A/N: Sorry about the long wait guys. I got moved around the hospital I work at a couple of times, got a bad cold, house sat for over a week and my boyfriend and I decided to elope next month. All in all, been just a little crazy. But I tried to work hard on this chapter for you all, and I appreciate all of your wonderful and enthusiastic reviews. Glad you all are liking this so far.
This chapter is mostly filler on the Pack, since Bella didn't come back a lot of stuff's changed, but we'll get more into the plot in the next chapter. Hope you enjoy!
Disclaimer: I own nothing, just playing with the toys on the playground
Jacob sighed as he stepped out of the shower, water dripping down his russet skin, grabbing a towel to wrap around his waist and another to dry his hair. Even though water never felt warm on his overheated skin he still enjoyed the relaxation of going through the motions and letting his mind empty for a short while. He loved his Pack, the fact that he protected his land and people, but sometimes even he forgot how quickly they all had to grow up after the first phase, him especially. Everything he'd thought he'd known had been ripped away in a matter of hot, agonizing moments and replaced with a world he'd never believed existed.
He still remembered the anger that none of them had been warned, had been prepared for what they were and what they did. He winced as he remembered the angry confrontation with his father, who was chief of their village, and the old fashioned Council that thought they had the right to command the Pack like their own personal army. While Sam had been Alpha he had followed their orders, but when Jacob took over he'd made it very clear that the Pack answered to him and he answered to no one.
The look of pride in his father's eyes and the surprise of the more old-fashioned Council members had made it worth it. Fortunately most of the Council members were smart enough to side with the Alpha of La Push and agree to his terms. Those that didn't he ignored or removed them from the Council and calmly reminded that he was bound to protect La Push from threats, including those inside. All but a few finally backed down and the rest he ignored and let his father deal with.
He pulled himself out of those thoughts as he towel dried his hair, the Egyptian cotton feeling ultra-soft over his sensitive skin. He pushed down the canine urge to rub his face in it and rumble loudly in contentment. There were times when he wondered if he wasn't more wolf than man, the strong impulses he had to rein in to keep himself in control ranged from strange to dangerous. He glanced in the mirror and saw the edge of his irises were rimmed in yellow, his wolf hovering just beneath the surface as usual. Running a hand through his damp hair so it stood up in messy spikes he grabbed his clothes and shrugged them on, glancing over the nicely furnished bathroom as he did so.
Four years ago none of them would have been able to afford the gas over here, much less stay in a nice hotel like this one. With patrols, most of them still in school and the general poverty of living on a reservation, no one had much money to spare. When Jake phased and became Alpha he had quickly gotten his GED so he didn't have to worry about school and started fixing cars around the Rez for extra cash. Word quickly spread about his excellent work and fair prices and he had been able to buy an old garage on the edge of the Rez within a year. The Pack had all helped fix it up and now Paul, Quil, Embry and Seth all worked with him while Sam and Jared ran a towing company that their clients could use.
With some careful investing they had all made quite a profit. They'd spent some of it fixing up the Rez but the Elders had insisted they keep most of the money. After more discussion they'd started a savings account for future packs and upgraded the rec center for the Rez kids. The rest of the money they'd divided through the Pack to do as they pleased. All of them had bought cars of course, several of them, Jake included had bought or built houses. He had made sure his was isolated, hidden back in the woods behind his father's house. It was the only place he had any peace, yet at the same time was overwhelmingly lonely, something that none of his brothers or even his father could fill.
He knew it came from his wolf, wanting its imprint. Imprints were the other halves of the wolves souls, the only thing that made them complete. So far only two of the Pack had imprinted, Sam and Jared. Jared had imprinted on Kim, a girl from their school that had had a crush on him for months. Once he'd seen her after his phase he'd fallen head over heels for her and they were happily planning a wedding for the following summer. Sam's imprint had been very different. He had been dating Seth's sister, Leah Clearwater, since they were in high school and no one had any doubts they would get married. Then Sam phased and everything changed. He tried to make it work with Leah but not being able to tell her why he was having to be gone at all hours put a strain on their relationship. The final straw came when Leah planned to leave La Push and Sam told her he couldn't go with her.
