As always, I want to thank Stephenie Meyer for dreaming up Twilight, and for putting up with all her fans, like me, who like a good twist on a dream. All characters are lovingly borrowed for entertainment purposes only, as well as all quotes and chapter titles, which are or based off of famous works and quotes. (The new groups: Anica and her family and Embry's new friends are mine, and I'm quite proud of them, and how I've wound them into the Twilight universe.)
Here's the big chapter you've all been waiting for, (well, my little band of followers anyway,) and the initial idea that inspired this story in the first place. Much Love to Loyal Leah and Embry fanatics. I only got 3 reviews last chapter, I don't know why, but please, tell me what you think! Like I wrote on my profile, the poll about whether or not Leah and Embry will find love is now closed. And on a random note, you'll see I needed to come up with the name of one of those last wolves that joined the pack in Breaking Dawn. (Don't worry; this doesn't give anything away,) I knew Stephenie Meyer often used names of her family and friends, and I unknowingly added another of her son's names into the story, Gabe. I got the name off a page of Romanian names. In this story, Gabriel was Anica's husband and dearest love. Seth is already prominently used, so her 3rd son became the "new" Wolf mentioned here, and his name is Eli.
**I noticed a mistake in the last chapter, when Jake speaks of Leah and Embry phasing first, he said he'll tell Quil, Sam, and Embry to hold back. Of course he means Quil, Sam, and Seth. Whoops. **
Doing Good
"In the waythis strange gentleman was going on, he would leave the world without having done any good to himself or anybody else." -Around the World in 80 Days, by Jules Verne.
Chapter 12- Finding My Road
"You just call on me brother, when you need a hand; we all need somebody, to lean on. I just might have a problem that you understand- we all need somebody, to lean on. If there is a load, you have to bear, that you can't carry, I'm right up the road; I'll share your load, if you just call me." –Lean on Me, by Bill Withers
POV: Embry
Place: The same island.
Time: Day 12, right where we left them.
"Lia," I repeated. Oh the irony.
"L-I-A," my look-a-like quickly clarified, "not like how Leah Clearwater spells it." She knew Leah too? (She pronounced Leah, "Lay-Ah.") My eyes probably leapt out of my head, or my head spun around, because she added yet another explosive to the TNT building in my brain. Or maybe the fuse…
"I'm Lia Uley, although technically my parents aren't married to each other," I staggered back. She was half-Quileute? Sam has a sister? No wonder she looked like me…wait a second. Lia looked up at me at that moment I think, although it was hard to tell because I had put my hands over my face, and she said almost to herself- "you look like you're about to keel over. You have no clue who I am, do you? Papa never said anything? That's so weird."
WHAT? "Are you trying to say we have the same father?" SAM. WE WERE RIGHT. SAM IS MY HALF-BROTHER. DID I JUST SAVE MY HALF-SISTER THAT I DIDN'T KNOW EXISTED IN THE FUCKING NETHERLANDS? WHAT ARE THE FUCKING ODDS OF THAT? "I don't even know who my father is!" My voice got only a little closer to the screaming voice in my head. She didn't need me yelling at her after her traumatic transformation and first vampire kill. She was 12, maybe. I wasn't heartless. And none of this was her fault anyway!
At my words Lia paled. "What?!?!" She burst into tears, but tried to continue anyway. "I'm sorry, I've just been dreaming about this day since I was 4 years old, since the first time Papa ever told me about my fearsome, amazing big brothers, Sam and Embry," my heart jumped at the easy pairing in her words, "and then when he heard that Leah transformed and there might be a chance that I could join you…" her speech sped up, "he passed down what little he could, just in case…I've wanted to meet you more than anything in the world, so when grandmother told Mama it was possible that YOU were in Europe, I had to find you…but I got captured by Cole on the way…" she wiped her eyes on her sleeve.
I could barely take in what she was saying, but I heard enough to interrupt, "Wait, who's Cole?"
"'Who was Cole?' you mean," She said proudly, breaking into a kind of superior half-smile and crossing her arms.
"Ah, past tense. Leech- got it."
