Author's Note: I'm sorry that it's been so long everyone! I come to you with an update, though, so can you forgive me once again? Honestly, I really feel like reworking and reuploading all of the previous chapters in this fanfic. I feel my writing has improved since originally posting this and some parts of the chapters seem like they could use a refresher. As of now, I just rewrote and updated the first chapter. Feel free to re-read it if you want! Don't worry though, there will be no major plot or dialogue changes.

Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight! I do however stake someone claim to my own thoughts, plots, and original characters!

Alright now, let's get on with it, shall we?

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Chapter Eleven

Leah took a shower as soon as she arrived home. It was already her second one of the day, but she smelled like disgusting vampires. And if any of the wolves happened to detect Nahuel's blood on her, the half vampire would have a lot more to deal with than a brief beating from a particularly angry she-wolf.

She toweled her hair dry, humming absently as she meandered back downstairs. Despite the events of the day, she felt rather content. There was closure to be had in everything that happened, as horrible as it was. Once she worked through her inner musings and realizations, she felt drastically better - lighter. She could only hope that Jacob could find the same healing and wisdom that she had from the matter.

Sue was probably spending another night at Charlie's, but at some point Seth would be home and hungry. A good thing about Bella Swan's father was that he went fishing almost as much as her own had. Freshly caught fish were stacked high in the deep freezer. There were three things Harry Clearwater had made sure to teach his daughter before the age of twelve: how to change a tire, how to throw a punch, and how to make his world famous fish fry.

Leah opened up a cabinet that surely hadn't been touched in years. She retrieved a deep fryer from it, before gathering all the necessary ingredients on the counter next to it.

About two hours later, she successfully produced a hardy amount of freshly fried potato wedges and breaded trout. She even made Sue's coveted secret coleslaw recipe to go with it. Leah was excited to have a family meal with her brother - to fully sit down and get to know each other again. She probably missed him more than anyone else in the world and it felt good to know he was growing up safe - normal - after everything that happened.

The phone rang sharp and staccato over the music that was blaring in the kitchen. She walked over to flick off the radio before answering the call.

"Hello?"

"Hey, sis." It was Seth's upbeat voice.

"What's up?" Leah asked casually, stirring ice into a pitcher of tea - extra sweet just like Harry liked it. It was no wonder her father had suffered health issues due to his preference for basically only eating fatty foods and sugar.

"I'm just calling to let you know I'm spending the night at Brady's. If mom comes home, will you let her know where I am?"

"Sure thing," she agreed easily, trying not to sound disappointed. "Have fun, baby brother."

"Tell Leah I say hi!"

"Me too! And ask her if she misses us."

The two voices in the background of the call sounded similar to - and probably were - Colin and Brady.

"Shut up, you guys, she doesn't care about you," Seth replied good naturedly. Groans of denial and laughter sounded loudly in return. "Anyway, would you mind feeding Gorgon?"

"The lizard thing?"

"It's a bearded dragon and his crickets are on top of his cage."

"Gross." Leah sighed and shook her head, but smiled. "I'll do it though."

Since she was gone, and Sue spent a considerable more time away from home, Seth was mostly free to do whatever he wanted - including getting a large lizard from the pet store that had to be fed live prey once a day. In Leah's youth she was sure her parents wouldn't have permitted her to do the same - Sue would have a conniption simply by seeing such an animal in her house.

"Thanks, Leah." There was a dramatic explosion and then gunshots, almost the same volume as Seth's voice. Knowing he was probably going to spend the entire night playing violent video games had her reconsidering agreeing to Seth's request and telling him to come home. It was a school night, after all. She didn't have the chance to say anything reprimanding or sisterly because he chirped. "Okay, love ya. Bye!"

"Love you, bye," she replied, less than impressed. The line had already gone dead. "Well, this sucks."

Leah rarely cooked anything - especially their treasured family recipes. This was going to be the first meal she'd made for another person in over two years and she made it with Seth in mind. She would like to imagine she could save her brother a plate for tomorrow, but Leah knew her wolf appetite was as voracious as always. She could - and would - eat all of this and more.

Sitting down at the table - alone - was always a daunting task. Even living on her own, it felt incredibly lonely. Maybe that was because she was often used to eating in large group gatherings, with her pack and family nearby.

Suddenly, her head whipped toward the door as she scented two wolves incoming.

There was Paul. Paul was here - why? Leah flushed red with embarrassment then shook her head. She took a deep breath and tried her absolutely best to forget the last time they were together and what had (or hadn't) happened.

There was another with him - Sam. Leah involuntarily scowled, the reaction instinct. She wondered what they both could want. The alpha and beta coming here together meant it had something to do with pack business. So why did it have to deal with her?

She rose and met them at the door without any to-do.

"Why are you here?" Leah asked them, quick to the point.

"Is that Harry's fish fry?" Sam countered, ignoring her. He sniffed the air. "It smells good." His voice was reminiscent - regretful and longing.

"Thanks," she replied deadpan, feeling irritated by his compliment for some reason. "What are you doing here?"

Her eyes met Paul's for only the briefest of moments. His dark orbs were tumultuous and serious and Leah looked away as quickly as possible to avoid being pulled in.

"Can we come in?" Sam asked, also seeming rather serious. She wondered if something was wrong. Nahuel's bloodied face flashed in her memory - did they know?

The she-wolf stood there for a moment and wondered if she should let either of them in. Why should she allow Sam or Paul into her home - her life - when they both had caused nothing but trouble and pain for her in the past? Why shouldn't she turn them away from her door and wash her hands of dealing with them?

Finally, Leah shrugged. She felt defeated as she mumbled out, "Sure, whatever," and turned around to walk back into the house. They followed her inside without another word.

