A/N: This is all because einfach mich saw a pretty Embry/Leah banner on TwiFic Pics that made her all want-y. Plot bunnies followed, and this was the result. It's unbeta'd, so...yeah. We all know SM owns these characters, and I think she'd consider the idea of these two together, don't you?

Seth has been getting tall, they've noticed. The pack has been noticing every minute change within the tribe. It's only the four of them still – Sam, Jared, Paul, and Embry – but they know what happened to each of them before the first phase. Embry was a shock, of course, and there has been talk about his father. It rips at his insides when he considers the fact that his mother lied to him about who his father was, but it must be the truth. Tribal history and the wolf genes prevail.

Now, their eyes are trained on every young male of wolf descent. They're expecting Jacob and Quil any day now. Sam says the council doesn't understand why Jacob hasn't phased yet. He's grown rapidly, and his grandfather was the last Alpha wolf and chief.

Seth worries them, though.

Sam and all these sixteen year olds, okay. They're young, but not quite children any longer. Seth is just a kid. Embry remembers teasing him a year ago for being shorter than most of the girls his age.

Beyond their pack duties, each of the brothers has been commissioned to watch out for the younger boys. They need to be prepared if anyone else phases. Embry knows how important that is because no one expected him. No one was there for him until he was halfway to Canada, scared shitless and just running, never able to escape himself.

Seth was Embry's responsibility. It was starting to feel a little stalkerish, but pack duty was pack duty.

There have been unfortunate side effects, however. Or perhaps he should say, reactions.

Watching Seth on an almost daily basis, he also found himself watching Leah. He knew Leah, just as he knew everyone on the rez, but it wasn't as though they'd had a great deal of personal interaction. She used to be Sam's girl, and while the rest of the Quileutes were shocked by their sudden breakup, Embry and his brothers knew the truth of the imprint. Embry could see the proverbial black cloud that now followed her.

A shame; she was beautiful. Embry couldn't deny that. He also couldn't pretend as though he hadn't seen her naked or in the throes of passion in Sam's occasional memory. It was never intentional, and Sam would growl and threaten any of them if they ever dared to comment on his mental flashes of Leah. So yeah, Embry knew what Leah looked like naked, and he knew what she looked like when she laughed and smiled. It made him hate the near-permanent scowl she now wore, and a part of him wished he could explain to her that Sam didn't break up with her because he didn't love her anymore. But Embry couldn't tell her that. No one could.

He would wait for her to drive back into town from her shitty job in Port Angeles and follow her beat up old car to the Clearwater's house. Minutes later, she and Seth would emerge in running gear, regardless of the weather, and head out for their daily run. They were both lean and had impressive endurance. Embry expected Seth to be getting stronger, if he really was preparing to become a wolf, but Leah's speed impressed him.

Day in and day out, Embry checked in on Seth, and one day, while admiring how Leah's tight, rain-soaked tank top clung to her perky breasts, he realized he had a crush on her. He knew none of the other guys would understand it, and he didn't dare let that thought slip to Sam, but none of them saw the way she smiled at her brother. It was the only time Embry could recall her smiling since Sam unintentionally broke her heart.

Watching over Seth became both a blessing and a curse for him.

When word spread about a bonfire on the cliffs planned by many of the teenagers, Sam sent them, in human form, to join the party. Sam would patrol, but with such a large gathering of tribe members, he wanted the guys to be there to watch for any trouble. Upon arrival, they realized it was a diverse crowd. It wasn't as though they were an enormous community, but most of the teens were in attendance, along with a few white kids and a handful of Makah around his age.

He was grateful to see that there wasn't any booze because alcohol was strictly forbidden up on the cliff, and he didn't want to be a part of anything that would piss off the council or Sam. It was partially due to safety on the cliffs, he knew, but the area also held spiritual significance for the Quileutes, as it was the place the elders shared the history of their people over ceremonial bonfires.

Seth and some of the younger kids hung out in one area, with the older teens gathering in another. Off in the fray, shadowed from the crowd, he was shocked to see Leah talking to another girl. He knew he should be keeping an eye on Seth, but he couldn't seem to stop his gaze from drifting back to her every few moments. Her long, dark hair blew around her face in the wind, and every so often, the group would shift, making the glow of the fire would paint her in a golden-orange glow.

He wandered about, avoiding questions from classmates about why he'd missed so much school or why Sam Uley had come back to town. He lost sight of Seth (and Leah) for only one moment, and when he turned around in search of them, he realized they were both right in front of him.

"Hey, Embry. What's up, man?" Seth asked, cheerful as he always was.

Embry fist bumped the younger boy and nodded. "I don't think I can call you 'Short Stack' anymore, buddy. When did you get so tall?"

"It's cool, right?" Seth responded. "I swear it was overnight. Mom says she's gonna make me get an after school job for all the new clothes she's had to buy." They laughed a little together.

Suddenly, Leah was in his face, pushing him away from her brother. She backed him into a tree and stabbed her finger into the center of his chest.

"I don't know why the hell Sam is suddenly best buddies with you, but if he sent you here to spy on me, you can both go fuck yourselves."

"What? I…" he sputtered, unsure how to react to her aggression.

"Don't think I haven't seen you creeping around all night, Call."

"Leah, relax. It's a party. Sam's not here. I'm just hanging out." He tried to calm her but wasn't sure if it was working at all. He didn't feel convincing, but, shit, Leah was scary when she was pissed.

She stepped back slightly, continuing to glare at him.

