Author's Note: I don't own Twilight. I apologize if Jacob and the boys seem a bit out of character… I'm not used to writing them quite yet. Reader reviews are always appreciated!
Chapter One: Who Says You Can't Go Home?
"With every step I take, I know that I'm not alone
You take the home from the boy, but not the boy from his home
These are my streets, the only life I've ever known…"--Bon Jovi
The wolf had been running for what seemed like days. When he stopped to rest, his sides were heaving and his tongue lolled out of his mouth, panting heavily. He was careful to stop far away from the more well-used trails, though it was difficult to hide a creature as conspicuous as he was. He was more the height of a bear than a wolf, with shaggy russet-brown fur and lively, intelligent black eyes. The smells of the forest were becoming more familiar, and the wolf knew that soon he would be home. The months he had spent away from home had changed him, matured him, and had brought him closer to the wolf in him. The Northwest Territories in Canada had appealed to him because of their remoteness, and there had been several points when he had considered staying there, as a wolf, until he had completely forgotten Bella Swan and the vampire that had stolen her away from him. The voices of the pack had become distant as he passed the three-hundred mile range, a background noise rather than a conversation he was expected to participate in. However, he could not stay away from the pack forever. His Alpha had a message for him, one that was important enough to send Jacob Black running, at top speed, back to the Olympic Peninsula.
Jake, you need to come back. Sue and Charlie are worried about Billy. They think he might be getting worse.
Sam's words had haunted him the entire way back from Yellowknife. He had taken off without really telling his father where he was going, instead leaving it up to Sam and the others to break the news to Billy. The guys hadn't told Billy the exact truth, only that it had to do with Bella choosing Edward over Jacob. Billy had been disappointed and angry, but he understood Jacob's reasons for wanting to leave. However, no one thought that he would stay away so long. It was unfair to Billy, as well as to Sam and the rest of the pack, but Jacob knew that he couldn't stay any longer, watching the girl he loved give up her life for an icy, stone-skinned leech. The thought alone made him want to howl in pain. He had been the one to help Bella pick up the pieces after Edward abandoned her, and she in turn had abandoned him. Every time he let himself think of the battle with the newborns, he felt a dull ache in the vicinity of his chest as he remembered spending the night as Bella's "space heater", their kiss, and finally, hearing that Bella, his Bella, was going to marry her bloodsucking boyfriend and leave him behind. He had promised never to hurt her, but he had never imagined that in the end, she would be the one to hurt him.
When he had recovered his breath and banished his memories of Bella to the back of his mind, Jacob picked himself up and continued on. Every minute seemed like it was an eternity, but soon enough he was near the borders of the La Push reservation. It felt good to be home, despite the still-painful memories that had assaulted him as soon as he'd returned to normal human thought. It was nearing sunset, which meant that he didn't have long to wait before the rest of his pack phased and went on patrol. The Cullens were staying on their side of the treaty line, but one never knew when some other bloodsucker, unrelated to the 'vegetarian' Cullen clan, would come through the area. Though his father knew perfectly well what he was, Jake didn't feel like greeting Billy in the buff. Somehow, he didn't think that Billy wanted to be that surprised by his return.
As he laid down and waited, Jake looked around at what he could see of the reservation through the trees. Not much had changed, which was comforting. He saw several familiar faces, but none belonged to anyone in his pack. With a sigh, Jacob turned his attention back to the woods, staring at a squirrel near the base of a tree. He was contemplating pouncing on the little thing, just for the hell of it, when a chorus of voices invaded his head. The guys were positively joyful about his return, and even Leah seemed less tempestuous than normal. Sam pushed his way through the others, holding a pair of folded black sweatpants in his outstretched arms.
"Figured you might need these," he said, and the wolf nodded his assent before gently taking the offered clothes in his teeth and disappearing into the forest. A couple of minutes later, a barefoot and bare-chested Jacob came out of the woods to greet them all. The four who had to go out on patrol--Jared, Paul, Brady, and Colin--promised to catch up with him later, thumping him on the back affectionately. Seth, the youngest of the group and the one who idolized Jacob the most, bounded forth excitedly, narrowly beating Embry and Quil to him.
Soon enough, everyone was talking, filling Jacob in on the most recent happenings in La Push. Most of it was school gossip, and though Jacob didn't really care too much, it made him feel much more human. Sam and Leah stayed fairly quiet, letting the younger boys do the talking as they walked out of the woods and into La Push. Some people stared at them as the headed toward the Blacks' house, but most of them just gave a little wave before returning to whatever it was they were doing.
"So, what did Billy say? You know, to explain?" he asked, speaking quietly so that only Embry and Quil could hear him.
"Said that you'd gone up north to live with your mom's family. Everyone kind of figured that it was because she took off," Quil replied, and Jacob nodded. There were only a handful of people who understood why he had left, but the story that had been told was close enough to the truth.
"Some people also figured that Billy, you know, didn't want you to have to take care of him all the time, so the other rumor is that he sent you away so that you could have some freedom. They all know that Billy might be getting worse, so that's why they think you came back, in any case," Embry explained, giving Jacob a little half-grin. Jacob was silent as he mulled over this, silently berating himself for having left his father so abruptly.
Though neither Embry nor Quil could hear his thoughts, Embry seemed to know exactly what was going on in his head. "On the bright side, Billy doesn't blame you. Not really. He said that when you left the house after getting the invitation, he didn't expect you to come back right away. Which means that you can come to the bonfire this weekend, right?"
"Bonfire? Um, yeah, I guess so. Have you guys been planning this or something?" he asked, looking at his two best friends suspiciously. Embry just shrugged, but it was Quil who gave it away with a rapidly widening grin.
"Look at it this way, man. We're celebrating your return to La Push. You've been gone for months and we've hardly heard anything from you since you took off. And besides, Embry just wants an excuse to show off his new girlfriend," he said, which got him an elbow to the ribs from Embry. Jacob couldn't help but laugh at them, as Quil tried to take a swing at Embry's head.
"She's not my freaking girlfriend!"
"Then who is she?" Jacob asked, suddenly curious.
"Just a girl I know from work. Her name's Rena Vecchio. She's new in town, moved here from Seattle a couple months back, and got a job at Thriftway around the same time I did. Said she hated the city and wanted to go someplace quieter, so she moved out here after she graduated high school. She's a pretty cool girl, and she's been down here to hang out a few times, since she doesn't really know a lot of people her age besides me," Embry explained, hoping that Jacob would be convinced that he wasn't interested in Rena like that.
Jacob was going to ask more about the mystery girl that Embry wanted to prove was "only a friend", but he didn't have time. Too late, he had noticed that Sam, Leah, and Seth had dropped away, leaving only Embry and Quil to escort him to the front door of his house. He didn't see Charlie's cruiser, but Sue's truck was in the driveway, and soon enough he realized that both she and his father were staring at him through the living room window.
"See you later, man."
"Don't forget, Jake: this weekend, First Beach, bonfire, I'll force you out of the house if I have to."
"Yeah, I got it. See you around."
And with that, Jacob opened the door to face his father.
