AN: Hey guys! This is the first "real" chapter of the story. This is going to be a bit of a slow burn, but eventually we'll get there. For now, I'm keeping it at T. I'm new to fanfiction, so if it's under/over rated, just let me know. Also, all mistakes are my own. I'll be following most of the plot through the first season, but at the end, it won't follow at all. As we go through the second and third season, things will really start to change. It's not AU, exactly, but one character that dies will remain alive in my story. Tara and Donna's personality might also be a little AU. I'm going to update as often as possible - I have a lot of it written already. This is my first story, so be kind, but let me know what to work on! Thanks, above all, for reading. x


It hadn't taken long for Tara and Mac to fall right back in to the easy friendship they'd had. It was good for both of them, letting loose a little again. They'd been fairly wild in college, so it shouldn't've come as a surprise to either of them that their night out on the town ended as it did.

It was innocent, really. They'd gotten a little dressed up and gone to a bar the next town over that boasted some signature cocktails and good music. Mac hadn't had the opportunity to dress up in a long time, and Tara was just happy to be able to let loose without the threat of Kohn around.

Of course, nothing is ever so simple. They'd gotten tipsy, they'd sung their hearts out, they'd danced like crazy people, and in all of this, they never saw four Sons of Anarchy members walk in to the bar. Clay, Bobby, Tig, and Chibs. Mac wasn't usually so careless, but her attention had been diverted by the absolute creep refusing to take his hands off Tara.

Mac was standing by the bar, nursing a beer, when she saw the creep forcibly start to drag Tara off of the dance floor and to the back door. Nu-uh buddy. Mac thought, putting down her beer and following them. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed the four kuttes standing by the door. She cursed quietly at their timing, but continued after Tara.

She heard Tara's yell just as she walked out the back door into the alley. Mac's first kick at the man was thoughtless and instinctual, aimed at his waist. Tara helped her out then, freed enough to knee him in the balls.

"Excuse me, sir." Mac said. "Sorry to break up this little party."

"Bitch." the man spat at her. Mac tilted her head, like she was viewing a museum exhibit.

"Well, we can't have that." she said, dropping down over him, pinning his arms to the ground with her knees, and giving him a solid punch to the face. He grunted.

"Now, let me say this." Mac said. "If you put a hand on my friend again, I'll kill you."

"She asked for it." the man said, around a mouthful of blood.

"Oh, she did? How, may I ask? With words? A song and dance? Miming?" Mac giggled to herself. "See, I don't think she did, so I'd shut the fuck up and heed my warning if I was you."

She punched him again, this time on the other side.

"On top of that, here's a small hint for the future. If a woman wants you, you'll know. If she doesn't want you, you'll know. Her not wanting you is not an invitation for you to try to make her change her mind. You'll have infinitely better relationships if you start to think that. Now, my friend and I have a lovely evening to return to, so this is, unfortunately, goodbye."

She reared back, and broke his jaw with a final well-placed punch. When she stood up, he wasn't moving.

"He's not dead, right?" Tara asked.

"Nah, probably just passed out from the pain. Let's get going."

The two walked out of the alley, hand in hand, only to be confronted by four large, glowering, Sons of Anarchy brothers.

Not a lot surprised Chibs anymore. He'd seen too much. So when Clay dragged the group of Sons out to the alley, he'd mostly expected to beat the shit out of a guy with no boundaries, and play Prince Charming to a couple of damsels in distress.

Thus his surprise when he saw a slight-looking woman take down and beat the shit out of the man. He grinned at her insouciant way of informing the man on the ways of wooing women, and was happy to just watch the show she put on.

She was slight, but clearly strong. Her voice carried a British accent, and a fair bit of steel. From afar, he could admire her ass in the black jeans she was wearing, and the mane of crazy black curls that had come out of the bun she was currently sporting. Clay motioned for the group to stop at the edge of the alley when it was clear the woman had the situation under control.

