Leah POV

I opened my eyes abruptly to a dark room. Something had startled me from my sleep. I felt disorientated and struggled to remember where I was, but as soon as a foot kicked me it all came flooding back.

I quickly turned to my side to see Cris, thrashing violently in the bed and muttering something unintelligible. Automatically, I reached for him, trying to shake him awake. When he didn't respond I called out to him as well, trying to break into his nightmare.

My voice seemed to have the opposite effect though as Cris's fists started to fly and he almost hit me. Using wolf speed, I quickly jumped up and grabbed his arms as they flailed at the air. I had to stop him before he hurt himself. The restriction of his movement appeared to do the trick because his eyes flew open immediately. I was shocked however when he growled angrily and flipped both of us over so that he was on top of me. His legs pinned me down forcefully while one hand held my arms high above my head and the other wrapped around my throat. He looked down at our position and stopped growling immediately. His hold on me loosened as a horrified look crossed his face.

"Are you ok?" he asked mortified. "I didn't hurt you, did I?"

As I shook my head slowly, he slumped off me and back on to the bed.

"I'd never forgive myself if I hurt you."

"Hey, it's ok," I reassured and shifted closer. "You can't hurt me. She-wolf, remember?"

Cris's expression was serious as his eyes bored into mine. "You're not invincible, Leah. I wish you'd realize that."

"You really shouldn't worry so much." I soothed.

His frown eased slightly and he reached out to caress my cheek. "I can't help it when you're involved. You make me crazy."

A small smile crept across my face. "Is that good crazy or bad?"

"A bit of both." He shrugged, his lips twitching in return.

I shoved him gently. "What time is it?"

"I'm not sure. I'd guess a few hours from dawn." Cris frowned, his serious mood returning.

We lay in silence for a few minutes before he cleared his throat.

"So, since we're both awake, are you going to tell me what happened yet?"

I looked at him in earnest. I didn't want to burden him with anything more, but he had a right to know and I could only put it off for so long. After another minute of collecting my thoughts, I decided to tell him everything.

Starting from where our phone-call left off, I told him about the attack against Quil, finding the girls missing, meeting the Cullens, and all in between, right up to my arrival in Denali, following Sophia's summons.

It wasn't surprising that he didn't interrupt or say anything until I finished. He always had been patient and a good listener. It was one of his more admirable qualities in comparison to me who just ran away with my mouth.

"So, what do you think?" I finished, as the guilt and worry I had battled with all day returned.

"I think that you are amazing." Cris leant over and kissed my bare shoulder. He seemed more composed than he had earlier. "You've done everything you could and more. Sam or Jake would have never been able to make it this far and keep the pack running. Whatever happens tomorrow, we'll work it out together now, ok?"

I liked the way he said 'together' and gently pressed my lips against his. "Thank you. You always have things figured out."

He lifted his hand and cupped my cheek. "Really, I don't. Right now the only thing I have figured out is how much you mean to me, but I don't know if it's too little too late."

I could feel the blush creeping to my face. Cris and I had been struggling to figure out our relationship for months. We had never once been on the same page at the same time and there had always been an invisible line between us. "What are you saying?" I whispered.

He smiled sadly. "Lee liked you, you know. He thought I was an idiot for pushing you away."

I saw the pain in his face when he spoke of his now gone pack mate. "You don't have to talk about this stuff right now. It's ok. I know things were awkward between us before this all kicked off, but none of that matters now," I reassured.

Cris sat up slightly and leant on his elbow. "You're wrong. It matters now more than ever. You need to know that after everything that's happened there was only ever one thought that kept me going, and that was you. I've been so stupid worrying about imprinting and responsibilities when you had it right all along; somehow we work. If I've learnt anything in the last twenty four hours it's that life's too short and... I don't want to live mine without you." His finger trailed up and down my cheek. "The question is… am I too late?"

There was only one way to answer him and I reached out and pulled his lips down to mine. Part of me was worried that his words came from grief, but another part of me trusted him and knew that Cris would never say something like this if he didn't mean it. Either way, as soon as his mouth moved against mine it didn't matter. All the tiredness, the hurt and the pain of the last day seemed to lighten and all I wanted to focus on was him. It no longer mattered that I didn't know what was to come tomorrow. I selfishly needed this...

I lost track of time as we lay there, kissing and softly touching each other. It was hard to believe he was here, and if not for him running his fingers through my hair and trailing his hands over my body, I may have thought it was a dream.

Sure of myself, of him, of us, I gently pulled him so that he was on top of me, his lower half fitting perfectly in between my legs. Cris stilled at our new position and buried his head in my neck, breathing deeply.

