Guest(1): Yes, classic Paul. Arse-kicking in some fashion is certainly possible. I've no doubt that Bella still has more to say to Jake, especially with what he just pulled (and probably will have even more motivation if/when she finds out exactly what Jake was saying.
Guest(2): Yes, she does. And yes, we had an imprint. Jake is absolutely being an a**, and Bella knows that too.
Jana: Thank you very much. Thrilled that you loved it and I'm very thankful for the compliments. I try to write the kinds of stories that I like to read. Paul is a riot to write here. Total scene-stealer. I think people sometimes don't like him because he's portrayed as being a jerk or violent, etc. I'm glad you find this exciting. It's a bit overwhelming to be told this is better than the books, but I'll try to keep to the same high standard as always.
Guest(3): Fantastic is a good word. can offer alternatives if you think they're needed. Glad that this chapter came out well, including Bella's reaction. I figured she wouldn't be too shocked, given what she'd been thinking about earlier. Paul's great to write.
Guest(4): Thanks. I wanted to find a plausible reason for why Paul would be coming to get his keys in only a pair of boxers. Making a quick escape from seeing a girl seemed to fit the bill. Charlie would know what young people (especially Paul) are like and not raise too many questions.
Guest(5): Great. Glad you love it.
Congrats to Guest(3) for being review #900 for this story on FF. The response for this story has been phenomenal and I'm grateful for each and every reader and reviewer.
AN: In the interest of full disclosure, there is a spoiler for Harry Potter #7 in this chapter. I had someone spoil this part of the book for me when it got released and I don't want to pass on that experience to anyone else.
This came together really fast and easy. Hope everyone enjoys. I have not forgotten about "Revenge is a Dish" but I'm blocked there and running with inspiration for this story as long as it keeps coming. Revenge will update as soon as I get things figured out and put together.
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Embry POV
"Embry. Embry, come on," Jared literally pulled me into the forest. I didn't fight him, but I was sure dragging my feet. "It's hard, I know. But she's safe with her dad, and you'll see her tomorrow."
"Is it like this for you?"
"Yeah. The imprinting was—is—really strong in the beginning-the whole 'new' factor-but after a while it settled down some for me—and it will for you, too. Mine is back to being pretty intense again now."
"Why?"
Jared considered for a few seconds. "Kim is pregnant. It makes me feel the urge to protect our pup as well as my mate."
"Oh."
"I'll phase first and make sure the coast is clear, then you can try phasing back and we'll head home. We should probably go and check in at Sam and Emily's place first and then you ought to be able to go home for the night."
"Okay."
"Why don't you watch me and get a feel for it? Doubt you paid much attention earlier."
"I had a big-ass wolf about to chomp me for dinner. No, I sure as hell wasn't paying attention to anything else." But I still turned my head back toward Bella's now-invisible house. Jared waited patiently until I turned back.
"You're naked!" I blurted out.
He laughed. "Yeah. Like Paul said, the whole rapid phase thing shredded everybody's clothes today. He and Quil lost theirs trying to haul ass and catch up before Jake tore into you. Sam and I actually held onto ours until the whole phase in your backyard thing happened. Like you said, there was a pissed off werewolf looking to tear into you, so I'm not really surprised you didn't take much notice of the rest of us. Not a bad thing actually-shows you can focus on the priorities and ignore the unimportant stuff."
I kept my eyes firmly above his waist, but did watch the process. Even so...maybe someone with a high-speed camera could figure it out, but I couldn't. After a minute or so, Jared yipped softly and jerked his head in a 'come on' gesture. Clearly, Jake wasn't around anymore. Fine by me. Now, how to do this? Well, if thinking calm thoughts and about Bella had gotten me from wolf to human earlier, then angry thoughts-Jake thoughts-ought to take me the other direction.
Bastard. Unwelcome. Unwanted. Unknown.
It worked. Anger roiled through me, I shuddered, and phased. Jared didn't have to ask about my motivation-he could see it. He kept quiet, though.
Okay, you did that really well. Sam will go over some stuff once we get back and more of it tomorrow, but in the meantime...we patrol over most of the peninsula and national forest daily. Sam works it out so the ones in school don't miss much, but the school works with us, too, on excusing absences for pack stuff.
What about me? I'm going to be taking some classes in Forks this year.
That's...inconvenient. We can't make the same kind of arrangement with them. You couldn't just drop that?
Enroll and then back out right away? Yeah, that wouldn't attract any attention. Especially since- my thoughts flashed back to the encounter with Mike Newton in the Outfitters store and his reaction to learning Bella and I were dating and that I'd be coming there for classes. Besides, I've been looking forward to this and so has Bella.
