I pressed myself into Jacob's side, scanning the forest for the other werewolves. When they strode out from the trees, I blinked in shock. I'd had the image of the wolves planted in my mind, but these were just four oversized, half-naked boys.

Renee would be so jealous if she could see me right now.

I couldn't get rid of the impression that they were all four of them quadruplets. Something about they way they moved so fluidly, in synchronization to stand across from us in the road, the same long, round musculature and similar skin tones, the same hard set to their jaws. Their hair was even cropped similarly.

All four of them became furious in the same exact instant, when they realized I was standing next to Jacob.

Sam was by far the biggest, though Jacob had almost caught up to him at this point.

"What did you do, Jacob?" he demanded, his tone even, but cold.

One of the others, I wasn't sure if it was Jake or Paul since I hadn't met them before, spoke before Jacob could answer to defend himself.

"What the hell , Jacob! Why can't you just follow the fucking rules?" he threw his hands in the air angrily. "Is she more important than us? Than the whole tribe? Than the people getting killed? Have you lost your fucking mind ?"

"She can help us," Jacob said quietly, evenly.

"Help!" the boy barked out, beginning to tremble. "Oh, that's likely. I'm sure the leech-lover is just dying to help us slaughter one of them!"

"Don't talk about her like that," Jacob snapped, his voice rumbling with fury.

A shudder rippled through the other boy, along his shoulders and down his spine. My eyes widened.

"Paul! Calm down!" Sam commanded.

Paul shook his head back and forth, not in defiance but as if he was trying with all of his might to concentrate.

"Jeez, Paul," the boy who must have been Jared said disdainfully. "Get a grip, dude."

Paul whipped around to glare at him, his lips curling back in irritation. Then he shifted his glare in my direction, and Jacob took an automatic step forward, pushing me behind him.

That was a mistake.

"Right, protect her! " Paul roared in outrage, and I sucked in a shocked breath. Another convulsion rippled through him, and a real growl tore out from between his bared teeth.

"Paul!" Jacob and Sam both yelled at the same time.

Ah, hell!

Paul seemed to fall forward, vibrating violently. Halfway to the ground, there was a loud tearing noise, and the boy exploded.

Dark silver fur blew out rapidly from his skin which morphed and grew to a monstrous size. It seemed that I blinked and suddenly where there had been a boy there was now a wolf five times the size of him; and it was pissed .

In that same second, Jacob released my hand, stepping forward. Mid-stride, there was another loud ripping noise, and I gasped as Jacob exploded as well, his shape coalescing into an even bigger russet-brown wolf. If I had blinked I would have missed the entire transformation. Shreds of cloth flew through the air as his shorts were destroyed. My mind couldn't comprehend the size of such a beast fitting inside of Jacob, but I barely had time to contemplate it before the Jacob-wolf was launching himself at the crouching grey wolf across the road. I was so close that his tail brushed against me as he leaped.

"Jacob!" I screamed in terror.

The Jacob-wolf met the other wolf's attack head on, their furious snarls and snaps echoing off the trees like thunder.

The tiny scraps of what had been Jacob's clothes fluttered to the ground where he had been just a moment ago, and my eyes flickered back and forth over the fight, trying to make sense of what was happening but it was too quick for my eyes to track properly.

"Jacob!" I cried again, staggering forward a step when Sam's sharp voice stopped me in my tracks.

"Bella, stay where you are!" he ordered, and I froze. I was surprised I could even hear him over the din of the battling wolves. They were snapping and tearing at each other, their long, dagger-like teeth lunging at each other's throats. The Jacob-wolf seemed to have the upper hand, by virtue of sheer physical size and strength. He rammed his shoulder again and again at the grey wolf, driving him towards the trees.

"Take her to Emily's," Sam ordered the others, and jogged after the two snarling wolves who had disappeared into the trees. Sam kicked off his shoes before disappearing into the trees, the sounds of the battling wolves starting to get fainter as their fight continued on into the forest.

Embry started laughing.

I turned to him, my eyes frozen wide, my mouth slack.

He seemed to be laughing at my expression, slapping his knee heartily. "Well, that ain't something you see every day, now, is it Bella?" He looked so different from when I'd seen him in the garage all those months ago, but I realized how much more comfortable I was that I recognized him.

