AN: Ok guys, so here's my new story and surprise surprise, Embry is the lead male (can you tell that I'm slightly obsessed?) So i hope you like it, definitely let me know either way. The updates for this might have a bit of time between them cause I'm halfway through my other story Finding Fate(check it out :P) and i would like to finish it before i get to into this one. So thanks for reading my little AN, i know its mostly babble, and i hope you enjoy this...
Chapter 1: Unexpected Would Be An Understatement
"Come on, Sarah, get that cute little butt moving!"
"Mom!" I hissed, running the last few steps to the big silver truck that my mom cherished. Honestly, she could be insanely embarrassing sometimes.
"Hey, if you weren't slower than cold molasses I wouldn't have to yell now would I?" she leaned in and planted a big, juicy kiss on my forehead before pulling out of the school parking lot and onto the busy street. It was the last day of school and we were heading to the beach; my mom grew up on a reservation in Washington that was along the Pacific Ocean so wherever we moved, there had to be water close by.
"Your dad called today," Mom's bright smile turned sour when she said that. She and my dad hadn't gotten along in years and usually left all of their communication up to me.
"Oh yeah?" I asked, treading carefully. Mom had a nasty temper and while she loved me more than anything, she could scream like a banshee.
"Yeah, he wants to come visit before you head off to camp."
"Oh, okay," I exhaled. When we had lived close to him, it was tradition for Dad to take me out to lunch before I went to an equestrian camp for a month. Now that we lived in California, he had to fly all the way from Montana every time he wanted to visit. I hadn't seen him since Christmas, so I was pretty excited about the visit.
"So have you decided what you're going to do while I'm gone?" I asked Mom as I perused the radio stations. She absolutely loved to travel and usually took the opportunity to do so when I was at camp. She'd been all over the country and this year she was deciding between camping in the desert in Arizona and gambling in Las Vegas. Both places were so totally my mom even though they were completely opposite. I had secretly hoped that she would go back to the Olympic Peninsula where she grew up, but no dice.
"Hmm," she mumbled, turning down the dirt road that led to the ocean. "I'm leaning towards Arizona, but Las Vegas still sounds too fun to rule out completely."
"Mom," I hesitated. "Are you sure you don't want to go-"
"Sarah!" she growled. "We've been over this."
"I know," I should have stopped; I knew my mother would never dream of hurting me, but she was very scary when she was angry. "It's just that I'm sure Gran would love you to visit and it's been so long…" I trailed off when her hands started shaking and she gave me the death stare. Like I said: scary when angry.
*-*-*-*-*
Two days before I was leaving for camp, my dad was flying in from Montana. I was waiting very impatiently at the gate, practically bouncing on my toes as I craned my neck to see him. I loved my dad, but since he and Mom didn't get along I rarely got to see him. Finally, through the sea of bleach-blondes, I saw a streak of raven hair.
"Daddy!" I called and waved until he saw me, his face breaking into a wide grin.
"Hey Baby," he wrapped his arms around me and lifted me off my feet. "I missed you so much."
"I missed you too Daddy," I always turned into such a little girl around my father. After our quick but heartfelt reunion, we made our way to the vast parking lot and to Mom's big silver truck.
"So where's the dragon-lady?" Dad chuckled before I gave him an extremely dirty look; not even he had the right to talk shit about my Mom. "Sorry. But really Honey, where's your mom?"
"Home, probably cooking," I replied, unlocking the doors and hopping in the driver's seat.
"You drove?" Dad asked, still standing outside of the truck. He looked like he thought I was kidding.
"Yes I drove, are you going to get in or not?" I hated when he treated me like I was still a kid; I was seventeen for Christ's sake and perfectly capable of driving to the airport.
"Guess I don't have much of a choice," he laughed and climbed in next to me. We talked the whole way home about the time we had been apart; we'd moved since then and he had started dating a new girl. My parents had been very young when I was born, and even though my dad was starting to show signs of his age, my mom barley looked twenty-five. My dad combated this difference by dating scores of women (I use the term lightly) that were barely older than me.