His lips trailed across my skin. "I forgot how good you smelt," he mumbled.

I shuddered at the unexpected contact on my body and found myself leaning my head backwards, offering up more of my neck. Cris seemed to like the gesture and proceeded to kiss it all over, gradually moving down to my shoulders and collar bone, and paying them just as much attention with his lips. His hands meanwhile supported his sides and seemed to be keeping the majority of his weight off of me. It wasn't until he reached the top of my bra covered breasts that he finally paused and seemed to realize what he was doing.

He looked at me embarrassed. "I didn't mean to get so carried away."

I put my finger against his lips, silencing him, and nervously gulped. "You asked if you were too late and this is me, answering you." I lifted my back slightly and felt behind me for the clasp of my bra. I quickly unclipped it and slipped the straps off me, throwing the whole thing on the floor so that my top half was bare before him. "I'm yours, Cris. I have been for a long time."

He looked down at me in awe, biting his lip. "Leah."

Whatever he was going to say was lost on me and as I pulled him back down our lips crashed together. I was finally ready to let it all go and trust, if not in fate, then in Cris...

It turned out to be so much more than just sex. Every kiss, every touch, every caress seemed to bring us closer. We already knew each other's minds, but discovering each other's body was something else. We could have been anywhere. Time didn't matter. As long as were connected, the pain and grief of our worlds was washed away. It was like a piece of a puzzle, falling into place and no matter what happened from there on, I would never take it back.

Cris completed me, and now, he knew me in every way...

"I love you, Leah." He sighed, resting his forehead against mine, his breathes short.

"I love you too." The words came so easily. I had always found them frightening in the past but not now, not with Cris.

With a smile, he lay on his back and held his arms out for me to join him. I curled into his body, using his firm chest as my pillow.

"No regrets?" he asked, pecking the top of my head.

"Never." I muttered and kissed his chest in return as sleep took over once more.

The next time I woke up, there was light on my face from the daylight, creeping through a shuttered window. I stretched out, feeling incredibly well rested and as I went to turn over found an arm that wasn't my own wrapped around me.

Memories of the night before came flooding back to me and despite everything, I couldn't help but smile. I decided to allow myself a minute to relax and memorize the feel of Cris's hot naked body wrapped around mine. A part of me also didn't want to move and disturb him as by the steady pace of breath on the back of my neck he appeared to be finally sleeping soundly.

Even though reality was unavoidable, I felt like I could protect him from it for a little longer. I had seen the sadness in his eyes last night and the responsibility that weighed on him. He somehow felt like he had to fix everything and look after me at the same time, which just wasn't necessary. In fact, it was me that needed to look after him. He had saved me in so many ways, and now it was my turn. I wasn't even sure what that meant, but I refused to look in his eyes and see the pain I used to see whenever I looked in a mirror.

Carefully, I slipped out from under his arm and out of the bed. Looking back at him, I couldn't help but think that he looked so peaceful and so far from the fitful sleeper of the night. As much as I would have loved to be here when he woke up, I had to meet up with my pack and plan for Sophia's arrival.

I grabbed the nearest items of clothing off of the floor, which happened to be my pants and Cris's shirt, and pulled them on. I felt slightly silly in the overly long garment which drowned me, and it reminded me of the day he saved me from the truck. The memory seemed years ago, yet I knew it was only months.

I briefly brushed my fingers through my hair, trying to dispel my bed head and sighed. It irritated me to think that it had taken death and kidnapping to finally bring us together. Both of us had wasted so much time on fear, pride and stubbornness. I hoped that in the light of day he would agree with me and have no regrets.

Now that I was up, the wolf in me was beginning to stir too, so I headed quietly for the front door. Aware that it creaked, I ever so slowly opened it a fraction and slipped outside. I took in the fresh morning air and shivered. It was a cool day, but with my body temperature it was simply sobering and all remains of sleep quickly left me.

The estate seemed unnaturally quiet. At home there was always the chattering of birds in the morning and I wondered if all the animals avoided this place, sensing the predators that lived here. The only sounds to be heard were in fact from the main house where I could make out some voices and the light snores from a cabin nearby. I figured one of them had to hold Shay, but I was unsure who occupied the cabin to my left.

As if in answer, the front door of the cabin opened and out stepped an exhausted Jake. He was moving silently and only the door creaking had signaled his presence. I watched on as he rubbed his face with his hands and took in a deep breath. In that instant, I knew he had smelt me. Slowly, he paused and turned to look at me. A frown was set clearly on his face.

I sighed, knowing that we would have to talk. I hadn't seen him in ages and had completely bypassed him last night. Sure, it was his fault, but under the circumstances it seemed petty to argue over something so trivial.

