The Bear

Chapter 18 Surprise, Surprise, Surprise!

Athenodora looked out the window of the limo her mate was driving. She really didn't know what to think of the debacle that had just occurred at the Cullens' estate. Never in her existence had she considered that the Volturi could be defeated. Not only had they been defeated, but Aro and Marcus had been destroyed. It was like someone had removed the air from her lungs and she was left gasping. She studied Caius who was concentrating on the road ahead. She couldn't tell what he was thinking. What were they going to do now?

"My love, where are we going?" she asked.

"Away." He was curt. She knew this mood. He had been thwarted and he was determined to get what he wanted.

She didn't respond, just looked out the window at the impenetrable forest that bordered the road. She wanted to go home to Voltura but was hesitant to say so. Caius had a mulish look on his face, and she knew better than to suggest anything.

Suddenly, he slowed and turned onto what appeared to be a logging road.

"We are stopping?"

"Yes. I want to feed and there are humans here about. After we've eaten, we can turn our minds on what comes next."

"What will come next?" She feared his answer.

"We cannot return to Italy until those vermin have been dealt with! I will not have it any other way!"

"What vermin?"

"The Cullens, of course! They need to be eradicated. They disobeyed the Volturi Rule and they must be brought to account! I am the only one left, and therefore it falls to me to enforce the law."

"Are you sure, my love? Why can't we just leave them to their side of the world and go home?"

He turned and looked at her with utter revulsion on his face. "And leave them unpunished? Let them think they have defeated me? Never!"

Athenodora was feeling more and more anxious. She wished Caius would let it go, but knowing him, she knew he wouldn't. It wasn't his nature.

He pulled the car to a stop and said, "Let us eat, first. Then we shall plan to do what we must."

Getting out of the car, he went to help Athenodora from her seat. Impulsively, she put her arms about his neck and desperately kissed him.

After she pulled away, he held her and asked, "What was that for?"

"Just remember, my Caius, no matter what happens, you are my heart."

"And you are mine, my dear." Smiling at her, he let her go and added, "But we have business to attend to now."

They walked hand in hand up the forest path and Athenodora felt her anxiety return.

"Is it safe?" she asked.

"Of course it is safe. We are vampires after all. Humans cannot stand against us. There is one in this direction."

Letting go of her hand, Caius continued down the path. Athenodora reluctantly followed. She could smell someone up ahead, but the scent was not particularly delectable. Oh well, it was best to cater to her mate. He could make life very uncomfortable if he didn't have his way.

Up ahead there was a clearing and in the center was a completely naked man, standing with legs spread and arms akimbo. He was facing the oncoming vampires, but he didn't look afraid, in fact, he looked pretty fierce.

"What right have you to come upon Quileute land?" the unrepentant naked man demanded.

Caius coyly stepped into the clearing. Athenodora was a few paces behind him. She was feeling more and more uneasy the closer she got to this stark-naked creature.

Nonchalantly Caius said, "Are we on Quileute land? One tree looks just like every other, so it would be hard to tell."

"You have transgressed and now will have to pay the price," the man said, then seemed to explode into a large wolf and leaped at Caius. Abruptly, the clearing seemed to be filled with wolves intent upon destroying the two stunned vampires.

Perhaps she shouldn't have always given Caius his way. It all had led to tears or worse, hadn't it?

Looking around at the gathered tribe, I opened Leah's letter and cleared my throat. I had a terrible foreboding of what it would contain.

My Dear Quileute Family,

Long years ago, the Creator laughed and from His laughter the Quileute were born. We, His treasured children, have been content to live in our homeland ever since, at one with the earth, sky, and sea.

The good Creator, seeing that we needed a living guide, sent The Bear, our first Walalo, who provided wisdom, guidance, and protection from what would harm us. Eventually, all things must end, and so our first Walalo ended but not without leaving a Quileute woman in its place as promised by the Creator.

And it has been ever since; and so, it is now.

In the course of my long life, I have had many sincere conversations with the Creator. I have continued to be awestruck and sometimes discomfited by His sense of humor and His repeated lesson that it is better to be humble and have faith than to be prideful and have none. The coming demise of the Volturi illustrates the consequences of this error quite well. They destroyed themselves solely by their pride. We will be there to simply to point it out to them.

I realized that this letter must have been written before I had even met Leah in person. So, she had known she would die and the events that would lead to it. It gave me the shivers.

At this point I will tell you I have been discomfited myself by the Creator's sense of humor in the matter of my successor, the next Walalo. Years passed and He gave me no hint of whom she would be; even though I had pled with Him as I aged, to no avail. I would peer into the faces of baby girls in expectation of hearing the deep chime of recognition, but it never came.

That is, it never came until I met Charles Swan.

My eyes widened. My father had played a role here? What did this mean?

Sometimes the Creator will indicate the lineage of the next Walalo, but this surprised me. The Walalo must be Quileute and Charles Swan was not. So, deciding that I was wiser than the Creator, I tried to become Walalo, the Matchmaker. Needless to say, I failed spectacularly.

