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"Going out, Kara?" Uncle Sol was feeling about the pockets of a jacket he'd hung up not two hours before. He was dressed in a pair of slacks and an old UCLA shirt that Kara remembered throwing in the wash not three days ago. Running her hands down the front of her shirt - light cotton with a random sprinkling of glitter along the sleeves - she faltered. She hadn't counted on Uncle Sol still being there when it was time to leave.

"Uhm..." suddenly the invitation didn't seem like such a good idea. This was going to be the first time she'd be leaving the house save for school, shopping and Sunday mass ever since she got here. Kara hoped that he wasn't going to give her a hard time about it. Uncle Sol aha-ed when he found what he'd been looking for before turning to face the girl. She stood by the bookshelf, looking like a deer caught in headlights again.

"I th-th-thought you'd be going out tonight, as well?" Kara stuttered. Stupid, stupid Kara. Where was all the confidence she'd been bouncing on all the way back from school?

"Yeah well, I cancelled that. I thought I'd just stay in and watch some movies. You didn't tell me you had fr-" Sol caught himself, "I mean, plans."

"Uhm. Well..." think, Kara, think. She needed a good cover-up, something so believable, Uncle Sol would say yes without a moment's hesitation. It had to be fantastic, amazing, just all out perfect.

"... I was invited to this bonfire thing over on the reservation."

Uncle Sol raised an eyebrow and Kara clenched her hands behind her back to keep from slapping her forehead. So much for cover-up.

"The Quileute bonfires aren't usually open to outsiders," he walked over to the couch Kara stood behind, "that I know of. You're not going with those kids who drive over to cause problems, are you?" Kara's head shook solemnly. She felt like an errant child being warned away from trouble.

"So, it's one of those council boys who invited you over, ay?" this time, Sol was wriggling his eyebrows at her. Kara blushed. The thought of a boy from school asking her for anything other than a pencil was ridiculous. "Nope. No boys. Leah, actually. She asked me if I wanted to join them."

Sol thought on this for a long moment. After a sigh, he leaned back on his seat and reached for the remote. He didn't turn back to look at his niece when he said, "I'm not going to be one of those super strict guardians, Kara. But I hope you know that I won't be so lax either. Be safe tonight, and keep your phone on you. Call me if you need me to pick you up."

The sixteen year old felt a rush of annoyance flare up but she beat it back down. She just needed to get out of the house. It wasn't the perfect time to be going around running her mouth about being almost an adult now and dear god, how old did he think she was? Six? No. It wasn't the time. And plus, she'd sworn to herself that she was going to change.

It's the only way you'll be able to stay sane, Kara reminded herself, tartly.

Outwardly, she smiled and let out a relieved sigh. "Thanks, Uncle."



When the motorcycle - and very large rider, mind you - pulled up, Kara's jaw had about fallen through the earth's crust and mantle. The weather had lightened up a bit, so there was no more rain, but it was still cold out. Kara was wearing two layers of clothes beneath her jacket as it was. Gulping, she watched the large boy get off his bike, remove his helmet, and give her a short once over. A part of her wanted to throw a stone at him. "I'm Jake," the boy said, nodding at her. Kara wrapped her arms around herself and eyed the bike suspiciously. He didn't expect her to get on that, did he? Besides, Leah had told her she'd be picking her up. Wouldn't it have been rude to send someone else without letting her know?

Looking up at the boy's face, Kara realized who he was. It was the boy from Port Angeles. Familiarity made her feel a tad safer.

"Kara," the girl replied. They stood there, sizing each other up for a few seconds. Then Kara spoke. "Leah said that..."

Jacob grumbleded, "Oh right. She couldn't make it. She asked me to bring you over; she had a few, er, errands to run before the bonfire."

Truth was Leah had gotten into trouble for inviting a non-council-tribal member to the bonfire so Sam had sent her on an extra run along the borders before the meeting. They weren't going to be discussing pack matters tonight because of what Leah had done and while Jacob secretly appreciated this setback, it meant that Paul and Jared had been given an all clear to turn the usual sombre affair into an all out beach party. He was pretty sure the two were out scouting cheap alcohol in La Push - bribing liquor shop owners into compliance with their under age promises.

Kara thought about this for a second. Watching Dracula with Uncle Sol seemed like a better idea when compared to getting on this strange boy's bike with him. What if he kills you? a voice started inside her head, what if he threw you off and you ended up some wolf's dinner? No, she hadn't completely forgotten about those ginormous creatures either. The encounter had her steering clear of her short cut ever since.

"I'm not going to kill you, or get you killed, you know," Bike boy told her. For a second, she was afraid she'd spoken her thoughts out loud. "Are you?" her voice sounded oh so quiet. Jake tried not to laugh. "Trust me."

This probably isn't such a good idea.

Jake spoke again, "Listen, if you don't want to go, I could just tell Leah. I'm sure she'll understand." She really wouldn't, honestly, but something told Jake that forcing the girl to leave with him was going to be a stupid thing to do. Especially considering that her uncle - one of Joshua Uley's closest friends - had a heavy pack of fire arms that Jake did not want to be getting acquainted to any time soon. For a short moment, he thought she'd agree and go back home. Instead, the girl took a deep, calming breath; wiped her sweaty palms on the legs of her jeans and nodded.

"Let's get to it, then."