A/N: Okay, real quick, Seth is a year younger than Bella in this fic, everyone else should be the same age as the books. Seth is a bit darker in this story than what you normally see. He's sweet and happy in wolf form and in what he says most of the time. His thoughts in wolf form when he's alone and his human thoughts will progressively get darker throughout the fiction. That is, if you want me to continue. R and R!

Family Affair

The first time I saw Bella Swan, I thought she was perfect. Her skin was the palest, creamiest I'd ever seen on a human before. Her eyes were like molten pools of chocolate I just wanted to drown in. Then there was her scent – God, her scent! – I wanted to bathe in it. I wanted to be fully submerged with no reason to come up from it again. But I was sixteen, a new wolf (only two months in the making) and Sam fucking Uley said it wasn't safe for me to be around people yet. I watch from a distance as some blonde fucker paraded around her, completely ignoring some dirty blonde haired chick that was trailing after him as Bella attempted to ignore him. I grinned, convinced she knew she didn't belong with any of those punks. My grin soon turned to a growl when fifteen year old Jacob Black made her flutter her lashes at him, and then they went off on their own. Fuck no! I didn't care if it was an alpha command or not, any sign of a kiss and I would kick baby chief's ass. She was mine – imprint or not (which it wasn't), I knew she was only mine. I gritted my teeth as Jake moved to lean in closer to her, attempting a kiss. I held myself back only because the blond prick from earlier was headed their way. I was relieved and tortured in the same breathe, my Bella had to go. I'd see her again, I vowed it.

That night I heard Billy Black talking to Sam about one of the sparkly assed Cullen's paying too much attention to my girl, he wanted the wolves to do a lap around Chief Swan's house to make sure she was safe. Sam was adamant that with only four wolves it would stretch us too thin. "I'll do it," I volunteered, causing both men to look my way. "Look, Sam, you and Lee need more time together planning the wedding, and I don't mind the extra run. It's just one lap." I shrugged it off, but my alpha beamed at the thought of more alone time with my sister.

"That good enough for you, Billy," Sam asked, to which the tribal head nodded before wheeling his decrepit ass back to Jakey boy and their little red cabin. "Thanks, Seth," my alpha grinned, "Lee Lee and I really appreciate the extra time together. With the wedding less than a year away, your mom's been everywhere we are lately."

I laughed. "There's a medical conference in San Francisco this week. Mom leaves tonight after dinner, and won't be back until next Friday morning. Maybe you could take my sis to your place," I joked lightly. "You know, so I don't have to walk-in on my sister sucking face for a week."

Sam laughed with me. "Sure man, that doesn't sound too hard." He cleared his throat, his eyes falling towards the ground. "You know, Emily's coming up next weekend."

"Yeah?"

Again he nodded. "I'm a lucky son of a bitch, Seth. First I get your sister, then I find my imprint and she understands enough to only want to be friends. Hell, she even started dating back home. Of course I told her I'd have to meet the guy if it gets too serious." His voice had turned steely towards the end.

"Poor, Em. I doubt anyone would pass your test." I laughed again, pushing back any thoughts of Bella Swan. "I'd love to stay and BS with you, but I got patrols to get to."

"I thought Jared was tonight?"

"He was, but he found his imprint this morning while we were running errands for his mom. I agreed to take his shift so he can stay close to her," I explained, shrugging the whole thing off. To be honest, it was a pain in the ass, but with recent developments (i.e. seeing Bella Swan) it was working to my favor. This way I could sort this whole mess out without anyone accusing me of moping or being inside my head.

"That means you'll have a double shift," my alpha protested. "I should –"

"No," I cut him off. "Look, Paul's already coming off of a double, Jared just found his imprint, and you and Lee need some serious couple time. I'm getting tired of feeling your blue balls every time you're in my head," I grinned. Sam laughed too, and reluctantly agreed to let me patrol both mine and Jared's shifts solo.

