6. Embry's Story

(5 months before Renesmee's "17th" birthday)

Embry ran at a leisurely pace in wolf form.

'Seth, what's going on,' he asked when he heard his brother enter the pack mind.

'Jacob will tell you when we get there,' Seth replied keeping his mind focused on the woods so he wouldn't give away what he knew.

Quil soon entered. Embry laughed when Quil caught up and ran beside him.

'Bro is that green pain in your fur?'

'So what if it is?'

Embry shook his head, 'The things you do for her man,' Embry said as Quil ran through his day with Claire in his mind.

She had wanted to play with her Barbie dolls and she had wanted Wolf Quil to be a dragon.

'So that's why your mouth is painted orange too. Let me guess she wanted fire?'

Seth couldn't help but laugh too.

'Hey,' said Quil, 'it was believable for her and it made her happy. That's all that matters.'

Embry rolled his eyes, 'Yeah, yeah, we know.'

Embry and Quil arrived at the field where Jacob and Seth were all ready waiting. As part of the renewed treaty with Sam's pack, since the Cullen lands had also become the Black Pack territory, the pack had started to use the field where they'd destroyed the newborn vampires. It seemed like an ideal spot. And while Jacob still wasn't a fan of the whole Alpha thing, it did give him a rock to stand on to assert his instinctive dominance.

'Jake what is it,' Embry asked.

'Yeah what's going on,' asked Quil.

Seth turned to Jacob, waiting for him.

Jacob took a breath before answering, 'The Cullen's are leaving.'

'Leaving,' echoed Quil.

'What why,' asked Embry.

'They've been here too long,' Jacob replied. 'It was a big risk staying as long as we did after Nessie was born.'

Embry looked at his leader, 'Hold up, what do you mean by we?'

'Jake,' said Quil, 'You can't honestly-,'

Jacob came down from his ledge, not wanting to have this conversation on higher ground.

'I'm going with them,' he replied.

'No way,' said Embry.

'You can't be serious,' said Quil.

'Seth say something, aren't you going to talk him out of it,' asked Embry.

Jacob looked at Seth and the kid laughed, 'Yeah guys,' Seth finally said, 'I don't think I can besides I kind of want to go with them.'

'What!' Embry and Quil, even Jacob shouted; Jacob being just as shocked.

'It's news to me,' said Jacob defending that he had nothing to do with Seth's ideas.

Seth whined, 'Aw come on Jake. You heard Carlisle and Edward, they said they don't want to be the reason for splitting up the pack.'

'And they're not,' said Jacob, 'Just like they weren't last time.' Jacob turned his attention to Quil, 'I have a reason for going this time. Quil, bro, you can understand that. Look I'm just going off on my own here-,"

'Heard that one before,' Seth butted in.

Jacob ignored his comment and continued, 'but you guys aren't obligated to follow me. I'm not ordering you guys to come. Renesmee is my family and so are the Cullen's as much as you guys are.'

'You can't stay away from Nessie, though,' said Quil, 'unless it's what she wants. I get it. You really giving us a choice, Jake? You're not ordering us to go?'

'No,' Jacob replied, 'Besides, since when have I ever ordered you guys to do much of anything?'

Embry took a step forward, 'Never,' he answered.

'Exactly,' said Jacob, 'So why should this time be any different?'

Seth took a step forward on Jacob's right flank, 'Well since you're not ordering us, I'm choosing for myself. I'm coming with you. I love being part of this pack.'

'You don't have to Seth,' said Jacob, 'Think about your mom, your sister.'

'Jake, everyone's moving on with their lives. My mom's got Charlie in her life so she won't be alone. Leah quit seven years ago. She's twenty-one now. Even Paul and Sam quit. They're both twenty-five.'

The guys knew it was really pointless putting numbers to the ages. Turning into wolves had stopped their aging and then when members of the packs quit their wolves, they weren't the same age as what would have followed along their birth year. Seth and Leah were prime examples. There had only been a two year age difference prior to the phasing and now there was a six year difference.

'My point is,' said Seth, 'I want to move on with my life too, just not as a human. I love being a wolf.'