Tell Sam about that Newton kid. I have a feeling you've got a golden ticket there. No one messes with imprints. You'll need the daily contact to help solidify the imprint bond, and if you're at school with Bella you can look out for her. You'll just have to be extra careful about not losing your temper.
Jared kept things light but informative on our trek back to La Push. Once we got close, he led the way to approach Sam's house from the forest side.
I'll go first again and grab us both some shorts. There are usually spare pairs hidden outside most of our houses for situations like this.
Jared split off, phased, and tossed a pair of said shorts my way. My hollow stomach provided all the motivation I needed in order to phase, too. Jared joined me on the porch and led the way inside. "We're pretty informal here. Open door policy unless it's shut. Hey, Emily. This is Embry, the newest member of the pack. Emby, Emily. She's Sam's imprint and wife."
A pretty dark-haired woman looked up at us. "Hello, Jared. Welcome, Embry. Help yourself. Sam will be right back; he just went to put Levi to bed."
I nodded and said, "Hi" back to her, but my attention was all on the food spread over the countertop. My plate was only half filled when Sam entered the room.
"Embry? How the hell did you phase back this fast?"
"Which time?" I mumbled around the biscuit I'd stuffed into my mouth. "Just now, I was starving. At Bella's, I had Jacob-fucking-Black in my head. Guess I was really motivated both times."
"Jacob?" Sam snarled. "What the hell has he done now?"
"You didn't tell Jake not to phase in that list of orders you gave him earlier," Paul breezed into the cabin. "He took advantage and went for the jugular-figuratively this time. Damn, but that girl sure knew what was going on, seemed like. Kept Embry from doing more than growl, and got him to phase out nice as you please." The latecomer paused to wait for reactions, but there weren't any. At least, not until Emily lost the battle and started laughing hysterically. I just stared, Jared slid out of his chair to land on the floor, and even Sam's poker face cracked.
"Should I even ask?" Sam sighed.
"Probably not," Paul smirked and launched into the story behind his colorful borrowed boxers. I really didn't pay much attention to what he said, not with his shorts on display.
"You walked up to her house wearing those?" I muttered it under my breath, but everyone clearly heard me.
"I could've walked up there wearing nothing at all, but I didn't figure that would go over well with the chief. Bella played along great-oh, she'll be coming down for breakfast tomorrow, Emily."
"That's good. Will Kim be up to coming, Jared?"
"I'll ask."
"What-never mind, you come back out with me and just show me what happened," said Sam. He stopped and looked back at me. "You phased human at Bella's?"
"Yeah. Like I said, I had the jerk in my head, and she was outside and-"
"What happened?"
"You'll probably need to see it to believe it," Paul said with a grin.
Sam nodded. "Did you imprint?"
"If that was the bright white light, nothing else matters bit, then yeah." My lips curved automatically, remembering the grab and pull move that had brought Bella against me.
"He did," agreed Jared. "Getting him to leave wasn't that easy. But she didn't want him getting caught by her dad and said they'd talk tomorrow, so we managed it."
Sam rubbed his face with both hands. "Congratulations. Okay, Embry and Jared, eat. Paul, come with me."
The two of them disappeared and the rest of us started eating.
"How are you handling this, Embry" asked Emily.
I shrugged. "Dunno. I didn't run to Canada, so that's something, right?"
"Probably," she agreed. "Any questions?"
"Jared said Sam would handle it. I don't even know what questions to ask right now."
"That's understandable. When you don't know what's going on, trying to figure out what the questions should be isn't easy. If you boys knew it was coming..." her voice trailed off.
"Like that'll happen," Jared scoffed. "Emily, you know what Sam went through to get the council to agree that families should be told after it happened. Trying to get them to agree to telling the guys it might happen to before it happens...never happening."
"How do you think Bella will react to what she'll be told?"
Jared snorted his drink our his nose, earning a look from Emily. "She wasn't scared of the wolf, said Embry was still who he'd always been, and she didn't want him to leave any more than he wanted to. My guess is, she'll accept it pretty easy. Others..." he trailed off. "Did Sam say how the council meeting went?"
"About like you'd expect," Sam answered, coming back inside and heading for the food with Paul right behind him. "Confused, upset, and pretty much everything else. They want answers just like everyone else, including us. Embry, I saw your mom earlier and gave her an overview of what's going on. She knows it means we need to know about your dad, so hopefully she'll share that information soon."
"You told her already?"
