It had to happen eventually. They couldn't keep a secret from their Alpha forever (Levi could read their minds, after all).

Someone was going to blab. Maybe Brian, to get back at him for being such a jerk for so long (no, he never really thought Brian would do that even if Baxter deserved it). Maybe Dinah, to shut Levi up if he tried to tell Judy what to do once too often (no, she wouldn't betray Judy's trust for anything). Maybe Will, to rub it in Levi's face when he got angry (no, Will was very good at hurting people when he was angry, but there seemed to be a Levi-exception hardwired into him). Maybe one of the little kids just by accident (no, Art was a champ and the twins were off in their own world where they didn't care who was dating who).

Okay, so really Baxter just expected Judy to blurt it out one day when she got tired of keeping it a secret.

Or, even more likely, he just assumed Levi would catch them in a position they shouldn't be in and that would be that.

So he wasn't surprised that somehow Levi had found out.

He was just surprised he lived through it.

"You okay?" Brian asked again.

"I'm fine," he said, trying to resist the urge to return to the backyard. He couldn't believe he had just left her there, not when— "I said I'm fine, Brian."

"You're bleeding," his brother snapped back. "All over everything. So stop moving."

"He won't hurt her," Bert offered. "Judy will explain; he'll listen; everything will be fine."

"Hey, you managed to survive the fight," Brian offered him. The smile was weak (his back must look a mess—it felt a mess) but he returned Brian's smile despite the pain.

"Thanks for the help back there."

"Any time," his brother said. Brian looked around for a distraction and said to Will, "You're taking this strangely calmly."

"She isn't actually my little sister," Will pointed out. "Besides, your brother is clearly sexually frustrated."

Baxter growled (which possibly proved Will's point). Brian's hand tightened on his arm unnecessarily (okay, a little necessarily because the fight with Levi hadn't really ended so much as it had been interrupted and Baxter really needed to hit something just then). When he stopped shaking, Brian let him go.

"What's going on this time?" Timmy asked from the porch. The twins and Art had come out and Art was explaining, "They keep circling each other and I think I heard Levi whimper."

"Twenty bucks says Levi's going to know exactly how far the two of you got by the time he comes out here," Will said.

And Bert, the little traitor, said, "She'll stick to over the clothes stuff."

And then Brian, the traitorous bastard said, "She might not show him everything, but I think she'll try shocking him. She was kind of pissed he kept thinking she was a kid."

"Could you all just shut up?" he demanded. "She won't...she will, won't she?"

"We won't let him hurt you," Brian promised.

"What's she showing him?" Tommy asked.

Baxter just growled some more.

Fortunately, Levi finally came out of the house just then so at least Baxter was too busy worrying about suddenly getting killed to care about the rest of the insanity that was his life.


But for all the Levi was very good at murderous rage, Baxter had to admit he did have a point. They should have told him. The whole point of Levi being able to boss them around constantly was so they could fight together properly. They had screwed up by not telling him.

That didn't mean that Levi wasn't an overbearing jerk about the whole thing—he was very obviously an overbearing jerk about everything. Just...well, it wasn't hard to miss how hurt he was that Judy hadn't told him. Baxter felt like an ass.

Levi didn't like him. Levi had spent years mostly ignoring him and when he couldn't do that anymore he decided he didn't like Baxter. But...well, that might have been partly Baxter's fault. He hadn't exactly bothered to hide how much Levi got on his nerves.

Levi might have dragged them all to Canada and pushed them harder than anyone in their right mind would have, but he had also asked Baxter to be his beta so easily that Baxter couldn't help feeling...he'd never felt small in front of Levi before, even if the guy was six eight and almost three hundred pounds of muscle. But when Levi thought the pack needed something, Levi did it.

Just like that.

Brian was just happy for him because despite what Brian liked to say, his older brother was running for sainthood and always had to be the better person. And Brian was happy because having the pack work well together made them all happy. They were wolves now and that meant that if the pack was happy, you were happy (and if you were happy, the pack was happy).