'And what happens when you imprint,' Embry asked coldly. So many of them had all ready done so that it was starting to seem pointless to think that they all wouldn't eventually.

Seth shrugged, 'Then I'll deal with that then. For now this is the life I want.'

'Well I'm not going to tell you to stay so if you want to come then it's up to you.' He turned to Embry and Quil, 'Same goes for you two.'

'You know I can't,' said Quil, 'There's no way I'm leaving Claire.'

'I know,' Jacob replied, 'but I had to ask anyways.'

'When are you guys leaving,' Embry asked.

'The morning after Renesmee's birthday,' replied Jacob.

Embry looked at his best friend, 'Then can I have time to think about it?'

'Yeah Embry, take the time you need.'

Jacob could see Quil's mind start to drift off to Claire. He couldn't blame him since he was starting to think about Renesmee. It was hard to believe that in just five months she would be seventeen.

'Boys I think we're good,' said Jacob, 'unless there's anything else.'

There was nothing else. Quil's mind was focused on Claire, Seth was focused on what he was going to tell his mom and Leah and Embry was focused on getting back to the woods.

They all made their separate ways.

Once Embry got to the edge of the woods near the line he phased into his human form. As part of the treaty they were not allowed to cross the lines as wolves. That was just asking for trouble despite the fact that now there were a few left, the treaty still stood.

Walking through the streets of the reservation gave Embry time to think. On his run through the woods that's all he focused on- the greenery and the animals surrounding them since he didn't want to let his brothers in on his true thoughts but now that he was human, his mind was his own.

Everyone had known this moment would come when the Cullen's would have to leave and Jacob would most likely go with them but it had been a far away idea until now.

After seven years the packs had changed so much.

The first change, Embry thought as he entered his empty house was his mother's death just a month or so after the Winter Volturi Confrontation. Following months of her son sneaking out, Tiffany had finally had enough of her son's rebellious behavior and constantly seeing him with Sam. She thought they were a gang just like most of the town despite Jacob Black being with them and rather than confront Sam to ask directly what was going on, since her own son wouldn't tell her, she'd hidden behind the house late one night and watched as her son left the house once again this time turning into a gigantic wolf.

Upon hearing her mother's heart beat, Embry stopped midstride and turned around, shifting back into human form, running over to his mother, and catching her before she fell to the ground. Embry had tried to revive her and do CPR but to no avail.

For months Embry took his mother's death hard. He agonized over his choice about not telling her about his wolf secret and for really, what first like the first time since he had never seriously dwelled on it before, began to question who his father was.

Though Joshua Uley seemed like the most obvious since he had abandoned Sam, he couldn't help but think sometimes that Billy Black had fathered him despite being married at the time, mainly because of how close he was to Jacob. And he knew Jacob and the others had similar thoughts.

Being in the house, some of those thoughts he had seven years ago were starting to return. Once again things were changing.

In the face of his pack, Jacob had always felt like a true brother and he was leaving. There was still Billy but after all this time he couldn't bring himself to ask the old man.

Could he really leave Forks behind?

Could he really leave home?

Could he leave his other pal, Quil behind?

Leah had quit months after the Volturi situation and that is what also complicated his decision. Much of Sam's pack had quit too: Paul being the first and then Sam and then Jared. The only wolves left in his pack were Collin and Brady, though Jared had become the exception.

Embry thought of him now as he made his way and lay down on his bed.

Jared's son was seven years old now and left without a mother. Thinking about Jared and about Jax was difficult. Embry could still remember the events of Jared's life. Though no longer connected to Sam's pack mind, both packs had grown closer and did share things including what went on with other pack brothers and sister as a way of looking out for each other.

During their first time together, Jared had gotten Kim pregnant. Even though they had only a month till high school graduation it had been the best news of their lives. They were happy, even happier than Jared and Kim had been when he had imprinted on her but by the seventh month of Kim's pregnancy things had started to go wrong.

Doctor's had discovered some abnormalities, not with the baby but with Kim leading to a diagnosis of Stage IV Leukemia.

