The large one-room cabin was uncommonly quiet and occasionally disturbed by the shuffling of pages. The room had three beds pressed against the wall opposite the door, bookshelves in the corner, and a large kitchen table with chairs in front of the large window, revealing a clear mid-afternoon sky. Lea was snugged in her bed, book in hand, blankets wrapped around her legs. She jumped as the door slammed and her sister collapsed on the bed. Her blonde hair sprawling the blankets as she smiled wide. Lea tilted her head, suspicious of the happy mood her sister wore lately. 

"You have to help me." She giggled, scrunching her nose mischievously. "Mom and Dad are busy with the party and Finny is... actually, I don't know," Her eyes glanced at their brother's bed before she grinned again, pulling Lea's hands into her own. "And my lovely, intelligent little sister is such a sweet girl and would be happy to help me." 

Lea's eyes widened as a disbelieving laugh escaped her lips. "Wow! Laying it on thick, big sister. Is this about your 'hunk'?" 

Her sister's green eyes lit as she bit her lip to hide the smile. "Hunk, indeed. Big, thick, sweaty, delicious hunk! I wanna meet up at the party but Mom and Dad would freak out. If my dear sister would cover for me, so I can slip away for a few hours..." 

"A few hours?! What are you gonna do for a few hours?" Lea's face twisted, "No, don't. How am I supposed to distract them for a few hours? Hayden, you really don't think they'll notice?"

Hayden collapsed on her back and twirled her hair. "I don't know. I thought my intelligent sister would come up with something. Did I mention how intelligent she is?" 

Lea rolled her eyes and snuggled back into her blankets, " You're ridiculous."

Her sister groaned, her hand dropping beside her. "You mean, none of your books have any ideas for a little distraction?"

Lea smirked, hiding it behind her book. "Shut up. I didn't say no, just get out." Her foot nudged Hayden's arm a little too roughly but Hayden shrieked before launching into an awkward hug. 

"You're the best! I love you! I'll see you before the party to hear the plan. I'm gonna go find Chris." As quickly as she came, she went. The cabin was quiet again but Lea couldn't focus on her book. Ideas bounced around her skull, some too risky and some not enough. She came to the conclusion that she needed her most trusted conspirator. Her fingers shuffled the remaining pages in her book and decided she had the time to finish it before the party.

_______________________

A child shrieked as she ducked under a table, the pitchers of juice shaking. A tall woman with blonde hair pulled into a high ponytail sprinted across the yard to hold the table, "Christy! Go play somewhere else! If you knock over one more thing, I'll make you tail-less!" Christy giggled under the table before bolting around the side of her cabin. The woman growled, turning to Lea. "How did I raise such great kids?" She walked over and took Lea into her arms, "You could have been so much worse." 

"There's still hope." Lea said, smiling suggestively. Her mother scoffed, turning back to the party. 

"Lea... I'm too old for another baby, please." She froze with her eyes wide and a hand on her heart, "Finnex is... oh, god... thirteen?" Another shriek snapped her out of her daze and she sighed. "Lea, can you help set up the kids' area so they'll shut up? I can't kill someone's pup at a birthday party." Lea laughed, patting her on the back.

"Of course, Mom. That'd be a killer party, though." She walked over to the group of kids playing tag around the sitting tables. Her eyes landed on a boy with dark hair and freckles as he tripped another boy. "Finn!" Lea waved him over as he looked up. 

He jogged to her and held up his hand for a high five. "Did you see him biff it?" Finn smirked, nodding to himself. 

Lea shook her head with a smile as she secured the high five, "What will it take for you to help set up?" Finn recoiled, opening his mouth to refuse before his eyebrows shot up. His demeanor changed and he crossed his arms, a smirk spreading on his lips. Lea mimicked his arms, "You can have my cake... and I don't see anything for the rest of the night," his eyes sparkled, but narrowed as he waited for her to continue. "so long as you help me. Hayden doesn't want to come and I need help to cover." 

"OH!" Finn laughed loudly, slapping his hands together. "You need me! Hayden needs me so she can get some booty without Dad killing someone." 

"Yes, basically. At this point, I'm afraid Mom might too. I just need a little mischief here and there. Don't get crazy and don't tell me. I can't defend you if I know." 

Finn grinned, as he bounced up and down, "I still your cake, right?" Lea chuckled, nodding. "I'll get James to help with the party and then, I get to play." 

Lea held up her hands, "You know the deal." She walked over to help her mother.

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Strings of lights illuminated the party after dark, music filled the air from the band, and kids were off to the side playing games. Lea sat with her parents and a few pack members, the conversation split between pups and game habits. Lea hadn't been one for hunting; it was tiring and she often came back unsuccessful. Finn said she didn't have that wolf in her. Lea, of course, pointed out that she could shift, something Finn still hadn't accomplished. It usually ended the topic with a glaring match.