"The opportunity presented itself and there was no sense in waiting. She needed to know what you are now so she'd be aware of warning signs and be able to help you. You will not hurt your mother, Embry. If you get angry, run outside. Get away from her or anyone else who riles you up."
"And Jacob?" I retorted bitterly.
"I'll deal with him tomorrow. When I don't want to rip his head off. I'll do what I can in the short-term, but long-term…we'll have to figure something out. There's only six of us, so keeping you two apart indefinitely won't be possible. For this week, I'll have you patrol with Paul; Jared, sorry, but you get Jake. Quil and I will buffer between your shifts so you won't have contact that way."
"Okay. Fine. What else do I need to know now?"
Sam ran through a few things, like how I was a lot bigger than I had been, my temperature was now a constant 108 degrees, and that I'd usually be hungry. Like Jared figured, Sam gave a qualified okay to me attending the classes at Forks High like I'd planned.
"That's probably enough for tonight. Most of the rest of it should probably wait for Bella to hear, too."
"Embry, do you want your mom to cut your hair, or would you like me to take care of that?" Emily asked
"What?"
"Long hair and phasing isn't a good combination. Stuff gets caught in it all the time if it's too long and that's a killer," commented Jared. Reflexively, my hands went up to my head and almost instantly got tangled.
"Mom's always cut it for me, so I guess I'll do that."
"Okay, then," Sam said. "Go on home and talk to your mom."
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Sam POV
I crashed into bed next to Emily and wondered how and when today had spun out of control.
"It'll be okay," my wife whispered, shifting to lay her head on my shoulder.
"I sure hope so. Embry and Jacob in the same pack is an explosion waiting to happen. It's anybody's guess whether or not Embry's mom will cooperate and name his father-it isn't like we can do DNA tests on every male in the tribe to find out. We really don't know for sure how Bella will respond to everything she'll hear tomorrow, or about the imprint."
"You're worried about how Jacob will react, too," Emily stated.
"I am. He attacked Embry just for dating her and having sex with her-and out of anger that he hadn't imprinted on the girl. Once Jacob finds out that she's Embry's imprint..."
"Will you Alpha-order him if it's necessary?"
I sighed heavily and wrapped my arms around her. "I might not have a choice. I won't have him attacking Bella and Embry-physically or verbally—at least, not again. Jacob was a handful to deal with anyway, but that little rank idea he got somehow...I wish I knew what the hell he's thinking-and Billy, too. He had to have been the one who told Jacob about Ephraim having been the Alpha in the last pack."
"Didn't you say that he reacted really strongly at the council meeting to Embry joining the pack and the possibility of him imprinting on Bella?"
"Too strongly, almost..." my low voice trailed off as a terrible thought took shape. Emily seemed to sense and share it.
"He couldn't be Embry's father, could he?"
"Spirits, Em, I hope not. He's practically been a surrogate father to Embry for years now. If he was doing that but not stepping up as a real father...I'd rather it be practically anyone else-even Joshua-than for it to be Billy."
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Narrator POV
"I almost feel bad for asking this, but…please tell me it wasn't you, Harry."
Harry Clearwater sat down beside his wife and laid his hands on her shoulders.
"Sue, I swear that it wasn't me. I never met Tiffany Call before she moved here. Embry is a fine boy, and one that any man ought to be proud to claim. But he isn't mine."
Sue wiped her eyes. "I knew it couldn't have been you, but I just had to hear you say it."
"I know. You probably aren't the only woman thinking or asking that question right now."
"Then who do you think it was?" Sue asked.
"I don't know," he sighed. "Old Quil certainly seems to have been holding his cards close to the vest lately, having suspicions that Bella might end up with Embry and not with Jacob."
"Could it be a family interest? Is it possible that it could have been his son, and that was why he kept quiet about his doubts?"
"Possible? Yes, I suppose so. Four could have fished up that way. Or he and Tiffany could have met somewhere else, too. Nothing says it happened up at Neah Bay." Harry looked at his wife and pulled her into his embrace. "Sue, relax. We're just going to have to wait and see."
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Alison Uley cleaned her house in an effort to relax. She'd been a bit on edge since parting ways with her son after their visit to Tiffany Call. Alison could understand the other woman's fierce desire to protect her son. More than once over the years, she had fought to ensure that Sam would be judged on his own merits and not held responsible for the sins of his long-absent father.
