Summary; Warning; Disclaimer: See First Chapter.

Ah, here's the fourth installment. Already....=O I hope you all enjoy it. I love Seth and his personality, so he's going to rather prominent in this story. I forget if I said that already...oh well. Enjoy!
And yes, Haley has a temper.

"They're gone," Embry assured her, as the three made their way back to her house. They took this car, Seth in the backseat with a gurgling Jeremy, while Haley seemed to melt in the passenger seat, completely drained.

"I know. It's just…"

"Yeah, you tend to get paranoid," Seth agreed. "Don't worry, you'll be fine. They don't like our scent, and vice versa. They won't attack until they're ready to stand the stench."

"You guys don't, like, mark your territory, do you?" she asked hesitantly, and was met with blank stares. "Like, dogs, um…"

"Oh. You want to know if Embry's gonna pee on your fencepost," Seth realized, sniggering crazily. It sounded like he was going to explode or something equally messy, and Haley laughed. Embry turned a bright red, which only made her more suspicious.

"No, we don't!" he said loudly, as she opened her mouth to ask again. "No, we're shifters, not dogs," he muttered, but she shrugged.

"Well, you look like dogs. Big mutant, killer dogs, but still," she added thoughtfully, and the boy in the backseat almost went into conniptions. They were surprised at the ease with which she accepted the situation, but she had little choice to begin with. Besides, there were two other perfectly sane, adult females to tell her the rest, which had seemed to reassure her somewhat.

"Dogs," Embry mumbled under his breath, and sighed. "You're as bad as Claire."

"Quil will never live down the name Muffin," Seth informed her, still laughing. "Claire was only about two, and she somehow associated her beloved protector with his mother's muffins. Hence, the name. Kids say the darndest things indeed. His face was priceless."

"I thought he was going to cry," the other shifter added, snickering himself at the thought. Haley brightened up at this news, and a sudden glint in her eye made the two nervous.

"So…is it common for Imprints to give their shifters names that are embarrassing as hell?" she asked casually, and Embry blanched as Seth gasped for air, turning red.

"N…no," he managed, the other shifter too frightened to speak. "But you…can…if you want," he managed to spit out, tears forming in his eyes. Embry banged his head on the steering wheel in dismay, and Haley grinned.

"How about…Pooky-butt?"

Jeremy shrieked in delight as Seth fell out of the car – it was his own fault since he was banging on the door with tears rolling down his cheeks as he tried to breathe, and Embry quickly backed it up. Haley covered her eyes, but all she heard was an indignant 'ow!'.

"All right, young sir, time for you to go to bed so your aunt can get it on with your future uncle," Seth informed Jeremy with a smirk, carrying the baby to his crib. Haley shook her head, eyes covered, while Embry rolled his eyes.

"He certainly likes kids," she commented, wandering into the kitchen and pouring herself some soda.

"Yeah. Edward said he's got pure thoughts, or some crap like that," the shifter told her. The two had explained about the Cullens during the ride, and Haley snorted.

"Are you sure his powers aren't going a bit haywire, if that's what he picks up from that kid?" she asked in disbelief, and Seth whimpered as he joined them.

"I'm hurt," he said grandly, helping himself to a piece of cheesecake that was hiding in the kitchen.

"Help yourself," she said dryly, as he proceeded to eat the rest of the cake after the piece was done.

"Uh…sowwy?" he mumbled through the cake, his cheeks resembling a chipmunk. Embry snorted in amusement and found himself a sandwich, while Haley threw her hands up in the air in disbelief.

"At least buy me groceries tomorrow!" she protested, heading out to the main room and flicking on the television. "Nothing good on," she grumbled, glancing up as Embry plopped down next to her. Seth took over the other couch, his feet hanging off the end as usual.

"Nothing ever is," the kid commented, waving his hand and obviously wanting the remote. She tossed it over with a shrug, and he grinned. "Got any movies?"

"Sure," Haley replied with a nod. "Loads. Check the cabinet there," she pointed out, and the two young men shifted to see a tall, wide cabinet – more like a bookcase – stocked full of nothing but DVDs.

"Awesome!" Seth crowed, and rushed over in a second. Embry remained next to his Imprint, and narrowed his eyes suspiciously when the other shifter turned around with a case in hand.

"Which one?" she asked curiously, and grinned when he flashed Blazing Saddles at her. "Sweet! Stick it in, I haven't watched that in a while," she ordered, getting comfortable against her own personal heater.

"I didn't think you watched stuff like that," Embry remarked, and she looked up curiously.

"Why?'

"I just didn't think you watched crude stuff," he began, and jumped when Seth blasted the movie. "Hey!" he barked warningly, and the younger shifter winced as he remembered the baby. Quickly lowering it, he shot a sheepish grin towards Haley as an apology.

