Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight whatsoever, or its original characters. The only thing that I own is my own invention of characters and their background. So please don't sue me Stephanie Meyer. I don't have any money anyway lol. :-)

"Whoever declared that love at first

sight doesn't exist has never witnessed the

purity of a puppy or looked deep into a

puppy's eyes. If they did, their lives

would change considerably."

- Elizabeth Parker, Paw Prints in the Sand

+Fears+

June 25th, 2008…Wednesday

Amber's P.O.V

The air was still, as the full moon managed to cast its shadows through the trees. Barely a single sound could be heard; not a squeak, not a rustle, and not a growl. Only the sound of bare feet pounding against the muddy ground echoed through the silent woods. A heart pounding beneath their chest seemed to be the only music their feet kept rhythm too; praying that what was behind them wouldn't catch up.

Suddenly, as if it was one with the shadows, a grey blur flew past a cluster of trees; molding itself as tightly as it could into the darkness.

A howl rang out.

It's distant cry echoing with heartbreak upon the blistering wind. It brought nothing but sadness, and a sense of longing. Why did this wolf cry so sadly to the moon? What was it longing for so terrible that it felt the need to cry out?

The person that had been running stopped mid-step to listen. Standing within a large meadow, bathed by the light of the moon, the runner shivered from the cold wind as it nipped at their bare skin.

Tears of fear fell from their cheeks, as they awaited the next howl; knowing they were already trapped where they stood by the wolf's brothers. They could even hear the many cries upon the wind, as it carried from all around.

They were surrounded.

Shaking in fear, the bare runner watched as a giant grey wolf emerged from the tree line; walking out of the darkness that once sheltered its presence.

The wolf stalked toward its prey, as the runner kneeled upon the grass in a show of surrender.

It was over. The wolf had won the race. So why not give it its prize?

The runner closed their eyes, and awaited the end… but the end never came. Instead, they felt a pair of warm lips descend upon theirs; greedily consuming their own like a wildfire.

No matter how much the runner gave, it never seemed to be enough. The endless love these lips held would never hold a candle to anyone else's affections.

Carefully, the lips pulled away with a quiet whispered prayer, "Amber."

The runner startled upon hearing her name… my name.

As I opened my eyes, the wolf stood before me, crouched down in a menacing manner. Its lips were pulled back from its teeth, as it gave a vicious snarl. However, its liquid brown eyes no longer rested upon mine, but on something standing behind me.

Turning my head, I had just enough time to catch a black shadow of a man, before the wolf leapt over me.

With one last scream, the remainder of the wolves attacked.

I awoke with a start, as the blaring of my alarm clock screamed nonsense beside my right ear. Groaning, I reached over to shut it off, before swinging my legs over the side of the bed.

Placing my head within my hands, my mind began to replay the odd dream that I had just had.

Never before had I dreamed of something as serious as that. True, I had nightmares of wolves often, but nothing as intense as that dream.

It was like… like I knew that wolf. Almost as if I'd met him before.

Those eyes… those beautiful brown eyes… they just seemed so familiar.

Knock, Knock

Sighing, I lifted my head to find Taylor waving a cup of coffee within the doorway.

"Is it safe to come in? This coffee is my sign that I come in peace," Taylor chuckled knowing how grumpy I usual am when I first wake up.

"Oh just get your ass in here already, you stupid morning person," I growled, as she sauntered on in.

Handing me the cup of French vanilla cappuccino, she took a seat upon my bed. With a great sigh she asked, "Are we still going to go get our dog today?"

I shrugged my shoulders as I answered, "I don't know. I mean, are you going to go pick up all of the necessities for it while I'm at work?"

"Of course, silly," she smiled.

Grinning foolishly through my coffee, I gave a shake of my head at her early morning peppiness. Now why can't I be a morning person like her?

'Oh, that's right, because I hate mornings,' I thought with an inner laugh.

"Um, have you talked to Hunter about the whole dog situation yet? I'm sure he'll want to participate with this whole thing," I mumbled, as Hunter suddenly came bounding into my room at the mention of his name.

"Speaking of the devil," Taylor muttered, almost literally taking the words right out of my mouth.

"What dog," Hunter asked frantically, obviously having heard our conversation from the bathroom as he still had a tooth brush hanging out of his mouth.

"We're getting a dog today," Taylor replied with a bold smile.

"Are you serious? We're actually getting a dog," Hunter mumbled past his toothbrush, as his eyes connected with mine.

"Yep," I said popping the 'p.'

"YIPPY," Hunter screamed, as he danced around my room in only a pair of boxer shorts.

"EW! Put some clothes on," Taylor groaned, as she hid her eyes in the crook of my neck.

"Oh you know you like it," Hunter teased as flexed his non-muscular arms.

"Not even if you were the last man on this planet. Hell! How Emma puts up with your shit, I'll never know," Taylor commented with a roll of her eyes. However, Hunter chose to ignore most of her words, as only one seemed to get through that thick skull of his.

"By the way Amber, I'll need the car this weekend. Emma wants me to drive up to Port Angeles to visit her," Hunter announced, making me scrunch my nose up in distaste. I really didn't want him taking my car; especially if it was going to rain. Then again that was probably a given in this part of Washington.

"When exactly this weekend," I asked, while taking another sip of my cup of coffee.

"Um, Saturday morning most likely. I'll probably be gone until late in the evening," Hunter shrugged, before going back to brushing his teeth.

"Um, I guess that'll be alright. I can just drive my bike around instead," I replied, as I got to my feet.

Hunter gave a nod of thanks, before leaving the room to finish getting ready. However, Taylor decided to stay behind as she questioned, "What's the dress code for your work?"

"Why?"

"Nothing much," Taylor said with a dismissing wave of her hand, all the while she was already reaching into my dresser for an outfit.

'I should have known,' I couldn't help to think, as I sat my coffee down.

Picking up my hairbrush, I ran it through my hair a couple of times to free it of its few tangled knots, before answering, "Mr. Mallory says he really doesn't care; as long as it's school appropriate, it's fine."

"Okay then, that narrows it down some," and with that, Taylor savagely rummaged through my clothes, before tossing back a pair of faded skinny jeans at me.

"Put those on," she demanded, while continuing her search for a shirt.

"Um, you do know I need underwear and a bra, right?"

"Oh here ya go crybaby," she muttered, before I found myself with a face full of underclothes.

