AN: I'm really sorry for the posting confusion on this one. Let's just say that I had some editing issues that were entirely my fault, and I sincerely apologize.

Thanks go out as usual to all my wonderful reviewers and favorite-ers. Extra thank go to my new Beta leelator, who completely went above and beyond fot this chapter, and if for some reason you haven't read her awesomely hilarious fic How To Seduce A Werewolf, then what in the world are you doing waiting your time with mine? Go check hers out!

The song mentioned in this chapter is actually a pretty cheerful tune by Panic! At the Disco, and it just happens to have some lines that are eerily apt for an imprint story.

Also, when you finish reading, review and let me know if you saw it coming.

When the Day Met the Night

The very first thing Jacob's eyes saw as he padded into the living room, barefoot, hair still curling damply against his neck from the shower, was his father's back, sitting ram-rod stiff in his wheel-chair, shoulders clutched in tension. Puzzled, Jacob cleared his throat, and when Billy flinched and carefully turned his chair to face his son, Jacob was struck by the deep lines of worry that seemed, overnight, to have etched themselves into his father's face. Exhaustion and relief welled up in the older man's eyes. Jacob was even more stunned when his normally taciturn father reached up a hand to brush the sudden moisture from them.

The heady euphoria that he'd been floating in- an instant and uncontrollable response to seeing Bella again- snapped in one moment, the pieces of it floating away from him like ice breaking up on a river. Now he felt cold, and a little sick. Appalled, he dropped to his knees in front of his father, taking Billy's weathered hands in his own.

"Dad," he pleaded. "Dad, what's wrong? Are you okay?"

Billy took a deep breath; his eyes flickeredover his son's face with a deepening look of relief. To Jacob's surprise, Billy prised his fingers away, and cupped the younger man's jaw in a surprisingly strong grip. Relief gave way to probing investigation, and investigation somehow turned into pained comprehension. Hairs on the back of his neck rising, Jacob opened his mouth, but was stopped just as he was drawing in breath to speak by a sound coming from the other room. Over the clatter of utensils on metal, and the rustle of what was probably Charlie reading a newspaper, a voice started singing in a low hum. It was so quiet that Billy probably wouldn't even have been able to pick up on it, but Jacob could catch every word.

"When the Moon fell in love with the Sun ... "

It was Bella. Of course it was. Jacob caught the subtle smell of strawberries hiding in the scent of the lunch she was cooking. As he breathed, he was taken aback by a surge of that same euphoria that had carried him like some kind of smiling zombie through his shower. He shut his eyes briefly to try and fight it off. He felt his pupils, against all control of his own, roll in her direction underneath his eyelids. It was a strange and unsettling feeling, and the cold trickling down his spine seemed to settle into a lump in his stomach.

" ... he looked like he was barely hanging on. But her eyes saved his life ... "

He swallowed the feeling and snapped his gaze back to Billy, just in time to be met with his normal, if a little guarded, grin.

"It's good to have you back, son," he said, sharply patting Jacob on the cheek. "The next time you decide to sleep for three days, I'm tossing you out and turning your room into a closet."

Jacob's spine and shoulder's slowly relaxed, his mind cleared, and the tiny hairs on his arms and neck settled back into place. He snorted, "You mean it isn't one already?"

" ... So he said: 'Would it be alright if we just sat and talked for a little while? If in exchange for your time, I give you this smile?' ... "

Billy watched apprehensively as his son's grin frayed a little at the edges.

" ... So she said: 'That's okay, as long as you can make a promise not to break my little heart, and leave me all alone, in the summer.' ... "

"I'm sorry I scared you, Dad."

Billy smiled, and Jacob wondered why the expression seemed a little sad. "It's okay, Jake. I know you couldn't help it."

" ... he was just hanging around, then he fell in love... "

"You should know that I'm proud of you- we're all proud of you-"

" ... and he didn't know how, but he couldn't get out... "

Billy swallowed. "And, son, there's something else you should know as well-"

" ... he was just hanging around; then he fell in love... "

"Jacob!"

Father and son jumped apart. From the kitchen came a startled bang!, and the sound of what was probably an elbow making unexpected contact with the metal handle of a frying pan, followed by a furious "Ow, ow, ow!" Billy and Jacob winced. Maneuvering his chair around the battered coffee table, Billy followed the sound into the kitchen, Jacob right behind him. The two of them found a Bella, disgruntled and now liberally smeared with sauce, being helped off the floor by an apologetic Harry Clearwater. Meanwhile Charlie sat at the table holding a newspaper close to his face to hide his twitching shoulder and moustache.

