Changing Tides

Description: Jacob left town after seeing Bella at her wedding, vowing to kill any of the Cullens if he ever crossed paths with them again. Eight years later, he comes back to LaPush to see his father one last time on his death bed and Billy's last wish is for Jacob to finish high school. Knowing he couldn't attend school close by, he looks for a boarding school and meets the beautiful and mysterious Vanessa Masen and imprints. When strange things happen and the resident witch coven threatens Vanessa's life, will Jacob finally learn the truth about his imprint, and how will it make him feel towards his most hated enemies, the Cullens? (Post BD-AU)

Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns all Twilight related characters and storylines including those of which are in this story.

Warning: Mild language, violence, sexual situations, and drinking; but hopefully nothing bad enough to warrant an M rating. Let me know in the reviews if I ever need to change it.

Note to reader: All of my stories have a beginning, middle, and end. Many stories I've read seem to go on and on, please know this one will not. I try to update every couple of nights or so, but the more reviews I get, the faster the updates come. As with all twilight stories, I tend to like to end things on a happy note, so keep that in mind when reading.

Ch 1 – Last Wish

(Jacob's POV)

I never stayed in one place longer than necessary; the last thing I wanted was to create any sort of relationships, because feeling nothing was better than the pain of losing someone. I phased after seeing Bella on her wedding day and after learning her honeymoon plans, I just couldn't be there anymore; in fact I didn't want to be anywhere anymore, at least not as a human. I had stayed in wolf form for five whole years without ever phasing back to human, but I got tired of constantly hearing about what was going on back home through the minds of my pack members. So then I realized that perhaps it would be better to give up phasing all together and start the aging process again, I didn't have anything worth living forever for anyway.

It took a few months to adjust from living as nothing but animal for so long, to living as nothing but man, but when I finally felt calm enough, I knew I needed to work and I got a perfect job for my traveling lifestyle, as a cross country truck driver. It was just what I needed; I lived out of hotels and spent every night getting drunk at the local bars. Early in my career, I would take random women I met back to my hotel room, and forgot their names by the time I stopped in the next city, but even that got mundane and I lost any desire I once had. I gave up my meaningless one night stands but continued to numb myself with alcohol every night in the various towns I stayed in. Three years past without phasing and I was having an easier time resisting the urge to as well; I started to believe that I was finally free of the old Jacob Black.

I was down south in Texas making a pit stop from my California to Florida route, and of course spent the last few hours of the night in the closest bar I could find. I always went to bars by whatever trashy hotel I was staying in because I couldn't take my truck into small parking lots, and I didn't want to have to walk back too far wasted. I was a big guy and had the whole one o eight degrees thing going, so it took a lot to get me drunk, but I usually stayed long enough to get me there, I needed the mental release that the numbness from alcohol brought.

This particular bar that I had been drinking in most of the night, was a few blocks away from the hotel, but it was the only one I could find so I decided that walking that far drunk was still better than not drinking at all. I stumbled around for a block or so, on my way in for the night, when a familiar scent filled the air around me. Great, just what I needed.

"Ok gUYs…whY don't yOu just…gO plAy SoMewHere elSe." I said completely slurring my words. I hadn't come across any vampires since I gave up phasing, and I was too drunk to care anyway.

"Ooo, I love them when they are all woosy." The female vampire said

"No, he smells off, let's go find someone else to drink" The male said

"No nO, It's jUst the BeEr…PleAse Come dRink mEe." I had no idea why I was actually trying to convince them to attack me, but then again I never thought straight when I was drunk.

"See baby? He wants it." The female told her mate

"He doesn't smell like the normal bar hopper, he smells like…a dog or something. I'm completely turned off by him but if you really want him go ahead and have him yourself, I'm going after that blond coming out right now; have fun babe." The male said. Damn it.

I couldn't just stand by knowing they were about to kill someone, so as much as I didn't want to, I phased. It actually felt really good being in wolf form again, it was like stretching after being confined in a small space for a long time. I was immediately sober after I phased, and completely focused on the two vampires; they had looks on their faces that were a mixture of being stunned and completely horrified. Killing them was easy, instinctual, just like riding a bike it wasn't something I could forget or even get rusty at. But because I had grown out my hair, my wolf fur dragged annoyingly on the ground and got in my way as I collected the body pieces into a pile. I phased back to human and started a fire in a trash can before throwing the vamps in, it was a good thing that it was in the middle of the night; walking to the hotel naked would have been much worse if it was day time.

I climbed in bed that night but because I wasn't drunk anymore, I had a hard time sleeping. I seriously thought about going back to the bar, but I couldn't get the desire to phase again out of my head. I didn't realize how much I actually missed it until I was forced to do it again. I wasn't far from some desolate rolling hills, so I tied a pair of shorts on my leg and decided to go running on all fours. The speed felt so amazing, especially after not feeling anything for so long, and I couldn't run fast enough. I was grateful for the silence in my head, it was even late at night in Washington so I figured everyone would be sleeping and I didn't have to worry about communicating with them mentally. When I finally had enough for the night, the first thing I did when I got back to the hotel was cut my hair, I was actually glad to see it go.