You know, I was beginning to get annoyed with having clothes constantly tossed into my face.

Though, not one to argue with Taylor when she went into stylist-mode, I wordlessly got dressed into the clothes she'd handed me. Before long, she also threw me a black, lace-edged blouse with a baby blue camisole to go on underneath.

"I think that should be good," Taylor replied, as she eyed me judgingly as if I were a portrait she'd been painting.

"Here, this should just about complete it," and with that she graced me with my favorite pair of high-heeled black boots.

"Are you serious? You never let me where them," I chuckled, before she gave a little shrug.

"Eh, it won't kill anyone. Besides which, it's just cloudy today; not raining."

"Though wont the ground still be wet from yesterday," I argued.

"Oh do you want to wear them or not! I can just as easily pull out a pair of ballet flats," she said with a huff of annoyance. Before she could take them back, I yanked them from her hands.

"Good girl. Now here's the socks," she laughed, as she once again threw a ball of socks into my face.

"What is with you and throwing clothes into my face all the time," I hissed, while yanking on my socks and boots.

"Don't know. It just seems fun to watch your eyebrows knit together like that when you get angry. It's just so adorable," she teased, while pinching my cheeks.

Smacking her hands away, I got to my feet and walked over to my vanity. I took a seat upon the tiny white stool, and began to apply a thin layer of make-up to my pale complexion.

"You know, you really need to go to a tanning bed with me. You've become really ghost-like here lately," Taylor sighed, as she came over and took my eyeliner from my hands. Without a word to one another, I let her finish up my make-up for me.

It was odd how we were so sisterly-like. Mom had once commented that we should have been twins from the way we move in sync sometimes.

I guess I had never really noticed how close we were until now. It was like Taylor knew me inside and out….and I her. We knew each other's likes and dislikes. We knew what the other was feeling, or when they need something that we were able to provide.

It was odd…creepy even… but it was nice.

I had always wanted a blood sister, but I guess I never knew how a friend like Tay could come so close to being like one.

I mean, we were even closer than my actually step-sister and me! (Cue the shudder.)

"There, it's perfect," Taylor whispered, as she moved away.

Giving her a silent 'thank you,' I reached into my jewelry box to add the last few touches, before getting to my feet.

Taylor handed me my purse, before we walked out of my room together. However, I stopped mid-step as my fear of heights came tumbling back into my mind.

"Heights, again," she asked, as I gave a stiff nod.

"Come on, it's not that bad," she muttered, as she placed her hand upon my back, and guided me down the stairs; into the foyer.

"So, what's for breakfast this morning? Other than that wonderful coffee of course," I prodded jokingly, as we walked into the dinning room to find Hunter already scarfing down whatever had been on his plate.

"Blueberry waffles, yum," Hunter hummed, as I took a seat across from him.

I filled my plate with about as much as I knew I could eat, before digging in. Yeah, Taylor's blueberry waffles were the shit. No one, and I do repeat, no one can pass up these without dying from regret.

Taylor was a good cook. She always had been from what I could remember. Though I guess she had to be when she was always taking care of her two brothers. They were a bit finicky about what they ate. If it wasn't made right, then it never went into their stomachs. Heck! They'd always come down stairs (after they gotten bored of their video games of course) to often beg her to cook them something when I'd be over at her house studying with her. Though, most times she just told them to fix their own food, and leave her the hell alone.

Taylor might be a good cook, but she wasn't the 50's motherly matron. I even dare you to try calling her that. She'll likely murder you before you can get it all out.

Halfway through our breakfast, there was a knock upon the door. With a sigh, I dropped my fork replying, "I'll get it."

"Don't worry, it's probably just Sam. I told him if no one answers just to come on in today," Hunter shrugged, while shoveling a large mouthful of waffles into what I had come to know as the human garbage disposal.

Proving Hunter's words to be correct, Sam opened the door, and walked right on into the dining room to find us.

However, I was honestly surprised to find that it was not indeed Sam, but one of the boys I'd seen yesterday; the one that had left work early to be exact.

"You ready to go," Embry asked, as two other boys made their way into the room behind him.

"Not really," Hunter whined looking down upon his plate regretfully.

"They're not going to disappear, Hunter," I said with a roll of my eyes, before finishing up the last of my own breakfast. Though, I guess you could say I really didn't eat all of it. I had actually been finding it hard to finish a meal here lately. Maybe it was just the aftereffects of the coma.

"Ya never know. They're so good they might. Hey, are you gonna finish that," Hunter asked, pointing to my plate.

"Knock yourself out," I replied shoving him the plate, but before he could reach for it, another pair of hands took it from the table.

"Hey, she gave it to me," Hunter cried, as one of the boys laughed.

"You have to be fast if you want to eat," the boy chuckled, as he dug into Taylor's famous waffles, "Oh my god, this shit is so good."

"Compliment the chef then. It's her famous blueberry waffles," I stated, motioning over to Tay, as the boys took a seat around the dining room table. Embry in particular took a seat next to me. However, I chose to ignore him the best I could. Those feelings from yesterday were still bubbling not far below the surface, and I was intent on making them go away; even if I had to ignore his presence completely to do it.

"Hey, Amber," Hunter spoke, bringing my attention back to him, "Did you ever hear anymore wolves howling last night."

The boys stiffened around the table as I answered, "Nope. That was the only one."

"You heard a wolf," one of the two boys, whose name I had yet to learn, asked with a smug grin directed towards Embry.

"Yeah, and I about came out of my skin when I heard it," I shrugged, as Taylor sent me a sympathetic gaze.

"What? Are you afraid of wolves or something," the other asked with a laugh.

"Terrified to be exact. She's hated them since she was five probably; sort of had a real bad run in with a half-breed once. I guess you could say she has a mild case of lupophobia nowadays," Hunter answered for me, as he finished up the rest of his breakfast.

"You know, the wolves around here are pretty harmless. Especially the big ones," Embry answered from beside me, choosing to speak for the first time since he arrived.

"Maybe, but I'm just not big on wolves. I rather they stay away from me, and I'll stay far away from them," I shrugged, before getting to my feet.

"Well, I'm off to work. I guess I'll see you at lunch, Tay," I declared, as Taylor gave me a nod, before confirming, "You're still going with me to the animal shelter today, right?"

"For the second time already, Tay; I will see you at lunch," I laughed, before walking out of the room, along with Hunter and the boys following close behind.

