Disclaimer: I don't own twilight

Chapter 1

Seven Years Later, New York

Leah

As usual when the clock struck five, Leah cleared her desk of the daily clutter and then locked the door to her office on her way out. She found a comfort in the monotony of her daily routine. Still she may have considered her life boring if she didn't possess a supernatural gene that catapulted her into a huge, shaggy wolf whenever they were nearby.

Which was why she'd moved to New York in the first place. For the seven years and counting that she'd lived here, there were no vampires to be seen. Which suited her just fine. Besides, she didn't think that exploding into her wolf in Times Square would be a big hit with anyone...Heaven knows why that very thought had been a recurring dream, no, not a dream more like a nightmare, since she'd permanently relocated to New York some seven years ago. It'd been especially bad when she'd first moved. She'd wake up, shaking and covered in a sheen of cold sweat, still seeing the horror stricken expressions and hearing the shrill, frightened screams of the nameless crowds surrounding her wolf...Phasing in Times Square had been one of the more vivid nightmares, other times it was while she was walking through the city streets or even going to get a cup of coffee at the office.

But the ordered structure of her life now soothed the tumult she'd experienced when she first phased thirteen years ago in Forks. She grew to love the predictability of her career. It was deeply reassuring to have a certain control that normal people took for granted. It'd been really difficult at first. Leaving Forks and her family. And she still missed that wild freedom that phasing brought.

She missed her wolf.

But she didn't miss the pain that being a wolf and being in Forks caused. It was bad enough going home at Christmas and witnessing how everyone had happily settled. Every year it seemed, someone was getting married. Or having a baby. And she thought if she was invited one more time to a Cullen wedding, she'd scream... It seemed as if renewing vows every few years or so was a hobby of the Cullens, particularly the little future visionary, Alice whose overly cheerful personality was always at odds with her serious faced mate.

It didn't help either when her mother Sue and step father Charlie kept telling her she'd always be welcome back in Forks...and that it was 'just fine' by them if she ever wanted to bring along a friend whenever she visited. Leah would hum non-committedly, deliberately not responding to their not so subtle enquiries about her life. She knew her mother fussed and worried when she remained mostly holed up in her room whenever she came home for the requisite holiday.

She would have stayed at her childhood home in the Quileute reservation but the temptation was just too risky. Battling her ancestry was a big part of the depressed cloud that hung around her whenever she returned to Forks. She knew if she ever ventured into those woods again, she would try to phase. She would want to see if her deeply supressed longing to run as her wolf was still hers to command at will. And if she was still able to phase, maybe she'd just want to keep running. To never return to her human form which held too many painful memories and submerged longings.

Leah forced herself to return the smile of the security guard who opened the door for her to the wintry city outside. To those who didn't know her well, her forced smile would even appear as a cheerful grin, a dazzling smile that had charmed many during her time here. Moving from Forks and coming to New York was the best decision of her life, she convinced herself. Living in the bustling city had given her no choice but to mellow her abrasive...attitude. She guessed the city had tamed her somewhat. Leah stifled the surge of sadness that thought brought upon her.

Stepping out onto the snow covered sidewalk, she pulled on her dark leather gloves for appearances sake. Even though she hadn't phased for seven years, she was still able to withstand cold temperatures that no normal human could. She took in the everyday vision of the white, tiny snow drops that broke through the foggy atmosphere to blanket the streets in a white carpet. It had been an intense winter this season, with two blizzards almost bringing the busy avenues to a standstill within the past few weeks. But not even that could stop the ebb and flow of the city's business and commercial metropolis that ran as sure as clockwork. It was that same predictability that she learned to appreciate. Predictability was safe. It was calm, mellow and tame; the exact opposite of all she'd been.

Her phone vibrated in her coat pocket then and Leah curiously glanced at the screen. It was Thomas. She'd been dating Thomas for close to a year now. They'd met during a business meeting when both their companies had spirited their executives away for a networking weekend in Detroit.

"Hey, babe." Leah quipped automatically, cradling the phone against her ear while adjusting her bag.

"Darling. I've booked us a table at Benjamin Steakhouse, hope you don't mind?" Thomas said politely though she knew he knew she wouldn't mind. He knew her well enough...

Leah felt her stomach rumble a bit at the mention of one of her favourite places to eat out. They had some of the most delicious T-bone steaks...She still retained the ferocious appetite she'd had when she'd been a wolf. Some things never change she guessed, no matter how hard you tried.

"Nope. That's great..."

"I've got a wonderful surprise planned for you..." Thomas whispered in her ear.

"I...can't wait." Leah said weakly, gulping a little with apprehension.

"Niether can I. I'll pick you up at eight."

"Ok."

"See you soon, darling."

"Bye, babe."

She hung up and continued her slow walk along the sidewalk amidst the throng of oblivious commuters. Though several cabs were about, for once she wasn't really anxious to hurry back to her cozy apartment. And if she had to be really honest, she wasn't that eager about her dinner date with Thomas either. He'd been dropping not so subtle hints for a few weeks now. He also wanted her to meet his parents in New Hampshire but Leah had been putting that trip off for a while now, always coming up with some excuse. The thing was Leah knew her co-workers would be so excited about a prospective proposal from their boyfriends yet Leah felt...nothing. Certainly not excited. Or nervous. It was as if she'd become numb to mostly everything, like there was nothing that could fill that void inside her no matter how much she convinced herself that there was no void...

