Aiyana's POV

The forest was a blur as I run through it. I ran faster than ever before. I wasn't sure if I was on two legs or four, I don't even know if I'm human anymore, but it doesn't matter because I am free. The dirt flew through the air as my feet clawed into the ground. My blood and lungs were on fire, but it was in the best way possible. Branches and leaves broke and flew as I glide through the pines. Nothing matters except for following this amazing feeling. This sensation of love, happiness, that I was cliff diving and haven't hit the water yet, of tucking my little sister, Catori, in for bed and telling her a story, of eating fresh baked cookies, of hanging in the garage with the guys... of home. It keeps getting stronger and stronger as I tear through the green.

The bush burst as I pound into a field of swaying, purple wildflowers. Snapping branches echoes from the pines on my left.

Warmth floods my body, I'm spinning and standing at the same. Like I ran a marathon, but I just woke from a good sleep. Like I'm flying, but I'm still on the ground. Like I'm on the couch watching a movie with my sister with buttered popcorn, but I'm hula hoping with her. Like I'm hanging in Jacob's garage with him, Embry, and Quil, but I'm having a mini food fight with them in the cafeteria. This giant, russet wolf is causing this feeling of happiness, warmth... of home.

My eyes meet the majestic wolf's warm chocolate eyes, that I know I've seen before. I just can't place where, but I know I've seen-

"RING!"

My ears scream as the beautiful world of nature becomes a blurred mess of the purples, pinks, blues, greens, of the bedroom my sister and I share.

"RING!"

"No, I don't want to get up." Catori says as she buries herself in her flowery comforters.

"RING!"

My arm lights a small burn as I reach over to turn off the killer of dreams and glance at the 12-month calendar pinned to the wall. Threading my fingers in my long black rat's nest moving it out of my face. The blankets drop, and goosebumps rise as I untangle my legs. I walk across the ice-cold wood to Catori's cocoon.

"Well, what kind of big sister would I be if I didn't let my baby sis get a few more minutes of sleep before school on... oh what day is it..." My hands pull back the floral pink softness, so I could see her face. "Oh right, your 7th birthday."

The seven-year-old shoots out of the blankets like she popped out of a toaster. "It's my birthday!"

"Happy birthday Tori!" I pull the little live wire into my arms.

"I'm seven! I'm seven!" Her little arms are a vice crushing my ribs. "I'm seven!"

"How about you let me go, so I can make you a nice birthday breakfast and you can get dressed? Okay?" I try to negotiate without wincing.

Damn this kid's got muscles.

"Okay!" My bonds release and the soft material of slippers encase my feet and wrap myself in my robe as I slip out of the bedroom into the hallway and see my father's door open. The thin walled house just has two bedrooms, one bathroom, a living room, a kitchen with a small round dining table, a few closets around here and there and a one car garage not attached to the house. My sister and I share the master bedroom and our dad takes the other room.

Peeping through my father's open door and see he's passed out, fully dressed, face down on top of the covers with an almost empty, brown, glass bottle in his hand. I close the door so Catori won't see him like this when she comes for breakfast. I swiftly move into the kitchen grabbing the pancake batter, I had prepared last night and put in the fridge, and a large pan from one of the cabinets.

By the time Catori skips into the room three steaming pancakes are plated and I'm pouring the fourth onto the sizzling metal.

"Pancakes! My favorite." Catori pulls one of the three dining table chairs out so she could sit. "I thought you couldn't make them in the morning because they take too long?" I grab the plate of three pancakes and a bottle of some syrup, placing them in front of her.

"Well today is very, very, very special because a certain someone came into this world on this day seven years ago." She giggles as my fingers dance across her stomach. "So, I made should sure I could." I drop a chaste kiss to her forehead and go back to the stove.

"Thank you!" Catori gargles through her pancake filled mouth.

—

My 1970s blue Volkswagen Van cruises down the road, trees blur as I drive to the K-12 tribal school. The rides pretty quiet, except for whatever corny pop music is on the radio. But every time I look in the rear-view mirror, Catori is sitting in her booster seat in the middle of the 2nd row, biting her bottom lip and fiddling with her hands, she has been since we got in the van.