Their options had come down to terminating the pregnancy or Kim's death, neither of which Jared had accepted.

He wanted to fix the situation. He wanted a way to have them both. Even if Kim had terminated, the doctor's had only given her less than a year to live. If they didn't terminate it only gave Kim less than three months.

Sam and Emily had been there for them both much in the same way Jared had been there for Sam and Emily when Emily was in the hospital day after day after being mauled by Sam.

Jared opted for terminating. Despite the year, they could make another one he told Kim. Jared didn't want the baby if it meant losing her. He wanted Kim to give him permission to die with her but she wouldn't have any of that talk.

Kim wanted their baby to live and she wanted Jared to be their baby's father and not abandon him or her. Jared didn't like her choices but it's what she wanted and what she wanted was not only for their baby to live but for him to live as well.

And everyday Kim reminded him of those things from the day Jax was born to the day, two months later, on the day she passed.

Jared took her death hard. While he had given her his word that he would look after their son, he couldn't deal with his emotions so he'd left the house one day and phased in the first time in over a year.

Collin and Brady heard Jared enter the pack mind so Collin rushed to the house where an infant Jax was alone and wailing up a storm while Brady rushed to Sam to tell him what had happened.

Embry thought of Jared now. His once ex-pack brother had become like Quil and Jacob: holding onto their wolf form to be there for their charges though not in the way Jared would have liked.

Collin and Brady had both explained it once saying how much it pained them to be in Jared's head. Though Jared had become a good father, nothing could take away the pain of losing his imprint. For years on end he questioned what the point of imprinting was when all that would happen is death would take them away.

And most of all he envied Jacob who was destined to live an immortal life, forever happy with his imprint.

Why did it have to be Jacob who imprinted on Bella's daughter?

Why couldn't it have been anyone of them?

Jared knew his thoughts were irrational. He loved Kim more than anything else in the world. He never wanted anyone else and he could never imagine himself feeling like that ever again. And so he resigned himself back to his wolf. If his son's mother could not be there for him, Jared wanted to make absolutely sure that he had nothing but time on his hands to be the kind of father Kim hoped him to be.

Shaking his head, Embry got up from his bed. He knew he was over thinking things. It should have been any easy thing to decide but it wasn't.

Some of the packs lived human, some of them lived wolf, but where did he fit in?

(3 Days before Renesmee's 17th Birthday)

Embry smiled as he walked the beach. "I thought I heard the kids out here," he said.

It was such a common location for Claire and Quil. The little girl loved the beach and never seemed to get enough of it.

Quil walked out from the water dressed in plain blue trunks with Claire on his shoulders who was dressed in a swimsuit with Spiderman on it, clearly something only Quil would have sewn though he didn't like to be teased about that. Claire was just going through her superhero phase and there were no girl suits with male superheroes on them.

"Who you calling a kid," Quil asked.

"Uncle Embry!" Claire gleamed.

"How's it going kiddo?"

"Good," she replied, "We went swimming."

"I can see that. Having fun?"

Claire nodded, "Always fun with Quilly. I love Quilly."

Claire tugged on Quil's hair and he reached up then set her on her feet. Claire ran to her bucket and began walking along the beach collecting various rocks, sea shells, and drift wood.

"I know what you're doing you know," said Quil.

"Oh yeah, what," Embry replied.

"You don't want to leave me," Quil teased in a high pitch voice.

Embry playfully shoved him, "Shut up! You're my boy so what if I don't want to leave?"

"And what about Jacob?"

"What about Jacob?"

"Come on Embry, we all know you guys are brothers."

Embry stiffened, "No one knows that."

"That's because you're too chicken to ask but the way you guys are, you could be twins."

"But we're not."

"No, you guys just share the same dad. Look if you can't go to Billy, have you ever considered going to Carlisle? The man's a doctor, I'm sure he could run a DNA test or something. I mean you and whoever your half brother is," Quil said and then fake coughed and added, "Jake," and then returned to explaining, "have got to have similar DNA."

Embry stopped walking, "And what if I'm not ready to know? What if the idea of it being Billy makes me hate myself because that would mean Billy cheated on Jake's mom with my mom. At least believing it was Joshua makes it easier because he was a flake."