The next day I slept in because running as a wolf was always tiring, but when I finally did wake up, I was running way late. I was supposed to be in Florida in two days and I still had about fifteen hours left but with how slow my truck was, and considering eating and sleeping breaks, I knew it was going to be hard to make my deadline.

I was actually making good time and stopped in Alabama for the night. I told myself the whole way that I was going to go straight to bed without going to a bar or for a run, but my need became too much and surprisingly my desire to run way outweighed my desire to get drunk. The surrounding area had many sites of undeveloped stretches of land, so it was easy to find an area that wouldn't expose me to anyone. I loved to feel the wind through my fur, and it was so much better now that my hair was short again. I was just about to call it a night, when a familiar voice came into my head.

Jake? – Sam said surprised to have our minds connected again after so long.

I really didn't want to reconnect with him so I stayed quiet, though I knew he sensed me anyway.

Jake, please just listen to me. It's your dad he has stage three cancer and needs to see you; I don't think there is much time left. – Sam said sympathetically.

My heart sank as I listened to Sam in my head; I couldn't believe how stupid I have been over the past years. Was Bella really worth me losing all this precious time I was missing from my father? Of course not. She was just some stupid girl that made stupid decisions and now she's off living a stupid undead life with her stupid vampire husband. But out of the two of us, I was really the stupid one for loving someone so much who doesn't give a crap about me.

I decided that getting home was the most important thing, so I went back to my hotel, collected the few things I had, and took a cab to the closest airport. I thought about just running the whole way home, but a plane was still faster. I didn't care about abandoning my truck; it had a tracking devise on it and I was fairly certain I couldn't make my deadline anyway, so that meant I would be fired but that was OK I was planning on quitting anyway.

I arrived in LaPush later that evening and found my father's house empty, so I started to panic, was I too late? I grabbed the keys to my old rabbit, they were still in my room where I left them, my father moved nothing of mine, and I drove over to the Uley's house.

"Oh my god, Jacob Black!" Emily sang when she saw me pulling up in her front yard. She ran over and gave me a huge hug.

"Hey Em. How have you been?" I asked solemnly

"Good, I just can't believe you are actually here it's been too long. Sam said you were coming back but I guess I needed to really see you to believe it." Emily said, and then welcomed me into the house.

"How's my dad?" I asked her knowing she would know.

"He's hanging in there. He's been waiting a long time for you to come home, Sam has been trying to contact you for a while to let you know, but he could never reach you." Emily explained.

"Yeah, I didn't phase for a while, I'm such an idiot; I can't believe I actually allowed myself to be gone for so long."

"Don't get to down on yourself Jake, you were grieving for you lost friend, everyone understands that." Emily said supportively.

"She's not worth my grief, she made her choices and I chose to mourn her, but I chose wrong and now I lost so much precious time with my father." I told her completely hating myself.

"Your dad is at the hospital; Sam told him you were coming, so he's been expecting for you." Emily told me knowing I was looking for him.

"Thanks Em, I should probably be getting over there, I wasted enough time already. I'll see you later." I hopped back in my rabbit, and headed for the hospital wondering what I could possibly say to my father that could possibly make up for my absence.

The hospital in LaPush wasn't a long term or critical care facility, so my dad was at the hospital in Forks. I hated that hospital. It had been years since Carlisle worked there but under the bleach smell and the smell of sickness and open wounds, somehow I could still smell him faintly in the halls. I guess it wasn't that surprising though, vamp snitch lingered and with the amount of time he spent there, his smell would probably be there forever.

I found my father's room without even having to ask anyone where it was, I would always remember his scent for the rest of my life. I lingered outside the room in the hall for what felt like hours, trying to find the strength to face him after so long and in that condition. Finally a nurse came by and announced my presence loud enough that my father must have heard.

"Hello there, you must be Mr. Black's son? He's been waiting for you." The nurse said with a welcoming smile before walking away to do some rounds.

I took a deep breath to calm myself, then went inside. My dad was waiting for me when I walked through the door, and he smiled when our eyes met. He looked horrible, like he aged thirty years instead of the eight since I saw him last. His hair was starting to turn grey when I left, but now it was almost completely silver. His once plump, full checks had sunken in so his face almost looked hollow, he had dark circles under his eyes and his skin was pasty looking. This was not how I wanted to remember my father.

"Jacob." My dad said so happy to see me again.

"Hey dad. You look like crap." I said quickly and he laughed, but it looked like he was in a lot of physical pain.

"Well, I haven't been to the beauty parlor for a while" He joked

"How are you feeling right now though, are you in any pain, are they treating you right?" I asked protectively.

"Yeah, they have me on all kinds of pain meds, I'm feeling pretty good actually." He assured me.

