Chapter I: Alarming Red

My legs propelled me forward, towards the red head near the shore. Despite the deafening alarms going off in my head about women with red hair (Read: Victoria) I continued to approach her. I saw her eyes widening in alarm, taking a cautious step back, just behind her surfboard. But I was relentless, moving without pause.

Suddenly, I could no longer see her. I was forced face first into the sand: struggling, kicking, screaming, "Let GO!"

I wanted to look at her, wanted to indulge myself, wanted to drown in her eyes.

I had managed to elbow one of my captors. I turned to see that my elbow connected with Seth's nose and was now bleeding profusely. He stumbled back, landing on his backside onto the sand, holding his nose, muttering profanities as he went. Jacob, Leah and Quil were still pinning me down, strings of "Calm down, Embry!" "Dude! Get a grip!" rained down on my ears. But I ignored them, clawing at the sand and peering up to see that the red head had already started running towards the water, surfboard tucked under her arm.

"Stop." Jacob's alpha voice broke through my daze and I immediately went limp.

The next thing I knew, we were at Sam and Emily's couch, glaring at the pack as they stared in curiosity at me. Seth and Jacob had me between them, ready to hold me back if ever I attempted to bolt for the door as I have a number of times before they finally decided on our current position. Paul and Sam were still on patrol and Jacob wanted to wait for the other Alpha before they make a decision on what to do with me. It wasn't until my seventeenth attempt at an escape that Jacob issued a command that made me sit still, albeit grudgingly.

So I imprinted, big fucking deal. It's not like it was something new. Since Quil imprinted, I had begun to think that imprinting wasn't such a rare occurrence after all. And frankly, I was expecting it. I had always imagined that I would imprint on a Native American girl: someone shy and quiet, smart and hella cute with dark brown hair, even darker brown eyes and skin that matched mine. I didn't anticipate that she would be completely different from the girl of my dreams.

One thing I was so happy about: she was gorgeous. At least, to me she was. Don't get me wrong, the red hair still freaked me out (Again: Victoria). But she had those hypnotizing, green eyes and the rockin' surfer bod that got me chanting in my head much like the art teacher in one of the episodes of Mr. Bean, "Da bodeh. Yes, da bodeh. No? DA BODEH!"

"Another one bites the dust," Jared chuckled, breaking me from my stupor. He was leaning at the threshold between the kitchen and the living room, his canines tearing through the chicken leg in his hand. "Did you get her name?"

"He freaked her out when he started to stalk towards her looking like a madman," Jacob snorted, taking a bite of his own chicken, cradling his plate on his lap. "She made a run for the water."

"You probably freaked her out even more when all of you pounced on me," I grumbled, crossing my arms over my chest and glared at the plate on the coffee table. I didn't feel like eating, I felt sick. I wanted to go back to the beach. I wanted to meet her. I wanted to watch her surf. I wanted to know her name.

Instead, I was stuck here. With these morons who think my situation was funny. They all laughed at me. Glad to see some people were enjoying my misery.

"Has it occurred to you that she bolted after you broke my nose?" Seth glared, rubbing his nose in memory. His nose had long since healed, but the kid just wouldn't let it go.

"Stop it, guys," came the voice of my saving grace. Claire bounded in from the kitchen, her hands carrying an overflowing tray of Emily's famous blueberry muffins. Quil shot up from his seat near the stairs to assist her, taking the tray from her and laid it on the coffee table where hands started grabbing said muffins. She looked at Brady and Collin pointedly. The two were laughing the hardest, to the point of tears with Brady nearly falling off his seat and Collin holding his sides. "Cut Embry some slack. I'm willing to bet you would have a reaction far worse than him when you imprint."

I thought about Quil and Claire; they had a far more complicated situation than anybody else and they both took it in stride. My best friend was the epitome of patience, having waited for Claire for fourteen years. Despite the fact that Claire had known about who we are ever since she could comprehend it, Quil had been forbidden to tell her about the imprint until her sixteenth birthday, which was four months ago. And it hadn't been any easier for them. Yes, they were finally allowed to have a relationship. But Sam was adamant that his niece remained "innocent" until she reached the age when it would be legal for her to drink. Hence, the restricted and supervised dating.