She had vanished overnight and, except for the occasional postcard to her family, hadn't been seen or heard from in three years. Sam had been devastated, which wasn't helped when Leah's cousin Emily Young had come down from the Makah reservation in an angry whirlwind to tell Sam what a horrible person he was. He had imprinted on her the second he looked in her eyes.
"Jake!" A pounding on the door broke him from his thoughts and he glanced in the mirror before grabbing his jacket and wallet and joining his brothers in the hall. They were all dressed similarly, in dark wash jeans with assorted colored button downs, rolled up to the elbows and unbuttoned slightly in the front. With their abnormally warm body temperatures wearing normal clothes was stifling but they could tolerate some thinner materials for the sake of appearances.
Seth was practically bouncing on the balls of his feet, a face splitting grin making him look like a fifteen year old kid again. He had phased shortly after Jake, when he got into a fight with Sam after Leah took off. Out of them all he had accepted the shift the easiest and managed not to go through the months of anger and depression that the rest of them had.
"Come on guys, let's go!"
Jake chuckled at his enthusiasm and slid on his leather jacket. "Alright Seth, lead on to this mysterious club of yours."
Twenty minutes later Seth was leading them down the sidewalk to a brightly lit building front, the flashing sign catching Jacob's eye. "'Scheherazade'? Seth, what is this place?"
He grinned and led them past the very long line until they were standing in front of the bouncer, a 6' black man who peered through the dim lighting until a grin landed on his bearded face. "Seth! Long time no see brother. You here to see Amber then? Bet that girl's been missing you."
Seth smirked and winked as he shook the man's hand and clapped his other hand on his shoulder. "Hey André, you been making sure she stays safe, no one pestering her?"
The Cajun laughed a big booming laugh and nodded. "You know that Amber don't need my help keeping those men away from her, she can handle herself. But I make sure she always has a good cab to go home in."
"Thanks man. These are my friends I told you about, finally convinced them to come and see the fun side of Seattle."
André gave them all a grin, Jacob could see a gold tooth glinting faintly and he shook André's hand when he offered it, careful not to crush the man's fingers. André wasn't small by human standards, if Jake and the others hadn't been supernaturally enhanced he probably would have found the man intimidating. André's gaze swept over the six of them with increasing disbelief. "Good lord in heaven, what do they feed you boys where you come from?"
Jake chuckled and shrugged. "Lots of milk."
André laughed again before unhooking the rope and ushering them forward. "Well you boys have fun now, you hear?"
They all nodded as the filed past them and Seth led them down a dimly lit hallway. Jacob could hear faint music playing and then applause. Seth glanced at his watch and grinned. "Perfect timing. C'mon guys, table is this way."
They stepped out of the hall and into a large room, dimly lit and scattered with tables. On the far wall there was a large bar being manned by three men and a woman dressed in black pants, vests and little else. On the left wall were several large round booths that Seth was leading them to. They took a seat and Jake frowned slightly at the large stage that they now sat opposite, turning to Seth with a raised brow. "What exactly does your girl do Seth?"
He grinned and nodded his head towards the stage. "Just watch boys."
The lights dimmed slightly before anyone could say anything and music suddenly flooded the room as a curtain of pearl was parted by a long, lean leg covered in a black stocking and a black stiletto shoe. Some classic big band song started playing as more identical legs parted the curtain up and down the stage followed shortly by the bodies of the legs parting the curtain further, revealing several beautiful, lacy, black lingerie-clad women who sashayed on stage as the lead dancer began singing to Marilyn Monroe's 'Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend'.
Seth grinned at the stunned look on all the guy's faces and swept his arm around in a grand gesture. "Welcome to the world of burlesque gentlemen."
A/N: So, what'd you all think? I love Seth in this one, he's adorable when it comes to Amber.
For those of you who don't know, the name Sheherazade is from the tale '1,001 Arabian Nights', the sultan's new bride that, in order to keep him from killing her, told him a story every night that ended on such a cliffhanger that he couldn't stand not knowing what happened next and so he let her live. She told him the stories for 1,001 nights and by the end the sultan had fallen deeply in love with her and so let her live and made her his queen.
Please review and let me know what you think! :)