Disclaimer: Twilight's not mine.

To my dear and wonderful readers,

If you are thinking 'what the hell is this?' right now, I understand. I've decided I don't really like the style in which I wrote the first couple of chapters of "Change The Setting, Change The Story". I was really frustrated with it, and it interfered with my ability to write more chapters.

So I went ahead and started editing. Actually, almost everything is still the same, only the chapters are kind of combined and therefore longer. Do not skip over this chapter, some parts are different and you need to read this to understand the future plot. Even if the first parts are lifted directly from the first version of this story.

Love,

Me

Leah ran, pushing herself to go faster and faster, racing past blurred outlines of trees and bushes. There was nothing but silence in her head, for which she was grateful. In moments like these, when she didn't bother to mask her pain with bitterness, she was vulnerable from verbal attacks from the other wolves.

She wished she could just go on like this forever, running efficiently through the beautiful forest, without a single intruder in her head – without Sam Uley. The son of a bitch, she thought, and pushed herself to go faster.

As if he hadn't hurt her enough! As if imprinting would ever justify his actions! Leah Clearwater didn't hate imprinting. She didn't even dislike it – hell, she wished it would happen to her! Admittedly she only wanted it so she would finally, finally be able to forget that cheating idiot. She thought it was pathetic, the whole 'eternal soul mates' thing, but she wanted to love somebody more than she had loved Sam Uley.

But they had been engaged, dammit! They were going to have love forever! And then Emily came along, and Leah suddenly meant nothing. Leah would blame Emily forever. Not for coming to visit her, oh no – for not caring enough about her, Leah, to reject Sam!

Two people that she had thought were some of her closet relationships had betrayed her and not given a damn about what it did to her.

It hurt her, deeply, painfully, awfully. And they didn't care – after all, they were too busy sitting on some couch being all lovey-dovey!

But, apparently, fate hadn't punished her enough. Oh no, she had to turn into some freaking wolf too! And obey the exact same cheater that had so brutally dumped her only months ago! What's more, a bunch of idiotic guys could read her mind, and before she admitted to anybody that the whole Sam and Emily thing hurt her, she developed her bitchy personality. It kept them away, and that was all she was asking for.

Of course she broke down sometimes. Nobody could run around pretending to be incredibly tough without weakening to a point of tears occasionally.

But she would never show the pack any weaknesses, so when she did have those moments, she preferred to just wait until the entire pack was human, and then run it out of her system.

That's how she did things. It was her concept, and it worked for her.

Embry and Quil were running patrols on Tuesday evening in La Push. Quil was thinking about Claire, which was so predictable. All the wolves who had imprints constantly thought about them.

Which, of course, left Embry a little bit alone. Oh, it wasn't like he was the only un-imprinted wolf. There were always Paul and Leah (Author's Note: In this story, Paul never imprinted on Rachel), but they weren't exactly the best company. Seth, Collin and Brady were all around 14 years old and while Embry didn't dislike them, they weren't his friends.

And that was it. Sam had Emily, Jake had Renesmee and Quil had Claire. Sure, Jake and Quil had been his best friends before the whole imprinting issue, but now Embry felt like whenever he wanted to spend time with them or even just talk he was a nuisance, keeping them away from their precious imprints.

Even during patrols he only bothered them! Why did he even bother calling them his friends anymore?

Hey, thought Quil. We're still your friends!

For once, Embry didn't feel like faking it. Oh, come on, he thought. All you two ever think about are imprints, imprints, imprints. We never hang out anymore!

We're hanging out right now, thought Quil, his mental voice upbeat and cheery.

We're working, Quil, stated Embry dryly and concentrated on the forest flashing past him.

Leah stood underneath the warm shower and let the water trickle down her body. She took a few deep breaths, leaned her head back and enjoyed the relaxing sensation.

When did she ever take the time to do something like relax anymore? It really was something she ought to do more often.

She opened her eyes again. They were automatically drawn to the drawer underneath the double sink. The drawer where her tampons and pads were – tampons and pads she hadn't used in a few months now.

Leah snapped her eyes closed again, but she couldn't stop the thoughts from worming their way into her brain.

No future…damned…genetic dead end…unwanted…forget love ever happening…you'll spend the rest of your life like this…

And then what the pack would say – what the pack did say whenever she thought like that.

