Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot!

It didn't hit her until she was undressing in the forest behind Paul's house, feeling the cold air brush against her in a way not unlike his touch.

Pulling off her underwear, seeing the evidence of what had just transpired between them written on the cloth sent tingles down her spine. She couldn't bring herself to regret what had happened; the way he had looked at her, cared for her afterward told her it wasn't meaningless to him. But old habits die hard.

Was it just the imprint? She thought as she finished undressing, folding her clothes into a tight bundle to pick up later. I can't pretend like I didn't want it to happen, but was it too soon? I don't want him to think I'm ready to complete the bond because of this. What if he-

A branch snapped in the distance, causing Bella's train of thought to be cut off as her senses sharpened. Instinctively she tilted her head, waiting for another noise to alert her. Her pulse quickened as she listened, her body moving without thought into a crouch, ready to shift at a moment's notice.

When another snap did not come, she sniffed the air, her newly enhanced sense of smell still far greater than a human's in this form. Instantly, the tension left her body as she rolled her eyes.

"Nice one, Jake." She grumbled, setting down her clothes before allowing her wolf to take over. The shift came easily, heat licking up her spine for only a moment before she was standing on paws instead of feet. Becoming a wolf was the easy part; preventing it from happening was another thing altogether. Shaking out her fur in a distinctly animal-like motion, she trotted over to where Jake waited for her in the thick brush.

As she approached him, her snout twitched as she breathed in his scent. Friendtruealphatrustfamilyfriendpack-

She shook her head to stop the sudden mantra in her mind, unsure why his scent suddenly caused such a reaction. If Jacob heard -he probably did- he didn't mention it.

You're a natural, Bells! Jake laughed, playfully shoving his shoulder against her as they began to run deeper into the dark forest. She could hear the creatures in the forest scurrying to hide as they tore past, instinctively avoiding the predators that prowled through the dense trees. Bella huffed a laugh in response.

I guess it must be in my blood, she responded, briefly thinking about how said bloodline caused her to be here, running in the forest past sundown, in the first place. Hopefully that means I won't burst into a fur coat whenever a certain best friend of mine pisses me off.

You couldn't take me even if you tried, Jacob snickered, darting down from his towering height (even as a wolf) to attempt a swipe at her ear. She dodged, swiftly rearing back to avoid his muzzle, and somehow managed to dole out some punishment of her own in the form of a well-placed nip on his shoulder. Ow! Dammit, Bells!

Now it was she who snickered, pushing herself a few paces ahead of him to avoid retaliation. You might be bigger, but you're still slow as hell!

Oh, you're on! Shooting ahead of her smaller form in a burst of speed, all she could hear was Jacob laughing as she raced to catch up, determined to prove the mini-Alpha wrong.

The rest of the patrol passed quickly after that, with both wolves exhausted by the time Sam and Jared phased in to relieve them. Apparently racing for two hours straight across both La Push and Forks could tire out even a wolf. Even the pride of her 'victory' wasn't enough to prevent her paws from dragging as they ran to meet the two wolves.

I see that you two managed to entertain yourselves for Bella's first patrol, Sam stated, amusement audible in his tone. Anything to report?

Unless you count Jake finally realizing he's slower than me, nothing new. The smaller obsidian wolf laughed, glancing at Jake from the corner of her eye to see him rolling his eyes in defeat.

Sam mimicked the russet wolf in his eyes' descent to the sky before moving closer to the she-wolf. She watched as his nostrils flared, and knew instinctively that he was checking to see she was alright after her first patrol. Her own nostrils flared in response, inhaling his scent as he stood next to her.

AlphahomebrotheralphasafeEmilyprotectalphahome- She shook her head and huffed when she realized a mantra was playing in her head once again in response to his scent.

Scent is more powerful to us than humans. It tells us who we can trust, and allows us to ensure those important to us are safe. It'll take a while before that mantra of yours calms down in this form. Sam's voice rumbled in her mind, soothing her worries for the time being.

