Hey guys, sorry for the huge delay, I had writers block for the last little bit, which is why it's so bad :( Also a few days ago I looked at those legacy stats and realized the story had almost 60 reviews and flipped out! XD I'd like to thank those who reviewed, alerted and or favorited:
feathercloud42
alicecullenisrealinmyworld- thank yeah for keepin with the story so far :D
Anonymous
MACMONKEY
tinkertot95-and you as well :D
team-jacob-taylor
coolbeansyo
JellyBeane
FleetingInspiration
And also my awesome beta: JellyBeane and Fleeting Inspiration for ideas :)
Wow, that's a giant list, yay! :D
Previously
Not wanting to lose sight of the man, I turned my head for a split second. And in that split second I saw something I never would have dreamed of.
Embry exploded, quite literally, into a giant wolf.
Boy was I going to have something to tell Dr. Clark
What the…? How in the…? Why…?
In a second, a blur of grey rushed by, bolting into the woods after another haze, a paler one this time. A second whoosh disturbed the air not a few feet from me, only this smudge was darker, following the two other forms into the forest.
I stared after them, in shock, I guess, my brain trying to comprehend what just happened.
"Rowan?" I turned to see Kim, fear and anxiety etched deep into her dark brown eyes, with Jared practically glued to her side, arm wrapped protectively around her waist, eyes raking the surrounding area, shaking like a leaf in a hurricane. "We have to go." She reached for me, but seemed to think better of it, and pulled back, before being dragged away by the oversized teen.
Who by the way was almost an exact clone of the one who'd just burst into an oversized dog not a minute earlier.
Oh boy.
Rachel came up, determination on her face, but also fear, Claire's hand intertwined into her shirt in a death grip. Quil was right beside her, eyes never leaving the little girl-odd- but also shaking in a similar fashion to his friend.
"Come on."
She reached out, urging me forward.
I jerked away, backing away from Quil who practically glued himself to Rachel and Claire.
"What the hell happened? How did Embry…do whatever he did? What the hell was that giant dog thing? Where did it come from?" I yelled, eyes darting between all of them, afraid they'd burst into truck size dogs too.
"We'll explain when we get back to Emily's." Quil told.
"No! What the hell just happened? Who was that man? And what was that?" I gestured madly behind me.
The monster was back, ripping through me like lightening, I'm pretty sure getting struck by electricity would hurt less than this. The confusion and pure fear that was flowing through me, making the urge unbearable; why won't it leave me alone? Feeling my chest close in, the oxygen rushing out of my lungs like the devil himself was after it.
"Rowan relax. Please just trust us, when I say we should get back to Emily's now," Rachel reassured.
I shook my head, backing away from them.
Leave me alone! I mentally screeched.
A chorus of howls rose up behind us; I knew which one was Embry's, and an invisible chain rooted deep in my stomach yanked me towards the woods.
Don't shut down, don't shut down. I chanted over and over.
"We have to go now," Quil growled, reaching for Rachel whose grip tightened even more on Claire. "Rowan come on!"
They moved off, and with a glance at the woods searching for any of the new mysteries, I reluctantly, followed the group. The contrast between the girls and the guys was evident: fear straightened Kim and Rachel's back, pushing them into the apparent safety circle the guys radiated; all I saw from the guys was defensiveness, and pure anger. They all but ran back to Emily's, only slowing to glance and see if I was still behind them.
We hadn't even reached the porch and my cousin was there, ushering everyone in, concern and fear also marking her. Kim was still wrapped in Jared's arms; though it seemed the fear had retreated, making me think the enforced hug was more for his sake than anything else. Claire had calmed down some after Quil practically ripped her from Rachel's side.
"What happened?" my cousin asked.
The answer became a dull murmur, as the beach scene replayed over and over. In my mind I saw Embry turn into an wolf, watched him shake into an undecipherable form, see his clothes, or what was now left of them, fly into the air, and the creature that stood in his place. Then a blink of dark grey and the beach stood empty of any animals.
Flashback
A huge dark grey wolf stood in the shadows, and when I say huge I mean freakin huge. Like easily probably 5 times the normal size of a wolf, probably more.
Closer I could see the dark grey spots that speckled his back and sides, been placed randomly, like ebony snow. The mixed colors twisted into one another, melting into an authentic canvas.
(Flashback within a flashback sorry for confusion)
My mind strayed back to when I'd looked at Embry; he'd made me feel the same way. Why? Glancing at the wolf's eyes again, at how human they appeared. Why?
"I thought…you were some dude I met at my cousin's place. His name was like…E-Embry? Somethin' like that."
Well damn!
