A/N: So obviously, this chapter will introduce my version of the pack. I have sort of combined some of the gender-swapped members from Life And Death along with some of the originally gendered wolves. Obviously, who's who will become very clear very quickly. Enjoy!
(Twilight belongs to Stephenie Meyer, I'm just borrowing it for nefarious purposes.)
Chapter 9 - Legends
That night, I again dreamt of Victoria. In my dreams, her features had become much more defined and specific to her. It helped that I had actually gotten a closer look at her, I suppose, however terrifying that closer look may have been. I still can't tell how prophetic these dreams are, but I suppose they must have something to them. That didn't mean I liked them, though. I really wished I could go back to dreaming about Rosalie, to dream about kissing her, being with her, anything but these grim visions of death. I knew Rosalie and I weren't exactly close, but the idea of her comforted me, no matter how much it seemed to cause the hole in my chest to pulse with an empty chill.
The night passed slowly, but before I knew it, I was waking up, and heading off to visit La Push, with Charlie.
xXx
"So, who's going to be there, again?" I asked Charlie, as we pulled up to the small house.
"Well, Holly Clearwater and Bonnie Black, obviously, along with Holly's kids, Seth and Leah. You remember, Leah, right?"
"A little bit," I said, trying to conjure up a fuzz memory of a very pretty girl from my childhood. "I doubt she'll remember me. And is that it?"
"Bonnie's also bringing Jacob over, I think. He's changed a lot since you last saw him." He gave me a conspiratorial wink, and I rolled my eyes at him as I stepped out of the car, and walked towards the house.
Once I was inside, Charlie made a point of introducing me to everyone, and I had to fight to keep from blushing under the scrutiny of these sort-of strangers. Bonnie and Holly were both older than I remembered them being, while Seth was definitely different. I had only fuzzy memories of him, but I knew that used on his age there's no way he could be as tall as he was now. To my knowledge, he was barely 14, and 14 year-olds are hardly ever 6 feet. I noticed Leah wasn't inside, and Holly said she was sitting out on the porch, but that we shouldn't bother her. After this confusing exchange, I looked over at the boy Charlie had indicated as Jacob Black, and attempted a small smile. This was not the small child I remembered. Jacob was even taller than Seth, and he seemed to be impossibly muscular. His hair was cropped much shorter than I expected, and he had a very large, unusual tattoo on his right bicep. As I took in his appearance, I noticed that he was staring at me intently, as though he was almost waiting for something happen. I attempted to shrug it off, but he seemed to keep watching me, like he was undergoing an internal debate. As everyone else sat down in the living room to watch some sports game, I slipped away and headed into the kitchen, determined to avoid his eyes. Unfortunately, I was not so lucky.
"Hi Bella - I'm sure you probably don't remember me, but I definitely remember you." I turned, and saw Jacob leaning against the refrigerator, his face now contorted into what was clearly his attempt at a flirtatious smile.
"Yeah, sorry - I sort of do, but not really. I think I remember your sisters and Leah more clearly." He grimaced slightly at this, but shrugged it off quickly.
"Yeah, my sisters would be closer to your age, I guess. You definitely look different, anyway." He smiled.
"Yeah, you do too - when did you get so tall?" I asked, attempting to be polite.
"Eh, I'm not so tall - you should see a couple other guys on the rez. Lots of us are tall here." He smirked, as though he knew something I didn't, and I had to stop myself from rolling my eyes.
"Yeah, I guess - I don't come down here much, so I guess I wouldn't have noticed. Haven't had the time." I turned away, desperately hoping he'd leave the room, but he continued talking, moving closer to me in the process.
"So, how are you liking Forks? Miss the sunlight in Phoenix?"
"Yeah, you could say that. I've managed to put myself in the hospital twice already, and it's only been two weeks." Jacob laughed at that, and I attempted to laugh in response.
"Yeah, Charlie has always said you were still as klutzy as you were when you were little, but I didn't believe it."
"To be fair, only the first time I was in the hospital was out of clumsiness, the second time was much closer to a near death experience - I was almost crushed by a van. No damage, but it was still freaky. Thank God for Doctor Cullen, I guess." At this Jacob grew very stiff, and his smile vanished.
"Doctor Cullen? He's the one who saw you?"
"Uh, yeah. He is." Jacob looked deeply agitated by this, and I was puzzled. "It's not that unusual, Jacob; he's the best doctor at that hospital, and his daughter was the one saved me from the van, anyways."
"His daughter saved you?" sneered Jake, snorting derisively, as though he didn't believe it.
"Uh, yeah - Rose…I mean his daughter, she pulled me out of the way at the last second. I over her my life, I guess." Jacob was shaking slightly now, and I was beginning to become very confused. What was his problem with the Cullens?
"Um, Jake," I asked, hoping to interrupt his shaking. "Are you alright?" Jacob took a few deep breaths, and nodded, relaxing himself.
"Yeah, just…you really should stay away from the Cullens, Bella." Seriously? Now he's giving me orders?