I ran as fast as I could, loving the feel of the wind in my sandy fur. Paul had been pissy when I showed up late for Jared's shift. I brushed it off, after all Paul is always pissy about one thing or another. I'm starting to think the sexcapades he's always got running in his brain are really just fantasies. I mean, if I walked around with a constant boner I'd be pissy too. I huffed to myself, noticing by the moon's position that it was almost the end of Jared's shift – which signaled the beginning of mine. There's no law that said I couldn't run past the Swan house twice. The thought had barely been formed when my feet began moving in the direction of Forks. Bella… Thoughts of her were consuming my mind again. Her eyes, her skin, her scent… God, if she naturally smelled that good, what would her aroused smell like? No, thinking like that would do no good. It's hard to patrol with a hard on. I forced my mind to go blank, taking in a deep breath when her scent washed over me. I would have smiled, lost in my own personal heaven, but there was a scent mixed with hers that had my wolf growling inside me – the burning, overly sweet scent of leech. God damn Cullen was with her! Jumped right through her window like some kinda creeper too. Fuck, I wanted to rip his head off. Too bad we had a treaty with them. I listened intently as he told her he liked watching her sleep. Really? 'Cause that's not weird or anything. I don't know, I might like watching Bella sleep too, but I wouldn't break into her room to do it. As much as I hated to leave her alone with the undead disco ball, he didn't sound like he was a threat and (as much as I loathed it) she sounded like she wanted him there. I closed my eyes and forced myself back towards La Push to do my rounds.

Thoughts of Bella still consumed me for my patrol, but now they were about her and her leech. Was she dating him? What the fuck did she see in him? I'd be so much better for her. Was I the wrong kind of monster or something for her? Why would any woman want icy and frigid when she could have warm and wanton? I stopped mid-run. That was it! Bella hadn't met me yet. She didn't know she could do better than sparkles. I grinned in my wolf form, doing another lap by the sheriff's residence. The parasite was gone, much to my relief, and all I could hear was the beating of Bella's heart. I wanted to hear that sound forever. I wanted to sleep here where I could smell her, protect her, and never have to leave. 'Sweet dreams, Bella.'

I slept in late the next day, seeing as I'd been on patrol from four in the afternoon until eight the next morning. I'd never been so fucking glad for a Sunday in all my life. The next day was Monday, which meant back to school. I was going to make it a point to stop by Charlie's before dinner. The man had been dating my mom for the past year – starting six months after my dad (one of Charlie's best friend's) died. The sheriff always came around helping my mom out and trying to do fatherly things with me, even gave me the man's version of 'the birds and the bees' talk. Of course I couldn't tell him that my dad died of a heart attack because I turned into a giant ass wolf in front of him. It was my first phase, and I was a little glad it happened. I mean, not my dad dying part, but because Leah had been there too, Sam was finally allowed to reveal his big secret to her. It made all their problems disappear almost overnight.

I sighed to myself, trying to think of a good reason for stopping by. I couldn't just show up to see Bella, that would be too weird for her – after all, we hadn't actually met yet. Had mom met her? I'd ask, maybe we could invite her and Charlie down for dinner one night next week if she hadn't. Then she could meet me, Leah and Sam – maybe even Emily. The girl didn't seem like she had many girlfriends or friends in general for that matter. That's when an epiphany hit me – I'm talking hit by a lightning bolt brilliant fucking idea. What if Bella did have friends, lots of them – here at La Push! Sparkles couldn't come here, and if he tried to stop her he'd look like a control freak. Did she like control freaks? 'Cause if she did, I'd totally dominate that bitch. Bad, Seth! I had to stop thinking like that. First things first, I had to meet her and get her to like me. Nice and slow, Sethy, nice and slow.

Mondays were always slow, but today drug on more than normal. I'd spent yesterday perfecting the plan I was about to put into motion this afternoon. As soon as the bell rang, I hopped into my dad's old van and drove to the Swan's house. Charlie wouldn't be home for a while, so it would be just me and Bella – and her fucking leech! I held back a growl when I not only caught his scent, but saw his shiny assed Volvo in the sheriff's curser's parking space. At least he wasn't staying long. I took a deep breath, knowing if I was going to get on Bella's good side, I couldn't go all hot headed wolf in front of her potential boyfriend – even if he was an undead creeper. Hopping out of the van and jogging up to the front door, I knocked lightly and waited. She opened it, a confused look on her face – it was adorable. "Hey," I said, smiling softly and offering my hand, "I'm Seth Clearwater. Charlie called a few days ago, said there might be a problem with the truck." She blushed a light shade of pink, took my hand in a quick shake, and let me in.

