May was finally here, not that it had any impact on my life, except I now had to fight yet another person for the bathroom since Dinah was home. Like I had expected Francine wasn't. Still, Brian managed to get a job with Ginger's father after a whole lot of begging and the pack managed to look after his family. We didn't need her (well, Brian's job barely paid for the gas to get around so they needed the money she sent desperately, but we didn't need her). Dinah also helped us out—the Uley boys loved having her around even if Brian had absolutely no idea how to juggle being in love with her and destined for someone else.

My parents had decided I couldn't just keep lazing around all the time, so Mom started bringing me to work with her. It was mind numbingly boring. I still went. After all, I had finally memorized the forest so there was no point in hanging out there all the time.

Plus, I'll admit the promise of power over the whole town was kind of attractive.

Even though I was an unwilling apprentice, my parents didn't want me working all the time. When my dad came by to walk my mom home they told me to go on ahead while they went over some last minute decisions (could my parents be any more obvious? It was disgusting) and so I was the one who got home first.

To the sound of crying.

Nothing too terrible happened to the door (nothing that couldn't be fixed, anyway) as I rushed inside to make sure Jubes was all right.

"Go away," she ordered.

Please. Like that was going to happen.

I think she realized it too because before I could break down her door she opened it.

She looked terrible. Her face was blotchy, her eyes were red, her hair was a dishevelled mess and there were black streaks all over her face. I felt like I was going to be sick.

"What happened?"

She didn't say anything for a moment, trying to be stoic, but when I hugged her she burst into hysterical sobs once again and gave me part of the story.

"Dan dumped me."

I managed to grab some tissue from over her head and hand it to her as she burst into more tears. I don't think I could have managed that many tears even if the world was ending. The tears did slow, but by that time Dinah had gotten home.

"What did you do?" she mouthed. Jubes was too busy trying not to cry to move from where she had buried her head into my shirt.

After I flipped off Di, I mouthed back what had happened. A rather dangerous glint appeared in my sister's eyes, but she nodded at me. So I had a partner.

Dinah took Judy off my hands; neither Dinah nor I had ever really been dumped but Dinah had just recently come closest. That in itself was mind-blowing. No one dumped Dinah. I couldn't believe someone had been dumb enough to dump Jubes.

They handled the conversation while I hung out on the floor and plotted how I could make Dan's beating look like an accident. He didn't want a girlfriend? I'd show him how important it was to have someone to get you ice for your broken face.

"Hunting accident."

"Will, that's not going to make her feel better."

Dinah's lecture was ignored. We had asked Will to help so he was helping the best way he knew how. It was just him and Benjamin so Judy was the closest thing he had to a sister (and Dinah, but Dinah didn't need anyone looking after her). It actually made me a little nervous for a second. If someone on the rez could plan a murder and get away with it, my money would have been on the two people beside me.

"It's just a question of getting him into the forest at the right time."

"Stop it," Dinah ordered. "We need to come up with something that doesn't involve us getting locked away."

"We wouldn't get caught."

Ignoring him, Dinah turned to me and Brian. "We have to do something. Something not murderous."

Before I could suggest just maiming the bastard Brian spoke up.

"We just have to come up with something fun to take her mind off of things."

"She's not even fifteen yet. We aren't getting her drunk," I snapped.

"Brian?"

It was all Dinah had to say before her ex punched me in the arm. "What?"

"That's not what he was saying," she sighed. "Idiot."

"What was he saying, then?"

The three of us turned to stare at Brian, who thought for a minute and then said, "Why don't you take her to Seattle for a weekend? Hanging out in the city is fun."

"And then," Will concluded, "She can come home with bullshit stories that will make the little prick feel like shit. And then we can shoot him."

I wasn't sure how much I liked the idea of my little sister surrounded by college guys, but if it would make her feel better I could trust that Dinah would never ever let anything happen to Judy. Even if Judy wanted something to happen.

"Having her in Seattle would be fun," Dinah said, beaming at Brian. "We haven't had enough sisterly bonding time since I left for school."

"And Fran could use a day off," Brian said. "She's been working too hard, lately."

If she didn't want to hang around him I think Brian was legally allowed to stop giving a shit about her. But I didn't say anything, which was a good thing because my sister defended Francy and I never succeeded when I went up against Dinah.

"It's not like your father is helping her."

Dinah had decided that since she couldn't be mad at her best friends, she was going to be furious at Sam Uley. And she was succeeding admirably, I thought. She couldn't understand him the way we could, couldn't understand that he didn't have the earth underneath him any more without his wife, that he was just floating around in space and it was damn cold out there. All Dinah saw was the way his family couldn't figure out how to deal with him. And it pissed her off.

In order to diffuse the tension between Dinah and Brian (they had way too much tension between them), Will opened his mouth. Or maybe he just spoke up because he liked making people miserable.

"If I looked like Fran, I'd remember that stripping is a viable career choice."

"Maybe we could pay her to walk around naked."

I really hadn't meant to say that with Brian around, but it was habit.

