Sink or Swim

Embry and Freja sat in the cab of his truck a bit longer after he turned it off, the two staring at the front of Jared's house where he assumed everyone in the packs were waiting on them.

He looked over at Freja, seeing some of the color had drained from her face.

"You know they already like you," he said, reaching over to take her hand. Freja looked down at their intertwined fingers.

"But that was before…" she said, her brow furrowed.

He knew she was afraid. Freja had just spent her whole life hiding what she was, making sure that no one found out. And now in a span of 24 hours, a whole lot of people were finding out - himself included.

Embry pulled her to him, wrapping his arms around her and kissing the top of her head. Part of him was elated he could do this now. After yesterday, everything had changed. While they had flirted before, now it was as though she had ripped down all the walls around her.

"They'll still like you afterwards," he said. "And you're my imprint. They can't do anything to hurt you, even if they wanted to."

Freja looked up at him, her brow still furrowed.

"They would hurt me? Why would they hurt me?" she asked frantically.

"They won't, I mean… Kind of a law with us… imprintees now fall under pack protection. And no one can harm you," he said, smiling encouragingly. Shit, he hadn't meant to frighten her more.

"How did you find this out?" she asked.

Embry sighed and let go of her, moving to get out of the truck.

"I mean, we've always known, but… that's a story for another time," he replied, thinking about Renesmee and Jacob. That was definitely not a story to start right now. Besides, it wasn't really his to tell. "But trust me… they'll still accept you. I know for sure."

Freja didn't say anything as she walked around the front of the truck and immediately took his hand as soon as she neared him, a determined look coming over her face as they neared the front door. Already he could hear voices and laughter coming from inside.

"I can do this," he heard her murmur under her breath, causing him to chuckle slightly.

"No turning back now," he said, pushing the front door open.

Silence fell over the living room as they stepped in, everyone in the pack there, including Leah. Embry's eyes widened slightly to see her there, but then figured someone must have called and told her it was important. Even all the imprintees were present, save Nessie, which wasn't surprising considering how protective Edward still was about her. Embry figured that was likely for the best. There was probably only so much Freja could handle at the moment. But then again, maybe the two of them would find something to bond over - the fact they were both half human, half something else entirely.

"So you gathered us all here together to tell us that you're finally together?" Seth shouted out, a grin on his face.

Embry looked down at Freja, seeing the concern starting to come back into her eyes.

"It's… a bit more than that," he said before looking back at the group.

"We're all ears," Jacob said, his voice serious, but Embry could see the twinkle in his eyes.

"Right… then I guess it's best to jump in," Embry said.

He looked back down at Freja, nodding to her encouragingly. She took a deep breath and then launched into her story - not leaving anything out. He stepped in every so often to fill in his side of things. Apparently, she had spent last night and today going over how she would tell them, and it came out much smoother than yesterday.

He supposed they could have waited, but with pack telepathy, both of them figured the sooner, the better, even if her grandmother had more than a few reservations about making the packs aware of their existence. Thankfully her grandfather had placated her.

There was silence when she finished, looking around the group with trepidation in her eyes. Embry squeezed her hand and then wrapped his arm around her waist, turning to look around the group in warning.

"So… you're a mermaid," Seth finally said, a look of excitement coming over his face. Freja frowned.

"We're not like the Little Mermaid," she stated. "And we prefer Havsfru."

"But you sing…" Seth said, looking slightly confused.

"Well… yes… but… it's different," Freja said, huffing slightly.

"They can… compel people with music," Embry said, hoping he wasn't making the explanation worse.

"But I would never use it against anyone," Freja said quickly. "And… we think that Embry is immune because of the imprint. Or maybe because of what he is… we're still not sure… Besides that, I still have to finish the Change…"

"Sweet, is that when you get a tail?" Seth asked, now back to excited. Leah reached over and smacked him in the back of the head.

"Well… yes," Freja said, pulling down on her sleeves as she looked to the ground.

"You haven't tested it, maybe you should," Jacob said, now studying Freja closely. Her eyes widened as her head shot up.

"No. I could seriously hurt someone if I tried now," she said.

"Her… abilities are… more volatile right now," Embry said.

"And I promised my grandmother… no music or singing until after," Freja added. "At least then, we'll know for sure that I can control it."

"But regardless… Freja and I imprinted," Embry said, a bit of warning in his voice. "Meaning she's part of the packs now." He looked around, daring anyone to say anything.

What he found were varying looks of surprise and some disbelief. A few of awe. But there was no hostility. He didn't think anyone would have outright rejected Freja, but there had been a bit of worry. None of them had ever seen anything like this.

A wolf imprinting on a mermaid. No, Havsfru. Not mermaid.

Finally Quil stood from his chair, a smile filling his face as he walked towards the couple.

"Well, let me be the first to officially welcome you to the family," he said. He then pulled Freja in for a bear hug, her eyes widening in shock as she glanced over at Embry. "Granted, I knew about the imprint from the day it happened… just happy to see he finally got around to telling you everything. And that you didn't run. Again."

