Alrighty. So there was high demand for this chapter, and I felt bad leaving you guys like that (even though payback was sweet, Ashton), so here's the next chapter. It's got a crappy ending though, sorry...

Love, Allie

-- -- -- --

So...She's got bad blood

"Shut up! At least

I was thinking."

What, I wasn't? I

wrote that entire scene!

"Suuuure."

ACK!

"Seth, no!"

I didn't even know I said the words out loud. He couldn't fight a vampire! No! Not right here, with me worrying about him! This wasn't good. I watched as Angelica — we'd had a long, long talk while I stalled — screeched at Seth's impact, and then I couldn't tell what was happening anymore. I couldn't see who was winning, who was losing, who was bleeding (did vampires bleed?!), and who, ultimately, would walk away. I couldn't just sit there and watch.

Slowly, with the most caution I could muster, I slipped of my hiking boot, revealing my bare foot (socks were for squares). Making sure the laces were tied tight, I sat up a little, as I'd been slumped down on the tree, trying to get away from her too-cool breath. I clutched the hiking boot, but I couldn't do anything with it.

Then it flew out from the mess that was Seth and Angelica.

A small, white stick.

A finger.

I shrieked, inching desperately away from the finger, which was moving. Ugh, it was still moving! Then, in a moment of sheer braveness, I picked up the finger and bent it the opposite way. Nothing happened at all, but I was sure my fingers were going to be bruised from the amount of force I put into trying to snap it. My boot lay forgotten for a second, but then I picked it up, and decided on my actions in a split second.

With a gasp, I chucked the boot at the pile of vampire and werewolf.

I heard a grunt of confusion from Seth, who quickly looked away from his dilemma to spot my boot, then me, and roll his eyes before taking to ripping off Angelica's arm. I was slightly pleased my boyfriend was ripping Angelica limb from limb, but I felt a stab of sympathy, even though her blood red eyes had been hungrily looking at my neck, where I could feel my own pulse...

With a metallic ripping noise, I watched another arm fling away and hit a tree, which quaked. The dent left in the tree was stripped of bark, and that frightened me. I decided to take shelter behind a tree, as it wouldn't be good if one of those limbs hit me.

Closing my eyes, I tried desperately to tune out the fight.

The next thing I knew, I was being tapped on the shoulder. The horrible screeching had stopped.

I was too afraid to open my eyes.

"Anna?" It was Leah.

"L-Lee?" Why was Leah here?

"Anna, I'm going to take you home. Seth called me, just after the bloodsucker left. He said you passed out or something, and he needed to go follow her, but he couldn't leave you. How do you feel?"

I started shaking, then I let out a horrified sob.

"Anna! Jeez..." Leah scooped me up into her arms, and then, after the shock of being picked up wore off, I started sobbing again, this time into her shoulder. She sighed, and then we were jogging casually through the forest.

"How — can you — how can you guys not get hurt?!" I asked in disbelief.

"We do, sometimes, but you just never see it. Werewolf healing stuff. I'm not sure who's at Sam and Emily's, because that's where you two would have been heading anyway — they said they wanted to tell everyone something — but anyway, you should probably wipe you eyes and stuff. It might be important," she said with a bitter note in her voice.

"Okay..." I feebly raised a hand to wipe my eyes clear, and then she dropped me down, and I noticed Emily's car, parked where we left it. Leah's pickup was parked just behind it, and she led me, taking on most of my weight, to the passenger side.

Climbing into the truck, I didn't even have the energy to buckle. I just leaned my head back and sighed, trying to get out of my head the images of Seth fighting of Angelica. Ugh...It was honestly impossible for me to forget the look in that vampire's eyes. Were all vampires like that? I was happy for werewolves existing — honestly, truly happy.

-- -- -- --

So...He's LAAAATE

"Am not."

Are too.

"Am not."

Are too.

"Fine! I was chewing

on little tiny pieces of

Angelica that got stuck

in my teeth when I shredded

the living (living?) daylights

out of her. Happy?"

...you're feeeky.

"Nice spelling."

I CAN KILL YOU!

"Good to know."

(There, Violetbreeze, not you

can't say I only threaten

Anna with Death. Wow, this

is looooong...)

It was scary stuff, messing with vampires.

I lit a match, trying to avoid the cloud of sick-smelling smoke that came off of the vampire's burning remains. Ew, that was just horrible to think about. Burning remains — who says stuff like that? Me, the freak who couldn't control himself enough to reason with a vampire. Stupid, stupid, stupid... Anna and I could have ended up like Emily and Sam, and it was all because I got angry over a vampire trying to eat my gir—OK, that wasn't working out in my favor. I was justified for getting angry at said vampire. But, I should have had self control. I really hoped Leah had remembered to pick Anna up.

Shoot.

I was supposed to be at Sam and Emily's place.

But you can't just leave a vampire fire burning in the middle of the woods!

"C'mon, Seth, what would Smoky do..."