I made my way across to him cautiously. "Jake..."

He shook his head angrily, avoiding eye contact, and slumped on to his porch steps, turning his head away from me. "Save it, Leah."

"Jake, I don't want to fight." I sighed and sat down next to him.

His body stiffened, as he ignored me and continued to look away.

"Just tell me, is there any news?" I asked quietly.

"Now you care?" He snorted, finally facing me. An expression of disappointment was clear on his face. It passed quickly as a second later he tiredly shook his head. "There's been no news since last night. No one knows what to do next or where to go. We're all just waiting on Sophia now."

"Did everyone make it back alright last night? Seth? Embry?" I had to check the remaining members of my pack were ok.

"Yeah, everyone is here, but you'd already know that if you'd bothered to stick around last night," Jake said bitterly, his anger returning.

I sighed. "Jake, don't go there, ok. I know you're under a lot of stress; we all are, but this isn't all on me. Let's be honest, if you hadn't of lied about Cris, I would have handled things differently."

He went to argue, but I cut him off.

"Look, I haven't seen you in ages and I really don't want our first words to be part of an argument. I'm too tired to fight my friends as well as my enemies. Let's just move past it, ok?"

"Fine," he nodded grumpily, before sighing, "but I still stand by my decision not to tell you."

I looked back at the door behind where Cris was sleeping, before turning to Jake in disbelief. "Seriously? Because, honestly, I don't get it."

"What's not to get?" Jake snorted.

"Why you would keep us apart." I shook my head disappointed. "I trusted you."

He sighed. "Leah, it wasn't a black and white situation. When Cris got in contact with us, his mind and emotions were unstable. I only hid it from you because I didn't want you distracted or worried."

My reply was no more than a whisper, "Jake, he lost his pack mate, of course he was unstable, but he needed me. Did it even dawn on you that I might have needed him too?"

"Leah, I can't be sorry for protecting you. I'd already put you in enough danger." His voice softened and his brown eyes bored into mine. "Besides, you were already dealing with so much. I didn't think it was fair to put even more stress on you."

"Jake, you're not my alpha anymore. You don't get to make those decisions."

Jake suddenly seemed sad. "I can't help it. I care about you and that won't ever change."

I looked at him sincerely. "There's nothing wrong with caring, but this is my life. You trusted me enough to make me alpha, so trust me enough to make the right decisions."

"Like you did last night," he muttered, turning his face away from me.

I wasn't sure about what he was referring to.

After a few seconds, he looked back at me blankly. "His scent is all over you." He clarified.

"Oh." I blushed and shifted suddenly feeling uncomfortable.

"It's ok, Leah. It just takes some getting used to." Jake's shoulders seemed hunched and tense. "Look, I need to go up to the house. Nessie stayed with Rose last night after she found out Bella was missing and I need to see her. We still need to catch up though. There's a meeting in thirty minutes, I'd appreciate it if you and Cris would join us."

"Of course," I reassured him. I could see the stress on his face.

Jake nodded and nudged me lightly. "It's good to see you anyway, Lee."

I nudged him back. "Yeah, you too."

He seemed to take that as his cue to leave and headed off towards the house. I, however, remained on the step, processing our conversation and allowing myself a minute before I woke Cris. Jake seemed totally deflated, we all did. Doing nothing was killing us.

I stood up and quietly made my way back inside. Surprisingly, Cris was awake and dressed. I raised my eyebrows questioningly.

He smiled weakly and walked over to me. "I missed you." He dropped a kiss on my forehead before starting to make coffee.

"I've only been gone a minute." I followed him towards the kitchen and sat on the counter, watching him.

His eyes skimmed up my legs and over my body. "You're wearing my shirt." He kissed me gently on the lips this time. "I like it."

I felt the blush creeping into my cheek, but was so glad he wasn't distancing himself from me. I swung my feet back and forth against the cupboard. "There's a meeting at the house soon." I watched him trying to gauge his reaction.

"I heard. That's why I got dressed. We've got to face reality sooner or later, right?" he said bitterly.

"Cris, if you're not up to it, it's ok. Everyone would understand." I slipped off the counter and wrapped my arms around him, resting my head against him.

He held me close in return. "I came here to help and play my part. Besides, I already told you we're in this together now."

"I know, but..."

His hand cut me off. "No buts. I'm fine. I need to do this, for myself and my pack. I have a stake in Joham's head."

"Ok." I nodded.

Somehow I managed to tear myself away from him and quickly shower. I found the dress Rosalie had leant me yesterday and slipped it on once more, tided my wet hair and made my way out to Cris who was now standing on the porch. He held out his hand to me, and I took it as we descended the steps together and walked slowly towards the main house.

