New chapter - FINALLY. Things have been super hectic lately so I haven't been able to get working on this. I'll try to be better about it.

I love the pack! They're all so... amusing. I'm glad they finally get to meet Cory!

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I was just lifting my hand to knock when the door opened.

Two humungous men stared out of the doorway at us, their eyes narrowed in confusion. The sounds of the party were loud behind them.

I shrunk in towards Jacob and his warm arm enveloped my shoulder.

"Can we help you?" One of them asked, not unfriendly, but still puzzled. Obviously this was an invite-only party.

"Um, yeah," Jake cleared his throat. "I was wondering if I could talk to Sam Uley, or Billy Black," he tacked on as an afterthought.

One of the guys nodded and slipped away from the doorway. The other one motioned for us to step inside. I took the step forward, dragging Jake along with me. Then that man stepped back a little to give us some space, but continued to watch us with an expression of wary curiosity.

"Who were they?" I whispered to Jake, speaking so quietly that I was barely saying anything at all.

He shrugged slightly, "New members? I didn't recognize them."

I nodded and looked away from our staring friend. The house we were in was pretty, if small. I grinned slightly, actually, I was pretty sure the only reason it looked so small was because of the two giants standing in the tiny entranceway with me. I couldn't see much else of the house but I had the feeling that it was just as simple and pretty. The entire house was filled to the brim with the appealing scent of food. My stomach wanted to growl but I was able to stop it with will alone – I didn't want Jake worrying about me at the moment, he had bigger things to attend to.

In the next room over the talking suddenly cut off. Jake stiffened beside me and pulled me back until I was tucked away beside him. I rolled my eyes at his antics but didn't jerk away. His eyes were fixed on the doorway to the rest of the house. I leaned around him slightly to see what was happening.

A large, powerful-looking man was standing there, staring at Jake like he'd seen a ghost. Jake was watching him just as intently.

I checked the man out too, reasoning that he must be the great Sam Uley – Jake's former Alpha. He certainly was as intimidating as I imagined, tall, strong, a certain stoniness permanent on his face. But he was older then Jake had described. He must have stopped phasing. But the age didn't stop him from holding a feeling of great authority around him.

"Jacob?" he whispered in a low, choky voice. I tightened my grip on Jake, unable to see his expression from where I was.

"Hey Sam," Jake said, managing to sound both cautious and sheepish. I rolled my eyes at the other man who was still watching the exchange, eyes wide. He caught my expression and hid a grin.

"What the HELL?" Sam roared and leaped towards Jake. Jake pushed me out from behind him but stayed put himself. I ended up next to the strange man, biting my lip as Sam tackled Jake. I was a little worried, Jake was still a young, strong werewolf – Sam had stopped phasing, he could get hurt.

Then I noticed Jake laughing as Sam twisted him into a headlock. The look on Sam's face was amusing as well. He looked like he didn't know whether to be angry or happy.

I smirked at my Jacob being held captive by another person. But my smirk soon changed into a full-blown smile, Jake seemed so happy. And if Jake was happy, I was too.

"Okay, I still don't really know what's going on here, but would you like to come inside?" I realized the strange man next to me was speaking to me. I nodded and he pushed himself off the wall. He eased his way around the wrestling match on the floor and led the way through the door towards the rest of the party.

I followed him out, still grinning at the match on the floor. "Kick his butt Jake," I whispered.

I walked into the next room and froze.

It seemed like everyone was staring at me. The exception was my guide who had taken the opportunity to raid a giant table of food pushed against the wall.

I felt more then a little uncomfortable with everyone's gaze on me. I blushed but looked back determinedly.

It was amazing to see so many people look alike. The majority of the men in the room were all massive like Jacob, with the same dark skin and black hair. Theirs was cut shorter then Jake though, and their clothes were neater, if in the same style. I tried figuring out who was who based on the stories Jake had told me but I got nowhere. There were more then he had described – at least ten more, making the room seem even more crowded.

Besides them there was a smattering of women and children around the room. A few of the women looked to be my age or a little older. I noticed a girl hanging off of a buff man; her eyes were sparkling with life and interest. I smiled a little at her and looked around the room some more. One of the older looking men had a woman on his lap. I took a wild stab and guessed that they were Kim and Jared. The woman next to them looked to be as old as Sam, one of the eldest. Three scars were just visible on her face, but they just brought out the beauty on the other side of her face.

Emily, I thought with conviction. She was just as beautiful as Jake described, and even though she was surprised she still managed to look welcoming and motherly.

I brushed my bangs out of my face self-consciously and swallowed the nerves that were keeping me from talking.

"Hello, it's lovely to be here. You have a beautiful home," I said, my voice shaking only a little, my sentiment directed towards Emily. She recovered just enough to give me a small smile.

"Where's Sam?" she asked suddenly. I bit my lip, an unexpected feeling of unwelcome swamp my spirits.

"Um, I'll go get them," I said, backing from the room quickly. When I was in the entrance again I let out a deep breath, my throat tightening. I felt the familiar burn of tears in my eyes. They didn't like me!

"Jacob…" I started, blinking against the unshed tears.

He was off the floor and at my side in half a second, taking my face between his big warm hands.

"Cory, what's wrong?" he said in a soothing voice. I blinked the tears out of my eyes and took a shaky breath, wishing I didn't cry so easily.

"Sorry, I just… I just panicked. They were confused and I didn't know what to say," I choked out, concentrating on the feeling of Jake's hands on my cool skin.

He drew my into a quick hug then spun us around to face Sam, who had picked himself off the floor, beaming at Jake. He noticed me, a shadow of unease passing over his face before he changed his face into a stoic mask.

"We'll take it slowly Cor, starting with Sam," Jake said, rubbing calming circles on my back. I nodded against his shoulder.

