Okay, so if you knew the amount of crap I had to go through to finally get this chapter up, you'd be shocked that I didn't just take a hiatus for a month! I finished the chapter...and then my computer crashed...I rewrote the chapter, adding a few tweaks, and then my computer was attacked by a nasty computer virus...I had finals and studying to do, on top of rewriting the chapter for the third time. I just finished editing it, so I don't know how well my grammar and syntax will be, but I hope you enjoy.
3...2...1...
Chapter Seven
I can't explain why, but the minute I was within the cover of the trees, I immediately felt better. I could breathe easier, and my mind was clear and concise. The lasting effects of being around Seth evaporated completely, and I was back to being the familiar, realistic woman I'd cultivated myself into being. I took a deep breath of the pine scented air and allowed my feet to guide me deeper into the forest, my fingers trailing against the rough bark of a maple and the smooth hide of the bushes. I didn't know where I was going, and there was a small part of my mind that argued that I would very soon be lost, but I just kept walking, breathing and thinking.
Something strange was going on in the inner workings of La Push, but I didn't know what. All I had to go on was the strange similarities between the young men of the reservation, and my sudden and undeniable attraction to Seth Clearwater.
The feelings that I had for Seth, they were numerous and impenetrable; I couldn't have broken free from them, even if I had wanted to. I felt, deep within my core, that no matter what would happen, Seth would be there for me. If I needed someone to talk to, he would be there to listen; if I needed someone to hold on to, he would be that immovable rock for me. Whenever I was around him, I got the feeling that what he felt for me completely transcended what consisted as a normal, simple attraction. From the way that my bones melted whenever I laid my eyes on him, I knew that what I felt for him couldn't be easily categorized either.
The sky was a steel gray and threatened to open up and release the torrents of weather upon the unsuspecting citizens of La Push, and as I looked up through the canopy of the trees, I wondered what it would feel like to stand in the pouring rain. It wouldn't be the first time that I'd be caught in the rain, in fact I've been rained on in practically every area of the world at least once or twice, but there was something majestic and appealing about being rained on in a Washington forest. It transported me somewhere mystical.
The deeper I went into the forest, the more I was able to clear my mind until all that was in it was the fresh air and the distinct calls of several species of birds that were more preoccupied to notice me. Even though I had no clue as to where I was, (in fact, I was pretty sure that I was lost) my feet continued on as if walking a designated path. The smell of the ocean faded away and was replaced by the heady scents of rainwater and soft, upturned earth. The foliage thinned slowly, until only a few bristly shrubs lined either side of me. A large ravine separated me from the other side, which rose up on a sharp incline of granite and shale. I was fiercely glad that I hadn't been on the other side; I would have walked straight off the edge and broken my neck in the clear, tranquil creek rolling over smoothed river rocks. From the way the creek was flowing, I deduced that there was a steady source for the water. With a small smile, I moved North, on a mission to find the source.
I was content to just walk alongside the creek, the shore rocky and dark, occasionally tossing in a leaf or twig to watch it swirl downstream. As I continued walking, the foliage got thicker, more like the vegetation had been in the actual forest. I started to step through shrubs and bushes, brushing branches and vines out of my way. Wherever this source was located, it was thoroughly hidden. The trees seemed to grow larger, their trunks twisted and gnarled until they combined together. The canopies completely blocked out the sky, creating eternal darkness beneath. Apart from the sound of my feet crunching on leaves, branches, and who knows what else, I followed the sound of the creek, able to see enough to notice how it seemed to slip underneath the shiny leaves of a particularly thorny set of shrubs. A distant roaring filled my ears and the smell of fresh water filled my nose; the source was close.
I carefully picked my way through the thorns, ignoring the scratches I was getting on my bare arms and shoulders in the consuming need to make this discovery. In the light of recent events, I needed to quench my thirst for mystery in one way or another; since I wasn't making any headway with discovering the bizarre occurrences within La Push, I would take any other option I had available. I took a deep breath and pulled hard on a thick vine that was blocking my path. It was being stubborn, holding onto the tree for dear life, and as I yanked on it, I used my frustration to finally pull it free. It also successfully knocked me off balance, and I fell through the gap between two massive, gnarly trees, expecting to fall on the sharp rocks and underbrush in surprise.
