The Mating Dance

by Xavier2163

AU Edward Cullen and his adoptive family moved to Forks to start a new life, but Edward’s life suddenly changes when he’s drawn into Bella Swan’s strange and dangerous world. Vampires mate for life, but what happens when that mate is human? OOC Lemons ExB

7. Revelations - part 1 A Day at the Beach

Disclaimer: Written under the derivative fan works act. All rights reserved to the original creator, Stephanie Meyer.

Title: The Mating Dance

Rating: M for sexual situations, lemons, and hot, steamy, angsty vampire lovin', underage drinking, smoking, drug use and overall bad behavior.

Premise: Alternate Universe. Edward Cullen and his adoptive family have moved to Forks to start a new life, but Edward's life suddenly changes when he's drawn into Bella Swan's strange and dangerous world. Vampires mate for life, but what happens when that mate is human?

Alternate Universe: Canon pairings eventually, pretty much OOC, ExB of course.

POV: EPOV (Edward), Edward's turn to continue the story. Alice will be back later on and maybe Bella, too.

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Author Notes:

Please note that this story is rated M for a reason, if you'd prefer not to deal with mature themes, please do not read this story.

This chapter ended up being 41 pages long, and over 25,000 words, so I broke it in half to make it easier to get through. This is part 1; part 2 will be up soon.

Please review and tell me what you think.

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Chapter 7 Revelations – Part 1 A Day at the Beach

The rest of the day on Wednesday after lunch was pretty much a bad day and I was happy to put it behind me. I went to AP Chemistry after lunch, and just like Alice had said, Bella didn't show up for class. We sat through US Government together, and I could tell that Alice was devastated that Jasper was gone, but she looked like she was in physical pain too. I wanted to ask her about it, but the timing was wrong. We went off to our practices, but it wasn't a good day for either of us

Coach Newhouse took me aside at the beginning of cross country practice, and asked if I was ok. I gave her the note from Dr. Gerandy, and she brightened up and said she'd put it in my file. Katy and Michaela were back in school, after spending the morning at the hospital, but they ignored me at cross country practice. We went for our run, and I let myself relax. I didn't think about Katy, but no matter how hard I tried, I could still feel the absence of Bella from the dull ache in my chest. I got back to school, and Coach Newhouse reminded us about the meet tomorrow and then the school day was over.

I waited for Alice to finish cheerleading practice, but from what I could tell, it didn't look like the girls hearts were in it today. Tyler was in the hospital and Lauren had gone home for the day after she was released. Bella had disappeared, I didn't know what excuse she had given, if any and Alice was devastated because of the disappearance and apparent betrayal by Jasper. It was like Alice was just going through the motions and trying to be strong for the people around her, but I could see the pain in her eyes when she didn't think anyone was looking.

I rode the Harley back home and parked it in the garage, and Alice followed me in the Volvo. I looked at the frame on the bike, where Bella had grabbed it to yank it out of the way, and I knew I hadn't imagined it. There were finger marks in the steel tube where her hand had gripped the frame of the bike, and I wondered just how strong she really was. I thought about the other unexplained things that had confused me about her. The broken board under Katy's window, where she had punched the wall but hadn't broken her hand, the door at the party last Saturday night, where the wood was squeezed so tight it cracked and splintered. These started to make sense in light of what I'd seen today.

Alice and I walked into the house, and we went upstairs to our rooms. I set my school bag on my desk, and then lay down on the bed to contemplate the reality of the things I had seen. So Bella was super strong and super fast, but how and why? That was all some kind of comic book crap that was made up for movies, right? But I'd seen it with my own eyes, and I was alive right now because of her. I was laying there brooding about this, when something Jasper said at the party last Saturday popped into my head and suddenly seemed significant.

Something he'd said that hadn't seemed important to me at the time. It was when I was walking on the trail, and I had stumbled upon Bella and Jasper talking, and for some strange reason, they didn't know I was there and kept talking while I eavesdropped on their conversation. Jasper had said, 'that much liquor would knock any one of those humans on their ass'. So what, they weren't human? Then what were they?

Bella had told me that if I was with her, then I'd be like her, so that implied that somehow I could become not human like her. That cut down the possibilities a little. I had to assume they weren't some weird space aliens if I could turn into whatever she was, but that didn't entirely rule out the pod people option. So I was guessing that they weren't 'strange visitors from a distant planet'. What did that leave, science experiment gone wrong, or maybe right? Obviously she had a secret that she was hiding, and she said people would come to shut me up if they found out I knew too much, but what people? The government? Some secret lab or hush hush mega-corporation? The military? There were just too many options, and I needed to narrow down the search. I needed to talk to Alice.

I got up and walked across the hall to knock on Alice's door. I was about to knock, but I realized I could hear her in the room, and it sounded like she was crying. Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to bring up Jasper and Bella right now. I was about to turn away and go back into my room, when the door opened. Alice was standing in the doorway, looking up at me. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying, but she looked a little calmer.

"Thank you for wanting to give me some time to deal with this, Edward," Alice said. How did she always know

"Did you want anything for dinner, Alice? I was thinking about heading out to the drive-in later, want to go with me?"

"No, I'm staying in tonight, but you'll find what you're looking for. We'll talk on Saturday, it'll be easier then."

"He'll be back, Alice."

"I know, I've seen it, but it won't get better right away."

"You know more than you're telling me."

"Of course, but if I told you everything I know, it would effect your decision."

"What are they, Alice?"

"I don't know, that wasn't important to me, but if it is to you, then we'll find out."

"On Saturday?"

"Just go to the drive-in. I think we're going to the beach on Saturday, just say yes, ok?"

"Yes," I said with a grin.

"Not to me, you goof ball! Now go get something to eat."

I nodded and Alice closed her door. I went back to my room, grabbed my things to go shower, and then went down the hall to the bathroom to cleanup. I went back to my room to get dressed after my shower. Then I went downstairs to leave. I got out to the garage, and I decided to take the Volvo tonight. I'd gotten lucky on the Harley this morning because Bella was there to save my ass, but I didn't feel like pressing my luck again tonight.

I drove down to Sully's, and the parking lot seemed strangely empty without Tyler's van, Bella's Charger, and Jasper's Ducati. I parked the Volvo, and got out. I walked over to the table by my friends to say hi. Katy and Michaela were here tonight, but they were over sitting at a table with Tanner and Dean and Brittany. I know Katy saw me when I got there, but now she had her head turned away, and refused to acknowledge my presence.

"He's Alive!" Mike intoned, doing a bad impression of Boris Karloff from a Hollywood B movie. "Yo, Edward, dude! You gave us all a scare this morning. You've got some mad skills on that bike, man! I thought you were road kill for sure, when Tyler lost it."

"Yeah… I just got lucky, I guess"

"How did Bella get to you so fast?" Jessica asked. "I could have sworn she was getting out of her car, but the next thing you know, she was right there with you."

"You must have looked away, Jess. Bella was right by that pickup, when I swerved out of the way…"

"Hmm, I guess so… It all happened so fast. I glad you're alright, Edward."

I sat down at the table, and ordered a burger, fries and a Pepsi for dinner, and then I turned to Jessica.

"So, Jess, how is Tyler doing? When they released me from the hospital, they said they were keeping him overnight for observation. Is he ok?"

"Yeah, he's got a concussion, and he needed stitches to close the cut on his forehead. They wanted to keep him overnight, in case his brain started to swell, but if he doesn't have any complications, they'll release him tomorrow."

"So, what's up with Bella and Jasper? Bella wasn't in AP Chemistry today, and Alice said Bella didn't show up for cheerleading practice either."

"Yeah, I thought it was kind of funny, how they just disappeared, but Rich Dahlke called my mom afterschool today. He said something had come up in the custody arrangements. He didn't give her a lot of details, but there was something about a previously unknown relative coming forward, and they had to go to Seattle for paperwork and some hearings and stuff.

"So when are they supposed to be back then?"

"They might not be coming back, Edward. If they found some of Bella or Jasper's family, they might go to live with them. They probably wouldn't go together and they might find the other a new foster home."

"Cool, how do I become a foster parent? Bella can come live with me," Eric Yorkie chimed in.

