She sat down on a seat near the front. She thought she recognized the girl
across the aisle from school and smiled at her. The girl stood up and moved
to the back of the bus and glared at her.

Jennifer was a little taken aback by the hostility. She shrugged and turned
back to toward the front of the bus. The ride wasn't long, and the bus
skipped half the stops anyway since nobody was waiting. She signalled for
her stop. The girl in the back stood up too, and stood by the rear door as
Jennifer stepped toward the front. The bus lurched to its stop and Jennifer
stumbled out the door. As she tried to catch her balance, the girl from the
back of the bus rammed into her. "Freak."

She shrunk a little inside. "Whoa, where'd that come from?"

"I see you hanging out with your freak friends. That pink-haired chick with
the dreads? Real classy."

Jennifer shrunk even more. Raven was more than a friend at this point. She
felt like kicking something or someone. The girl must have figured out that
she'd hit the button, because she grinned, and not nicely.  "Whatever."
Jennifer tried to brush it off, but it rankled. She watched the girl stalk
off, thankfully the opposite direction from the stop than she was headed.
Jennifer tried to remember the girl's name, or anything about her, what
classes they might have together, and came up empty. She sighed, not sure
whether the fact that she didn't even know the girl should weigh heavier or
lighten the load. The friendship, or whatever the hell it is, is going to be
a little harder than I suspected, she thought.

She went to go find Raven, never the easiest task. She could be anywhere in
the city, though now Jennifer had quite a few ideas where to look, and knew
how to find likely spots. She turned down the alley and tried to remember
where Raven had been talking about last. The church that was usually home
base was a few blocks away so she searched heading that way. 

She shivered as the first few flakes fell and wished she'd brought heavier
clothes. Just fall already, she thought. Get a little insulation at least.
It always warmed up a little once the snow got going. Not that it would be
warm, but it'd be better than the freezing rain. She jogged down the alley
toward the church, glancing into each spot with any shelter. She wasn't sure
whether she'd find Raven in or out today, with the weather trying as hard as
it could to make everyone miserable.

No sign of her. No sign of anyone. Another block, another deserted alleyway.
This one had a couple of unused storage buildings on it, one of which she
knew Raven had broken the lock on. She twisted the bolt on the door the way
Raven had shown her, and it swung open. A couple of cardboard boxes stood in
the back, but no sign of human life. The inside was just as cold as the air
outside, and there was no insulation. It'd keep someone dry, but warm was
another matter. She sighed and slammed the door back shut. One more block
to the church. She ran harder, trying to stay something like warm. She got
to the chainlink fence and found the spot where the fence could be pushed
aside. She jumped through it, barely managing not to snag her sweat pants.
She never could figure out how Raven did it wearing a backpack, carrying a
skateboard, with waist-length dreads, flowing scarves and baggy jeans.

She ducked through the doors of the church, dodging the unmoving piles of
debris. She was amused that she could navigate around the charred remains so
easily. She entered the back office, and saw the door to the little store
room slightly ajar. She pulled it open the rest of the way. 

Something wasn't right. The door ajar like that, for one. Something didn't
smell right, she thought. Raven was always so careful to not seem like she
was there at first glance. She crawled inside, leaving the door open so she
could see. She thought she saw Raven huddled in the corner, but it was hard
to tell with the pile of old blankets. She saw her pack and relaxed a
little. She crawled toward the pile of girl and blankets at the far side of
the tiny room and prodded Raven. 

The pile moved as Raven turned over. Jennifer felt her stomach clench when
she saw her face. I know what that smell is, she thought. Sweat. The kind
when someone's sick. Raven's face was pale and moist. She squinted up at
Jennifer. She looks like a mole. She laughed at that, and Raven smiled
weakly as she did. Jennifer relaxed a little at the smile.