Guidance

Chapter Seven

Happy Thanksgiving! {If you don't celebrate it, then it'll just be a good day for ya;)

When we got back to Emily's house, it was around a quarter past seven. I saw Jacob and Quil lounging around on the patio when we got there, and, immediately, Jake rushed straight to his motorcycle when we got off. He was inspecting it thoroughly.

"Man, is he in love with that thing or what?" I muttered. Jake turned and sent me a playful glare. I stuck my tongue out at him. "He really doesn't trust us."

"Hey, you're lucky I let Embry borrow it at all," Jacob refuted. Then he straightened up. "Come on, we were waiting for you to go." Embry's eyes flickered to me.

"Can I go?" I asked bluntly. Jake frowned.

"No," he said curtly. "There's gonna be—"

"—vampires," I finished. "I know. But there'll be more humans there than vampires. Please? I just want to go to a, you know, party…" Jake stared at me intensely, as if looking through my lie. I saw a flicker of compassion in his eyes—maybe he did know why I wanted to come. He sighed.

"Fine, but any sign of trouble, and you go," he answered. I grinned.

"Thanks, Jakey-poo," I chirped saccharinely. Jacob and Quil rolled their eyes, while Embry reflexively took my hand, not that I minded. I ignored Jake and Quil's inquisitive and almost knowing looks and proceeded to question them about our method of transportation to the party. "So how are we getting there?"

"We'll phase, of course," Quil answered. He glanced at Embry for a moment. "You'll have to ride on Embry's back…"

"I can always carry her, you know, as a human," Embry offered, looking a bit put out. "It'd be too dangerous as a wolf—"

"Do we need a saddle, then?" I teased. Jake and Quil chuckled, but Embry pouted. I smiled happily, and soon he smiled—just the slightest—too.

"Okay, fine," Embry relented. "But you have to hold on tight." I grinned and saluted him.

"Yes, sir." He rolled his eyes.

"Right, well, we're gonna go phase now," Quil butted in, waving. He ran towards the forest, trailing after Jake. Embry reluctantly dropped my hand and headed for the forest, too. After a few minutes of me standing there awkwardly, I heard the soft, barely audible rustling of leaves as Embry the Wolf prodded forward. I rushed towards him happily, immediately burying my hands in his fur and kissing his snout. Why was I so much braver with him when he was an animal?

"Hey, Em," I greeted cheerfully. I noticed, at that moment, that his tail was wagging furiously. I laughed and hugged him around the neck. He was such a big wolf, probably bigger than normal ones. Heck, I'm pretty sure the pack was bigger, physically, than any other natural wolf pack.

Embry the Wolf abruptly licked my face. I shrieked and wiped my face, yelling about how gross that was and how wolves aren't made to give puppy kisses. Embry let out a bark that I assumed was a laugh, then nudged my stomach. He bent down, lowering himself to the ground. I vaguely remembered that he had to go somewhere—we had to go somewhere—and that this wasn't a joyride. I sighed and hopped on as carefully as I could, feeling a bit self-conscious. Once I was securely on his back, I knotted my hands in his fur and wrapped my arms around his neck. Embry-wolf got up and began pacing, heading into the woods. I couldn't help but feel a sense of anticipation grow in my gut. It was getting later and darker, and heading into the forest riding a wolf—well, it just sounded like some messed up fairytale. Though I'm sure it had its charms.

After a while, I could tell Embry wasn't going as fast as he could. He was worried about hurting me, or my falling off during the run. I scoffed and pulled on his fur, leaning down even more to whisper in his ear.