Joshua Uley had been the "tall, dark, and handsome" of most young girls' dreams, and a member of one of La Push's leading families to boot. She'd had those dreams herself, and been thrilled when they'd come true. Yet, there had been something restless about Josh, a wanderlust that few in the tribe had shared or even understood. Maybe she'd pushed him too soon about marrying and then starting a family and he hadn't been ready. Perhaps it had been the pressure of settling down and living up to the examples of his father and grandfather. Whatever the cause, Josh had become increasingly distant throughout her pregnancy and Sam's infancy. By the time their son had reached toddlerhood, it was far more common for Joshua to be gone than to be found in La Push. And before Sam had started preschool, his father had been gone for good, with only a couple brief visits back since.
As Sam had said tonight, it would be not at all unexpected for it to turn out that Joshua had used that distance and freedom to seek female companionship, and for him to not have been diligent where protection was concerned. Alison reflected that it would certainly hurt to know for certain that her husband had so dramatically shunned his upbringing and turned his back on not just one family but two, but as Sam had said, better it be Joshua than most of the other potential candidates.
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Embry POV
I'd never been any less eager to go home than I was right now. I wasn't anywhere close to the person I'd been when I'd said goodbye to my mom this morning. What was I supposed to say to her? Now that I was aware that whatever I'd thought I knew about my family history was wrong? What was Mom going to say to me now that she knew at least some of what had happened today, thanks to that visit from Sam and his mom? Would she be willing to give me the answers now that she hadn't before? There was only one way to find out.
"Mom?"
"Embry?" she appeared in the kitchen doorway, worry plain on her face. "Are you alright?"
I shrugged. "I guess so. I feel like I've stepped into an episode of The Twilight Zone, I'm tired, filthy, sore, and confused."
"Are you hungry?"
I started to say, "No," because Emily Uley had stuffed all of us before letting anyone go home, but I realized that I was still hungry after all. "Yeah."
"I can fix you something while you take a shower."
"That would be great, Mom. And I'll need a haircut, too."
Her breath hitched, but she didn't say anything. Equally silent, I headed for my bedroom and then the bathroom. While I ended up cleaner than when I started, the shower wasn't as relaxing as I'd hoped. The spray of water barely qualified as tepid, and the floor drain ended up clogged by the debris that was dislodged from my hair. I finally resorted to a rough hack job to get the worst out and would let my mom clean it up. A pair of now too-short sweatpants met the same fate when I chopped them into shorts.
"How do you feel? Are you hurt? Is this stuff okay? I can make something else if-"
I cut her off. "Mom, I'm fine. If it's food and cooked, then whatever you fixed is fine. Apparently we eat pretty much anything edible. Apologies in advance for the grocery bill," I tried to offer something like my usual smile.
"We'll manage. It'll be alright. Eat. I'll trim your hair after you're done."
Mom sat across the table from me and fiddled with her coffee mug while she watched me eat. The silence could have—should have—been awkward, but thankfully it wasn't. The coming conversation would almost have to be a tough one, and so the quiet beforehand was welcome. I washed my dishes when I was done and Mom used that as her cue to get the hair trimmer.
"How is Bella?" Mom's opening question was a fairly easy one.
"She's fine. She's coming down tomorrow so we can both get filled in on some stuff."
"You get to tell her?"
Oh, boy. Loaded question, Mom. "Yeah, I do. She's…Bella's apparently what they call my imprint."
"Your 'forever'?"
I was stunned. "You know about that?"
"The Uley's stopped by right after I got home. They told me a few things, but I didn't really believe them. Not even after I watched Sam…"
"I know. Part of me doesn't quite believe it, either. But it's real. And, yeah, she is my forever, and I'm hers."
"Just don't rush…"
"Mom, wolf thing or no wolf thing, both Bella and I still have some growing up to do. I don't know everything about the imprint yet, and Bella doesn't know anything. Sam and Jared and theirs can fill us both in."
"So you'll be spending time with Sam Uley and his friends now?"
"Yeah. Looks like. Shared experiences and all that. Don't know much about Sam yet, but Paul's pretty cool and Jared seems okay. Quil chose Jake, so I have no idea where he and I stand."
"And Jacob?"
My teeth bared unconsciously. "That—jerk—better keep his distance."
Mom paused in her work and laid a hand on my shoulder. I tried not to flinch at her automatic recoil from my abnormally high new temperature. A deep breath and her hand returned to my shoulder. "What happened?"
I found myself telling her some of the lowlights of my unexpected reunion with Jacob Black while the haircut he had ultimately provoked was finished up. "I can't believe he used to be my best friend. How he could take a knife—that knife—and stab me in the back with it." Taking a deep breath, I asked the question of questions yet again. "Mom, who was he? Who was my dad?"
"Embry…" Even though she was still behind me and out of my sight, I could hear and even feel the tension in my mother just now. But I needed to know this. "Embry, what would it change if you did know a name? Has it really been that bad just being the two of us?"