"So, what is it you want to ask me." Catori looks at me like a deer caught in the van's headlights.

"How'd you know?"

"I'm your big sister, I know everything. While... almost everything. So, what do you want to know?"

"Is it true that Sam Uley started a cult?" The van jerks in surprise.

Thank god there weren't any cars nearby.

I knew all about the cult rumors from school because not much happens on the Rez, so when something even a little exciting happens, everyone knows about it. In late August, last year, Sam Uley started having temper issues and started getting more muscular, then out of nowhere, in about late September, he disappears and no one, not even Leah Clearwater, his fiancée, knew where he was. After two weeks he finally shows up and he's totally ripped with a tattoo of two wolves that formed a third wolf on his shoulder, hair was cut short, he was now about six feet and six and was suddenly very antisocial. He claims he had mono, but no one believes him since mono does not cause people to look like they were hit by the muscular bus and become hermits. Most people think he's doing steroids, some have even gone as far as to say it was caused by the Cullens arriving in Forks and now he's a shifter from the legends.

But then again, that was just a rumor started up for this lame, failed prank at a bonfire party.

If he wasn't already the talk of the town, he would have been after dumping Leah to go after her cousin Emily Young, who was attacked by a bear a few months after Sam disappeared and has the scars to prove it. Some say Sam and Emily are dating, some say their living together, and others say their secretly married and Emily is carrying Sam's baby.

Needless to say, Leah has been heartbroken and in a justified funk since Emily and Sam got together.

In late December, Jared Cameron started having temper problems and some think he was getting taller. Bam! In the middle of January, he disappeared for two weeks and suddenly came back six foot two, muscular, hair cut shorter, and with the same tattoo as Sam on his shoulder, claiming to have had mono.

A little while after he started flirting with Kim Connweller, she has had this crush on him forever and almost everyone, but Jared, knew about it. Now Kim and Jared are dating and are so sickeningly happy that no one can stand to be within ten feet of them.

I sat next to them once... I almost threw up in my mouth after two minutes. I did throw up in my mouth after five.

He also has been following Sam's antisocial tendencies. He doesn't talk to anyone, except for Sam, Kim, and the tribal council, unless he has too and now he skips school, a lot. Apparently, they're all about tribal pride and protecting the Rez or whatever, but rumors has it they're drug dealers on steroids. Most people call them the cult or the La Push Gang.

The rumors died down a bit since the animal attacks that were possibly murders that happened in February, March, and April in Forks and the so-called cult, hadn't done anything new that's gossip worthy. Well... except for Sam finding Bella Swan after the Cullens ditched her in the woods and moved away.

Now the supposed cult has been the talk of the school, again, since the resident hothead, Paul Lahote, disappeared two weeks ago. If he follows the pattern he'll come back today totally cut with the same wolf tattoo on his shoulder, taller, hair shorter, and won't talk to anyone except for anyone the council, in the cult or dating someone in the cult.

"Where did you hear that?"

Seriously, where did a six, now seven-year-old, hear about a possible cult?

"People talk about it at school. Is it true?" The curious little doe eyes meet mine in the rearview mirror.

"Honestly, I don't know. But it doesn't really make a lot of sense to start a cult in a small, gossiping town like this, and to wait for school to started up again, to start recruiting, is just stupid and will grab too much attention. I don't think they're a cult or whatever, but something is definitely up. Now, what do you think a cult is and what other rumors have you heard about them?"

"I don't know what a cult is, I don't think the other kids know either, and they also say that Sam and Jared are doing drugs, or something called steroids. What are steroids?"

"Steroids, cults, and drugs are things that are bad for you and I'll explain it better when your older."

"Older." The mirror shows her holding up seven fingers. "I'm already this many, how much older do I need to be?"

—

"Bye! Have a great birthday!"

"Bye Ana!" Catori heads towards the brick building for the younger grades, her soft wavy black hair, that's always held back by a headband, bouncing on her backpack. I grab my bag from the van, and lock the blue monstrosity, and head towards the two story wood building for the older grades.

