claudia | embry call

twenty-four : jacob

"How do you feel?" Embry asked, looking down at Claudia. They were standing outside Billy's house, so she could try and adjust to the scent before having to go inside. There was no burning in throat, just like with Bella. "We can always do this later, you don't need to feel pressured into-"

"No, I'm fine." She shook her head. "I'm okay, I'm ready."

"Are you sure?" She looked up at him and nodded. "Okay. But tell me if you need to leave, okay?"

"I know." She said. "I wanna see him." He nodded, pushing the door open. Everything looked vaguely familiar to Claudia. Things were in places that seemed right, she didn't feel as if anything was different, but she couldn't exactly say if it was or not. Quil was sitting on the couch, and Billy was in his chair next to him. Billy looked almost relieved to see her, as if he was worried she'd somehow look like a different person.

"Claudia." He smiled. "It's good to see you again."

"You too." She smiled back. "Where is he?"

"His room." Billy nodded behind him. "He should be waking up soon, you can sit with him if you want to. I know he'd like to see you."

"Come on." Embry led her through the small house, stopping in Jake's doorway. He was laying on his back in his bed, a cast over his arm and leg. "He looks like hell."

"You would too if you were crushed by a newborn." She moved away from Embry, sitting on the edge of Jake's bed. "At least he wasn't bitten."

"Yeah, Sam said that the venom woulda killed him." Claudia looked back at Embry, who was now leaning against the doorframe. "Apparently it's poisonous to us."

"Claudia?" She turned around, seeing Jake's eyes cracked open and aimed at her.

"Hey." She scooted closer, her voice light. "How're you doing?" She heard the door shut lightly behind her.

"Everything hurts." He sighed, shifting slightly. "Bella's gonna marry him."

"What?" She raised her eyebrows.

"She came over last night, late." He sucked in a breath. "They're getting married, before her birthday."

"I'm sorry Jake." She frowned. "You okay?"

"I will be, I guess." He shrugged, a hiss of pain coming from his mouth. He chuckled dryly when he looked at Claudia's face, seeing the worried expression. "How are you and Embry?" She almost felt guilty as the small smile came to her face.

"We're good." She nodded lightly. "Figuring it out, you know? It's just...hard."

"Why? You two are perfect for each other." She chuckled lightly at his words, nodding.

"I'm just...trying to figure out who I am." She shrugged. "Or who I was? I don't know. You have to understand, after the change it's...it's hard to remember a lot of my human life. It helps that I'm back here, back around people who knew me, but I don't know me."

"Well take it from someone who does, you don't seem that different." There was a small smile now present on his face. "Have you gone home yet? Maybe that would help."

"Maybe..." She nodded. "I wanted to come see you, first. I feel so bad."

"Don't worry about me." He scoffed lightly. "I'll be fine. The doc should be coming around any time now to give me more morphine, he said he'd come by in the morning anyway."

"That's good." She nodded. "I'll stay till then, okay? I'm...not ready to leave yet."

———————

"You want me to come in with you?" Embry looked down at Claudia, while she gazed up at the house. Collin was with Brady and her parents were at work, meaning it was the perfect time to go back to the house.

"I should go alone, so I can get used to their scents without yours too." She looked up at him. "Wait for me here, okay?"

"Course." He nodded, dropping her hand from his. She walked carefully up the stairs, dull memories buzzing around in her head as she pushed the front door open. Just like Billy and Jake's house, everything seemed vaguely familiar. She moved into the living room, her eyes fixed on one of the pictures on the mantle. It was her, but she looked different. Her eyes were darker, and she was definitely younger. There was a cake sitting in front of her, with 10 candles. Jake, Embry and Quil were with her. She smiled lightly, picking up the frame and looking down at it. She couldn't remember the day, but she could remember the feelings-pure happiness.

She put the frame back and continued to wander, eventually ending up in her bedroom doorway. It was exactly as she'd left it, her bed unmade, curtains half closed, and a book still open on her desk. She walked over, looking down at the text. It was an Edgar Allan Poe poetry book, opened to one of the pages of 'Tamerlane', her favorite poem of his.

We grew in age—and love—together,
Roaming the forest, and the wild;
My breast her shield in winter weather—
And, when the friendly sunshine smil'd,
And she would mark the opening skies,
I saw no Heaven—but in her eyes.

She smiled lightly, her fingers brushing the soft page lightly before her eyes landed on a small stack of spiral notebooks on the corner of her desk. She moved, picking up the one on the top and flipping it open. It was a journal, she'd forgot she'd kept them. She flipped through it quickly, eyes briefly scanning each page, until she finally found the final page. It was dated the date before Harry's funeral, the day before she'd been changed. She pulled the chair out of her desk, sitting down and setting the notebook down and flipping back to the beginning. What better way to learn about herself than to read her own thoughts?