"It's funny," she said with a shrug, and he grinned.

"At least you won't complain when I want to watch violent stuff," he said, ruffling her hair carefully.

"She's out?" Seth realized in surprise, turning around to see Haley asleep, her head on Embry's chest. "Wow, I guess we really wore her out," he said sheepishly, and Embry rolled his eyes.

"Ya think?" he asked sarcastically, standing up and cradling her gently in his arms. "She's so tiny," he said, almost in awe, and Seth gagged behind his back. "Cut that out," Embry muttered, and Seth relaxed into an easy grin.

"I was just kidding. You're cute, Pooky-butt," he ventured to say, certain his friend wouldn't drop his Imprint to kill the other shifter. He got a growl for his effort before Embry stalked off towards her bedroom. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do!" he called after them, and ducked as a shoe came at him.

"Brat," Embry complained under his breath, and blinked in surprise when Haley shifted in his arms.

"Mmm?"

"You fell asleep," he told her, setting her on the bed.

"I guess so," she realized with a sleepy grin. "I'm good, I'm good. Let me change and get some rest. Are you guys staying the night?" she asked, and he nodded. "Well, there's a spare bed upstairs if you need sleep," she told him, before shooing him out of the room.

"Sleep is not an option tonight," the shifter sighed, rubbing his face with his hand. Not with newborns roaming the area.

"Talking to yourself?" Seth asked curiously. "That's the first sign of insanity, you know."

"At least I'm sane enough to know that you're completely cracked," he shot back, falling back into couch. He got a shrug, and huffed.

"And at least I know it," the younger boy replied with a smirk.

"You okay?" Embry asked, having raced to the room several hours later after hearing a shriek. He swallowed thickly at seeing her – he should've sent Seth. She was wearing a silky black pajama set, and was sprawled over the bed while tangled in the sheets.

"Wha…? Oh, it's you," Haley realized, tilting her head to peer at him. "I'm fine. I just had a bad dream. No goulies are coming to get me," she added teasingly, and waved sleepily as he backed out of the room quickly.

"You're some masochist, aren't you?" Seth asked conversationally, helping himself to some more of her food. "I mean, you keep doing that to yourself. You're just gonna phase one time, you know."

"I know," Embry growled, almost punching the counter and putting a hole in it. Luckily, he stopped himself and relaxed into a less-tense stance. "It's hard."

"Oh, I know," the other agreed. "We've got the meld, remember? I know how Jake and Quil –"

"It's not like that!" he said, desperate to explain. "It's different! They're still kids…the Imprint is at a different stage," he managed, running a hand through his hair. "They don't…feel…like I do."

"Ah. I get it," Seth replied, nodding his head understandingly. "They have to wait to jump their bones, while you're stuck with it now."

"I guess you can say," his Pack brother managed with glare, wishing it wasn't quite like that. Unfortunately, Seth had nailed it – however crudely he used the hammer.

"Well, don't worry. If you need to phase and kill something, we've got those parasites," he assured him calmly, stuffing his face in the next second. A string of incoherent mumbles followed, and Embry stared at him in confusion.

"What?"

"I said," Seth began, obviously annoyed he hadn't been understood, "not to worry. No one can resist an Imprint's level of love and adoration, however sickening it may be to the rest of us. You'll get her eventually."

Embry only sighed, and shook his head.

"No?" The boy tilted his head, confused, and frowned at his friend. "I don't get it."

"It's driving me crazy," he admitted. "It takes all my control not to just phase and run for it when I'm around her. And now with everything happening, it's even worse."

"What is?"

"The instinct to protect," he said simply. "I just want to drag her to La Push and lock her up somewhere until it's safe. But that won't get me very far with her."

"No, I doubt it," Seth agreed, and leaned back with elbows on the counter. "Just chill, man. You'll get it all sorted out sooner or later. That's why I'm here, stupid. Sam figured someone better be here who can think straight."

Embry shot him a look, and he frowned.

"Hey!"

"Did you guys get any sleep?" Haley asked in disbelief, as two shifters turned wearily to look at her early that morning. She had already showered, and was wandering around in sweatpants, a shirt, and socks.

"No. What's with the outfit?" Seth replied. "Yoga class?"

"I have this feeling I'm not allowed to leave the house today, so I decided I'll be as lazy as possible," she admitted wryly. "I'm behaving, see? Now, you guys get some sleep or I'll be pissed. You're like big, annoying mattresses lying around like that," she added, glancing over her shoulder as she headed into the kitchen.

"Fine, fine, when you put it like that," the boy agreed eagerly, getting to his feet and stretching. Embry followed suit, a bit more reluctantly, and she couldn't help but stare. They were both so big, she was afraid they'd put a hole in her ceiling. They managed to avoid that, however, and plodded down the hallway towards the respective bedrooms.