"Leech, that's funny!" she burst out.
"We think so," I said with my own laugh. Whoa, my first nice moment with my half- no… I breathed out- I knew from now on I'd never think of her as a half-sister. I figured now I'd be hard pressed to ever get her off my tail, ever. It didn't matter that I never knew she existed. Abruptly I grinned at her again, and she smiled back a little confused, but pleased, I thought.
I spoke evenly. "Joshua Uley is our father?"
She nodded tentatively.
"Sam is our half-brother?" I questioned her again.
"Yes," ….she sort of squeaked this time, actually, but then her voice returned with a vengeance, "How did no one tell you?" She was indignant on my behalf. Aww…
"Come here little sis," I said, opening my arms. Lia ran into them with a dazzling smile illuminating her whole face. I have a sister. I have a brother. I have siblings. I'm actually an Uley. Those phrases ran through my head a million times. I didn't even try to figure out what came next, for the moment. I gave her just a mini bear-- well, wolf-hug, since she wasn't yet as strong as we were... (Wow, she felt warm to me!) And said, "Thank you for filling the hole in my family." For the first time since I'd phased I felt like I'd had a grounding within those who were closest to me. It was plain that Lia and I were related, and she'd always known it. Sam and I had always been her big brothers, even far away. I saw a tear escape Lia's eye again; she couldn't blink it away fast enough to hide it from me. Brave girl- unsurprising. It was probably only the chaos of this meeting that had saved me from breaking down myself.
I took the next 20 minutes to go searching for the pieces of vampire. Lia found sticks and leaves to burn him with. She remained quiet for me; it would be easy for anyone to tell I needed it. What did I do now? I had Jake's meeting to go to. Did Lia have to join in, technically? We could hear each other, which meant she was a member of Jacob's pack too, right? Lia was struggling to hide her weariness. I couldn't just spring a new member on them, and besides, I wouldn't throw Lia to the… ha-ha… more irony…my face twitched once and then I frowned. Would Lia be in trouble with her family for running away? Would someone come for her? Wasn't Leah with Lia's family? What was with fate that she'd ended up there? What would Leah say and how would she deal with another female who was so young? Did they know she was missing? How much did Leah know, anyway? Too many unanswered questions! When the purple cloud of smoke was rising, I pulled out my cell phone out of a large pants pocket. I had to make contact with Leah- oh shit! Of course it got ruined by my swim.
I was sidetracked by Lia falling to the ground, twitching, thrashing, groaning and yelling. I put the phone away and ran to her. "Lia!" She didn't answer. She was still yelling, she couldn't answer me, but that also meant she was breathing clearly enough to scream. "What can I do?" I shouted. She shook her head forcefully. She scrunched her face in concentration, looking like she was trying to fight off the pain. Finally, she was still. She exhaled forcefully, and tried to sit up. I helped her. She was hyperventilating to catch her breath. "Lia?" I asked quietly. She looked up at me.
"Cole bit me, a week ago. I think my body is trying to fight it off. I go through these fits... but don't worry, they look worse than they are."
Bitten by a vampire! "How can I not be worried?" I half-shrieked, 'vampire venom is supposed to be fatal to us!" I was horrified.
"But I have magic from both sides," she answered earnestly, "My grandmother and mother, and so most likely I…" she trailed off.
"Yes?" I breathed out. Were they immune to vampire venom?
"I don't know how to explain. I'm so tired." As soon as she said that Lia keeled over in my arms and vomited over my leg.
"I'm sorry," she said weakly, "I think it's a reaction."
I ignored my questions, they could wait. I picked her up and carried her to some shade. She was pretty sturdy and probably tall for her age, though awfully limp, at the moment. "Don't you dare apologize. You need rest. I assume the bloodsucker was following me only close enough to keep up?"
"Yes." Her voice was a whisper now.
"Where did he keep you?" She pointed out in front of her, and kept directing me with her hands. I saw a makeshift cave had been dug out of a large rock. In it were some provisions and clothes for Lia. She changed and gave me back my shirt. I was a little confused. "So he definitely wanted you alive, but he bit you," I stated.