"Ugh. I do," the other boy, Jared grumbled. "Every damn day."

"Aw, Paul doesn't lose his shit every day, does he?" Embry disagreed, still chuckling. "Maybe like, every two out of three."

Jared stooped to pick up something off the ground. "Totally shredded, dude. Billy's gonna kill him. He said this was the last pair he could afford to buy Jake then he was on his own. Guess he's gonna go barefoot now," he snickered.

"Oh, hey! This one survived," Embry picked up a white sneaker off the ground, twirling it around his finger. "Jake can hop." Both boys dissolved into laughter at their joke.

"Do me a favour and grab Sam's shoes? The rest of this is headed for the trash," Jared sighed as he bent to start picking up scraps of cloth that had settled all over the ground.

Embry scooped up Sam's shoes, then jogged into the trees, returning after a moment with a pair of cut off jeans that Sam had been wearing draped over his arm.

They turned and seemed to remember I was still frozen there. Embry stepped closer, assessing me carefully.

"Hey, you're not gonna, like, puke or faint or anything, right?" he asked apprehensively.

"I don't think so," I managed.

"Uh… you don't look so good. Maybe you should sit down?" he eyed me dubiously. I nodded, throwing my hand out to steady myself against my truck as I slowly, jerkily lowered myself to the dirt road.

For the second time that morning, I put my head between my knees. I seriously needed to reconsider my life choices.

"Jake should have warned us," I heard Embry complain.

"Well what did he expect, bringing his girlfriend into this?" Jared muttered.

"Well, wolf's outta the bag now." Embry sighed. "Way to go, Jake!"

I lifted my head to glare at the two boys, and they piped down immediately.

"Aren't you two worried about them at all?" I demanded.

Embry snorted. "Worried? Why?"

"Uh, because your friends just ran through those trees ripping each other apart! They could get hurt!"

Embry and Jared paused for a split second, then howled with laughter.

"Man, I hope Paul gets a mouthful of him. Would teach him a lesson," Jared said.

I blanched.

"Pssh! Yeah right!" Embry puffed out his chest, shaking his head. "Did you see Jacob? Phased on the fly , bro! Even Sam can't change like that on a dime," He snapped his fingers. "It took him, what, two seconds to attack? The boy's got a gift."

"Paul's been fighting longer. I'll bet you ten bucks he leaves a mark."

"You're on! Jake's a natural, dude. He's got this in the bag."

They spat on their hands and shook on it, and I made a disgusted face. Boys.

I pulled myself shakily to my feet, testing out my stomach's equilibrium. So far so good. I tried to comfort myself with their cavalier attitude. Apparently this wasn't as dire as it seemed.

Jared glanced at me as I stood. "Let's get her to Emily's, I bet she'll have food waiting," his voice grew sweet, and he licked his lips, looking fondly off into the distance. He glanced back at me. "Mind giving us a ride?"

"Sure! Hop on in," I said, glad my voice wasn't as shaky as I felt.

"Hmm… you want me to drive, Bella? You still look a little green," Embry offered, not unkindly. I capitulated with ease.

"Sure."

"Keys?"

"Ignition."

Embry held out his hand in a very gentlemanly fashion and helped me climb into the truck.

"You'll have to ride in the back, dude," he said to Jared, who shrugged and acquiesced.

"'S fine. I have a weak stomach anyways. Don't wanna be in there if she blows."

I stuck my tongue out at Jared who laughed good-naturedly, as Embry started up the engine.

"Nah, I bet she's tougher than that. She runs with vampires."

"Five bucks?"

"Pssh. Done. I feel guilty taking your money like this." He turned to me, lowering his voice. "Do me a favour and don't throw up, okay? I've only got a ten, and if Paul gets his teeth into Jacob…"

"No prob," I whispered, feeling like I may not be able to keep that promise.

Then we were rumbling along the road in no time.

Oh, hey Charlie. Yeah, me and Jacob made up, but he's a giant wolf sometimes now so I'm gonna go hang out with the crew, is that alright?

I imagined the fake conversation in my head to amuse myself as I contemplated my current situation, driving back into town with two cheerful werewolves.

"Hey, how did Jacob get around the injunction anyways?" Embry asked curiously.

