Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters or ideas expressed in Stephenie Meyer's Twilight Saga. Though, Dakota Coates is my own.

Author's Note: This is the beginning of I am the Otter, technically. This is the first idea I had for my first oneshot about a year before the actual story happened. This is more of an alternative meeting for Jacob and Dakota, and I love it. Several things have changed between this and the real story, so don't expect the story to be the same. This was also inspired by the song from the movie Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, called The Call and sung by Regina Spektor.

The Call

The rain never seemed to stop for long in Forks, Washington let alone in the La Push reservation. Maybe it was so the monsters who lurked in the night wouldn't be seen even by day, or maybe it was so all of the secrets of the forest were kept in the family. If anyone knew it was the Quileute elders; they were the only group who knew anything about what truly was happening behind closed doors.

The night Jacob Black changed was the night everything in his life became more difficult than just trying to woo the local police chief's daughter. That night was the epitome of fear to himself, he did not know what he was. That night allegedly ruined his life. Months passed on end and half a year blazed by in a heap of uncomfortable moments and heavy dreams. It was just as normal for him to have been in that particular mood as any other day, only this time he was accompanied by Embry Call a local wolf and good friend.

"Jake, have you seen the new chick at the yard?"

"Chick?" Jacob's eyebrow twitched up.

"You know, a girl. There's a girl working there." Embry kicked at the moist dirt with the toe of his shoe with his hands buried deep in his pockets, his eyes downcast. Jacob leaned back out of the front end of his red Volkswagen Rabbit long enough to notice the slouched form of his friend.

"Yeah, well good. I need to get something for the car. You can flirt with her and get the price down." Jacob grinned and Embry perked up.

"Sounds like a plan."

Jacob closed the hood of his somewhat empty-engined car and tossed his hand tools onto the chipped red bench feet from him. Embry and he headed out of the makeshift tin-topped garage into the drizzle of the day, both pair of black headed boys content with the weather. The boys walked- and trudged at times- across town to the old car yard where crushed cars were piled at time ten high and no real place for anyone to scavenge.

The gravel was nothing but large chips of boulder mixed with mud, and the chain-link fences were mere walls of rust ready to fall at the touch. Jacob wound his way through the piles of wrecked cars and rows of those well enough off to use while Embry paced at the corner of the gray colored building where the girl was supposedly working. Embry hesitated for a few more moments and finally plunged in to the building with the front door swinging closed behind him.

"Give me a sec'!" A female voice called from the back room. The sound of a metal chair scraping against the tile was heard and soon the noise of rustling foil, "Alright, what can I help you with?"

The girl emerged from the low lit room into one none the more flattering wiping her hands on a pair of overalls worn with the straps swinging at her hips. Her short black hair swished into her face as she walked but came nowhere near her round brown eyes. She smiled in greeting, "Hey Embry, what are you doing here?"

Embry stepped closer to lean on the counter, "I'm helping a friend find some parts for a car."

"Really? Then shouldn't you be out there helping him?" She flopped back into the rolling office chair and placed her dirty boots on the counter adjacent.

"Well, he never told me what he was looking for. He wanted me to come in and butter you up anyway."

The girl pushed up the sleeves of her long sleeved shirt and crossed her arms in amusement. She nodded to the glass door, "Is that him now?"

The little bell rang again as Jacob opened the door and stomped his shoes on the drowning welcome mat. He glanced up at his friend at the counter but couldn't quite see the face of whoever had their feet on the counter. He walked up to the front counter, not much bothering to give the girl behind the counter a look.

"Uh, Jake this is Dakota. Dakota, this is Jake." Embry stuttered politely as an introduction.

"Nice to meet you Jake." She said.

Jacob stopped sifting through the cash in hand and quickly covered his trip with a sideways smile. That smile would be the death of him. No, really it would be Embry Call. Something caught his attention about the girl; a pale scratch of skin just above her eye, it was a scar. A pit grew in his throat and knots in his stomach. He broke into a cold sweat and his pupils constricted to pinpoints. He ran the tip of his tongue over his dry lips and tossed the paper money on the counter, "Keep the change."

"Jake, Jake! What the hell was that?!" Embry ran after his friend in the now pouring rain, "Jake, come on!"

Jacob whipped around and growled, "Embry, shut up."

"What is with you?" Embry's breathless mouth turned up in disgust.

"I- I don't know. I didn't mean to." Jacob ran his free hand into his lengthy black hair and grabbed a fist full at his crown. His eyes were shut tightly and his mouth nothing but a thin line.

Embry's eyes widened with understanding as a wave of emotion hit him. He staggered back a step, "You- you didn't...?"

"I don't know Embry!" His brown eyes jerked passed his worried friend and toward the building. Embry followed his gaze and it all landed on Dakota. She was walking toward them with something wrapped in a yellow plastic bag. Her hair was slicked back behind her ears with rain water.

She stopped short of the boys, "Am I interrupting something?"

Jacob shook his head 'no'. Dakota held the tied bag out in front of her, "You left your parts. I figured you might want them since you paid for them."

Embry glanced back at Jacob The boy had straightened his back and took a step to take the bag from the girl. Their eyes were locked, Jacob was almost two feet taller than her. Embry stepped back a few steps trying to back away from the overwhelming emotion that was not his.

Dakota closed the gap between Jacob and herself. She pushed the bag into his stomach and let her eyes draw into an angry stare, "I want an apology."

Jacob lowered his eyes, "I'm sorry."

She was surprised, "That was too easy. I had to have interrupted something."

Dakota turned to leave but was stopped by a sizzling hand on her wrist. She turned to look at the tall boy over her shoulder, he was staring at her. She flicked his hand off of her wrist and turned around fully, "What?"

Jacob was stuck. Everything was in slow-motion. The rain drops slowed around her, he could see every one that pattered onto her skin and rolled down her cheeks and off the tip of her nose. Her blinks were slowed also creating such a smooth glassy look to the whole artistic picture. His eyes couldn't help but wonder to the scar above her left eye. A feeling rose in his bowels, a feeling such as hatred and temptation. It rose up into his throat and threatened to boil over. She had been hurt.

"Jake, we need to go."

He blinked quick and kept his eyes shut as he turned back around only to spout 'sorry' over his shoulder as he began trudging back over the hill and beyond the rusty gates. Embry apologized to Dakota and left behind Jacob. The emotion he had felt wasn't his own, it had been Jacob's. It had been raw hatred and pure admiration. It had given Embry such a sickening headache all he could do to stifle it was to pry Jacob away from the girl.

Jacob new what had happened. Everyone would know soon. Only one person would be left in the dark about everything that had really been going on in the muddy drive of the old car yard. The shivering girl had accepted their apologies, but she hadn't raced back inside out of the rain. She stood there in the gray day, arms crossed, staring after the boy that had moved her.

He would be back. It was just a feeling.