Get over yourself, Leah…stop whining…quit being such a bitch…Sam doesn't love you, get that into your head…shut up with all of that feminine stuff…so what if you don't get your period…

Shut up, she commanded the voices, SHUT UP! But of course they wouldn't listen. Images flooded her mind, memories of other words spat in her direction.

After her not-so-great shower, Leah stood in front of the mirror in her light blue bathrobe and stared at her reflection. Oh, did she look different. And not just because of the wolf thing – although that had changed her body a lot – but also because of the way her eyes were missing that sweet, happy expression they had worn so often before.

Before…before what? Phasing into an oversized dog? Or before Emily came along?

She sighed and grabbed a comb. It glided easily through her wet, short strands. It was almost frustrating how short they were. Maybe the length of her hair somehow symbolized her happiness. Back…before, her hair had been longer, reaching down past her shoulders. And she had been happy. Then, when Emily had come, her world was hit by a huge sledgehammer and she was broken inside.

She had gotten a haircut about a week or so after the breakup. Leah hadn't really known why – she still didn't today, but did that even matter? That wasn't when she had cut it as short as it was right now. After that first tragedy haircut, as she liked to call them, her hair reached down to her shoulders – about 2 or 3 inches shorter than it had been.

Then, she phased into a gigantic wolf, had to deal with a pack of idiotic boys who could read her mind and take orders from the guy that had completely broken her not all too long ago. Time for the second tragedy haircut. After that one, her strands went down to her chin.

And now she was considering a third tragedy haircut. She had been for awhile now, but always made sure to hide it from the pack. Sure, they knew she was thinking about a trip to the salon, and technically they knew what her motives were, but they were incapable of adding one plus one to make two, and she certainly wasn't going to help them.

Because this third tragedy was so awful, the Sam and Emily problem was insignificant in comparison. Sam and Emily affected her past, and the wolf issue affected her present, but the fact that she no longer got her period affected her future.

She could get over back then and right now, just as long as she had something to look forward too – just as long as she knew she would get out of this hellhole someday and be happy. But if she no longer got her period, she would never have kids, and that would not be helpful to her dreams of the future.

There must be something wrong with her. She had the evidence right in front on her, dammit! She was a female and phased, which was wrong enough in itself, but technically that meant Sam should have imprinted on her, because wolf genes from both sides could only mean stronger wolves! And since Sam obviously imprinted on somebody else, it proved that there was something wrong with her!

Leah closed her eyes and felt a shiver run down her back. Not a good idea, Clearwater, not a good idea, she thought to herself. Her phasing in the house would not go over well with anyone.

Oh, damn them all, she couldn't help but think as she wandered downstairs, absentmindedly grabbing a box of cereal and munching as she walked. She sifted through the pile of mail on the countertop. There was a letter from the bank, an advertisement for a grocery shop in Forks, a catalogue from an internet shoe shop and an unopened letter from her aunt, addressed to Sue Clearwater.

She took the shoe catalogue with her and sat down on the couch, still eating her cereal.

Leah wasn't really interested in the shoes, but she sifted through the catalogue anyway, determining which piece of footwear was ugly and which heels were high enough for the red carpet.

A few minutes later, the house door opened and Seth walked in, with a few guys from the pack. She glanced and them and returned to her catalogue. She hadn't forgotten that she was only wearing a bathrobe and nothing else, and it made her slightly uncomfortable, but then again, they saw her naked on a regular basis, didn't they?

Still, she felt awkward and shifted her position on the couch. Bad move, she thought a second later, as the boys turned to look at her.

"Leah Clearwater is looking at a shoe catalogue?" came Paul's voice, a mixture of surprise, mockery and disgust.

She said nothing, keeping a cool exterior, but her insides were boiling. What did they expect – that she act like a guy? Anger flared up inside of her.

"You gonna say something?" came another sneering voice. What was their problem?, thought Leah. But now it was time to gear up her defenses. She turned on her bitch façade and replied, accompanying her words with a glare.

That afternoon, Leah had patrols with Quil and Embry. All three stayed near silent the whole time, Quil, of course, only thinking about Claire. Leah picked up on Embry's annoyance because of the imprints ruining his friendships with Jake and Quil.

In a way, she understood him. It was always hard seeing someone you cared about leave because they had other people to be around. Damn, she had firsthand experience.

Don't go there, Clearwater, she thought to herself. Stay away.