"I wasn't feeling the beginnings of my transformation until a few days ago, and then I only phased very briefly, when he was distracted by a human. We were in the outskirts of Amsterdam at the time. Before then it would have been suicide to try and escape, I'd never get away from a vampire. I was afraid he'd kill me, or worse, you." She said directly. My life meant more to her then hers? I'd have to watch her then. I wasn't about to lose her now. I reached out and hugged her again. She looked up as she continued, "I felt stronger today so I screamed and gambled, and you heard me," she finished her explanation with an easy, sleepy, grin.
Thank God. "I did." I couldn't risk leaving her alone to phase and I didn't want to. I just wanted to be with my sister. I was sad Sam still didn't know. Lia dozed off, still leaning against me. How was I going to keep in touch with Leah and Jake when I didn't even know what time it was? Lia still came first. My only choice was to keep an eye on her to watch for any signs of the reaction to the bite, and then phase in a little while and hope I'd have company.
*****
POV: Leah, pack mind.
Place: the cave Eveline leads her to in the Vosges Mountains.
Time: about 3:30, same day.
Eveline showed me where the cave was, up way off any main trail and practically impossible to get to for anyone but a supernatural being, it was off this ledge that was deadly steep. She left me alone. I didn't know if Anica or Emil was watching me, but I wanted their trust anyway, especially Emil's now- Anica and my relationship was secure. I'd tried Embry a few times, but his phone was inexplicably off- it went straight to voice mail. I called Jake, and he said he got the same result. We were both horribly worried. Embry wouldn't simply be ignoring us now, something was definitely wrong. My mind raced through a million possibilities, but I couldn't understand how or why a vampire would be trailing him now. Had we crossed a Volturi soldier by chance? What if I never saw him again? I paced around the cave. I had an hour before Sam, Jake, Seth, and Quil all joined the mind link. The only thing I could think to do was phase, so I took off the shift Anica had lent me and stretched out onto four legs to see if Embry might be trying to contact us.
Apparently not. I used the time to try to figure out how I was going to gradually reveal my thoughts to explain what I knew. At least all the prime candidates for being Embry's half-brother, his real half-brother, and my own brother would finally know the truth. Then I started in on how to help my Embry and Sam deal… that was harder. Would they even want my help now? Would Sam want to find Embry in the Netherlands? Would they both insist on traveling to Joshua? What would Anica say? Where was Embry? Why couldn't we reach him? I became aware of another voice.
"Em?!?" My thoughts reacted instinctively.
"Nope, I almost wish I were though now, at least someone would know where he is! He hasn't phased in yet? It's four o'clock. I'm going rather insane here. Edward's had to hold me back from taking off for the Netherlands about 10 times, I actually wish Alice could see our future for once, and I think Jasper's had to use all his concentration to keep me from breaking everything in sight."
Jake showed me he was phased in an odd place, inside a huge ball room of an old manor. Emmett and Carlisle were standing at the entrances on opposite sides, and Jasper and Edward were hovering over him. That's Europe for you. "Bella's with Ness I assume?"
"Yes," Jake answered briskly.I saw Edward say something but I couldn't quite pick it up, and Jasper nodded in agreement.
"What was that?" I barely got the question out before I was processing Jake's response.
"Edward can hear and Jasper can feel I'm not the only stressed wolf- they say you've got to zone in further, Lee, you've got the harder job with no supernatural help."
"Don't push me. You don't want me to blurt out my secrets now, do you?"
Jake huffed. "You're right," he listened to Edward again, and said, "Edward disagrees. He thinks it's bad for your mind to be so overloaded."
"But what about Embry?" I worried.
"Embry's inexplicably gone. We've got to be prepared for anything now. Since when have we ever operated under ideal conditions?"
"You've got a point." I paused, and then purposely breathed out one thought, "Sam."
"Sam?" Jake repeated questioningly.
"Embry's name should be Uley." I felt a wordless mix of relief and sadness emanating from Jake's mind. He would have liked to be Embry's brother, but not under those conditions. I saw Jasper and Edward clap Jacob on his shoulder.