"Hey Aiyana!" A voice yells from my left. The tall figure who called my name is Jacob Black, delivering a smile that could melt an ice heart, one of my best friends with our other best friends, Embry Call and Quil Ateara V. The guys are practically brothers. If I didn't know them I would have mistaken them for siblings. Even though the closest they are to being blood and legally related is Jacob and Quil being distant cousins.

I became friends with the boys after I was held back a grade when I was 10. I was held back because I missed so much school by staying home and taking care of Catori when she was a baby and before she could go to daycare. Dad had refused to get a babysitter and he had to go to work, with mom who knows where, that meant I was the only one to take care of her. I'm also going to be the only 17-year-old who's in the 10th grade in about 5 weeks. I head straight towards the three musketeers.

"Sup boys!" The three russet skins idiots shoving each other, is a fine example of the maturity of most of the males in school and why the three's lack of maturity makes me the sensible one of the group.

Aka the person who makes sure they don't kill each other, also known as the mom of the group.

"Where's the birthday girl?" Embry asks actually turning in a circle to look for Catori.

"She's going to her classroom and stop trying to steal my sister, Call." The boys finally stop shoving each other.

"Who said I'm trying to steal your sister, I just want to wish the birthday girl a happy birthday." Embry's face is a picture of innocence, he even goes as far as he raises his hands in surrender.

"Yeah, right."

"Okay, down girl." Jacob says as he gets between me and Embry. "We haven't even been talking for 30 seconds, at least wait a little longer before you kick someone's ass."

"Hey! I could beat her in a fight!" Embry pleads.

"Sure." Jacob says as he pats Embry's shoulder.

"Whatever helps you sleep at night, Em." I state smugly. The fact that I've beaten him in wrestling matches before will not help his case.

"I could win. Quil, back me up here."

"Well..." Quil pauses as he rubs his neck.

"You think I'll lose!" Embry screams.

"Well-"

"RING!"

The warning bell sounds all around the buildings.

"Looks like we need to get to class, we can talk about it later." Quil states as he all but runs away from us into the slow stampede of students.

"No! We're finishing this now!" Embry shouts as he races after Quil. Jacob and I quietly laugh as we follow the two baboons.

My sister and these guys make being held back, so worth it.

—

Lunch was relief, it was actually a nice day outside, especially for October, it was abnormally warm and dry, so we had the option to go outside for lunch, so getting away from the gossip machine is easy. Paul had returned to school today and surprise, surprise, from what I've heard he is now about six foot three, extremely muscular, has the three wolf tattoo on his shoulder, short hair, antisocial, and according to most of the girls, hotter.

Saying people were overacting, would be an understatement.

"Hey boys!" I shout as I sit down on the orange and yellow leaves in the field with the tree line for the forest in site with the three musketeers. Packing a lunch for Catori gives me a chance to pack my own lunch and not eat the cafeteria food. "Have you heard you all the gossip about the cult going around?" I question as I dig in to my lunch bag.

"You mean, have we heard the only thing the entire school is talking about?" Embry jokes. "No, not even a whisper." Jacob shoulder checks Embry causing him to face plant, eating grass.

"Yeah, some of it is just pure insanity." Quil answers before Embry retaliates by tackling Jacob to the ground, taking Quil with them. Which leads the three musketeers to quickly starting a three-way wrestling match.

"Down boys!" Shoving the boys away from each to other, before they broke something wrestling or someone, was something I did daily. "You do realize, if you guys keep going at each other people, you're going to get a detention for fighting." I tilt my head subtly towards one of the teachers, who were watching some of the other students, to make sure no one ditches or something. "Right?" They brush off the grass and go back to the spots they were sitting in and to their lunches, luckily before one of the teachers looks our way. "Hey, maybe you could hang with the cult in detention."

With Jared's new found ditching habits he has a lot of detentions, and if the rumors are correct, even he ditches some of them, and Paul has detention for missing two weeks of school.

"Hang with the hall monitors on steroids?" Embry looks at me like I'm crazy. "No way. Rather fight a bear."

"I heard that's why Jared missed school most of this week and last week... and apparently the bear tapped out." Jacob states popping a chip in his mouth with a look that can only be described as 'can you believe this bullshit'.

"Like I said, pure insanity." Quil mumbles, barely understandable, spitting a little bit of food out of his full of mouth.