"I swear…" she sighed, and shook her head. Turning the heat on the stovetop up, she dug around until she found her pan. "I have a feeling I don't have enough pancake mix," she added sadly, peering at her half-full jug of it.

"This is good," Seth mumbled through the cold pancakes, which had been sitting in the refrigerator for almost six hours. Haley had occupied herself during that time by playing with Jeremy – something she could never tire of – and feeding the two humans present.

"I do have a microwave," she hinted, watching them in amusement, chin propped on her palm.

"But this was quicker," Embry protested, also talking through a full mouth.

"What'd you use?" the other demanded. "They don't taste like normal ones. Good, but weird."

"You don't want to know," she managed, muffling a laugh with her hand. Embry caught the gesture and narrowed his eyes. Her wrist was caught in a second, and he leaned in close.

"What?" he asked softly. She blushed at the contact, but still grinned.

"Uhm…oatmeal?"

"What?" Seth managed a horrified croak, having sworn never to eat oatmeal after a very bad experience of supposed raisins in it one morning. "Not that!"

"I thought you said it was good!" she protested indignantly, but he shook his head.

"That was before I knew! I was innocent!"

Embry snorted, and returned to his share pointedly. "I like them fine."

"Thank you, Embry. At least someone here has manners," Haley said with a sweet smile, enough to cause both young men to turn red under their skin.

"You didn't feed this to Jeremy, did you?" Seth asked after a moment of silence, and gasped when she smiled in response. "You monster!"

"Not the pancakes!" she shot back, mistaking his horror. "Just some soft oatmeal, like normal people eat."

"Why?" the younger shifter continued to moan, but somehow forcing the pancakes down his throat all the while. Haley snickered at this, and looked up when she heard Jeremy gurgle. "Speaking of the kid…"

"I'll get the pup, you relax," Embry ordered, getting to his feet. She frowned, about to object, but shot from the room when she heard baby screams. Her heart almost stopped in both shock and relief when she saw Embry playing with Jeremy, holding him with one hand and flying him through the air.

"Give him to me!" she demanded, striding over and looking like she was choking. The shifter looked pitifully confused when she snatched Jeremy from him and whimpered when she stalked away, obviously mad.

"What'd I do?" he asked pleadingly, doubling over so his head was below her shoulder in a state of pathetic-ness. "What'd I do?" he repeated, practically crawling after her as she set the baby safely in his high chair.

"Don't. Do. That. Again," she said through set teeth, and his eyes widened.

"Do what?"

"That!" she managed, waving her arm in a gesture that brought a penguin trying to fly to Seth's mind. He promptly choked, but was ignored. "That…flying!" she explained, as he was still staring at her blankly.

"Why?"

"Because you had him in one hand!"

"It's a big enough hand!" he protested, about to grovel if it meant no more yelling.

"That's not the point! What if you dropped him?" she demanded. He blinked, and then burst out laughing. Haley practically growled at him herself, and glared until he calmed down.

"You have no idea how fast our reflexes are," he said finally, chuckling. "Not that I'd drop, but if I did, I'd be able to catch him before he moved an inch."

She narrowed her eyes further, obviously not believing a word of it, and whirled around when Seth had a suddenly brilliant idea. To him, at least.

"Catch!" he hollered, and Embry caught the baby out of sheer reflex. He glanced at Haley nervously, but frowned in concern when she was perfectly still. "Umm…it was his fault?" he offered, handing Jeremy to her in a sort of peace offering. She made a choking noise, her face dead white, before inhaling.

"GET OUT!"

"Ow," Seth muttered, rubbing his ears in protest. The two shifters had found themselves on the front porch in the span of three milliseconds, and she had locked the door. Not that it would have stopped them, but it was the point.

"What the fuck was that?" Embry asked incredulously. "Catch?" he repeated, staring at the boy.

"Uh…I thought we could show her our reflexes?" he said sheepishly, and winced when Embry clocked him upside the head. "I get it!"

"I wonder how long we're going to be stuck out here because of your idiocy," the poor shifter grumbled, crossing his arms on his knees.

"It's raining!"

"It's always raining."

"It's cold!"

"And? You're warm."

"But…we're hungry?"

"Go eat a damn deer!"

"You can't let us starve," Seth whimpered, having been trying to convince Haley to let them back in for the better part of an hour. It had grown dark almost three hours ago, and the two shifters were rather miserable looking.

"Sure I can."

"Please?"

"No!"

"What the hell is going on?" Sam demanded, striding up with Paul in tow.

"Uh…"

"She locked us out because of Seth," Embry explained with a growl.