"With your luck, they'd send Jasper back to share a room with you! That's a bit more your speed, isn't it, Eric?" Ben teased him

Eric turned red, and we had a laugh at his expense, but he shrugged it off and knew we were just teasing. I was pretty sure Eric liked girls. I'd seen the way he looked at Bella, and even Katy and Jessica. He was just shy, and fell over himself when he was around girls. He was more comfortable around technology, computers, and his sound mixing equipment. He'd probably make a name for himself in the clubs as a DJ, or make it big in the recording industry. Then all of these people would be saying remember when… as they sat around complaining about their crappy lives.

My food came, and I ate as I chatted with my friends and the evening was enjoyable. The night was getting late, when an unfamiliar car pulled into the lot. Something about it seemed to make me think I'd seen it somewhere, but I didn't remember seeing it anywhere in town before. It was a red Volkswagen Rabbit, and it pulled in next to the Volvo and parked.

The doors opened, and I was surprised to see Jacob Black get out of the driver door. Quil Ateara got out of the passenger seat, and Embry Caul got out of the backseat. Now I remembered where I'd seen the Rabbit before, it was Jacob's project car. He'd been working on restoring it forever, but the last time I'd seen it, it was half taken apart in the garage behind his house in La Push and was four different colors.

I was expecting Jacob to come over to me, and I wondered what brought on this visit. Jacob usually called me and I went to see him. He rarely showed up in town for purely social calls. A lot of the kids here were scared of him, because they knew he ran with Sam Uley's crew, and they had a reputation as thugs and tough guys here in Forks. I was surprised when he went over to Eric Yorkie, but they were both smiling, and Jacob shook his hand and slapped him on the back. They talked for a couple of minutes, seemed to come to an agreement, and shook hands again. Jacob and his friends came over to my table then, and sat down.

"Hey, Edward, so the rumors are wrong, you are still alive," Jacob said with a grin on his face.

"You guys heard about that? Hey, you know it'd take more than just an out of control van to take me out."

"I hear you got some mad skills on that bike, and you should have been road kill," and he winked at Jessica. She blushed, and turned away. "Must be the techniques I taught you surfing, paying off in everyday life," Jacob said as he puffed out his chest.

"Yeah, I'm sure that's it," I grinned "So what brings you guys to Forks? Got a wild urge to hang out with the palefaces?

"Yeah right, as if! You know we're too cool for Forks! No, we're throwing a party out in La Push this weekend, and Sam wanted to know if I could line up a DJ for the party. I told him I knew someone, and we came to talk to Eric. That kids gonna go places. I'm just glad he hasn't made too much of a name yet, and he's still cheap."

"That's cool. He did an awesome job last week at Jessica's party."

"Yeah, I heard about that party. Is that why you're over here alone and Katy's over making time with the football team? Heard you guy's were fighting. So, is she back on the market?"

"That's up to her. We're taking some time to get our heads in a better place. She said she needs time to think, and I agreed it was a good idea."

"Hmm, sounds like she is then." Quil and Embry looked at each other and gave a knowing nod, and then Jacob went on. "So where's this hot brunette that everyone says you're drooling over, Bella something? Might put things in perspective for me, if I could see who could give Katy Decker a run for her money."

"Bella Swan, she's not here tonight. She had to go to Seattle for some custody hearing or something. I don't know if she'll even be coming back to Forks."

"Well, that's gotta suck. You blow it with Katy for some other chick, and now she might move away? That blows man."

"Hey, don't sweat it, I have a feeling she'll be back, or I'll see her again."

"Yeah, well we need to get going. Hey, Edward, you free this Saturday? Come out to La Push for the party, ok? I told Eric to invite his friends to come, beers on us. It's a big celebration the Elders throw every year, and you're all welcome to come join in."

The mention of free beer made a lot of ears perk up. That would get the attention of this crowd.

"Free beer?" Mike Newton asked.

"Yeah, even you Newton. You ready to try that cliff diving yet, or do you need to get your balls out of your girlfriend's purse first?" Jacob said with a calculating grin.

Mike blanched at the mention of cliff diving, and we all grinned. Jessica didn't seem to think it was so funny, but then she was dating him.

"Don't worry Mike, I'll make sure you don't drown if you want to give it a try. So what time does this shindig kick off on Saturday? Don't want to miss anything exciting."

"Be there around noon if you want to see the cultural heritage parts. Barbecue starts around three, and then we party 'til we can't stand up no more! There's gonna be a bonfire, and a lot of the guys like to tell ghost stories to scare the kiddies. Don't worry Mike, Jessica will hold your hand."

Everybody laughed, and then Jacob got up to leave. "So, you coming Edward?"

"Sounds like a hell of a party, I wouldn't miss it. I'll see you Saturday. Hey, if anybody asks, what exactly are you celebrating?"

"Some treaty the Tribal Elders made a hundred years ago. It made our traditional tribal lands off limits to our ancestral enemies, and supposedly, both sides have been honoring the treaty for a hundred years now. I think it's just an excuse to sell more trinkets in the gift shop, but they're buying the beer, so who am I to complain?"

"Right, see'ya Saturday," and Jacob and his boys went and got back in the Rabbit and left.

I hung out at the drive-in until it closed. I knew it was getting close to closing time, and I was surprised when Katy came over to talk to me.

"Hi Edward, I heard what you said to Jacob. So, am I 'back on the market'? I thought you hadn't made your decision yet?"

"No, not unless that's how you want it, we both said we needed time. Look, I'm not going to make any promises, but give me at least a week, ok? I told you I wasn't going to make a snap decision."

"Alright, Edward, but I miss you already. I'm sorry I yelled at you. Can we at least be friends?"

"You'll always be my friend Katy, no matter what, as long as you want me to be your friend."

"Thanks' Edward. Will you come run with me in the morning? We have that meet in Rainier tomorrow, and I want to be ready for it."

"I don't know if we should be alone together right now, Katy. It doesn't help me think…"

"I know, I asked Michaela if she'd run with us too. I'm thinking ahead. She wants to be ready for the race tomorrow too."

"OK, I'll see you at the usual time then, but you're riding to school with Michaela, right?"

"Ok, Edward, if that's how you want it… I'll give you space."

"Thanks' Katy. I'll see'ya in the morning."

The lights at the drive-in flashed off and on, to tell us it was closing time, and we all started to leave. Katy waved goodbye, reluctantly turned away, and walked over to get in the car with Michaela to get a ride home. I got in the Volvo and drove home.

Katy wanted to makeup again, and have everything go back to the way it was, but I knew I couldn't do that, at least not yet. If Bella and Jasper really were gone for good, it might work, but Bella had said they would be back, and Alice had told me the same thing. I knew better than to bet against Alice. If I went back to Katy now, I'd still have all the same problems that had plagued me since the beginning of school. I needed to know what Bella was, so I could make a decision. If I took Katy back, then I'd have to tell Bella to go away and stay out of my life.

Bella intrigued me, but I wanted to know just exactly what I was getting myself into if I decided that I'd rather have her in my life. I had to admit, at least on the surface, what I knew about Bella and what I'd seen appealed to me. C'mon, what seventeen year old boy didn't dream about superpowers? The package was attractive, in more ways than one. Bella was totally hot, and I'd been attracted to her since the first day of school. She said that if I was with her, then I'd be like her. So far, so good, but what was the catch? There had to be a downside that I didn't know about yet. You know, you can leap tall buildings in a single bound, but sorry, your dick falls off. I wanted the whole story before I made a decision.

I got home, and I was surprised. All the lights in the house were off except for the porch light by the kitchen. I had been halfway expecting Carlisle to be waiting up to continue where we'd left off this morning, or Alice waiting for me to come in so she could ambush me with some cryptic comment that would change my life, but it looked like everybody was asleep in their beds. I went in and went up to my room and went to bed, glad to be putting this long day behind me.

I should have known better than to expect a peaceful night's sleep after the day I'd had. I was restless and tossed and turned in my bed again. I couldn't figure out what was missing, but some element seemed to be wrong with this night, and I couldn't put my finger on it. Finally, it dawned on me; I missed the sense of attraction to Bella, the tug in my stomach that was so familiar to me now. I missed the lingering scent of freesia and strawberries that calmed my nerves, and allowed me to feel contented and safe when I was able to drift off into a peaceful sleep.

I didn't want to admit just how big a part of my life Bella had already become, but the sense of loss that I felt was profound now that she was gone. I lay there as the ache in my chest brought home the fact that she wasn't there, and I wondered when I'd see her again.