"Embry, you're a slowpoke," I deadpanned. "Run faster! Come on, don't be a worrywart. I'll be fine. The worst that can happen is my hair getting messed up." The wolf snorted, but sped up just a bit. I rolled my eyes and, getting an idea, dug my heels into his sides a bit. "Speed it up, Em. A turtle could beat you at this point— Paul could beat—"

I laughed as Embry immediately began speeding through the forest, springing forward at the mention of the hotheaded werewolf. I held onto him tighter, trying my best not to fall off—after all, I can't have Embry be proven right; that would be a blow to my pride. Not to mention that the fall would likely hurt, of course. The air rushing at my face and around us as Embry ran was cold and made me feel alert. It was dark, very dark—when did the sun go away? I felt a bit nervous at the thought that we were in a forest at night when obscurity was at its peak, but Embry, Quil, and Jacob were here. I was safe. And I was relieved when we broke out of the woods and near a road that was decorated—or should I say mutilated?—by possibly millions of party lights. There was a big white house in the throng of twinkling lights, where I assumed we were headed. Embry bent down slightly. I hopped off and watched as he headed back into the forest to change. Quil and Jacob were already out and staring at the house so intensely that I was surprised it didn't spontaneously combust. They looked so serious, almost dangerous in a way.

I almost jumped when I felt an arm thrown over my shoulders. I exhaled in relief that it was only Embry, who now gave me a confused look as I tried to slow down the beating of my frantic, scared, and abused heart.

"You okay?" Jake asked absently. I nodded quickly.

"Just—just a little startled for a moment," I answered. Embry pulled me into his side—I unconsciously leaned into him, calming down for the moment. I breathed in deeply, then exhaled heavily. "Right… Are you just gonna stand around outside like some stalkers or are we going in?"

Quil walked by, ruffling my hair and sending a cheeky smile towards me before he and Jake stalked up to the house. Embry followed right behind, dragging me with him. Actually, it was more like guiding me. Embry wouldn't drag his precious imprint, after all. The thought made me internally snort. When we were at the door, I could hear the music coming from inside and felt the beats reverberate through my chest. Jake rang the doorbell, though I was slightly doubtful that anyone, even if they were vampires, would hear it. After what seemed like half an hour to Jake—by the way he was frowning at the door and clenching and unclenching his fists—though was only a few minutes, he rang the doorbell again. And again—though, this time, he held the button down impatiently. I sighed.

"Oh, would you just—!" I saw him heading for the doorbell again, so, instead, I did the smart thing that they should have tried before—I opened the door. The boisterous sounds of teenagers partying reached my ears, immediately. For a moment, I was paused, taking in the foreign sensation and trying to get used to the initial discomfort. It was weird—I'd never been to a party, especially not one of this scale. I shook my head and walked forward, looking around. The guys entered, as well, and I saw Bella heading for the stairs. Apparently, Jake saw her, too.

"Hey, Bella!" he called, grinning. Immediately, she snapped her head over in our direction. Jake waved at her. I looked at Embry and Quil. Quil's eyes were darting around, looking for anything suspicious—he seemed very tense and anxious. Embry had one hand on the door and the other in mine—which I hadn't noticed prior to this observation. He looked tense, too. Jacob was the only one who wasn't tense and rigid, though all three of them had their noses wrinkled like they'd smelled something rotten or repugnant.

Bella waved back at Jake, then turned and squeezed through the crowd. I felt a surge of annoyance at her—That's extremely rude, Miss Swan! I chided in my mind. I sighed, rolling my eyes. I had very little against Bella, but the fact that she was going to break Jake's heart—without a doubt—didn't allow me to accept her or like her. Still, she must have been kind and sweet underneath it all. Maybe she was just a victim of circumstance. Whatever the case, it was still going to hurt us all in the long run. For that, I wasn't sure if I could ever forgive her.

Right after Bella disappeared into the crowd, Jake took off after her. Quil, with a nod to Embry, tailed them, standing a bit away, keeping an eye on them. That left me with Embry. What to do, what to do? I faced him when I felt his eyes on me. I gave him a hug, wrapping my arms tightly around his waist and placing my cheek on his chest—which reminded me, why didn't any of those three boys bring shirts? But, oh, well, it was too late to do anything about that. Embry wrapped his arms around me in response to my hug, which I'd like to think caught him off guard.