Over time, Charles Swan became as son to the Quileute, but he still did not have the blood line needed for a Walalo. I looked about me in the tribe and tried to select a suitable bride for Charlie, so that they could produce my heir. Before I could craftily throw likely candidates in the poor man's way, he unexpectedly came home with his own bride; who was not, by the way, a Quileute.

I remember very well returning to my cabin in bafflement when I realized that my schemes had failed. So, I talked once more to the Creator and He laughed. Why I was so sure that Charles Swan did not have Quileute blood? So, I did some research—which the old aunties call prying. I discovered that Ephraim Black and Charles Swan's grandmother had had a secret relationship—due to her being married to Harold Swan at the time—and Charlie's father was the result. Therefore, Charles Swan, on his own merit, was a Quileute.

Soon after, I heard that Renee and Charlie Swan had had a baby girl, Isabella. Excitedly, I went to greet the new baby and those deep, harmonic peals that announced the new Walalo were loud and strong and rang a chord in my soul for a full mile before I entered the Swan household. Later that day, I went back to my cabin, thankful and happy that the Creator had finally blessed our tribe. I began to consider the means to take baby Isabella under my wing so that I could raise her to be the Guardian our tribe needed.

I stopped and looked up from the letter. The tribe was utterly still, hanging onto every word that I read. They were surprised and as baffled as I was. I looked at Harry Clearwater and he nodded his head, encouraging me to continue. I cleared my voice and began to read again.

Would you be surprised to know that I, Leah Clearwater, was being prideful again? I was. I hadn't yet learned my lesson, and so the Creator laughed once more and the very next day Renee Swan took Baby Isabella away, well beyond my influence.

I had finally learned my lesson. I would continue to do my duty and trust in the Creator's wise mellifluence for the rest of my existence. Meanwhile, I'd prepare for the next Walalo as best I could. I wasn't sure when she'd return to our home, but I knew she would. This is called faith and was what the Creator wished me to have all along.

Some few years later, the visions came to me and I realized that the Quileute were going to become major figures in the world at large and we would need all our skill and wisdom to survive it. Charlie Swan was killed before I could protect him. I regret that, but perhaps that is what the Creator had intended because, with Charlie's death, Edward Cullen and Isabella Swan returned to Forks at the same time, an extremely important happenstance. Theirs is a match that was meant to be: soulmates, imprints, heart's desire, kindred spirits—what have you. They are better together than apart. That means our new Walalo, if she chooses to take this mantle, will be better with her mate than without him. We would never have a Walalo so strong.

I can hear your questions now. Isabella is Quileute, but now she is also a Vampire, the mortal enemy of our people. How could she be Walalo?

First, the Vampire clan Bella belongs to—the Cullens—has never been, nor will they ever be our enemy. The Creator has revealed to me that it was necessary for Isabella to transform to a vampire. Her talent became manifest after her change and we will have need of it in the future. She wouldn't have been as strong in her original form.

The second has to do with our own nature. When our tribe is not confronted with vampires, the warriors do not know their wolfish natures. Over time, without the presence of vampires, the fact we have this ability to transform into these incredible beings becomes an old wives' tale instead of general knowledge. Then, when a vampire comes among us again, that nature is triggered causing all sorts of problems—shock, fear, destruction, and impulsiveness—incidences that could be avoided if our warrior wolves were a constant among us. Having Isabella and her mate with us would keep our strength at the forefront and we will be able to avoid the problems ignorance has created in the past.

The third reason for Isabella's selection is the fact that unless she falls prey to accident, she will live forever and be your Walalo until the sun rises no more. Having the same Walalo will always be a benefit to our tribe. It takes decades to learn how to manage one's Walalo-ness and the longer a Walalo exists, the more honed her talents become. Having one that will exist forever will benefit our tribe more than can be imagined.

But ultimately, there is only one decision to be made. The Creator gave his people an amazing gift—that of free will. Isabella Cullen has the ability to become our next Walalo, but she has to decide if that is what she wishes to be. This is not a decision she should make lightly and without more information than she has now. I ask, my Quileute brothers and sisters, that you give her and her mate three days to digest the information that I have left in my cottage, and then allow her to return here to either complete the rituals and become our next Walalo, or refuse the position.

If she refuses the position, the Creator has decided that perhaps it is time for the Quileute to step out of the magical and into the practical world. He has many tribes and clans who live on that side of reality and they prosper. We could learn to do the same.

I leave you, my people, with a heart filled with love and laughter. For many years, I have longed to begin my great journey and I hope you are happy for me now that I can finally go on it. I know that whatever comes, the Creator will always bless you, but you must always remember to have faith and a good measure of humility.

Leah Clearwater

I finished reading and looked up at the silent crowd around me. I folded the letter and handed it to Harry, thinking that this document is something he and the other elders should ponder and discuss without me here to hear them.

Harry held the letter in his hands, then looked at Edward and me. "What do you wish to do?"

"I don't know enough to know," I said.

He nodded. "I think, perhaps you should at least do as Auntie suggested and go to her island. It is the only way you can obtain the information you need."

"I do have one question, Harry."

"Yes?"

"If I should choose to become the Walalo, would you all accept me?"

Grimacing, he repeated what I had said, "I don't know enough to know."

"Well, I guess that only leaves us one thing to do."

"What's that?"

"Learn enough to know what we should do."