When I did finally sleep, I dreamed about Bella. I saw her face in the parking lot at the school, her golden topaz eyes filled with alarm and concern for me, the pale white skin of her face and hands as she saved my life, and her flowing mahogany hair. The blur of motion as she shielded my body with her own, and her hands as they flashed to the bike and pulled me out of harms way.

I had been telling myself that it was simply a physical attraction to Bella and I was charmed by her beauty, but I was also drawn to her intellect, her keen sense of humor, her compassionate heart, and her overall captivating personality. I was attracted to the person that she was just as much as I desired the outward physical package that had first drawn me in.

I got up at four to go to Katy's house to run. I didn't need the alarm; I was already awake, staring at the clock waiting to get up at the appropriate time to go through the motion of getting out of bed. I drove to Katy's house, and Michaela was already there, but she just lived down the block, and had jogged over to Katy's house for our run. We did our stretches, and left for our run, and for the first time in weeks, I didn't feel Bella's presence as we went for our morning run.

I was morose and brooding as we ran, and even quieter than usual. Katy assumed it was because of the way she had treated me, and the fact that she had pushed me away because of Bella. My mood was due in part to Bella, but not for the reasons that Katy felt. She assumed I was depressed because I wasn't with her, but I knew it was because I was separated from Bella and couldn't feel the attraction to her, and not because I was fighting with Katy. Katy would be upset if I told her, but I kept these feelings to myself.

I made it home in time to let Alice take the Volvo to drive downtown for her aerobics class. Normally she drove with Bella but obviously she wasn't around to pick her up and take her. Alice was going to have to drive herself out to Port Angeles tonight for her martial arts class. I'd be at the cross country meet, and Carlisle had appointments at the clinic in the evening. I suppose she could ask one of her girlfriends to drive out with her if she wanted to, but Alice was pretty independent, and she'd probably be ok on her own. Carlisle and I probably worried about her more than we needed to, but she just looked like somebody who needed protecting.

Alice and I made it to school on Thursday morning without incident. It was a short school day for me, the cross country team loaded onto the bus after second period, and we left on the trip out to Rainier for the third cross country meet of the season. This trip was different from the previous trips. Katy claimed our usual spot in the back of the bus, but Michaela and Brittany sat with her. I took a seat in the front of the bus, and it was obvious to our team mates that there was a change in our relationship. Some of the guys questioned me about it. They wanted to know if we'd broken up, but I wouldn't talk about it. They could figure that one out on their own and it might make my life easier, if Katy liked one of them.

The trip to Rainier was three and a half hours, but we stopped for a lunch break and fuel for the bus that added close to an hour to the trip. Thankfully, I slept on the second half after we stopped in Aberdeen, and was rested when we got to the school for the race. I woke up when we bounced into the parking lot at the high school, and I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes as I scanned the parking lot while the bus drove back to the designated bus parking area.

I was looking for the red BMW M3 convertible that I'd seen at the last two cross country meets. I spotted it in the parking lot as we drove back to the bus parking, now I just needed to figure out how to find Emmett, if he was really here today. The only reason I'd been able to talk to him before, was because he'd wanted to come talk to me. The fact that he considered Bella family, and that he had the same eyes made me think that he was like them too. Consequentially, he most likely had the same abilities as them. I was fairly certain I wouldn't be able to find him if he didn't want to be found, if he had the same abilities as Bella and Jasper, but I needed to try.

It was a typical overcast day, although it wasn't gloomy and misting out like much of the day had been in Forks, yesterday. We went through our typical routine, setting up camp, and preparing to run. I kept an eye out as we walked the course, wondering if I'd be able to spot Emmett in the clumps of bystanders moving around the course, getting into position to watch the races. We got back to camp, and started in on stretches, and then went and gathered at the starting line for the races.

The outcome was what I expected. I won again. I didn't want to come off as smug, or condescending, but I was in a motorcycle accident yesterday. I had spent the morning in the hospital after trying to crack my head on the parking lot, and I still blew the doors off these other kids. It was just something I was good at. I was fast, and running just seemed to be something that came naturally to me, like breathing. I was calm when I ran, and it put life into perspective and let me think. I'd always thought I had a connection to Katy, because she was into running too, but I knew I had a greater connection to Bella, and I missed feeling that connection to her when I ran, even though I knew she was hiding herself from me seeing her.

After the races, we went back to camp and ran our cool downs, and then I decided I needed to take a more direct approach if I was going to have a chance to talk to Emmett today. Every other time that he'd approached me, I'd been coming out of the men's room, so I figured it was worth a shot, and I excused myself to go to the restroom.

The setup here was a little different from the previous events I had attended this year. The area where the races were being held was away from the regular school buildings, and most of the race had been run on trails through the surrounding forest. There was a row of portable toilets along the edge of the forest, instead of a traditional restroom. I picked one and took care of business, and then I strolled back into the forest behind the porta-potties.

"Emmett, are you out there?" I called out into the trees, not too loudly, but louder than a normal speaking voice.

I felt kind of stupid, standing there calling out to the trees and forest, but I was sure he'd been out there watching me all the other times, and I was pretty sure I wouldn't see him if he didn't want to be seen. I was looking around, being as observant as possible, looking for any sign that he was there watching me. I was about to give up, and go back to the race camp when suddenly I felt a cold touch on my arm. It wasn't a hand on my shoulder like I'd been expecting, but I felt a hand on my arm, and the touch was icy cold.

I was startled, despite the fact that I was out here looking for Emmett. I almost jumped at the touch, but I held it together, and turned to look. If it was one thing these guys had down, it was the stealth and suddenly appearing out of nowhere shtick. I was surprised again, it wasn't Emmett standing there close enough to lay a hand on my arm, but the stunningly beautiful woman with caramel-colored hair that I'd seen sitting next to Jasper at the football game in Sequim.

She didn't look old enough to be the parent of a teenager, but she was dressed like a lot of the other moms I'd seen here today, and she'd have probably blended into the crowd until you noticed her ethereal beauty up close. She was wearing a pair of loose black slacks with a slight flare at the bottom of the legs, a Forks cross country t-shirt under a loose yellow nylon windbreaker, sandals, and a white sun visor, despite the fact the sky was overcast and the sun had yet to break through. Her digital camera hung in front of her chest on a strap around her neck. She looked about twenty-five or twenty-six, but if she claimed more years and said one of these kids was hers, I doubted anybody would give it a second thought beyond how good she looked for her age.

She had the same features that I had come to associate with Bella and her friends, or maybe family? She had the same pale white skin like Emmett, Jasper and Bella, and she was stunningly beautiful. I had to admit, Emmett and Jasper were both extremely handsome, although I didn't check out guys as a rule, but I'd seen the effect they had on girls despite the palpable sense of danger that they seemed to exude.

Her eyes were like Jasper's and Emmett's, and I suppose Bella's as well, although Bella's were black as often as they were golden when she was around me. There was something different about her eyes, though, or at least something I hadn't seen until now. Her eyes were a darker gold, not the darkness I'd come to associate with Bella's mood or anger, but they had an orange hue shot through with flecks of red, and I wondered what this new combination signified.

"Hello, Edward," she spoke in a musical voice that reminded me of Bella. "Emmett had chores to attend to today, and couldn't come. You really shouldn't be out here in the woods by yourself like this, it isn't safe. You should stay in crowded places when you're not in Forks."

"Am I safe with you?" I asked. I could feel the danger roll off of her in waves like Jasper, but I didn't feel threatened by her for some reason. It felt like I was talking to somebody's mom, despite the very real aura of danger I could sense, and I knew she was truly worried about my safety. "I'm sorry, we haven't been introduced, I'm Edward Cullen," and I held out my hand.

"I suppose you are, safe with me that is. I see why Bella likes you," and she smiled at me. She took my hand, and her touch was icy cold, but I didn't let myself react to it. "I'm Esmeralda Platt, but please, call me Esme.

"Hi, Esme, It's nice to meet you."

"Bella is very lucky, although she seems to think all her luck is bad. So young, and to have found you right under her nose when she was least expecting it. The same thing happened to Rose. Although some of us aren't nearly as lucky as either of them."

"You're one of Bella's friends from Seattle, right? Why wouldn't I be safe here? It's just a high school cross country meet."

"Oh I'm more than just Bella's friend. I suppose you could say I'm her mother for all practical purposes. She's been like a daughter to me, ever since Rose brought her home." She smiled at me, and I could sense her affection for the girl that she considered to be her daughter. I wondered again how Bella had ended up in Forks if she had a family that loved her, but Esme went on to answer my question. "You're not safe here, Edward, because our family has a lot of enemies. If they knew you were special to Bella, they would use you to hurt us, and it wouldn't be a pleasant experience for you. You need to be more careful."