"Okay no DNA test. Sorry I brought it up." Embry sighed and Quil looked at his best friend, "Look man, I know how hard it's been since losing your mom, we all do, and with Jake leaving that's just another person you have to say goodbye to and regardless of what you say, I've been in your head despite you trying to cover it up so I know that by making this choice you feel like your betraying one of us. I mean heck, we've all been best friends since we were little kids."

"It has always been the three of us," said Embry and then he smiled, "Even when I miraculously joined the pack and then you and I split off from Sam to go join Jake. Can you really imagine all three of us splitting up? I mean who knows how long they'll be gone for."

"Does it really matter?" Quil asked and then he looked over at Claire, "We're all going to split up eventually once I start aging again." He then turned his attention back to Embry, "Look no matter what, we're always gonna remain bros."

"Yeah but like you said, you're gonna start aging again."

Quil laughed, "That'll be interesting. You and Jake will be the young ones and I'll be your grandpa but if it's what Claire wants can I really say no? Look man, go. Get out of the rez, get out of that house, get away from your mom's death for a while. Start over and look, Embry, don't worry about leaving me behind." Quil watched as Claire dumped her bucket of treasures, "I'm gonna be more than fine," he added.

Claire waved Quil over, "Quilly come on, let's build a castle with wolves and a moat!"

"You are aren't you," said Embry. He stuck his hand out, "Thanks, Quil."

Quil shook it but then lingered, bringing Embry in for a hug and patting him on the back.

Claire laughed, "Ew boys don't hug!"

The two guys released each other immediately as if nothing happened.

"Quilly come on," Claire said getting impatient.

"What do you say," asked Quil, "Want to come join us?"

"Na man I'm good. You go ahead."

Embry watched as Quil made his way over to Claire. Some people were just lucky. He nodded a final time though Quil had his back toward him and then made his long way home, through the woods, not bothering to phase, wanting instead to enjoy the hike on two feet instead of four.

The sun had yet to rise on the day after Renesmee's seventeenth birthday. The woods were dark, there was no moon and the thicket of trees covered the stars but it was not enough to deter Embry from his destination. He had traversed these woods more times than he cared to count. The life of a wolf. It was inevitable.

He had made it to the Cullen's just in time. The house was completely empty of everything except tables and furniture which were covered in white sheets and all the windows and doors were boarded up. No one was coming back here any time soon.

Most everyone had left.

In the front of the house were the new cars Edward and Bella had purchased: a newly minted black Lamborghini Reventon that still had two years from arriving in the US and modified by Emmett so that it was perfect for driving in Alaska and other remote areas that was for them, a silver four door super duty Ford truck that had been a gift for Renesmee's sixteenth birthday and a black state of the art H4 Hummer for Jacob's pack.

Jacob was loading the final items in the bed of Renesmee's truck when he noticed Embry.

"Hey," said Embry, "Got room for one more?"

Edward and Bella were quick from the woods having made sure their cottage was secure and boarded up too.

Jacob smiled at Nessie and Seth.

"Come on," said Jacob, "but you're riding with Seth."

"And I'm driving," Seth replied with a huge smile.

Embry shook his head, "Figures," he answered as he tossed his pack in the back seat.

"Hey," said Seth, "First one here, first one gets to drive."

"So where're we headed," Embry asked.

"Alaska," Bella replied as she got in the car.

"More vampires?" said Embry.

"Yes vampires," said Edward, "Our cousins called. They've finally calmed down enough that they want us to visit," Edward finished and got in the car.

Jacob and Renesmee were all ready in their truck, with Jacob in the driver's seat and Seth began getting in the driver's seat of their H4.

"Upside," said Seth, "At least they're vegetarians. We even hear that Garrett has taken on that lifestyle."

Embry shook his head, "Why am I not surprised that you even know that," Embry asked as he got in his side of the truck.

The cars revved to life and began following each other in a line, none of the cars needing the headlights since they could all see perfectly in the darkness and away from the Cullen home for what may very well have been the final time.