A/N: Okay, Maura finally begins to interact with the wolf pack! Hope you enjoy it. Please review.

Thank you to the awesome JDSK for being my beta and to Angel/EdwardZukoRocks for putting up with the crazy!

Disclaimer: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight. I just put my own character into it for Jacob's sake.

Chapter 2 - Home Cooking

And now a week into her unplanned extended stay in La Push, Maura had followed those feelings a half a dozen times. Something would pull her, and she'd go. She had left a half eaten lunch and unpaid check one of those times. Sometimes it would happen after she had seen one of them, but after the festival, they'd been scarce. More tense. But they still didn't seem to know she was watching them. Well, she hadn't had any actual luck. Like this morning. The growing volume of the static in her brain woke her up just after dawn. She had pulled on clothes, grabbed her gear and fled into the deep gray drizzle outside. The static was like a signal. Every time she felt the pull, she'd also had the raging buzz in her head. Every time. If she could hear over that, to help her eyes, maybe she would have spotted them by now. She knew, somehow, she was close, though their barks at the moon, or calls, were infrequent and only right at the beginning when the unexplained instinct called her forward.

"Okay, this is useless. One more night. I'll leave tomorrow." She headed back to town.

Tomorrow would be Sunday. A week since she'd first laid eyes on them. She made her way down from her soggy perch and to her dingy motel room on a lower cliff bordering the gray, choppy waters of the northern Pacific.

Back in her room, she cranked the heat to get rid of the chill she'd picked up from hours in the light rain that morning. She slipped out of her boots and damp clothes, laying them on the table near the heater to dry. Once in her ragged leggings and t-shirt, she laid on the bed to rest her eyes. The static had subsided, but her eyes and head still ached.

"Wake up. Wake up!" Maura tried to tell herself to no avail. She was tearing through trees, branches scraping against her skin. Chased. Frantic. Suddenly surrounded. "Wake up!" Her breath caught as one cut off the path in front. "I'll die," she thought, as their eyes locked. The beast and the…"what, what was she supposed to be? The prey?"

"Woah!" Maura bolted upright, her heart pounding. "Thank god. I'm awake." She gasped out.

That. Damn. Dream. She realized then, between heavy breaths, that her phone was ringing. "Hello? Hey, Gran." She calmed her tone. Gran. Calling to check on her.

"I haven't heard from you in several days, Mo Mo." Gran admonished. "I worry, love, you know that."

"Sorry, Gran. I'm fine. I'm exploring. I didn't mean to worry you." Maura sighed. Gran. Her only family. "How's the new room?"

It had been gut wrenching last year to move Gran to Assisted Living. She was a strong, independent woman. But with Maura away at school and the lack of any other family support, Gran's arthritis began to overcome her ability and will to stick it out alone. Gran hugged and reassured her on the day of the move. "You go live your life. You deserve this. And I'll be well taken care of, so you won't have to worry. Some day, you can come get me, after you've settled this thing." Maura had cringed at the mention of it. Her "thing" as Gran called it, had cost Maura, cost them both, their family. Crazy. That's what her family called her "thing." They kicked her out at 17, her dad and step-mom, when she finally refused to keep taking the meds. They hadn't helped anyway. Only Gran had stood by her.

When she hung up a half hour later, Maura checked the clock. Five-thirty in the afternoon. Her stomach growled, and she realized her last meal had been almost twenty-four hours ago. She had been too rushed to eat this morning, that was for sure, and then too tired when she returned from her unproductive morning watch.

She quickly changed into a warmer, less raggedy pair of black leggings, a long sleeve black t-shirt, and an old, thin wool sweater she had stolen from Mac. She threw her hair into a low ponytail and shoved her feet into her worn out, black Chucks. She headed out into the chill of the early fall evening, up the road to her destination. Higher up, on the cliff top, sat Emily's Bar and Grill. Home to the most amazing food she had ever eaten. All comfort food. And the portions were huge. She discovered it the day after the festival, and had been back a bunch since.

As Maura opened the door, her senses were assaulted with mouthwatering aromas. Surprisingly, the usually crowded restaurant was almost empty. She slid onto a bar stool towards the left-end of the counter. Only one booth was occupied, by a lone diner. A girl. Maura did a quick double-take. "The" girl.

"Evening," smiled the waitress behind the counter . Her long, dark hair was wrapped into a sloppy bun. Layered bangs, swept to the side, kept falling into her eye as she organized condiments. Maura was sure the bangs were meant to partially conceal the long scars that tore through one side of her otherwise pretty face.

"Evening." Maura smiled back. "I'll have the half portion of 'The Boys' Favorite 2' and a Diet Coke."

"Coming up. Good to see you back again, by the way. You from Forks?" As Maura shook her head in reply, she noticed the girl in the booth snap to attention and look their way. Maura watched, out of her peripheral vision, as the girl uncurled herself from the vinyl banquet seat and strode purposefully to the counter, empty mug in hand.

"Hit me, Emily." The girl indicated her coffee cup. Her tone was hard, to match her demeanor. She was tall, very tall for a woman, and she had a wary look in her eyes. She was pretty and dark. Emily disappeared into the kitchen as the girl shifted her gaze to Maura. "From Forks?" She demanded, repeating Emily's question.

"No, just visiting. I'm from Atlanta…" The girl's eyes were examining her. "Georgia?" She added tentatively. Maura noticed her relax a little. "Is Forks a, um, bad place?"