When she was done with the man - the crack of his jaw had made even Tig wince - the girls linked arms and turned around, surprise at the waiting Sons showing on their faces. She had green eyes and a pretty face that she had tried to tone down, with a smattering of freckles. Not one to be noticed, huh. thought Chibs. As he looked her up and down, his hands twitched, thinking of making a home in her hair. Sex curls, he thought absentmindedly, and then caught himself, putting a mask over his features and waiting for her or her partner to speak.

"Clay!" Tara said in surprise. Mac just nodded her hello.

"Had an eventful night, have we, ladies?" Clay asked, and Mac was somewhat relieved to see the glower give way to slight amusement.

"Good to see you haven't changed much, Mackenzie." Mac gave him a slight grin. "I was expecting you to show up soon, though maybe not in such a dramatic way. For a woman who tries to be low-key, you sure drew our attention."

Now Mac gave him a full grin. "Not my fault. Tara here caught the man's eye. He decided to… try too hard, so I gave him a quick lesson to fill in the gaps in his education. Hopefully he decides to apply them."

One of the Sons that Mac didn't recognized gave a bark of laughter. "He won' be applyin' anythin' fo' a while, no' with tha' jaw."

Hello, Mr. Scot. Mac thought. She liked the burr, wouldn't mind hearing more of it. The Scot's sharp brown eyes met hers, and she squashed the warm wave of heat that went through her, settling in her stomach. Uh-uh Mackenzie, she said to herself, not a Son. So she gave him a smiled, letting the moment pass.

"Well, I may have gone slightly overboard, but he deserved it. Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to be gone before he wakes up."

Clay nodded. "You'll be in Charming now?" he asked, and Mac nodded.

"Come by tomorrow morning, for church. I'll properly introduce you to the club. I'm sure you've got something for us as well." Mac nodded again.

Bobby and Clay were exactly as Mac remember them. The Sons of the Scottish accent and the one with the bright blue eyes were more mysterious.

"For now, this is Chibs and Tig." Clay said, motioning to Chibs and Tig in turn. Chibs, huh. Mac though. Gotta be a nickname. She was willing to bet his parents didn't name him after a Scottish knife. He was a nice picture to take in. Tall, broad shoulders, a well-defined body under his black, long-sleeved shit over which he wore his kutte. He had a handsome face, made sightly more sinister looking by the scars on either cheek. A Glasgow smile. She seen them before. His slightly wild, long-ish dark hair put him firmly in Mac's category, but she reminded herself firmly that he was a Son, and looked away.

The other one, Tig, had wildly blue eyes and dark hair as well. He looked slightly maniacal.

"Wanna come for a ride, darlin'?" Tig asked her, but before Mac could respond Clay elbowed him.

"This isn't a croweater, Tiggy." Clay said.

"Mackenzie." Mac said, giving the guys another nod. "Maybe another time, Tiggy, but… probably not." She grinned at him, and he returned it.

"Now, again, we've really gotta be going. I don't want to be here when he wakes up." Mac said, and the guys nodded, leading the way to the parking lot. They split to their respective vehicles, Mac promising again to come by the clubhouse the next morning.

He wanted to hear her speak again. He listened to Clay greet he women with half an ear, more focused on the woman he called Mackenzie, and he mouth that was twisted into a grin.

"Not my fault. Tara here caught the man's eye. He decided to… try too hard, so I gave him a quick lesson to fill in the gaps in his education. Hopefully he decides to apply them."

When he heard the answer, Chibs couldn't keep in his laugh. "He won' be applyin' anythin' for a while, no' with tha' jaw."

The green eyes met his gaze, and he thought he might've briefly seen a spark of desire before it disappeared under her cool mask. Chibs just kept grinning as she explained herself. When Clay introduced him and Tig, he watched Mackenzie carefully, noting when she took stock of his appearance, and didn't flinch at this scars. That was unusual. The heat he felt when she looked at him was unusual as well.

"Wanna come for a ride, darlin'? Tig asked her, and Chibs could've socked him. He felt slightly mollified when Clay told Tig to back off, and Mac turned him down neatly. More curious than anything, though, because Clay and Bobby seemed to know the woman. Who was she? Unfortunately for his curiosity, Mac seemed to want to leave - probably smart - and so Chibs' questions would have to wait until the next morning.