"Assholes," Dinah (rightfully) declared as Brian growled at both of us for daring to talk about his twin sister that way.

I tried some self-defence. "We're just trying to think of things she could do if they needed more money."

"There is no if," Will laughed.

It had been the best way I could think of to get Will and Brian to be friends again. As much as he complained about his father dumping the finances on him (ignoring how he had wrested them from his mother), there was nothing Will got off on more than handling money. And Brian desperately needed someone to figure out how the hell his family was going to pay for things.

It hadn't worked out quite the way I had been hoping. Will was enjoying spending time with Brian again, but he was also making Brian miserable. Worse, in Will's head he was totally justified. Smuggling was okay in his book, but bad bookkeeping? That was a real crime.

"We're managing," Brian protested.

"No, you're not. Do you know how expensive a drug habit is even when you're not a werewolf?"

Even though he had sounded as close to sympathetic as Will got, my sister did not appreciate it when people talked to Brian like that. "Not all of us started doing speed when we were fourteen, Will. So no, actually. We have no idea how much a drug habit costs."

Since Will did not like discussing any of that with anyone who wasn't me, all he said was, "One of these days they're going to run out of things to pawn. Then they'll finally have to make Fran drop out and kick Sam out of the house if they want to afford to eat."

"Or," I interrupted before Brian phased near my sister, after hearing the two things he was absolutely never going to do. Even without seeing the way he had argued against his sister for the first time in his life so that she would be the one who got to go away, I would have known how important it was to him that at least one of the twins fulfilled their mother's expectations. "Or we make sure the boys are looked after while you work at your new job and you manage like you've been doing."

"We actually need to go pick up the twins and get started on dinner," Dinah said as she stood up, pulling Brian to his feet. "Levi, make sure to tell Judy we have a surprise for her. Build it up—and see if there's anything else she wants, too."

"Sure thing." I waved to the two of them until they shut the door behind them. Then I waited until Brian drove way, well out of earshot before I punched Will. "Can't you shut up around him?"

"But how could he be the perfect son if he didn't suffer the slings and arrows of people like me?" Will's grin faded when he saw how serious I was being. "Oh, come on, Levi. I was helping."

"That wasn't you helping. That was you saying exactly what you knew would piss him off."

"Which, lucky for me, is what he needs to be doing at this point."

I wanted to hit him again except he was actually being serious now. As Dinah had unkindly (but not unfairly) pointed out, Will knew better than the rest of us just what it would mean now that Sam was getting worse. Plus, I didn't need to be good with money the way Will was to know the Uleys were pretty bad with it. The day after Francy got paid, the family needed more money. There was just too many of them.

"I'm the one who delivers bad news from here on."

"It's more fun when I do it."

This time I did hit him. And then I made a mental note to ask my father to forbid Will from taking out Aunt Rachel's hunting rifle. Or maybe not. If my father heard there was a plan to make Dan disappear from the face of the earth then he probably wouldn't stop it.

Hanging out with her big sister (and her big sister's college-age friends) was exactly what Judy needed. She was only crying every other day now; if she didn't stop soon, I was going to express my displeasure to Dan. With my fists.

Unfortunately, my two sisters hanging out meant they came back armed and evil.

"So, how come you didn't tell me you had a girlfriend?"

Dinah always had a strange resemblance to Satan, but it was even more pronounced that usual. Judy even looked away from the TV to better watch us. Mom said to start dinner, so Dinah was doing that while I supervised from the table, but apparently my big sister could cook and annoy me all at the same time.

I really hated Di's ability to multitask.

"It's none of your damn business. That's why."

Unfortunately, Dinah did not have my respect for people's privacy.

"How long have you been together?"

This time I flipped her off and wished all the paperwork Dad had told me to learn was actually interesting. And that it opened portals to other dimensions.

"I've already told her everything," Judy announced, abandoning the television for the more entertaining show of Dinah tormenting me.

"Traitor," I muttered.

"You and little Kara? If I knew you liked babysitting so much, Levi, I would have gotten you a job."

Since I hung out with Will so much—and now looked twenty-five—I think most people on the rez forgot I wasn't his age. Technically, I would have just graduated and Kara would be a junior next year. She was just so short she looked younger than that.

"Hilarious, Di."

She just gave me the same shit-eating grin that had tormented me most of my childhood.

"They're so cute," Judy squealed. She was so lucky that I couldn't hit her without killing her.

"I can't believe you didn't tell me," Dinah complained.

"Yeah, I can't believe I didn't want to have this conversation with you before I had to."

"What? Don't you like talking to me?"

"Di...gimme a break."

"You ruined her first five dates with Brian," Judy reminded everyone needlessly.

"Accidentally." The first time my cousin had business nearby, the second and third really were accidents and after that...I had to keep up my streak. "Come on, Di. There's nothing to talk about."

"If you're dating her, you must see a little more than nothing in her. Have you introduced her to Mom and Dad yet?"

"She's Jared's kid. They've known her since she was conceived."

"Chicken shit."

Damn straight. I was not going to let my parents ruin anything.

"They know everyone around here. You still have to bring her over to meet them."