"Hey, wait a second," Embry said, stalling me mid-walk by placing his burning hot hand upon my shoulder. Standing still, he placed his hand next to my face.

I was so in shock that I didn't even notice him pulling a large piece of lint away until the last minute.

"There you go. You had this in your hair," he said giving me a breathtaking smile, as his brown eyes lit up with an emotion I couldn't even describe to you even if I tried.

"Um, t-thanks," I stuttered, before brushing past him to head to my car; all the while his two friends were giving one another knowing looks.

Starting up the car, I backed out of the driveway. However, my eyes felt the need to drift back to the man who'd been haunting my thoughts since I'd met him.

Those brown eyes just stared back at me with so much intensity, that it almost had me melting right into a puddle upon my seat.

Where was all this coming from? What was happening to me lately?

I shook those questions from my head, and instead forced myself to focus on getting out of there.

As I finally pulled away, I glanced in the rearview mirror one last time to see Embry still watching me; almost as if it pained him to see me go.

I'd only seen that look upon one other person within all my life.

Jacob.

Embry's P.O.V

We pulled up in Jake's Rabbit to the wonderfully styled English cottage home that I almost knew by heart.

I hadn't wanted to come here this morning, but Sam had made us. I mean, what with his injury from last night's fight, he couldn't be the one to come pick up Hunter. Plus, he also happened to mention to us the little argument he'd had with my Amber yesterday as well.

'No! Bad Embry! She's not you're Amber,' I mentally reprimanded, as we got out of the car.

Even as I stepped out, I could already smell that intoxicating aroma of sugar cookies, sweet ice tea, and honeysuckle. However, it was also mixed in with the mouthwatering scent of blueberry waffles as well; something that seemed to have all of our stomachs humming at the mere smell.

"Oh, man. That smells like heaven," Quil groaned, taking in a rather long sniff of the air.

"Down boy; we're only here to pick up Hunter for Sam," Jacob reminded him, as I raced to the front door.

I was so eager to see her again; to know she was safe and alright. She'd been on my mind all night, especially after Sam had informed us (once we'd gotten back from staking out her house) about her closeness to the Cullen's.

Just knowing that put my wolf on full alert, and had him clawing at my insides to be let loose on the leeches. Apparently he didn't find it at all calming knowing that she'd been in their presence, or that she preferred them over us for that matter.

Remembering Sam's words about Hunter's invitation, I knocked once before immediately opening the door, to walk right on it.

Following the already familiar fragrance of my Amber, I soon found myself standing in the dining room with the three occupants that lived within the home.

My eyes swept over to Amber briefly, but it was all I needed to find the wolf inside me already purring in relief; as long as she was safe, we were fine.

Then my gaze shifted back to Hunter, as I asked, "You ready to go?"

Jake and Quil came to flank my sides, as Hunter gave a shake of his head, and answered in an almost whiny tone, "Not really."

"They're not going to disappear, Hunter," came my mate's beautiful angelic voice, as she placed her fork down upon her plate. Leaning back into her chair, she gave a quiet sigh; almost sad-like in nature.

"Ya never know. They're so good they might. Hey, are you gonna finish that," Hunter asked, pointing to Amber's plate greedily; the same one that Quil was already eyeing just as hungrily.

We still hadn't gone to the store to stock up on food. So we'd all just gone hungry this morning instead; only barely making it out of the house by promising ourselves that we'd stop to get some breakfast on the way. However, I was starting to think that Quil had other plans on how to get himself something to eat sooner.

"Knock yourself out," Amber replied shoving her cousin the plate, but before he could reach for it I saw Quil immediately diving in for the kill. With no time to warn the poor kid, Quil already had the leftover breakfast securely clutched within his hands.

"Hey, she gave it to me," Hunter cried, as Quil merely laughed at his heartbroken look.

"You have to be fast if you want to eat," my friend laughed, as he just dug into the plate of waffles without regret. However, upon first bite, he instantly sank into a world full of bliss, declaring, "Oh my god, this shit is so good."

"Compliment the chef then. It's her famous blueberry waffles," Amber replied, pointing over to her friend, whom had motioned with her eyes for us to take a seat. Quil gave a thankful nod to the blonde between bites, as I let my eyes travel over to Amber absently.

Though, I felt my smile fall a little when I realized she was openly ignoring me on purpose. For what reason she was doing this, I had no clue. However, it seemed as if my mere presence was simply bugging her. Could she already feel the imprint? Is that why she felt so awkward around me, and why she felt the need to hide it?

All the while that my mind was going over options, Hunter's voice traveled to my ears; immediately cutting off my future thoughts with what he had to say.

"Hey, Amber," Hunter spoke, trying to catch her attention. When he realized he finally had it, he went on to ask, "Did you ever hear anymore wolves howling last night."

I, as well as Jake and Quil, instantly froze within our seats. This is what I was dreading to hear. I had not meant for her to hear that howl last night, but I knew that was impossible. Our lupine cries were a lot louder, and a lot longer than a normal wolf's.

Amber calmly answered from beside me, "Nope. That was the only one."

I gave a silent sigh that went unnoticed by everyone who didn't have super-wolf hearing. The guys however, even though they'd heard my sigh, went on to question her.

"You heard a wolf," Jacob asked with a smug grin directed towards me. Almost as if he were trying to prove to me how strong this bond between Amber and I really was.

"Yeah, and I about came out of my skin when I heard it," she shrugged, as her friend sent her a sympathetic look; one that I instantly noted and stored away inside my brain for later.

"What? Are you afraid of wolves or something," Quil decided to ask with a chuckle laced in with his words; almost as if he already knew what was on my mind.

"Terrified to be exact. She's hated them since she was five probably; sort of had a real bad run in with a half-breed once. I guess you could say she has a mild case of lupophobia nowadays," Hunter answered for her, as he finished up the rest of his breakfast.

My mind instantly went on overdrive at his words.

She had lupophobia!

That meant she was absolutely petrified of wolves? How was this going to work? Were my ancestors just playing some silly joke by doing this to not only me, but to her as well? It just didn't seem right. Yet, that didn't stop the wolf inside me from trying to comfort her.

"You know, the wolves around here are pretty harmless. Especially the big ones," I spoke up from beside her for the first time since I'd come in. Her eyes finally turned to look at me with what I could only describe as wonder.

Was it really that surprising that I would speak to her?

Either way, I turned my hearing back on to Amber as she tried to counter my claim.