Another weird wolf thing, huh?

Once you get a hang of it, you can scent people's emotions as well. Kinda helpful when your imprint is pissed and you have no idea why, Jared chuckled, a brief image of Kim glaring at him rushing through the pack mind before his mind was guarded once more.

Paul is always pissed, good luck with that one Bells, Jacob jutted in, laughing as he began to retreat into the woods. Bella glanced at Sam out of the corner of her eye, seeing him nod slightly before she made her way towards Jake.

The two wolves walked in companionable silence through the dark forest, the low hum of the pack mind distracting Bella as they made their way back to their starting point in the woods. Every now and then a thought or comment would stick out from one of the three other wolves currently shifted, giving her snippets of her packmates' minds. Part of her wondered what they saw in hers.

Half of it is a constant mantra of Paulpaulpaulpaulpaul, Jacob snorted shaking Bella from her thoughts. It was easy to forget they weren't private anymore.

What do you mean? I've barely mentioned him today, she ground out, shooting an annoyed look at her best friend.

All wolves with imprints have that, you just gotta listen for it. It's like white noise in the background until you focus on it. Part of the deal with having an imprint, you're never really not thinking about them.

In response Bella sharpened her senses, listening closely to what had previously been a mere hum of noise. Unsurprisingly, Jacob was correct; she could clearly hear the repeated thoughts of Sam and Jared about their imprints. While they weren't actively focusing on them, it was obvious that part of their conscience was always tuned into their mates, worrying and thinking about their every move. It was more than a little disturbing.

By the time Bella pulled herself from the whirlpool of thoughts, she and Jacob had reached the area she had left her clothing. Parting ways, they both took a moment to phase back (the she-wolf was so exhausted that her wolf was happy to sit back and let her take the reins) and clothe themselves before meeting in the small clearing. As she pulled on her clothes, Bella could easily smell Paul's scent coming from the fabric.

While not quite as addicting as the true source, it still lulled her wolf into a nearly catatonic state, making her eyes partially close as she breathed in. Jolting back, she blinked. Is that-

Sniffing again to confirm, she realized she could pick up Paul's emotions from his scent. At least, the emotions he was feeling while he was touching her. He smelled-

Happyarousedlovehappyfrustratedarousedsurprisedhappylove-

The she-wolf pulled back abruptly, shaking her head to clear her mind of the scent, however useless the action may be. Furrowing her brow, Bella chose to ignore a select few of the emotions she had picked up on as she redressed.

Meeting Jacob in the clearing, she rose an eyebrow when she noticed he was actually wearing a shirt for once. "Hot date tonight?"

Jacob laughed, his smile infectious as he bumped his shoulder into her. Rolling her eyes, she lightly shoved him back as they made their way back towards Sam and Emily's so she could get her truck. "Says the one wearing a sweater and jeans. Fur coat too thin for ya, Bells?"

"Some of us have to drive home, not just traipse through the woods to get back."

"Touché."

They walked in silence for a short while, exhaustion clouding Bella's mind as she tried to determine how quickly she could drive home in order to get into her bed sooner rather than later. The thought of having to go to school tomorrow made her groan internally, already dreading the long hours she would have to endure before she could sleep again.

The woods were quiet as they walked, her eyes sharpening to see in the near-complete darkness that surrounded them. Only the moon lit their path through the trees, glinting off the leaves and branches in a way she could never truly appreciate as a human.

"So…Paul-" Jacob started, making Bella turn her head sharply.

"I don't want to talk about it."

Jacob scuffed, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand, "Well that fuckin' sucks for you, because we're gonna talk about it. There's no way you've gotten over everything that happened between you two before the imprint."

"I never said I was over it, Jake." Bella ground out, feeling her hackles rise in response to his observation. She hated how well he knew her; hated that she was able to lie to herself just fine but whenever Jake saw her he was able to instantly break down the walls of denial she had built around herself. It was annoying.