"Thanks guys," He answered all of us. "The truth is always better."
"I wish the two brothers actually knew," I responded wistfully.
"I wish Embry were here! Edward says we'll all be there for Sam and Embry when it's time, and Jasper's getting anxious, surprise, surprise, but they're right. We've got a meeting to hold. Sam's going to phase in for the very first few minutes to connect to me, but he doesn't want to be in the way."
"What about Em?"
Edward had the answer. He spoke directly into Jake's ear, and Jake concentrated only on the words, so they'd resonate clearly in my head. Jake nodded along. "If Embry's had to hide, or worse, been taken somehow, there could be plenty of reasons why he's not reaching out to you. The only thing we can do is to try to have you stay phased as long as possible, but it's dangerous Leah. You don't want to give yourself away either. Someone could have tracked you as well."
"Are you certain a vampire is involved?" I asked. Edward shook his head slowly, a frown escaping his composure.
"So what's the new plan?" I asked.
"Hold on… is that… I think I hear Sam. Now I've got to hold back…sigh…wait a sec."
I pulled my mind back as much as I could and concentrated on the cave wall, so there'd be nothing from me in Jake's mind. He was back 20 seconds later.
"Ok Leah, I had two pieces of news for my pack that Sam wanted me to discuss with all of you together, but in light of Embry's disappearance we're not going to get the whole group. Here comes Seth and Quil, according to Sam. Don't ask me about the second one yet. It's a headache you don't need now, in my opinion," Jake was struggling to hold back, I could tell. I was too worried about Embry to press it, "but the first piece of news now seems far more pressing anyway-
"Hey guys," Jake and I said together as Quil and Seth joined us. I knew exactly where they were, I could see the place we'd meet up to switch off for patrols. I shook off the flash of homesickness and no one commented.
"Sam's phasing back to human, he'll update Rosalie and Emmett- Seth, update Leah." Jake continued.
"Hey Lee- Quil and I were on a patrol and found these strange marks on the trees that no one could identify, soon after you guys left. We told Sam, and we kept an eye out, but nothing else happened, so we weren't going to bother you with it. What could you do about it anyway? But now Eli and Paul found footprints earlier, so Sam wants us all to spread out to watch for intruders, they're just waiting on us."
"Something is very wrong." I chimed in. I don't know what.
"Definitely. Emmett, Rosalie, and Sam will be in three directions, and Sam's staying closest to where the marks were found." Seth showed us a tract of land way east almost near the stream by the Cullen house, right in our old patrol area. "I can see Eli and Paul off in the distance, it's almost time."
"Sam's back. Hey Sam, do you see anything…"
He trailed off cause we all heard it- a loud howl. Everyone except Sam, since Jake wasn't consciously sending it.
"What was that?" Jake yelled.
"Shit, it's Eli!" Quil answered. Quil and Seth took off running. I watched the trees blur past as they finally reached Paul and Eli. Paul was fighting an unfamiliar massive tan wolf that was almost as big as he was- we watched in horror. What the fuck? Eli hadn't phased in time, he was lying on the ground, the victim of the wolf's initial attack. Since when did wolves randomly attack humans? Where did this one come from?
Jake's voice intruded on the scene. "Sam! Sam! What the hell? Sam where are you? Answer me, damn it! Ugh- Seth help Eli" Seth was already leaning over him, "Quil- run for Colin and Brady, Paul might need it. Sam can't hear me!" Quil took off again.
"What?" Seth, Quil, and I yelled.
"He's not answering!"
I watched as Jake continued to try to re-connect with Sam, Seth had phased back and had picked Eli up to carry him home. "Find Rosalie and Emmett, they can help, and then bring them to the fight!"- Edward in Jake's ear again, and then I saw him tell Carlisle, Jasper, and Emmett. The wolf was more interested in fighting Paul. Paul wasn't losing, but nor could he seem to get the upper hand either. My scene changed in an instant.