And Levi had figured that out, somehow, a long time ago. All the stupid patrols Baxter had been forced on (forced on until he loved them) and the group runs and group hunts and stupid activities that took away time from his life that Baxter had always resented suddenly made sense. He should have gotten it before. But it was okay that he hadn't gotten it because Levi had figured it out and Levi had tried to make the rest of them see (even though the pack was defined by their fangs and fur, but also by the pure stubbornness that was in all of them, even Brian, though at least Brian had the sense not to rely on it all the time).

So maybe Levi didn't completely suck at the Alpha thing.

Baxter wasn't ready, he realized. Judy had helped turn him into a decent enough fighter, but that wouldn't be enough...but Levi had decided that's what was going to happen and Baxter knew better than to fight with Levi so...he'd just have to do better. Make up for being so utterly blind before.

And maybe he should give Levi a break.

When they curled up that night, Levi didn't attack him again even though Baxter headed towards Judy when she whimpered, totally oblivious to the fact her psychotic older brother was two feet away. When he did remember, as he lay down beside her, as she pressed against him, it was to find Levi glaring at him.

Levi snarled, but he stayed where he was.

Judy buried her head underneath his chin, her mind doing that happy humming he remembered so clearly from Seattle. He found himself cleaning off her fur, just like before. Today was fun, she said, exhausted. She probably couldn't have stood up at the moment without help, but any day that she spent with the people she cared about was a good day for her.

Yeah, he had to agree.

She touched his nose one last time and they settled down together and, surrounded by their pack, fell asleep.


When Baxter was a kid, his father and his friends would get together as often as they could. Pack gatherings, but Baxter didn't know it then. He just knew he had to stay out of the kitchen because his mom was busy and anything breakable had to be carefully locked in his parent's bedroom before anyone arrived.

Then they would come—men who were a little too big and a little too warm when they picked him up and hugged him hello, women with platters and platters of food that the kids always got first dibs on (to make sure they didn't starve) and all kids that they would run around with until the sun set.

Later, when the food made them sleepy, but the loud voices wouldn't let them sleep, someone would build a fire. Surrounded by the warmth of all his family and the fire, the smell of his mother's freshly baked muffins and the smoke that curled around the sky the way they were curled around each other, the sounds of laughter and shouting and more laughter, Baxter was happy in the simple, perfect what that only a child could be.

Even as he got older, even as fewer and fewer people came around (and managed to bring their children along less and less), even as Rachel and Kim cooked because his mother needed to sit down (for just a second), he still loved the smoke and the booming laughter.

When the fire began to die, Billy Black would start to tell the stories. Before Baxter was a werewolf he still believed in magic (though he never would have admitted it) because when Billy Black talked of Taha Aki and the spirit warriors he transformed. His voice carried over the finally silent crowd and pulled them back through time, back and back, all together.

Sometimes, when there was too much time between the parties his little brothers would get impatient and demand to hear the stories from their parents. Sometimes they had to wait until Seth Clearwater came for dinner, but sometimes his mother would agree. She'd go get her notes, just to make sure she didn't leave something out, and she'd begin to talk.

"Why don't you ever tell us your stories?" Francy had asked once. His mother had just shaken her head: "I didn't care for the stories until I met your father. Besides, they're just stories."

And then she'd tell them about spirits warriors riding on the wind.

His father never told stories. His father watched his wife as she spoke and tried not to look guilty. His father could pass for twenty-four if he hunched his shoulders just right, but when his mother started telling the stories...his father looked older than twenty-four, older than forty, old and tired and lost.

At the time, Baxter didn't understand why.

Baxter turned into a giant wolf. He didn't blame his father for that, exactly, but he learned the Quileute stories weren't just stories. He learned that if he has a son...

He knows, finally, why his father always looked so sad.


Two days later, when Baxter walked Judy to her dad's shop after school he found out Jacob Black was evil (he knew the man was big and scary and utterly terrifying, but he always thought Judy got the evil from her mother's side).

"Hey, kid," Jacob Black said. A little too nonchalantly, but Baxter didn't realize that until after. "You're not doing anything this Friday."

"Okay," Baxter said slowly.

"That was supposed to be a question. But since you're not," Jacob Black said easily, "Leah wants you to come over for dinner."

"Daaaddd..."

Judy hadn't gotten a chance to dart off so she could change before helping out, which Baxter was suddenly very thankful for.

"It'll make her happy," Jacob Black said.