"Bella, I was literally in your head for the past two hours. Not only that, but I'm your best friend. I know when you're avoiding something." Jacob stopped walking, turning to look at her as she halted as well. She narrowed her eyes at him, and he copied the movement. "So fess up, what's going on between you and Paul?"

"Listen, Jake, just don't. Please don't." She silently begged him with her eyes to drop it, not wanting to have this conversation now or ever. She didn't even know the answer to his question herself. She had no idea what she and Paul were other than the mates that fate had deemed them to be.

"You can't avoid this conversation. You avoided everything and everyone for months after the leeches left. I'm not going to sit back and let it fucking happen again. So you can be mad at me all you want, but we're not going anywhere until you start talking." His eyes faintly glowed, his wolf showing in his frustration.

Her lips curled in anger, feeling her wolf begin to rise -albeit reluctantly- at his challenge. Looking at the way his jaw was set and how his stance was rigid, she knew her friend was serious. Fine. "You want me to start talking? Fine. I have no fucking idea what Paul and I are because whenever I'm with him my wolf won't let me think a single thing that doesn't involve getting in his pants."

"And when I'm away from him, all I can think about is how fucked up this whole situation is, and how I had no choice once again in what happens to me. Even as a fucking wolf I don't get a choice! Every time I feel like I have some control over my life, something comes along and rips it away from me! Do you know how infuriating that is?" Bella growled, her voice nearly shouting in her anger. Tears of frustration began to well up in her eyes as she continued, barely taking a breath before the words came pouring out once more.

"I become a wolf, arguably one of the strongest creatures in the world, and I don't even get to process that for a second before I'm tied to someone for eternity! I never get a choice, and maybe it's selfish but dammit I can't fucking stand it! And I hate it even more because I don't hate him! I physically cannot hate him, Jake!" Her cheeks were wet with her tears as she felt her fingertips begin to shake, the emotions that she had avoided for days bubbling out of her in an endless stream.

"He could do anything, anything and I wouldn't be able to hate him. No matter how bad it gets, no matter what happens, we're tied together. And I'm so scared to get hurt again and I can't stop it this time and-"

Her words were cut off as Jacob wrapped her in his arms, her sobs muffled against his shirt. He gripped her fiercely, and she knew if she were human more than a few ribs would be cracked. The woman clung to her best friend, tears spilling over her cheeks as she tried to breathe through the sobs that wracked her body. He placed a hand on her head, whispering words of comfort as she exhausted herself with her tears.

When she was finally able to breathe again, he pulled back from her to look her in the eyes. His normally dark chocolate eyes were bright gold, shining against the darkness. "I won't let that happen."

Bella opened her mouth to reply, but he cut her off. "I wasn't there last time. I wasn't there to stop Edward from hurting you, or to see what was happening even if you couldn't see it for yourself. But I'm here now, and I will never let anyone hurt you like that again. Mate or not."

She sniffed, wiping the tears from her cheeks as she choked out a watery laugh, "Thanks, Jake. Sorry I got your shirt wet, the one time you actually wear one."

Sensing that was about all she could handle for the night, Jacob allowed the change in topic. "I'll be sending you my laundry bill."

"Hey, it's not like I bled on it! And since when do you go to the cleaners?"

"Since you would be footing the bill," He laughed, winking at her as she rolled her eyes. Shortly after they arrived back at Sam and Emily's, where Jacob bid her goodnight before walking towards his home a short walk away. Bella sighed as she slid into the cab of her truck, resting her forehead against the steering wheel. If running patrol with Jacob hadn't drained the last of her energy, the conversation that they just had did.

As tired as she was, she somehow managed to keep her eyes open for the drive back home. Entering the house, Bella saw from the corner of her eye the stovetop clock flashing 12:47, making her groan internally. At least this time it's before 2 in the morning.