In no time at all we were pulling into the driveway of the small bungalow that I currently called home. We had only moved here in April, but I had a feeling that Mom would soon be announcing another relocation. I'd gotten used to moving around a lot from a young age; my mom found it hard to settle in one spot for too long so when she got restless we packed up and moved. We never stayed anywhere long enough for me to really get to know people, so there weren't many friends to leave behind. The only place I had lasting friendships was at camp, and even there I would be almost alone this year. I was too old now to go back as a student but I'd lucked out and gotten a job as a councilor.
"We're here Mom," I called as we walked though the front door. I could hear crashing and banging coming from the kitchen; a sure sign that her cooking was going badly.
"Mom, everything okay?" I asked when I found her dumping a pan of charcoal chicken into the trashcan.
"Mmm, peachy," she replied through gritted teeth.
"Hey Leah, looking good," Dad said as he came in behind me. It didn't sound sarcastic, but he said it with a wink and a grin that had Mom scowling.
"Parker, still robbing cradles?" she asked, throwing a frozen pizza on a pan.
Ug, this was going to be a long few days.
*-*-*-*-*
I kept Dad out of the house and away from Mom as much as possible while he was visiting. He was more of an indoor guy so we saw movies, played laser tag, and glow-in-the-dark mini golf. The visit passed quickly and all too soon we were saying goodbye.
"Have fun Sweetie," Dad pulled me close, his russet skin smelling like salt water. I always missed that smell.
"I'll miss you Daddy," I fought the tears that threatened to betray me as he walked towards the gate, blowing kisses. I waved back until I couldn't see him anymore, then turned and found myself in the warm arms of my mother. She had insisted upon coming with us because she didn't think I would be fit to drive home after I'd said goodbye to my father. She was right.
I felt the tears cascade down my face and onto her shoulders as my body shock with loud, embarrassing sobs. My mom practically carried me to the truck (for a little lady, she's freakishly strong) and drove us home where she planted me on the couch with a tub of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream.
"I know it's not much of a last-night-home dinner, but the situation calls for it," she smiled and kissed my head.
As much as I wanted to wallow in that bucket of ice cream, I still had a lot of packing to do, so I spent the rest of the evening in my room being mastered by piles of denim. Somewhere between my second and third suitcases, I heard the phone ring.
"Think fast!" Mom called from my doorway, tossing the cordless to me. I lunged from my spot on the floor, barely catching it before it crashed to the hardwood.
"Hello?" I answered, shooting Mom a dirty look for laughing at my pitiful acrobatics.
"How's my favorite niece?" the smooth male voice on the line asked.
"Uncle Seth, we've been over this, the contest was kind of rigged." We both laughed at our regular banter. I got my sense of humor from him. Seth spent a lot of time with us when I was younger, but as the years passed he found it harder and harder to get away from his job on the reservation where he and Mom had grown up. Since Mom refused to take me there, his visits became fewer and farther between.
"So are you excited? You know this camp thing is cutting into my trip, right?" he grumbled. Seth had planned to visit for two weeks in July, but because I was going to be away for the first week our time was cut short.
"I know, but it's probably the last year I'll be able to go, I start college next year," I reasoned.
"Yeah well, we'll have to do something special when I come down so don't make any plans."
"Of course not; for one week I am all yours," I promised. "But I've got to get back to packing, did you wanna talk to Mom?"
"Nah, s'ok. Have fun at camp Sweetie, I'll be waiting for you when you get home, I love you."
"Love you too Uncle Seth," I said before hanging up. The rest of my night was spent cleaning and packing, with frequent interruptions from my mother.
My flight to Houston left at seven thirty in the morning so Mom and I shuffled through the airport clutching cups of coffee and scowling at everyone who passed. We looked a lot alike, Mom and me; both thin, with brown eyes and coppery skin. The only discernable differences were her height advantage and the nine inches between her short hair and my long straight locks.
"Well, I guess this is it," Mom said after the announcer called my flight to board. She pulled herself up from the cold plastic chair and wrapped me in a hug. My mother was always warm, even in the dead of a Michigan winter she could make you feel like you were in a warm bath.
"Have fun and for God's sake, be careful around those big, dumb animals will you?"