"But..." Judy glanced over at him, more than slightly nervous. It wasn't like he wanted to sit at a table and have Jacob Black, Aunt Leah and Levi the Alpha wolf all glare at him for going anywhere near her, but he had accepted that it was the price of being with her, so. He shrugged. Judy squeezed his hand—a thank you—and then said to her father, "You should have told me first."

"He comes over for dinner all the time."

"You want him to bring Art and the twins?"

"It's just dinner," Jacob Black said. "What could possibly—"

"Stop! No jinxing!" Judy shouted quickly. "Do you want to ruin everything?"

Jacob Black looked a little nervous. "Right. Sorry."

"Nothing's going to happen," Baxter explained. "It's just dinner."

"Bax..."

Jacob Black looked smug. "When everything goes wrong, it's his fault."

"Sorry," Judy said, as she hugged him goodbye. "But Dad's right. It's so going to be your fault."


Baxter wanted to blame Levi (see the past couple months of his life for details), but maybe Judy was right. Maybe it was his fault for jinxing everything.

Leah thought it was his idea, so Judy kicked Levi to shut him up and Baxter just gritted his teeth and nodded when she said dinner was such a good idea. Jacob Black looked utterly unapologetic. Well, if it worked it would be a good idea and Baxter was trying to get used to the whole Alpha-togetherness-thing so he figured he had to go with it.

Unfortunately, Aunt Leah still didn't like the idea of him near her daughter at all, which turned his girlfriend into kind of a brat. The back and forth sniping turned into a full-blown war right around desert, which actually worked out quite nicely. Baxter just sat there eating really great food (Brian was becoming a pretty good cook, but he was still learning so food this good was a treat) while he and Levi and Jacob Black kept their heads down, desperately trying not to get drawn into the no-win situation.

"Here," Levi said as Baxter stood up to leave as quickly as was polite, "I'll walk you home."

Judy and Leah didn't even notice he was leaving, just continued arguing.

"Are you afraid someone's going to mug me?" he teased Levi as they hurried out the door. Jacob Black had brought it on himself, after all.

"Judy would be pissed if I let you get raped."

"So you're going to threaten me for your dad too, or is he just going to have to wait until tomorrow?"

Levi laughed. "He's not going to threaten you. We do have other hobbies, you know."

"Sure."

"Hey," he said softly. "If you want a fight, I'm right here. But my dad's cool with you. Well, as cool as he can be about the whole creepster guy wants to do unspeakable things to my little girl thing, anyway. Just don't bring that stuff up and we're good."

"You're only allowed to exceed my expectations once a month. Please stop being helpful anytime."

Levi laughed and maybe they were good. Maybe that's why Baxter felt like he could ask…

"Your mom really hates me hanging around that much?"

She'd been trying to hide it; Baxter could barely tell except that she was too polite. His Aunt Leah wasn't exactly known for her sugary sweet voice, but Baxter wasn't going to complain about the politeness, even if the reason for it nagged at him. Only Judy was a little oversensitive and she wanted everyone not just happy but perfectly happy and sometimes, Baxter knew, that just wasn't a possibility.

When he first phased and had been...well, less than perfectly happy, Judy hadn't gotten on his case about it. She'd just done things that would make him happy and been patient. Same with Bert. Sure the kid was still super withdrawn, but Judy didn't get on his case about it (she even helped with his crazy make-Will-happy schemes and those were going to blow up and get someone lit on fire one of these days). So Judy wasn't usually so pushy when it came to people who weren't perfectly happy. But if you wanted to get the Blacks to listen subtly wasn't the way to go. So Judy was going on the attack (and he understood and was even kind of touched, but he was glad to get out of there just the same).

"Yeah," Levi admitted. "Only now she can be more open about it since I know. But she'll get over it."

"What if she doesn't?"

"She will."

Levi said it so simply, Baxter almost believed him. It was weird.

"You can't boss her around."

"Watch me." Levi laughed. "You might not listen to me, but me and my mom are good. I'll talk her around eventually. Don't worry about it."

"Okay. Thanks."

"Is that twice this month you haven't been a whiny bitch?"

Baxter rolled his eyes, but maybe he laughed a little. "What can I say. You bring out the best in me."