"You've been a great mom," I twisted in my chair to take hold of her hands. "But you know I've always wondered who he was. And now I know that it is something completely different than what I've believed to be true, because of what happened to me today. I deserve to know who made this possible."
"Since the day you were born—before that, even—I've done everything I could to protect you and look out for you. I'm not going to stop that just because you're now a—a wolf. A name would help nothing; it would only hurt. I haven't asked you for private details of your relationship with Bella, and I'm asking for you to give me the same courtesy."
Knowing it would surely be futile, I pushed the issue a little more, arguing that the comparison wasn't a valid one. But as I knew she would, Mom refused to say anything more. Remembering Sam's warning about walking away, I ended up doing just that. I found my cell phone sitting on my desk and used it to send a text to Bella with Sam's address and how to find his house. Then I tried to go to bed. My feet hung off the end of the mattress—thank goodness I don't have a footboard on this bed. Sleep was elusive. My thoughts whirled endlessly through everything that had happened today and with speculations of what tomorrow would bring.
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Bella POV
Sleep came late to me. I'd escaped upstairs to my bedroom to avoid any questions from Charlie about pretty much anything. But left to myself, thoughts no more pleasant than those of an avoided conversation filled my mind instead. The conversation starters I'd played with earlier this evening didn't sound any better now than they had then, even if Embry probably wouldn't think me crazy now if I mentioned vampires. But still, how to share all those things…Even though I was more of an English literature fan than American, I'd borrow the philosophy of Scarlett O'Hara and think about that tomorrow.
To distract myself, I thought of Embry. Remembering what had happened in this very room only this afternoon warmed me again. Warmth became blazing heat when I recalled the follow-up outside just minutes ago. Kissing Embry like that when others had been watching us? When he'd been naked underneath me? And that white light? It reminded me of that scene in the last Harry Potter movie, when Harry had died and met his old professor in that place of blinding white light. It had been a place of decisions: go on or go back, give up or take a chance. I wondered why it had happened this time with Embry instead of any time before this. Did it matter? It had happened. And if it happened once, it could hopefully be repeated. To such pleasurable thoughts, I finally fell asleep.
Despite my late night, I woke up early again today, just like I had yesterday, and got ready. Just as much time and thought went into it now, though for a very different reason than before. I didn't know what Miss Manners or Emily Post would say about preparing for a first meeting with a pack of werewolves, but I wanted to put my best foot forward. So I scrubbed, shaved, and sprayed-I remembered how Paul and Quil had used their noses at my house yesterday and didn't want to take any chances on what anyone else might smell.
My outfit was chosen with equal care. After considering my options, I selected a grey knit top with a black floral design all over the fabric, black trim around the deep v-neck, and black ties that formed a bow at my back, with a lighter grey lace camisole underneath. I was quite aware that this was the same color scheme as Embry's wolf; I was going into this making it absolutely clear who I was with. I didn't have any idea whether or not Jacob would be there, but I wasn't taking any chances. What, exactly, he'd been saying to Embry last night, I didn't know; but for my even-tempered boyfriend to have reacted like he did...too bad I didn't own a pair of steel-toed boots. Maybe that would make an impression in Jake's skull...or somewhere else farther south.
Even though Jared had said I didn't need to bring anything to this breakfast meet and greet, I felt bad about showing up empty-handed. However, I didn't have time to make anything now, so the first demonstration of my mad cooking skills would just have to wait. I finally just grabbed the bunch of bananas off the counter, the directions to Sam's house that Embry had texted me, and got on the road. I wanted to see Embry again and try to get some answers about what had happened last night. The fact that I would be giving answers as well as getting them was part of my awareness, but I was trying really hard not to stress about it. That selective amnesia meant that I still didn't have any clue what I was going to say, but I'd deal with that when I had to.
Thoughts of cooking and La Push combined into a mental slam that hit me when I passed the turn-off that led to the Clearwater house. Leah would probably hit the roof if-or when-she learned that Embry and I were part of Sam's circle now. My resolve to give this new thing a chance wavered. Could I do this, and still be a true friend to Leah? Didn't the shared female bond of mutual breakups obligate me to treat Sam in the way Leah expected? But you don't know Sam's side of the story, Bella, my innate sense of fairness reminded me. Maybe he did have a reason for what he did. Okay, so I'd have to ask and find out, and then see where that left me.
Embry's directions led me right to a cabin tucked away on a side street that backed up to the forest. A couple cars were parked out front, but there was still room for me to pull in.
Okay, Bella, here goes.