I heard a very faint rustling coming from outside my cave, and then a louder rustling got my attention at my exposed back, so I turned. Another enormous wolf …black this time and larger than me was waiting for me outside looking kind of, deranged almost. It freaked me out. It was like Sam, but… insane. Did it have rabies or something? I finally put it together. I looked up and sure enough I could see a full moon amid some clouds. It didn't matter that it wasn't dark yet. "Jake, Paul's fighting a werewolf! It's a full moon!" Suddenly I had to concentrate on a potential fight- I couldn't watch what was happening with my brothers. The werewolf didn't attack, but a kind of hunger radiated from blank eyes that were concentrated solely on me.
"Leah, Edward says don't go at him directly, werewolves are completely unpredictable, try to get around him, you might be able to, and then kick it into your fastest gear." The werewolf stayed completely still.
"Wait a second, what if… what if I'm surrounded by a family of werewolves?" Anica couldn't be a werewolf, could she? Did they live in families? They were Romanian, but, no… I did as Edward instructed and barely missed gnashing teeth through my tail. I'd just have to watch for others… I ran back down the mountain, the werewolf was as agile as I was, but not as fast. I leaped boulders, rushed around trees, and scrambled as low as I could through any brush I could find, beating my body on limbs. Near the bottom of the mountain and almost to the vineyard I could see nothing out of the ordinary. A human had his back to me. I'd have to keep the werewolf away somehow! The human turned, it was Emil- with a rifle! He lifted it and pointed it straight at me. He shot twice, but I was too far away. I still scrambled instinctively from the sound. Suddenly, a flash of silver knocked Emil to the ground. I panicked, rushing forward even harder, and I lost my brothers' thoughts. What happened!?!
"Leah, watch your back young one, we must fight!" What? Whose voice was…?
I saw the silky silver animal rise off of Emil, he was unhurt, and he was staring at it, panicked, but looking to him… her… oh!… for guidance. She motioned with her head for him to return to the house and he obeyed immediately.
The animal finally turned and stared directly at me. She had glossy silver fur all over, and she was smaller than me, but still huge compared to the normal species, like an oversized tiger, with bright green cat eyes, paws, pointed ears, and large tufts of fur protruding in the same way her whiskers did- A LYNX.
"ANICA?" My mind was on overdrive to process her incredible appearance, thank God, because at that moment the werewolf caught up to us.
"Yes Leah, you're being chased by our mortal enemy; I'm going to need your help. I haven't phased like this in 40 years, but I couldn't let Emil shoot you."
My mind immediately flashed back to the story of our greatest leader, Taha Aki. "What do I do?"
"Follow my lead!" Anica charged and met the werewolf head on. She was easily as fast as I was. She was dodging the werewolf's jaws and going for its throat. I ran in to go for his legs, trying to knock him over.
"Leah, you are faster, swipe quickly at the throat, and use your strength!" Just like Paul, our fight was a standstill. The werewolf dodged awkwardly, and used mostly his paws. His strikes with his jaws followed no logic I could see. I continually went for his head, while Anica bounded and scurried under his feet. I finally got a hold of his neck and hung on from my mouth. The werewolf howled and swatted into my head, but I clung on. Anica pushed her entire body into it, knocking him over, and sunk her teeth right into his jugular. She nudged me off and leaned into me to prop me up. I was a little fuzzy from the hit. Anica looked down at the dead… but the werewolf had lost its power and become a man again, lying broken on the ground. He had long black hair and a complexion I was quickly beginning to associate with being Romanian. "No," Anica said, somewhat briskly I thought, "he was Czech."
"Did you know him?" I yelped, almost aloud. Anica refused to answer and I got nothing from her mind. I saw Emil running towards us again, accompanied by four Lynxes. Emil must not have been born with the ability…
"No." Anica said calmly. The four Lynxes paused and stared at me- they were all varying shades of red, brown, grey, and silver. I couldn't hear anything from them, I could only hear Anica. They each had very distinct scents that were difficult to describe, and rather faint, and those same bright eyes I'd noticed before. A smaller reddish one phased back. It was Kathryn. She was nude for a moment, and just like us Wolves, carried clothing attached to her leg. I kept my eyes off her as she dressed in a similar shift to what I had worn to the mountain. The largest one had to be Lucian, he was a lighter brown, with dark stripes, that matched his hair, and I guessed Eveline to be greyer, like her grandmother, and Simona to be the a tan, spotted Lynx.