"Maybe, but I'm just not big on wolves. I rather they stay away from me, and I'll stay far away from them," she shrugged, before getting to her feet; leaving my wolf to wallow in misery at her words.

She'd rather us stay away? Well then, I guess it was a good thing I was choosing to ignore the imprint. At least now she wouldn't have to be stuck with her worst fear forever.

"Well, I'm off to work. I guess I'll see you at lunch, Tay," Amber declared as her friend gave her a nod, before confirming with her, "You're still going with me to the animal shelter today, right?"

"For the second time already, Tay; I will see you at lunch," she laughed, before making her way out of the room. Getting to our feet as well, Jake, Quil, Hunter, and I bid our adieus to Amber's friend, and followed my imprint out.

However, being within a short distance away from her when we reached the porch, I noticed a large piece of lint hanging from her hair. Taking slight pity, and mostly wanting to smother the urge to be closer to her, I reached out to place my hand upon her shoulder.

"Hey, wait a second," I said, as Amber froze to a standstill beside me. Coming around to perch in front of her, I placed my hand next to her face, while I carefully extracted the offending piece of lint from her hair; all the while my eyes remained on hers.

She was so in shock that she barely even noticed what I'd just done until the last minute. Yet, when she did, she gave me a sheepish smile.

"There you go. You had this in your hair," I said while giving her one of my best puppy dog smiles. She, however, didn't quite smile back. Instead she just stood there as her brown, nearly mahogany, eyes lit up with an emotion I could only describe as pure wonder.

"Um, t-thanks," she finally stuttered, before brushing past me to head to her car; all the while Jake and Quil were sharing a knowing look beside me.

Amber got into her Sedan and started her up, before quickly backing out of the driveway. However, I noticed that her eyes had ever so casually drifted back to mine. Almost as if she could feel this pull between us. Then again, maybe she already did unknowingly? Maybe that's why she was trying to runaway so fast?

…but I didn't want her to. The wolf inside of me wanted to stare into her eyes for the rest of his eternity, and the sad thing about it was… he wasn't the only one anymore.

Those beautiful brown eyes of hers just continued to stare back at me with so many unanswered questions lying so deep below the surface; ones that I knew I'd never be able to answer for her.

Finally, Amber turned her gaze away from mine as if I had burned her, and focused her attention back on pulling away from the house instead. Yet, even as she finally pulled away, I knew she was still staring, much like I was.

There was no amount of money in this world that would make me tear my eyes away from her now. Not even if it could save my man-card while it still had a pretty good chance.

"Dude, seriously, she's my cousin," came a voice from my side.

Turning my eyes to look over at her cousin, I saw an irritated expression sketched into his features.

Shit, he had seen!

"Um, sorry, she's just…"

"Let me guess; hot, irresistible, and looks like a good screw," he replied with a raised brow, before going on to say almost angrily, "Don't even try it. She's got too much on her plate as it is right now without having to go adding you as another problem into the mix."

With that threat satisfying enough to him, he walked away to jump into Jake's Rabbit. However, it was there that I finally had my slap of a reality check.

He was right. She already had too much to handle without adding me to her list of problems.

I needed to break this imprint, and I needed to break it now.

Amber's P.O.V

I parked my car in front of the shop, and killed the engine. I was probably a couple of minutes early, which gave me just enough time to sit there, and try to gather my thoughts once again.

Where were all these new feelings coming from, and why were they all centered on this Embry character? Better yet, what was I going to do about it?

I knew I wasn't ready to be out and about in the dating world again; let alone to be having these kinds of thoughts about another man.

This whole thing was odd, and it all seemed to point towards insanity. Then again, maybe that's what I'm looking at; insanity.

Have I gone insane? Should I be put into a mental institution?

No… I'm just getting a little to ahead of myself there.

Knock, Knock

Looking over at my driver's side window, I saw Mr. Mallory watching me with an amused expression upon his face; all the while chugging down a cup of Joe.

Chuckling at his bemused look, I opened the car door and got out. Grabbing my purse, I shut the car door, and turned to my boss, "Sorry. I figured since I was a little early I'd wait a couple of minutes."

"Ah, I could see that. It seemed like you were losing yourself in your own mind there for a moment. I thought I better try to reel you back, before you fell victim into the icy cold hands of a coma," he laughed, earning a few nervous chuckles from me.

His words were not lost on me. I remembered exactly how it felt to be in a coma. I will never forget my own; let alone why I had ended up in it.

"Well, come on in. We got a lot of work to do today. I finally just got my shipment of that new vampire series my granddaughter's been waiting for," Mr. Mallory chortled, as he unlocked the store's bard glass door.

However, before we even had a chance to walk in, a new voice called out to us from the building on our right.

"Morning Mr. Mallory," came a peppy male's timbre.

Turning our heads to look over at the young man, I found a rather nice looking boy stationed in front of the other store's glass door. He had gelled blonde hair, pale blue eyes, and a cute baby face that easily defined him as an all-American man. Overall, he was alright-looking, but he still seemed to scream 'Hitler's Master Race,' to me.

I guess I just wasn't into that whole blonde haired, preppy, puppy-dog attitude. I was more so into the whole brooding, tall, dark, and handsome types.

Matter of fact, Jacob had been the only blonde I'd ever found decently attractive within my whole life. Yet, I guess that had been because I was more into his personality than his looks. I had taken my time to get to know him first; be his friend, you know?

It's easier to look past a friend's faults, than it is a stranger's.

"Morning Mike! How's your mom and dad doing," Mr. Mallory asked, as he stopped me from walking on inside.

"They're good," the boy shrugged as his eyes landed upon me with a curious expression; however that look didn't stay curious for long as his gaze instantly turned into flirtation.

As if he'd known what I'd been thinking, he dived right in to ask the million-dollar question, "Who's the new girl? I've never seen you around before."

With an admirable confidence, he stepped forward and held out his hand. I gave a polite smile, and shook his clammy palm; trying to resist the urge to shudder at the awkward feel of it. I've never liked cold fish-like hands.

Though, I guess that was the least of my problems right now, as that familiar rush of emotions burst through my mind.

… Attraction… Infatuation… Eagerness…

I merely tried to shake it all off, and ignore the unusual emotions raging on inside of me.

"I'm Amber McCall. I'm his new employee."

