Le Cirque De Wolf.
Chapter Ten: Round One, The Highwire.
It seemed like years when I finally began to stir the next day, and honestly with the amount of junk food as well as coke along with how late I stayed up with my mother I was surprised it hadn't been years. By the time I did wake up though the sunlight was pouring in through the windows in my bedroom. I had definately had one of the best times of my life last night. It had been so much fun and honestly I had forgotten just how awesome a mother my mother was. Groaning, I stretched out on my bed for a minute or so before slowly sitting up. I had definately missed my bed since I had been away. Sure, it was easy enough to sleep on the forest floor or a cage's floor in wolf form but at the end of the day I was part human too and had missed the double bed I had at home. Beneath me right now.
"Augusta! I think you should see this."
I heard my mother's voice call up the stairs. She had quite the loud authoritarian voice when she wanted it to be. Jumping out of bed I put a black and red leopard print dressing gown over my simple black baggy pajama trousers & short sleeved t-shirt set, padding barefoot down the stairs and to the kitchen which was located at the back of the house. I briefly noticed breakfast had been prepared but not cooked, and my mother was stood infront of the sink staring out at the back garden towards the forest line. Frowning, I slowly padded over to the back door and pushed it open. What I saw caused me to freeze where I stood.
There in our back garden halfway between the house and the forest line laid two large bucks. Fresh and neat kills too. Clearly done by a large predator from the large bite marks on the necks. Also, in the forest line stood two huge wolves shifting from paw to paw and whining as they waited for their female's verdict.
I groaned in annoyance, rubbing my forehead as I glanced over my shoulder to look at my mother.
"Did they do this whilst I wasn't here?"
I couldn't help it. I had to know, and this was strange behaviour.
"No sweetie. They came by sometimes to help clean or do DIY, but nothing like this. I think they're taking a note out of the animal kingdom's book and trying to gain your favour by showing how well they can provide for you. You remember how our cat, Saffie, used to bring us dead mice or birds?"
She responded, causing me to blush despite how much I tried to control my reaction. My gaze fell back on the bucks as I sighed. What was I going to do with them? I couldn't let the pair rot, but I also knew that we wouldn't be able to eat all that. Okay, so maybe I could in wolf form but as a human I hated venison, and unless I was going to forsake my human form again it just wouldn't be realistic for me to keep these two. Thats not even including whatever animal courtship rituals I could accept by unknowingly taking the bucks.
Fortunately I was saved having to making a decision infront of the boys by a howl made in the distance. The pair of wolves were briefly hesitant to go but after a few seconds and growling they shot off into the dark depths of the forest, leaving my mother and I no more visuals of them.
To my surprise though I found this instinct of needing to go to where the howl had come from as well. It must have showed in the way I shifted from foot to foot as next thing I knew my mother spoke up...
"Go. I understand. Just... just come back this time okay?"
I glanced at her with understanding, sadness, and guilt before giving a firm nod. I may not agree to being a part of the La Push Pack but I was a Spirit Warrior first and foremost, thus despite being a rogue for all intents and purposes, protecting humans from the Cold Ones was still my duty. Against what I was sure my better judgement I stripped off my clothing just outside the backdoor, leaving them on a pile on the cold patio before I phased.
It felt odd to be in my wolf form again only to have conscious human thought. I could feel the wolf, it was still strong and I suspected stronger in presence then the others, but I wasn't loosing myself to it. It was a very odd feeling.
My paws hit the ground as I sprinted into the forest, constantly telling myself I was part of no pack in the back of my mind, and tracked down the other wolves of La Push.
It was strangely peaceful as I pushed past leaves and bark, leaping over fallen trees and bushes, until finally I found the focal point to the chaos. It was a trio of red eyed vampires, and the entire pack was there trying to pull them apart. What made me hesitate joining in the fray though was that girl... The one who had caused Jacob to spurn me. Bella Swan. Instinct flared in me to rip apart the threat to my mate Jacob, and it took every inch of humanity I had to keep myself stood still. Every muscle I had flexed, growls rumbled in my throat, and my eyes burned with the desire to take out my rival. I knew I shouldn't. That it wasn't right but damn it she was right there. No one would notice until the vampires were dead or gone and the battle was over.
It wasn't long before Bella caught sight of me, and at first she seemed relieved but then fear seeped into her scent as she realised how close I was to pouncing on her. The last straw was when the single female vampire in the trio was thrown away by Jacob when she had tried to put a hand on Bella. Rationally, I knew he was only doing his duty to protect human life, but it was just too much for my instincts to handle and before I even knew what I was doing I was running towards her.