"How would anybody know that there was any kind of connection between Bella and me? She isn't even my girlfriend, although I know she'd like to be. Aren't you all putting me in more danger simply watching me? I mean, if you weren't paying attention, how would anybody know there was something to look for?"

"You're very perceptive, that's good, but there are things you don't know. You feel your connection to Bella. There are others like us that can sense that connection. Some of them aren't friends and they'd find you. Simply being around Bella and Jasper would alert some that you'd been around them, and they might become curious. That curiosity would be a bad thing for you."

"Why are you telling me all of this? It's been like pulling teeth to get any information out of Bella at all."

"Because you're intelligent and perceptive, Edward, you'll figure things out on your own soon enough. Then you'll either be with Bella, or you'll be dead. It would kill her if anything happened to you, but she isn't powerful enough to protect you when Esteban finds out how much you already know. You've been wise to be discrete about all of this, if you had told anyone, you'd be dead already."

"Bella said that she wanted me to have free will and make my own choice. She said that if I chose Katy she'd back off and stay away."

"Yes, I'm sure she probably did tell you all of that. She's a very compassionate girl, and she always puts others feelings before her own needs. As long as you were completely in the dark, that was a possibility, but she exposed herself when she saved you in the parking lot. You already know too much, and by rights our laws should have claimed your life by now. The only thing protecting you and Bella now is the connection that you share. Either she'll claim you, or she'll die defending you. You have a different choice now, Edward."

"So you're telling me I need to choose Bella or death? While I'd hardly consider her to be a fate worse than death, that's still not much of a choice."

"No, you misunderstand me. I'm not going to let anything happen to my little girl. You get to choose if you're going to accept this willingly, or if we need to take more extreme measures, but one way or the other, you'll be with my Bella. I'm sure it would be very romantic if you decided that Bella was the one you want after all, but none of the rest of us had a choice in the matter. Perhaps I'm more traditional than Esteban gives me credit for after all."

"Choose what willingly, to become like you and Bella? To want her to be my girlfriend, is that a bad thing I should avoid? What extreme measures are you talking about? And what about Alice and Jasper? Alice has been waiting for Jasper to make a move since school started, but he's hardly talked to her, even though I knew he wanted to. Then Wednesday afternoon, he just up and leaves without so much as a goodbye!"

"I'm sorry, I can't tell you anymore, but like I said, you'll probably figure things out on your own soon enough. You'll understand when you put all the pieces together. As far as Jasper is concerned, this has all been very difficult for him. He wants nothing more than to be with your sister, but he's under orders, and Jasper always follows his orders. He should be free to act soon, so you don't need to worry about Alice."

"He'll be free to act after Esteban comes back from Italy to test Bella?"

"You're not supposed to know that, but yes. He'll also be required to report to Esteban about you and Bella, and you know too much about us for him to let you live, unless you're one of us or bound by our laws."

"What about Alice, doesn't she need to make the same choice?"

"Alice has already made her choice, Edward, although she doesn't know all the details yet. She'll be with Jasper, and join our family. She's already talked to Bella about it. Apparently we're all just waiting on you."

"Bella doesn't know you're talking to me, does she."

"No, she doesn't, and she'd be very upset with me if she did. She wants you to make up your own mind and choose her because it's what you want, not because you're forced too because it's part of what we are. Unfortunately though, sometimes things don't always happen the way we'd like them too, and we just have to live in the real world. I know Bella told you to stay safe, and not to do anything stupid or reckless, but she wasn't specific enough. You really shouldn't be out in the woods by yourself, Edward. It isn't healthy for you right now."

"Anyhow, now you have something to think about. Esteban will be back next weekend, and one way or another; we'll all know how this is going to turn out once Jasper talks to him."

"So I have a week to decide then?"

"At least a week, it depends on what Esteban decides when he hears Jasper's report. He'll have some hard questions for Bella, too. It would be nice if she had some answers for him, and didn't have to force his hand."

"What kind of answers?"

"That you're cooperating, and aren't going to cause trouble. That you've accepted your connection to Bella and aren't fighting it."

"Oh."

"I'm sorry this is all so sudden for you, Edward, but to be honest, you're getting more forewarning and choices than any of the rest of my family. Well, Bella knew going in, but she was an accident, and she never planned to be a part of this life. Anyhow, I'm sorry it has to be like this, but you take what life throws at you, and make the best of it."

"So you're saying, 'if life gives you lemons, make lemonade'? I'm supposed to just accept my fate and roll with it? What if I run, or go to the authorities?"

"You're smart, you already know the answers. There's nowhere you could run where we wouldn't find you, or somebody you care about enough to protect. We own most of the authorities that might give you the time of day, and the ones we don't couldn't stop us, besides talking would seal your fate and Bella's. Running isn't so bad. We enjoy a good hunt, but I couldn't guarantee your safety, depending on who finally caught up with you."

Esme glanced up then, and looked past my shoulder, as though she was listening to something I couldn't hear.

"You need to get back now, Edward, you've been gone too long, and your team mates are looking for you. They're announcing the winners, and then they'll want to get on the road to head back soon. Think about what I said, and welcome to the family. You and Bella will be very happy together."

And then she was gone. One second I was talking to her and she was standing in front of me, and the next second she vanished into thin air like she'd never even been standing there. I knew it was futile for me to look for her. I wouldn't find her if she didn't want to be found. At least by me, so I walked back out to where the race officials were announcing the winners.

I got there in time to go up and get my medal, and then we posed for pictures. I spotted Esme in the crowd, and she had her digital camera out, taking pictures of me and the other winners. We picked up our camp and loaded the bus after the awards were done, and then piled in for the long ride back to Forks.

We didn't get back to the high school in Forks until ten thirty that night after the long bus ride home. I'd thought about what Esme had told me, and I thought about talking to Alice about it, but she'd told me we'd talk on Saturday. She was expecting that we'd figure something out when we went to the party and tribal celebration in La Push this weekend, and I'd wait to confront her until then. Hopefully we'd be able to compare notes and figure out just exactly what was going on, and what Jasper and Bella were.

One thing bothered me though. Alice had said that it wasn't important what they were when I asked her. Esme said that Alice had already made her decision, even though she didn't have all the details. She loved Jasper unconditionally, and she was willing to be with him, regardless of the consequences.

Why was it so important to me to have all the facts? Why did I need all the details to make such a simple choice? But that was my nature, I had always been this way, and I had to overanalyze every decision. I'd never had to make a choice like this before, but was I using my desire for information to stall when I should be making a snap decision? The time for stalling and looking for answers was running out, and I'd need to make some decisions real soon.

Of course, considering what Esme had told me at the cross country meet, she had already made my decision for me, and now I had to decide if I was going to go along with that choice, or try and fight it. Well I didn't know if I wanted to fight it, or if I could or even should. What I did know, was that I needed to know what was going on, and just what exactly Bella and her family were. If I did decide I needed to run or fight, I had to know what I was up against to have any chance at all.

Alice was waiting for me in the Volvo, when the bus pulled into the parking lot at school to let us unload and go home. I talked to Alice about her trip out to Port Angeles, and just mentioned that I'd won my race when she asked about the cross country meet. We went home, and I took a shower and went to bed.

My night passed pretty much the same as the night before and I was restless tossing and turning until I finally fell into a fitful sleep out of sheer exhaustion. I got up at four to go to Katy's house to run, and again I didn't need the alarm to know it was time to get out of bed and start another day.

Alice was waiting for me in the kitchen when I came downstairs and I drove us to Katy's house. Michaela was already there, stretching for our run when we pulled into the driveway, and greeted us. The three of us were waiting when Katy came out, and Michaela helped her stretch before we went for our morning run.

Alice and I said goodbye when we got back to Katy's house, and we left to go home to change for school. At least it was Friday, and the end of another week. I was looking forward to the weekend, but Alice had an away football game tonight, and she'd have to ride the bus out to Rochester today. She came downstairs in her cheerleading uniform, and I could tell that she was depressed that Bella wasn't coming by the house to pick her up.

We drove to school, and things were almost back to normal for me, but Alice, Jessica, the other cheerleaders and the football team had a short day. Tyler was back in school, but he still had a bandage on his head, and he didn't remember what had happened during the accident. A lot of that day was blank for him, and all he really remembered was waking up in the hospital that night. He wore his football jersey to school like the rest of the team, but he wasn't going to get to play tonight.