"Dude, say it, don't spray it." I complain, flicking some chewed up chip off my arm and it lands right between Quil's eyebrows.

"Nice shot!" Jacob and Embry laugh as Quil wipes the orange mush off his face.

"Oh haha, very funny."

"Sorry Quil." I say, suppressing the smile that wants to spread on my face, hiding my mouth behind my jacket sleeve.

"Yeah." Quil grumbles. "Back on topic, the bear wrestling thing, is one of the least ridiculous rumors I've heard all day." The peanut butter jelly sandwich tears between my teeth.

"No kidding." Jacob scoffs. "I heard they're some kind of sex orgy." He unscrews the cap of his water.

"I heard that their apart of some mob or mafia." Embry states before shoving some chips into his mouth.

"I heard they run around naked in the woods." Quil staying shaking his head.

"I heard a rumor that they're drug smugglers." Jacob scoffs as he puts some salty chips in his mouth.

"Where would they even get the drugs?" I ask between bites.

"How would I know? I don't deal with drugs." Jacob laughs, eyes flashing with confusion and amusement.

"These rumors are just getting way out of hand. The rumors have officially reached the 1st grade." The guys gave me confused looks, not quite getting it. "This morning Tori asked me if it's true that Sam Uley runs a cult and also asked what steroids and a cult are." I explain before placing some of the pancakes that were left over from this morning into my mouth.

These pancakes might not be fresh, but they're still good.

"Seriously, six and seven-year olds are talking the bear wrestling, mobs, and orgies, what's next?" Quil asks.

"GUYS!" A light tan skinned, female figure rams into Embry like a drunken bulldozer.

"Melissa tackling Embry, apparently." My cousin, Melissa Hill, gets off of Embry and shakes leaves out of her hair.

My dad, Michel, and Melissa' s dad, Nico, whose a respected member of the council, are brothers, but they're not close any more because Uncle Nico is disappointed and disgusted in my dad becoming a drunk and neglecting Catori and I. Uncle Nico, Aunt Mei, her mother Lin, and Melissa moved here three, almost four years ago, when Melissa started 9th grade. She's a senior now and turning eighteen in February. Melissa has been best friends with the nineteen-year-old and free from school, Leah Clearwater, since Melissa moved here. Melissa, Catori, and I all got our Native American sides from our fathers. Catori and my mother, Angela, was a mix of Irish, Filipino, Spanish and Chinese. Melissa's mom, Aunt Mei is a mix of English and Chinese, which she got from Grams and some white guy who left her. Grams is technically not my grandmother, but she treats Catori and I as if we are her own grand babies and I pity the poor unfortunate souls who say we aren't to Grams' face.

Melissa and I work part time as waitresses at Aunt Mei and Uncle Nico's restaurant, Mei's Diner. Melissa is actually planning on taking over the restaurant one day, after her parents retire. Nico, Mei, and Grams let Catori and I come over and stay over whenever we want, Grams helped me pay for my van, and Mei and Nico are even letting me use part of the restaurant for Catori's birthday party. I got the three musketeers, Melissa, and Grams to agree to help me supervise the seven and six-year olds hyperactive roadrunners.

Grams bet twenty bucks that the guys are going to regret it ten minutes into the kids' sugar rushes.

"Sorry Em. God, I need to work out more." She heaths, lungs desperate for air. It didn't take a genius to figure out she ran here, and I'd say she's in town crier mode.

Whatever something big happens and Melissa knows for a sure it's true, she makes sure everyone knows. She lets the entire town know if someone is engaged, dating, broken up, was in an accident, sick, if someone died, and more. She was also the one who told everyone that Sheriff Swan wanted the kids and teenagers to stay out of or be careful in the woods when the murders happened earlier this year. Weirdly enough, if you tell her a secret, she'll take it to her grave and even help you keep it as long as it's not illegal (except for responsible or reasonable underage drinking) or dangerous and or deadly to anyone.

"What's the news, Mel?" Quil asks, as he rises his water to his mouth.

Getting news from Melissa while drinking water. Big mistake.

