52. Sam I Am

SamPOV

I was on routine patrol, mainly running around moping, while counting down the hours, minutes, and seconds until my beloved Emily returned from her weekend trip with Leah. I loved hearing the sound of her voice over the phone, but it couldn't compare with actually holding her in my arms. I felt so lonely, though Paul was always around. Paul had enjoyed having the place to ourselves at first; walking around naked like it was a bachelor pad.

However, he soon missed Emily's cooking, and by today, he had realized how much Emily's female touch adds to our lives. I had a feeling he'd be a lot more welcoming of her presence from this day forth. That would make Emily so happy, to develop a familial relationship with Paul. She longs for the day the others change, so she can have one big happy family. I knew she couldn't wait until she had another imprint to keep her company and share secrets with her.

Whenever she called, I could tell she missed me, but I could clearly hear the joy and excitement in her voice. Every now and again she would start giggling or laughing. She wouldn't tell me what was occurring, just that her new friends were a blast to be around. I was so happy she made new friends. I hated that our lifestyle makes it so hard for her to get close to anyone else. She was such a wonderful person, it felt like a crime to keep her so isolated.

She was also really shy now because of her scars. She hated the way people stared at them. I hated the way it made us feel every time someone reminded her of them. I was positively thrilled she had found friends who didn't make her feel self-conscious about them. When I was with her, I didn't really see them when I looked at her. I just saw Emily herself. I refused to ignore the scars, like the elephant in the room, and would frequently assure her of my devotion and my promise to never lose control like that again, by kissing her scars. I wanted her to know I loved all of her, not just the unblemished parts.

More than anything, I was thrilled for Emily to be able to be friends with her cousin again. Both of us had hated hurting Leah, but the imprint was too strong. I had to let Leah go, because my first priority would always be Emily, and that wasn't fair to Leah. I did still love Leah and wanted her to be happy, but I knew I could no longer be the love of her life. Emily was my whole world now. I had some measure of peace with the past though, now that Leah had forgiven both me and Emily. It had broken my heart to come between them. It had been such a rough transition for both of them, yet they had both lost their lifelong best friend and confidante at the same time. They had always been so close before, only needing each other, not having much of a social circle outside of themselves.

I hated being a werewolf, and I blamed the Cullens for all the pain in my life. If they hadn't come here, my life would have stayed on track. I would have married Leah, Emily would never have been injured, and the two most important women in my life would still be best friends. Nobody would be hurt and miserable. Damn bloodsuckers ruined my life.

I tensed as I heard a mournful, angry howl miles away, over the boundary line. It reverberated in my chest, rattling my ribcage. I knew that sound. It was another werewolf. One of the others must have changed while over the border! They would be feeling lost, scared, and alone, as I did my first time. I needed to go and help him. I wondered which of the boys I had been watching had been the first to change. He must be out of range, since I couldn't hear him inside my head. As I thought about it, I heard two more howls from the same wolf. Poor guy. I raised my own howl to summon Paul. Then I howled again to let the other wolf know I would find him. I was surprised not to receive a reply, but figured the other wolf was likely frightened. He wouldn't know what had happened to him and wouldn't know if other wolves would be a good thing or a bad one.

I waited for Paul to join me in wolf form.

What is it, Sam? A bloodsucker?

No, another wolf. I heard him howling.

Oh, man. He's probably out of his mind right now. Which way?

Over the border, sounded like Cullen land.

Cullen land? What if the leeches get him? He's violating the treaty by being on their land!

I know, but it's worse. If he meets up with any of them, he will instinctively attack and they will defend. Only one of him and seven of them. He doesn't stand a chance. If they kill him then, it wouldn't even be a violation of the treaty as he was where he didn't belong.

I don't care, I'd kill them anyway.

Don't be a fool, Paul. If we fight them, not only would we likely die, but then they would be free to enter La Push and feed here! We're strong, fast, and powerful, but there are seven of them, and they have had decades to practice their fighting techniques. We cannot afford to fight a war now. We must wait until the pack is larger.