He'd put out the fire with his bear-like superpowers. Or at least that's how I learned about Smoky the bear. He was a bear that flew around and put out wild fires.

It was when a breeze came by that I realized just how uncomfortable it was to be naked in the middle of the woods in the cold. Not that it was cold for me... It would have been nicer if I wasn't standing in front of the ashes of a girl vampire. That was a bit awkward. Nobody really knew what happened to vampires after they died...

Or, "died".

Could vampires die?

Did I care?

Not really.

Kicking at the fire with waves of dirt, I managed to quell the flames to just little burning embers. Smoky would forgive me for that one.

I burst into a ball of light and fur, and then I wasn't even me. I was the sandy-pawed, graceful werewolf that didn't trip or get awkward moments.

Man, Emily's pissed at you. Embry's voice filled my head.

Really? I'd think that she was beyond that by now. The temper on that woman... Jared joined him.

I wouldn't be talking, I put in, racing towards home. It seems like you're just on your way, too. Kim won't be happy.

Probably not, but I can live with it for a little while. She likes to forgive people.

I sure hope so, for your sake, bud. She clawed me in the car the other day —

Because you deserved it —

Seth got clawed by a guuuuuuurl, Seth got clawed by a —

I phased to get the voices out of my head, and also because I was at my car. There was a pair of jeans on the front steps — Leah could be totally nonchalant about that kind of thing, but this was obvious— so I pulled them on hopped in the car, driving down the road to Emily's house.

When the house was in view, I parked the car and walked the rest of the way there, strode in through the front door, not bothering to knock. The scene consisted of most of the pack, excluding Jared (Embry was walking through the back door) and all the imprint girls. Anna was sitting on a chair, guarded carefully by Kim and Leah. Jeez, the girls were overprotective.

"Finally," complained Emily, stepping out of the kitchen-nook-thingy and towering under me. Which, in itself was a feat, considering that she was indeed under me. It's not an easy thing to tower beneath someone... "You took long enough."

Her face was reddish with the anger that came with her words. She looked ready to punch me.

"Sorry I didn't take a minute to call ahead and say I'd be late, I was only fighting a vampire and trying not to kill every tree along the way."

Yeah, I'd killed a tree.

People needed to learn to deal with it.

"Whatever," she dismissed, sulking off.

"JARED!" Kim shrieked, leaving her "post" next to Anna to leap into Jared's not-waiting arms.

"Jeez!" he exclaimed, seeing Kim sprint full force at him. She made a jump, and he caught her (darn) just in time. She smiled, kissing his neck. "Can I have some warning next time?"

Colin threw a fork at them. Of course he'd be eating. "Jeez, no kissing!"

"It's like you're trying to suck up each others' stomachs!"

"Is that even possible?" asked Kim with wide eyes.

I smirked. "Yeah. Better be careful, Kimmy."

"WHAT'D I SAY ABOUT —"

But Emily cleared her throat daintily, and then Sam threw out a menacing look, so we all shut up, and I took a position near Anna, our hands automatically sliding into their normal places in each others' grasp.

"We have decided," said Emily fancily. "On the date of our wedding!"

The woman broke at the end, excitement flooding into her tone, causing her to squeak.

Claire clapped. "We-DING! Ding? Wike a bewl...ding! Ding downgah!"

"Ding dong!" put in Quil enthusiastically.

I threw a quick glance towards my sister. She looked a bit pale, but she was smiling. It seemed a little too happy to be real, but she put it up.

"Good for you, Em," she smiled wider.

"Thanks," said Emily, and the single syllable was ringing with her thanks.

"So what's the date?" asked Anna.

"Three weeks!" Emily squealed.

Leah's smile faded. I could understand why — she didn't even get a month to mentally prepare herself.

"Okay, if you're not eating here, you can go." Sam sounded like he wanted everyone to go that didn't live here.

"'Kay. C'mon Anna," I said, tugging her up. She looked a little jolted, but followed — limped — after me. I remembered the leg cast, disguising and arm-throw-over-the-shoulder with a wave to the rest of the pack. They all waved back, even little Claire.

"Okay. So, I have this burning question," I announced when we were both settled in the car and driving towards her house.

"What is it?" she asked.

"What would Smoky the bear do if he saw a fire?"

"He'd put it out —"

"—with his bear powers?"

"...huh?"

"With his —"

"Smoky the Bear doesn't have powers, Seth," Anna clarified.

"Leah is a liar!"

"Thats okay," smiled Anna. "I like you're Smoky the Bear better."

"Thanks."

"Anytime."

We locked lips, and I felt Anna smile against mine.

She broke the embrace. "What kind of powers?" she asked lightly. "Just how creative is Leah?"

"...I don't wanna talk about it..."

-- -- -- --

Yay! It ended happy for almost all involved (but Leah, who's sort of freaking out)

Yeah, again, too lazy for a song.

Love, Allie