"He didn't, really. He just asked me to guess and I guessed right."

Embry pursed his lips, thinking. "Yeah, I guess that would work…" He chuckled. "Leave it to Jake to find a way around an executive order."

"Where are we heading again?" I asked.

"Emily's. She's Sam's i… girlfriend, well, fiancee now, I think. They'll meet us back there after Sam gives it to them for what just happened," he paused, smirking. "And after Jacob and Paul scrounge up some new clothes, if Paul even has any left." He shook his head bemusedly. I took it from his tone and JAred's earlier comments that this wasn't an uncommon occurrence for Paul.

"Does Emily know… about…?"

"Yeah, definitely. Also… don't stare, when you see her. It bugs Sam."

I frowned. "Why would I stare?"

Embry looked uncomfortable. "Well… you'll see in a minute. As you can obviously tell from today, werewolves aren't the safest to be around even on a good day." He changed the subject quickly. "By the way, are you okay with the whole thing with the blood-sucker in the clearing the other day? I know we were technically on Cullen turf but he did look like he was about to make you lunch dinner and dessert," he looked at me apologetically, and I shook my head.

"No, I'm totally, totally fine with it. Thank you, guys, for saving me," I said quietly. Jared and Embry both beamed with pride.

"Hey girl, I'd break the treaty for you anytime if it means I get to kill a leech!" Jared crowed from the bed of the truck, and Embry snickered. I ignored him, refocusing on Embry.

"Why would what you did be breaking the treaty? I remember Jacob telling me about it a while ago, but I don't know the details."

"Damn, Jake is such a sell-out! He'd tell all the tribe's secrets just to impress a girl," Embry complained, but there was no venom in his voice, and I took his teasing in stride. "But yeah, technically when we're past the border of the reservation we're not supposed to kill any blood-suckers, friend or foe. That is, until they break the treaty first. We didn't know if the black-haired one was a relative or something of theirs, so we definitely took the risk but…" he glanced at me. "I think it's a good thing we did."

"For sure," I nodded, grimacing. I wondered something, suddenly.

"What would one of them have to do to break the treaty?"

"Bite a human," he answered simply. "Jake wasn't hella keen on letting it get that far, so we jumped."

I blushed, remembering Laurent's lips being mere inches from my throat. "Yeah… thanks," I said weakly.

"Our pleasure." He sounded like he meant it in the literal sense.

Embry drove past the easternmost house on the highway, then turned off on a small dirt road.

"Damn, Bella. Your truck is slow. Why did you let Jacob sell you this piece of junk?" Embry griped.

I laughed. "Charlie bought it off Billy for me as a gift. Guess it was his way of making sure I did the speed limit."

"Riiiight. Papa Police man." Embry glanced back at Jared. "Remind me not to piss off Bella or her dad."

"Hello? Chief Swan? Yeah… I think Embry kidnapped Bella… yeah, 6'4", 210, dorky face..." Jared pretended to call my father, and we all shared a laugh.

At the end of the lane was an adorable cottage that had once been grey, but still held adorable stone detailing and was full of charm. The window boxes beside the weathered blue door were spilling over with bright orange and yellow marigolds, giving a cheery look to the place. I immediately loved it.

We stepped out of the truck, and Embry held his hand out expectantly to Jared who rolled his eyes.

"I don't have my wallet on me."

"Later then," Embry said cheerfully, taking in a deep whiff of the air. "Mmm… Emily's cooking."

They climbed up the one step and entered the house without knocking. I followed timidly after then, feeling like I was intruding on a peaceful world I wasn't a part of.

The front room, like Billy's house, was mostly kitchen, but it was decorated in a pleasing, earthy, eclectic design that spoke of the warmth of its inhabitants.

A young woman with satiny copper skin and long, straight, jet-black hair was standing at the counter by the sink, popping big muffins out of a tin and placing them on a big plate. For a second, I thought the reason Emby had asked me not to stare at her was because she was so beautiful, and Sam was prone to jealousy.

Then, she asked in a sweet, melodic voice- "You guys hungry?" She turned around to face us full on, a smile on half of her face.