I could tell he didn't like it, but Mr. Banner just waved them out of the room when Alice, Jessica, Angela, and Mike all got up halfway through AP Chemistry to go out to the bus to leave for the football game. There were a couple of other football players in the class, and only about half the seats were still occupied after they left.

It was a three hour drive to Rochester, and the game wouldn't start until seven tonight. The bus would stop for a dinner break on the way out, and then they'd have about an hour to warm-up before the game started. Some of the diehard fans and parents would probably drive out to watch their kids play, but I was pretty sure there wouldn't be near the turn out that they'd had in Sequim, despite the fact that it was a winning season so far. I wasn't planning to drive out to watch the game, and I didn't know anybody else at school that was planning to attend that wasn't riding on the bus.

That Friday night was kind of quiet in Forks, like Friday nights often were during the sports seasons. Most of our away games were too far to travel to, unless you went with the team. The school was small enough, that a good percentage of the kids that I usually hung out with during the rest of the week were on the teams.

Katy, Michaela and Brittany were at the drive-in that night, but they kept to themselves. Tanner and Dean were on the football team, but the kids from the cross country team were there. I ended up chatting with Eric Yorkie about his plans to go to college and his career goals to be a DJ or get into the music industry. I really didn't know much about it, but Eric was starting to research it. I talked to Katy before I went home and told her I was going out to La Push tomorrow and wasn't going to go running in the morning. I left early to go home and wait up for Alice. She'd be late, but I'd told her I'd pick her up at the school.

I found myself in the music room, seated at the piano. It had been my mother's, and like the Volvo, we'd been unable to part with it when we moved. I had spent hours sitting at this piano practicing and learning at my mother's side. I'd never taken formal lessons, but my mother had played beautifully, and she had taught me. Once she'd taught me all that she could, we had continued on together, exploring and learning and teaching each other. I hadn't found a lot of time to play in the last year. I'd played a couple of times for Katy, but she considered it a novelty. Something that was interesting about me, but it seemed to bore her, and we found other things to occupy our time.

Now my fingers moved on the keys, as I ran through some classics and my favorites to loosen up and get used to the feel again. I let myself go and my fingers flew over the keys, in tune to my emotions as I let the music take me away. There was a snatch of melody that had been teasing at the edge of awareness. I coaxed it out into the open to see what it was, a lullaby perhaps? I hadn't been sleeping well lately, and it seemed appropriate. I thought of Bella and how I felt contented and peaceful when I could feel her presence and the melody swelled and took shape in my mind and flowed out through my fingers to surround me with sound.

I was shocked out of my reverie when I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket. I stopped playing and got it out. I realized the lateness of the hour for the first time as I glanced at the time on the face of my phone. I opened it and read the text message from Alice. It was after one in the morning, the bus was almost back to town on the trip home, and I needed to leave to meet her at the school.

I drove to the school and picked Alice up when the bus arrived back from the trip to Rochester. The mood of the team seemed improved from what I'd seen in school the last couple of days. Everyone had been really depressed since the accident on Wednesday, especially since Tyler was injured, and couldn't play. He was the star quarterback, and had led the team to our first two victories, but Tanner had stepped up to fill his spot, and the team had three wins under their belt now.

Alice was quiet as we drove, and her mood still seemed subdued, despite the improvement in the morale of the football team and the other cheerleaders. I had an idea what was bothering her. I knew she missed Jasper and Bella. Bella had spent the last two Friday nights at our house, and now she was gone. Well, I knew either they'd be back soon, or it wouldn't matter anymore. I just hoped things turned out alright for Alice. She'd been through a lot and deserved some happiness in her life.

We got home and went upstairs to our rooms to go to bed. Hopefully tomorrow would help me start putting the pieces together to see just what I was getting myself into.

I spent another restless night tossing fitfully in bed, drifting off and then finding myself awake staring at the clock. I didn't need to get up early today to run, and slept in despite my wakefulness. Of course sleeping late is a relative term considering I was up at four most mornings to run. I got up at six and got dressed for the beach. Alice and I had decided we would surf today until the celebration started, so I went downstairs to get things going.

Alice was waiting for me in the kitchen when I walked in and silently handed me coffee. We ate breakfast, and I could tell Alice had gotten even less sleep than me from the dark circles under her eyes, but I didn't comment on it. I went out to load the rack and surf boards onto the Volvo. Alice came out and we left for La Push.

It was only a thirty five minute drive out to the tiny resort community on the coast that was home to the Quileute Indian Tribe. I drove north out of Forks on the 101, and then turned left onto highway 110 towards the coast. I followed La Push road when it branched south off of the highway. Highway 110 continued west towards the coast, but it ran along the north shore of the Calawah River, and dead ended close to the ocean. La Push was on the southern shore of the river, where the river mouth emptied into the Pacific Ocean, and you had to back track for miles before there was a bridge to cross the river, if you made the mistake of staying on the 110.

We came into La Push, but I didn't drive all the way out to the harbor. I turned off through the Ocean Side Resort, and took the road that doubled back south. It came out into a parking area by First Beach, and I pulled into a parking place. Michaela's Nissan Sentra was parked in the lot, and Jessica's and Ben's cars were here already parked in the lot too.

We got out of the car, and Alice went back to the trunk to start getting into her wetsuit as I unloaded the surf boards. Alice came back to have me help her with her zipper, and then I went back and got into my wetsuit. I pulled on my water shoes, and we went down the trail to the shore.

Michaela and Katy were already out in the water, and I could see Jacob and Quil out in the surf too. Angela was wrapped in a blanket and wearing a coat as she sat, cuddling with Ben, on a dead drift wood tree trunk that was washed up on shore above the high tide line. She had her digital camera and was taking pictures of the people surfing and the landscape that made up her backdrop. Jessica was in the water waiting for Mike, but he was standing in the knee deep surf along the shore, reluctantly considering if he really wanted to go in this morning.

"Last one in's a rotten egg!" Alice yelled as we jogged past him into the deeper water, and then started to paddle out through the breakers into the ocean.

Jessica looked pissed that we had beaten them into the water, and turned her back on Mike to follow us out. I glanced back, and Mike was following us, but he didn't look real happy. Alice and I paddled out through the incoming waves until we made it out onto the ocean where we could ride out the surge and swell of the water, out past the breakers.

Mike and Jessica weren't far behind us as we sat on our boards while the water surged and moved under us. We could feel the ocean rise and fall as the waves built up along the ocean bottom, gathering speed as they surged in towards the shore, breaking in white caps as they rolled into the waiting gravel covered beach.

Jacob and Quil started their approach as the next wave rolled in, and they started to paddle ahead of the wave, building up speed to match the incoming wave. Their timing was perfect, and Jacob popped up staying just ahead of the breaking part of the wave, right in the pocket, ahead of the white water to ride down the face of the wave. Quil was right with him, a little further north, and they yipped and howled like wild Indians as they carved up the face of the wave.

Katy and Michaela were still ahead of us and slightly north, and they lined up on the next wave as Alice and I settled in to watch them make their run. Michaela had waved to us as we paddled out, but Katy had been studiously watching the horizon, ignoring our presence as we moved out to join them.

Katy and I might be having our differences, but I had to admire her skill as she built speed paddling into position, and then gracefully dropped into the curl on the face of the wave as she popped up to stand on her surf board. The girl had skills as she cut back across the face of the wave, popped up to get air and ollie off the top of the wave, and then did a top turn to shoot spray over at Michaela. I could hear her laughing as she dropped back into the pocket, riding the wave toward the beach, and I felt a mild pang of regret. It was usually me she was laughing with when we were out here, before Bella came into my life.

I turned to look at Alice. We were up now and I was scanning to gauge our wave, when I spotted Newton back paddling around us moving into position to snake our wave. There was a kind of unwritten code out here, and we were out here first. It was our turn now, but Mike was moving to position himself to steal our wave. I was ready to yell at him to knock it off, but I caught the look on Alice's face, and then she smiled at me and shook her head. I shut my mouth and relaxed to watch the show, Alice was usually right about these things, and I'd talk to Mike later. This was all new to him, and maybe he didn't know any better. He'd only been doing this since the summer, and was hoping his skills were improved enough by this winter, when the really big waves would be driven in by the winter storms.