"Why? They're…nice. To me." I said, trying to keep the annoyance out of my voice. Jacob let out a humorless laugh, and shook his head.
"Sure they are. Listen, Bella, just trust me on this - the Cullen's aren't safe to be around."
"And just how would you know that," I replied, beginning to get really annoyed.
"I just do," he replied, arrogantly.
"I think I need some air," I said, before exiting the house through the kitchen door. I thought I heard Jacob call after me, but I didn't look back, as I wandered around the outside of the house, looking for an escape. When Alice said La Push would have answers, I was hoping for something more concrete and less vague and confusing. So far, all I had gotten was a warning from a creepy teenage boy, which doesn't exactly solve the mystery of "What the fuck are the Cullens, exactly?" All it does is confuse me further.
I arrived at the small porch attached to the Clearwater house, and paused. Sitting there was a very beautiful native girl, who I assumed had to be Leah Clearwater. She looked like a much younger, taller version of her mother. Her hair was black, and flowed down to the middle of her back, and lips were extremely plump and pink. She was staring off into space, with a look of bitter anger tracing her features. I wondered what that was about, but I decided not to ask. I noticed the empty chair next to her and after debating internally, I walked over and sat next to her. She looked up and gave me an annoyed look, before returning to her staring. Well, this is off to a great start. I attempted to think of a normal, subtle way to start a conversation, but came up blank. I decided to just go with the obvious thing.
"Hi, I'm Bella. Bella Swan." Leah gave me a cursory look, and nodded.
"Charlie's daughter, right." She looked away, her face still irritated. Even when she was annoyed, she really was quite beautiful. I wondered if I should try a new tactic. I thought for a moment, and decided complaint was the way to go.
"So, do you have any idea what the fuck is wrong with Jacob, or are you as clueless as I am?" I asked, hoping to break the ice. Please tell me this works. Leah stared at me for a few seconds, before thankfully throwing her head back in a very loud, very hearty laugh.
"Yeah, I don't know, either. He started hanging out with that dumb cult of Sam's, so that could be it; then again, he's always been a dick."
"Who's Sam," I asked. Leah paused; she looked at me like I had three heads, before a look of realization and relief passed over her face.
"Oh, you don't know? Thank God. I can't tell how great it is to talk to someone who isn't doing it out of pity," she sighed. When I gave her a confused look, she continued: "Don't ask, trust me. I don't wanna explain it. I'm sure someone will tell you eventually, but for now, just enjoy not knowing all the La Push gossip. Anyway, Sam is Samantha Uley; she runs around La Push with these two girls and three other guys, claiming to be 'protectors of the tribe.' It's really fucking weird."
"That sounds creepy."
"You have no idea, trust me. It's Sam, Jacob, Paul Lahote, Emma Call, Quil Ataera and Janae Cameron. I'm guessing you know none of them," she added, and I thought for a moment.
"I think I remember Quil following Jacob around when he was little, but it's a fuzzy memory. I was like 5 or 6."
"Yeah, that's probably him, they've been best friends for ages. Well, they were until Jacob joined Sam's cult. Then Jacob basically dropped Quil; he was pissed, he complained to me a lot about it. Then, a few weeks ago, he's joined the cult, and everything's fine between them again. I asked him what Sam and her gang did, and he told me I didn't understand her." Leah scowled at the last words, before a brief flash of pain appeared on her face. She shook it off quickly, and looked back to me. "So, why so interested in Jacob's creepiness?"
"Oh, he was just staring at me like a creep, and then he started asking me all these weird questions - it was really weird. I didn't understand it." Leah laughed.
"Oh, come on Bella - you have to know that Jake's had a crush on you since you both were little. I mean he was sooooo excited you were moving here. I'm surprised it took him this long to talk to you, really." I rolled my eyes and sighed.
"Well that's just great. One more guy I have to deal with - I swear, I never got this much attention in Phoenix…" I trailed off, as Leah gave me an appraising look.
"I doubt that, Bella." I blushed and reflexively looked away.
"Yeah, well…it doesn't matter, anyway. I'm not…exactly into guys." Leah continued looking at me, and gave me a small smile.
"Gotcha. So Jake really has no chance, then?" I snorted.
"Yeah, none at all. Especially not after today. He was...so creepy. The weirdest thing was when I mentioned the Cullens, and he basically freaked out on me with no explanation." Leah scoffed and nodded in understanding.
"Yeah, Sam and her cult must take those old tribal legends seriously. Ugh, what idiots." This struck something in my brain - legends? Could this be the thing Alice was referring to? I mean, I suppose it's not likely that the Quileutes would know anything, but it couldn't really hurt to ask. Could it?
"Just stop wondering and ask already." Okay, instincts, take it down a notch.
"What legends?" Leah looked it me for a moment, and rolled her eyes.
"Oh, just these dumb stories they tell us when we're kids. They're meant to be secret to the tribe, so we're not supposed to tell anyone, especially someone like you, an 'outsider,'" Leah snickered. "But I'm sure you won't tell anyone."
"I won't, I promise," I responded, a bit too eagerly.