It was past one in the morning by the time Bella's head hit her pillow. Exhaustion, both physical and emotional, swept over her body, making the young woman sigh. She could hear Charlie snoring in his room, leaves rustling outside from the wind, but the sounds only pushed her closer to the edge of unconsciousness. Her eyes had barely closed before she was already drifting off to sleep…

The glass cut into her skin, causing a stream of blood to drip down the palms of her hands. Everything was a blur. She knew that she was in the forest; she could hear the sound of animals moving through the bushes and branches moving from the strong winds.

Where did the glass come from? She thought to herself, turning around. She found her answer. In front of her was the old Cullen household, with the large glass windows in pieces on the grass.

Her vision began to sway, making her fight to keep her eyes open. She felt as if her body was being pulled into the ground below her, making her feel sluggish and disoriented. When she could see again, the woman took a closer look at the house. Her breath halted in her throat.

The house was on fire.

Her eyes widened when the sound of shattered glass reached her ears, and she took a step forward. Suddenly, she heard someone scream from inside the house. She knew instantly who it was. Edward.

Bella ran up to the door and went to turn the handle when she noticed that it was red with heat. Cursing, she pushed her body weight against the door, slamming herself against it over and over again. If she were human the bones in the left side of her body would be shattered.

The she-wolf knew that she had to hurry. Panic built in her chest, feelings of helplessness started to overtake her before she growled in frustration. Slamming one last time against the white door, it gave away in front of her, causing her to stumble inside.

What she saw made her want to scream.

There, right in the foyer, was Edward Cullen. His clothes were burned, along with most of his body. No blood came from the burns, only a shiny liquid -that Bella recognized as venom- poured over his body, making his skin glossy with the substance. Most of his left arm was already in ashes next to him on the wooden floorboards. Part of her wondered why he wasn't moving; he should have been able to get out of the house within the span of a heartbeat, so why wasn't he moving?

Bella took a step closer to him, determined to save him from the growing flames. But before she could reach him, a wooden beam from the caving walls fell in front of her. Bella looked around in panic. She couldn't jump over it. The flames were practically to the ceiling, and Bella was beginning to feel weak from the smoke. Even with her newly acquired supernatural healing, every breathe felt like lava sliding down her throat into her lungs. The air itself was blistering, making her eyes water and her legs shake. But she couldn't, wouldn't leave him. Not again.

"Let me go, Bella." Edward whispered, and somehow she was able to hear him over the groans of the burning house. She looked up and met his eyes through the smoke.

"I'm so sorry, Edward." The young woman cried, tears falling from her eyes. For the second time, she couldn't save him. Once again she was going to have to stand by and let him die.

"I forgive you."

Another beam fell, and this time it was right where Edward had been standing. Bella tried to see him through the smoke, but he was lost in the flames.

The young woman bolted upright in bed, panting and sweating from the nightmare. She could still feel the heat from the fire, feel the pain of the glass biting into her hands. Still trying to catch her breath, she looked down at her hands, almost convinced there would be blood. The only thing she found was crescent-shaped imprints on her palms from clenching her fists so tightly in her sleep.

What the hell was that? She thought, shakily bringing her hands up to her face. She rested her elbows on her knees, cradling her head in her hands as she tried to process the dream.

After all these months, why would she be having a nightmare about Edward's death now? She could easily tell herself it was simply due to telling the pack about Edward, but she knew better. The she-wolf knew it was partly because of what happened with Paul; no matter how well the imprint healed the hole in her chest, she would always feel guilty for moving on. For living, even though that was all Edward wanted for her when he left her.

Was that what it was? My mind reminding me that he told me to move on? To be happy without him? I know I don't need his permission but…

But it still somehow soothed her to think that wherever Edward was, he had forgiven her for choosing life. Even if that life came at the cost of his own.

The thought made her clench her jaw because it simply wasn't fair.

Why did he have to die for me to be happy?

