"Sit down and keep your mouth closed."
Sam sat down in front of the three Elders and stared at each one of them. There was a heavy silence between them until Old Quil finally spoke, "We heard what you did to Selene Clearwater, Sam."
Sam sat up, straighter, and squared his shoulders, "It had to be done. Selene is a danger to the pack."
"Was that it, or was she a danger to your authority, Sam?" Billy asked, "Is that what you plan to do? Every time you feel threatened to banish them from the tribe?"
"I didn't banish Selene from the tribe, only the pack. Besides, she had no right to attack Paul the way she did."
"Oh, no? Quil and Jared told us what Paul said. Do you think Selene could sit idly by while her mate was torn apart? Could you if it was Emily? She had the right to defend Emmett even if it meant putting Paul down." Sue said.
"You're only saying that because Selene is your daughter."
Sue bristled, "I'm saying that because it's true, and the Elders agree with me." Bill and Old Quil nodded.
"This is crazy. I can't have one of my pack members kill the other!"
"And we can't leave Paul unpunished, or you for that matter."
"Me?! What did I do?"
"You let Paul slide on breaking our most sacred law, you banished Selene for the sake of your ego, and you put this entire tribe in danger in a way you can't possibly understand," Billy said.
"How did I do that?"
"You may have brought the wrath of the gods upon us," Old Quil said.
Sam gave Old Quil a strange look and dismissed the threat. He thought that Quil was talking nonsense and was referring to silly superstitions. But, of course, Billy and Sue knew better, Poseidon could quickly lose his temper over the treatment of his daughter and send a tsunami to wipe out the tribe or an earthquake to swallow them up. But they were not going to explain that to Sam; it was none of his business.
"Because of what you have done, Samuel Uley, you shall be punished. Return to us this evening, and you will be sentenced," Billy said.
With that, a devastated Sam walked out of Billy's house. He had no idea what The Elders were going to do to him, but it couldn't be good. When Sam left, Old Quil got up and told the other two that he would consult the spirits and see what fitting punishment Sam should receive, "I shall consult you this evening."
Meanwhile, at the Cullen house, Leah and Selene were settling in nicely. Selene and Leah had brought in all of their belongings from the Range Rover and were now in their rooms, putting everything away. Emmett was helping his mate put all of her clothes in the closet while she put her collection of shoes away. She then moved to the dresser to put her underclothes away. Emmett stood in the doorway of the closet watching.
"Am I ever going to get to see those?"
Selene turned around and smirked at Emmett, "Maybe one day, if you're a good boy."
He walked over to Selene and wrapped his arms around her waist, "I'm always a good boy. Especially for you, Sel."
"Of course you are," Selene said sarcastically.
"I'll make a deal with you. When you're officially divorced, and you're a free man, then we'll talk."
Emmett groaned, "Can't I have a little taste?"
"What did you have in mind?"
Emmett waggled his eyebrows and picked up Selene, bridal style, and carried her to the bed. He threw her on the bed and crawled on the bed with her. Emmett attacked Selene's lips, making her giggle. He licked her bottom lip, coaxing her to open her mouth. Selene opened her mouth, and Emmett's cold tongue slithered in. He began to explore Selene's mouth and to caress her tongue with his own, encouraging Selene to follow his example. She moaned in his mouth and wrapped her arms around Emmett's neck, pulling him closer.
Emmett's hand started to wander down her side and caress Selene's hip. He grabbed her leg and wrapped it around his waist and started grinding his erection into her core. When Emmett's hand started sliding under Selene's blouse towards her breast, she came out of her daze and grabbed his hand. Selene gently pushed on Emmett's chest.
"I think you've had more than a taste, Emmett."
Emmett pouted, "Can't I have a bit more?"
"Nope, not yet. You'll have to wait, remember patience is a virtue."
"Yeah, but it's one I don't have."
"Well, learn. Besides, I think Esme has lunch ready."
Emmett groans and gets off his mate, then helps her up. Selene fixes her blouse, and they both head upstairs. When they get upstairs, Leah is in the kitchen talking to Alice, who is taking some garlic bread out of the oven. Alice sets the baking sheet down and puts the garlic bread in a basket while Esme finishes up with the pasta.
Leah looks at her sister and Emmett as they walk into the room. She smirks at her sister, "Hello, Spongebob."
"Hello, Toto."
"Did you have a hard time reaching the top self in Emmett's closet?"
"No, why?"
"I could have sworn I heard some grunting coming from the basement."
Emmett and Alice look between the two sisters and watch as a blush starts creeping up Selene's neck to her ears. Emmett throws his head back and lets out a booming laugh while Alice starts to giggle.
"I don't know why you're laughing Tree Trunk; I heard some pretty loud grunting coming from you too."
"Yeah, but I have no shame," Emmett said between chuckles.
"That's true, he doesn't," Alice confirmed.
"Can we eat, please?" Selene asked.
"I don't know. I don't think I can get that mental image out of my head."
"Shut up!"
"Now, Leah, it's only natural for Selene and Emmett to be affectionate towards each other, especially since they're sharing a bedroom," Esme said as she puts a bowl of pasta down on the kitchen table.
Selene slams her head on the table in embarrassment, "Thanks, Esme, but that's not helping."
"Oh, I know, now eat up," Esme said as she puts the plates forks and garlic bread on the table.
Emmett sits down next to Selene, still chuckling, "Your mom is so mean," Selene said.