"Oh, that's cool. Looks like the old man finally wised up, and got him some help around this place. God knows his granddaughter never shows up when she has to," he joked, as Mr. Mallory gave him a playful evil eye.

"She'd show up more often if I told her you've been coming into work earlier," my boss answered, with a slight eye roll, before telling me, "My granddaughter's got this sort of crush here on Mike. Though, I think she's too young to be thinking about boys."

"Oh, how old is she," I questioned, with a raised brow.

"Seventeen, but she turns eighteen here in three days," he grumbled, while taking a sip from his Styrofoam cup.

"Oh…um… that's kind of my age, and I've already had a boyfriend, or two by now," I replied scratching the back of my head nervously.

"Oh, don't worry. I've got no judgment towards you. It might be fine and dandy for some, but not for my little girl. I rather try to keep her innocent as long as I can," he replied, while eyeing the blushing Mike.

It seemed kind of obvious what Mr. Mallory was trying to do. He was attempting to make a point to this guy, and I was probably screwing it up with my own. I guess it would be better if I just shut my mouth while I still had the chance.

"Well, it's nice to meet you…um…"

"Mike. Mike Newton," he said with an adorable smile, before pointing back at the store he'd been standing in front of, "If you ever need anything, then feel free to know you can find me next door… at my family's shop… because I work there."

Mr. Mallory rolled his eyes at Mike's stammering before placing his hand around my shoulders.

"Well, this little lady and I had better get to work, before what sun we have disappears. It was good talking to you, son."

"You too Mr. Mallory," Mike smiled, before his eyes fell on mine, "…and you as well, Amber."

I sent him a polite smile, before scurrying off into the store with Mr. Mallory. Once the door closed however, his mouth was moving a mile a minute.

"I used to really like that kid until he and my granddaughter hit puberty. Now it's like their hormones are just screaming at one another. I swear, it's like anything that walks by with a skirt and legs, he's instantly after them!"

"Oh, he doesn't seem all that bad. True he's like any other guy, but overall he seems alright," I replied with a shrug, as Mr. Mallory motioned for me to put my purse below the front desk; where it'd be safe.

"Yeah, but just you wait. He'll be barking up your tree next time he sees you. Just don't let my little girl catch him doing it. She'll have a fit. Seems to think he's all hers, or something," Mr. Mallory chuckled, as he readied the cash register for the day.

"Don't worry. Mike's not really my type. Besides, I'm not looking for any relationship right now, anyways," I answered with a laugh, as he motioned me over to one of the shelves. Looking up, I noticed a space cleared for the new books that'd just come in.

"The box is over there; by the door. Just open it up and start putting away the books onto the shelves. When you get done with that, just go through the rows, and make sure all of the books are in their right sections. I tend to have people who don't know how to properly put back what they pull out," Mr. Mallory directed me, right as the front door swung open to reveal a young girl who looked to be around my age.

She was obviously in her teens, with long strawberry blonde hair, forest green eyes, and light olive skin. Her eyes were large and doe-like with long lashes, accompanied by a thin and petite nose. Though, what set off her whole look was her round babyish cheeks; tinted with a small hint of an ever constant blush, and a couple of angel kisses scattered across her face.

Overall the girl seemed like a good person from the way she held herself. It was almost like you could do no wrong to her; pure, and innocent. No wonder Mr. Mallory wanted Mike to stay away. She seemed so young compared to him with her barely 5'0" frame!

"Dear lord, it's Armageddon! My granddaughter has actually made it to work on time," Mr. Mallory cried teasingly, as he clasped his hands together in mock prayer.

"Oh shut it old man. You told me to be here this morning, and I am," she joked, while going around the front desk to set her purse underneath.

"Yes, but when do you ever listen to me. You're just like you're father; stubborn and bullheaded."

"…and we wouldn't have it any other way," she beamed, before taking notice of me. Lifting a curious brow, she asked, "This the new girl?"

"Yep," Mr. Mallory replied, before adding, "Tisha, this is Amber. Amber, this is my granddaughter Latisha."

"Hi, it's nice to meet you," I smiled courteously, while extending my hand for her to shake. However, she just simply eyed it as if it were the most offensive thing within the entire world.

Realizing she wasn't going to extend the same hospitality I retracted my hand, and went about stocking the shelves.

"You know, we could have done just fine without a new employee, Granddad," Latisha replied snootily; not even trying to hide her loud disdain for me, might I add.

"Oh, don't even start Tisha! You know, I really don't even have to let you work here. I'm only doing it as a favor to your father," Mr. Mallory scolded, as he shoved a box into her chest.

Latisha merely glared at him and the box, before walking off further into the store; already knowing her morning ritual.

Shaking his head, Mr. Mallory answered for her rudeness, as he commented, "Don't worry about Tisha. She's territorial like her mother. I guess she sees you as a threat when it comes to her precious Mike. You'll just have to give her time, and maybe eventually she'll jump off the crabby train."

"Oh, don't worry. I deal with childish behavior like that all the time. My cousin Hunter is just as bad," I answered; secretly hoping that the girl, wherever she was within the store, would hear my words. I wasn't about to roll over and let the stupid brat kick me like a dog.

Mr. Mallory simply laughed, and waved me on to finish my work, knowing what I'd meant by that comment.

Four hours later…

The store had gotten pretty busy later in the day, making it harder and harder to keep up with the organization within the rows. It almost seemed as if every mistake I fixed, I'd only come back to find it in the wrong place once again. Some people even had the nerve to hand me a book, and ask me to put it back for them. Though, I had a suspicious feeling that was all Latisha's fault from the smug look she carried around with her from customer to customer.

After a while though, Mr. Mallory finally seemed to take pity on me. With a glare in his granddaughter's direction, he brought me over to the front desk to show me how to use the old outdated cash register. It wasn't that hard to figure out, and in no time I was ringing up customers as Mr. Mallory helped Latisha out on the floor.

As I was ringing up a young girl's Rumors book (written by: Anna Godbersen), I caught sight of Taylor entering into the store with Alice.

Smiling at the two of them, I gave them the 'one second' hand gesture. With that little push that I needed, I finished ringing up the rest of the customers before abandoning my post to find Mr. Mallory.

When I finally did come across him, I found him explaining to a young couple about the newest vampire book, Equinox. One that I'm sure I'll never read. I mean seriously, who reads about a romance between a human and a vampire? Honestly, I rather stick to the good old fashioned, raunchy, love story novels that my Gran got me hooked on.