Bella didn't realize it, but she was pushing her turmoiled emotions into the imprint bond. The panic, frustration, guilt; were all being broadcasted to her imprint in waves. The young woman had no idea she was inadvertently calling out to Paul for comfort; that is until she felt his response.

It was a small prodding in the back of her mind, and at first, Bella couldn't distinguish the feeling from her own emotions. The feeling was questioning, searching for answers within her own mind and emotions. Bella's brow furrowed, confused as to why Paul would be searching her out in the middle of the night. She didn't have time to investigate the feeling further, because she could feel that Paul was nearby. Bella could hear his paws hitting the forest floor as he ran towards her house, his heartbeat elevated. She could feel his concern through their bond, and suddenly realized she had been pushing her feelings into their bond.

Shit.

Feeling horrible for forcing her emotions onto him, she jumped up from her bed, ready to tell him she was fine and that he could go home. As much as she wanted to see him, she knew he got even less sleep than she did. The last thing he needed to be doing was doing a welfare check on her in the middle of the night.

Bella quickly opened her window and looked out into the darkness. She could see Paul approaching in his wolf form, and made the split-second decision to meet him outside. She swung her body out of the window, landing gracefully on the soft grass below just as Paul reached the edge of the forest.

He seamlessly phased between one step and the next, his bare skin practically glowing under the moonlight. For a split second, Bella stopped and simply stared at the man before her, desire and awe coursing through her body. Their bond tugged at her body fiercely, The wild, animalistic part of her snarled for her to do something, anything that would get her body closer to his. Bella wasn't sure how, but she could feel her eyes beginning to turn amber as her wolf scratched closer to the eyes roaming his body, drinking in the sight greedily. She made to move forward, intent on continuing what Paul hadn't let her start at his home when she saw the look on his face. Bella froze, the concern in his eyes dousing her arousal like a bucket of cold water.

The wolf inside her growled in frustration, but then seemed to purr in the satisfaction that Paul was worried about her. Bella internally shook her head, pushing the beast down for the time being. You are not running the show right now.

Continuing to walk towards her, he stopped only a few inches in front of her before reaching a hand up to her, softly caressing the side of her face. She tried to resist the urge to lean into his touch and failed miserably. Staring up into his dark eyes, she tried to find the willpower to tell him she was okay, and that he could go home. Everything in her body was telling her otherwise.

"What happened?" He spoke softly, as if not to spook her. It surprised her how differently he treated her after the pack meeting; his once harsh words and biting tone turned soft and caring within the span of a few hours. Part of her still didn't want to relax around him when he was like this, still didn't trust that his emotions and intentions wouldn't change in a split second. Her heart lurched at the thought, painfully twisting in her chest in defiance against her mistrust of her mate.

"Nothing," she whispered back, afraid her voice would break the bubble that his presence had placed around her, "I just had a bad dream."

Paul narrowed his eyes at her, unconvinced by her explanation. "That must've been one hell of a bad dream. I could feel how upset you were, Bella."

Despite the sense of calm that Paul was eliciting in her, she still managed to feel guilty for being the reason he wasn't getting some desperately needed sleep. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize that I was pushing how I was feeling into the bond."

Paul shook his head slightly, "Don't apologize for something you can't control. Besides, I don't want you hiding how you're feeling from me."

Part of her bristled at the unintentional order, but she forced the feeling down. As much as what she had told Jacob was true, that didn't mean she wanted to feel that way. Picking unnecessary fights with Paul wouldn't fix how she was feeling anyways. Nor would it help strengthen their bond; while Bella was far from trusting Paul completely, they were tied together permanently. She didn't want to spend the rest of her life playing tug-of-war with Paul.

Figuratively or literally.

So instead of allowing herself to tense up, she relaxed against his palm further and simply nodded. "I'll try."