"Oh, please, you can't tell me Sue wouldn't have done the same thing," Emmett said.
"No, she would have, but it would have been so much worse for Selene," Leah said as she put a forkful of pasta in her mouth, "Emily would have been in on it too."
Selene sighed, "Oh my gods, can we talk about something else, please?"
"Sure, So, Emmett, would it be alright if Seth walks Selene down the aisle when you get married?"
"Leah!"
"Selene!"
Emmett just sat back and watched the sisters argue; this was going to be fun.
Back in La Push, Sam had gone back to Emily's house and was greeted with a frying pan being thrown at him; he ducked just in time, "What the hell is wrong with you, Emily?!"
"How could you banish my cousin from La Push?!"
"I didn't banish her from La Push just from the pack!"
"Fine, you kicked Selene out of the pack and let that psycho get away with trying to kill Emmett."
"You don't know what happened," Sam said.
"Yes, I do. Jared told me the whole story. And you're wrong, Sam, Selene never would have taken the pack from you."
"It's not about that, she's dangerous."
"Of course she's dangerous, Selene was defending her mate. You would be too if someone tried to kill me."
"I never would have tried to kill a packmate."
"Bullshit, yes, you would. If my life were in danger, yes, you would. This whole incident has more to do with the fact that you couldn't get Selene under your thumb, and that scared you enough to overlook what Paul did."
"It isn't-"
"Save it. You and I both know that it is," Emily said then stormed off upstairs.
After that, Sam went to see Jake and Paul. He thought that they were the only ones that had his back and understood where he was coming from out of everyone in the pack. Sam stayed at Paul's house for a couple of hours until it was time for him to go to see the Elders. Little did he know that the entire pack was going to be there too.
When Sam showed up at Billy's house, there was a bonfire burning in the backyard,d, and the pack, Emily and Kim had gathered. Quil's imprint, Claire, wasn't there since she was too young. Sam looked around, surprised to see everyone.
"What's going on?"
"Quiet, you've lost the right to ask any questions," Billy said harshly.
Sam was taken aback by Billy's tone. He hadn't realized how serious this whole thing was until that very moment. Billy wheeled forward and addressed everyone present, "Today, a most grievous offense has been committed toward one of our pack members, and when she sought justice for the crime, Selene Clearwater was punished for it. Instead, this cannot stand. The guilty parties must be punished. Sam Uley, Paul Lahote, and Jacob Black step forward."
Sam, Paul, and Jacob looked at each other, Sam and Paul squared their shoulders and stepped forward, while Jacob followed timidly behind. Jake looked at his father and gave him a pleading look, "Dad, I didn't do anything."
"Quiet, you did enough. Quil Ateara III has been in the spirit world and has spoken to our ancestors."
All the wolves gasped as did their imprints. They didn't think such things were still done, but apparently, that magic was never lost to them. Old Quil carefully stood up with the help of Sue and his grandson. The older man stood up as straight as he could and gave each member a piercing look, "We have always had a connection to the spirit world. Once as spirit warriors, but now we only go to them in times of great need to speak with our ancestors. This event is one of those times. Our most sacred law has been broken. A law that has gone back as far as we can remember, it only fits that the Ancestors and the gods have a say in what should be done with the those that stand before us."
"You Samuel Uley have been accused of ignoring our most sacred law for personal gain and putting your ego ahead of the pack. Because of this, The gods and ancestors have decided that you will be stripped of your title as Alpha, and it will be given to someone more worthy."
Jacob perked up, thinking it was him, "Jared Cameron, as Sam's Beta, you will now be elevated to pack leader," Old Quil said.
"What?!" Sam and Jake said.
With a stern look from Billy, they both shut up.
"Jacob Black, for you instilling animosity and encouraging Paul's actions, you will be forever stripped of ever having the possibility of becoming the pack leader. Any conflict with Jared and you will be banished."
"Paul Lahote, because of your heinous actions, your life should be forfeit." Old Quil said.
Paul looked at the Elder with wide eyes. He wasn't expecting something like this to happen to him. Paul was about to plead for his life when Old Quil told him and Sam to step forward.
"Instead of dying, you and Sam will wish you had."
With that, Old Quil made them eat a strange root, and both men passed out without delay. Emily quickly got up and went to Sam's side, "What happened?"
"Sam and Paul will now experience what it would have been like for Selene if Paul had successfully killed her imprint."
"How long will it last," Jared asked.
"Twenty four hours, but to them, it will feel like a lifetime."
"Why did you do this?" Seth asked.
"It is a far more painful punishment than a quick death for Paul and Sam; this will teach him not to take the death of an imprint so lightly," Billy said.
Emily nodded; she had to agree with the Elders; it was a fitting punishment, "Come on, guys, let's get these two back home."
With that, the wolves dispersed. The Elders sat there in silence for a while until Old Quil spoke up, "Was their punishment just Lord Poseidon, King of the Ocean and Earth Shaker?"
"Yes, it was. I would have preferred that pup's life, but now that Selene is calm, she wouldn't want his death on her hands."
"No, she wouldn't, " Sue said.
Poseidon smiled, "How are you, Sue?"
"I'm good, Sei, thank you."
"Well, I should be going now. I have to report back to my brother and tell him he doesn't need to smite anyone. After everything that's happened over the years, Zeus likes Selene."
With that, Poseidon walked off into the dark.