(Back to present)
"Embry freaked out and phased, and Rowan kinda saw…" Kim trailed off.
Realization dawned in Emily's eyes as she glanced at me, where I stood, tense against the wall as far away from the "guys" as possible.
"What the hell happened?" I repeated, frustrated. "Oh wait,I know, you guys all turn into giant dogs! Just when were you going to tell me this? I told you everything, willingly or not, but still. I trusted you and you didn't think to mention the fact that all the guys here are even more of a freak then me!"
It was silent after my short rant.
"Qwil's not a fweak," Claire stated, arms crossed, glaring at me.
I bit my tongue to stop another tirade, "Claire, he turns into a dog."
"So. Hew's fluffwy, and nice." She pouted, a stubborn look on her face.
The tension lightened some in the room.
Sighing heavily, I skated the edge of the room, avoiding the guys, eyes glued to them. "I'll be upstairs," I muttered, closing the door behind me.
Anger and betrayal curled my fingers, building like acid in my arms, driving the urge to cut even higher. Storming over to the desk, I ripped open the drawer, dumping it unnecessarily on the ground, snatching a pencil. Nearly flipping the mattress I yanked the sheet of paper out, tossing it up on the wall along with some tape. Ignoring the drive to maim myself even more, I scribbled "guys are freakin werewolves" in one of the corners, scratching lines from the phrase and adding even more details like "always hot", "eat a crapton", "steroid muscles."
Standing back, resisting the urge to pace, the poison having traveled to my legs, I attempted to see how this discovery fit into the larger puzzle that was pieced out on the 3X4.
Noting a connection I drew a line connecting the two, taking the time to make it look not ghetto, the focus soothing the betrayal. Pretty soon even more lines were drawn, notes attached, and the confusion starting to clear. A knock disturbed my trance, and not wanting to lose any possible link that could appear, I "hmmed", completely lost in the mission to unravel the tangle of graphite scratches.
"Rowan? Oh. What's this?"
Shifting my weight onto my left leg, my eyes raked the oversized piece of paper, not wanting to lose anything before I responded. Somewhat satisfied, and somewhat frustrated, I turned to find Emily sitting patiently on the bed.
"Therapy."
She raised an eyebrow in confusion.
"It helps with the urge; this is what my friend's shrink recommended for whenever she was stressed or confused, so yeah. It helps."
"Oh."
An uncomfortable silence descended, the ever present drumming of rain was ripped as a sharp howl rose up. Unconsciously, I hunched my shoulders, pulling my jacket closer; my cousin took in the movement with pity in her eyes, but it quickly resolved to shame when she caught me lookin'.
"The boys…I know it's a bit of a shock-"
I raised an eyebrow, shifting my weight again.
She chuckled, "Okay more than a little bit, but…never mind."
I raised my eyebrow again.
"No, you wouldn't have heard the legends, so…"
I nodded in understanding before motion out the window caught my attention; the "guys" were back. Anger surged again at their calm demeanor, at the way they were joking around, punching and jumping one another. Taking a deep breath, I tried to sooth the built up tension.
"You can come downstairs if you want," Emily offered.
Turning away slightly from the window, I met her eyes, before dropping it. She understood, nodded, smiled and quietly left, leaving the door cracked. Sighing, the usual rowdiness that owned the house resumed.
Why hadn't Emily told me? It's not exactly something that can "slip the mind." 'Course I was already "unstable" when I showed up on her doorstep, her mentioning that people turn into wolves around here might not have been a good idea. But I was doing good, I was getting better, - before Dad came along and everything- but still…why hadn't she told me?
Growling, I stalked back over to the poster board doohickey, trying to focus on it instead of the image of me sitting on the edge of the tub, razor poised over the porcelain marred skin, an ugly pink strip standing out like an island in the middle of an ocean. Shaking my head, I backed up and plopped down on the bed; noting my shoes were still on I kicked them off, watching them fly and hit the nightstand. The lone picture there wobbled, one Emily had given me after a few days, it portrayed a younger me and her at one of the beaches on the Makah Reservation, back before Mom died, back when Emily and Leah were sisters, back when life was just about not eating my vegetables and pouting when I had to take a nap, claiming I didn't need one, when in reality I crashed immediately.
Having grown so used to the scars, I was slightly shocked when I first saw the picture, forgetting what my cousin really looked liked; isn't that sad?
Stating the obvious, which you all have probably figured out already, another piece of the puzzle fell into place. Blazing out of the room, like the devil himself was on my butt, I raced downstairs, ignoring the guys and strange looks I received, and into the kitchen.