Their relationship started with the usual solo dance with numerous calls and tokens of affection delivered to her office. Normally she'd just ignore the calls and toss the gifts in the trash then they'd leave her alone. But Thomas had been very persistent and as Leah got to know him better, she began to feel at ease with his courteous charm and thoughtful ways.

They'd become friends first as Leah had made up her mind to stop dating completely after a brief dalliance with her ex boyfriend Luke who she'd met when she first moved to New York while she'd still been studying. He'd been a superbowl star and they'd went on a few dates but nothing more had happened other than a few kisses...Good thing too because she hadn't been the only one he'd been seeing at that time as she'd discovered when a hysterical 'groupie' of his had somehow gotten hold of her number and called her at three in the morning to 'warn' her to "stay away from Luke, you bitch".

It was with a keen relief, she'd ended that dance, thankful that she'd had better sense than to sleep with him. And not for lack of his trying. Leah shook her head slightly as she continued her unhurried stroll while the snow flakes continued to drift down and lightly cover everything in its midst. Guess not only mystical heritage circumstances made men complete bastards...

She had never liked Luke's flashy, indulgent lifestyle anyway. The one thing that brought her a true hint of happiness was the fact that she was completely independent and self sufficient. Despite her mother's continuous worry that she would be 'so lonely' living all alone, Leah cherished her solitude. She probably took too much pride in her completion of her master's in Market Research, finishing the last of her tuition five years ago. She'd even done some post graduate studies. But certificates lovingly placed on the otherwise bare wall of an apartment for one could only warm her so much...

Leah felt a twinge of guilt when she thought of Thomas again. He was the best boyfriend a girl could ask for. He'd been so understanding when she insisted that she only wanted to be friends, never rushing her into anything or attempting sly overtures of seduction. Moreover he understood her need for solitude and space. They'd remained good friends for six months then one night just after she'd returned from her not too brief Christmas visit in Forks, he'd taken her to see a movie and kissed her. And she hadn't stopped him.

That night for the first time, she'd brought a man back to her apartment. Thomas was sweet and affectionate and even if the sex hadn't been 'earth shattering', Leah liked him. He was solid and dependable in that she could depend on him to never try to subdue or control her. But she had that certain inkling about their date tonight. She knew she couldn't hold off the inevitable choice looming before her...

Leah stopped still as a statue on the snowy sidewalk, her abrupt halt causing a few commuters to bounce into her. Something had leaped inside her, an intense physical movement within the very bones of her body. The sensation was completely foreign...yet familiar.

Glancing around frantically at the crowds of people around her, Leah fervently hoped that one of her worst nightmares wasn't coming to life; that of phasing to her wolf in the busy streets of New York...

She believed that highly unlikely to occur though. Even if she was still able to phase, she possessed a certain amount of control. Still the very potent sensation had almost shocked her off her feet. For a few seconds, it had felt like if her dormant wolf had woken, snarling with ripping teeth, fighting against her to be let loose...

Glancing around cautiously again, Leah paid very close attention to the faces about her. But she saw nothing unusual. No unusually pale white skin or unnaturally still forms. But the unease still remained. She'd never felt anything like that even when she'd been phasing regularly.

No wait...there had been that time, after she'd phased in the forest for the last time... Before she'd returned to New York for good, just after that fiasco with those Italian freaks. That had been a bittersweet time, saying goodbye to her wolf. She recalled the soothing coldness of the mountain stream, the heavy clouds lending a dense humidity to the still forest, as dense as her mood had been. She remembered sitting beside the stream knowing that she wouldn't return to that spot for the rest of her life, if she could help it. What she couldn't help then was the heavy sorrow she experienced after her last run through terrain that she knew as well as her face.

She'd felt that same very sensation then, as she sat beside the stream in her human form; what could only be described as her wolf pushing against her, leaping inside of her as if her own human body was its cage. A cage she'd locked and had no intention of opening again. She'd thought back then that her wolf had instinctively knew she didn't plan on phasing again. She'd thought it was her Quileute nature resisting her decision...

But then how could she feel that strange sensation again out of the blue in the cold streets of New York? Especially after having not phased for several years and not experiencing any hint of her wolf nature in said years, not even once.

Leah hailed a cab, pulling her deep red coat tighter about her tense body. Going into the cab, she glanced around again swiftly, shivering a little. And not because of the cold.

Thankfully, it took just a few moments to get to her modest yet exclusive apartment in Greenwich Village. Leah paid the cab driver, tipping him well and hurried out of the vehicle.

She fished her keys out, opening her door quickly then shutting and locking it securely before leaning back on it. Heaving out a pent up sigh, she could still feel the waves of unease that started on the chilled sidewalks just a few moments before. Deciding a nice, toasty bath might ease some of the stiff tension out of her body, she moved to go further into her domain still irrationally feeling as if she were being watched by eyes she could not see.

Then a pang of shocked fear pummelled her when she sensed she was not alone in her apartment...

A.N. Thank you to everyone who reviewed, favorited and followed so far :) I'd love to hear your opinions and thoughts as the story unfolds...Will try to update again within the next week. Cheers!