"Just go in," Paul said, his tone one that clearly implied they were idiots. Before they could stop him, the shifter strode up to the door and cleanly took it off its hinges. A long silence followed, Embry and Seth already cringing.

"What the fuck?"

"She swears?" Sam asked in surprise, as the shriek punctured their eardrums. Jeremy laughed happily, and Paul backpedaled in shock as she took a baseball bat to him.

"I guess so," Embry managed, wincing as the bat broke over the shifter's head.

"Fuck me!"

"I will not!" she fumed, looking around for something else to hit him with. She gasped when Sam sidestepped Paul and smoothly pinned her arms above her head, lifting her several inches off the ground.

"Calm down," he said pleasantly, and she wiggled in vain.

"Put her down," Embry growled, and Sam looked over at him.

"I will when she promises to forget that whole crowbar idea," he promised, and she sighed. The mentioned weapon was indeed nearby, and the shifters collectively winced at the realization.

"I promise," she said sullenly, and was returned to the ground in an instant. "But not because I still don't want to," she added stubbornly, crossing her arms.

"What brought this on?" the former Pack Alpha asked mildly, his look clearly implying he thought the shifters were the ones to blame. She explained, and he forced down a laugh before he was included in her wrath.

"They'd never hurt a baby," he promised, and then narrowed his eyes in their direction. "Not if they want to live."

"No – yes – I want to live!" Seth said, trying to figure out which was the right answer. He got down on his stomach and wiggled towards Haley's feet, wrapping his arms around her legs. She almost fell over from the imbalance the huge boy was causing her, but Sam caught her shoulder.

"I wasn't going to kill him. Just maim him some," she mumbled, glancing at Paul. The shifter began to growl before remembering Embry, and only snorted instead.

"Leah's coming by in a bit so you two can get a break. It appears you need one more than I thought," Sam told them, ignoring the exchange. "She'll spend the night – you two get back to La Push so Jacob can assign patrol. They'll be back tomorrow morning," he promised, before phasing and disappearing. Paul followed, and she was left with her jaw hanging.

"You can let go now," she managed, glancing down at Seth.

"Not until you say I can live."

"You can live. But if you throw my baby again, you'll wish you were dead," she said cheerfully, sincerity ringing with every word. The shifter whimpered before scuttling away quickly, getting to his feet and trying to recover his shredded dignity.

"Um…" Embry shifted uncomfortably, and looked up hopefully when his Imprint sighed.

"Fine, you're forgiven too, ju – I can't – breath!" she gasped, finding herself caught up in a bone-crushing hug by the young man. He held her close for a second longer before dropping her, and she gasped for air.

"Sorry," he apologized, but his grin betrayed his own amusement.

"Brat," she sighed, smacking him on the arm.

"Am I interrupting?" Leah asked dryly, rolling her eyes as she strode up to the house.

"No. I can live!" Seth informed her cheerfully, before streaking away. She looked after her brother in confusion before shaking her head.

"And you?" she continued, eyeing Embry with obvious sympathy.

"I don't think she'll throw me out yet," he volunteered with a grin, and ran off before Haley could smack him. Leah sighed – she was the lucky one who got to explain to Haley why Embry wasn't allowed to be alone with her just yet.

"Lucky me. How do I begin? Remember Emily's face?" she asked herself sarcastically, and instantly regretted the thought when she saw Haley's face.

"Uhm…are you hungry?" the young woman asked. "I have food. I think…unless they ate it all…" She trailed off in concern, and then saw her door again.

"I can fix that," Leah assured her, picking it up with a strength that Haley envied. "Get the pup something to eat – I have a feeling you haven't had a chance to feed him yet."

"I…see…" Haley said slowly, frowning as she tried to process what Leah told her. "So, same thing for Jared and Kim?"

"At first, but Jared's so laid-back about everything we weren't really worried," Leah explained awkwardly. "Besides, he Imprinted when there was a lull – not much to get his temper up. But with all the newborns around…Embry could catch scent of one and just lose it. And you might get caught between them."

"Are you serious?" she demanded, not getting it.

"Yes." The shifter nodded, trying to keep her patience on a longer fuse. "It's just how it is. We're volatile, especially when we're mad. Until Embry learns to control his emotions when you're concerned, someone'll be there."

"Control his emotions?"

"Not have less emotions…just not try to rip out Seth's throat if he hugs you, or Paul if he gets mad because you break a bat over his head," Leah told her, having been told by Sam what happened before she arrived – luckily, she had been in their path during their escape.

"Oh," she said, blushing in embarrassment. "I was…really mad…"

"And so was Embry," the woman promised her, nodding. "Very. At Paul."

"So…no more baseball bats?"

"God forbid," Leah said, with a chuckle at the idea.