"You know," I said, looking up at him, "you're either a very slow wolf, or a very big worrywart." Embry chuckled.

"I can't help but worry," he responded. I would've thought I would have trouble hearing him over the music, but his words were clear as day. Maybe my ears were just attuned to the sound of his voice. I smiled.

"You worry too much," I said mischievously.

"Maybe you should worry more," he combated, smirking. I gave an indignant huff.

"You worry enough for the both of us." He didn't reply to that. I looked around at the partying teens. Some of them would glance at us every now and then, and I smirked when I saw some girls glaring at me jealously. At least this would keep them away, for now—and it wasn't planned, either. I felt a smug satisfaction bubble up in me, and my hold on Embry tightened subconsciously. Almost out of nowhere, I heard Embry chuckle.

"Look who's worrying now," he whispered in my ear, his breath warm. This took me off guard, and I almost shivered—I'm felt my face and neck heat up. "You don't have to, you know—I can't even really see their faces. You're all I see."

You're all I see.

I felt like something inside me snapped—like it'd dissolved, disintegrated, almost too quickly to register. That moment in time seemed to slow down. All I could register, which came slowly and piece by piece, was the loud thudding of my quickening heartbeat in the back of my head, the millions of fuzzy creatures let loose in my stomach, the feeling of lighter-than-air euphoria—

And then I remembered where I was, and it all went crashing back down to reality. All the details rushed at me; the loud dance music of the party, the noise of the party-goers, the fact that Embry held me tightly to him, the feel of his face buried in my neck. Only then did I notice my breathing was shallow and that I had tensed up. I let out a shaky breath and tried to relax, loosening my hold on him for a second before hugging him more tightly.

"Em—"

I was cut off by Quil, who spared me an apologetic glance as he turned to Embry. "Em, come on." I felt Embry's sigh near my ear as he pulled away from me reluctantly, not even looking at me as he followed Quil to wherever. I stood there for a few moments, feeling meek and two inches tall. Why didn't he even turn to look at me when he was walking away? I was wracking my brain for any things I did and how they could have been interpreted by him. Maybe I did something bad—no, scratch that; I needed to figure what I did.

Without noticing, I was walking in the direction they'd gone, turning my head this way and that for a glimpse of Embry. When I heard three booming laughs from nearby that were nearly drowned out by the loud music, I instinctively headed there. I saw, of course, Jake, Embry, and Quil, the source of the laughs—why did Embry laugh? Was he over whatever it was already? I grimaced.

The three werewolves were standing in front of—cornering, it looked like—Bella, and there were two others who were incredibly pale; one a blond male and the other a short, dark-haired pixie-girl. Were these the vampires? There couldn't be only two. I stood a ways away, so I couldn't exactly make out what they were saying, but I saw the pixie-girl say something, then Jacob and Quil interject. I could hear, however, Bella's shout of No!

That left me confused. But the pixie-girl continued. After the blond guy said something, Embry, Quil, and Jacob all pulled truculent faces. Some more words were said, and the boys rolled their eyes. I saw them turn to leave after even more words—still all going unheard by an irritated me—were said, and Bella called out to Jacob. Quil and Embry continued, though, so I rushed away and through some of the dancing crowd, pushing to get to the front door, where I was sure they were headed. As soon as I managed to drag myself through and out of the crowd, Embry caught my eye and raised an eyebrow at me. I gulped. He didn't look happy. I shook my head and rushed up to meet him and Quil and Jacob as they left the mansion, looking half-pleased and half-disgusted.

"What's going on?" I asked, hurrying to keep up with their pace.

"Nothing," Embry answered quickly. I shot him a glare and grabbed a hold of Quil and Jacob's arms, not like it affected them much. But they noticed and stopped once we were inside the woods, albeit somewhat reluctantly.

"What's happened?" I rephrased, asking them directly. I saw their eyes flicker towards Embry over my shoulder, and I clenched my jaw, knowing they weren't going to answer. I let my hands drop. "Fine."

