A/N: Back with the next chapter! Pretty quick, eh? I don't think I've done this for the fic yet so
Disclaimer: blah blah I don't own anything; characters are all Stephanie Meyer's … You know the drill.

Enjoy.

The first thing I felt was relief. Bella was alive, she was okay. She was alive. I let out a breath I had no idea I was holding, and collapsed onto the sofa. I smiled, glad that I wouldn't have to worry about Bella anymore. She was home, and she was fine. Good. That was that.

But then I looked up at Leah and saw the look on her face. She was still horrified, possibly even more so because of my reaction. "Jake, they're all back," she kept saying. "The whole stupid leech family." She didn't know exactly how bad the bloodsuckers could be, so she must have been scared. I blinked. Right, that was the main part. That was the horrible part. She was scared, and that's what was important.

"Did Charlie say that? Did he say the leeches were back?"

She frowned a bit in thought. "Well… no, but … If Bella's back then… then they all must be, right?"

Well, that was probably true. "They left her last time. They might not be back, Leah." God, I wasn't even convincing myself.

"I hope they aren't."

"Aw, come on. There's no need to be scared! We can take them on easily. It's actually not that bad… ripping those filthy little bloodsuckers up. You'll see." Nice, Jake. Make a joke when she's so freaked out. It won't piss her off or anything.

Before she could let out the irritation I could see in her eyes, I added, "And we save thousands of lives, you know, by killing them."

"Well… yeah."

"Plus you get to let all of your pent up anger out into killing it. It's probably therapeutic or something." I grinned. Okay, if that one doesn't lighten the mood, I seriously need to stop with the jokes. She half-smiled. Apparently I was getting good at cheering her up… it worked after all.

"Well, we've got to tell the pack, now, right?" she asked.

"Oh, uh, yeah. Forgot about that. Well, I'll phase and let them know. You can just … just wait here?"

"What? No. I'll do it too. I should – shouldn't I be there to tell them all? I'm the one who talked to Charlie."

"Alright, we need to phase then. Leah, do you think you know how to change forms?" She stared blankly. I smiled at her. "You just let your emotions spill out, feel the shiver down your spine, feel that heat inside of you and let it build up… and it'll come. It's natural, instinctive. It'll be easy for you, I know it. You're a natural – way better than the others."

She frowned and tried to concentrate.

"Leah, wait, not just now!" I said with a laugh. "You're going to rip all your clothes!"

"Ugh, right. So, what do I …?" she muttered, irritated and confused.

"Well, uhm, this is the awkward bit," I half-laughed again. "You sort of have to… take off your clothes… and then phase. In private, of course! We – uh, I won't be watching, or anything. I'll be somewhere else doing the same thing. And, well, I usually tie my shorts around my wrist, so when I phase back to human I have some clothes to put on.

"Okay," she said uncertainly.

"It gets easier, starts to feel more natural," I insisted, trying to comfort her.

"If you say so," she muttered.

"Alright, I'm just gonna go out into the forest… to phase, I mean. Because, well I'm too large to fit through the door when I'm, you know. So, yeah … I'll just… do that. And you can … yeah… okay. Okay?"

She smiled at how stupid I sounded. I laughed, and then went out of the house to phase. As soon as I phased I was engulfed in the thoughts and feelings of the pack mind. I could see flashing images of forest as the others ran patrols.

Hey, Jake's here! Where's the she-wolf?

He had to stop calling her that.

Why, Jake? That's what she is!

Knock it off, Paul.

Geez, Sam, I'm only trying to have a laugh.

Well, stop. It's not funny. What's wrong, Jacob? He could probably sense how anxious I was, and knew it was serious.

Is my sister okay?

She's fine, Seth. But she just got a phone call from Bella's father.

I could feel them all getting tense.

Well, what did he say?

I looked around, wondering what was taking Leah so long. Maybe she hadn't been able to phase? Should I check to see if –

For God's sake, Jake! This is more important than that. What did he say? Said Paul, his mental 'voice' filled with irritation.

Oi, lay off of Jake.

Thanks Seth, but I can handle myself. Paul's no match for me.

Oh, you wanna bet?

Be nice, boys. There's a lady around. Jared's 'voice' said, dripping with humor.

Leah!

Alright, enough of this. Leah, Jacob, what happened? What did Charlie say?

Didn't Jake tell you?

No. What did Charlie say? Sam was clearly in full Alpha-mode.

Bella is back.

They had already guessed that was it, but once it had been confirmed by Leah, there was just complete chaos, with everyone thinking different things at the same time. The underlying tone was panic.

Wait, are they back then?

If they are, we'll have to pull in our patrols.

Yeah, we can't be caught on their land.

Then we've got to find out immediately.

I can't believe those leeches made it back alive! They all should have just died.

They might not be back.

Whatever... it's a good thing. This way we get to be the ones to kill them!

Sweet!

They might not be back…

Get real, Seth. They're back. I can feel it.

No you can't, moron.

Shut up Jared!

All of you be quiet! Sam screamed. Paul, control yourself.

Sorry. Can't help it. I was getting bored with just that red head. She keeps running away. Maybe now we'll get some real action!