Bella scowled, and pointed one tiny, accusatory finger at her "sibling."

"Not. One. Word."

Fighting back laughter, Jacob crossed his heart and smiled benevolently at her. She cast him a glare of deepest suspicion, then straightened her clothes, discreetly dusted her bottom, and started mopping up spaghetti sauce off the floor with a wad of paper towels as if it had done her some serious personal offense. Jacob was about to help when a beefy hand landed a blow to his shoulder. He turned to see the smiling face of Charlie Swan.

"Good to see you back on your feet, kid." The older man shook Jacob's hand, smiling broadly. "You gave us all one hell of a scare. I thought for a while that I was going to have to come down here with the lights flashing and kidnap you just to get you to a damn doctor. But I guess Billy was right, and you pulled through on your own after all."

"I was just bringing Bells down to help out, thinking you could use some company on your sick bed. Then a few hours later, she strolls back out of your room and says you're fine. Good for you, son!" He slid his long time best friend a sly glance. "Although, if it had been my kid, I wouldn't have banked on things working out so easy."

"Oh, lighten up, Charlie!" Harry boomed. "We all knew he was going to pull through it fine." Behind Charlie's back, Jacob gave his elder a skeptical glare, and was met with a slow wink in return.

Billy chuckled. "It was all under control, Charlie. After all, the kid's got the Black family constitution!" He thumped his own chest soundly. "It takes more than some mangy virus to take out a Black!"

"Says the man in the wheelchair," Charlie huffed, but without any malice. Billy just shrugged, and turned towards his son.

"Anyway, Jacob, I have some things I need to get in town. Charlie was going to take me, and leave Bella here to look after you, if you hadn't woken up yet. Now, I know you just got up, but if you want to get out of the house for a while... ."

Jacob raked his hand through his still damp hair. "Do you need me to help you with anything, dad? I feel just fine now. I don't mind going out, but I don't mind staying and keeping Bells out of trouble either."

An indignant humph! came from the other side of the kitchen, which Jacob steadfastly ignored.

"Actually, Jake, I was hoping to have a word with you, if you don't mind. It won't take long- just some tribe business. If Chief Swan is still okay with taking your dad around, do you think you could spare me a minute?"

Charlie's eyebrows climbed his forehead in inquiry, but said only, "It's fine with me, as long as somebody stays with Bells. I don't want her left alone."

Jacob was curious, too. He had no idea what Harry could have to say to him so soon after waking up from a three-day coma, but "tribe business" was surely a not-so-subtle clue. He grinned and shrugged amicably at the three men in front of him, but, as his eyes landed again on Chief Swan an unexpected train of thought made him pause. Although he usually viewed Bella's dad with a good deal of respect, Charlie's last sentence really didn't sit well.

This from the man who let his only daughter sneak off everyday for three years to get lost in the woods and play with a giant, killer wolf, and hasn't noticed. And he was perfectly okay with leaving her in a house alone with me when I wasn't even capable of talking to her, much less taking care of her. Does he only play the parent once a week or something?

Then he remembered the affection in the older man's handshake, and felt ashamed. He shook his head to clear it of traitorous thoughts.

The two parents were eventually ushered from the small red house with "Take care, kids!" from one and "Don't break anything, Bella!" from the other. The girl huffed and crossed her arms over her flat chest. Jacob chuckled, and she caught his gaze. She stared at him for a minute, and then, slowly and deliberately, crossed her eyes. Jake laughed harder.

"Be careful, Bells, or you'll get stuck like that."

She sniffed. "No I won't, Big Brother. Liar, liar, pants on fire." She childishly stuck her tongue out at him.

He snickered, and rolled his eyes. "I know you are, but what am I?" he taunted in a voice like pig stuck in a pipe.

She stuffed a fist in her mouth to hold back the giggles. "Jerk."

"Dummy."

"Meany."

"Butthead."

"I'm rubber and you're glue. Whatever you say bounces off me and sticks onto you!"

Jacob was about to retort when a throat discreetly cleared behind them. They turned simultaneously. Face lighting with a blush for the second time that day, Jacob reflected that it should have been illegal for someone as jovial as Harry Clearwater to wear such an evil smirk. The elder raised one bushy eyebrow, and at that moment, Bella brushed against Jake's hand as she hid her mortified blush behind his broad back. His skin jumped at the contact.

