Disclaimer: I do not own anything. All material belongs to Stephenie Meyer.

Author's Note: I realize that there is a lot of repetition of adjectives in this story. I used them as a writing technique – I believe it's the way Leah would be thinking, but it's up to you to decide. Flames and constructive criticism are begged for. Reviews in "text" talk will not be acknowledged. Sorry.

Rating: T for language.

Author: MoreWolfThanGirl

Pairing: Jacob/Leah

Summary: Leah is not surprised easily. She's not the only female werewolf for nothing – there's something special about this girl. But life takes even the best of us for a ride sometimes. Rated T for language.

Chapter One: Lapdog

There have been very few moments in my life when I have been completely taken by surprise.

I've faked it before, of course. Like when I read the email for my birthday party – it was supposed to be a secret, and being the fucking good girl that I am, I screamed and bounced up and down with joy when I walked into the house. I was fucking eight, for Christ's sake.

Or when Jacob fucking ran off to Canada because some freaking leach-lover chose a vampire over him. Yeah, fucking saw that coming.

But one thing I never believed could happen was that Jacob was going to imprint on the devil spawn we had set out to protect. The whole point of the imprinting situation was to create better, stronger wolves – not to fucking fall in love with the child of his first love. Six years from now, she'll be just like the rest of the vamps. Unchanging. So – is he supposed to create cubs with her now?

Renesmee. What kind of fucking name is that? It's shitty, and she's going to be teased for the rest of her immortal life. The thing looks like she's about six now, even though it's been, what, a fucking year?

The silence of my deserted living room was invaded by a long, lingering howl. I leapt off of the shitty couch I'd been laying across, and the tendons in my arms and legs trembled slightly as I attempted to get myself emotional enough to phase.

Didn't take long.

Two voices invaded my thoughts as I crashed through the open front door of the shack that my brother, my mom, and me lived in.

Leah, you better not have broken the screen again… mom's going to get so pissed off at us, I felt – rather than heard, Seth whimper.

I snorted, racing between the trees. It was like playing catch with the ground – I'd always been the fastest. And I always will be, I thought smugly, knowing it would get on Jake's nerves.

I always felt better when I was running. Like if I kept going, all my troubles would be caught in the jet stream and get left behind me.

Where the fuck are you going?

To wherever the hell you and Seth are, I snarled at the invading warmth of Jake's voice. Where the fuck are you? I was mocking him, now, and I heard the answering growl reverberate in the bright forest. The moon was high overhead, and silver, ghostly light filled the air, reflecting off of the dust particles. The thin trees were darker than sky, leaving the area around me a panorama – almost like a dream. Instinctually, I dug my claws into the loam coating the earth's crust. When I was a wolf, it was almost like I could hear the earth's heart beat, slowly pounding out a rhythm that all animals knew and followed. Vampires and their spawn are not animals.

I heard that.

And we all give a damn, too, Jacob. Now where am I supposed to be?

Aw, c'mon, Leah. The vamps aren't that bad.

I'm laughing. Can you hear me?

I think everybody in La Push can.

My thoughts turned to fragments as I swished my head around to see two pairs of glowing eyes low in the bushes. Pissing me off...

Seriously, Lee, Edward and the others aren't –

Seth, shut up.

Yeah, take a leaf out of your own book, lapdog. I raised my head and sashayed the last five steps to the boys' spot. Seth jumped out of the leaves and bounced playfully in front of me. You're such a puppy, Seth. But his antics made me smile, even if it was only a brief thing. I never smiled anymore.

Jake's eyes rose slowly, and I stared directly into them, not willing to be the first to look away. As he started walking forward, I could almost feel my jaw fucking fall open. Was he still freaking growing?

Damn, Jake whistled, grinning at me with his tongue attempting to abandon ship and leave his smelly mouth. You've looked better, Lee-Lee.

I winced, glaring at him, and controlling the urge to rip his throat out in a brutal fashion and continue to disembowel him until he was finally silent. Do. Not. Call. Me. That.

Violent mood tonight?

Seth. Shut. Up.

Sorry, Leah, I didn't mean to –

Fuck off, Black. Just tell me why I'm here instead of at home.

Not like you were doing anything.

Seth. I rolled my eyes and bumped the sandy-brown wolf next to me with my nose. We're here because the Cullens broke the treaty.

If it were possible for your mental voice to crack, Jacob's would have. Images flashed through my mind as I screamed a growl. A broken human body, all of the blood drained from it, lying cold and alone in the dark… a pale figure wiping their perfect, blood-red lips gently across the dead body's sleeve… the satisfaction emanating from the vampire's smug face…

Seth interrupted my morbid thoughts by scratching vigorously at his muzzle, like he was trying to remove the pictures by rubbing them out.

Who was it? I attempted to stay calm, but I was shaking and moving subtly from side to side, ready to go and tear the leeches apart. These were our people! Our land! And I had plans to fucking run them off of it, then tear them freaking limb from limb. They would pay. And the thing, too. Jacob hissed ever so slightly.

Esme. And Nessie does not pay for something her aunt did. Try it and I'll kill you. There was no compromise in his words. He would, no doubt.

Wait. Esme? Seth asked, worry clouding his eyes.

That stopped me. Esme? Fuck. You can have fun taking her down. And if Nessie doesn't get punished, then the others won't.

It's different!

It fucking well is not!

Nessie is my imprint!

And you're mine! Stupid shit happens! Shut the fuck up and get used to it! No matter what happens, I always lose. Poor Leah. Can't keep a guy, can't get a guy. They all run off with her mortal enemy's daughter or her cousin. Fuck this.

I phased back, only barely able to with the blood coursing through my veins at a rate that would have given any normal human a heart attack. Fuck it! Now I was thinking about my dad.

The thought struck me out of nowhere as I sprinted for home. Would he respect the choices I had to make?

I knew the real reason I was thinking about my dad was to try and get my mind off of the fact that I had imprinted on fucking Jacob. Shit!

I cleared my mind of everything as I leapt into the silver-grey coat that personified my heart and showed it to the world. Metallic. Unchanging.

Fuck! Leah, get your ass back here!

I struggled not to say something nasty and sarcastic back. Fucking alpha – oh, dammit. Don't make me, I half-warned, half-whined. Please, don't make me come back.

Leah!

I almost turned around at the sound of my brother's voice. But I didn't, and sped across the lone road that ran through La Push like a zipper.

I was at my back door before either one of the boys could say anything else to me and collapsed, human, on the ratty green couch once more.