A/n: Here I am again, with a new story! Yeah, I know, what with my other stories, I shouldn't be making more. But this idea popped into my head, and just would not leave! So I hope you enjoy this Seth x Jane tale, which also happens to be my first imprint story too.
I own nothing! All characters belong to Stephanie Meyer.
Chapter One
Entranced with Beauty
Light gray clouds rolled and crashed into each other against the winter sky, leaving the earth in a dreary shadow that covered like a thick, wool blanket. Snowflakes, tiny and graceful, swirled from the drifting vapors in lovely patterns before joining the rest of the ice crystals that laid on the frozen ground. Time seemed to slow as the flakes glided down from the heavens in gentle masses. This was a perfect example of peace and beauty mingling together to form the most impeccable feeling on earth: tranquility.
However, hiding underneath the serene surface, a peculiar tension hung in the frigid air that every creature in the woods could feel. It hummed underneath the marble skin of the vampires and the heavy fur of the wolf shape-shifters, preparing them for the possible battle that approached with razor-sharp fangs and the relentless hunger for spilled blood. Well, in this case, spilled blood and venom.
Young Seth, feeling his wild heart pound madly inside his chest, dug at the fresh snow with his front paws with anxiousness to move forward. He wasn't excited to fight though, like some of the other younger wolves that playfully wrestled behind him in naive eagerness. No. All he could think of was the deaths that came with battles.
In past fights, he had basically only had to be concerned with himself, which allowed him to focus more on his opponent's moves. In this one however, he would need to concentrate trying to block out the distracting thoughts of the young wolves for his sake, while also still being active in helping them if needed. It was a headache-inducing idea, to say the least.
His sister noticed his agitation in the corner of her silver eyes, and brushed her side to his with a playful push. "Calm down, Seth. You're making me nervous." Her voice had a hint of amusement that immediately put him at ease.
Relaxing with a wide yawn that shook his entire sandy body, he sat down in the powdery snow with a low thump. "Sorry, Leah. I'm just dying to get a move on. Being in the back isn't really that great, you know?"
Leah gave the wolf version of a snort, and settled down beside him. "Yeah, I know what you mean. Kept back from the action while the bloodsuckers get first taste of the fight. Totally fair, huh?"
Pacing back and forth near the front of the pack with his own particular impatience, Jacob stopped and shifted his unreadable gaze on them." Does it really matter, Leah? We're still going to fight, if there's a battle. Stop worrying." He turned back around, staring into the direction of the meadow with a whine of longing.
Said she-wolf snorted again, and leaned against her slightly smaller brother. "That's easy for you to say, Jake. Here you are, pacing around as if you have bugs under your fur. That little freak got you hooked. Or whipped. Whichever one you want to accept."
Leah barked a laugh when Jake spun around and growled furiously at her, tilting her head with a cocky, wolf smile that bared all her sharpened canines. Seth just shook his head without a word, learning long ago on how to block out his sister's constant teasing. Thinking about it, Renesmee was important to him as well. Honestly, she was like a younger sister to him. Though they weren't as close as her and Jake, he would still fight tooth and claw for the little hybrid.
"Ugh, not you too." Leah sneered in his mind with a disgusted growl. Seth just gave a mental shrug in return, his thoughts too chaotic to truly answer his sister. One moment he was thinking of the fighting skills Jake had taught him, resulting in him worrying over how to use said moves in the real situation, then he was distressing over how he wouldn't be able to focus if someone important to him was to get hurt, or worse.
Just the image of seeing Leah or Edward being ripped open with the dripping fangs of a venomous Volturi vampire made him whimper in pain and terror, gaining concerned looks from his pack mates, who he disregarded with a quick shake of his head.
Before they could ask any questions, Seth shot up with a quick turn of his head in the direction from where the sound of heavy paws racing across the ground was coming. Jacob turned his head around too, although slower. Seth always did have the best ears in the pack; even in human form, he heard things before anyone else. It was a trait he prided on, although secretly for obvious reasons.
"Looks like Sam and the others are coming," Jake stated with a blatant straightening of his broad shoulders and a lift of his large muzzle.