Jacob became aware that he still had a stupid grin fixed firmly on his face, in spite of his embarrassment, and felt the lump of coldness in his stomach reappear and solidify a little more. Harry coughed pointedly as Jacob tried to wipe that stupid smile off his uncooperative face. "I know you're getting ready to eat lunch, so I'll try to keep this quick... ."

"Oh!" Bella gave a little start, and it suddenly disturbed him how distinctly he could feel it. "Lunch! I almost forgot!" She scurried off, and Harry, (evil smirk gone, thank heaven), gestured Jacob into the adjoining living room.

A minute later, Jacob's hand was taken prisoner by an older man for the third time that day. Harry was shaking it vigorously, and to his total bafflement, Jacob saw him go a little glassy eyed.

"I know I probably should've waited- given you a little more time with the girl, to recover- but I know what it must have cost you to do what you did, given the state that you were in, and I just had to thank you as soon as I could... ."

"Um, sir," Jacob interrupted, trying to find a way of getting his hand back without injuring the older man. "You know I have no idea what you're talking about, right?" He paused, shaking circulation back into the hand he'd regained, and said. "Wait, what was that about the girl? What girl? What does that have to do with me getting better?"

Harry hesitated, and Jacob's sensitive ears heard his heart rate pick up, even as his face dropped. "Jacob," he began in a much calmer voice. "We haven't been able to collect many details, but we know you fought, and hopefully, killed a Cold One on the University of Washington campus three days ago, correct?"

"Yes." Jacob answered, still puzzled. His brow furrowed as he fought to get all the details he hadn't had time to process into some kind of logical order. Mindful of the innocent girl in the other room, Jacob lowered his voice and his eyes became unfocused as he recalled that night.

"I ripped its hand off and used that to lure it to the stadium. When I got it there, I tore it to pieces, and burned it in a furnace. Then I backtracked to check... ."

Suddenly, he gasped, springing rigidly off the couch. "Oh God! The girl! I went back, but she was gone, and there were a bunch of emergency workers there, and I couldn't even think anymore, I couldn't follow." He sank back into the couch, body going lax, head dropping onto his open palms. "God, I hope she's alright."

"She's alive," Harry sighed. Jacob's head perked back up. "And she'll be able to stay that way. There'll be some scarring, but at least she gets to go back to her family whole." Jacob shook his head, the feeling of self-disgust that had nearly overwhelmed him that night coming back for an encore. "We can't thank you enough, Jacob." Harry's voice was thick with emotion, and Jacob was mystified.

"What are you talking about?"

Harry assessed him shrewdly. "You don't know who it was that you saved, do you?"

Jacob's mouth went totally dry. He had to swallow several times before he could make anything come out. "No. I wasn't... I couldn't... I could barely... Jesus," his terror was rising. "Harry, tell me I didn't let Leah-"

'No, Jacob, it wasn't Leah." Harry said gently. He gripped the younger man's arm and squeezed. "You saved her," he said firmly. "We would have lost her completely. She would've been killed, or worse, she could've become... become like them... ." He visibly shuddered. "Don't think you let anyone down, Jacob. You were practically at death's door yourself, and you saved our girl from a fate worse than death. A few scars is a small price to pay, even if she doesn't understand that herself, yet. As I said, my family can never, ever thank you enough."

"But ... " Jacob stuttered, eyes wide. In his mind was a picture of the girl, her skin split and bleeding and her expression grotesquely contorted in pain, shifting back and forth between her face and that of his precious little Bella's, like some kind of flip-book for the deranged. "If it wasn't Leah, then who... ?"

"You met her once, a long time ago. I guess you don't remember." Harry sighed. "She's my niece, Jacob. Her name is Emily Young."

Lightning flashed in the hot summer sky, but Bella hurried on through the brush anyway, refusing to be daunted by the rain. The moist air coated her lungs as she drew breath in hard little pants. It wasn't raining yet, but it was surely going to, and when it came, it was would hit the earth hard. The pre-storm tension in the air wound her nerves even tighter, until she was sure they could've been plucked like guitar strings. Her heart was clenching in excitement and fear, but the adrenaline pumping through her veins buoyed her. That, coupled with the encouragement she'd gotten from her Big Brother earlier that day, kept her going.

Jake told her not to give up, to try again, and have a little faith. His face was sad and serious after Harry left. Bella wanted to ask what they talked about, but thought the better of it. Instead they ate pasta with her second batch of sauce, and washed the dishes together. They decided to watch a film to pass the time instead of working in the garage, so he could take it easy on his first day out of bed. Not ten minutes into the movie, her Big Brother had pulled her into his lap, and squeezed her tight, and she hadn't objected.