Yes, you're right. We will wait for the others before we attack.

Well, we still need to go and retrieve our confused brother. I just hope we find him before they do.

Let's do it.

We began racing toward the land where I had heard the howling originate, eating up the miles under our paws. This was one of the few advantages of being a werewolf—being able to run like the wind, feeling the breeze whip past me as I effortlessly sped through the forest. I knew from our legends we were even faster than the bloodsuckers. If they ran from us, we could catch them, even if they got a head start. We could rip them to pieces with our sharp fangs, werewolf and vampire teeth being the only substances strong enough to pierce stony vampire skin. Then we would burn the twitching pieces so they couldn't grow back together. I couldn't wait.

Me neither.

I soon realized the howl had come from the Cullen house itself. I hadn't been over there as a wolf, but it was one of the things the young teens of La Push had dared each other to do before the Cullens had actually returned—to go explore the Cold Ones' house. It was a macho, immature show of bravery. By the time I was a teenager, none of us really believed the legends were real. So it was more of a joke than an actual terror. Yet one day, the Cold Ones had returned, and the Tribal Council had forbidden all Quileutes from wandering in the woods over the border. And one day, I found out the hard way that the legends were real, as I became one of them.

This was bad. This was very bad. I could only hope the Cullens were away this weekend. They frequently took 'camping' trips out of town. We needed to move as quietly as possible as we approached the house, lest we signal our presence and start an unnecessary war. We also needed to stay down wind, as they would smell us a mile away.

We came close to the edge of the tree line, identifying the scent of a vampire and a human up ahead. We focused our eyes on the sources of the scents and saw a vampire holding a human in his embrace. It was the one called Edward, one of the originals on the treaty. He certainly couldn't claim ignorance of the terms. He appeared to be dancing with a beautiful human girl, humming quietly, with nobody else in sight. Before our very eyes, he lowered her into a dip and bent over her, placing his lips against her neck. She moaned, and he began to suckle. I felt the fury rise up in me. He was feeding on a human right there in front of us!

We crouched, poised to leap out of the forest, preparing to bound over there to kill the leech and save the girl, or kill her too if necessary. Then we heard a shriek that turned my heart to stone and froze the air in my lungs.

Emily! Emily was inside the Cullens' house, while one of them fed on a girl outside in the yard! Emily was shrieking for help in a house full of vampires! My whole universe came to a screeching halt. Screw the girl in the yard, I had to save Emily!

GO!

We pounced out of the forest and raced toward the house at full speed, intending to crash right through the door and up the stairs to the second floor. I was going to kill them all!

KILL THEM!

Suddenly, three vampires seemed to materialize in front of the door. The one known as Carlisle, the leader, the original; the one known as Emmett, the massive one as big and tall as me; and the new one, the scarred one.

"Please, stop, Sam and Paul! We mean you no harm and wish to settle this peacefully!" the leader spoke soothingly in a calm voice. I felt a strange calmness trying to creep over me, but I pushed it away.

Paul and I stopped a few feet away, tense and angry, trying to figure out how to get past them. I would die if need be.

"Their thoughts are full of incomprehensible rage. I can't see past the desire to kill us." The Edward one murmured.

"Yes, they are murderously angry, full of rage, but there is also fear, agony, and despair," the scarred one added.

I heard the quiet sob sound that Emily always makes when she is anxious or distressed. THE LEECHES MUST DIE!

LeahPOV

I relaxed as the warm water from the shower poured down on me, slowly rinsing the syrup from my fur. I had considered phasing, had even started the process, but the millisecond the fur started withdrawing into my skin, I felt the syrup being sucked in with it. There was no way in hell I was going to live with syrup under my skin. Disgusting! I would never get clean! So I stayed in my wolf form, allowing Rose to help clean my fur. Emily joined us there in the bathroom and shampooed my fur for me. It felt great when she rubbed the shampoo in, like it does when the stylist at the hair salon shampoos my head and massages my scalp. But my fur was all over my body, not just on my head, so I was embarrassed to admit my animalistic appreciation to being 'petted' in wolf form. I knew Emmett would never let me live it down if I said anything, trying to make something sexual out of it, but in truth it was like a full body massage, like a day at the spa.