His lips lifted in a small smile, seeming to recognize that Bella could've easily picked a fight instead. He leaned forward, having to bend down because of his towering height, and placed a soft kiss on her forehead. Butterflies fluttered in her stomach simultaneously with the flames that had suddenly been rekindled from minutes ago. Not being able to find a reason to resist the temptation, she made the split-second decision to push herself against Paul's naked body. The movement caused them both to moan as their body heat melted together, creating an all-encompassing inferno that burned her from the inside.

She pulled her head away from his hand as he removed his lips from her forehead, pausing only for a moment before meeting their lips together in a fierce kiss. Her hands instantly flew up to his shoulders, not quite tall enough to wrap them completely, as he bent down to wrap his arms around her back and waist. Their lips moved against one another seamlessly, both giving and taking as his tongue swept against her teeth before dancing with her own.

Bella moaned into the kiss when he reached a hand up to her hair, gently grasping at the hair at the nape of her neck to pull her closer to him. She could feel his chest vibrate as he growled in response, the sensation causing her already sensitized nipples to harden. His other hand pushed her closer against his body, any minuscule space between their bodies before now gone. Bella felt his hardened length against her stomach, the feeling causing her core to clench desperately in response.

Suddenly remembering what she had set out to do at his house, and again as her wolf almost took over moments ago, Bella ripped her mouth from his. Before he could open his mouth to question her, she trailed her kiss from his lips to his jaw, nipping and licking at the hot skin as she went. She could feel him tremble as she reached his neck, biting harder at the space where his neck met his shoulder.

"Bella…" He growled softly, his hands moving to pull her back up to his lips. She looked up, making eye contact with his dark eyes that were flickering with gold.

Without saying a word, she pushed him further into the forest behind him, her eyes able to see as clearly as if it were daytime. His brows furrowed for a moment in confusion, likely thinking she was sending him away. She proved him wrong as she began kissing his chest, her hands moving from his shoulders to follow her lips. His breath hitched when she ran a tongue over his nipple, her thumb following to spread the wetness.

She had no idea where this confidence came from, how she knew what to do to make him growl in pleasure. All she knew was she wanted more. More of those vibrating growls and soft noises that escaped his lips. She had a good idea of how to get them, too.

Just as she was about to move away in order to lower herself to her knees, a piercing howl rang through the air. She and Paul locked eyes, confusion evident on both of their faces. Not wanting to waste another second, Bella quickly stripped out of her clothing before phasing into the pack mind alongside Paul.

As they took off in the direction of the howl, the pack mind overwhelmed her senses. Voices were flowing together, making it difficult to discern who was phased.

Why would this happen?

Leechleechleech-

He's too young! I knew those fucking Cullen's wouldn't stay away for long.

Not the Cullen's-

What's happening to me? What's going on? What THE HELL?

Brady, I know this is all very overwhelming, but you have to remember the legends-

Where's the leech? Where is it?

By the beach, I saw some of her hair before she fucking went into the water. It was red.

Bella skirted to a stop as Jacob's last thought rang through her mind. It was red. Red. RED.

Victoria.

Don't mind me, just hiding behind a curtain right now 0_0. I'd like to say I have a great excuse for not updating in so long, but to be completely honest I don't. I mean I had to take my licensing exam in August, then I started my new job so I've been pretty busy with that. However, I've also had some major writer's block when it came to this chapter. I rewrote it twice actually! I can't promise that I will be able to update every week like I used to, but I hope to be able to update at least once a month. I'm starting night shift in two days so I will have lots of time late at night to write!

Anyways, dun dun DUN! Victoria's back! Haven't heard from her in a minute, but something tells me our furry friends won't be too happy to hear from her. Especially not Paul and Bella, I mean minus the whole sadistic vampie thing she interrupted them :(

I hope you guys enjoyed! What did you think of Bella and Jacob's lil conversation? Thoughts on how this whole Victoria thing is gonna play out? Let me know in the comments!

As always, please favorite and review!

xxx