"I don't trust girls - people - from Forks." Just then, Emily returned with Maura's plate of meatloaf and mashed potatoes. She laughed at the girl's reply.

"Relax, Leah. It's been two years. And her skin is pale, but not white." She patted the girl's, Leah's, arm. Maura noticed her reflexively flinch then soften. Leah slid her arm from under Emily's hand and relocated to the other end of the counter.

As Maura ate, her gaze drifted out the large front window, across the street to the tall grass that bordered the cliffs. She watched as the sun began to set, hazy and dim, through the clouded sky. Emily had moved towards Leah, making quiet small talk and beginning to prep for closing. Maura wasn't watching them anymore, but she didn't take her ears off them. She'd been chasing the pack for a week, and now, finally, she was in the same room with one of them. Leah. If she was still enough she knew they would forget, at least consciously, that she was there.

"Two years, Emily. I miss him." Leah said softly. There was pain and anger in her voice.

"Well, at least you've heard him, you know, off and on. Sam would give anything to."

"I don't hear him much anymore. And when I do, lately, there's been like…interference. Static."

Maura froze on an inhale, her fork hovering halfway to her mouth. Static? She heard static?! 'Wait, dummy,' she inwardly reprimanded herself, 'cell phones get static. Quit jumping to conclusions.'

"You know we all thought you'd follow him." Emily's comment was timid. Maura couldn't blame her. Even with her tone softened, Leah threw off a very jagged edge.

"Yeah?" Accusatory. But then, "I guess I wanted to. I should have. But I wouldn't have met Henry." Leah spoke the name with unconcealed love, and that seemed surprising.

"Nobody pegged you for the type to like blonds, that's for sure." Emily laughed. "Is he meeting you tonight?"

"No. He has to work night shift this week. I'll see him later. After -" Leah was cut off by the sound of the door opening and a booming voice.

"Em! Close up already."

'Oh my god,' thought Maura. 'It's the tallest one. The leader.' She didn't even pretend to be watching the sky now. Instead she watched him approach the two women at the opposite side of the counter. She almost gasped aloud. The look on his face as he approached Emily was like nothing she had ever seen. And Emily's face now shared his expression. Maura couldn't breathe. She felt like a voyeur, watching two lovers, though she was several feet away. Shifting on her bar stool, she blushed and thought, 'Wow. I want that. How do you get that?' Mac had never looked at her that way. Not even in the first rush of falling in love. He had loved her, and looked at her with love. But never like that.

"Hey, Embry, kitchen closed up?" He shouted to the back before pulling Emily into a kiss. Maura blushed again. The kiss wasn't anything more than a peck hello, but the passion behind it was evident.

The cook, Embry, came out to join them. "All done, Sam."

"So, Emily, why aren't you ready yet? It's going to start any minute now." A smile behind his questions, he continued, " Coming, Leah?" His arms were still around Emily's waist.

Maura noticed Leah's eyes almost imperceptibly harden, then soften again. "Yeah, of course, Sam. I wouldn't miss the bonfire." Leah answered.

"Bonfire!" Every face in the room turned to Maura. Shit. She had said that out loud.

"Eavesdrop much?" Leah sneered, recovering from the shock at finding Maura still in the restaurant.

"I, uh, I'm sorry. I just, at the festival," she sputtered. "This woman told me about the bonfire. If I was still in town." Maura hastily dug in her pockets for cash. She put the crumpled bills on the counter. "I wasn't, I mean, I didn't mean to -" Crap.

"No worries," Embry smiled at her. "It's not a private party." Maura felt her skin flush again. Good grief, he was cute. And tall. They were all good looking and dark and so very tall. Well, Emily was more average in height, but still. At 5'6", Maura knew she wasn't petite, but around them she felt like a pygmy. "The council leaders will be there telling stories." Embry continued. He, Emily, and Sam smiled at her.

Leah glared, then rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Come if you want. It's not a 'private party' until about eight." She hopped off her bar stool and stalked out the door.

"Don't mind her," Embry said encouragingly. "Why don't you walk down there with us?"

"If you're finished, I'll take your plate, and we can clean up a minute before we go." Emily said as she switched off the neon "open" sign.

"Oh. I'm sorry. Again." Maura began gathering her plate, utensils, and glass. "I'd be happy to help you, since I'm making you late. I didn't realize you would close early. Aren't you usually open later?"

"Until 8 during the week and until about 2 AM on the weekends. Except for special occasions, like the bonfire." Emily grabbed Maura's dishes, refusing to let her help. She and Sam disappeared into the kitchen. Maura could hear the faucet turn on. She looked at Embry. He was one of them, too. In a matter of a half hour she had gone from spying on and trailing them to being invited to hang out on the beach. Was this luck? Coincidence? And now that she was with them, was she going to find anything out? Would any of her hunches or questions be answered? Would she be bold enough to even ask? She knew the answer to that last one - hardly.

All her mental dialogue had now resulted in an uncomfortable lapse in conversation with Embry. He glanced towards the kitchen when they heard Emily giggle.

"They might be a few more minutes." He said, rolling his eyes. "Come on." He crossed the dining area and held the door open for Maura. She took a deep breath. Well, the worst thing that could probably happen is that she would spend a little time with a really cute guy on the beach tonight. She walked out in front of Embry and the cool ocean breeze cleared her mind a bit. 'No.' she thought. She was on a mission. She was going to find out something. Tonight.

A/N: Please review!