She had missed him more than she'd thought possible. His all-encompassing heat and familiar scent were enough to make her feel that the world was finally back on track, and she basked in it. Halfway through the flick, (which was some teenaged audience piece of drivel that she was sure he wasn't watching), he kissed her hair, gave a heavy sigh, and asked her to try again to find Wolf. He promised that everyone missed and loved her, and that her fears were silly. He told her that Wolf would have to be crazy not to want to see her again. And then he teased, saying that he hoped she had better taste in friends than to choose a crazy person to hang out with. She laughed, but confessed to still being a little scared of him not being there. He sighed once more and kissed her again, on the forehead this time.

Bella like it when he did that. His mouth was so hot that she could feel the impression of his kiss for minutes before the heat faded, and it made her feel loved like no one else could manage but her Wolf.

He had to be there. He just had to be.

The closer she got to "their" clearing, the harder it was to breathe. By the time she was just about there, she was nearly hyperventilating, and had to spend several minutes bent at the waist and slowly counting to a hundred until she calmed down. Gulping a measured lungful of air, Bella straightened up, let it out slowly, and then touched the place on her forehead where her Big Brother has kissed her earlier. She could do this.

With a visibly trembling hand, she pushed back the same branch she had pushed back nearly every day up until she'd left, and stepped through.

And nearly cried.

He was there.

His fur gleamed in the early moonlight and curled every which way in the raking, whip lashing winds. His ears were perked, his tail was twitching across the ground anxiously, and his eyes were trained on the exact spot where she had just emerged.

He'd been waiting for her.

Bella stumbled forward, emotion and the stinging winds both bringing tears to her eyes. One hand extended to him in a gesture of longing.

He whined. Breaking, Bella ran to him with a sob, throwing her arms around his neck, burying her face in his musky-smelling fur, laughing even as she cried. The wolf's head, at least three times the size of her own, twisted around, and he nuzzled at her comfortingly, an inquiring growl rumbling from his throat. She pulled back, sniffling and smearing away her own tears with the back of one thin wrist. Meeting his large brown eyes, she smiled hugely as the first drops of the storm started to fall, melting into her tear tracks.

"Hey, Wolf," she whispered. "I missed you."

He rumbled his agreement, pushing his head affectionately against her a little too hard, making her stumble. "Hey!" she hiccoughed, still working the tears out of her voice. "No fair, you big bully." Eyes soft with love, she ran her fingers slowly through his fur and reached up to scratch behind his ears until he blinked sleepily in pleasure. Then she wrapped her arms around his jaws in the special way she had, so she could kiss his forehead. The wolf sighed in sympathy and understanding, the heat of it searing her skin through her wet shirt. Pulling back, she smiled again, even though the rain was starting to fall harder, and her soaked hair was sticking to her forehead. She never stopped stroking his neck.

"My mom sent me home," she confessed. "I missed you so much it made me sick, you jerk. I even had to go to the doctor, and they tried to tell me you weren't real. Can you believe it?" The wolf scoffed, clearly offended.

"I know, right?" The great brown eyes softened, and he nuzzled at her neck and stomach questioningly. "No, I'm okay now. I felt better as soon as I got on the plane. I knew I'd get to see you soon, and my dad, and my Jake. I knew I'd be okay." He blinked understandingly, and she smiled, a little more gently this time. "I really, really, really missed you, Wolf."

The wolf licked her ear. It was sloppy, and she scrunched her face in protest as she wiped it off, but she appreciated the sentiment.

Th rain was coming down in buckets now, and thunder crashed as lightning marched across the sky. Bella probably wouldn't have been able to see him through the curtain of water if they hadn't been so close to each other. She squinted up against the stinging drops as he stood and looked at her enquiringly.

"Please... . I don't really want to go home yet," she admitted softly, with a shrug. He peered closely at her, and she hunched her shoulders defensively, even as she huddled into his side for shelter. "I wont get sick. I'll change my clothes when I get home, and everything," she said, crossing her heart with the same gesture her Big Brother had used earlier that day. "I promise."

He stared at her for a beat longer... , and then he laughed. The little girl grinned in response as he lay back down and nudged her firmly into his broad flanks, so he could curl up around her, tail brushing his face. The storm couldn't touch her there. She hummed happily, relishing the smell of him. She didn't stay there all night, but even in her bed later, changed into fresh, dry pajamas, and tucked between sheets that smelled like laundry detergent, she could still feel the heat from his fur. It always lingered, just like her Big Brother's kisses.