For some reason, I felt a surge of annoyance at Embry and, with that, a pang of anger and frustration that should've been directed at myself but was confused as to where to go.

"What?" I snapped, scowling. Embry winced—the flicker of hurt in his eyes made a feeling of guilt quickly surge through me. He placed his hands on my shoulders softly, looking me in the eyes.

"It's nothing," he insisted softly. "Don't worry about it." My frown twitched. "It's no big deal—it has nothing to do with you—"

"But it has to do with her, then," I retorted, staring him down where he leaned back against a tree. "And so it obviously has to do with Jake, which means it'll tie back to the pack, which means you're involved, and that makes me involved by default."

Embry sighed, pulling me into his chest and burying his face in my shoulder. I wondered if it was uncomfortable, bending down like that for so long; I was definitely tall, but he was definitely taller. I pressed my lips together and reached up to wrap my arms around his shoulders, stroking his short, silky hair. He brought his head up just a bit; the tip of his nose skimmed my collarbone and my neck. It gave me goose bumps, and I felt somehow aware of my rapid heartbeat.

"Please, don't get involved," he mumbled against my neck. This action was distracting enough, so I almost didn't register what he said.

"Wait, what?"

"Don't…please…" he continued, as if he didn't hear me.

"Embry, what are you talking about?" I questioned, refusing to let myself become befuddled by his actions.

Embry raised his head and gazed into my eyes, his own full of anguish, before he leaned his forehead on mine and closed his eyes. I felt his every breath, slightly labored, and found it impossible to close my eyes. So close… Embry was, as ever, gorgeous. His features, illuminated in the moonlight, made him look like something out of a dream. His hair was perfectly messy in its usual feathery, spiky tresses. His eyelashes were dark, the contours of his face and jaw were perfectly sculpted, and he looked like a god. He was beautiful, and I couldn't believe it. This sudden realization, this insight—it was like a flaming comet was flashing through a dark sky. Confused though I was, I knew what I was thinking and what I felt—but I was afraid to admit to it, even in my own thoughts. That would only make it too real.

"Embry?" I choked out. His eyelids slowly lifted, and he was staring into my eyes. With a disgruntled look, he moved away. The warmth left with him, and, without even realizing, I clung to him and buried my face in his neck. I felt Embry's slight pause—which I hoped was because of the surprise and not something else—and he wrapped his arms around me tenderly and protectively.

"There's going to be a war."

At first, I didn't register he'd said anything at all. But then, as I thought about it, my brain trying to make sense of the gibberish while I was still in a blind and blissful stupor in Embry's arms, I realized what it meant.

A war.

"What?" I blurted, pushing away from Embry's embrace to stare him in the eye. He winced, his arms reaching around me again to pull me back into his chest.

"Remember what we said about the Cullens and Bella Swan?" he asked. I nodded into his chest, my eyes closing as I listened to the rapid beat of his heart. "Well, some vampire has a grudge on her…that redheaded one we told you we were hunting, remember? And she's got an army."

"Wha—but—how—!" I spluttered, fidgeting frantically. "What? You can't be serious! I mean—this is—I just—"

"I know," he said somberly, again pulling me into his arms and tucking my head under his chin, stroking my back softly. I exhaled and felt myself calm, my protests silenced. But I couldn't wrap my mind around it. He said it, though. That redheaded leech—he had told me the pack was hunting her, this vampire who didn't like Bella, albeit saying it reluctantly—had raised an army, and the reality of that just didn't reach me. I'd never seen her, and I hadn't witnessed firsthand what vampires could do. This all sounded like some faraway threat. I just couldn't believe it—yet, I did. But it didn't feel like it.

"Promise you'll be okay," I muttered quickly, worriedly against him, leaning up against him and wrapping my arms even tighter around his shoulders. "Promise you'll come back. Promise, promise!"

