A/N: Sorry it took so long for this chapter to come out. I've spent the last couple of weeks in hospice with my grandmother, and her funeral was on Wednesday. She was less of a grandmother and more of a second mom, if that makes any sense, so her death has hit me very hard. I tried the entire time I was there to write and take my mind off things, and the resulting chapter is a little haphazard at best. Once again, sorry if this isn't my best writing, but I figured it wasn't so bad that I couldn't make it work. Thanks to all of you who've stuck with this story and my faulty updating schedule, and thank you all for your kind reviews and favorites. Just keep sticking with me; slowly, but surely, this fic will be completed. Again, thank you guys so very much! ~skydancer-earthwalker

Dakota spent the rest of the day at the Clearwater home, waiting for Leah to return so she could throw herself at the girl's feet and beg for forgiveness. Paul had explained Leah's predicament—what with being the first female shapeshifter, causing Harry's heart attack, and having to share a mind with Sam whenever they were both in wolf form—and the younger girl felt like drowning herself in the toilet for all of the awful things she'd said to her.

Before Paul left, Dakota made sure to give him the tightest hug she could manage as she blubbered out apologies for all the unwarranted names she'd called him. He had just buried his face in her hair and told her to stop, and that he had forgiven her before she'd finished screaming them. She still felt miserable about it, but decided to let it go.

Hugging him in the first place was breaking her no-contact rule, and although it hadn't bothered her at the time, once he'd left she began to worry about whether or not she'd given him the wrong idea. The entire day had been a clusterfuck, and there was just one more thing to pile on her head to torture herself with.

Sue had given the girl her space, bringing her warm drinks every once in a while, but otherwise not bothering her. It was strange being alone in Leah's room for such an extended period of time, but after a couple of hours, she'd decided to put her anxious energy to good use and began cleaning.

As she sniffed through laundry on the floor to determine what needed to be washed, Seth had poked his head in to tell her he was headed out on patrol to relieve Leah, and that the older girl should be returning home soon. That put Dakota into overdrive. The shelves and blinds were dusted, the blades of the ceiling fan wiped down, the bed remade with freshly washed sheets, and the hardwood floor got mopped twice.

By the time she'd finished, however, Leah still hadn't come home. After checking the time on her phone, Dakota saw that Seth had been gone for at least two hours, which she assumed was plenty of time for Leah to run home on four legs.

She asked Sue what she thought could be causing her daughter to take so long, but the woman had just shrugged. Immediately, the girl's mind shot to the million and one ways Leah could be hurt, but figured that someone would've told them by now if anything had gone wrong. Then, she considered a much more plausible option: her best friend was upset with her, and wasn't ready to see her yet.

That thought had of course started a bit of an episode, but Dakota quickly nipped it in the bud with two of her little pre-attack pills from her bag. Once they'd kicked in, she began to plot her course of action. Her first idea was to call around—Seth, Paul, and even Emily—but she figured that if the girl knew she was looking for her, she'd make it even more difficult to be found. The second idea was a little more stressful, but would probably wield much more successful results.

"Sue, did Leah happen to leave her keys here?" Dakota asked the woman, washing out the first of several mugs that she'd brought her throughout the day.

"If she did, they're on the rack by the door. Are you planning on heading out?" It wasn't exactly a normal occurrence for the younger girl to take her best friend's car, but it wasn't a big deal, either.

"I figured if I called Leah to get her to come home, she'd just ignore me. There's only so many places she could be hiding out, so I figured I'd drive around until I found her and then apologize 'til I puke."

Sue gave her a small smile, lightly bumping her away from the sink with her hip. "Then you go on ahead, Kota. I'll handle this."

"Sue, I can wash them, really. It's not a problem."

"That girl's room is spotless for the first time in years thanks to you. I think I can wash a few cups, honey. Now, go on."

After giving her a tight hug, Dakota found Leah's keys right where Sue had said they would be, and made her way out to the little car. It looked exactly the same as the last time she'd been in it, and she briefly wondered if the only reason Leah used it was to keep the wolf-thing under wraps. It seemed much more economical to run around everywhere, honestly.