The treaty still stands, idiot! Right Sam?

Yes. They haven't broken any of the rules. There's no reason to harm them.

No reason? How about for being great big sparkly bloodsuckers? Is that a good enough reason?

No, Paul.

Then how about for smelling worse than Paul's feet after a night in the forest?

Hey – was that really necessary?

Yes.

I sighed and laughed at the same time. It was all pretty entertaining, but it got old after a while. I looked over at Leah and couldn't tell if she was finding this amusing or overwhelming. She seemed to be laughing…

Don't worry, the girly can deal with it. She'll have to get used to it, anyway.

Shut it, Paul!

He's right, Jacob. That was Leah.

Whatever. I'm phasing back. I'm going to see if my dad has any news yet.

I don't think Charlie's told him, Jake. My mom was just there, and she didn't say anything about it, so they don't know.

Alright, then I'd better go and tell him.

Yes, the council needs to be informed. We will have a meeting once we know if the bloodsuckers are truly back or not.

I phased back, away from where Leah was standing beside me, and put on my shorts. I had thought Leah would change back as well, but she didn't; she was still talking to Sam.

I put on my clothes and headed back into the house to wait for Leah. I didn't really know why I didn't go straight to see Billy. I just felt like I should talk to her first.

Leah came in a few minutes later. She seemed… upset. She started speaking before I could say anything, though.

"Well, Paul's certainly ready to kill some bloodsuckers," she said with a weak attempt at a laugh as she sat on the couch, as far away from me as possible. That hurt.

I decided not to ask questions and just go along with her. "Trust me, we all are. He was right about that red head… she was getting boring. She kept trying to get through us to get to Bella… and she was taking her time about it."

"So there was a vampire trying to kill Bella?"

"Yeah."

"Well, from what I hear, that's nothing new," Leah smirked.

'True," I laughed.

There was a short silence. Leah pulled her legs up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them, resting her chin on her knees. As she stared off into space, deep in thought, I debated with myself mentally. Obviously I had to know what was wrong, what Sam had said. Or should I just let it be? That's stupid. She needed someone to talk to about it.

I looked at her troubled face and made my decision. "Leah, what's wrong?" I asked as I shuffled a little closer to her.

She looked up at me in surprise. "I don't know what you –"

"Please, Leah," I sighed gently, moving a little closer. "I'm not stupid. What happened? Did Sam say something?"

Her face twisted at the mention of his name. Was that anger, or grief? I wasn't sure.

"Nothing." She got up to leave the room, leave me, but I grabbed her hand to stop her. I hoped she would turn around to face me, but she didn't, so I stood up and stood behind her, and put my hand on her shoulder.

"Please, Leah. Don't do this. Talk to me. I can't help if I -"

"Of course you can't help!" she screamed as she turned to face me. I stepped back in shock. It was anger, not grief, that I had seen before.

"Leah –"

"How can you help me? How can anyone help me now? When I can hear his every – damn –thought! How god damn sorry he is! Trying to make me see that he's not the asshole I think he is! Just going on and on, making me listen to him! That arrogant little…" She stopped speaking.

"Leah …"

"But you know what's even worse than all of that? It's that bloody pity… I can feel it - it pours out of him – he thinks I'm some sort of – some broken little – he just -" She stopped again, breathing heavily, her feelings now beyond words. She looked away from me, her whole body shaking.

It was so heartbreaking. I took her in my arms and held her close, expecting her to cry, or push me away, but she did neither. She was fighting hard not to let any tears flow. I could feel her shaking. I wished I could do something more than just rub her back and hold her. But what could I say? What words could possibly make her feel better about all of this?

"It's alright Leah," I whispered into her ear. "He won't hurt you again like this, I promise. I'm here for you. I always will be. I won't let him hurt you." She wrapped her arms around me. I sat back down on the couch, still holding her. She sat with her legs curled up underneath her, and her head resting on my shoulder.

We sat there like that for a while. Eventually her head ended up more on my chest than my shoulder. I thought she must have fallen asleep, so I figured I should go and see my dad now, before she woke up. I lightly picked her up and carried her to her bed, laying her down gently. I gave her a kiss on the forehead and began pulling away from her. This time she was the one stopping me from leaving. She looked at me as she held my hand, preventing me from moving away.

"Oh, you're awake," I said, surprised, and I sat back down on the bed beside her.

"Of course I am," she mumbled drowsily. "Why are you leaving?"

I smiled at her. "I've got to go and see my dad. It's getting late and I have to catch him before he goes to sleep."

"Do you have to go?" she asked quietly.

"Yes. But I'll be quick. Go back to sleep."

"I wasn't sleeping," she sighed stubbornly.

"Fine," I whispered with a gentle laugh, touching her cheek with my hand. "Just … stay here, and stay safe, okay?"

She frowned. "I'm not a child, you know."

"Really?" I said with another light laugh. "You could have fooled me, shorty."

She pulled away from me and hit me on the shoulder, nearly pushing me off the bed. Pretty soon we were both laughing. "You're strong … for a girl. That almost hurt," I teased her.