"Cory, this is Sam Uley. Sam, this is Cory," Jake gave me a little push towards Sam. I walked the rest of the way and stuck out my hand politely.

"It's a pleasure to meet you sir," I stated gravely. He took a hold of my hand and shook it lightly, his confused eyes on Jacob. I turned back to Jake as well. He grasped my arm and drew me back towards him. I welcomed the safety of his arms.

Sam seemed to recover, he looked down at me and gave a smile, "It's nice to meet you too Cory." I smiled back, feeling a little easier.

"Alright then, I'm sure everyone's waiting to see who came to the door," Sam brushed past us and into the living room again. Jake chuckled and led me through with him.

Everyone was still standing there, in almost the exact same places. I wondered idly if they had actually moved at all. Sam swept his way through the room and to Emily. His eyes met hers and they were filled with so much love and adoration that seemed like they had forgotten everyone else in the room. I grabbed Jake's hand and smiled up at him. He looked down at me and squeezed my hand gently.

Then, without warning, the room erupted.

"JAKE?" a tall man in the corner shouted, leaping to his feet. "Oh my god! What the hell?" Another five or six people were yelling the same sort of sentiments. Everyone started to talk at the same time. I watched, half amused, half anxious. Jake was just grinning at them all listening to them scream.

A tall woman in her late mid-thirties got out of her seat and marched over to us, her face a mask of anger.

"Rach?" Jake's jaw dropped as he observed the woman. She walked within a foot of him, staring up at him.

Then she reached up and flicked him hard in the ear.

"Where. Were. You?" She screeched. I covered my mouth with my hand to hide my laughter as I watched Jake's sister berate him angrily. "You had us all worried sick! Do you think you can just walk back in here and think everything is going to be fine and dandy? Well, you have got another thing coming!"

Jake took it all well, hanging his head and attempting to look shamefaced. But I could see the corners of his mouth twitching upwards. When Rachel took a breath from her shouting he scooped her into a big hug. She struggled for a moment before bursting into tears and hugging him back, nearly strangling him.

The tall man with the big voice joined the hug in the next second. I jumped away as at least five other men bounded into the hug next. Jake disappeared into a bundle of arms and legs.

I backed away before hitting something solid. I looked around and saw the first guy who had answered the door.

"Wanna explain what's going on?" He asked, his eyebrow raised in amusement.

"Jake's home now," I shrugged. "I'm not sure if you know him from before or not. He's Jacob Black. He used to live on the rez here."

The man just gaped at me. "Wait, that's Jacob Black?" he asked. "I thought he was old though!"

I snorted, "He technically is. He just never stopped phasing."

If it was possible the man's mouth dropped even lower. I stepped away from him smiling smugly.

"Cory?"

I turned to find Emily and Sam coming towards me. I flushed and lowered my gaze to the ground. I supposed this was when they were going to ask me to leave.

To my surprise I was pulled into Emily's warm arms.

"Oh Cory, I feel awful for treating you like that earlier! I was just so surprised, and I didn't know where Sam had gone. I'm so sorry, it's great to meet you, and you are most welcome here!" She held onto my tightly. I was stunned for a moment before I hugged her back. It was actually nice being held by someone other the Jacob. It kinda felt like I had a mom.

She drew back and looked me up and down. "Oh dear, look how thin you are! Come, I'll get you something to eat." She pulled my hand towards what I assumed was the kitchen.

I glanced over at Jake but when I saw that he was still being assaulted with people I followed Emily.

The kitchen was warm and even more food was piled on the counters. My stomach growled angrily as I looked over everything. Emily saw me drooling and laughed, handing me a large plate.

"Go ahead and help yourself to anything you want," she said. I drifted over to a counter that had a bowl of macaroni and cheese. I grabbed the spoon and put a dollop on my plate, unsure of how much would be polite to take.

Emily grabbed my plate away from me with a roll of her eyes. "Here, I'll fill it up for you. Sit down, relax for a minute."

I obeyed, not quite sure how to react. The woman that I had guessed to be Kim was at the table as well. When I sat down she reached out and covered my hands in her.

"Hello," she said softly, a beautiful smile lighting up her face. "I'm Kim, it's nice to meet you Cory."

I beamed at her, glad that my guess had been correct. "I'm really glad to be here. I've always wanted to meet Jake's family!"

Emily set my now full plate down in front of me and brushed my hair back from my face. I barely stopped myself from flinching away from her touch. I wasn't used to anyone other then Jake touching me.

"Has he told you much about us?" she asked. I nodded, deeply inhaling the smell of food on my plate.

"I practically grew up on stories of you guys! I refused to go to bed until Jake gave me a story. You have no idea how amazing it is to meet all of my childhood heroes!"

I took a big forkful of the mac and cheese, savouring the bite with gratefulness. Emily and Kim watched me, politely confused.

"Oh, and how long have you known Jacob?" Kim asked; her brows wrinkled slightly.

I stopped eating and bit my lip. How much was I supposed to tell them until Jake talked to them?

I decided that the truth would be best – after all, they would find it out everything eventually.

"I've been with Jake for almost sixteen years."

Both of the women looked surprised at this.

"So Jacob has been staying with your family all this time?" Kim was taken aback. I could tell Emily was too but she didn't voice her surprise.

I blushed at their misunderstanding, "Sorta. It's more like I've been living with him. He is my family, he raised me after my parents died when I was a baby." I lowered my voice and leaned closer to the two of them. "I'm his imprint."

Kim's mouth dropped open while Emily's eyes grew wide. I stared back at them, feeling nervous. This was the first time I had ever been able to speak about werewolf business to someone other then Jake. It felt wrong.

The women continued to gape at me. I fidgeted uncomfortably under their gazes.

Finally, Emily spoke.

"You're his imprint?"