There were several long moments of awkward silence between us. I didn't know how to apologize for my extended absence and I had no idea how to even begin to say goodbye to him for good. I lost my mother when I was a child, it just seemed completely unfair that I was going to lose my father now like this. But then again, life wasn't fair especially not mine, I always seemed to draw the shortest stick in life. I forced myself to stop feeling sorry for myself, because that was just a stupid waste of time anyway.

"Dad…I'm so sorry for"

"Don't Jake. You don't have to apologize to me especially since you're here now, and that's what matters. You were hurting son, and I understand that." My dad said not wanting to spend any more time dwelling on the past.

"Has Rebecca been home to see you?"I asked him.

"Yeah, she's staying with Rachel and Paul. I guess you haven't been over there yet?" He rightfully assumed.

"No I just got in, but I went by Sam's and Emily said you were here."

We chit chatted for a few hours before visitor time was over in the hospital, so I told him good bye and went to his house for the night to sleep in my old room. I went back first thing in the morning, and was surprised to see my sisters already there; they both cried when they saw me. It was the first time the four of us had been together since my sisters were eighteen and Rebecca moved away for college.

I spent the next week getting reacquainted with my sisters and my father. Being around Paul didn't even bother me as much as it used to, in fact I was actually glad he was with Rachel, he really stepped up and helped take care of my dad when I was off being a selfish moron. With every passing day, I could see my father's life slipping away, he was going so quickly and I felt like there was still so much to say. Rachel, Paul, Rebecca and her husband Keanu, all went out to lunch one day, and I was going to go with them but my dad asked me to stay behind, he had something he wanted to speak with me privately about.

"Jake, I need you to do something;" My dad said with his raspy weak voice.

"Of course dad, name it."

"I know you are still grieving Bella's death but"

"Bella didn't die dad, she chose to become a disgusting leech." I corrected him. I had to fight the urge to leave right then, because the last thing that I wanted to talk about was Bella. As much as I tried to deny it, or how far I ran, I knew I would always care about her and completely hate her at the same time.

"Just the same, I've been here with Charlie as he mourned her, and I know how hard it is. You loved her so much and I know how it feels to lose someone you love like that. But son, I need you to move on with your life, I will never be able to rest easy if I'm worried about you." Was my father actually trying to give me a guilt trip on his death bed? That was so typical of him and I had to smile in spite of myself.

"Dad, you don't have to worry about me, I'm going to be Ok I promise." I tried reassuring him.

"I know son, but I want more for you in life than just being Ok. I want you to have a real job and god willing, a family of your own someday." My dad croaked

"Oh Dad, I can't promise that. I did the whole in love thing and it didn't work, and I don't have any intentions on doing it again. Not everyone is meant to have deep relationships like that." I said wishing there was something else Billy would ask of me instead.

"Jake, you have never even had a real relationship, how do you know that's not something for you? Look I'm not asking you to fall in love tomorrow, just don't close yourself off to the possibility and…"My dad paused long enough for me to get frustrated

"And?"

"And, I want you to go back to school." My dad said cautiously. I was definitely not expecting him to say that.

"Dad, I don't have the credits to make it into a college, I only finished my sophomore year in high school, and I'll never get accepted anywhere." I tried to make him understand but he had a determined look on his face.

"You stopped aging at sixteen, I want you to finish high school, and then maybe you can go to college." He explained.

"I might have stopped aging at sixteen dad, but I certainly don't look it. Besides, my old teachers are still working here and someone will recognize me."

My dad smirked, and pulled some brochures off of the table next to him. "I had Rachel find these for me, they are all out of state boarding schools. Paul said he knows a guy who can make good fake ids and birth certificates for you." I was shocked that he was actually trying to sell me on this.

"Dad," I said shaking my head. "I can't get into these prep schools, and they're expensive, and I still have to have a parent to sign for me and all that."

"Rachel will sign for you as your legal guardian, and they have a scholarship program if you make the sport teams. Jake, listen to me, you need to do this, you need a fresh start and get your life back together. You don't have to start as a sophomore, start as a senior, it doesn't matter just start somewhere. Then the college scouts will come out and see you, and you'll get a scholarship to college too. Don't you see? This is your chance to make a real life for yourself, away from here and all of the painful memories that come with this town, but not completely detached like you were before."

I told my dad I would think about it, and I had to admit, it was a good plan, but the idea of going back to high school was just so unappealing to me. How could I pretend to be a normal kid after everything I had been through. But as much as I hated to think about him, that nasty blood sucker came to my mind; if Edward can pretend to be a high school student over and over again, then I should be able to handle it too, I mean it's just one year right? If it wasn't my father's last wish for me, then I would never have considered it, but I was gone senselessly for eight years while my father fought his own battle with illness back here. The least I could do was dedicate one short year of my meaningless existence to do something he really wanted of me.

*I think it's obvious where this story is going to go, but hopefully it should be fun just the same Please Review*