As she pulled out onto the road, the sun was beginning to set. She hoped that she'd be able to manage navigating in the dark, considering only a handful of roads in La Push had streetlights, but drove on anyway. There was only one plausible place for Leah to be, at least if she wasn't still furry, and Dakota sucked up her pride as she tried her best to remember the directions. For the first time, she was headed to Emily Young's home of her own volition.

0o0

Paul hardly heard the conversation going on around him, but he knew he wasn't missing out on anything extremely important. Embry and Quil were taking turns throwing little bits of paper towel at Emily's hair to see who could land the most in it before she noticed, and Jared was keeping a tally and commentating under his breath.

"And Call lands a fantastic shot," Jared whispered, holding his fork like a microphone. "Making his third above-ear point in under thirty seconds!"

Paul wanted to get involved, to play along with his brothers and take his mind off things, but the events from earlier that day were still making his head spin. First, his imprint had damned him and his entire species to hell, then she'd compared him to a pet dog, and finally, hugged him before he left. Although he didn't know exactly what had landed her in the mental health facility where she'd met that damned bloodsucker, he wondered if it had anything at all to do with her fluctuating moods.

People don't get hospitalized for being moody, you dumbass, he chastised himself, trying not to slam his face down on the table in frustration. He wanted nothing more than to just ask Dakota herself, but knew it wouldn't bode well for her friendship with Leah. It was obvious that the Clearwater girl had been debating whether or not to tell them anything, which was what had annoyed him in the first place, but eventually she'd caved.

The bloodsucker's name was Nate, which they'd already known, and had apparently been admitted to the same place Dakota was a few years prior. What transpired there was anyone's guess, but whatever had happened must have left a lasting impression on the bastard, because he was stopping at no lengths to get to her.

Paul didn't have much opportunity to let his mind wander through the possible reasons this Nate character was so set on his imprint, though, for Leah plopped down beside him with no regards to personal space and laid her head heavily on his shoulder. He looked down at her in confusion, but she just rolled her eyes dramatically.

"No, Lahote, I'm not hitting on you," she grumbled, still not moving. "I need you to convince me to go home and talk to Kota."

"Wait, you haven't been home yet?"

"Nope. I can't do it. I can't face her."

Her sudden affection began to make sense. No one else had really felt the wrath of Dakota's outburst aside from Sam, and going to him for advice wasn't really in the girl's cards—she needed advice, and had actually sucked up her pride and come to him.

"You want my honest opinion?" Paul tore off a small piece of paper towel and threw it in Jared's drink when he wasn't looking.

"No, I want a boldfaced lie that everything is going to be fine as long as I just talk to her."

"That's not exactly a lie, Leah. She was super pissed; now, she just feels like a dick for saying those things to you. The entire time I was there with her, all she could talk about was how worried she was that you wouldn't forgive her."

She lifted her head and knitted her eyebrows together at him, reminding him of the blonde girl in question. They really were similar when he took the time to think about it. "You're sure? You're not bullshitting me?"

"Why would I? Jesus, woman, you really are dense sometimes."

Just like he'd expected, she smacked him sharply on the back of the head. It didn't anger him, though. It just made him laugh. Paul was beginning to be able to see the affect the imprint was having on him, even when it came to things that didn't involve Dakota.

Emily had gushed on and on from day one how much better his mood was becoming, but it took a while for him to actually believe her. As he sat next to his least favorite Clearwater, he began to see her in a new light—even if he wasn't her biggest fan, as long as she made Kota happy, she made him happy, too.

Suddenly, the sound of gravel crunching under tires met their ears, and everyone stood up nervously. All of the cars were accounted for, and no one was expected to come by that night. It just wasn't normal. Emily made her way to the window and peeked out, but surprisingly her face was bright when she turned back around.

"Dakota came to visit!" She exclaimed, clasping her hands together happily. "How come none of you told me?"

"We didn't know," Leah said, making her way towards the door. "Should I leave?"