"Is that so, huh?" she said, making an effort to get up, giving me an evil smile. I could tell I might just regret taunting her, but she was laughing again, so I couldn't stop.

"Yup. I bet you couldn't hurt me even if you tried to."

She scowled at me, getting ready.

"But you wouldn't try to hurt me, right Lee? I'm too adorable to hit," I said, smiling sweetly at her. She rolled her eyes and got ready to punch me. I got ready to dodge her.

In that short moment of childish fun, we almost forgot about everything else. It was brilliant. And then we heard Seth; he was in the hall making a racket.

"Seth saved you," Leah grinned sleepily.

"Are you kidding? You're the one who was saved. You probably would have broken your hand trying to punch me!"

She glared at me and I jumped off the bed before she could hit me, laughing.

I walked into the hall, still laughing a little, and grinned at Seth. "What are you doing home, kid? I thought you were on patrols?"

"Sam's pulled in patrols. He doesn't need a fourth anymore, so I came home." Seth paused. "I thought you were going to see your dad?"

"Yeah. I was just leaving." I looked back at Leah in her room and smiled at her. "I'll be back before you know it!"

I ran out of the house, at full speed – the fastest I could go in human form. It already felt wrong to be away from Leah like this. To be running away from her. I hoped that feeling would go away; I had a job to do. I had responsibilities. Sam didn't think about Emily all the time when we were on patrols, or hunting, or anything else. And Jared didn't think about that girl … what was her name again? Whatever… It must go away with time.

I didn't realize how fast I was going, but in what seemed like no time at all, I was standing just outside my house.

"Uh, Dad?" I called into the house, walking in uncertainly. It was my own home, yet it felt so strange being here, as if I had been away from it for months, or even years, instead of just a few days. So much had happened since the last time I had stood in this tiny little hall.

Billy wheeled his way in from the kitchen.

"Finally decided to come home and see your old man?" he laughed.

"Yeah, I guess," I said with a slight smile. I took a seat on the couch near him, and we sat there in silence. I wasn't sure what to say, really.

"How are you?" he finally asked me.

"I'm fine. Better than fine, really. I'm … well I'm almost happy, now."

He smiled at me. "That's a lot better than before." Another silence. Again, he was the one to break it. "Leah Clearwater is a – a fine young woman. Even if she is a –" He sighed and stopped, frowning. I knew what he meant.

"I never knew it was possible for a woman," I said. I looked at Billy eagerly, hoping he would have more insight into this than I did.

"Neither did I," he shrugged. "There has never been a female werewolf before. But then, there has never been a pack of this size before, either. There have never been more than three wolves at a time, Jacob. I suppose anything is possible. But I'll tell you, Jake, we are all just as surprised as you are."

Well, that sure as hell didn't help at all.

"Damn. Well, it doesn't matter. I came here to tell you something."

"What is it? Did something happen?"

"Bella's back now."

Billy's face went pale. He took a second to compose himself again and said, "I see. And are the rest of them back as well?"

"We don't know yet. Probably. Charlie called Leah's place to cancel some dinner or something, and he just said that Bella's back. We'll get more information later. Has Charlie called you or anything?"

"No. But perhaps I shall have to call him and find out more."

"Yeah. We need to know if the whole coven is back or not. Or if any of them are back at all."

I looked at Billy and I could tell that he wanted to say something else, but he restrained himself.

"What?" I sighed resignedly. I had a feeling I knew what was coming, and I knew wouldn't want to hear it.

"So … Now that Bella is back," he began awkwardly. I cut him off.

"Don't worry, dad. I'm fine. I won't - I have enough to deal with right now… Bella's made it very clear who her friends are. It doesn't matter anymore anyway."

Billy nodded in approval, though he didn't really seem to believe me. "So you will not be going to Forks to see her?" he added, sounding skeptical.

I hesitated. I wasn't sure. "Well, no. At least, not now. But if she comes here to see me I won't send her away… I think." She probably wouldn't come here anyway – she had her leeches back to talk to now; she didn't need me. It kind of bugged me to know that she wouldn't want to see me, but it didn't matter that much. It was probably better if I didn't have her headache right now on top of everything else.

Billy nodded. "Alright."

"Alright. I've got to go now, Dad."

"You're not going to stay here?"

"Well, um, no. It's just that… um… " I didn't really have an excuse. I just wanted to see her again. It made me anxious not to be around her.

"I understand," Billy smiled at me. "Go to her."

I grinned back and got up to leave.

"It's good to see you smiling again, Jacob."

"It's good to have something to smile about."

A/N: Well, how was that? I tried to get some comedy going on in there, some playfulness and joking around. More like the wolves we know and love! If there was a third genre to this fic it would totally be comedy! And Leah will also start acting more and more like herself, gradually… at least I think she will! So hopefully it will all get more interesting. This chapter was kind of confusing. I wasn't sure how Leah or Jacob would react, but I think I did it alright. Let me know.

Review! Now! Do it. The longer the better, the more the merrier! If you don't review I honestly won't update. Seriously. I won't. Ok, I'll still update, but it will take longer… So just R-E-V-I-E-W!

Much love,

PSF