The air inside felt thick - cramped. The two tall men in her home took up way too much space and she wanted them to leave although it was apparent they weren't going to leave any time soon. For whatever reason why, Leah almost didn't want to know. She felt herself clinging to having one last moment of peace before diving face first back into all of La Push's supernatural chaos. Whatever they had to tell her, it surely wasn't going to be good. Her wolf could pick up on that much.

Sam went to speak, but Leah held up a hand and quieted them.

"First, we eat. Whatever it is that you have to tell me can wait until I've had my dinner."

Sam clamped his mouth shut and thankfully didn't argue.

Leah generously portioned out food onto plates and they all gathered around the table. She didn't particularly want to feed the two intruding wolves in her house - she almost wanted to sit down and eat right in front of them and watch as Sam drooled over Harry's fish fry that was once his favorite. That was the old Leah. In a way, it was a struggle - but in another way, it was easy - to not be petty and hateful. She didn't want to be those things anymore. She wanted to be better. So she did what her mother or father or Emily would have done for any other member or the tribe or family that showed up at their doorstep - she took care of them.

Even if she did give Paul's plate one more piece of fried fish than Sam… and herself an extra two.

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Paul was nervous - more nervous than he'd ever been in his whole life. It was made worse by the fact that by Leah's standards, she was actually being incredibly nice and welcoming - she even let them inside and fed them. It was clear Sam was taken aback by this side of her - perhaps because he hadn't seen it in a very, very long time. He seemed to be contemplative as they all ate dinner together, as if thinking about the future in store.

A dark cloud hung over all of their heads, waiting to unleash its hellish torrent. As soon as the food was finished - as soon as Leah learned the truth - the life that she worked so hard to build would be back in shambles. Paul almost wished that for her sake she hadn't come back, but regrets and wishes were for those who had the luxury of being sentimental. They needed to deal with this threat now. It wouldn't be helpful to keep Leah in the dark - not about this - even if the ignorance would bring her bliss.

Leah had clearly picked up on the mood in the room and ate slowly, as if warding off the oncoming bad news. The meal was delicious, better than anything he'd had in a long while, but Paul almost felt like he didn't deserve to enjoy a single bite of it.

Eventually, all of the food was finished and the table was cleared and the dishes were done.

Leah leaned against the kitchen table, sighing with resignation. She looked at them with a faint smile as if saying, "Give me your worst." In reality, she only calmly directed them to, "Tell me what it is you came here to say."

Neither Sam nor Paul could speak immediately. Paul was thankful for Sam's sudden inability to open his big, alpha mouth. Leah wouldn't react kindly however his brother chose to deliver the news (which was never tactfully). That meant that the task would be left up to Paul.

"This isn't going to be easy to hear," he told her, trying to be gentle. It wasn't clear what ground they stood on since last seeing each other, but she needed to know that he was on her side in this. Their day on the clifftop seemed so long ago in comparison with their problems now. Paul had so many things to apologize for and what he was about to say next was only one of them.

"It never is," she said, truth and wisdom to her words. Leah was not one to be pitied or coddled - she was strong. She could handle this. Paul hoped that was true, anyway.

"Earlier today, Embry came across a scent by the treaty line." Leah's eyes were sharp and all seeing, he felt the weight of her stare. He swallowed. "We followed the trail, but the leech ended up leading us into a trap."

Concern and worry were quick in her eyes. "Why are you telling me this? Is everyone okay?"

Paul remembered the fork in the trail they followed - if they had split up, instead of sticking together like they did, then their meeting might have ended in a lot more bloodshed. He suspected it was only their numbers that held the blond vampire back from attacking and made sure they got back safely.

"Everyone is fine, for the moment," Sam interjected. She sent him a somewhat sour look, but seemed relieved.

"So what, then? Why is this something I need to know? I told you I was out of the pack - I've been out for the last two years." Her words were hard, speaking of a line that should not be crossed. Paul wished he didn't have to cross it.

"I know, but this is something else, Leah. This is something different," he told her, feeling a hollow feeling in his chest that he was unused to. What was it? Dread? Terror? He wasn't familiar with it: "There's a lot of them - maybe a whole army. It's like the Volturri all over again."

"What?" Leah questioned instantly, angry and alarmed. "Who are they? What do they want?"

"The leader said her name was Anastasia Romanoff. She threatened to send an army to La Push and…"

"-and kill everyone," Sam finished darkly, clearly thinking of his imprint. "She'll kill everyone in two weeks, unless we give her what it is she wants."

It was quiet. Rage emblazoned Paul's soul and his wolf begged to be released once more. Sam couldn't possibly be thinking about turning Leah over to them. Paul hadn't seen anything in his alpha's head that indicated he was thinking about doing so. Still, he couldn't help but assume the worst. He felt protective and angry for reasons that weren't selfish for once. Everyone was so busy looking out for themselves and their imprints and their family and their friends, but no one looked out for Leah. She always seemed so capable of looking after herself - even when she was falling apart - that everyone left her alone.

"What does she want?" Leah asked them. Her gaze switched from Paul to Sam, and then back again. Her chest rose and fell dramatically with each heavy breath.

Paul didn't want to be the one to ruin the happy, healthy life Leah had managed to live these past two years. He didn't want to take away the peace that she had damn well earned for herself.

He didn't want to be the one to say it - but he did.

"You."

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What did you think! This chapter was a little slower than the previous one, but things are sort of just now building up. It took me such a long time to get this out and I'm so sorry. My goodness though! Thank you to everyone that has kept up with and reviewed this story! It means so much to me to see all of the encouragement and feedback. It keeps me going and coming back to update!

As always, if you enjoyed this, please follow/favorite/review! I appreciate your support. Until next time, my faithful and patient readers.