The last part was directed at Paul, who shook his head fiercely. "My guess is that she's here for you."

"How'd she know where I was?"

"It's not too hard to guess, dipshit," he retorted, returning to his seat. "Go ahead out there and talk to her."

"What if she's still mad?"

Paul sighed in frustration. "Just go out there, Leah."

With a final worried glance over her shoulder, she did. When the door shut behind her, everyone went back to their original pastimes: Emily was flitting around the kitchen trying to whip something up for dinner, and the other guys continued to toss paper towel bits. She honestly looked like she'd been out in a snow flurry at that point, and he wondered how she hadn't noticed.

When Dakota's voice made its way to his keen ears, Paul forced himself to join in with the guys to keep his mind off of their conversation. Although he wanted to know what was being said, he knew Leah would rip him a new one if he eavesdropped.

As he joked with his brothers, he found himself in a genuinely good mood. Of course the day could've had a much better start, but knowing his imprint was nearby was like an instant upper. The fact that he didn't have to hide being a wolf anymore was also a huge boost, and by the time Emily actually realized what they'd all been up to, he was laughing alongside the rest of the guys as she threatened them with a wooden spoon.

"How long have they been out there?" Jared asked after Emily had returned to start making plates, gesturing over his shoulder to the front door.

Paul glanced at the clock above the microwave. "About half an hour, give or take. Why?"

"And you're not already out there biting at the bit to see her? What happened to Stalker Paul?"

He shoved his best friend lightly, trying not to flush at the embarrassing nickname. "Oh, shut the fuck up. Like you were any better with Kim."

"I got lucky," Jared said seriously. "She liked it when I stalked her. You've got Princess Firecracker out there, though, and I'm sure she wouldn't enjoy hearing about your little rendezvous."

"You wouldn't dare."

"Watch me!"

And with that, he leapt from his seat at the table and charged for the front door, Paul hot on his heels. When they made it out on the porch, however, they froze. Neither Dakota nor Leah was anywhere to be seen.

The car still sat in the driveway, and the younger girl's bag was sitting on the bottom step, but no one was around. Paul looked around nervously, as did Jared, but there still was no sign of them. His best friend quickly poked his head back inside to alert the other two, who hurried outside as well.

"Do you think they might've gone for a walk?" Embry offered, squinting as he stared at the tree line.

"Dakota's not exactly in peak physical condition, so I doubt it." Paul was trying so hard not to worry, but it was beginning to overpower his thoughts. So many things could be going wrong, and he had no idea.

"Let's just follow her scent, man," Quil interjected, being the voice of reason for the first time in his life. "It shouldn't be hard to find them."

Although it would've been easier in wolf form, Paul didn't want to scare Dakota when they found her, so he asked everyone to stay on two legs. They were obviously annoyed with him, but honored his request anyway. It was a well-known fact that his relationship with his imprint was practically always on faulty ground, and they didn't want to face his wrath if they happened to make it fall through again.

A little ways into the woods, Paul caught a harsh wiff of cigarette smoke, and turned to walk towards it. The others followed quietly, for once not joking around and making a giant scene. When he found the source of it, however, his worry morphed into panic. A freshly-lit cigarette lay precariously balanced on a low hanging branch, taunting him.

"Phase," he commanded. "Now."

As the others began to quickly strip out of their clothes, the sound of a twig breaking behind them caught their attention. They were upwind of whatever it was, however, and couldn't smell a damned thing. A pile of leaves crunched loudly, followed by several more twigs, and then everything was silent again.

Paul and Jared had made it all the way down to their boxers, and the other two had stopped at their shorts—something was wrong. There was a very long pause before anyone spoke, and when a voice was heard, it was like music to Paul's ears.

"Keep your clothes on, you exhibitionists!" Dakota shouted from somewhere in the trees, making everyone quickly yank their appropriate attire back on.

"Where the hell are you?" Paul called back, looking and still seeing nothing.

Suddenly, Leah bounded through the underbrush—in all of her furry glory—with his imprint seated squarely between her shoulder blades. "Here we are!" She grinned wildly, both hands knotted securely in Leah's neck fur.