"Um," she said, clearing her throat nervously, "Charlie's not here now." Her eyes darted towards the kitchen repeatedly. So that's where the parasite was, huh?

"That's cool," I replied casually, "just hand me the keys and I'll check it out."

"Really you don't-"

"Bella, right?" I cut off what was sure to be her attempt to get rid of me. She nodded, her eyes widening that I'd known her name. "Bella," I said again, loving the way it felt on my lips, "your dad's been seeing my mom for almost a year now. I'm cool," I attempted to placate her. "Just hand me the keys, and I'll give the old girl a once over, kay?"

Hesitantly, she walked over to the key ring holder on the wall and handed her truck keys to me. "Hey, man," I said with a light nod when I spotted Cullen just inside the kitchen, clutching one of the kitchen chairs rather hard – I think I heard the wood cracking. His yellow eyes narrowed as he hissed at me. "Okay then," I replied, clearing my throat. "I'll, uh, just be outside then." I kept one ear on the house the whole time I fiddled with the Black's old dinosaur of a vehicle. I had to admit, Jacob Black knew his way around an engine. I smirked when I saw what was wrong with her, but continued checking everything under the hood anyway. There was no way Bella removed the spark plugs by herself. Hell, I doubted she even knew what a spark plug was. I smirked when sparkles took off a few minutes before the chief pulled up, looking pissed off at that.

"How you doin', son," Charlie asked, patting my shoulder gentle as Bella came out to greet her father.

"Not too bad. You, old timer?" I grinned at him cheekily as he forced out a laugh and shook his head. "Just been looking over the beast here. Seems the spark plugs were removed."

"Spark plugs, huh?" Charlie scratched his chin in thought. "Must have been a prank. Damn kids."

"A-are they ease to remove," Bella's sweet voice asked shyly. I smiled and nodded. "Just as easy to replace," I assured her with a quick wink. "I actually brought some with me incase they'd gone bad on you." She blushed and stuttered out a thank you.

"You staying for dinner," Charlie asked, heading towards the house.

"I wouldn't want to intrude," I replied, looking straight at Bella.

"Nonsense," her father insisted. "Sue would have my head if I didn't make sure you eat right while she's gone."

"Are you alright with that," I asked the timid little thing in front of me. I wanted to wrap her in my arms and guard her from everything that went bump in the night. She blushed again, and I couldn't help but grin.

"No, I mean yes. I mean," she closed her eyes and growled in frustration. "I mean, yes it's okay, and no I don't mind."

"Alright then," I agreed, noting that Charlie had already went in the house and was on the phone with my mom. The man had called her every day since she'd arrived at the conference so far. "So, Bella, you want me to show you how to put a spark plug in?" Her eyes widened in surprise.

"Y-yeah, that'd be great."

I couldn't help but feel buoyant. I took her hand in mine and helped her install one of the plugs. I even had her handle the last one on her own. "See, nothing to it, Bells." She looked so proud of herself, I couldn't help but beam with her. "You know, I could show you other things if you want. Maybe changing an oil filter or something."

"Really? I mean, it wouldn't be inconvenient or anything? I'm not exactly mechanic material, or coordinated."

I laughed at her honesty. It was obvious she didn't know how beautiful she was, and I was willing to bet fang face wasn't telling her either. "Naw, I'd love to hang out sometime, honest." I held my breath when a true smile touched her face. "Look, um, I don't want to mention it to Charlie if you don't want to. My mom is at a conference this week, but when she comes back, she was wondering if you and Charlie would come to the house for dinner. If you're interested, that is." She looked nervous, and my heart twisted painfully at the idea of her saying 'no'. "It's just going to be you guys, mom, me, my sister Leah, and her fiancé Sam – maybe my cousin Emily. It's not a big production or anything."

"Alright," she agreed, again with great reluctance. We headed up to the house, where she started dinner and I shot the breeze with her old man over the news. I told him about my mom's offer to introduce Bella to the family when she came back from the conference. "I already asked Bella," I told him. "Didn't want her to feel forced or anything. "

"That's good thinking, son," Charlie grinned at me.