"They haven't said anything."

"That's because they let you get away with everything," she complained.

"Do not."

"Yeah. They always have. Just because you're a guy."

"Shut up. They do not."

Judy interrupted. "I think he's trying to distract you."

My older sister laughed. "True. Just for that, I'm going to tell them to invite Grandma over, too."

"She'll want to meet your girlfriend for sure," Judy said.

"And disapprove of her."

"Grandma wouldn't do that."

Dinah and I just laughed at my younger sister, because I don't think my mother's mother did anything but disapprove where I was concerned. But when we stopped laughing, Dinah got serious.

"Ask her over to meet thme, Levi. She'll like it."

Why anyone would want to have dinner with the crazy people that were my parents was beyond me, but when Di got serious it was time to listen. I figured she would know a few things about being a girl.

"I'll think about it."

She snorted. But before she could make fun of me some more, my parents came home. They had thoughtfully taken a dip in the ocean before coming home. My poor nose was very grateful.

"Did any of you start the oven like I asked?" Mom asked.

"Levi forgot."

"Dinah didn't tell me."

"Hey, if you don't mind waiting, I don't care." Mom was all heart. "But those who forgot to turn on the oven set the table."

"Why doesn't Dad have to help?" I complained as my father took the chair I had to vacate so I could help Dinah with the table.

"It's called working. You should try it."

"Mom has to cook."

"That is a very good point," my mother said while my father scowled at me. Served him right. If I had to perform slave labor than he should, too. "At least pretend you're helping, Jake."

"Judy and I are supervising."

"Yup," my sister said cheerfully as the two of them did their lame secret handshake. "And Levi's putting the forks on the wrong side."

I was too distracted pushing Dinah around the table to protest my innocence; she started it. Plus Dinah knew how to push back. Except when I almost knocked her into my mother, Dinah got mean.

"Levi wants to invite Kara over for dinner."

My father just laughed (and shot me a slightly sympathetic look) while my mother smiled. "It's about time. Honestly, Levi, we were beginning to wonder if you'd ever do it."

Judy decided she felt left out, not getting to pick on me: "And he wants to invite Grandma."

"We don't want to intimidate the poor girl," Dad interrupted. I owed him one—or a thousand. "Your mom is plenty scary on her own."

"Mom isn't scary," Judy announced. "Unless you deserve it."

"Here that, Leah? Your daughter thinks you aren't scary." Most people would have said Dinah was the one who was most like Mom—I don't think Dad would have.

"At least someone around here isn't a coward."

Dinah and I exchanged a look—it wasn't cowardice if it saved your life.

I had to formally meet Kim first (it wouldn't have been so bad if Will would just stop laughing so damn much) for some reason. Dinah said it would help make Kara less nervous and I had to prove to everyone I was not scared of the five foot nothing Kim.

Brian gave me some notes and I think it turned out okay. We didn't really have much to say to each other; I didn't ask her why she got paler every time she looked at me, just tried to answer her questions as politely as I could.

There was a lot of talk about plans for the future that telling her I was going to run the La Push pack did not seem to satisfy. "That's a lot of responsibility," she murmured.

If Dad did it, how hard could it be?

Being a werewolf was still the easiest thing I had ever done. I was damn good at it, and not even my girlfriend's mother could make me doubt that.

Unfortunately, since I had survived Kim, I had to bring Kara over to our house.

Yeah.

My sisters refused to leave (which I guess was a good thing because I could not double date with my parents—I couldn't even double date with Will and Marley) so the six of us had to sit around awkwardly. Unfortunately, there was no awkward silence—my parents had known her since she was born so they had plenty of things to talk about with Kara. They did awkward conversation instead.

It didn't help that while Kara didn't like talking very much, there was no one in my family who couldn't blather on for eternity.

Once my Dad got started on how he had fixed up Kim's car, he just kept going.

"Jake," my mother had to finally say after I spent minutes staring at her, silently begging her to do something, "Why don't we talk about something else?"

"I was just getting to the best part," he complained.

"He was," Judy agreed. "I wanna know how he gets the engine going again."

"You're boring her stupid," my mother hissed too low for anyone but us werewolves to hear. My father replied, "Then what do you want to talk about?"

Then my mother made it a thousand times worse.

"Kara, do you know how to use a belt?"

"Uh...yes."

Even though my girlfriend looked to me for an explanation, I had no idea. Well, I had an idea, but my mother would not embarrass me like that. Not at the dinner table. Not in front of everyone.

"Do you know how to take off a belt?"

"Yes?"

"Good." There was no hint of laughter on my mother's face. That was the worst part. This was a death threat. "Here that, Levi? If she wants to she can take off your pants herself. Otherwise, they better stay on."

Oh for the love of—

My father put one hand on my wrist, forcing me to calm down. No phasing at the dinner table after all; it was the first thing they had taught me about being a werewolf. Across from me, Kara was redder than the lipstick Judy was not old enough to be wearing.

Dinah came to my rescue. "Kara, how are you liking working at the diner?"

She should help; this hell was her fault.