"What are you doing?" Jared exclaimed, yanking his shirt over his head. "There's no way Sam is okay with that."

"Well, I didn't particularly care to ask him," she fired back, making Quil and Embry snort out muffled laughs. "What're you guys doing?"

"Looking for you," Paul chuckled, his panic fading. She was with Leah, she was safe. "I assume everything is okay now?"

Leah nodded as best as she could without slinging Dakota halfway across the forest, and the blonde girl just pulled a face. "No, we hate each other's guts and I was actually in the middle of planning her murder."

Without giving any of them time to say something smartass in return, Leah twisted and bounded off towards the house, Dakota leaning low to avoid getting whacked by branches. It was an interesting sight to see, and Paul couldn't stop the goofy smile that spread across his face. Yeah, her initial reaction had sucked, but did any of the other guys have the bragging rights of saying their imprint wasn't scared to mount a giant wolf? Hell no, and he was prouder than a father sending his kid off to college about it.

"Shit," Jared muttered as they made their way back to the house. "That gives a whole new meaning to calling the imprints 'wolf girls', don't you think?"

Paul was still beaming. "That's my wolf girl, thank you very much."

0o0

The rest of the weekend passed without incident. Her mom had called to tell her she "wasn't allowed" to work until Monday, and Dakota had to feign annoyance about it. In all reality, she was having the time of her life. There was something infinitely cool about being in the loop about something so peculiar, and she actually managed to convince Leah to let her take some shots of her wolf form after she'd promised never to show them to anyone outside of the pack.

Sue seemed to flutter around the house with a much lighter conscience after the big news break, too, happily shouting to Seth to be safe on patrol as he left that Sunday morning. Leah was allowed to spend the day with her, and just like Paul had promised, he stopped by to see her for a bit as well.

Things had never felt so bright for Dakota, and she didn't know how to explain it. Just earlier that week, she was certain Leah was beginning to hate her and Paul had just been trying to play her. Now, as she sat in Leah's passenger seat on the way back to her own home, she knew that couldn't be farther from the truth.

She had the most wonderful best friend on the planet, and was beginning to dote on Paul almost as fiercely. Being around the other members of the pack was actually fun, too, for none of them treated her like an outsider. For some reason unbeknownst to her, a full two years after her best friend exploded into one of them, she was accepted into their little group as if she'd been there all along.

Even Sam had actually pulled her aside and apologized for having Leah leave her in the dark for so long, which had been uncomfortable to say the least. After internally debating on it the entire time he was speaking, she apologized to him as well. Dakota explained that although she'd meant every single thing she'd screamed at him, she did regret telling him like she did. It was the best she could offer. After a strong handshake that he made into an awkward half-hug, they had come to the mutual agreement that they could continue to dislike each other, but do so respectfully. It was strange, but it worked.

When Leah arrived in front of her house, Dakota gave her a quick hug and headed on towards the front porch, knowing full well her best friend needed to bolt home if she had any chance of being on time for patrol. She said the word aloud to herself quietly as she made her way to her door, realizing just how much it explained about the past two years of friendship with Leah Clearwater.

All of the missed calls, unexplained and missed visits, and strange working hours were all tied up in the nice little package of "patrol". Being in on their secret was liberating, and took a weight off of Dakota's shoulders that she hadn't quite realized was there.

After giving her mom a quick hug and heading upstairs to get settled in, Dakota couldn't help but smile. In a way, nothing had changed; at the same time, however, nothing was the same. The only issue that was really gnawing at her was the question that had been bouncing around her brain since she'd found out: if she had been banned from knowing the secret before, what had changed? Why, after all of that time of leaving her in the dark, was it deemed safe to bring her in on it now?

With newfound purpose, Dakota grabbed an old notebook and a pen before getting comfortable in bed with her laptop. Once she'd reached the search engine, she pondered over what terms would help the most before deciding on two little words: Quileute legends. There had to be something else to the story, and she was biting at the bit to find out what it could be.