I swear I was in deep for this girl. It had to be an obsession, one that got worse the more I got to know her. Monday night I learned what an amazing cook she was. I mean mom was good, Leah was okay, and Emily could make muffins so well they made me hard just thinking about them, but Bella… She'd made a simple meal in presentation. I mean, it was just lasagna. That first taste, Great Spirits, it was orgasmic. Seriously, I almost messed my pants. Then two days later, on Wednesday, Bella came by the house. I lent her an old pair of my sweats and lead her to the garage where I talked her through changing the truck's oil and oil filter. She did really well, though it did take a lot longer than it would have taken – well, anyone else, really. The smile on her face was worth it though. She even hugged me. Sure, it was an oily, dirty hug, but I'd take what I could get. I let her shower in the bath room attached to my room while I used the guest bathroom. (I told her she'd get more privacy there, which was true. Pack brothers didn't exactly knock before barging in anywhere.) Mom called that night to see how I was doing, and Charlie called to tell Bella to stay the night since he'd be home late. Either he was worried about her, or he thought I could use the company.

"Thanks for staying," I mumbled shyly as I piled slices of pizza on my plate. I'd ordered three larges, knowing there still wouldn't be any left over. "It gets pretty lonely with Leah at Sam's."

"It's no problem," she blushed, browsing the dvd collection before settling on 'Wedding Crashers'. "Don't worry, Sethy," she mocked, ruffling my hair after loading the dvd and coming to get her own plate, "I won't make you watch any icky chick flicks tonight. I'll save that for next time."

I grinned to myself as I sat down, happy there'd be a next time. "Watch what you want, Leah makes me watch Lifetime with her sometimes. She hates crying when she's alone."

"You're so sweet, Seth," she sighed out, sitting down on the sofa next to me. "I wish Edward was…" Her mouth formed a firm line, and then shook her head. "Never mind."

"Edward," I asked, watching her out of the corner of my eye. "That the guy I saw at your house?"

"Yeah, Edward Cullen," she bit her bottom lip. "He's sort of my boyfriend, only –"

"Only, what? Come on, you can talk to me."

It was clear something was bothering her about the leech. If only she'd open up to me, I could show her how much better I'd be for her. 'Come on, baby,' I mentally coaxed her, 'just talk to me.'

"I know, Seth," she smiled softly. "I've only known you a few days, but it seems longer." She swallowed thickly. "I'm Edward's first girlfriend, so I'm cutting him some slack, you know? Only he seems to treat me more like a child than a girlfriend. It's always 'Bella don't go there', 'Bella don't talk like that'. It's like he has my whole life mapped out for me already, only I'm not certain it's the life I want. I care for him," she clarified quickly. "But…"

"If you ask me," I interrupted, looking straight at the tv, "I'd say you deserve someone that truly appreciates you, Bells, not what he thinks you should be or even what he can turn you into. You deserve to be an equal partner in your relationship, and to be cherished. I mean, if I were seeing a girl, I'd let her know all the time how special she is. How lucky I am to have her. She'd never have to wonder if I loved her…" I frowned for a minute as silence followed my words. "Huh, guess I have been watching too much Lifetime with Leah."

"I'd say," she giggled, "but it was sweet anyway, Seth."

She ended up falling asleep on me that night. It was a curse and a blessing wrapped in one. I could hear her heart beat, smell her scent, yet I couldn't really touch her the way I wanted to. I growled to myself, knowing if I spent the night with her in my arms I wouldn't be able to resist caressing her. Carrying her upstairs to my room, leaving her on my bed – alone – was the hardest fucking thing I'd ever done. Inhaling her smell one last time, I turned and made my way back downstairs towards the couch. I couldn't sleep, of course. Not with the girl of my dreams so close to me. I cleaned the house after a few hours of trying to sleep had failed me. Mom would be home Friday afternoon and it was already Thursday morning (technically). Besides, I really wanted Bella to see that I was a domesticated male who could take care of her when the need arose. Not like sparkles, who sounded like he wanted to wrap her in bubble wrap. Mmmm, Bella in nothing but bubble wrap. 'Fuck,' I mentally growled at myself, 'I needed to get laid.'

Nothing happened later that morning. I had patrol duty from four until six that morning, when I came home to get ready for school, Bella was gone. The week drug on, Mom came home, and two weeks (a full fucking two weeks) later, Bella finally came by the house again. This time it was for a family dinner.