"So, it turns out that the funky, new scent is Embry's imprint, huh?" Leah mused, munching on a muffin. That caught everyone's attention.

I had forgotten about that part, the part where my imprint had a very unique scent. Her smoky, minty, sage-y scent came flooding back to my senses. They weren't so threatening now; I wanted to rub the scent all over me. I wanted to smell it every chance I got. It was suddenly the sexiest scent that graced my nostrils. But a nagging voice tapped at the back of my subconscious. What is she?

"What do you think she is?" Collin said through a mouthful of muffin, bits and pieces spraying around.

"Ew! Collin!" Claire scolded, tossing him a roll of paper towels. "Where are your manners?"

"Sorry," came his muttered apology, having caught the item deftly and unrolled a couple of sheets, wiping the food that had accumulated around his mouth and chin.

"She's not a vampire." Sam stated as he walked through the door, Paul following close behind him. "We spotted her going into the Ocean Resort, sun hit her and she didn't sparkle like a leech."

"Of course she's not!" I exclaimed, glowering at Sam and stood up, gesticulating wildly. I felt myself shake with anger, just about ready to lose it and phase right there in the living room. I took offense as they all initially thought that my imprint was a blood-sucking parasite. I thought she was too at first, but that's beside the point! "Why in seven hells would the spirits match me with a LEECH!"

"Calm down, man," Paul put a hand to my shoulder. I was always regarded as the calmest of the pack, always the peacemaker. So having him, dubbed our most volatile, telling me to "Calm down" gave me all the more reason to panic and run straight for the cliffs and jump off, hoping to hit one of the rocks head first. I was going out of my ever lovin' mind. The world as I knew it had turned upside down. I will soon find myself in a mental institution, straitjacket and all. Paul freaking Lahote was telling me to "Calm down"!

I must've been hyperventilating, because Emily was now forcing a cold glass of water to my lips, urging me to drink. And I did, shakily I might add, slivers of water falling from the glass and dripped onto my shorts. She and Sam had gently pushed me back onto the couch; everyone was still eying me warily like I was from Cirque du Freak or something.

That thought had me reeling back, making me think of her. What is she? My mind screamed again. Not a vampire, not a human and not a shape-shifter. I had to know. I snapped my head up at Sam, "I want to see her."

"I know. And you will," Sam nodded sympathetically. Sitting on his favorite recliner across me as Emily made her way back into the kitchen to get him and Paul their dinner. "But I don't think barging into her hotel will win her over."

"Maybe you can find her at the beach again tomorrow," Claire offered, tucking herself at Quil's side on the couch. His arm quickly came around her, drawing her closer to him, if that was possible. She had flipped the TV on, The Weather Channel already on the screen. "Forecasts say the swell in La Push is good for the next two weeks. She's an amazing surfer you know."

Claire and Quil had stayed behind so she could catch some waves and she had told me about my imprint's awesomeness when they arrived at home. I can't help but think how lucky my best friend was to have her. She's as fiery as she was sweet. One minute, she would be the nicest person in the planet, baking goodies for the pack to eat after patrol with her Aunt Emily and the next minute you would see her knocking a few teeth out of some random girl's mouth that had the audacity to insult Leah, saying that Sam left her because Emily was far more beautiful than she ever dreamed to be. She was fiercely loyal to her family and like Quil, she would stand up for them to the point that she would put her life on the line. I couldn't help but think that my best friend deserved no one less than Claire Young.

Now, I guess, the spirits had decided it was my turn. They must've felt I needed someone outside our extended family. Someone that could make me feel at peace like Emily was to Sam. Someone that could calm me like Rachel would calm Paul. Someone that could keep me grounded like Kim kept Jared. Someone that could make me smile like Claire makes Quil.

"It's probably best to let you meet her as soon as possible," Sam finally gave in, noting the still furious expression on my face. He knew the feeling of frustration and emptiness at being kept from one's imprint for far too long. He gestured to Jacob who had somehow inched his way across the room to stand next to the stool Leah sat on near the front door. "It'd be best to accompany him so he doesn't do anything stupid."

The other Alpha snorted, but agreed nonetheless. I felt giddy, excited to finally meet her. Tomorrow couldn't come soon enough.

That red hair though.

I shuddered.