"You knew?" she asked, stepping back from him. "Everything?" She glanced over at Embry.

"He did tell you about the pack telepathy, didn't he?" Quil asked with a chuckle. "No secrets."

"Ah… right," Freja said.

"And don't worry, we're all used to the weird," Jacob said, walking up to hug her next. "Got a lot of weird around here…"

"You more so than others. Though I guess Embry and Freja are in the running for strangest imprint now," Quil said with a laugh. Freja looked at Jacob, who was now frowning slightly at Quil.

"Like I said… that's another story for another day," Embry said quickly, hoping to stave off a fight between the two best friends.

And just like that, the ice was broken. Conversations broke out around them as the others took a turn welcoming Freja. She settled on the sofa, a slightly dazed look on her face as the others peppered her with questions - Seth more so than anyone else.

Knowing she would be fine, Embry walked into the kitchen to get them something to drink.

"So I move off and you go and imprint on a mermaid."

Embry turned around, seeing Leah walk into the kitchen, a smirk on her face. Sam was just behind her. In the past, Embry would find this odd, but again, they had come to a sort of peace over everything. He shrugged in response.

"Havsfru. But yea," he said, taking a drink of his beer. "Never saw that coming."

"This change… she has three weeks?" Sam asked. Embry nodded, a small sliver of worry sinking in his stomach. He looked up, seeing Jacob walking in as well.

He had hoped to only share this next bit with Jacob, Sam and Quil, but figured it wouldn't hurt if Leah knew. And they would all likely find out soon enough.

"There's… there's a chance that… well… not everyone survives," he said softly, looking down at the drink in his hand. "We're not sure how or why, but… her grandparents say that it's… painful. And difficult. But they've only heard stories. They've never actually seen anyone go through it."

He looked up, taking in the serious expressions on their faces.

"She'll make it," Leah finally said, glancing back through the doorway towards the living room. "Unless Seth doesn't kill her with his incessant questions first. Though wouldn't mind her putting him to sleep by singing to him."

Leah looked back at Embry, smiling slightly.

"You can't let the unknowns get to you," Jacob then added. "Trust me. The worry alone will kill you."

"Suppose you would know about that," Embry replied, thinking back years ago to when Renesmee was born.

There was a good amount of time when none of them knew what would happen to her. What she could do. If she would survive. Jacob smiled and nodded. Embry then glanced over to Sam.

"I swear, she won't be a danger to us," he said, worried. Sam hadn't said anything yet and hadn't been among those that had welcomed Freja.

"I don't think she'll be a danger," Sam said. "I worry about what's to come… what might happen to you, if…"

Embry nodded as he gulped and looked down at the beer in his hand.

"Christ, would you drop the doom and gloom," Leah said with a huff. "Just… let's not worry about that, okay?"

Embry looked up, finding her giving Sam a look of warning. Sam stared at her a moment and then nodded. He then looked back at Embry, offering him a small smile.

"I'm sure it'll be okay," he said, though Embry wasn't completely sure that he believed him.

"Yea… it'll be fine…"

OOOO

"Wait, seriously? Your grandmother thought we'd be like that?" Seth shouted with a laugh. "Really need to set that record straight…"

Freja chuckled as she reached for her cup and took another drink. For the last half hour, she had been answering what felt like a million questions and then telling the packs some of the stories that she had grown up with about wolves. Looking around, she saw Embry standing across the room with Quil. He gave her a brilliant smile, happy to see her settled in.

Looking around the room, Freja couldn't help as her own feeling of happiness came over her. She had been worried how they would take the news that she wasn't completely human. And usually when someone found out the existence of something they didn't understand, fear was the knee-jerk reaction. But with the wolves, they were still eager to accept her.

All she had ever wanted was a place to belong. Friends and family. And finally it felt as though she had that. But then worry snuck in.

How long would she have this?

"Good to see that Seth is finally giving you a break."

Freja looked up, finding that Jacob had taken Seth's seat next to her. She smiled and nodded.

"I don't mind it. It's actually really… nice… to be able to talk about it. I've never been able to before," she admitted. Jacob nodded and glanced over towards Embry. "But now that you're here… care to fill me in on the Nessie jokes?"

Jacob's eyebrows shot up a moment before he chuckled and shook his head, glancing around the room.

"Well… I suppose part of the reason everyone is taking this so well is because you aren't the first hybrid of sorts that someone's imprinted on," he said. "Nessie… or Renesmee - Bella still hates that nickname - is who I imprinted on. And she's half human, half vampire."

Freja's mouth dropped open. There was such a thing? Though she really shouldn't be all that surprised. Wait, did he mention Bella?

"You mean, Bella Swan? Or well, guess it's Cullen now?" she asked. Jacob nodded.

"It was this big drama, but long story short. Right after they got married and before she was turned, Bella gave birth… to Nessie. She nearly died, but Edward changed her in time," Jacob said.