Ever since he accepted his Alpha position, Jacob made sure to seem authoritative whenever Sam was around. The two both had a healthy understanding of each other, thus meaning, they made sure to stay out each other's way as much as possible. Sam and his wolves stayed on the reservation while Jake and his pack, which consisted of, permanently, Leah and Seth, the newer wolves during the day, and the occasional Embry or Quil, stayed nearby the Cullens. It was an odd situation, but one that everyone quickly got use too.
"Well, look at the big, bad Alpha trying to impress his ex-Alpha," Leah purred with a derisive snicker. Jacob released a threatening rumble, but did not reply. Instead, he stepped forward to the night-black wolf with a welcoming growl, greeting the other Alpha in respect. Sam growled back in a friendly tone before leading his own pack forward with an extensive raise of his large tail.
Jake, gazing at his old pack mates, tossed his russet head at the chocolate and spotted gray forms of Quil and Embry, who stopped and wagged their tails happily at him before joining Sam again. At that moment, every shape-shifter in the clearing perked their sensitive ears in the direction of the clearing. Even the youngest wolves went quiet, their small bodies freezing in place as they strained to listen too.
Faint, but noticeable, a sound like wind rustling against leaves echoed through the silent woods, catching the attention of everyone straightaway.
Looks like the Volturi are here. Let's move, Jake ordered before moving onward with a confident stride. Leah swiftly moved to his right flank as his Beta, and Seth to his left, as his unspoken Third. Realizing that the situation had shifted into true seriousness, the newest members of the pack stopped playing around, and followed after the older wolves with uncharacteristic quietness. They stalked through the snow-covered ferns in a straight line like winter shadows until they broke out the tree line, instantly observing the scene in front of them.
Cloaks, ranging from pale gray to the darkest black, glided their way with the synchronized rhythm of an old-fashioned army. A ghost army, Seth thought as he shuddered at the sight of the missing faces that were well hidden in their hoods.
Jake promptly settled beside Renesmee and Bella as his pack took places in the back of the Cullens and their old friends. Sam and his pack settled a few feet away to the right of the Cullens, their eyes burning with familiar bloodlust as they glared at the dark army with furrowed muzzles and bristled fur.
As if a command had been made, the long file of vampires froze to a stop quite a distance away from the Cullens and the wolves with an intimidating hush.
Seth cocked his head in confusion as something tugged him forward to the dark mass. It was like a steel collar was wrapped around his neck, tightening around his throat until he could barely breathe, let alone call for help. The invisible chain attached to the collar tugged at him with fierce persistent, forcing him to advance forward so he wasn't choked to death.
Leaving Leah's side, he took a couple of steps to the direction of the Volturi, a low growl trapped in his chest as he tried to break free from the almost gravitational pull.
The object of his interest was in the middle of the line as far as he could tell. That's where the blackest cloaks resided, thus, the most dangerous members of the ruling coven of the world. Lowering his narrow head, he peered as close as he could inside the shadowy covers with an intensity he never felt before. Nothing mattered at that moment then finding out what was causing him to feel this way.
His pale gold eyes scanned frantically and then focused on the smallest figure with one of the darkest cloaks in the group. Every nerve inside his body, from the top of his nose to the tip of his tail, suddenly sparked with electrical energy as he gazed openly at the hidden vampire. Judging by the beautiful black and crimson dress that the vampire was wearing, he assumed it was a female.
"Come on. Let me see your face," Seth begged without thinking, receiving strange looks from his pack, who he once again ignored.
Abruptly, the vampire he was watching pulled back her hood to reveal her appearance as if it she heard his plead. The moment she did so, Seth felt his legs buckled underneath him, and he collapsed into a heap in the wet snow. Seth, several different voices cried out in unison. Leah and the youngest wolves leaped over to his side while Jacob twisted around, regarding the sight with a confused whine.
No words could describe the absolute shock the adolescent wolf experienced when he saw the face of the female vampire he had been watching. It was as if all his nerves overloaded with energy, causing a toxic shockwave to jolt through his solid limbs and turn them to numb jelly. His hearing grew dim as well until the only sound he could hear was the slow thumping of his heart. Everything faded away into the background except her. She was brought into the front of his vision, outlined with a dark foreground that hid any distractions from her presence.
The strangest part of it all though, was the fact that he did not mind the feelings. It felt almost…pleasant.