"Judy's going to be so jealous." Levi stopped abruptly on the road and Baxter turned to find out what was wrong. "So, Will says I'm only okay with you hanging around my sister because I'd be outnumbered if I wasn't."

"Is it?"

"Does it matter?"

While the idea of being able to push Levi Black around wasn't unappealing (Baxter blamed the wolf genes for how gleeful he felt), Baxter knew Levi hadn't just knocked off the murderous rage to go along with the majority.

"Judy would be able to tell if you were faking. For whatever reason. Since she's not snapping at you over dinner..."

"I'm not totally okay with it," Levi said easily. "More okay with it than my mom, but not totally okay with it. She's my little sister, you know?"

"Hey, I wasn't thrilled when I heard you imprinted on my sister," Baxter admitted. "I know what you mean."

"Brian threatened me on behalf of your family," Levi remembered. "It was cute."

"I'm sure that's what he was going for."

"Well," said Levi as they started walking again, "I won't hurt your sister and you won't hurt my sister or I'll let my mom come after you and I figure we're even."

"All right."

"Besides, dinner was punishment enough for whatever we might do. Ever."

Baxter couldn't help but agree.

They walked in silence for the next little while. It wasn't a long walk between their houses and they had never really gotten in the habit of having long, meaningful conversations, so Baxter wasn't surprised by the silence. He was surprised at the way Levi grabbed his arm just down the street from his house.

"You know," the slightly older boy said, "With your sister, I mean, it's not...sure, I liked her before. But we were kids and it was mostly...well, mostly because she was hot and, well, I was...just trying to annoy Will, really. And Dinah." Levi laughed just thinking about it, proving the guy had a death wish because maybe, maybe there was some weird explanation for why pissing off Will was a good idea but Baxter never, ever wanted to get on the wrong side of Dinah Black. "Oh man. Dinah would get started on one of her rants and I'd mention Francy and she'd get totally derailed about how I should treat your sister with more respect and blah blah blah."

So maybe it was the entire family who was evil.

"Is there a point?" Baxter asked.

Levi actually got serious.

"You know, if I could have picked, I would have picked just about anyone but your sister."

Baxter wasn't sure if he should be offended by that or not, but he settled for saying, "What?"

"Not that I wouldn't sleep with her." Baxter growled. Levi actually said, "Sorry. Just...I mean, Will's not wrong she'd be better for the pack. I see that. I get that. If she came back here for longer than thirty seconds, she could probably...well, I know you can't stand me, but Brian would be on her side, too. Twin solidarity and all that. Bert, too, probably, even though all the stuff about Marley is a compliment. Now you've got Judy on your side and Will's always thought she was just as smart as your brother minus all the shit he hates about Brian. Hell, he might even like Brian better than me nowadays anyway so—"

And maybe Baxter could have let Levi ramble on but, frankly, hearing Levi have feelings was painful. In what reality did Will not like Levi above everybody, himself included? There was a very good reason why Levi apparently did not do feelings—Levi's feelings were really stupid.

"My sister is not going to come into town and steal your pack. Even if she wanted to, she couldn't. I mean, you get on my nerves half the time—"

"Only half? I thought I was doing better than that."

"But you're still...we're yours. You know?"

Having Levi stare at him after Baxter had just finished saying all that was more than slightly embarrassing, but it seemed to help. Eventually, Levi nodded.

"Thanks, kid."

"Five months, jackass."

Levi laughed, booming laughter, and clapped him on the shoulder. "Fine. Thank you, Baxter."

"You're welcome," he said stiffly.

"I'm glad you're the beta," Levi said because apparently this conversation could get worse. "Brian was better than Will but still...even when you hate me, I've still got five months over you. It's awesome."

"Jackass." But maybe Baxter was a tiny bit amused. And maybe he got it. "Older brothers are kind of a pain. That's just what they do."

"You think you have it bad? Because Brian reminds you to do your homework?"

"And gives me his disappointed face." It was awful.

Levi rolled his eyes. "That's nothing. You think Brian ended up with more tattoos than me because I'm afraid of needles?"

"Will doesn't approve?"

Which, now that he thought about it, Will didn't have any tattoos, but he hadn't said anything when Brian got his latest at Christmas (and when Will disapproved, he was not silent).