Kathryn finished and lowered her head slightly. "It would be easier if you'd phase back Leah. We're extremely grateful to you," Kathryn began.
I found myself looking to Anica as if she were my… "I believe you are right," she answered my thought with one of her own, "you are dependent on a leader, and you chose me, for now. That is most likely why you can hear me. I doubt your brothers' thoughts have ceased completely. But as Lynxes, we shape-shifters are not bound the same way, we are quite individualistic. You are affected by our magic now as your fate combines with ours. We hear each other's thoughts the way your Alphas, Sam, and Jake do. Try calling out to Jake." Anica got her knowledge directly from my head now.
I concentrated on Jake's mind. "Jake?"
"Leah! Holy shit! Thank God you're ok, so are we- Paul's werewolf did a Victoria déjà vu and bolted. What happened to you though? Can you still hear us? Why can't I see where you are?" I could barely see the ballroom.
"I'm still not entirely sure Jake, but don't worry about me just now. Anica helped me kill the werewolf."
"Anica did?"
"Yes, Jake- we're not the only shape shifters on the planet! They're a lot like us, but they're Lynxes. They're enemies of the werewolf."
"That's why we were so hesitant around Leah; we sensed a wolf-presence. I'm sorry, Jacob, I am Anica. I'm attempting to contact you the way we normally do, it works in the same way you speak to Sam."
"I hear you loud and clear- so this is the famous Anica!" A grin came from Anica's mind, and Jake continued, "Thank you for helping her!"
"On the contrary, it was she who helped me. You must tell me of your legend of Taha Aki one day, for I am curious as to why Leah is comparing me to him. I hope it is favorable."
"Oh it is! Jake, she literally transported a legend to life here, she hasn't phased in 40 years. Her son Emil was staggered!" I thought of Emil's reaction- no wonder; he'd never seen his mother as a Lynx.
"Wow," Jake thought.
"I would not have survived if it weren't for Leah. Emil could not have run for the others in time."
"Sounds like excellent team work then," Jake answered.
"I wonder if the Lynx magic is breaking into the pack somehow. They can work together, but they're not one big group Jake. Maybe that's why you lost Sam's link," I considered.
"Perhaps. I want to explain more to Leah, Jacob, and see if we can figure out what happened this evening together. I would include you in the discussion as my ally, but my family is looking toward Leah. They are still very nervous."
"I understand. Get some rest Leah, and I'll fill you in tomorrow about Seth. He's proven himself again…" Jacobs's thoughts broke with a chuckle. "He really is something else." Hopefully you'll have some answers when you and Anica put your heads together. Edward and I will fill our group in. I'm proud of you Lee."
"As am I, young one," Anica agreed with Jake, "You have begun on your path."
Jake pulled his mind back and Anica returned to human. I followed her. I noticed Anica's eyes fade right before my eyes, losing the intensity in them. Everyone was staring at Anica, watching the change. Emil held a bag which he passed off to Kathryn. She handed us shifts, and we put them on. "We are allies, now, because of your choice," Anica said. I couldn't speak. I think I smiled at her. I felt like I was going through my transformation all over again, only this time I had chosen it. She was right. This must be the path I'd been searching for. I looked out into the rows of grapes toward the house. I felt as if I could fly right through them. The sunset at the edge of the horizon burned brighter and more colorful than any I'd ever seen. The sun was still a golden, incandescent ball of confidence. It looked like a sunrise to me, even as the violet darkness encompassed the sky. I remembered Bella and her hopes that I'd repeated to Embry. It seemed Twilight meant a new destiny for me, and hell- it was a full moon, anything could happen.
Yay! Be happy for Lee and Embry, for the most part… don't worry, I haven't forgotten what I've interrupted! I'm very excited people finally know the truth about Anica's family, and I'm rather proud of this chapter I think… it was in shreds and it came together really well, so please press the little button below. Thank you!
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