Mike almost missed the wave, misjudging the speed of the swell as he paddled forward to match the speed of the wave. He dropped in too close to the white water where the wave was breaking and choppy as he awkwardly popped up to stand on the surf board. He was riding goofy foot, with his left foot on back of board and his right foot forward, but he wasn't a lefty, and I knew he wasn't skilled enough to switch foot. He looked unstable as he fought to keep his balance, and then he pearled accidentally driving the nose of the board underwater. He wiped out as he went over the falls and the wave sucked him down to the bottom and carried him in a circular motion with the lip of the wave, like the 'wash cycle' in a washing machine.

I thought we were going to have to go and drag him out and make sure he didn't drown, but then his board surfaced, and Mike popped up like a cork next to it. Well, at least he didn't hit his head on it, and started to pull the board to him with the leash attached to his ankle. He pulled himself back onto the board, and waved to show that he was ok, but he turned and started to paddle the rest of the way into shore, instead of coming back out to try again.

Alice and I setup to catch the next wave as Alice moved us into position. She had a real feel for this, and I knew better than to second guess her. I hadn't been doing this as long as Jacob or Katy, but I definitely had more skills than Mike, and I'd been out here last winter when the really big waves were rolling in. The seas didn't get as outrageous as Mavericks, down by Half Moon Bay in California, but there were some huge waves here after a storm. It was still decent in summer and the fall.

We lined up with the swell, and started to paddle forward to match the speed of the incoming breaker. We dropped into the pocket ahead of the curl, and popped up on the face of the wave to let it hurl us toward the shore. It was one of those moments of perfect clarity as I focused on the wave and the speed and the rush of the water. Katy didn't matter. All of my problems, the threats, Bella's family, none of it mattered as I carved up the face of the wave. I popped up on the face of the wave and got air, and then over-rotated to re-enter the wave and floated the top of the lip as the run ended.

Jacob and Quil were already back out in the deeper water, waiting for Jessica to make her run, and Katy and Michaela were on their way back out. I yelled at Mike to tell him to get his ass back out here, and Alice and I turned back out and started to paddle back out to sea. The rest of the morning went like that as we took our turns at the waves. Mike finally came back out to join us, and made a couple of good runs.

Around noon, we got out of the water, and headed up to the car to change out of our wetsuits. We rinsed off in the outdoor showers outside the public restroom at the beach, and then changed to go down to the harbor. I loaded the surf boards back onto the rack on the roof of the car, and we left to drive downtown to see what was going on for the celebration.

The tribal elders had a couple of office buildings down by the river where they held council meetings and ran the local affairs of the Tribe. La Push was a small unincorporated community, but the tribe was a recognized political organization, and held jurisdiction over the local area. It wasn't really much of a town, and was tiny even compared to Forks. There was the harbor with the new marina with slips for about forty to fifty boats up to fifty feet long, along the south shore of the Calawah River. A couple of fishing boats operated out of La Push, but most of the boats were pleasure craft that either belonged to locals, or the people staying in the resort cabins.

The harbor district was made up of a couple of streets along the river and a couple of streets of houses. There were a lot more trailers than houses built on foundations, and some of the houses had started out as trailers, but had been added onto for additional space. There were two resorts down by the beach that rented cabins, some gift shops that sold souvenirs, native craft items and local artwork and a gas station at the general store.

There were another couple of small residential areas in the forest on the bluffs overlooking the beach, and the tribal school was located in the one further south, but they were both less than a mile from the harbor and the resorts. The tribe controlled the surrounding forest, and the land along the river out to the Quillayute State Airport. There were homes, trailers, and small farms and places where people lived scattered throughout the area around La Push.

I parked at the general store, south of the marina, across the street from the community center. Alice and I got out of the car and walked across River Drive to the crowd gathering by the community center and the Tribal Council building next door. It looked like we were just in time to watch the start of the show. There were a lot of people in festive and stylized native costumes, and it looked like they were queuing up for a parade.

I spotted Jacob in the crowd, and I took Alice's hand to draw her along behind me as we made our way over to him. Jacob was standing with a group of people, and I knew Quil, Embry, Paul, and Jared, but there were a couple of others I hadn't met before. Quil and Embry still looked like teenagers, but Paul and Jared had gone through some kind of strange growth spurt this last summer, and now they towered over the other kids, and looked older, like Sam. I'd been shocked when Jacob told me he was only twenty because he looked so much older. There was a younger boy with the group that looked like a younger version of Jacob, and a tall girl holding Jacob's hand.

She was about 5'10" tall, with a slightly muscular athletic build that left her looking lean and fast. She was wearing a pair of faded jeans, a t-shirt and cheap worn looking running shoes, and I could see the strong smooth muscles move under her flawless russet skin. She was pretty, with sharp clear features. She had high cheek bones and a long straight nose, her face wasn't too wide, but just right to accentuate her slightly almond shaped eyes. Her eyes were a clear piercing blue, and she had long straight black hair that hung down her back, almost to her waist.

I'd seen her before, this season at the cross country meets, and I knew who she was although I'd never been introduced. She was Leah Clearwater, and she ran on the Quileute Tribal School team. She'd beat Katy at the meet in Rainier on Thursday, and was probably her strongest rival for the state championship this year.

"Hey, Jacob, so is this the place? When are they gonna get the show on the road?"

"Hey, Edward," Jacob said as he turned to greet me. "I was wondering if you were gonna come up to watch the show, or stay out there all day with the fish."

"I might be into surfing, but I wouldn't miss this, the whole tribal heritage thing sounded kinda cool. Now, are you going to introduce me to your friend?"

"God, you're starting to sound like my dad! Leah, this is Edward and Alice Cullen, Some of the cool kids from Forks. Edward, Alice, this is Leah Clearwater, my girlfriend," Jacob said with a smile.

"Hey! I told you, we live in Forks, we're not from Forks," I reached out to shake Leah's hand. "It's nice to finally meet you Leah. You ran a good race on Thursday. Good luck with the rest of the season."

"Thank you, Edward," Leah said as she took my hand. Her grip was warm and firm, and then she let go. "Yeah, Katy gave me a run for my money, but I'm going all the way to State this year! So, where is Katy? Jacob said you guys broke up, but I didn't believe him, you two looked so good together."

"She's around here somewhere. We're still together, but we decided we needed some time to think about our relationship…"

Leah raised an eyebrow, and nodded. Then she turned and indicated the younger boy with the group. "This is my little brother, Seth. I told my parents I'd keep him out of trouble today."

"Jeez, Leah, you make me sound like a baby or something, I'm fifteen, and mom sent me along to keep an eye on Jacob and his roaming hands!" We all got a laugh out of that, and Seth seemed like a nice kid.

"Yeah, whatever," and she turned to Alice, and shook hands and said hello.

"So, Jacob are you going to give us the play by play and explain what's going on here?"

"Yeah, Jacob," Embry chimed in, elbowing him in the ribs, "we know how much you love all the old stories," And all of them laughed. "Tell us a story, Please!" He wheedled in a little boy falsetto.

I must have had a questioning look on my face as I watched them tease Jacob, and then Leah took pity on me and filled me in on the joke.

"Jacob hates all the old stories, Edward. His dad, Billy, has been drilling those legends into his head since he could walk."

"Your dad's on the tribal council too, Leah, but I don't see Harry droning on about the legends and the old ways like Billy does! That shit drives me crazy!"

"Yeah, well I'm a girl, and I'm not the grandson of Ephraim Black."

"Who was Ephraim Black, and what does that have to do with Jacob?" I asked.

"Well, today, the tribe is run by the tribal council, but Ephraim Black, Jacob's grandfather was the last great chief of the Quileute Tribe. Billy has a hereditary right to a place on the Tribal Council, and Jacob is supposed to take his place on the Council someday, running the tribal affairs."

"Yeah, and he's been drilling all the old legends into my head for as long as I can remember, 'to prepare me to take my place in the Tribe'. I'm ok with that now I guess. What I don't get is why the hell Sam is on the Tribal Council."

"Sam's on the Tribal Council?" I asked. "Sam Uley? How the hell did he swing that?"

"Yeah, it's crazy, I know. Sam might be my friend, but he was a thug and criminal that the Council was trying to run out of La Push a couple of years ago. He ran away from home and spent a summer in Seattle, and the next thing you know, he's back and the whole council is fawning over him. They gave him a special advisory seat on the council, and he goes to all the meetings. They even look the other way about his business dealings, and congratulate him on improving the local economy!"