I fell to my knees, catching myself on my outstretched hands, wincing in anticipation. I didn't feel dirt and rocks beneath my palms though; it was much too soft. I opened my eyes and allowed them to widen, encompassing the secluded glade I had literally stumbled into. Taking my time I climbed to my feet, looking around. The glade was made all the more enchanting from the crystal clear spring glittering underneath the sky, which seemed to only be visible in the clearing. The spring trickled down to the creek, the source I'd been looking for, and the spring itself had an outside source. The roaring I'd heard was coming from the frothy waterfall spraying down over the side of a jagged cliff, which looked to be made out of the same natural stone as the high side of the ravine had been, granite and shale, with minerals sparkling under the light and reflecting onto the water.
It was humid in the clearing, which surprised me, and was at least ten degrees warmer than anywhere else in the forest. Instead of the ground being covered in dark earth, it was blanketed in a carpet of green grass, soft as cashmere beneath bare palms. I had never truly known what the color green was until I had come to La Push, and even now, I felt as if I was drowning in a sea of emerald. The trees and boulders were covered in moss and ivy, and it made the sporadic blooms of wildflowers all the more magnificent. The pinks, purples, whites, and yellows were in brilliant shades against the jade backdrop, and the soft spray from the waterfall landed tiny diamond drops upon the petals so that they shimmered.
I was in awe. That a place so visually perfect existed in a part of the world that was so natural, so normal, was a revelation for me; it represented what I had discovered in La Push…in Seth. I moved towards the spring, whose waters were the crystal blue of the Mediterranean Sea, and bent at the knee, bracing myself for the freezing cold as I dipped my fingers into the spring.
I inhaled sharply; the water was the same temperature as a Jacuzzi. I had found a natural hot spring. Taking a quick look around me, I removed my shoes and stuffed my socks into them, carefully rolling up the hem of my jeans up to my knees. Slowly, I dipped my lower legs into the water, sighing as the heat worked the chill out of my calves and bones. I leaned back against a moss covered boulder, inhaling the mineral steam that the water was kicking up. I felt like a layer of ice was being sloughed off of my lungs as my breathing became easier, and for a few blissful minutes, I was transported to a natural spa. It was pure heaven.
Somewhere close I listened to an owl coo, uninhibited by the lack of time in the forest. A pair of gray squirrels paused by the edge of the clearing, watching me curiously as their noses twitched in tandem, before scampering up the moss-covered bark of a tree. In the distance I heard the beautiful, mournful cry of wolf song, raising goose bumps on the back of my arms and neck despite the humidity of the glade.
I blinked rapidly. A wolf howling? In the forests of the reservation? Immediately I felt nervous about venturing into the woods alone, especially because I knew that when there was one wolf, there were usually more. Wolves were pack animals by nature; I could only assume that more would be nearby. Unfortunately, I had no idea where I was or how to get back to Seth's house. Way to go, Lore.
Right on cue the howling picked up again, followed by the cries of at least half a dozen more voices. I swallowed the lump in my throat, wondering if I should try to make my way back down the creek. It had to lead to the ocean, and once I got to the coast, I could easily find my way back to the reservation. I pulled my legs out of the warm water and pushed my jeans down, fumbling with my socks and shoes as I hurriedly tied them on my feet.
"You are lost."
I froze in surprise, looking around the glade for whoever it was who had spoken. While I didn't spot anyone right away, I knew that someone had spoken. It was a voice that I wouldn't quite soon forget, crystal clear in the soprano range, with a lilting accent that I couldn't place despite my good ear. I knew that it wasn't a native accent or tongue, but it gave me the strangest sensation that I was talking to water; it flowed over the clearing with open curiosity and surprise.
I slowly rose to my feet, backing away from the spring and sweeping the forest with my eyes. "Hello?" I asked, more for the reassurance that I had really heard someone. "Is someone there?"
A small laugh came from up on the waterfall cliff, claiming my attention. A flash of silver made me blink, and I firmly wished that I hadn't gone wandering alone. Sure I had needed some space to be alone, but I wasn't familiar with this area, and I should've known better. For all I knew, there was an escaped lunatic running around the forest, and I had walked straight into their hands.
"You are not from around here."
My head snapped to the left, to the opposite side of the spring. Impossible, but the voice had come from a completely different location than it had been a few seconds ago. An unnerving sense of dread was building in my stomach, and I swallowed the hard lump in my throat. The hair on the back of my arms stood up, and my heart was beating straight out of my chest.
There was movement coming from the trees in front of me, still on the opposite shore of the hot spring, leaving a good distance between us. Whoever this was, they were coming out of their hiding place; I braced myself to run, glancing back at the two gnarled trees I had stumbled through. If I got a good enough grip on the ground, I could sprint pretty quickly out of here. It would be navigating the thick undergrowth of the forest that would be the tricky part.