"I swear to you, we'll be fine—" He cut off, once again burying his face into my neck. "You're getting cold. It's late. We'll talk about this later." I frowned. Of course. The imprint—he would be worried about my getting ill or some other thing. So what if it was late? He was my werewolf protector, and Emily wouldn't mind; Sam was another issue entirely, though I'm sure Emily could control him. As for the temperature, I was toasty warm in his arms.

"Embry—"

Before I could protest, he swung me up and carried me bridal style. I clung to his neck and glared at him shortly. Embry sent a halfhearted cheeky grin and I rolled my eyes.

"Sorry, love, but this is faster," he said softly, kissing my cheek, "and safer." And just like that, he was off, jogging through the woods so quickly I barely noticed our surroundings; I just looked at him. He was staring decidedly ahead, though once or twice I saw his head incline slightly towards me. I huffed and buried my head into his neck, making sure my lips were pressed to his collarbone in a way that didn't seem like it was on purpose—I could at least distract and torture him in this way; it wasn't fair what he was doing. Or, at least, I didn't want to go back home. Weird as it seemed, I didn't want to go back to my room; I wanted to stay in the forest, cuddled with Embry. I mentally gagged.

Once Emily's house—or my home, I guess—came into view, I tapped Embry's shoulder for him to let me down. Embry ignored it, smirking slightly, and proceeded to open the back door and enter. Only when we were inside did he set me down, somewhat reluctantly.

"Finally," I mumbled. Embry chuckled sheepishly.

"Embry? Jani?" we heard a voice from the living room that sounded a bit too much like Quil.

"Finally back?" came Jacob's teasing voice, accompanied by two laughs. I ran into the living room and looked around, tackling the first one I saw, which happened to be Jacob. He probably wasn't hurt at all—he picked me up in a hug and spun me around. "Wheee!" He sounded so stupid, I just had to laugh, and so did Quil and Seth, who was also there.

"Put me down, you idiot!" I whined, and no sooner than that was I almost forcibly ripped from his grasp. It didn't hurt me, but it was an abrupt motion, being yanked from Jacob's spinning grip to Embry's possessive one. It was silent for a moment and, although I couldn't see his face, I knew Embry was glaring at Jacob by how Quil, Seth, and Jacob stood and looked. I placed a hand on Embry's forearm and laid back against him, hoping that would calm him.

"Embry." His muscles relaxed slightly, but his hold on me was still possessive. I slid my hand down from his forearm and over his closed hand. He immediately took my hand and buried his face into the back of my neck. I closed my eyes instinctively.

"Sorry," he mumbled. I opened my eyes and patted his hand, then gently wove myself out of his arms. I yawned quietly, aware that the wolves were all watching me.

"Hey, Seth, were you here earlier today for Cali?" I asked. I couldn't remember seeing him earlier today. As soon as I mentioned my little sister, Seth's face split into a wide grin.

"Remember? I took her out to the beach today to play," said Seth. "She's been sleeping for a while now."

"So why are you still here? I mean, we all love you and all, but shouldn't you be home sleeping or patrolling or something?" Seth rolled his eyes.

"Cali asked me to stay and make sure you got back," he replied. I snorted. Figures. But that was sweet.

"Thanks, Seth, but you should probably go home and sleep," I told him, then looked around at the other three. "You guys, too."

"See ya," Quil said, grinning as he came over to give me a hug goodbye. He kissed my forehead and waved at Embry cheekily before leaving the house quickly. I smirked at Embry, who fumed silently. Jacob and Seth chuckled. Jake ruffled my hair, gave me a quick hug, and left just as Quil did. Seth bounded over and enveloped me in a big brotherly hug, spinning me around only twice. I rolled my eyes. He kissed my cheek and ran off, shooting a victorious look at Embry. I smiled. I couldn't believe—or, well, I could—their nerve.

But now things were awkward. Embry and I were alone. I stared at the floor in silence, so I couldn't see what he was doing or if he was even still here. I couldn't hear any change, just our breathing and the sound of my heart thudding loudly. Vaguely, abruptly, I wondered if Emily was sleeping by now, but figured she must have been.

