Lorelei:

Two weeks later I'm back hanging out with Emma. I have to be back before sundown so I can go on a run with Hayley as promised.

"What makes you think you can just show up and bother my ass all the time?" Emma asks walking down towards me

"Simple. I brought beer." I say

She laughs and I hand it over.

"Keep this up and I'll never let you leave." She jokes

We head up to the site and I help her set up lunch. Burgers, beer and cucumbers. The pack is doing fighting training and I watch in awe as they practice. Then we all sit down in lawn chairs and eat. Some ask what it's like in New Orleans while others chat amongst themselves.

"It's beautiful. Lots of woods, amazing city." I say

Then an hour later I watch as they all pair off.

"That one over there is Keith." Emma says pointing to a guy I hadn't met yet who has red hair and grey eyes

Keith is battling Ash, the girl who had tackled me to the ground when I first arrived.

I watch as he swings and she falls. She gets back up and uses his leg to leap up and wrap her arms around his neck and using gravity and her grip, flips him over onto his back. She stands there smiling then goes and offers a hand.

He brushes her off and stands. He moves toward her and James steps in.

"Leave it alone K. You lost." James says

Keith takes off to the woods alone.

"Werewolf temper doesn't sit well with Keith sometimes." Emma states

I nod, still observing.

"Next up is Lydia and a new member of the pack. What was his name? Ryan I think."

Ryan tackles Lydia and she elbows him hard in the face. He jerks back and then lunges and stops when he's got her pinned. She holds up a hand and he helps her up and she dusts herself off.

"Hey Emma?"

She turns her attention from the next pair of fighters to me.

"Yeah?"

"I've gotta tell you something."

"Okay."

"When I told you Nik had saved my life, there's something I left out."

She waves me off with a hand.

"I know." She says

I freeze.

"What?"

"I'm not stupid you know. I know that the pack had poisoned you when you had come to overthrow that dick. They had all left you, on the verge of death knowing you'd never find the cure. I ran over when everyone was taking off and I watched your eyes turn the most beautiful shade of gold." She says distantly

"You don't...hate me?" I ask

"Why would I? That would make me a shitty person. You did what you had to. I don't blame you. If I was in your shoes I'd do the same." She says with a shrug

She's known I was a hybrid for months. She knew when I showed up here. I've made several trips up here since then. She never treated me any different. My heart fills with joy and relief.

"I get why you didn't tell me. There's only what? Three of your kind in the world? That's terrifying. People look at our kind differently when we trigger our curse or turn for the first time. They hate us. A lot of us turned by killing off evil. Like you did." She says

I nod, taking the information in.

"Hey." She says placing her hand on top of mine.

I look from the ground to her.

"You know I love you no matter what right? We've been through hell together. You've done so much for me. You saved my life."

Tears fall from my cheeks and I smile at her.

I think back to that little girl that night in braids staring up at the man who wanted to kill her.

"I'd do it all over again." I say

She squeezes my hand and we go back to watching the others.

"Do they know?" I ask after a few moments

"I don't keep secrets from them. They all know and they accept you. If they didn't, they wouldn't be here." She says calmly and takes a swig from her beer

"You'd kick them out?"

"God no! I said that if they didn't treat you with respect and accept that you're a hybrid that they were welcome to leave. We all owe you that much. I welcome everyone into the pack but not those who thrive in hatred." She answers

" I love you Em."

"Back at ya bitch." She says and blows me a kiss

I check the time. I've got to get headed.

I say goodbye to everyone and head back to Louisiana, to the bayou.

Hayley is there, pacing back and forth.

"Hey. What's going on?" I ask jogging up to her

"Elijah and I broke up."

I open my mouth to ask another question but she cuts me off.

"I don't really want to talk about it right now." She says

Then we strip and take off running through the woods.

I miscalculate my jump through a stream and fall hard. I whimper loudly. Hayley runs back and moves carefully towards me, nudging me with her nose. I shake myself off and we take off again into the night.