Either way, I tuned into Mr. Mallory as he explained the book. I guess it would be nice to hear his take on it. Maybe with luck I wasn't alone in my own opinion.

"From what I've heard from my granddaughter, it's the third in its series; supposedly a love triangle between a werewolf, a human, and a vampire. Seems unrealistic to me, but it's what you teenagers are into today, I guess," he chuckled teasingly with the two preteens, who were now flipping through the book's pages interestingly.

As the two younger teens busied themselves, Mr. Mallory stood waiting to hear their take on the novel. At this point, I decided to dive in to ask my question.

"Mr. Mallory? I'm sorry to bother you, but is it okay if I go on my lunch break. My friends are here to pick me up," I asked nervously, as he turned his gaze over to me.

Smiling he answered, "Yeah, sure; go on ahead. Just be back in an hour and half, and don't forget to clock out on the time sheet up front."

"No problem," I smiled, as I rushed back to the front to clock out, and grab my purse.

Once I was done, I met Taylor and Alice over by the display for the new book Equinox. 'Figures I would find them there,' I thought with a laugh.

"Doesn't really sound like a good book does it? I mean, seriously, a werewolf and a vampire falling in love with the same human. I find it more comical than romantic," I joked, as Alice held the tome in her hand. Hearing my words, she broke out into a large grin with a sort of twinkle lighting up within her eyes.

"I don't know. Sounds like a good book to me," she replied, while setting the book back down onto the shelf.

"So, how's the first day been?"

Groaning, I answered, "Grueling, but it's a lot better than having no job."

"Amen to that. I can't wait to start at the Washington Career Center tomorrow. It's so boring sitting at home. Thankfully, Alice here dropped by earlier, and kept me company. I invited her to come along with us today. I hope that's alright," Taylor commented, as we made our way out of the bookstore.

"No problem. You'll probably know where the animal shelter is better than we do," I said pointedly, as Alice looped her arms through both of ours.

"Yeah, I figured as much. So, what kind of dog are you looking for today anyway? I was thinking along the lines of a Labrador, or maybe…"

"You say Chihuahua, and I won't hesitate to run you over with my car, Alice," I said earning a chorus of laughter from the three of us.

We got into Taylor's car, a beautiful white 2000 Chevrolet Camaro Z28, and buckled ourselves in. Alice managed to con her way into the driver's seat, as she openly admired the Nightmare before Christmas steering wheel cover.

"Oh I love that movie, but Jasper won't let me watch it anymore. He says I've become too obsessed with it," Alice commented, as Taylor and I shared a knowing look.

It was an inside joke really, but not to long ago Taylor had once been just as obsessed with it. So bad, that one Halloween she'd made her ex dress up as Jack, while she sported the costume of his counterpart; Sally. That had been one odd Halloween party at Daniel's. Then again, that was a time long ago… when I had still been with Jacob.

Till this day I can't forget the Cleopatra and Alexander costumes we'd worn, and how wet they'd gotten after we'd taken a dip in our friend's pool. I guess you could say it had been somewhat of a 'drunken accident.'

I shook those memories from my head, as Alice backed out onto the road. Putting the car into drive, she sped through town like a bat out of hell; immediately putting my speed demon name to shame.

"Okay! Remind me to tell Hunter to never ride with you Alice," I cried from the backseat as she nearly ran off the road.

"Oh, don't worry. I know what I'm doing, silly," she smiled from the driver's seat, as the town disappeared, and the forest grew large and thick.

"So, where is the animal shelter anyway?"

"It's about two miles outside of La Push's border. It's in a remote area, so that there's enough land to allow the dogs to have their space to run sometimes," Alice said, answering Taylor's question.

"Cool," I murmured as we drove down the winding roads, until finally turning off onto an old dirt path.

Before long the rough-dirt path led up to a large clearing. There we found a gray concrete building with a blue-tin roof standing in all its glory. Above the two large glass doors, a sign was nailed into the concrete wall as if someone had placed it there lazily. Looking old and aged, I noticed the red paint chipping slightly away off of the white board. However, still readable, I noticed the words spelling out Fork's Animal Shelter in the bold crimson lettering.

Alice parked the car near the front door, and cut the engine. Looking over to Taylor she asked, "You've got the money to pay for the puppy, right?"

"Yeah, I've also got my credit card with me just in case," Taylor replied, as we all hopped out of her Camaro, and walked over to the front door. I pushed in the glass frame, making the doorbell ding loudly above us. This of course signaled our presence to the young Native American girl who'd been manning the front desk.

However, her eyes continued to remain glued to the computer in front of her, as she typed away expertly at its keyboard. Even though I wanted to shout, 'That's rude,' I kept my mouth shut for the sake of Taylor's obsession with getting a dog. I knew I couldn't ruin this for her.

Thankfully, the girl seemed to redeem herself when she heard the three of us approach her desk. With one final stroke across the keyboard, she finally raised her eyes to look at our tiny group.

At first she sported a large smile, but when her eyes landed on Alice she fought a very noticeable grimace.

"Hi. We're here to adopt a dog," I replied nervously, scratching the back of my neck.

"Oh, um… well if you'll follow me on into back I'll get you started," she said, forcing a smile at the three of us; all the while her eyes kept darting nervously over to Alice. Getting to her feet, she motioned for us to follow her down the hallway, and to a door at the end.

Opening the heavy metal door, she ushered us in, and informed us, "My name is Kim by the way. So if you need anything just holler for me. However, I think Collin's already back here if you need any more assistance."

"Oh, okay," and with that she left quickly; leaving us to browse through the cages filled with dogs

"Well Tay, have at it. This was you're idea," I replied motioning at the first few cages.

Without needing even the tiniest nudge, she shot forward, and immediately starting cooing at the furry animals before her.

"Not a dog person I see," Alice chuckled.

"No, I just… I get easily attached to animals. If I start looking, then I'm likely to take them all home," I replied with a shake of my head.

Suddenly Alice tensed, and she scrunched up her nose in distaste. Before I even had a chance to ask her what was wrong, a young Native American boy rounded the corner; looking just as unhappy as my friend.

"Need help," he asked through clenched teeth, while staring daggers at Alice.

"No, my friend is pretty much browsing right now," I answered coolly, as his eyes met mine in disgust and was that… recognition maybe?