"So…"

I looked up sharply at the sound of Embry's voice. He stood in front of me, looking anxious. I stared at him blankly. I bit my lip. Why was I so shy and timid around Embry? When I met him and the guys, I was normal, myself. But I was so confused by him. Who knows? Maybe this is me now. But I had to do something—I needed to do something daring or something bold.

Without thinking about it, I grabbed Embry's wrist and turned and headed for my room. I felt him following, but I didn't dare look back at him. I shut the door once we were in, letting Embry's arm drop. I didn't spare him a glance as I sat down on the edge of my bed, then leaned back and stared at the ceiling.

"So?" I asked. "What's up, Em?" I sat up after a moment, wanting to see him. Embry's eyes never left me. "About this war…"

"Jani," he groaned, grimacing as he gave in and plopped down on the edge of the bed next to me. "Please, don't get involved. We'll handle it."

"What are you talking about?" I asked. He was sure quick to assume I'd want part of the action… And I couldn't even really do anything—I was just a puny human. Of course, I'd want to be there in astral form, but that's another thing entirely…

"I mean, please stay here during the battle, whenever it is," Embry asked of me, pulling me into his chest. I inhaled deeply for a moment, taking in the spicy, woodsy scent that was Embry.

"You mean I can't go there, not even projecting?"

"No."

"That's lame," I deadpanned. "I want to see you… I want to watch out for you guys, is that so bad?"

"I just need to know you're safe."

I sat up on my haunches, facing Embry, and grabbed his face in my hands, staring him down. "And I will be." I wrapped my arms around his neck and rested my chin on his shoulder, closing my eyes. The warmth…the smooth, toned skin…the musky scent…

I felt him stroking my hair, placing a kiss on the top of my head. I felt a burst of something fierce in my abdomen, near my stomach—I felt the sudden desire to kiss him, to hold him, to… It was getting harder and harder every day, trying to stay just Embry's friend. His apparent issue with shirts did not help a bit, and neither did his sweet disposition, his cute smile, his complete adoration and love for me…

I pulled away from the embrace so I was less than arms' length away. Embry's eyes opened and immediately caught mine. I smiled softly and kissed him on the cheek, and he grinned goofily for a short moment before a different look overcame him. Before I knew it, he had leaned forward—and I guess I had, too—and pressed his lips to mine in a chaste kiss. Not a millisecond passed before I went back, kissing him this time around. I reached up to his face and to his black hair, my fingers very lightly gripping his locks, and he wrapped an arm around my waist, the other behind my back. He licked my lips, begging for entrance as his grip on my waist tightened.

And a howl sounded through the woods. In a second, it was as if a light had been turned on in a dark room—Embry and I froze for a millisecond before practically springing apart. My eyes flew open and I covered my lips with my hand. My breathing was heavy, and I couldn't bring myself to look at Embry. My heart was past racing—it was pounding so heavily and so fast that it hurt—I could feel the adrenaline pulsing through me, but I didn't dare move.

I spared a glance at Embry. He was looking at the floor—or something, I wasn't quite sure. His breathing was ragged—my hands subtly clenched at empty air, wanting to touch him, to go near him and his perfect abs. But it was too soon—I don't know what just happened, or why, or how or—I was so confused.

Embry stood up in one quick motion. Thinking he was going to move near me, or something, my heart lightened and sped up again. However, he instead left the room, taking my heart with him, breaking what little piece of it I had left.

I still didn't understand. It all happened so fast… I mean, Embry imprinted on me—that, I know—so I understand why he would kiss me…or why we would kiss…but why did he practically run away afterwards? But why did we even kiss? I mean, I suppose we would've gotten together at some point, being soul mates and all, but…

I was so torn and confused. How do I act when I see him next? What were we? Friendship boundaries had been trespassed already, but were we really anything more? Would the other wolves know by now? I'm pretty sure he left because they called him—or, anyway, that's what I told myself. I was scared, though. The truth was, I just hoped with all my heart that it wasn't my fault he left so suddenly. Maybe he was rethinking the imprint. Can they un-imprint on someone, take it back?