"Oh, calm down, they're really not that exciting. Basically the old legends of our tribe says we're descended from wolves, and some of us have the power to turn into wolves, to protect us from our natural enemy."
"The Quileutes have a natural enemy?" I asked, smirking.
"Just one - the cold ones," said Leah, in a faux ominous tone. "Blood drinkers - what you would call vampires, I guess. They're supposed to have pale skin and red eyes, and only the wolves can kill them, for some reason. I'd say you can't make this shit up, but…" she trailed off, laughing. I didn't laugh. Vampires….vampires? Vampires. Victoria is a vampire. No, that can't be possible. This…makes no sense. I…it can't be true. But…is there any other explanation, really? Is this really so outlandish that it's unbelievable?
"It's not." So, the Cullens are vampires. I have a crush on Rosalie Hale, who is a vampire. Well, this is fucking fantastic, isn't it. It was at this moment I realized Leah was looking at me, confusion on her face; I must have been thinking quietly for longer than I thought. I attempted to calm and stabilize my expression.
"Um…yeah, I don't know how to properly respond to that," I replied, attempting to smile. Leah snorted.
"Yeah, it's pretty stupid, isn't it?"
"Wait, so what does this have to do with the Cullens," I asked. I realized they hadn't come up yet.
"Oh, according to the legends, the Cullens originally moved to town many years ago, and the wolves tried to kill them, but stopped when they realized they weren't like the other Cold Ones. Apparently, they had gold eyes, and only fed from animals, so our tribe formed a treaty with them, agreeing not to kill them as long as they stayed off our land."
"Wow, yeah, that's really dumb," I replied, attempting to joke.
"Yeah, tell me about it; apparently some of the tribal elders refuse to go to Forks Hospital anymore because its where the doctor Cullen works. It's really ridiculous - like they think Dr. Fang is gonna suck their blood." I gave a fake laugh, and hoped she didn't notice my uneasiness. "You know, you're a lot more entertaining than I expected; you should really come down to the rez more often."
"That's what Charlie keeps saying, but I've been ignoring him; maybe I won't in the future." This was actually true, and I gave Leah a genuine smile, which she returned. Leah seemed nice enough, if a bit abrasive, and I could very easily see myself being friends with her. I really hope she doesn't think I was just using her for information. Okay, so maybe I was, but I also did actually like her.
The rest of the day passed with me and Leah chatting more, while Charlie grinned at us through the window. When we left, Leah surprised me and pulled me into a slightly awkward hug, but I returned it easily.
As Charlie and I were driving up from the reservation, he kept giving me curious looks, but I attempted not to notice him. Eventually he asked me a question.
"So, you and Leah got along all right?"
"Uh, yeah, we did. She's really great. I mean she's a bit abrasive and standoffish, but she's quite lovely, underneath that." Charlie gave me a curious smile, and then sighed.
"Yeah, poor girl. She's been through a lot." What? Charlie saw my confusion, and continued. "She was dating this girl, Samantha Uley, in high school. They were apparently planning on getting married once the state legalized it, but then all of sudden, Sam dumped her and started dating her cousin, Elliott. No real explanation for that one. Holly and her husband are very worried about her - she still seems really hurt by it. They seemed relieved that she was talking to you. She's not much of a talker, apparently." So that's what Leah was referring too; I can see why having your high school girlfriend leave you for some guy would be difficult for anyone. It would also suck having that guy be your cousin, and for everyone to know about it.
"She did seem a bit off at first, but she relaxed eventually. I liked her." Charlie gave me another curious smile and turned back to the road.
"Yeah, it seemed that way. She's a nice girl. And what did you think of Jacob?" he asked, not looking at me.
"He was...friendly." Charlie snorted, and I fought the urge to laugh. "I don't remember him all that well, but from what I do remember, he's certainly different now."
"You can say that again," sighed Charlie. "He seems to be running around with that weird group of kids down at La Push. They don't ever seem to get into trouble, but it still makes me uncomfortable; they act more like a gang than seems safe. I asked Bonnie how she felt about it, but she told me not to worry." I sighed, and looked out the window, my thoughts drifting to what Leah said about their gang; Jacob definitely seemed to know something about the Cullens, even if he was hesitant to reveal what that something was. And it obviously related to Samantha Uley's gang; I just couldn't figure out what the connection was.
I switched my thoughts from Leah and Sam and Jacob and gangs, to thinking about what Leah had told me today, and what it meant. So, to recap, The Cullens are vampires. To be clear, they are not just vampires, but they are in fact "different vampires" who drink animal blood. For some reason, these vampires they are protecting me from another vampire named Victoria, who has a more…"traditional" vampire diet. What am I supposed to do with this information? I suppose I did feel better now the truth about everything, but it also made me even more terrified. A dangerous vampire is apparently obsessed enough with killing me and drinking my blood that I need protection from her. Oh, and to top it all off, I have a bizarre attraction to a blonde vampire, that for some reason has caused a hole to open up in my chest inexplicably.
After cycling through all this information, one thing was clear: I needed to talk to Alice.