"Well, when she finds one just let me know. Oh, and Cullen; get any closer to the border…"

"Yeah, yeah, I already know mutt," she hissed, before stalking off to the door. Alice called over her shoulder, "I'm going to wait outside if you don't mind, Amber. The air in here reeks too much of wet dog."

Raising a curious brow, I gave a simple nod, before turning back to the guy standing before me.

"You know, if I was you, I'd watch what company I'd keep," he sneered, earning a very noticeable eye roll from me.

"You know, that's the second time I've heard that similar comment. So I'll say to you what I said to my cousin's boss, 'It's a free country.' So back off," and with that I walked off to see how Taylor was doing with her search.

Though halfway down the aisle, I noticed something clawing at the cage next to me. Hearing the creature finally whine to catch my attention, I turned to get a good look at it, and froze.

It was like déjà vu as I gazed into the beast's wide and innocent electric blue eyes. My body seemed to freeze in place, as the creature gave a puppy-like howl, before lolling its tongue out cutely. It even wagged its tail in delight as I stood stock still; hoping that this vision would go away.

"He's half-gray wolf/half-husky, and barely a year old. Someone brought him in a couple of weeks ago; claiming they couldn't take care of him anymore. They said he doesn't really get along with anyone, but I've been trying to coax him out of that. This is kind of the first time I've seen him act so friendly toward anyone," came Collin's voice from beside me.

"He's uh… cute," I answered nervously, as the boy got a wicked gleam in his eye.

Taking my hand he pulled me forward toward the young wolf.

… Anticipation… contempt… curiosity…

"Wait, what are you doing," I cried, as I struggled within his grip.

"Don't worry. He's not going to hurt you obviously. I think the little guy likes you too much," Collin scoffed, as he brought my hand against the fence. Immediately the gray wolf reached up, and licked my hand playfully.

I squirmed in Collin's grip, but after a few moments of the young pup nudging against my hand, I reached further in to pet him.

…Loyalty… Friendliness… Love… Familiarity…

"Well look at that! It's a miracle. I think you've found yourself a dog," Collin laughed, as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"WHAT," I screeched whirling around to glare at him. Almost around the time that Taylor turned the corner, and cried, "Awe, he's so cute!"

I gave both my friend and the man before me an open glare. They were not about to con me into adopting one of my worst fears!

"But he's a wolf," I protested angrily to Taylor, as she came over to pet the poor creature.

"Yeah, but he's just so cute and lovable," she laughed, as the beast licked her hand savagely.

"I'm afraid of wolves, Tay? Imagine if I wake up to him in the morning. Do you honestly want to see me have a heart attack?"

"Oh come on. You even like him! Just look at that expression in your eyes. Not to mention the look on this poor baby's face! Can you honestly stare this poor defenseless creature in the eyes, and tell him 'no,'" Taylor cooed, as the wolf's gaze met mine. Immediately the puppy-dog look took over my entire being, and warmed my frozen heart.

To be honest, he didn't seem that bad. I guess if you looked past some of the wolf like features, you can see the Husky in him. Plus, he'd been automatically drawn to me, and as I looked into those enchanting electric powder-blue eyes…I guess you could say I already knew the answer.

"Fine, but he's your responsibility. This was your idea in the first place," I hissed, with a shake of my head.

Biting my lip, I turned to Collin, and motioned for him to open the cage. He simply gave me a smug grin, before unlocking the large wire door.

The moment the gate swung open, the teenage wolf automatically pounced upon me; sending me to the floor with a loud 'Oomph.'

"See, he really does like you. Guess you are a wolf-girl after all," Collin joked, before pulling the dog off of me.

Embry's P.O.V

Jake, Quil, Hunter, and I took a seat in largest booth at the end of the restaurant. We managed to scrunch in together enough to fit, but it still barely left any room to move. I guess that was just a downside to being a shape-shifter; minus Hunter of course.

Anyway, since we all had forgotten to bring our lunch today, we opted to just grab a bite at La Push's local diner. I mean, we would have just gone to Emily's, but knowing Sam and the foul mood he was in lately… well let's just say there was no need to anger a testy wolf, or his pregnant imprint.

"Mmmm, I can already smell those hamburgers cooking," Quil hummed, as he stuck his nose to the air.

"I know," Hunter commented right before his eyes suddenly lost focused, and zeroed in on something behind us, "Then again, maybe I see something a helluva lot better."

We weren't exactly sure what Hunter had meant at first, but we soon found out as our waitress came into view.

She came up upon our table with a hungry look in her eyes like she was determined to catch her prey. Even her body tried to coax us in with the smell of its desire; almost completely saturating the air around us. This woman was like sex on legs! No wonder Hunter was so drawn to her.

The waitress turned to us three wolves, and gave us one of her sexist smiles; before leaning over to hand us our menus. This of course 'accidentally,' showed her cleavage to us from her very low cut shirt.

'Dear lord, just what I need today,' I thought with a groan, as the very gifted blond asked in a silky seductive voice, "What can I get for you boys?"

"Anything if you stay like that," Hunter mumbled while staring at her chest; almost just enraptured with her as she was with us.

'Poor kid. He doesn't even notice that she doesn't give two cents about him,' I couldn't help thinking with a silent chuckle.

Of course none of us acted on her sultry undertone; at least the three of us wolves. Being imprinted kind of kills that stuff for you.

The blonde looked over at Hunter pointedly when she caught him staring at her rack, and questioned, "What do you want?"

Hunter just continued to sit there with his mouth open, almost drooling, until Jake elbowed him in the ribs. With that, he immediately came out of his trance, and half-shouted, "Cheeseburger! Um…yeah, a cheeseburger with fries and a vanilla shake sounds good."

"Okay, and what about you three," she asked, turning her heated gaze upon us.

"I guess an extra large chocolate shake, four Hamburgers, and three large fries will do," Jake answered as she wrote down the order, and began walking away.

"Hey wait, we didn't give you our order," Quil called out as she froze, and asked, "I thought that was all three of your orders?"

"Um, nooo...that was kind of just mine," Jake laughed, as her and Hunter's eyes widened.

"Oh, okay," she mumbled as she bite her lip nervously. Walking back over to our group, she took the rest of our orders, before scurrying off into the kitchen.

"I think ya'll scared her," Hunter pouted, as his eyes remained fixed upon the kitchen door.

I couldn't help laughing at the sad look in his eyes, as I commented, "Yeah, we kind of do that to a lot of waitresses."