Once I was fully clean and rinsed, Emily turned off the water and held out a towel. My fur hung heavy all around me, dragging at my skin. I stepped gracefully out of the tub, and Emily began to pat the fur dry, soaking up the majority of the excess water dripping off of me. After a minute or two of her careful ministrations, I couldn't take it anymore. I pushed her away gently with my nose, tore the towel off with my teeth, and proceeded to follow my instincts to shake, shake, shake the water off my fur. I heard Emily shriek as the water droplets from my fur landed all over her, as well as the ceiling, walls, and floor.

I laughed internally, both at her response and the feeling of my little tail wiggling.

The air outside was suddenly filled with furious growling. I raced into the bedroom, looking for a window to see what was happening. I saw two wolves racing across the yard. Sam was here!

I listened tensely to the conversation between the Cullens and the responding growls of the new wolves. I heard the sound of running feet and paws on the stairs as my pack and the other vampires raced to provide support to the team facing Sam and Paul. I stayed in wolf form so I would be able to hear the others, but Emily and I weren't supposed to be here, so I stayed upstairs with her.

When Jasper described how Sam was feeling, I heard Emily give a distressed sob, so I began phasing to my human form. Immediately after Emily sobbed, Sam roared an attack growl.

"He's reacting to Emily!" Edward shouted over the roar. I finished phasing back to my human form, and grabbed Emily's hand.

"Stop him, Emily!" I cried. To my intense relief she seemed to understand exactly what I was saying.

"SAM, STOP!" she screamed. "PLEASE STOP, SAM!"

Outside, everything got eerily quiet.

"Please come downstairs, Emily," Carlisle requested calmly. "Please reassure Sam that you are perfectly fine, unharmed, and here of your own free will."

"Of course, Carlisle, your family has been nothing but good to me. I will be right down. Please calm down, Sam. I have some very exciting news to share with you," Emily responded serenely.

I threw on a shirt and shorts and went to escort her downstairs. We saw Kim waiting for us in the hallway. The three of us went downstairs together. Bella came through a door from the outside and promptly joined our group. The four of us proceeded outside, working smoothly together as a unit.

SamPOV

The door behind the leeches swung open and more bodies started pouring outside. Three female vampires came to stand behind the males, lending support to their mates. The bigger shock was the three werewolves that jumped out of the house and went into defensive crouches on either side of the vampires. I was still growling angrily, but part of my brain was working in overdrive.

Who were these new wolves? Why were they standing with the Cullens against us? Had they been brainwashed? It made no sense to me.

"He's reacting to Emily!" Edward shouted over my roaring.

"Stop him, Emily!" Leah cried from upstairs. What were the leeches doing to them up there?

"SAM, STOP!" Emily screamed. "PLEASE STOP, SAM!"

I froze in place and issued an order for Paul to do the same. Then two more figures raced outside the house. It was Quil Ateara and Seth Clearwater. They both were shaking terribly and fell to the ground, beginning their first transformation right there in front of us.

"Please come downstairs, Emily," Carlisle requested calmly. "Please reassure Sam that you are perfectly fine, unharmed, and here of your own free will."

"Of course, Carlisle, your family has been nothing but good to me. I will be right down. Please calm down, Sam. I have some very exciting news to share with you," Emily responded serenely. The Cullens had been nothing but good to her? What the heck? Was this all a dream, a nightmare? Because nothing was making sense anymore. Nothing.

"Jacob!" Quil shouted in agony.

"Edward!" Seth called, writhing around as his bones shifted.