The right side of her face was horribly scarred from her hairline to her chin by three thick, angry red lines. They were vivid in colour, though obviously long healed. One scar pulled down the corner of her dark, almond-shaped right eye, another twisted the right side of her mouth into a permanent grimace. The left side of her face was heartbreakingly beautiful, so the scars were that much more devastating.

Thankful for Embry's warning, I quickly turned my eyes to the muffins in her hands. They smelled divine, like fresh blueberries and cream.

"Oh!" Emily exclaimed, surprised. "Who's this?"

I looked back at her, trying to focus on just her eyes.

"Bella Swan," Jared introduced me with a shrug. Apparently I'd been a topic of conversation before. "Who else?"

"Hmm… leave it to Jacob to find a way around," Emily murmured. She stared at me, expression carefully guarded "So, you're the vampire girl."

I sized her up, a small smile playing around the corner of my lips.

"So, you're the wolf girl."

A split second passed, then she was laughing a rich, tinkling laugh, as did Embry and Jared. The left half of her face was radiant. "I guess I am!" she chuckled, turning to Jared. "Where's Sam?"

"Bella, er… surprised Paul this morning. Sam is smoothing things out."

Emily rolled her good eye. "Oh, Paul," she sighed. "Do you think they'll be long? I was just about to start the eggs."

"Don't worry!" Embry said quickly. "If they're late, we won't let anything go to waste."

Emily laughed again, shaking her head. "Uh huh. No doubt," she agreed. "Bella, are you hungry? Go ahead and help yourself to a muffin before these hooligans snatch them all up." She shot a warning look at Embry and Jared who tried to sit and look as innocent as possible.

"Thank you," I said emphatically, just as my stomach cramped in hunger. It had been a long morning, and it wasn't even 9 am. I peeled away the butterfly print paper and began munching on it.

Embry tried to pick up his third muffin but Emily quickly thwarted him with a sharp rap of a wooden spoon on his fingers.

"Save some for your brothers," she chastised him. The word surprised me, but no one blinked. I remembered back to my initial impression that they were brothers, and realized I'd been more spot on than I'd thought.

"Pig," Jared commented, while sneakily sliding his hand toward the plate. A quick wave of the wooden spoon in his face cowed him.

I leaned against the counter and watched the three of them banter like a true family. Emily's kitchen was a cheery place, bright with freshly painted white cupboards and white oak floorboards. She had a few orchids here and there, and a golden pothos with its long trailing vines decorating the space above the cabinets. On the little round walnut table, an antique blue and white china pitcher was overflowing with fresh wildflowers. Embry and Jared seemed entirely at ease here, and I could even feel myself relaxing, smiling to myself.

Emily began mixing a humongous batch of eggs, several dozen from the look of it, in a big yellow bowl She had the sleeves of her lavender shirt pushed up, and I could see that the jagged scars extended all the way down her arm to the back of her right hand.

Hanging out with werewolves truly did have its risks, just as Embry had said.

At that moment the front door opened and Sam stepped through.

"Emily," he said, and so much love saturated his face that I instantly blushed and felt intrusive and awkward. He moved to her in a few powerful strides, then take her face gently in his wide hands. He leaned down and kissed the angry scars on her right cheek before kissing her.

"Hey, hey, none of that, I'm eating," Jared protested around a mouthful of muffin. Sam blithely held up his middle finger at Jared, and Embry almost fell backwards laughing. I turned my face away to give Sam and Emily some privacy and was happy to see Jacob and Paul stride in the door at that moment.

I was pleasantly surprised to see them laughing and joking around like old friends. After exchanging a few play jabs, Jacob's eyes scanned the room anxiously before landing on me. His face broke out in a grin and he practically skipped over to me, snagging a couple muffins on his way over.

"Hey, Bella!" he swept me up in a hug, spinning me around. "How're you holding up? Sorry about before."

"No worries, I'm good! Just eating breakfast," I smiled, wagging my half-eaten muffin in his face. He feigned a bite at it and I squealed, trying to hold it out of his reach.

"Oh, man!" Jared wailed, and we all turned to look at him and Embry examining a faint pink line on Paul's arm. Embry was exultant.

"Fifteen dollars!"

"Was that you?" I whispered to Jacob, and he winked at me.

"Ehh, I barely touched him. It'll be gone by sundown."