"And you… imprinted on her? On a… baby?" Freja asked, trying to wrap her head around it. From the way everyone spoke, it sounded like this Nessie was older. Much older. But if she was Bella and Edward's child, she could only be about 6 years old.

"I… yea. But it's not like… that. She grows at a faster rate. She's nearly reached her full maturity actually," Jacob said, appearing slightly uncomfortable. "I mean… she's only 6, but she's not really 6. She looks and acts like she's our age. But I'm more like a friend and babysitter. Older brother…"

Freja looked away, considering everything he had just said.

"So… half vampire… does she…"

Jacob chuckled.

"She can eat real food. Or blood. Survive on one or the other," he said. "And she's going to live a really long time, though we're not completely sure how long..." Freja's eyebrows rose slightly.

She hadn't even thought about that. In his explanations of wolves, Embry had never mentioned how long they lived. If they were immortal or not. She knew that full Hasvfru lived extended lives - a few hundred years or so - but as she was half, she wasn't completely sure how that would affect her.

Suddenly even more questions flew into her mind.

"So Havsfru… you guys got that immortal gene?" Jacob asked. Freja looked over at him and then over to Embry, meeting his eyes. "Oh… sorry if I…"

"It's fine. Just remembering that Embry and I still have a lot to discuss," she said, smiling at him.

"I bet you do," he replied with a sigh. "I mean… again, thought we had just about seen and heard it all by now…"

"And then I showed up," Freja replied wryly. Jacob nodded and looked over at Embry.

"You'll work it out," he then said. "At least I think you will."

"Thanks."

OOOO

As Embry drove her back home, Freja sat silently. Just when she thought she was ready to speak, she would stop, unsure if she wanted to hear the answer. After spending time with the packs and getting to know them and about them, she wanted to ask him everything. But then at the same time she didn't.

"Out with it, Freja."

She looked over at him, finding him smiling warmly.

"I can tell you've got questions," he continued. Freja took a deep breath and slowly let it out.

"Will you… live forever?" she finally asked, her brow furrowed. Embry sighed, his eyes still fixed on the road.

"As long as we phase… and we do that as long as vampires are around, then we don't age. So I suppose we could," he admitted. He glanced at her. "You?"

"I don't know," Freja confessed. "I mean… we do age differently even on land. It's much slower, but we live longer in the ocean. At least that's what my grandparents say. But… I'm not full Havsfru, so… if I survive-"

"When you survive," he said, cutting her off. Freja nodded.

"When I survive, I just… I'm not sure. I know my grandparents will live longer than humans, even though they've been stripped of their true forms," she said, her brow furrowed.

"What?"

Freja's eyes widened as she realized that she had yet to share that with him. The truth about how her family came to be in Forks. Her parents' death.

"Ah, well… I spoke with my grandmother more last night and… they didn't come here by choice… well, my mother wanted to, but… the clan leader. He found out about my mother and father and exiled them to the land. Took their true forms. They're still Havsfru. Still have some things, but they can never take their true form again," she said.

She then closed her eyes, taking a deep breath before she said the next part of the story.

"Hey… whatever it is, it's okay," Embry said softly, reaching out to take her hand. Freja opened her eyes, looking over to see him smiling at her.

"My grandmother… she isn't sure what happened, but… she woke up one day and found my father in his bed… dead… and he was wet. Like he had been in the ocean. My mother had left a note, saying that she was sorry for everything and goodbye," Freja said. Embry was silent. "My mother… she would never hurt him intentionally, so it had to be an accident and… she shouldn't have been able to hurt him, but…"

Embry squeezed her hand and then lifted it to his lips, kissing it.

"That's not going to be us, Freja," he said.

"But… there's so much we don't know," Freja said.

"I know. And we'll figure it out. But I believe that you wouldn't hurt me," "he said, glancing at her. "I mean… you don't think that you would, do you?"

Freja shook her head.

"And for all we know, you can't affect me," he continued. "So there's no reason to get caught up in worrying."

Freja looked out of the window, his confidence starting to fill her. He had a point. He had heard her sing and was still fine. She hadn't hurt him yet. And likely never would. Perhaps she was worried about nothing.

"We'll just… take it a day at a time. We might be… different, but… we can still be together. Find our own brand of normal," Embry continued. "That I believe without a doubt."

Freja looked over at him, seeing his reassuring smile. She then looked down at their hands and nodded.

"Yea… perhaps you're right," she said. Embry chuckled.

"We'll be fine, Freja," he said, squeezing her hand. "However long we have together - which I like to think that it'll be a really long time - we're going to make the best of it. I'm just happy that I found you."

Freja met his eyes and couldn't help but grin.

"Me too."

OOOO

So I was going to wait until I had finished writing up through Chapt. 20 to post another chapter, but decided what the hell, I got three chapters done since the last time I posted. And I did actually plot out the rest of the story today, so that's good.

.2020 - Thanks!

Guest - Thanks so much! I'm glad that you're enjoying it. I'm having fun with this one. Just wrote a chapter today that is delightfully awkward and funny, so anxious to get around to posting it. ^_^

Thanks everyone for reading and following!