Josh snarled, bloody saliva dripping onto her jeans. His eyes blazed wildly, showing no human thoughts or feelings. But they were there, buried under the blood lust and hunger; under the fur and claws and teeth and blood.

Josh was there somewhere.

Inside he was struggling against his counterpart, trying to resist the ever-so-tempting urge to dig his teeth into her throat and shake until she moved no more. But he only stood there, bristling and snarling, staring into her icy blue eyes.

......Erin?

Jace shook his head. "I insist." he said.

_____

Charlotte mused, "Somebody like you would make a nice shifter."

Charlotte nodded. "Except I'd picture you as more of..." she blinked. "A wolf or a fox." She grinned. "But that's silly, because you're not a shifter." She added nervously, stomach starting to get butterflies. "....Are you?"

__________

Jace nodded, and then walked out of the theater with Angel. He was careful not to brush against her, or do anything else he might regret.

Derek grinned. He released her, taking a few steps away, and shifting to a bear, smiling a toothy smile at her.

Charlotte shrieked, backing away from him with wide eyes. "Holy crap!" she exclaimed with wide-eyes and a pounding heart. "Holy crap you're a bear!" She bit back another scream and took one small, shaky step towards him.

She'd seen people die from bear attacks. Ripped to shreds, bled-out, killed slowly and painfully... She took two steps away from him again, still trying not to scream.

Charlotte shook her head, stomach feeling light and fluttery when he kissed her. "I'm sorry I wigged out," she said in a weak voice. "So many people I've seen....who were attacked by bears..." She shuddered again, hugging him a little tighter. She wiped her eyes and blinked her eyes at him. "But you're different, right?" She swallowed. "You don't attack people. You don't kill..." She swallowed. "Right?"

____________

Sarah peered out her window, holding a glas s of lemonaide. She caught sight of her sister, a little ways away, hugging the boy from the movies tightly on the sidewalk. She squeezed her glas s so tightly it shattered in her hand, and cut into her palm and fingers, spraying blood. She ignored it and focused on watching her sister.

Charlotte pressed her face against his shoudler again, grateful to have a shoulder to cry on-literally-. It was re*censored*uring and soothing; it made her feel a little better about how her new friend was a giant bear who could crush her in no time flat.

But he wouldn't; Derek wouldn't do that.

_________

Sarah growled, cleaning up the blood on her hand with a rag. She remembered her Grandmother's voice clearly, "My dear Goldilocks, keep close eye on your sister and watch who she dates. We wouldn't want her walking around with a bear of a man."

She glanced back at Derek. 

Every blood cell in her body knew the boy was no good.