It was well past midnight when Jacob, thoroughly drenched and mopping water from his eyes, crossed the threshold of his house. After his Wolf had seen Bella home safely, he'd taken a long run, nominally checking the area for vampire activity, but really just taking the opportunity to be alone with his thoughts, which were getting more and more complicated by the minute.

Jacob was not a stupid man. There had been hints before, but his recent "illness"- starting right from the moment Bella left, and his miraculous recovery just a few hours after she walked back through his door- was about as subtle a clue as a hammer dropped on the head. This wasn't normal, and it certainly wasn't healthy. He'd been in too much pain up until today to be able to think his way through it clearly, but as soon as she'd left, he'd pretty much fallen apart. Nothing, not his responsibility as a protector, not his love for his family, not even his own will power, had been enough to overcome the fact that he needed her. Needed her more than air, more than water, more than his own blood and bones. And it scared the hell out of him.

Jacob had never, and could never, think of Bella in a sexual way without becoming violently nauseous. He was sure that what he felt for her was a completely platonic and innocent love, but it was one hundred percent overriding everything else. It was so bad that he'd actually gone through some kind of fucked up withdrawal when she'd left. How sick was that? And what was more, she'd supposedly gotten ill as well. So did that mean that she felt the same way about him? Was a thirteen-year-old even capable of feeling like that? Her reactions today and tonight seemed to indicate that she could, but she was still only thirteen-fucking-years-old. The elders, even his own father, were dropping hints about something big, and he was still totally in the dark. But, whatever this was, it was wrong on so many different levels that he didn't even know where to start.

But he needed her. He couldn't imagine not seeing her. And she needed him. Fucked up withdrawal symptoms aside, Bella needed at least one older person in her life who noticed when she disappaeared in the middle of a thunderstorm, and what was more, knew where she went. Not to mention, his sudden withdrawal from her life would completely break her heart. He knew that, as surely as he knew his name was Jacob Black.

He couldn't leave it like this. There were so many questions, and he had a feeling that behind the peeling paint of his front door there were answers. He just wasn't sure he could handle knowing what they were just now. The last couple of months had been hell, and all he wanted was to relax with his Bells and get his life back on track. Was that really so much to ask?

It should have been wrong, all of it. But it didn't feel that way. How could it be wrong if, when they were together, they were both so happy?

Jacob's spinning mind was right about one thing. When he finally arrived home, exhausted with all his thoughts chasing their own tails in his brain, his father was waiting up for him. This time, there was no subterfuge of woodcarving, no false look of innocence to excuse his being there.

Billy looked Jacob straight in the eye, and said, "Welcome home, son. I need to talk to you."

Jacob shivered, as the cold ball in his stomach grew larger. Then he straightened his shoulders.

"I know." He paused, eyes on the carpet as he thought things through. "Dad, that thing you're about to tell me ... What'll happen if you just ... don't?"

"Don't tell you?"

"Yes."

"Well, no one will die, if that's what you mean," Billy admitted grudgingly. "But I think not listening could be a mistake."

"I appreciate that you're trying to look out for me, Dad, I really do." He took a deep breath. "But, I can't take it, okay? Whatever it is, I honestly just can't handle it. If it wont get me, or anybody else, killed or seriously injured, can I please just ... not know?"

Billy's jaw clenched and unclenched several times, and his eyes never left his son's strained face, until, at last, they dropped to his lap.

"I'll talk to the other elders, son. But, you can't put this off forever. Sooner or later, this is something you're going to have to face."

"I know. I know. But, just ... for now ... this is all more than enough. Just give me a little more time. Please."

With a sigh, Billy nodded.

"Thanks, Dad." And Billy knew he meant it.

Jacob slipped into his tiny bedroom, shut the door, and leaned against it, closing his eyes. In his head, he took all of it in: the questions, the uncertainty, the cold ball in his stomach, his fear for his own normalcy, and his acknowledgement of his ridiculous, overwhelming need for Bella. He shoved them in a mental box labeled "Things Not To Think About Again Unless You Absolutely Have To ... Ever." and shut the lid. Doubt that what he was doing was the right thing assailed him briefly, but he grabbed that thought, shoved it in the box, too, and firmly turned the key in the lock. What would be would be. He may not have had any control over just about anything in his life ever since he was sixteen, but he could at least control this. Responsibility be damned. This time he would choose.

He was going to be happy.

With a blessedly clear head, Jacob went to sleep.