As we reached it, I noticed Shay was sitting on a log, some way from the front door, looking very uncomfortable.

His expression lifted when he saw us and his eyes followed our arms down to our joined hands. "It's about time you two worked things out." The log creaked as he stood up and joined us.

I blushed, but Cris appeared unfazed. It was no doubt something I would have to get used to.

"You ok?" Cris asked his pack mate concerned.

"I'm not sure I can go in that house." Shay grumbled. "I'm not comfortable being surrounded by vampires, even if they are our allies. Not after everything that's happened."

Cris nodded. "I know. I feel the same, but we have to go in. This is our fight too."

"Hey, guys, why don't I go ahead?" I didn't want to get in between them. I knew how difficult it had to be for them to deal with the situation, without me hanging around.

Shay sighed. "It's ok. I'm coming. It's not as if I'm about to let my alpha go into a vampires nest alone. The twins would never let me live it down if they found out I refused." He tried to make light of the situation.

Cris smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. "No, they wouldn't."

We all stood silent for a moment longer staring at the house.

The wolf in me was anxious to get back out into the forest. "Let's get this over with, shall we?"

The guys nodded and we walked up the porch and through the oak doors into the main house. On any other day I may have taken more notice of the beautiful furniture and interior, but my focus fell onto the open plan living room ahead of me, where everyone was patiently waiting.

None of the vampires were sitting, only Embry, Seth and Jake took up the huge sofa. All of them looked tired and stressed.

On seeing me, Seth jumped up and made his way over to me. He hugged me briefly before shaking hands with Cris and Shay. Embry followed suit and greeted them too. After checking they were ok and assuring them that I was, they moved to my left side. Cris and Shay remained to my right.

Jake was the only remaining shifter in the room, but he didn't move and instead nodded in acknowledgment from his seat. I looked around the room and exchanged minimal greetings with the vampires, smiling more at Rose than any of the others.

"Where's Esme and Nessie?" I asked.

Carlisle stepped forward. "We thought it best that Nessie knows as little as possible for the time being. Esme is caring for her."

"How much does she know?" Cris queried.

"She knows Bella is missing, but not why." Edward piped in. His eyes were still dark and sallow, like a rotting corpse.

He must have heard my mental observation because he turned away shielding himself.

"So what now? We have two hours till Sophia arrives," I asked.

The room descended into ideas and opinions, with everyone having their say. Maps were spread across the floor and a log of times and attacks was made to try and establish how big Joham's coven was. Until Sophia arrived though, we were all in limbo. It seemed likely she would have some kind of demand or condition to present us with and that could easily undo any sketchy plans we had made. I ended up completely frustrated and pouring over a map of the coast line on the carpet. Cris gave me space, but still hovered near and Shay kept closer to the wolves than the vampires.

Eventually, I stood up and addressed the room. "This is all pointless until we know what Sophia has to say, but I think one thing that is apparent is that we are stronger together. Whatever Sophia declares, our response needs to be on a united front. If we show division in front of her, Joham will have even more fuel to use against us."

"Agreed. We have always been your allies, Leah. The same goes for Sam's pack. That won't change now," Carlisle declared, and the rest of his coven nodded in agreement. "Whatever comes next, we face it together."

"I hate feeling so redundant," Alice suddenly cried out. "If Joham hadn't hidden himself behind half breeds and involved the wolves we would know exactly what Sophia was going to say and could be prepared. We are all so vulnerable right now."

Jasper tried to sooth her, but it appeared of no help and she stormed out of the room, with him following after her.

It appeared to be Tanya's time to speak. "She's right we are vulnerable. There is one other option though."

Edward let loose a unexpected growl. "No!"

"Edward..." Tanya pleaded.

"We are not involving the Volturi! They would be just as happy to see us dead and use it to their own advantage. Remember what they did to your sister?" he hissed.

The whole Denali clan looked affronted by his outburst. Carlisle immediately started apologizing to them and trying to pacify Edward at the same time. It led to a small squabble erupting between them, which Emmett and Rose made a hasty escape from by also leaving the room.

Cris met my eyes while shaking his head in disbelief.

"Some united front." I muttered to him, and returned to my maps hoping for some kind of miracle.

AN

Short update, but hope you liked it!

As always credit goes to dontcallmeleelee for her beta'ing skills.

Thank you also for the continuing reviews and for those hanging in there and still following me and this story. Unfortunately, life's so busy these days and I haven't had a chance to reply to everyone, for which I am sorry. That doesn't make them any less appreciated though. xx