Her mother gushed over the young pack member across from her, who blushed rubbing her swollen stomach. Lea knew her mother wanted more kids but also knew why she was hesitant; they had one of the biggest cabins in the pack and there was five wolves smashed together, Hayden and Lea having shared a bed for the last seven years, despite being grown. Neither of them minded; it made winter easy, with Hayden being a strong heat source. 

"Hayden and Lea are only eight months apart. When I found out I was pregnant again, I almost lost it!" Her mother laughed, patting Lea's hand and her father laughed, drawn into the conversation. 

"Almost? Viola, you disappeared for three days! Hayden wasn't happy and I couldn't go look for you. I didn't sleep for a week." He leaned over and kissed her cheek as she rolled her eyes. 

"So dramatic. I came back! I wouldn't leave my family." She leaned her forehead against his, squeezing her hand that held Lea's. "Speaking of... I haven't seen Hayden, pretty much all day." 

Before Lea could speak up, her father did, "You've been busy, and you know how she is with her friends." Viola sighed with a nod. A woman touched her shoulders and whispered something about cake. Viola stood from the table and Lea followed suit. She needed to ask Finnex for an update. It didn't take long to find him holding a big stick like a bat as another boy held a doll, ready to pitch it. His eyes glanced at her and the stick fell from his hands. The other boy looked confused as he glanced over his shoulder at Lea, he cursed and sprinted away. Finn hissed and his body twisted to run.

"They're cutting the cake." 

His body turned in a full circle, "Why didn't you say so? I love cake." He jogged past her and she grabbed his shirt to halt him. "What!"

"Mom asked about Hayden." She accused.  Finn cringed, as she lifted him slightly. "What happened to the plan?"

He struggled against her grip. "I thought you didn't want to know? I'm working on it! What, you want something bigger? I could start a fire..." He whispered the last part in excitement. 

"Not that big!" She hissed, shoving him to the ground. 

"Then let me work, woman! I got this in the bag." His words held confidence but he scurried away toward the party. Lea huffed, crossing her arms and looked out to the forest. 'Freaking Hayden.' She went back to her spot at the table, fully aware she'd get no cake. 

______________

One of Hayden's friends snorted loudly as she danced with a boy. The night was getting much later and most of the kids had gone inside the Torres' cabin to settle down. The hours had been nerve racking for Lea, who hovered near her parents to eavesdrop. It wasn't unusual, as she wasn't as social as her siblings but her father had said bringing a book to a kid's birthday party was too anti-social. 

After the usual birthday activities and the children started to mellow, the drinks were poured and the dancing began. This meant less screaming children to distract from the lack of a life-of-the-party blonde. Finn had kept his part of the deal and pestered Viola ever so often with simple questions or sudden affection; 'Can you open this?', 'Have you seen..?', and Viola's favorite, a long hug that came with a quick wink at Lea. 

'A few hours, my ass. Where is she?' She grumbled to herself as she buried her face in another honey-coated buttermilk bun. Grandma Ortha, not actually of relation, was a master baker and her sweet treats had a little extra magic about them. She was one of the elders that were left after an illness had plagued them some years back and of course, the simple medicines and home-cures were no match for the mass of sick. Luckily, the most of the children that were infected recovered. Finn was one of them. Maybe that was one reason Viola hovered and babied the boy.

Stuffing the rest of the bun in her mouth, her eyes stopped on a tall and buff man with tattoos covering his arms appearing out of the darkness of the forest. 'Christian.' Lea sat up quickly and looked around for her sister but caught no sight. Chris' brown eyes met hers and she knew the question was obvious in her green ones. He shrugged and pulled a redhead girl onto the 'dance floor'. Lea's jaw tightened, glaring at the couple as the lights reflected off the girl's hair.

A body collapsed into the chair next to her, a little too close, and she flinched. "Relax, scaredy-cat. I just came to bother you, I haven't seen you all night." Hayden smiled innocently, like she hadn't been missing for almost six hours. Lea stared at her for a moment before feeling prying eyes on them. 

"I wanna go home." she stated, completely wiped from the stress of the whole ordeal. Lea snatched another bun and chomped on it.

Hayden laughed, pushing her loose hair behind her ears and smoothing her red dress across her legs, "You should have brought a book. Not like you were gonna actually talk to anyone." Lea slammed her hand on the table and her father groaned loudly, having heard the statement.

"Shut up already. You've served your sentence, go back to your cave. I thought you could use the contact with living beings. Didn't you already read that one anyway?" He said, a beer chasing the question. 

Lea rolled her eyes and stood up, accepting the dismissal. "Yeah I have, but I don't have any new books to read." Viola chuckled as Emon groaned, scooting down in his seat.

"I'm sorry! I got so busy last time and the bookstore closed before we left town. I'll get you a few next time. Just promise not to read them all in a day." 

"I don't read that fast, but thanks Dad. I'd appreciate it. Night." She kissed her mom's head and gave Hayden a look, then headed back to their cabin to enjoy her blankets and book.