"By sundown?" I asked, confused. The mark on Paul's arm looked like it was weeks old at worst.

"Wolf thing, I'll explain later," Jacob whispered back.

"Are you okay?" I looked over him worriedly, but he just gave me a smug smile.

"Not a scratch on me."

"Alright, guys," Sam called finally, instantly commanding the attention in the room. I could see why he was the leader of the pack with his quiet, calm strength. Emily continued fixing up breakfast, and Sam still kept his hand on her shoulder in an unconscious, loving gesture. "Jacob has info for us. Jake?"

"I know what the red-head leech is after," Jacob said, voice steady and sure. Paul looked unsurprised, so I assume he'd gotten the story from Jake when they were duking it out earlier. Jared and Embry looked stunned.

"Well?" Jared demanded.

"She is trying to avenge her mate, only it wasn't the black-haired leech. The Cullens got her mate last year, and now she wants revenge." He glanced at me. "She's after Bella, now."

I gave an involuntary shudder, and all six pairs of eyes in the room were trained on me in a mixture of sympathy, shock, and horror.

"But… she's just a girl. A human girl!" Embry sounded as horrified as I felt.

"I know it doesn't make sense, but that's why the blood-sucker's been trying to get past us. She's headed to Forks."

They continued to stare at me, a few of them with mouths agape. I ducked my head, feeling self-conscious suddenly.

"Excellent," Jared finally said. "We have bait."

Jacob whipped the can opener at Jared so fast it was a blur, and he caught it just as quickly, looking unperturbed.

"Bella is not bait."

"Okay, but you know what I mean," Jared said unabashed.

"So," Sam interrupted pointedly. "We'll be changing our patrol patterns slightly. We'll try leaving a few holes and see if she falls for it. Unfortunately, that means we'll have to split up, which I'm not a huge fan of, but, if she's really after Bella, she probably won't try to take advantage of our divided numbers.

"Quil's got to be joining us soon," Embry mumbled sadly. "Then we can split evenly."

Everyone looked down, the same hopelessness perfusing their expressions. No matter how closely knit they were as a group, they still wouldn't wish this life on anyone else.

"Well… we won't count on that," Sam said in a low voice, then seemed to gather himself again. "Paul, Jared, and Embry will take the outer perimeter, and Jacob and I will take the interior. We'll collapse in when we have her trapped.

Emily looked less than enthused that Sam would be in the smaller pairing, and her worry rubbed off on me, and I glanced at Jacob, concerned.

Sam caught my eye, then. "Jacob thinks it would be best for you to spend as much time as possible in La Push. It will be harder for her to find you so easily, just in case."

"What about Charlie?" I thought, the memory of how James had tricked me with my mother's voice echoing in my mind. I couldn't afford to let that happen, again.

"Well, March Madness is going on. I think Harry and Billy can try their best to keep him down here when he's not at work," Jacob said.

Sam turned to me. "It's your choice, Bella. Only you can weigh the risks and determine where you would rather be. You saw this morning how volatile and dangerous things can get around werewolves. If you choose to stay with us, I cannot guarantee your safety."

"I won't hurt her…" Jacob mumbled, looking down.

Sam acted as if he hadn't spoken. "Is there somewhere else you would feel safe…?"

I thought for a long moment. Renee was out, completely. I couldn't drag her into this. At least here I had a fighting chance, with the wolves helping me.

"No. I don't want to lead her anywhere else but Forks."

Sam nodded decisively. "That's true. It's better to keep her here where we can end this."

I flinched, anxiety roiling in my stomach. I knew on a logical level that I needed the pack to help me survive this, and to be frank they'd already been keeping me alive for weeks, but it was still a difficult pill for me to swallow. I didn't want any of them getting in harm's way.

I glanced at Jacob. He looked completely unperturbed at the idea of hunting and fighting vampires.

"Food's ready!" Emily announced, and all strategic talk was ancient history. The boys all crowded around the table at once as Emily set down a buffet-sized platter of scrambled eggs, and the boys began to scarf them down in record time. Emily and I stayed at the counter away from the craziness. She had made us more reasonably portioned plates and a cup of tea, and I thanked her. She watched the bedlam with affectionate eyes, and there was no doubt in my mind that this was her family.