"Paul Lahote was dragged out of school by Jared Cameron, after he almost ripped a locker off the wall." Quil's impersonation of a fountain would have been comical, if it wasn't splashing on all four of us.

"What?! Sorry. What?!" Quil screeches.

Quil Ateara the fifth everybody. Cue the slow clapping.

"First, ew, second, I saw it with my own eyes, third, ew, forth, the locker is barely hanging on the wall, and fifth, ew!" Melissa says as she flicks water off her face.

"I'll get you back for this later Quil." Pointing my finger at him and giving a glare that would make a bear run for cover. "But for now, where's the locker?!"

—

We gaze at the metal as we stand in the small murmuring crowd that has gathered around the area. The end locker's metal was so bent it wasn't even a rectangular anymore. It was leaning forward so much I couldn't believe the entire row of lockers hadn't tipped over already. The once straight locker door was now curved, with the impression of fingers trying to grab something craved into the metal. The locker was causing the nearest five lockers in the row to curve forward. It was so far forward you could see the chipped paint and filthy wall the lockers had covered.

I knew steroids gave people strength, but this is messed up.

"Woah." Embry breathes drawing Jacob, Quil and I from our shock.

"I know." Melissa says.

"It's just so..." Embry pauses.

"Impossible?" Jacob tries.

"Freaky?" Quil states as more of a question.

"Disturbing." I give the only word that could possibly sum up the event and entire situation in general.

"Yeah." Embry shrugs.

"I swear I saw it happen with my own eyes."

"Okay, this cult thing is getting way too consuming." Quil exclaims. "If we keep getting sucked into this we're going to end up being the people that start the bear wrestling, drug smuggling, orgy rumors."

"Bear wrestling? Oh, did you hear that when Jared wrestled a grizzly bear and it tapped out... and I see your point." Melissa says as she and Quil turn and start weaving their way through the small crowd, away from the mangled metal. Jacob and I start to follow, but Embry was still staring, so did I what any reasonable person would do. I grab him by the ear and start dragging him with us, completely ignoring his cries of pain and begging to release his ear, which causes the crowd to part for us and gain stares as a five-foot girl drags a five foot six boy around by the ear. Once we're away from the crowd my nails release his ear. He shoots me a dirty look that looks more like a glare from a kicked puppy.

"Okay, so what's something we can talk about?" Melissa questions. The cult rumors have been really distracting lately, but we have lives and stuff to talk about. "Oh Ana, Jake, do you guys think you can take a look at my car after school or after Tori's birthday party or sometime today? It wouldn't start last night or this morning, my mom had to give me a ride to school today."

"Sure, Jake that work for you?"

"Yeah, you still have your tools in their garage? Or should I run home after school and get mine?" Jacob asks. We usually work on cars in the garage attached to his little red house, but when we work on Melissa's Peugeot 505 GR or her parents' 1990 Honda Civic, that they share, we do the work on their cars at their house which is just behind the restaurant. We could probably run an auto repair shop if we wanted to, we can repair just about any car, we even rebuilt the entire engine for the truck that Billy sold to Sheriff Charlie Swan to give to his daughter Bella Swan, who Jake has been crushing on.

I've only met Bella Swan four times, so I don't know her that well, but I think there is something off about her and Catori agrees. I met her the first time when Billy, Jacob, Catori, and I went over to the Sheriff's house to deliver the truck on her first day in Forks. She was rather awkward, clearly didn't want to be in Forks, was kind of adorably clumsy, kind of plain, and had no respect for her elders.

The second time was at La Push Beach when Melissa, the guys, and I were hanging out and ran into Bella and her friends. It only confirmed that she is a wallflower that is somehow an attention magnet. This guy named Mitch or Mike... something with an M, hit on me and Melissa, so the we and three musketeers decided to mess with him and now he thinks Embry, Jacob, Quil, Melissa and I are some kind of five way dating thing or orgy or something and the look on his face was priceless. Melissa even got a picture of it.

I'm so glad she had brought her disposable camera.

The third time was when I decided to crash the Forks High School prom and Jacob needed a ride because his dad gave him $20 to tell Bella to stay away from the Cullens and 'we'll be watching.'

What does that even mean?