"We sort of eat… a lot," Quil chuckled, as he shared a knowing with Jake and me.

"Huh… I wish Taylor, or even Amber at least, had those kinds of appetites. Then maybe they wouldn't get on my case all the time. Hey, maybe you guys should eat over for dinner once? I think after they see you all eat, maybe then they'll stop ragging on me," Hunter chortled.

"I don't doubt that," I stated, while fiddling with the napkin dispenser next to me.

"…When you see my face

Hope it gives you hell, hope it gives you hell.

When you walk my way

Hope it gives you hell, hope it gives you hell…"

"What's that," Quil asked, right before Hunter fished his phone out of his pocket. Holding it up, he answered, "Its Amber calling…or Taylor. It's both of their ringtones actually."

Chuckling, we listened as he pressed the talk button, and held the device up to his ear.

"Yep, what do you want?"

"WE GOT A DOG," came a screech from the other line. Hunter held the phone away from his ear, as he winced in pain. I didn't blame him really, because for all three of us wolves it was like we too were holding the phone to our own ears.

"Great, now please tell me you didn't get some rat, and decide to call it a dog, Tay," he chuckled, as there was a long sigh on the other line.

"Nope. Amber threatened to run Alice and me over if we did. Instead, we just got a half-grey wolf/half-husky," Taylor said from the other line.

We all tensed in our seats from two things we just heard in that sentence. One; the mention of Alice Cullen. Two; the half-wolf.

We all could remember the conversation from earlier this morning concerning Amber's fear of them. So why on earth would Alice and Taylor con her into adopting a half-breed?

"Um, you do know Amber's afraid of wolves, right," Hunter asked cautiously.

"Yeah, I know, but it was her idea. It was like she was drawn to the poor guy, and he took an instant liking to her. Though, he does seem to hate Alice. The only reason he's staying calm in our car right now is because he's lying all over Amber. I guess she just has a way with dogs, or something," Taylor laughed, earning bemused looks from all of us.

At least the wolf hated Alice. I guess the creature didn't have bad taste after all.

"So, have you named it yet," Hunter wondered.

"Well… I wanted to name him Fluffy or Balto, but your cousin quickly vetoed those. She said they weren't that good. So, I guess you could say he's pretty much John-Doe until we can figure out a name for him."

"Oh, alright," Hunter replied with a shrug, before noticing the waitress walking over with our food, "Hey, I'm about to eat, so I'll talk to you later."

"Alright, bye."

"Bye."

Click.

"So, I'm assuming you just adopted a dog," I spoke, as the waitress sat down Hunter's meal, and half of Jake's, before heading back into the kitchen to get the rest.

"Yeah, and apparently it's a half-wolf. I don't know about you, but I already foresee Amber waking up screaming in the middle of the night," he said with a shake of his head, as he tucked his phone back into his jeans pocket.

"She's that bad," Quil exclaimed, with wide eyes.

"Yeah, she is. When she was little she used to have nightmares about them all the time. I can't even count how many times she'd wake up screaming her head off. I remember one time it took an hour of coaxing her to stop crying, and a sleeping pill to get her back to sleep. Though, that was around the time Jake left her. Whenever something traumatic happens, her mind always reverts back to those dreams. It's like being kicked while she's already down," he replied with a mournful shake of his head.

"Man that sounds awful. I mean, to be haunted by your worst nightmares like that must be rough," Quil commented with a simple wince just thinking about it.

"Wait a minute what was the guy's name again," I asked as I ran his words over in my mind once more.

"His name was Jacob Evans; better known as Jake. He's the one that died a couple of weeks ago. If I was you, I wouldn't mention his name around her. She tends to space out a lot when you do."

"Well then you better not let her meet this Jake, again," Quil sighed, as he leaned back in his booth.

"Or say his name around her," I reiterated.

Hunter gave a nod of approval, right before the waitress (or should I say waitresses) came back with the rest of our order. With our food in front of us, we all quieted down, and dug in.

However, my mind remained on Amber. I couldn't lie and say I wasn't worried for her, because in truth…I was. I mean, if you can't stand to hear your dead ex's name, then how were you going to take including yourself into the real world again. Better yet, how would you be able to date again?

Just hearing what Hunter had to say about her seemed to only strengthen my belief that I needed to break this imprint. Amber didn't need a stranger trying to be her brother, friend, or lover right now. No, what she needed was space…time to heal.

…but if I was in the picture?

I think it would only bring her more hurt than what she was already going through. So, I guess I'll just have to be her protector for now…at least until I can break the imprint….right?

Wow, a lot to take in right. Embry finally knows Amber's afraid of wolves, and Amber just adopted herself a half wolf. Well I wonder how all of this is going to go next chapter lol. Anyway though, if ya'll were wondering, 'Equinox' is not a real book. I just made it up as a way to make fun of twilight a bit, and show what my character kind of thinks about a story like that, (or it might be a foreshadowing for her...dun dun dun.) Either way I really hope you enjoyed this new edition to Empathy everyone.

The song for this chapter I listened to while writing it and revising it are…

Andrew Belle- Open You Eyes

A preview of the next chapter.

"So, unless anything changes, we can't do anything about her association with the bloodsuckers. However, what we can do is protect her from any other harm that might come her way, and that includes these new vampires we came across…"

"Did you happen to ask Carlisle if they knew anything about them," Jake wondered out loud.

"That's what I was getting to, Jake," Sam seethed, as his eyes burned invisible holes into Jake's skull.

"Well then, what did they say," Jake asked obviously ignoring the anger still rolling off of Sam. It wasn't until Emily walked away from the other two imprints, and placed her hand upon his shoulder, did he finally decide to calm down.

Taking a deep breath he answered, "I called the Cullens earlier today, and tried to explain the delicate situation to them. Though they understand our concern; they have already realized the problem. They said the only reason why they're allowing the three to stay so close to them as of right now, is because the little psychic saw something about one of them in her visions."

"What did she see," I asked curiously.

Any anger that Sam had once possessed earlier, ebbed away quickly as his expression contorted into a pained look. With a sigh, he answered, "She saw one of them changing… becoming one of them."

Gasps and angry protests were heard round the room, before Sam silenced us once again with his raised hand.

However, I barely noticed anything the others did as I sat frozen upon my seat. With a shaky breath I asked, "Which one?"

Well, thanks for reading. Remember to review before you leave too if you can. Anyways, have a nice day, and take care.