My mind was racing a hundred miles a minute, and my heart just as fast. I let out a shaky sigh and, pulling my legs up to my chest, buried my head in my hands and just stayed there. I don't know how long I was in that position, with my mind blank, but when I went to the window of my bedroom my muscles and bones felt numb and stiff. I pulled a few of the blinds aside for a very short moment, then noticed that it was dark out. What was it? Twilight? No, it was too dark. It must have been nearing one or two in the morning.

Propelled by a strange impulse, I plopped down on the bed and cleared my mind, and soon I was lifted from my body and out in the astral plane. I looked back at myself for a moment, hit by shock when I did. My lips were slightly swollen, my eyes were red and puffy from unshed tears, my skin was paler than it had ever been, and, overall, I looked distressed and like I'd just broken down. Which I probably just had. Tearing my eyes from my horrible state, I focused on finding something. I wasn't sure what, but it felt like there was something I needed to go see. In seconds—maybe—I was rushing along space and pulled into a clearing. For a moment, I was confused. It was clearly empty, wasn't it? So why was I here?

Then came the sounds of people talking. I whipped around and looked at them straight on, knowing they couldn't see me anyway. Coming into the clearing, just stopping, were none other than six pale, beautiful creatures. I had heard of them, and had even seen a few. The Cullens. But wasn't one missing? But, whatever.

What was I doing here, though? What was my purpose? Then again, I acted on a whim, so I didn't really have a purpose. While I was here, I could spy on them for the wolves, I supposed. After some time—I really don't have a good perception of time like this—someone else entered the clearing. It was a vampire with bronze hair, carrying a girl who was, after inspection, not a vampire. It was then that I noticed that was Bella, which meant the vampire was Edward. I'd never actually seen the Cullens, or at least not all of them. The effect of all of them together in one place was stunning. The moonlight that managed to shine through into the clearing shone off their pale skin, reflecting it in various places.

Edward set Bella down and walked with her, hand in hand, to the other vampires, one of which was laughing loudly. I saw Bella speaking to Edward, but I didn't care to listen. I was watching the others, particularly the big brunette male and the lanky blonde male I saw earlier today. Those two were sparring, or fighting, or something. Briefly, I wondered why they were here—why Bella was here.

I did pay attention, however, when I heard the blonde man—the doctor, I think, Carlisle—say something curious.

"When will our guests arrive?" he asked Edward.

Now, normally, I would've thought that was an innocent question, especially coming from a man as seemingly benevolent as the doctor. But these were vampires, so that could mean anything. As far as I knew, they were getting ready to suck someone's blood—it was a possibility, even if the wolves had said, though grumpily, that they insisted they drank animal blood.

"A minute and a half," replied Edward. "But I'm going to have to translate. They don't trust us enough to use their human forms."

Now that changed things. Human forms? So they weren't going to feed. But what could they be talking about—who were their guests? In the back of my mind, I kinda sensed I was being a little nosy; maybe more than just a little. But what could their guests be? Human forms, after all, don't suggest the guests are entirely, if at all, human.

"They're coming as wolves?" Bella's voice pierced my thoughts. My eyes widened. Of course! The boys!—plus Leah. But, wait…why were the werewolves meeting vampires they so clearly didn't like, especially when Bella was here and both Edward and Jacob, assumingly, would be? This didn't make any sense. There was a strange suspicion in the back of my mind—like I was forgetting something. Since Bella's here, I can assume that it's not a battle, so it must be something…peaceful. What unites enemies?

A common enemy, I thought. What could be a common enemy for both of them? I felt like I was missing something big, something obvious. I looked around at the vamps, noticing that they were wide-eyed or surprised or something, for some reason. Throwing that to the side, I looked at them more closely. Maybe something…? I glanced at Bella for a spare moment, then my eyes flashed back to her. Of course! 'There's going to be a war.' They must have joined sides!