"What the fuck do you want then, creeper?"

Phasing was still somewhat new, and Embry felt himself starting to lose control.

"Fuck, shit, no. Leah, please back off."

His legs shook, and his fists clenched as he tried to calm himself.

"No," she said through gritted teeth. "Tell me what your problem is!"

Then, she shoved him again.

"God damn it, Leah!" he yelled, using all his strength to hold himself back and fight off the wolf. "You want to know why I was looking at you? Because you look hot, but now you look more like a hostile little bitch!"

Embry whirled himself around the tree, knowing he had to get away from her before he lost control and phased. People would see, or worse, he would hurt Leah. Sam would surely kill him if that happened, imprint or not.

Leah just wouldn't let it go, though. She chased after him, grabbing the back of his arm and yanking him back toward her.

"You think I'm hot?"

Her voice was demanding but less harsh than it had been. He stared at her, dumbfounded.

"Not anymore," he spat.

"I don't believe you."

They weren't far into the woods, but it was deep enough that no one would see. He wasn't sure if that was a good or bad thing.

"I need to get out of here, Leah. Just…let me go, please."

"No," she said firmly. "No, I think I have a better idea."

He had no clue how or why it happened, but Leah's hand was somehow fisted in his hair, painfully so, and her mouth was pushing violently against his. He tried to fight her off, but she was shockingly strong. Furthermore, sexy ass Leah Clearwater was kissing him. Did he really want her to stop?

No, definitely not.

Except…

"He doesn't want me, so he shouldn't mind if I have some fun with you," she said breathily.

Embry tried to get away again. "I can't."

"You can, and I can tell you want to."

She palmed his half-hard cock for a few seconds, and just as quickly unfastened his jeans enough to grab him with no clothing as a barrier.

He was definitely going to have hell to pay for this, but holy shit did that feel good. Leah knew what she was doing, though Embry fought desperately to avoid thoughts of who she'd gotten her experience with.

He kissed her back, hard. The wolf was at bay, but its aggression had transformed into a completely different need. He'd made out with girls and had a little bit of experience, but never anything of this caliber. Never with anyone so confident and dominant. They were rough with each other, Leah's grip painful and amazing all at once. Completely unable to control himself or anything he was doing, he clutched her ass and shoved his hand between her legs from behind. Her reaction was favorable.

"Did you just growl?" Leah said, pulling back slightly and looking at him in astonishment.

"Shut up," he replied, unsure how else to respond. Was he supposed to say yes?

"How about I shut up and we see what other noises I can get you to make."

Leah was on her knees before him, and Embry knew the wolf loved what she was doing the minute her mouth eclipsed his erection. He had definitely never been this far before, and he grabbed the back of Leah's head as he steadied his stance. He couldn't hold himself up, though, and he sank down to the forest floor, leaning his back against a thick tree trunk as Leah followed him down.

This wasn't about him, he knew, but he was beyond caring what game she was playing. Every part of him wanted this, possible consequences be damned. He would let Leah use him however she liked.

Of course, his lack of experience seemed to supercharge his reactions, and he lost himself quickly. She kept her mouth on him until he started to soften, but he didn't let her get far. As soon as he could get his pants back up over his ass, he demanded that she lose hers. He positioned her in his lap, biting at her breast over her shirt as he slipped his hand between her legs. Everything so far hard been rapid and hostile, but he didn't want to be forceful with her. Beneath all the anger, he remembered the Leah Clearwater of their childhood – smiling, protecting her little brother, playing with the other kids. He knew she had been hurt, and while he understood why it happened the way it did, she didn't. No matter what she wanted to accomplish by this – because he had a feeling she would make sure this got back to Sam – he wanted to show her that she didn't have to be unhappy all the time.

His touch was slow and careful. He pressed the tips of two fingers on either side of her clitoris, moving around it purposefully until he was pressing softly and making her pant. He could tell she was worked up – could smell it, even – and he moved his fingers so he could feel her from the inside. He didn't rush. He kissed her, made her calm herself, and fondled her breasts with his free hand as he stroked her. Her hips responded, rolling in his lap. She clenched and relaxed repeatedly, but even after he knew he'd made her come, he continued.

"Oh god," she moaned, resting her forehead on his shoulder as he went on touching her. He didn't want to stop. This version of Leah was softer. Vulnerable. Uninhibited.

Beautiful.

He told her so, repeating praises until she was pressing her tongue into his mouth and reaching her peak of ecstasy again.

He had no idea how she would react now that their unexpected hookup was at its apparent end, but he didn't want to let her slip away. His arms wound around her waist, keeping her close as their heavy breaths evened out.

"Well, that was better than I expected, Call," Leah said as she extricated herself from his hold and redressed herself.

"Leah, wait."

"I need to go."

He didn't want her to run off, though. There was no way he could possibly have anything more with her, nor did he believe she would want that. Still, the thought of her disappearing now that they'd both gotten their rocks off didn't seem right.

Fuck, being a wolf was complicated.

"Can I…?"

"No," she answered sharply, not waiting for him to finish his thought.

She left him there, shaken and torn. Physically, that had been amazing, but she'd inadvertently shown him a side of herself he didn't think many other people knew. There was so much passion inside her, and he knew that if she would channel it on something other than hate and bitterness, she could truly shine.

He wanted so badly to just phase and run to clear his head, but with Sam on patrol, there was no way that was an option.

E/N: Before you ask, the answer is I Don't Know...but Maybe =)