"God, she's so beautiful," Seth moaned in a drunken manner, his buzzing mind spinning dizzily as he continued to look at the vampire who entranced him without even knowing. In fact, he never removed his wide eyes from her face. Just the thought of losing sight of her sent a bizarre shiver down his curled spine that traveled deep into his paralyzed muscles.
His admiring gaze memorized her regal features with the careful attention of an artist. Her lustrous hair was a stunning golden-brown, possibly shoulder-length determining by the size of the tight bun she had it in, tied together with a pure black ribbon.
Just the look of it made Seth want to tug the ribbon knot loose so he could see all her hair tumbled down in a glossy wave, and wrap a gleaming strand around his finger.
Trailing down from her hair, he observed her face, which brought his heart to a full stop.
She had a cute button nose which was turned up in an aristocratic way and her red lips were as soft and full as the petals of a rose. Her cheeks were childishly round, but she carried herself with the fierce grace and authority of a queen. It was her eyes though, that stunned him into speechlessness.
Outlined with dark makeup in the appearance of an ancient Egyptian, her eyes were a vivid maroon that seemed to glow with chilled flames that emanated an icy heat to those she glared at. The indifference in them ensnared him in a cage, leaving him trapped with the desire to see the cold apathy shift to something else. Anything else.
Feeling strength coming back to his limbs inch by inch, Seth stood up slowly on his trembling legs with rapid shudders running down his body that shook off the leftover numbness. Leah, staring at him in astonishment, pounce forward to gently grab the scruff of his neck between her teeth, holding him up as the last shudder nearly sent him collapsing again. Planting his tan paws firmly on the ground, he nodded for his sister to release him, who did so cautiously with a gentle nudge to his shoulder.
"I'm okay, sis," Seth reassured her, still without taking his eyes off the vampire girl. Unexpectedly, his view was cut off by the silver form of his sister, who glowered at him with worry as she stood in front of him. As soon as the blonde vampire was gone from his sight, Seth felt weak and lifeless, a mere shell of his usual happy-go-lucky self. Waves of misery soon crashed over him with maddening determination, drowning him in the murky depths of sorrow that seemed to originate from his changing soul.
"No, Seth, you're not okay," Leah growled as she felt her brother's pain course through her and the other wolves with the mind connection. The young ones whimpered in agony, while Jake felt a familiar burn blaze through his thumping heart. Spinning around, he stared down at Seth with bewilderment before snapping his head to gawk at the little vampire who Edward had told him goes by the name of Jane, who, alongside her brother, was known around the immortal world as the Witch Twins.
The most dangerous guards in the Volturi.
"It's not possible," He whispered as he observed the melancholy sand-colored wolf, who was beginning to lurch side to side with hysterical jerks of his narrow head. Knowing from experience of what was about to happened, Jacob ordered quickly in his Alpha voice, "Leah, move out the way!"
Leah jumped to the side just as Seth leaped forward with a monstrous growl that sent quivers down the spines of those who heard it.
Hiding his dilating irises behind closed eyelids, he tossed his head back to the darkening clouds and released a powerful howl, both joyful and forlorn, that shot out from deep within his aching spirit to the spirits in the heavens above. The howl echoed across the clearing to the towering mountains with the strength and passion of the Spirit Wolf, silencing the snarling wolves of Sam's pack and the heated conversation between the Cullens and the Volturi leaders immediately.
They listened with bated breath as the howl resonated with absolute need. It was a howl that all wolves, both natural and supernatural, were familiar with. It was the call of a wolf desperate to unite spiritually with his destined mate. Laced with feral torment, it echoed through the hearts of all who ached for their other half.
Including that of Jane who gazed at the gangly wolf with uncharacteristic compassion.
Sapped of all energy by the time his howl trailed off to a chorus of low whines, Seth stared miserably at the hidden sky before falling on his side into a fetal position. Last thing he saw before his sight darkened was the striking maroon eyes of the vampire girl who would now hold his heart and soul in both of her bloodstained hands, whether she wanted to or not.
A/N: So, there you go! I must say, I think I'm going to enjoy writing this pairing. There's not many Seth x Jane stories out there sadly. So I decided, "Aw, what the heck. I might as well write one of my own," and so I did! How about gracing me with a review on your lovely thoughts? Hmm? Wink, wink. Nudge, nudge. Stare, stare…