"We will watch and listen, but no more. That is the most we can ask of our self-control," Edward's voice came, flat and emotionless, bringing me out of my reverie. I turned to look at him, but he wasn't looking at the vampires. All of them were facing, I saw with delight, the wolves. The vampires said a few more words as I looked over the wolves, smiling when I saw the familiar forms. Sam was in the front, naturally. I smiled at the sight of my cousin, looking so powerful and in charge. It was kinda funny, seeing it in person. My eyes ran over every wolf, recognizing them, until I found Embry.

Seeing the gray wolf with black spots on its back made a pang of misery and hurt run through me. At the same moment, I saw Embry shift uneasily. I grimaced. I didn't want to see him right now…it would only remind me of earlier today.

"They'll come across the mountains in four days, in the late morning. As they approach, Alice will help us intercept their path," said Carlisle. As who approaches? What did I miss?

If I was going to stick around here, I might as well pay attention. I sighed and in a second was by Embry, though nobody could see me. I sat down and prepared to watch. I was going to completely knock out when I got back to my body—who knows how many hours I'd be here? Then again, I was here by choice, so it was really my fault... I could return anytime I wanted… Plus, Embry might get worried if I'm unconscious the entire day tomorrow…he might think something's wrong…

Serves him right.

It was nearly sunrise when they decided they were done. The vampires had sparred, and the wolves had observed. From what I gathered, newborn vampires were the common enemy, and they weren't very good at tactic; they were incredibly strong, though, from what I heard. I was a bit worried about the pack, but, at the moment, I was more worried about how exhausted I would be when I got back. It was probably a selfish thing to think about, but at least I was honest with myself about it. I hadn't left Embry's side all through the night—or early morning, I guess—even though he couldn't see me. Now that the dawn was just breaking over the horizon and the first splashes of warm, bright color filtered out into the sky, I could see them so much more clearly. They were huge, intimidating wolves—nothing like how I was used to seeing them. Then again, they were in the presence of their typical enemy. I don't think they thought they could afford to let their guard down. I watched as the wolves got up and near the vampires, sniffing them unpleasantly, if the 'looks' on their 'faces' were any indication.

I spared a curious glance at Jacob, the reddish-brown mammoth of a wolf, as he prodded forward to Bella, stepping away from the pack. He acted more like a puppy, more like how I was used to the wolf pack acting. I smiled as he licked Bella's face and I heard her complaint. It was kind of disgusting, truthfully, but all the better. The leeches were watching Bella with looks of disgust, while the wolves watched, displeased.

This was interesting and all, but I really had no point here. Looking over at Embry, once more, like I'd been doing all these hours, I decided to head home. I closed my eyes and feel the tugging behind my belly button, the rush of movement. I stopped just before my body and opened my eyes, looking down at myself. I looked somewhat asleep. But, if I was being honest, I'd have to say I looked horrible, even worse than before. I was still pale, which is alarming when you're a Navajo-Quileute like I am, and I had a sheen of sweat about me. I looked sick. In fact, I looked like I was dying or something. This was creepy. But I knew I couldn't waste any more time outside of my body. I sat down on the edge of my bed and body and fell back, down into unconsciousness, drowning in darkness.

Alright! Another chapter, done! :) I like this one, and the next one is when things start to pick up a bit more. Thanks for the lovely reviews from lovely people. You know, when I posted the first chapter to this story, I had already written 114 pages of this tale. Funny, huh? That's probably why I'm updating so soon. Once I get to around chapter nine, new chapters will probably start coming slower and slower since I have less of a skeleton for them.

Some of you might say I write well, and I probably do, but the chapters are only as good as they are because I've taken my time to read through them and edit them. Know how many times I read through the first few chapters—and even up to here—before I even posted the first chapter to this online? A lot.

But thanks for the lovely reviews! They make me feel appreciated(:

HunnyABee

PS: I'm updating as soon as I get TWENTY (20) reviews!