All in all, not a scene someone would have expected from a pack of werewolves.

"Thank you guys, so much," I said as Jacob and I were preparing to leave after a little while. "I literally owe you all my life. If you guys ever need anything…" I glanced around, gratitude welling up in my throat. I was incredibly lucky to be surrounded by people who would go out of their way to help me like this.

"Aww, shucks, Bella. It's nothing! Besides, you're basically the biggest provider of leech-hunting entertainment around, so really we should be thanking you! " Embry grinned, narrowly dodging Jacob's attempt to cuff him around the ears. We headed out to my truck, a chorus of good-natured laughter floating after us.

I spent the rest of the day in La Push with Jacob, wandering around and spending time with Billy. He left a message on Charlie's phone and at the station, and Charlie showed up around dinner time with a coupe of large pizzas. It was good he brought two large ones because Jacob ate one all by himself.

I saw Charlie eyeing us suspiciously all night, apparently confused by our abrupt turnaround. I was glad he seemed to be chalking it up to silly teenager antics when he finally relaxed and started asking Jacob questions about his hair ( Eh, you know me, Charlie. I'm all about convenience. ) and what he'd been up to lately.

I knew that as soon as we left Jacob would take off to run around as a wolf like he had been periodically throughout the afternoon. They had apparently chased Victoria halfway to Canada last night and she'd yet to make another foray, but the wolves were constantly on the lookout.

I didn't bother hoping she would give up entirely. I wasn't known to have that kind of luck.

Jacob walked me to my truck that night, lingering by the door while he waited for Charlie to drive away first.

"Don't be afraid tonight, okay?" Jacob said in a low voice while Charlie pretended to have trouble with his seat belt. "We'll be out there looking after you."

"I won't worry about myself, how's that," I offered with a small smile.

"You're silly. Hunting v- leeches is fun! It's like, literally the only upside of this whole mess."

I shook my head. "If I'm silly, then you're dangerously unbalanced," I teased.

He chuckled, wrapping me in a big bear hug. "Get some rest, Bella, honey. You look exhausted."

"I'll try," I sighed.

Charlie honked his horn impatiently, and I threw him a scowl.

"See you tomorrow," Jacob said, stepping back and waving to Charlie. "Come down first thing."

I stared at him for a long moment, some emotion filling my chest with a warm, flickering light.

"I will."

Charlie followed me home, but I paid little attention to the headlights in my rear view mirror. Instead, my mind was somewhere off in the forest with Jacob, wondering if he'd joined the others yet.

When we got home, I tried to nonchalantly hurry to the stairs, but I was intercepted en route.

"Bella, can you explain tonight? I'm a little lost. I thought Jacob was joining a gang and you two were fighting," he seemed confused and more than a little disgruntled.

"Well, I went down yesterday and we talked it all out a little more calmly. I got the chance to meet Sam and his fiancee Emily and they seemed really nice. I think Jacob was just intimidated cause they're all super intense about 'tribal pride' and stuff and he misunderstood them. We made up and I actually really like them all, so," I shrugged, hoping my half-true explanation was good enough to get past Charlie's lie detector. "Just a gigantic misunderstanding."

His face had opened up though, a small smile playing on his lips. "I hadn't heard Sam made it official with Emily, how great for them! Poor girl…"

"Yeah," I said sadly, remembering the jagged scars. "Do you know what happened to her?"

Charlie hummed in a low tone, shaking his head. "Mauled by a bear up north, during salmon spawning season. Horrible, horrible accident. I think it's been more than a year since it's happened. I heard Sam was pretty devastated over it."

"That is horrible," I echoed. More than a year ago? That must have been when there was only one wolf in La Push.

Poor Sam Uley. I wondered what went through his mind every time he saw Emily's face.

That night, in spite of knowing I was relatively safe for once, I had trouble falling asleep. My mind was racing, mulling over the day and the many conversations I'd had. Jacob and I were back in a good spot, a great spot even. Now there were truly no more secrets between us. Nothing left unsaid. He was truly one of the only people in the world I could talk to about anything and everything.

I dreamt that night of the beach and trees again, of La Push, but this time there was no urgency when I walked, no need to run to or from anything, and every so often I saw a flash of russet-brown fur in the trees, and I knew I was safe.