The parade was starting now, and the first groups were moving down the street. They stopped in front of the Tribal Council building to perform, and now I could see the Council out in front. Billy Black was sitting in his wheelchair between Harry Clearwater, Leah's dad, and old Quil Ateara, Quil's grandfather. Sam Uley was there with them, and another Lady I didn't recognize.

"Jacob, will you explain what's going on for me?" Alice asked. "I haven't heard the stories, and it would be great if you cold tell us, since you know them so well."

Jacob looked down at Alice, and smiled. "Ok, just for you, Alice. You've talked me into it."

Then Jacob pointed to the group of men in costumes dancing in front of the Tribal Council building.

"That group represents the Spirit Warriors. It's one of our most ancient legends. The Quileute have always been considered a tribe with powerful magic by the other coastal tribes. According to the legend, long ago, our warriors had the ability for their spirit to leave their bodies to defend our tribe."

"How did being able to leave their bodies make them powerful?" Alice asked.

"In spirit form, they could communicate with each other with their minds and know each others thoughts, they could control the weather and the winds, and they could speak to the animals of the forest and ask them to fight for them."

The first group had finished, and now another group was performing. There were two men dressed like the Spirit Warriors, and a third man slowly circling them at a distance in what looked like a stylized wolf costume. He had a headdress that looked like the top of a wolf's head, with a cape of fur down his back, and paws on his hands as he stalked around the two in the middle.

"This legend marks the end of the Spirit Warriors, and the start of the Wolf Pack. One of the Spirit Warriors, Utlapa, wanted the Quileute to use their power to dominate the other tribes that were our friends," and Jacob pointed out one of the two dancers in the middle.

"The Chief, Taha Aki, refused, and banished him from the tribe. Utlapa, came back in spirit form, and stole Taha Aki's body, and everyone thought he was the chief. Utlapa killed his old body, before Taha Aki could find it and go into it to warn the tribe. Utlapa used his power as chief to control the tribe with an iron hand, and took many wives from the families of the tribe."

Now the Utlapa dancer cavorted around in the center as the Taha Aki dancer started to spiral out to where the wolf dancer circled the other two.

"Taha Aki was trapped in the spirit world, with no way to contact his people, and no body to return to. He longed for the feel of a body again, when he found one of the great wolves of the forest. These wolves were bigger and more powerful than the wolves that are left here today. Taha Aki talked to the wolf in his spirit form, and the wolf allowed him to share his body, accepting Taha Aki's spirit form."

Now the dancer in the Spirit Warrior costume moved off, and the wolf started to dance into the middle.

"Taha Aki returned in the wolf form. He fought with Utlapa, and was finally victorious. Taha Aki defeated him, but his body was killed in the battle, and now he was trapped in the wolf. According to legend, his grief was so great, that the wolf couldn't comprehend it. It was a man's grief, not a wolf's and something magical happened."

The wolf dancer stood upright like a man, and cast down the paws and threw back the wolf head to stand as a man before the Tribal Council.

"The wolf transformed into a man, and Taha Aki stood before the tribe in a man's body, but he didn't look like Taha Aki anymore. He looked like his spirit form, but in a living, breathing body. The warriors recognized him, and accepted him as chief. From that day forward, the legend says that Taha Aki and his sons could take the wolf form to defend our tribe and fight our enemies."

"So, you're saying you're descended from wolves?" I asked. "Well, you sure eat like a wolf. Maybe that's why Harry is worried about you around his daughter," I laughed, and the rest of the group joined in.

"Hey, it's not just me!" Jacob exclaimed. "We're all cousins or related one way or another! You've all got just as much wolf in you as I do!" Jacob teased back.

The boys howled and yipped like wolves, Leah and Alice rolled their eyes and I laughed with them. The rest of the parade and cultural displays were interesting, but they didn't give me a whole lot of information about my situation. I realized something, though, as the afternoon wore on. Jacob had said that this celebration was to commemorate a treaty between the Tribe and their ancestral enemies, but nobody had mentioned the treaty, or just who exactly these ancestral enemies were.

Something occurred to me as I was thinking about this. I'd asked Bella if she wanted to come out to La Push with me to meet Jacob, and she said she wasn't allowed to go to La Push because of some terms in her adoption. I hadn't thought about it at the time, but it just seemed too coincidental to not be somehow related. Did Bella's family have something to do with this treaty and the Quileute Tribes ancestral enemies?

Around three, Jacob told us to come up and meet him for the barbeque and Alice and I went and got in my car to head up to the bluffs overlooking First beach. A lot of other kids from Forks were showing up now, and there was a pretty good crowd. We hung out with our friends, and had some beers, but nothing too outrageous. I wanted to stay alert for something that would relate back to Bella and Jasper.

We had some burgers and hot dogs, and Eric Yorkie started pumping out dance music as the sun started to sink over the horizon. I danced with Alice and Leah, and even gave in and danced a couple of songs with Katy, but I kept it friendly and maintained my distance. I told her I still wasn't ready, when she asked if I wanted to go for a walk to get away from the crowd.

I was tempted to give in, and go off with her, but I knew what would happen. It wasn't fair to her or Bella if I gave in to my baser urges now. I was here to get information to make decisions about my future. If I went off with Katy now, knowing what I did, then I'd be using her, and I wasn't like that. If I went back to Katy, it would be to make a commitment to be with her, and only her. I couldn't say that she would be a part of my future right now, so I told her no and we got another beer instead.

The bonfires started up at twilight as the sun sank past the horizon and the sky darkened. Eric started in on some sets of more mellow slow songs to let couples get closer together, and I saw Jacob holding Leah as the moved together to the music. I lost track of them for a while, but then saw them coming back to the party from one of the forest trails at the edge of the clearing. They settled in to cuddle by one of the bonfires, and Alice and I headed over to join them. The rest of Jacob's crew was there, but I hadn't seen Sam, Paul, or Jared for a while.

"Hey, Jacob, good party, thanks' for inviting us out," I said as we sat down and got comfortable.

"Thanks for coming, but it's not my party. Everyone was invited," and he gently kissed Leah's cheek as she snuggled against him.

"So, the other night, you said this party was to celebrate some treaty the Tribal Elders made a hundred years ago that made your tribal lands off limits to your ancestral enemies, right?"

Jacob nodded, but seemed more interested in Leah than talking to me.

"So, if the party is to celebrate this treaty, why hasn't anyone said anything about it all day? I haven't heard anything about these ancestral enemies of your Tribe. Who are they, and where did they go?"

"Why do you want to know about that crap, Edward? It's all just a bunch of old stories that our ancestors told for entertainment around the campfire. We've got TV and movies now, and they do a better job than a bunch of old Indians telling stories they learned from their grandfathers to scare each other.

"Well, we've got a campfire, but I don't see any TV. So scare me, what's the big deal anyhow? You were laughing about it the other day in Forks."

Jacob looked uncomfortable now, and Quil and Embry were snickering under their breath. They seemed to enjoy Jacob's discomfort for some reason.

"Knock it off you jokers," Jacob scolded them as he shot a glare in their direction.

"Yeah, it isn't just your pride that's hurt," Embry said with a smirk. "You're lucky Billy's in that wheelchair or he would have tanned your hide good if he could catch you."

Jacob scowled at him, and gave him the finger and flipped him off, and then turned back to me.

"Ok, Edward, the thing is, we're not supposed to talk about the treaty with anyone outside the Tribe. When I got home, and Billy found out what I'd told you, he was royally pissed. It's just that he's been telling me these stories for so long, sometimes I forget that not everyone knows them."

"Yeah, well I already know about them, the stories and the treaty. You said yourself, they're just a bunch of old stories, so what's it going to hurt to tell me the rest? You know I can keep a secret, and won't tell anyone unless you say it's ok."

Jacob took a drink of his beer, and seemed lost in thought for a minute, and then seemed to come to a decision.

"Yeah, you're a good friend, Edward, and I've always been able to trust you. Ok, I'll tell you the rest, but silly as this all sounds, you can never repeat any of this to anyone that isn't Quileute."

"Sure, Jacob, I got your back man."

"Ok, to understand about the treaty, you need to know the legends about the Apotamkin, the Cold Ones."

"The Cold Ones?" I asked. That struck a chord. I remembered how cold Esme's touch had been when she laid her hand on my arm and shook my hand on Thursday in Rainier. Alice stiffened next to me, and I knew how close she had been to Bella. She had to be thinking the same thing as me.