"You did that," I growled, whatever emotion that was controlling me forced my feet to march closer than I would have ever dared to Sam.
Confusion clouded both their faces, and it drove me up the wall in fury.
"That!" I yelled, well yelled for me, which was a little more than a normal voice, pointing at Emily's face. "That's why you always got that look on your face, you did that to her!"
"Rowan," Emily snapped, and that stopped the tirade; Emily never raised her voice, never got mad. Backing away from the shaking man, bumping into another: Embry. Emily sent a look over my head and a mad scrambling shook the house. She placed a hand on Sam's arm, and his shaking ceased, followed by him wrapping his arm securely around her waist.
I stared at his hand where once he turned, claws would emerge, claws sharp enough to tear flesh, claws sharp enough to maim.
"Rowan, relax."
"Y'all keep sayin' that, but I'm findin' it kinda hard."
She smirked, but sighed. "Sam didn't mean to-No listen. It was a complete accident, he phased and I was too close."
"That's what they all say though! I'm sorry; I didn't mean to. It was an accident," I spat, glaring daggers at Sam, gaining confidence from the anger probably.
"It was Rowan. I didn't have any control; and I'll hate myself for it for the rest of my life."
I refused to accept that, "No. That's- that's what Dad said and you know what? The next day he did it again and then again and again until he didn't even need to be drunk to smack me around."
All the anger from weeks, probably even years, was pouring out in a rush, the dam broken by the sight of a teenager turning into a canine. Backing up, I paced the kitchen opening, the fury pulsing energy and the urge to move back into my legs again. The two lovebirds shared a look, and Emily sighed,
"Just for a few minutes." She gave him a quick kiss, before going out into the living room, passing me with a smile.
Yah gotta be kiddin' me. They can read minds too.
"Rowan...could you umm…just relax for a bit?" Sam asked, almost immediately uncomfortable and unsure.
"Really? Dude, I ain't relaxed since I first walked in that door, and yah expect me to be relaxed now?" I whispered, the anger turning into a running recommendation, making me revert back to my "normal" self.
"Yeah…. Then just listen. My…my Dad was similar to yours; he was abusive towards me and my Mom. He liked to drink."
Cycle repeats itself, ain't that uncommon.
"So…I understand the pain and the anger. I get you…you can't trust me right now, but I hope you'll understand that I could never hurt you, Embry would have my head if he even thought I did," he muttered the last part low enough that I wasn't sure if I heard it right.
It was silent after Sam's "speech"; well at least for him it was, he wasn't a real big talker from what I've seen.
"So…"
I really didn't know what to say, my tirade having fallen aside, leaving me at a loss for words. My face twisted into something between a grimace and smile, and I have him a small nod. He returned the latter gesture and left me alone, presumably to go find Emily. Collapsing into a chair, my mind spinning with everything that's happened in the past hours.
Maybe I do need to see a shrink?
I honestly don't see how some of the girls didn't have a mental break down when they found out their boyfriends turn into wolves.
The front door slamming brought me back, and I looked to see Embry standing awkwardly in the kitchen entrance.
There it goes again. Stupid teenage hormones or whatever it is. Seeing him, I felt like everything would be alright, that no matter what this thing called life would work out in the end. That the confusion and pain would fade away into happiness; since when has happiness ever paid me a visit?
What about those few days ago, before this mess started? Back in the woods?
I'd felt safe around that wolf, or well Embry, I'd been relaxed, the closest I've been to my real self in years, and it was all because of one simple guy. What was it about him that put me back together? Why was I only truly subconsciously comfortable around him? What made him so special that he took the pain away, that he filled the black hole in me? Was it some weird wolf spell? Or something else?
His gaze caught mine and a foreign joy filled me. I tried to shove it back in a box, but it refused.
"So you're a dog?"
He chuckled, "No, a shapeshifter."
"But you turn into a dog?"
"No did you not see the giant wolf?"
"No I saw that, that was Paul. I also saw that little Chihuahua chasin' Claire around the other day, and it kinda looked like you 'cept in miniature dog form. It had that same little high-pitched "bark" that makes people wanna drop-kick them over their back fence so…"
Laughter rolled out behind him, and he mock-glared at me.
"What?" I asked innocently. "Look I'm sorry you don't get the same cool wolf forms as your buddies, but hey Chihuahua's are cool too. You get to carry 'em around in your bag and their um…tiny…and cool?"
More laughter sounded from the living room.
Emily patted Embry's arm, giggling at his shocked expression, as she came back into the kitchen, going over to the pantry and pulling a multitude of ingredients out. She never stopped did she?
I offered a small smile in his direction and he lit up like a little kid during Christmas.