The huge russet wolf walked over to the changing boys and settled down on the ground between them. Edward also glided over to them. I growled menacingly. The bloodsucker had better not hurt my boys or I would take off his head myself!

"Remember what Jacob told you," Edward reminded them gently. "You're just going through your first transformation. This is the worst one, and it gets easier from here. You're safe, we're all here for you, and we'll see you on the other side. I guess this means you'll get to participate in the canoe paddling competition after all."

What the heck is he talking about? To my shock, both the boys on the ground grinned wholeheartedly. They were grinning during their change? Were they insane? Had the Cullens been taking advantage of them somehow? Did they know some kind of black magic?

I was done with speculating. I wanted Emily, and I wanted her now! Just as I thought that, she came strolling through the door, flanked by Leah, Kim, and the human Edward had been feeding on when we arrived. Except there was no wound on her neck, and she seemed perfectly fine. I looked more closely at her neck, where I had seen Edward put his mouth and noticed a hickey. A hickey? Since when did vampires give out hickeys?

I concentrated on Emily, my Emily. She was glowing with happiness and excitement, more beautiful than ever before. I instantly calmed down and order Paul to stand down. I couldn't risk Emily getting caught in the middle if we started to fight. Emily approached me confidently, her smile radiant. The Cullens all pulled away to allow her to pass through them, like the parting of the Red Sea. I held my breath as she strolled through their midst, surrounded by them. She passed through unscathed, unmolested. In fact, they all smiled affectionately at her as she walked by them. She reached up and caressed my wolfy face, and I leaned into her hand.

She looked deeply into my eye with a magnetic intensity. "The Cullens are wonderful people, Sam. You've got them all wrong. There are bad vampires, who care nothing for human life, but the Cullens are like us. They're on our side, protecting and helping the humans in the area. They don't harm humans. They're really not all that scary. I've been living here with them since Thursday, and I feel better now than I have ever felt before. I love them, and they love me. Esme and I are best friends. Dr. Cullen fixed the mess of my face that Sue was unable to repair. Just look what he did for me, for us!"

She turned her head so her scarred cheek was right in front of my eye. I felt my jaw drop. My enhanced eyesight was able to see teeny tiny stitches holding her skin together. She smiled and I saw that the muscles in her cheek now pulled her mouth up properly. All the muscles and tendons in her face had been repaired. In addition, even though the lines were still the angry pink of fresh wounds, the lines were so thin that they resembled mere cat scratches. I was guessing that once they faded to white, they would virtually disappear.

Now I knew I was dreaming. This was impossible. I phased back to human form without thinking.

"Sam!" she squealed, quickly trying to conceal my naked body with her own. I held her closely, reveling in her embrace after days apart. Someone threw me some clothes, which I hastily donned, using Emily as a privacy shield. Then, I noticed our audience had stepped away and now surrounded Quil and Seth, giving us some privacy.

"This is the craziest dream ever, sweetheart!" I laughed, spinning Emily around. She put her hands on either side of my face.

"You're not dreaming, Sam. All of this is real," she declared. I raised an eyebrow, looking at her in disbelief. She huffed, leaned forward, and bit my bottom lip.

"Ow, you little vixen," I protested.

"It's all real!" she insisted, having proven her point.

"It's real?" I asked incredulously. She nodded firmly. "Wow!"

Carlisle stepped calmly toward me, his arms up in front of him in a gesture of peace. He smiled at me. "Shall we talk?"

Talk to the bloodsucker like he's a civilized person? I looked at Emily, at her face, at her expression. I sighed in resignation. I met his caring gaze and nodded once in the affirmative. "Let's talk."

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hey guys...

Hope u like! Sorry i disapeared for a while... Mid-Term results.... Need i say more?

PEOPLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WHERE ARE ALL THHE COVERS????? START SENDING THEM!!!!!!!!!!!!

Next upload- 8/9/2011----- AUGUST NINTH!!!!

<3 Y