"I didn't mean to frighten you."
The owner of the voice finally broke into the clearing, forcing my eyes to widen in shock. It was a woman, perhaps the same age as me, but who was unlike anything I'd ever seen before. She was fluid, even in stillness, with skin that vaguely reminded me of the pearlescent sheen of a Mother of Pearl flaked shell. Her hair was something out of a fairytale, thick and wavy that flowed down past her hips and that was the unbelievable platinum white of the moon. While it should have looked dyed and horrible, I somehow knew that it was natural, and with her pale skin, she looked like some beautiful Moon Goddess. Immediately I though of Edward and Bella, and their unique paleness, but this woman was nothing like the Cullen's. There was something about her that seemed totally at home here in the forest, despite two things.
One: she was watching me with all the ease and grace as an experienced predator. Every movement I made, every surprised glance I cast around, she noted it with the quirk of her head and the fierce intelligence of her bizarre eyes (one was the clear blue of the hot spring, the other a disturbing glittering of silver). The way she held her elegant frame, which to me seemed both petite and immense at the same time, spoke every inch of a hunter. And I had gotten in front of her quarry.
Two: she was stark naked. It took me a moment to realize, I think I was more surprised by her being here than anything else, but when I did, I did everything I could to avert my eyes. It was only after she laughed again, a high pitched, cooing sound, that I finally looked at her again. Her long hair was partly pulled in front of her shoulders, covering her chest much like classical depictions of mermaids. She was wearing what seemed to me to be a silk loin cloth, gold chains slung around her hips, covering everything. I shook my head, wary enough to maintain my distance. This was not a Quileute native, and the way that she was dressed (or not) was screaming 'weird' at me. She had stacks of gold, silver, and bejeweled bangles covering her wrists and ankles, and a large, rough crystal strung on a silver rope around her neck. She seemed very amused by me, and I couldn't judge whether it was a good or bad thing.
"Do you need help?" she asked, her voice the same lilting tone that felt like it was washing over me. I bit my bottom lip nervously, feeling like a young girl again.
She tilted her head, her eyes smiling in a way that wasn't quite natural. Her face was very smooth and very angular, her cheekbones and nose sharp and aquiline. There was something imperial about the way her mouth was held, and the overall bearing she carried. I'd seen it many times when I visited royal or noble families in my art dealing. Whoever she was, she was, in blatant terms, well bred.
"You are right to be wary of me," she continued smoothly, speaking to me as though I were a frightened colt. "But I mean you no harm."
How weird was it that this wild woman, who, to be honest, must be out of her freaking mind to be walking around the forest like that, was assuring me that she meant me no harm. I took a deep breath, inhaling the mineral steam as a way to relax my stiff muscles and to lessen the fear I felt. Being afraid of this woman wasn't going to do me any good.
"I'm Sansai," she said, her voice still a gentle caress. "I see that you've found my Secret Garden."
"You're secret garden?" I sputtered, finally able to speak again. She smiled, pleased that I wasn't just standing there, staring at her.
"Well, since nobody can truly claim a forest, I guess I can't call it my own. But it's the place where I come to relax and to think."
The same thing that I had wandered into the forest looking for, I realized; a place to just think and to find some solitary comfort. Sansai walked over to the edge of the spring, dipping a foot in and sighing blissfully. Her expression became unguarded, and more relaxed, and overall I felt more comfortable around her. Or, at least, less uneasy around her.
"You don't seem like you're from around here either," I said, remembering her earlier comment about me. Her eyes peeled open, and for the first time, I realized that they were slanted somehow, tilted upward at the outward corners, giving them a catlike appearance. I swallowed again, tucking my hands into my back pockets.
"I'm not from the reservation, no," Sansai said, smiling as if she were hiding a very well kept secret. I pushed back the instinct to flee, leveling my gaze with her. "But I am very much from around here."
Okay…so we were going to be communicating in riddles. Lovely.
"Where are you from?" I asked. She couldn't be from around here…she was too bizarre, too exotic.
She shrugged her shoulders, pulling her foot back out of the water. She opened her mouth to say something and then stopped, her body maintaining a rigidness that didn't seem to fit with her. Her eyes sharpened and I saw the change appear within her; no longer was she a curious, half-naked woman speaking to me in riddles. The hint of the predator I had glimpsed in Sansai earlier was nothing compared to the full blown huntress standing before me. Her gaze was pulled to something over my shoulder, and from the agitated way her fingers clenched and flexed, I could tell that she was debating internally about something. I could feel the surge of something, other, over the course of my skin.