"Yeah, I told you the story about the Spirit Warriors, and how Taha Aki became the first Quileute to take the wolf. The story doesn't end there. Taha Aki learned that he no longer aged like a normal man, and he lived the age of three old men before he became weary of his lot, and gave up his spirit wolf. After a while, he started to age again and grow old like a man."

"Taha Aki was an old man, when trouble started with the Makah Tribe to the north. Young maidens of the Makah tribe started to disappear and vanish into the forest. The Makah Chief blamed the Quileute wolves for stealing the maidens, and the tribes were on the brink of war. Taha Aki was too old to lead the people as a warrior now, so he sent his oldest wolf-son, Taha Wi, to investigate."

"Taha Wi took a pack of five of the Quileute wolves, and they ran north looking for the lost maidens and whatever had taken them. They traveled far to the north, and finally they found a new sickly sweet scent in the forest that burned their noses. They found traces of human scent, and traces of human blood. Taha Wi was sure that this had to be the creature that had attacked the Makah's, but they were so far north, he sent half the pack back to report to Taha Aki. Taha Wi and the other two wolves never returned." Then Jacob was quiet for a minute, but there had to be more.

"What, so that's it, they smelled something bad in the forest, and that's what's got you so riled up for so long?"

"No, there's more. They searched for Taha Wi, but they never found him. Taha Aki went to the Makah Chief in his mourning clothes, and the chief believed Taha Aki's grief and the tensions between the tribes ended. A year later, two more Makah maidens disappeared, and runners from the Makah's came, seeking the aid of the Quileute wolves to search for them."

"They went to the Makah camp, and found the same sickly sweet scent, and knew it was the same creature. The wolves went on the hunt, but only the youngest member of the pack, Yaha Uta, survived to come back and tell what they had found. He carried the corpse of the creature in pieces, and told what had happened."

"Yaha Uta told how he and his brothers had come upon the creature in the forest. It looked like a man, but its eyes glowed red, like the color of blood and its lips were wet with the blood of its victims. One of the maidens was already dead, white and bloodless on the ground. The other was in the creatures arms, still alive, with his mouth on her throat, draining her life blood. When the wolves approached him, he quickly snapped the girl's neck, and tossed her lifeless body to the ground."

"The wolves fought the creature, but it was stronger and faster than any man. Only Yaha Uta survived the battle, and told how the creature wasn't warm like a man, but cold as ice. In the end, the wolves were able to tear the creature into pieces, and Yaha Uta carried the pieces back to the tribe so the elders could examine them. They laid out the pieces into the shape of a man, but they were horrified when one of the hands reached out to the arm, and tried to reattach itself. The horrified elders set fire to the pieces, and the creature burned with a thick cloud of vile purple smoke."

"The tribal elders were afraid of the creature, and hid the ashes in scattered locations so it would never try to reassemble itself again. They called it Apotamkin, the Cold One, the Blood Drinker, and lived in fear that it was not alone. Only one wolf remained to protect the tribe, young Yaha Uta."

"So these Apotamkin, the Cold One's, they're your tribes ancestral enemy?" I asked. "So how did you end up making a treaty with them? Sounds like all you guys did at first was fight with them."

"Hey, you're the one that said you wanted to hear the old legends. There's hours of this shit, and Billy can spout it out forever, droning on like a recording. But yeah, that's all they did for a long time, generation after generation, and you have to remember, the wolves didn't age like normal men, either."

"Ok, so what about this treaty then?"

"Ok, well most of that legendary shit happened thousands of years ago, but it get's really freaky about the treaty. The treaty was signed a hundred years ago, but my grandfather, Ephraim Black was chief of the tribe when the treaty was signed.

"How old was your grandfather when the treaty was signed? Billy doesn't look that old."

"Nobody will ever say for certain, the just say that he was a grown man in his prime. I never met him. He died before I was born, but Billy is only thirty nine. He was born in 1967. If Ephraim Black was twenty five when he signed the treaty, then he would have been like ninety two, when Billy was born. I've seen pictures of him with my dad, and he didn't look like he was in his ninety's."

"Ok, that is kind of freaky, but what happened that led to this treaty with your enemies, these Apotamkin, the Cold Ones?"

"Ok, well according to the legend, Ephraim Black, was the leader of the Quileute Wolf Pack, when they discovered a new large group of Cold Ones scouting out the area. Ephraim prepared the wolves to fight the Cold Ones, but he knew there were too many of them, they were hopelessly out numbered and would surely die."

"To their surprise, the Cold Ones didn't want to fight, but came to talk. They had heard stories about the Quileute Wolves, and wanted to see if they were true. Ephraim had nothing to lose hearing them out, and our tribe would be wiped out if he fought, so he decided to listen."

"Sounds like your grandfather was a very wise man, Jacob."

"He was a pragmatist. Sometime's you've just gotta take what life dishes out and roll with it." Seems I'd heard that advice before, but I didn't say anything about that.

"Yeah, whatever, so what were the terms of this treaty that they negotiated?"

"You know, the basic stuff, they wouldn't come on our land without permission, and we wouldn't go out of our way to hunt them. They said they were more civilized than the Cold Ones that had hunted humans on our lands. They called them nomads and rogues, and said that their kind didn't kill humans anymore, when they could avoid it. They offered peace between their kind and our tribe, and promised they wouldn't say anything about the wolves, and we wouldn't out them to the palefaces, but there was one more important concession we had to make."

"Ok, I'll bite, what did they want?"

"They said that there were different factions of Cold Ones that fought each other, just like there were different tribes of our people. They wanted to recruit soldiers to fight for them. They claimed the right to offer gold for the services of any wolf that would join them to help fight others of their kind."

"They were looking to hire the wolves as mercenaries to fight for them? What did they say?"

"Ephraim signed the treaty. It was an agreement to keep the Cold Ones off our lands. There were too many for him to fight and he was confident in the loyalty of the pack. There were only three wolves, and they were fiercely loyal."

"Yeah, I can see where that would be an advantage…"

"What he didn't count on was Joshua Uley. Supposedly, he ran away from home, and went off in search of the Cold Ones, to seek his fortune."

"Joshua Uley? Any relation to…"

"Yeah, he's supposed to be Sam's long lost father or grandfather or something, but Sam won't talk about it. Besides, this is all a complete load of horse shit. People don't turn into wolves and go running through the forest, and there aren't any monsters out there waiting to drink your blood and snap your neck. C'mon, this is the twenty-first century, and nobody believes this crap!"

"No, of course not, It's all just a bunch of scary stories," But I felt a chill run down my spine as I thought about what Jacob had said and the stories he told.

"Huh, I don't know," Seth chimed in. "That wolf crap sounds totally cool to me! I'd go totally Michael Landon on your ass. You know, 'I was a teenaged werewolf', sweet man! And not having to age anymore unless you wanted too? How cool is that?"

"God, you're bad enough now," Leah groaned. "Can you imagine having to put up with you as a perpetual teenager forever? I'm glad this is just a story! That would be a nightmare!"

"Ah, c'mon sis, you know you love me! Hey, I'm cool, I don't go runnin' off to mom to report on mister touchy feelie there like she wants, do I? I just think being a wolf would be totally awesome!"

"You need to spend more time with your dad and Billy, and listen to the rest of the stories," Jacob said. "It's not all just fur and running. There's some serious drawbacks too, if the stories were true."

"Yeah? Like what?"

"Oh, just little things, like it hurts like hell at first, like somebody's trying to tear off your skin and it takes a long time to learn to control when it happens. Some took years, and some never learned to control the ability. Sometimes the wolf would be more powerful than the man, and they'd just disappear into the forest to live as a wolf, and never come back to the world of men. You know, just little things."

"Oh shit! That would suck! But hey, I'd be willing to risk it. I'd be an awesome fucking werewolf!"

I sat there thinking about the stories that Jacob told, but I didn't want to believe it. It was just too crazy to be true, but then, I'd seen a lot of crazy things this week, and all the pieces fit. I didn't notice when Katy and Michaela came over and joined the group, but the next thing I knew, Katy was sitting next to me. The conversation changed, and then we were discussing surfing, and waves and different techniques. Katy cuddled up next to me, and I put my arm around her, but it was more out of habit than anything else. It would be nice if my life could stay like this, but I had a feeling that this was just the calm before the storm.

A/N Edited to clean up some grammer, spelling and punctuation.