Alrighty, here's the new post. Sorry for the delay.

“Are you okay?” asked a deep voice.

Emily’s eyes snapped open. Seth Clearwater was standing in front of her with ripped shorts and no shirt. She glanced at his abdomen, which was very much sculpted.

“Aren’t you cold?” she asked, forgetting his previous question.

“I’m fine. Are you okay? Did your friend not show up? Were you on the beach all night?” Seth asked in one breath.

Emily chuckled. “One question at a time, buddy. I’m okay, I guess. I will be fine. My...friend showed up, but he’s gone now. And yes, I was on the beach all night.”

“Didn’t you get cold?” Seth asked.

“Er, not really. I was warm enough.”

Emily paused. She pulled out her cell phone to check the time. It was still pretty early in the morning. The sun wasn’t even completely out yet. When she pushed a button so the back light would come on, nothing happened. Emily cursed the phone and then put it back in her pocket.

“You wouldn’t happen to know the time, would you?” she asked Seth.

Seth glanced at his surroundings, and then did something really strange to Emily. He sniffed the air. He didn’t just take a breath, but he literally sniffed the air. “It’s about five in the morning, I’d say,” Seth said slowly. Seth stared at her look of curiosity. “Are you hungry?” he asked, ignoring her curiosity.

She merely nodded, and he motioned for him to follow her. He grabbed her suitcase, though Emily did object at first, and the two walked down the street toward his house. Emily glanced at him. He didn’t seem cold, but still. It was cold outside.

“Are you sure you’re not cold?” she asked, glancing at his bare chest.

He chuckled lightly. “The only one I’m worried about being cold is you. Are you sure you’re not cold?”

“Are you kidding? You have on shorts and no shirt. At least I have on a jacket.”

Seth chuckled again. “I wasn’t kidding, but if you say you’re okay, then—”

“And I do—” Emily cut in.

“—whatever,” Seth finished. He laughed lightly at her.

They started rounding a curve. Emily looked at the woods on her left. She took a deep breath of the pine and mildew smell. It smelt like home to Emily. She basically grew up in the woods, well at least for once a month she did. The cold wind blew against them. Emily shivered and hugged her shoulders the best she could since she still had her broom in her hand. She wondered vaguely what he thought of her broom. She laughed lightly out loud at the reasons he was probably trying to come up with for her flying device.

“Did I miss something funny? Care to share?” he asked with a smile.

Emily just shook her head, giving him the ‘you don’t even want to know’ look. Emily and Seth passed a mailbox that said 41. We must be getting close, Emily thought, which was good because her stomach started grumbling. She hadn’t had anything to eat since her and Remus stopped at a gas station on the way to the Weasley’s. She really didn’t think this little trip through. She should have brought food.

Seth chuckled. Emily looked at him. “Hungry much?” he chuckled again.

Emily blushed, though not completely sure of why. “A little,” she said.

They finally made their way up Seth’s driveway. Seth didn’t hesitate at the door and walked right in. Emily did hesitate at the door, but went in regardless. She glanced around at his home. It was still really early in the morning, but his mother—Emily assumed it was his mother—was in the kitchen, cleaning.

“Hey, Mom,” Seth said. “I’d like you to meet Emily Black.” Seth smiled at Emily.

“Hi, Ms. Clearwater, it’s nice to meet you,” Emily said shyly. She blushed slightly, but it wasn’t to the extremes quite yet.

“It’s nice to meet you, too. So, you’re the one Seth hasn’t shut up about? The one he found at the beach?” Seth’s mom asked.

Emily nodded her head. Seth chuckled at her shyness and walked towards the kitchen.

“Emily’s a little hungry. She hasn’t eaten in a while,” Seth explained.

“What would you like, dear? I can make you anything,” Ms. Clearwater said.

“Oh, whatever is the easiest, really. I don’t want you to go out of your way or anything,” Emily blushed.

“Oh, honey, it’s fine. You have no idea how much I have to cook for Seth and Leah. How about some toast and eggs?” she asked. Emily nodded and smiled politely. “How do you like your eggs? Scrambled, fried?”

“Scrambled, please.” Emily glanced at Seth. He smiled slightly, but she could tell that something was bothering him. She hoped she wasn’t intruding too much.

“Will you ladies please excuse me? I need to make a phone call,” Seth explained. His mother looked at him quizzically. She looked worried about something, but she didn’t voice her thoughts. Emily examined him, wondering what Ms. Clearwater could have seen that made her tense. Seth left the room, towards one of the doors off of the hallway.

By this time, the eggs had already finished cooking and the toast popped out of the toaster. Ms. Clearwater put a portion of the eggs on a plate for Emily and then added the toast. Emily sat at the counter and ate her food, still slightly confused. She heard Seth talking in intense whispers from the other side of the doorway.

“No, I’m not saying that... I’m not sure... She just smells different. I think I need to take her to the Cullen’s,” Seth whispered. This was one of those moments she was glad she had picked a wolf for her animagus. She could hear loads better now and her senses were so much more pronounced. She tensed, thinking of the location of her wand. It was in her front pocket, so she would be able to access it easily if the time presented itself.

Seth walked back into the kitchen and sat down beside Emily at the counter. He gave her a fleeting smiled and then turned to the plate his mother had just placed in front of him. They both ate in silence until they were finished.

“Hey, do you want to come over to meet some of my friends?” Seth asked Emily.

“Er, sure,” Emily said hesitantly. “It’s still a little early. Won’t they be asleep?” Emily asked.

“Nah, they’re not much for sleeping,” he said with a grin. Emily saw Ms. Clearwater smile too. Emily was clearly missing an inside joke.


*Alrighty, tell me watchya think