Disclaimer I don't own any of the characters from Chrono Crusade. Wish I did nor do I own the main idea it belongs to Jenny Carroll

Let's get the show on the road!

Chapter 1

Mom told me there would be palm trees and I didn't believe her and I couldn't believe that you could see them from the plane. I knew that there were palm trees in Southern California. I've watched 90210 and everything but I didn't know there were any in Northern California! I remembered mom telling me when I was giving away all my coats and sweaters because California was warmer than New York but it could get chilly. I wore my black leather motorcycle jacket on the plane. Mom asked if I wanted to ship any more of my stuff and she asked me if I wanted to ship my jacket too like everything else but it made feel better to be wearing it. So here I was in a plane, looking at palm trees and wearing a black leather motorcycle jacket. Geez I'm already not fitting in.

Mom really didn't like my jacket in the first place. I didn't wear it to make her mad, only to feel comfortable on the plane here I knew she would get for it too! I'm not mad at her or the man she chose to marry without warning. I didn't hate her because of the fact he lived three thousand miles away. I didn't hate her for making me move away from my school in the middle of my sophomore year, abandoning my best and only friend I've known since I was in kindergarten and leave the only city I ever knew in my 16 years of life. I like Andy, he makes mom happy and he's nice to me. Did I mention Andy has three son? Sleepy, Dopey, and Doc? Those are my nicknames for them.

Rosie! I pretended to ignore my mother's squeal as I walked throught the gate. Andy made his two younger sons hold up a sign that said "WELCOME HOME ROSETTE!!"

Everybody who walked through the gate or pass would say to their traveling companions Aww how cute! Then smile in a sickening way. Great just great I'm fitting in. Fitting in just great.

Ok! I said walking up to my new family. You can put the sign down now. Mom hugged me and didn't notice what I said.

Oh Rosie! She kept saying. I shot a mean look at the three boys just in case if they got any ideas. I hated being called Rosie! The three boys kept grinning. Dopey grinned because he's to dump to know any better, Doc because well I guess he was just happy to see me. Doc's just weird that way. Sleepy, the oldest just stood there looking well sleepy.

How was your flight kiddo? Andy said as he took my bag and placed it on his shoulder. He looked surprised how heavy it was.

Whoa! What do you have in here? You know it's illegal to smuggle New York City fire hydrants across state lines! I smiled. Andy thought he was a comedian nope at all he's a carpenter. He's a goof a nice one though. It only took him five visits to New York to convince my mother to marry him.

It's not a fire hydant. I said. It's a parking meter. And I have four more bags. Four? Andy said pretending to be shocked

Rose?! Doc said excitedly. Did you notice the tail of the plane go up as you landed? Doc started to talk about planes and stuff. Doc is Andy's youngest son he's 12 going on 40. He told me at the wedding reception all about Area 51 and how the government is just

covering up the fact We Are Not Alone.

Oh Rosie! Mom kept saying and kept hugging me.

You'll love the house! It has a ocean view in your room! You're going to love it!

Sure mom I was going to love it here! Giving up bagels for alfalfa sprouts, and the subway for surfing and all that stuff.

For once Dopey opened his mouth and went Do you like the sign? In his stupid voice. I couldn't believe he was my age! Oh yeah great sign! I said Can we go? I wanna pick up my bags before somebody else does. Oh Right! Mom said with one last hug she lowered her voice low enough for me to hear and nobody else. I thought I told you not to wear that jacket Rosie? I thought you were throwing away those jeans?

I was wearing my oldest pair of jeans the kind with holes in the knees. The jeans went with my black silk T and my zip up boots. With my jacket and Army-Navy shoulder bag I looked like a teen runaway from a movie. But hey when you're on a eight hour flight across the country you want to be comfortable. In told my mother this and she just rolled her eyes and dropped the subject. It's good to have a mother that doesn't harp like some other mothers. Sleepy, Dopey and Doc don't know how lucky they are.

All Right mom said Let's go get your bags Rosie! then raised her voice and called Jake! Come on! We're going to get Rosie's bags. Mom had called Dopey by his real name and not by my nickname. Dopey looked like he fell asleep on his feet. I once asked my mom if Jake who is a senior in high school, has narcolepsy, or possibly a drug habit and she was like No, why would you say that? I didn't know a guy who just stood around blinking and didn't talk to nobody. Ok he talked to me once when he caught me outside with my black jacket on over my maid of honor's dress after the wedding reception sneaking a cigarette my first and only one. I was under a lot of stress at the time. I was worried my mom would marry this guy move to California and forget about me. Jake's a ok guy. He's six feet tall, shaggy blonde hair and blue eyes like his dad, he's what my best and only friend since kindergarten Gina would call a hottie. He's not the smartest guy in the world. Soc is still going on about planes and velocity.

I decided to keep Doc as a friend for future homework purposes, even though I'm three grades ahead of him. While Doc kept droning on I looked around. This was my first visit to California and even now I could tell I wasn't in New York anymore. Something strange occurred to me, nobody was fighting. In New York people fought over tickets, food anything of value. There were seagulls flying everywhere and not pigeons.

When I got my bags nobody checked to see if they matched my ticket stubs for them. People here are like Buh-Bye! Have a nice day! Unreal! Gina told me that having big brothers had it's advantages. I didn't believe like mom and the palm trees. When Sleepy picked up two of my bags and Dopey grabbed the rest leaving me without anything to carry since Andy had my shoulder bag. I realized what Gina mean't by useful. They could carry bags for you and not care at all. I packed those bags and they are not light.

We headed down to the parking lot. As the automatic doors of the airport everyone grabbed sunglasses out of a pocket. They knew something I didn't. It was sunny and bright, so bright it hurt your eyes. I had sunglasses but it was 40 degrees and sleeting in New York and it didn't hit me that I might need sunglasses. I stood squinting at the hills of the San Jose hills and saw dry grass, and sqwashed trees that I later learned were called Cyprus trees. Around the parking lot were palm trees with these bushes with huges red flowers were hummingbirds.

Oh! Mom said They're everywhere! We have hummingbird feeders at the house you can put one out your window Rosie! Mom never let me feed the pigeons in New York this sorta made me happierabout moving here.

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Mika