Lost Girl in Transition Ch. 06

The tattoo artist, who had bright blue hair that had been shaven into a perfect Mohawk, performed the tattoo on Lucas's arm. Painstakingly he maneuvered the needle, putting the finishing touches on the design, then with a satisfied expression that conveyed pride in his work, he flipped the lever so that the machine turned off.

After cleaning Lucas's skin with some antiseptic the tattoo artist retrieved a hand mirror from his worktable, then positioned it in front of Lucas's tattoo so he could see the reflection of his freshly inked bicep.

"Wow, that looks awesome." Thoroughly impressed, Lucas studied the inked design, which was a portrait of Chief Sitting Bull.

"It looks great, son," Eagle said. "Jeremy did an excellent job."

Beaming at the compliment, the tattoo artist studied Lucas's reaction.

"Yeah, he definitely did," Lucas said while still admiring the reflection of his bicep. "Thanks a lot man, you really outdid yourself."

"Not a problem," he said, and as Lucas extended his hand to offer a handshake, Jeremy returned it with a smile. "Make sure you wash the tattoo at least once a day until it heals, and pick up some antibiotic cream from the drugstore to keep it free from infection."

"Will do," Lucas replied as he got to his feet, and with Eagle following beside him, made his way towards the door. "Thanks again, Jeremy and if I know anyone who wants a tattoo, I'll send them your way."

"I appreciate that, Lucas. You two take care and have a nice evening."

As they stepped outside, the scent of barbeque hit them strong, wafting from a brick building directly across the street. Identified by a neon sign that read 'Ma's Barbeque Joint,' the restaurant was the type of establishment that drew customers in by smell.

"You wanna get some dinner before heading home?" Eagle asked.

"Sure, I wouldn't mind a bite to eat," Lucas replied, and together they strolled towards the restaurant. "Thanks again for driving me out here, dad. It was really cool of you to take me to get my first tattoo."

"Your first one, huh?" A gentle smile touched Eagle's lips. "How many more you thinking of getting?"

"Not sure, really. Maybe one more, or two at the most."

"Word of advice, never get a woman's name inked on you. Unless of course, that woman is your mother."

"Oh, you don't have to worry about me ever doing that. Women are so unpredictable, I can't hardly figure them out, let alone trust them."

"Still stewing over Claudia, huh?" Eagle lightly smirked.

"Actually no, I'm over her." Lucas said in a huff. "And can you please stop bringing her up? That relationship is old news, and I've already moved on."

"Okay," Eagle said, but the smile remained on his lips, irritating Lucas with the way it seemed to mock him.

"Anyways, I've got better things to do right now than chase after women."

"Oh yeah?" Eagle asked. "Like what?"

"Well, I passed my English and Math placement tests, so I'll be registering for college in a few days. Plus I'll be starting that new job at the lumber yard next week, so I'll have a little money coming in. Which will be nice, because then I won't have to bother you or mom whenever I need a bit of cash."

"I'm proud of you, Lucas." Eagle gave him a smile and a clap on the back. "You've really made some strides since graduating high school, and I can't tell you how happy it makes your mother and I to have a son who's enrolling in college."

"Yeah, well, I can't sit around on my ass all day, can I? I wanna make a difference on the reservation, dad. Improve things for our people so that our communities become stronger."

"Your intentions are very commendable, Lucas, and I definitely encourage you along that path. But in order to bring it to full realization you need to have a strong game plan."

Having reached the barbeque joint, Eagle and Lucas stepped inside, where they were immediately guided to a table and given menus and glasses of chilled water. Famished, they immediately ordered, and as the waitress headed off towards the kitchen, they picked up the conversation from where It'd left off.

"You need to network, Lucas," Eagle said after taking a sip of his water. "Get in touch with other Natives at the college. Talk to them about what you're interested in doing, and ask the professors who teach your classes for advice on becoming more involved. Start off small, and gradually build from there. Before you know it, you'll be solidly on the path to making a real difference."

"That's good advice." A thoughtful look came over his face before he added, "You think I should get in touch with that tribal attorney who handled my case, the one with that racist cop?"

"Sure, why not. He could steer you in the right direction, maybe even offer ways on how you can make some changes in the community."

"Yeah." As Lucas nodded his head, a faraway look came into his eyes. "Yeah, I'm going to contact Leonard and see what's up."

"And of course I'll always be here, and available to talk whenever you need."

"I appreciate that, dad. I'll definitely need someone to use as a sounding board."

As their food arrived and they eagerly dug in, discussion was kept to a minimum. But soon the barbeque meat on their plates began to dwindle, and as their stomachs were filled to full capacity, they sat back in their chairs and allowed the food to settle.

"I know you don't start college until fall," Eagle said, "But any thoughts as to what you'll major in once the time finally does come?"

With a thoughtfulness on his face, Lucas sipped at his beverage, creating a hollow sucking sound as he thought over his response. Down to only crushed ice, he removed his lips from the straw, then gave himself a few more moments before finally uttering some words.

"Well, I was thinking of something along the lines of activism.....like maybe working for an Indigenous non-profit organization?"

"Then you'll probably want to get a political science degree," Eagle said. "But personally I think you could go even higher."

"Higher in what way, exactly?" Lucas asked.

"Higher as in going above and beyond your own expectations." Perhaps wanting the words to sink in, Eagle let a moment of silence settle between them. "You could become an attorney, Lucas. Help bring justice to our people and be a role model to our young ones. We need more youths like you, those who are forward thinking and passionate about uplifting our people."

"An attorney..." Lucas said the word slowly, as if testing how easy it rolled off his tongue. "Well, I like the idea and all, but doesn't it take like seven years of school in order to get a law degree?"

"Yep."

"Why go through all that schooling, though? I mean can't I still make a difference without becoming a lawyer?"

"Sure can," Eagle simply replied. "But my question to you is, why not?"

*Why not, indeed*, Lucas thought, and as he actually began to contemplate the idea of attaining such a goal, a rush of adrenaline coursed through him and his eyes went alight with excitement.

*Sure, why not*, he thought to himself. After all, anything was possible. And for the first time in his life he fully realized something. His future wasn't only limitless, it was undeniably wide open.