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Chesmu and I were set to leave for California early the next morning. My dad called the school to tell them I had to get my appendix removed and would be out for the next couple of weeks. This gave us plenty of time to go down to Miwok and visit my uncle without having to rush. Ches had given some kind of excuse to his teachers, who had immediately excused him after a brief call to the tribe counsel. I had been avoiding Hisaka for awhile, and I let his calls go to voicemail all night. Undoubtedly, he'd found out we were taking off and was butthurt. With all the packing I had to do, I had neither time nor patience to deal with his whining ass. I could apologize after we got back if he was still pissed.

It was Sam whose call surprised me the most.

"H-hello?" I stammered, not knowing what he could possibly want with me.

"Hello Kaliska, this is Sam Uley." He told me, although I already knew. Emily had given me his number awhile ago in case I had another situation that I would need his help with.

"Hi Sam, what's up?" I asked nervously. He cleared his throat.

"I hear you're planning a trip down to California with one of my wolves."

"Yeah, that's true."

"I won't stop you, I just want to warn you. When two imprints get geographically far away from each other, it can be quite painful for them both. I just wanted to let you know so you'd be prepared. I don't know how it'll affect you since you're not just human, but there it is, do what you think is best. I've already let Hisaka know so he's prepared if he gets sudden sharp pains, it's not his period."

I want to laugh at the idea of Hisaka with period cramps, but I answer Sam seriously.

"Thanks for telling me, I'm still gonna go."

"That's fine, I'll see you when you get back."

With that, he hung up. I looked at my phone. 13 missed calls from my 'boyfriend.' I shrugged. Oh well, he can wait.

I packed as many clothes as I could fit in my backpack - who knows if I'd be shredding my clothes up by phasing at random times. I decided to skip packing socks and bras completely, since neither one made a big difference to me, and I needed all the room I could spare for tshirts and shorts. My phone rang again, and I almost sent it to voicemail automatically when I saw the name. Chesmu.

"Hey, almost ready?" I answer.

"Hell yeah! This is going to be great, we're going to California!" He sounded like he was in high spirits, making me smile.

"Yeah we are, you excited?"

"Oh yeah baby, I'm heading over to your place now to pick you up. Be there in 5. Seeya!"

I didn't get a chance to say bye before he'd hung up and presumably headed out. I stuff my phone and charger into my backpack as well, the last of my stuff. I went down the stairs, excited at the prospect of seeing my family again. My dad came up to me, a few things in his hands.

"Hey peanut, I wanna give you a few things just to be on the safe side. I know you have a young man going along with you for your safety, but I think it would be good for you to have these anyway." He held the items out for me to take, and I examined them one by one.

First item was a small taser gun. My eyes lit up - I'd always thought having a taser would be cool. He also included a whistle, less cool but still useful, and a preloaded credit card.

"There's $1,500 on there, should be more than enough to cover food and hotels if you need them. I trust you to be smart about what you spend it on." He tells me, and I smile. This is a big step up from the couple hundred I have available with my debit card. I give him a hug.

"Thank you so much, Dad. I'll be very careful." I promise, my face pressed against his shoulder. "I love you."

"I love you too, Kaliska. Come back to me safe and sound, okay?" He pulls away, holding me at arm's length to look at my face. I nod at him right as there is a knock at the door. He hugs me one more time before we move to the front room to open it.

"Hi, Chesmu, right?" Dad says.

"That's me! Don't worry, sir, I'll take great care of your daughter and make sure she gets back here in one piece." He promises, echoing my dad's words, which he no doubt heard. My dad holds his hand out to shake Ches's, and my friend looks honored.

"You'd better, I'm a cop you know, so I carry." He teases - or warns.

"Yes sir." Chesmu says, and I roll my eyes.

"Okay, time to go!" I clap my hands and move past my dad out the front door. "Bye dad, I'll call you when I can, okay?"

"Stay safe, peanut!" He calls after us as I grab Chesmu's wrist to pull him towards the woods across the street.

"He seems nice." Chesmu jokes as we enter the treeline.

"Yeah, he's great. Okay, you're driving, right?" I tease, securing my backpack on my shoulders as Chesmu pulls his shirt over his head.

"You bet, just hop on and hold on tight." He grins, moving out of my sight to finish stripping. In a second, I hear his big paws heading my way, so I get a running start and jump up onto his back. Wolf-Ches snorts, looking back at me. I lean forward and wrap my arms around his furry neck.

"Okay, I'm on. Let's go!" I say, patting his shoulder.

He starts off at a brisk trot, gradually picking up the pace until I have to close my eyes so the air doesn't burn them as we pass. I don't mind, though. Flying through the trees like this is great, and I enjoy the first several hours of it. Eventually, though, Chesmu needs a break, so when he starts to slow down, I tell him it's time for a nap and some food - he readily agrees.

By that point, we'd gone about halfway down the Washington coast. He comes to a stop in a clearing in the woods and I jump down. I keep my back to him for a minute as he phases back.

"Okay, I'm decent. Whew!" He walks around, stretching. "Haven't had a good run like that in a while. Feels good." He tells me. His stomach betrays him with a growl. He claps a hand over it, looking at me sheepishly.

"Want some food?" I offer, gesturing across the road at the McDonald's. He grins at me, pulling a shirt on and stepping into flip flops.

"Sounds great, let's go!"

xXx

Seven burgers (two for me and five for him), four large fries and three refills apiece later, we left the awestruck Golden Arches, ready to continue on our trip. I'd brought the last few fries in my container out of the store and was tossing them into his open mouth as we crossed the street to the clearing.

"I gotta say, McDonald's doesn't deserve all the hate on the food, it's not bad." He comments, chewing the last of the fries. I agreed with him vaguely, checking my phone for the first time since we'd left my house.

"Hisaka keeps calling me." I frown, even though by now, he should know we've already left. Chesmu comes over to look over my shoulder at the screen.

"Wonder what his goal is. I didn't think he'd miss you, you guys don't hang out a lot. You don't even come up in his brain much." He admits quietly. This doesn't really surprise me. "He's kind of a sucky imprint, if you ask me."

"Well, he's the one I'm stuck with." I sigh. "Maybe he'll grow out of it." I add, although my voice doesn't convey much hope in that idea.

He strips down again and I climb up onto his back again. We continue heading south along the coast towards Miwok, and I can just feel my family getting closer.

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