The wolf howling I had heard earlier was back, louder, more sorrowful, and a hell of a lot closer. I blanched in fear, unable to pinpoint the direction that the wolves were at. Sansai's two colored eyes sliced to me, cold and ruthless, with a hint of concern. She looked me up and down, muttering something to herself.
"How well do you know the natives here?" she asked, her soft lilting voice rough and edged like a razor. What kind of a question was that?
"Very," I said, surprised. That wasn't what I was initially planning to say, but it worked all the same. If anyone from La Push was nearby, I would be fine. She nodded once, a short, fierce jerk of her head, and then smirked. She slowly backed up towards the area she had first emerged, the small smirk still on her lips and which made me wary once again. Where was she going?
"Not well enough," she said, turning on her heel and disappearing into the forest faster than I would've thought possible. I'd been walking through this forest all morning, and I knew with a firm certainty that running would've been extremely difficult. To move at the speed that Sansai seemed to be moving, it would very nearly be impossible.
A low growling claimed my attention, a sound so furious, and so feral that I was lucky I didn't collapse in fear. As it was, my knees locked and I held my breath in terror; I could feel the hot breath of a wild animal behind me, and the guttural sounds weren't doing much to improve my mood. Oh, why did I have to be stupid and go into the woods alone!
Taking a deep breath, I turned around, expecting to come face to face with a pack of gray wolves, hackles raised and teeth bared. What I got instead sent me stumbling backwards until the back of my knees hit a large boulder, forcefully stopping my terrified retreat. I had been right about the call belonging to a wolf. But I had been dead wrong about the type of wolf.
Standing a head taller than your average horse, with legs and paws that immediately reminded me of a bear's, was the largest, freaking mutant wolf I'd ever seen. How he could even fit through the tight trees was a mystery to me, but I was more entranced with the beast itself. He was massive, built of compact muscle that rippled underneath a thick, sandy colored coat. His paws and the tip end of his tail was covered in a darker, burnished gold, the contrast beautiful and magnificent. His claws were extended, sharp knives of steel, and the hackles on the back of his neck seemed to make him even larger than life, no doubt its intended purpose. There was something shockingly intelligent in his face, despite the way his lips were curled over pearl white fangs, the length of my forearm each, and so sharp that they reminded me of the saber-tooth tiger's skeleton at the Museum of Natural History in the city.
After my initial surprise I realized that the wolf's antagonism hadn't been towards me at all; he was focused solely on the space where Sansai had been. She had been a hunter, but this wolf, for whatever reason, had made her its prey. I shivered, drawing its attention back to me.
Uh-oh.
He barely spared me a glance, but I felt a raw jolt rock through me, and my limbs suddenly felt like dead weight. Glaring back at the space, he smoothly raised his massive head to the sky, his throat exposing a ruff of dark gold fur that matched his paws and tail-tip. A hollow song of victory filled the air, the note resonating deep inside of my bones as I watched, completely transfixed. It was shorter than the other, mournful cry I'd heard earlier, and when he finished, all of the tension and ferociousness that the wolf had possessed, had all but disappeared.
He rose himself up to his full height, evenly distributing his weight on all fours; his tail was held at attention, and the way his neck arched and his ears perked, I had the bizarre vision of him with a show-dog collar. He was showing himself off.
He meandered over to me, his gate smooth but still with the graceful gate of a canine, until I could practically smell him. I held completely still, refusing to blink or breathe or to make any possible movement what so ever…but my lungs were burning and I needed to breathe before my chest exploded…
I risked it, inhaling a deep lungful of air and praying that the wolf didn't eat me. All I got was mineral steam, pine, cinnamon, sea spray, and juniper wood…
I gasped, knowing the scent anywhere. The wolf stiffened, lowering his massive head until I had locked eyes with the massive beast. My heart was beating wildly out of my chest, uncontrolled by my erratic breathing. It wasn't possible…it couldn't be true…there was no way that things like this existed. I had to be dreaming, or hallucinating, maybe a weird side effect of the mineral steam from the hot spring…but certainly not this…it just wasn't…possible…
Those deep chocolate eyes, so warm, so passionate, with all the care and concern in the world…I would know those eyes anywhere. With tears glittering in my eyes, my mouth opened.
"Seth?"
Duh...duh...DUHHHHHH! Ha, so, what are your thoughts? Questions? Concerns? Who is this mysterious wild woman, and how is our poor, charming Seth going to work his way out of this mess? I love reviews...hint, hint...