"They're not dumb Mom," I sighed; she never understood my love of horses. I always felt that being able to ride brought me closer to my Native American heritage, but she'd scoffed, saying that Quileute's were more wolf-people than horse-people.
With a final squeeze, she let me go and I boarded the plane, setting off on what I hoped would be an uneventful trip. Boy was I wrong.
*-*-*-*-*
"Ok Sheila, keep your heels down," I called to the ten year old. She was very small and meek, at first sight not a great combination for the large, young Thoroughbred that she rode. However, she needed to learn to control the powerful animal and that's where I came in.
I stood in the center of the large outdoor riding ring, offering gentle instruction while being ready to jump to her aid if necessary. I stretched my arms as I watched her; I'd been sore since yesterday, probably due to the utter lack of riding I'd done through the winter.
Sheila did as I said, dropping her heels and straightening up before turning the large gelding towards a three foot jump. I watched intently as his strides shortened, his muscles bunching and pulling as he approached the jump. Shelia was in complete control until the horse reached the jump; his neck stretched out as he soared into the air and the small girl didn't give him enough rein. She jerked forward and fell to the ground as the horse landed behind her and bolted, excited for the lost weight from his back.
"Sheila, are you okay?" I ran to her side as she sat up, coughing and examining her scraped palms.
"Yeah," she grumbled, pushing herself to her feet. "I just feel kinda stupid."
"Your getting better," I slung my arm around her shoulder as we made our way to where the horse had stopped to graze. I'd been giving her private lessons for the past week because she had been struggling within a group. The last weekend of camp was a show to demonstrate the progress of all the riders and Sheila's parents didn't want to be embarrassed. While I felt sorry for the girl (my mom had never been anything less than encouraging) I did enjoy the extra cash.
"Alright Herman, are you gonna play nice?" I held the reins as Shelia hoisted herself back into the saddle. She was barely shaking as she began trotting around the edge of the ring and once again pointed herself at the jump. This time, she gave Herman the slack he needed, and while she was still slightly off balance, she remained in the saddle.
"So, we'll meet again tomorrow night after dinner and get some time in before the bonfire," I said as Sheila finished cooling Herman down.
"Okay, thanks Sarah," she called as she led him towards one of the large barns. A lot of the kids that came to this camp, Sheila included, came from rich homes and brought their own horses. While it was my job to teach them how to ride, I was also responsible for the health and safety of every animal there, camp horses and personal horses alike.
That's why on my walk back to my cabin, I stopped when I saw three boys in fancy cloths sneak into one of the back barns. I followed them, and when I couldn't find them on the main floor I climbed the ladder into the hayloft.
They couldn't have been much older than twelve, but each one leaned against a wall with a cigarette hanging from their lips.
"What do you think you're doing?" I called, trying to use my best "in charge" voice.
They looked like deer caught in headlights when I first spoke, but they composed themselves quickly and one boy broke away from the other two.
"Listen, it's not a big deal, why don't you just run along?" he said, shooing me with his hand. Yeah, that was gonna work. I was furious as I observed the complete disregard for the safety of the horses and people that spent time in this barn. One smoldering ash from those cigarettes could light this whole place aflame.
"It is a big deal actually, so I'll need you guys to get out of the loft, hand over all of the cigarettes, and head up to the Director's office. I'll be reporting this," I added, just in case I wasn't quite clear. The new director was drop dead gorgeous, but she gave off a dangerous vibe that not even these three could ignore.
I could actually feel my blood boiling as one by one, they descended the ladder, crushing their smokes on the cement platform at the bottom. I was just about to follow them when I heard the boldest boy mumbling to his friends.
"Stupid squaw." Now, normally this derogatory comment from an idiotic prepubescent boy wouldn't bother me; like I've said, I wasn't raised within that culture. But for some reason, my hands started to shake as soon as the words reached my ears. I stepped back from the ladder as my vision blurred and as angry as I was, I could feel the beginnings of another emotion: fear. The shaking got worse, and I could feel a burning in the pit of my stomach, like molten fire. I was vaguely aware of a ripping sound as my body shifted and erupted into a giant wolf, shredding my clothes.
Holy sweet fuck.
OK guys, let me know what you think, i live for your reviews!!!!!!
thanks,
Nikki ;)