With jaws parted, teeth bared, and claws sharp I leapt at her with all the ferocity my kind possessed. I could almost feel my claws tear into her weak skin when something equally as hard as I slammed into my side sending me flying away from my rival. My body slammed into the ground, skidding a fair distance before I finally came to a halt. Roaring my displeasure I leapt up onto all four paws and turned to look at my competitor.
It was when I looked at him I found my humanity begin to increase a little. He was clearly beaten up badly but despite all this he had taken me on, even though he knew I could easily tear him apart. Brady. I exhaled deeply, closing my eyes as I fought to regain my composure again. The understanding and disappointment in his eyes was a real wake up call. It didn't help my situation however. My eyes opened as I suddenly realised it was silent around us which could only mean the battle was over. The sight I saw confirmed this fact since the vampires were gone, one burnt but the other two escaped it looked like, and the wolves were now all looking at me. Bella was stood behind them shaking, looking at me in fear. My animal loved that, but me... I wasn't so sure.
In that moment I remembered the Highwire act from the Circus which used to take place before I was forced out to circle the arena. I felt like I was on that Highwire in this moment treading a fine line between protector and monster. Instinct may tell me to get rid of my rival Bella Swan, and god I didn't know if my heart could take it if Jacob and Paul chose her over me again, but I wasn't a bad person nor was I a murderer. I was a good person with a large, pure heart, and even if I only hurt Bella it would still make me the monster like the Cold Ones are. I was built to protect her. She could be a weak manipulative tease all she wanted but at the end of the day if I hurt her I would be the monster and would carry the stains on my soul. Besides, my mother would never forgive me, and even if any of the pack understood I doubt they'd forgive me either. Not just because it was 'Oh-come-and-kill-me-vampire-girl' Bella Swan, but because I would have hurt something I was built to protect.
Damn it. I thought before letting my legs buckle under me, my belly landing on the ground with a thud before I let out a whine, closing my eyes as I laid my large head on my paws. Why did it always feel like good girls like me always ended up being walked all over? Bella had barely had to do anything - just play the pathetic damsel in distress card when her vampire boyfriend left her and others started to hunt her, and she had two males fighting over her. Sure, Edward Cullen wasn't even attractive in my opinion although others said he was, but seriously, what did Bella have that I didn't? Were people so superficial that they'd choose Bella who was thin, over me who used to be slightly overweight and still wasn't the anorexic type thin Bella and other desireable females were? I really did hate modern times so much. In the past, centuries ago, it was the generously sized females that had been desireable. After all the weight showed they were well looked after, as well as should any illness befall on them they would have more of a chance to outlast it even if they could not eat for a while, and well, generously sized women would often have perfect child-bearing hips which in the end was what every male wanted. Now it was the fashion to be as thin as a twig, so underweight that a man's hand could circle the entire span of the waist or back. No wonder there were so many pedophiles out there. Most of those women could fit into kid's clothing (unless they stood over five foot which wasn't fashionable either apparently) with ease.
Either way, I lost. Damn you Bella Swan.
Opening my eyes, I saw Bella stumble towards Jacob. I had to stifle a snarl at the sight, digging my claws deep into the soil as I did my best to ignore what instinct told me to do. I had to keep chanting 'they are mine' over and over to keep myself where I was. Of course whilst doing that I had to try my best to forget that they weren't mine, and that I clearly wasn't good enough for either of them. I watched as the russet wolf turned his large head towards her, his ears pricking briefly before a low growl from a bulky silver wolf caused Jacob to turn his head away from Bella. The two wolves met each others gaze before as one they began to walk towards me. Or at least it looked like they were walking towards me. I barely noticed a sandy wolf go up towards Bella as I turned my head to look behind me to see if anyone was there. Nope. No one there so they must be coming towards me... Right? I thought as I turned my head back round to face them. God they are so much bigger then me! I groaned mentally, flicking my ears back as I whimpered, whilst my tail tried to dig itself between my legs and under my belly.
Perhaps this was a good time to run...
Author's Note: Happy Valentines day! Hopefully this chapter is just as enjoyable as any valentines plans you have going today and if you have none - well, its a good side dish to the pancakes we had on Pancake Day earlier this week. Enjoy! Thankyou all so much for the reviews. They make my day.