"Everything my mom said was okay, Will flipped out over. Gangs have all the best tattoos and I think he researched every fucking one in North America just so he could object to everything I wanted. And when I say object I mean scream while playing with a fucking gun."

"Sometimes, I think you turned out surprisingly normal."

"Sometimes, I kind of want to hit you."

"When don't you want to hit someone?"

"True."

And since it seemed like they were getting along, Baxter had to go and ruin it.

"I need you to switch up the patrol schedules."

"What? They're perfect."

Of course Levi would be difficult. Baxter had known. It's why he had put it off. But he had asked Judy, a few days after Levi found out, if it changed anything, now that Levi knew and she had just looked at him with her big dark eyes. And then he had asked her, "Do you think we should stop patrolling together?" and she had nodded quickly and tucked her head under his chin and pleaded, "Don't be mad or anything just..." and he had promised it was okay. But he had avoided talking to Levi because, well, Levi.

"I don't want to run with your sister any more."

"You barely run together as it is." It was true. Baxter wondered if Levi had subconsciously known something was up, though more likely it was just the result of Judy running the fewest patrols and Baxter needing to run at weird times because of school and work and home. Still. It all had to stop.

Baxter was starting not to mind the wolf stuff. He was starting to love it. But that didn't mean he was ready to give up and let only the wolf stuff matter.

"Even those need to stop."

"Seriously?"

"Are you really going to make me stand here and spell out why you don't want me hanging out in the forest with your little sister while she's naked?"

Levi finally got it. And didn't even look that pissed. "Kid, no one is as much of a pain in my ass as you. Nothing's going to get you to do what you don't want to do."

Levi had not been in that clearing in Seattle.

"You willing to bet your sister on that?" Baxter demanded, far more angrily than he intended.

"Yeah," Levi said simply. "But I'll stop putting you on patrols together if it makes you feel better. Pansy."

"Asshole."

Levi was really inconsiderate—how was Baxter supposed to keep hating him now?


Word travelled around the rez way too fast. Art and the twins laughed at him the rest of the day, while Brian told him that Aunt Leah would come around eventually. And to be thankful that Jacob Black wasn't a werewolf anymore.

And, while they were cleaning up after dinner the next night, his father said to him, "She should realize how lucky she is, that her daughter's with you."

"You don't mean that," Baxter blurted out. He was trying, he really was, but it didn't seem to work out all that often.

"I think you're making a mistake," his dad said. Baxter would have been disappointed if he hadn't. "I think you're setting yourself up to get hurt. But Leah should be happy that if her daughter has to be dating a werewolf, it's you."

"Thanks," Baxter muttered.

"I gave your brother some advice when he started dating Dinah. Did he tell you?"

"Yup."

That was stuff he and his father did not need to be discussing. Ever. Sam evidently agreed. All his father did was say was, "Good."

Yay for no eye contact.

Baxter took a deep breath and made himself ask, "Is there anything else, 'cuz Dinah was human and Judy's...it should be the same, right?"

"Judy would know better than I would."

"How would she know?"

"Leah." Sam sighed. He'd heard about that, too. "Right. Well...there's the Cullens."

"The vampires?"

"I know. And they might not even...aside from when she got pregnant with Dinah, I don't think Leah's been to the doctor since she was fifteen. You can't blame her. Did we ever tell you how Doctor Cullen took Jacob's life-threatening injuries as an invitation to investigate our DNA?"

"No."

"But Dr. Cullen knew better. So he didn't even bother to ask," Sam said bitterly. They couldn't help that. It was get bitter or let it break you entirely. "Leah hasn't given them much. But when she and Jacob were trying to get rid of the imprint I think she did let them run some tests. Jacob might know, actually."

"Judy doesn't want to ask him about anything like that."

His father gave a small chuckle and Baxter felt himself blush (well, he'd been blushing for a while now, but it got worse). "She likes you alive?"

"Something like that."

"Well, Seth's...friend is a doctor and she deals with young women a lot, from the sounds of it. Even if they don't have exact information on Leah, she might be able to guess."

"Thanks," Baxter muttered.

Sam cleared his throat and they thankfully went back to cleaning dishes in silence.