership just kind of happened. Kwan asked Williams to help her in the rink one morning and they went from there.

''It's nice having Scott there because I can have a voice on the ice,'' she said. ''It's an addition to what I'm thinking.''

Kwan competed in the Campbell's International Figure Skating Classic field earlier this month, winning despite having worked only two weeks on her new free skate program.

She went back home and continued polishing her programs. So when Hughes dropped out of Skate America last Friday, Kwan quickly signed on.

''I thought, 'You know, that would be kind of fun to try things out,''' she said. ''I think I'm kind of ready, so here goes nothing.''

As for the future, who knows.

''I just have to see how it goes,'' she said. ''Nationals is going to be exciting and worlds is going to be in the country, so it's kind of like a teaser.''