Odd.
Okay, that's it one step at a time, everything will be okay. Just one damn freakin weirdo thing at a time. They turn into wolves okay. It's all good though.
There was just one more thing I needed to figure out today, (which completely screws the whole 'one thing at a time' idea) something that had been bugging me for the past few days. Only how was I supposed to get there? The guys were out, and I got a feelin if they begged their girlfriends would crack eventually, no offense to them, but there seemed to be no secrets between any of the couples.
So weird.
That left…Leah.
Oh great. This is gonna be interesting.
Peeking into the living room, I found her leaning against the wall, sending death glares towards each person in the room.
Joy.
Wait how am I even supposed to ask her? Super wolves means super hearing right?
Letting out a sigh, I maneuvered through the mass of over-sized teenage guys, head down, feeling her gaze settle on me as she realized I was headed towards her.
"Can I see yah phone?" I asked Leah, hoping she wouldn't bite my head off, figuratively and literally. I could see the guys stop everything and turn to stare at us, even with my back turned.
"Why?" she sneered.
"Just let me see yah damn phone," I growled. Sometimes you had to shove back if you didn't want to be fish food.
She stared at me for a bit before handing the device over; I opened a new message and quickly typed my question, before giving it to her.
"Why in the hell-" she started.
"Type."
She cursed me under her breath and typed out the rest of her sentence, aiming for my face when she threw it back.
All yah gotta do is drop me off that's it. If yah get lucky there's a possibility he may eat me.
She frowned at my response and mumbled, "That 'ill be the day. Why?"
"None of yah business," I stated.
"You're an idiot yah know that," she pointed out, putting her phone away and pushing off against the wall.
"Not the worst I've been called," I retorted, following her out.
"Where yah goin'?" Embry asked, starting to follow.
"Out. Stay."
He growled, yes growled at her. I doubt I'd ever get used to that.
"Yah know yah ain't helpin yahself with the dog insults when yah do that," I told. They all just kinda stared, and I glanced at the floor uncomfortably.
"Alright y'all quit starin before she disappears into the floor," she glared at them. "One would think you would have learned by now."
I followed her gratefully out the door and into her truck. The ride was awkwardly silent, the quietness allowing my mind to focus on what I was about to do. Man this is turnin into one fun-filled freakin' day.
"Thanks," I mumbled, getting out.
"Just don't do anything too stupid, otherwise Embry will have my head on a stake," she muttered, before driving off.
What is with Embry 'n' decapitating people?
Taking a deep breath, I forced my feet to move, past the sliding doors, up to the little desk. I had to know, it was just another part of the mystery that needed to be solve. Shivering at the scent that clung to the air, trying not to gag, I wandered along the halls looking for the right door. My feet seemed to move of their own accord now, my subconscious or whatever saying it had to know, despite my half-hearted protests to tell my inner self to shut up. A part of me wanted to know, but another part of me was scared to find out how.
What the heck was I thinking? It will be too much, I'll crack. First everyone finds out I cut, then I find out they're all oversized dogs, and if this is true… Dear Lord please, please, don't let me faint. On second though just let this all be a stupid dream, yeah, I'm still in the hospital and pretty soon I'll wake up and everythin' 'ill be cool.
All too soon the correct numbers appeared on a piece of wood.
Here goes nothin'.
Taking a deep breath, I knocked softly on the door.
"Come in."
"Dr. Cullen?" I stuck my head in to see the inhuman blond sitting behind a desk, a file in hand.
"Yes?"
Shuffling farther into the room, leaving the door cracked, I leaned against the wall next to it. "Umm...I'm Rowan Carter, Emily's cousin. I was in here a few days ago."
"Oh yes. How are you doing?"
"Fine?"
"Is something wrong then?"
Hmm…well if youyou're considerin' I'm having a complete and total mental breakdown because there's so many problems and not enough answers then yes. No stop it; quit being so self-centered! God I'm clinically freakin' insane.
"Umm…"
I don't even know what the hell to ask him? Do you not age? Do you have a immortal clone?
"Do…you have an older brother who looks dead up like yah?"
What kinda question is that yah freakin' idiot!
"Umm…no?"
"Oh."
Just say it, say it.
"Do you remember a car wreck back in Virginia? Eleven years ago? It was a drunk driver and there was a mom and she was killed and you saved a little girl?" I blurted out.
Confusion played on his face until recognition took over. "You were…"
"Yeah…. So mind explainin'..." I gestured to him.
Sorry about the ending :( and how short it was. Please review though and tell me what yah thought s'il vous plait (thanks to alicecullenisrealinmyworld)