And to distract herself, she did what she always did in such situations: sing Britney Spears songs in her head. Sure, it sounded strange at first, but it was the best she could come up with. Britney Spears was her line of defense, and it was good. The boys had gotten used to it – sometimes they really were a little bit stupid. How could they not notice that she only did that to hide her thoughts?

She quickly put the mental music back on, hoping that Embry and Quil hadn't heard that little truth. A short scan of their minds proved that she was lucky; both were so wrapped up in their thoughts they noticed nothing.

They really were stupid sometimes.

That evening, Sue chattered on about some trivial subject. Seth was listening, Leah was pretending to do so while actually wallowing in the comfort of being alone in her head.

How much those little, lonely moments meant to her. She could relax, drop the bitch thing and be oblivious to the rest of the world.

That shouldn't be the highlight of her day.

It was so damned unfair.

She wished her brain would shut up. Those thoughts were not what she needed right now. Leah put her hands in her hair and her elbows on the table, resting her head while staring down. Her ears picked up her mother's happy chitchat. Sue's happiness didn't frustrate her – but it did make her wistful, which she herself always perceived as weak.

No being wistful for her.

She noticed that Sue had changed the subject. About half a year ago, her mother had decided she wanted to visit her sister, Natalia, in New York, where Natalia lived. Somehow, she had managed to convince Leah to go as well. Privately, Leah thought that her mother was hoping Natalia would somehow make her outlook on life brighter, as if that could happen in the first place.

Sue had booked flight tickets, and the departure day was getting closer and closer. It was less than a week and a half away, and even Leah found herself getting excited at the prospect of having time away from all of the horrors known as her life.

She would fly to New York with her mother, but Sue would be leaving after just 5 days again because she couldn't just leave for much longer since she had so many responsibilities in La Push. Besides, the wolves had a little problem on their hands. 2 unidentified vampires had crossed into their territory over 5 times to date, always coming and going over the water so the scent was impossible to track. They hadn't hurt anybody (not even a deer had been found lifeless) but it was still worrying.

Very worrying. Well, at least to the other members of the pack. Leah's feelings for vampires were changing. She still hated them, sure, but as long as they stayed out of her way she'd stay out of theirs. It was fair enough that way, and she got her peace.

Some council members had even suggested calling the trip off entirely, which had been promptly refused by Sue. She had already paid for the expenses and she really wanted to see her sister. Damn vampires for all they were worth.

But still, Sue could only stay with Natalia for 5 days. Leah, however, was going to be there for 2 weeks. Some odd reason had her wanting Natalia to like her, so she planned on dropping the bitch thing. Why should she act all pissed, anyway? She didn't know anybody in New York and they didn't know her. She could be whoever she wanted to be – even the Old Leah, the Before The Breakup Leah.

She was going to have the time of her life.

How sad that she only had 2 weeks there. She would gladly run away from La Push and never come back, but two weeks were better than nothing.

She was drawn back into the conversation by her mother, who was, unsurprisingly, talking about Natalia. "…her boyfriend, Justin Rowster, is so wonderful for her. They make a lovely couple, they really do. Oh, I'm so excited. What if they get married? They've discussed it, you know, and that would be so lovely…"

Oh God, thought Leah, oh God. My mother is rambling like some teenage idiot.

"…and her job is really nice, too. A journalist at the New York Post, I mean, that sounds so elite and professional. I've heard so much about her friends and co-workers, and now I can finally meet them all. I can't believe Natalia is just 36, that's so young, and I'm 43, which isn't that old but it's definitely older…"

Yup, thought Leah, just like some star-struck 16 year old talking about her idol. Very awkward.

"I wonder if she'll ever have kids. She'd make such a loving mother, you know, but she is getting older and it would have to happen soon. I would love to have a little niece or nephew, and you kids would have cousins…Oh, wouldn't that be sweet?"

Please, Lord, thought Leah, spare me the further embarrassment of watching my mom act like she's a teenager.

It worked. The phone rang, cutting off Sue mid-sentence, who whirled over to go pick it up. Thankfully, she was above squealing a 'hi' into the phone, which would probably made Leah barf. Where was the controlled, wise tribe woman?

While her mother energetically discussed something on the phone, Leah made a pact. She would not come back from New York all over-caffeinated, squealing, rambling, overly girly, fast-talking, high-heel donning and generally crazy.

After all, somebody had to save the pride of the women, and her mother certainly wasn't doing it.