So, Jacob joined me as my date, after Jacob delivered the message to the awkward and injured Bella, had a brief glaring contest with the Cullen guy.

Seriously what is his name?

It was fun, he helped me spike the punch (after I convinced him to help), we got a little buzzed, did a lot of dancing, started a couple dozen fake rumors about people we don't know, and did a little slow dancing. My head over his beating heart, arms rapped around each other. For those few songs it was like the rest of the world didn't exist. It was... nice.

The fourth time was when I went over to the Sheriff's house with Billy, Aunt Mei, Melissa, and the three musketeers for the search party, when the Cullen guy dumped Bella and literally dumped her in the woods. Uncle Nico and Catori stayed her with Grams, who was spending the night in the hospital and was very insistent that we help find the poor girl.

Thank whatever forces or deities that are out there that Grams is okay and won't be taking any trips there soon.

I went because wasn't gonna let the guys go without someone to stop them from getting arrested for doing something stupid in front of the cops. When Sam Uley found her, she was almost catatonic and barely awake. If what Billy says is true that haven't changed in the four weeks since it happened.

I get that heart break messes with people and I also get that depression is caused by the chemicals in your brain, but that doesn't mean she should stop living her life because he's gone. Her depression about this guy makes me wonder about if they had a healthy relationship or not. Based on what Billy got from Charlie, apparently, they were dating for, like, six months after they got back together. They originally broke up in March after the first date, she dumped him after playing baseball with his family and she ran away after, not just out of town, but out of the state, right to Arizona. The Cullen guy and his dad Dr. Cullen went after her to try and get her to come back and she ended up in the hospital because she 'fell down a fleet of stairs and out a window'.

I know Bella is clumsy, but she's not that clumsy.

So, I guess maybe it's a good thing he's gone, it doesn't sound like he was good for her and maybe, I hope she wasn't ever in one, is now out of an abusive relationship.

"I have the tools we should need and if I don't we could work on it another time." I reply casually.

"We could work on it tomorrow if we need to, that work for you?" Jacob questions as he adjusts the strap of his backpack.

"Yeah, it does." It's been a while since we worked on cars together and I really need to get my grease monkey on.

"Oh, while we're on the topic of cars, can somebody give me a ride to the restaurant? My parents can't pick me up." Melissa asks.

"Mom is actually busy after school..." Embry starts.

"I'm just gonna end up giving all of you a ride, aren't I?" I question.

"Yeah."

"Totally!"

"Yea, pretty much."

"Your van seats eight, you should have seen it coming." At this point I really should have seen it coming.

—

"No man, I'm telling you, Sarah Littlesea is so into me." Embry says the five of us squeeze our way through the front doors, between the students racing for freedom and the start of their weekend. We head towards the single spruce tree that's right next to the parking lot, it's the only tree near the school that isn't a part of the woods or tree line. We use it as a meeting point for Catori to find us after school. All five of us always go or meet there because we can hang out, figure out rides and stuff in the ten minutes before my sister is released. Plus, this way, if I somehow get detention and they don't know about it, they can take care of Catori and make sure she is okay until I can contact them. Or if Catori doesn't show, some can wait for her while others go look.

"Isn't she going on a date with Tyler Crowley from Forks High tonight?" Melissa asks with a face that only be described as a skeptical detective.

"You're the Gossip Queen of both the Rez and Forks, you tell us." Embry complements.

"True." Melissa admits as she swells with pride. Melissa wears her crown with pride and is quite proud of her title.

I honestly have no idea how the blabbermouth can keep a secret. She could survive torture and not squeal, but tell her somebody broke up and everyone knows in less than twenty minutes.

"So, your majesty." Embry gives her extravagant bow, like you'd give to a queen or if you're trying to embarrass someone, causing us all to laugh. "Who's single and ready to mingle?"

"No way, I'm not using abusing my power and title just to help you skip making a meaningful connection with someone, just to get a date. If you want a date, then ask someone out." The Gossip Queen declares.

"Seriously?" Embry shoots her a dubious look.

"Oh, come on!" Quil groans and stops moving, catching Jacob and my attention, so we stop too. But he wasn't looking at Melissa and Embry, he's looking at something in the parking lot. My eyes search the swarm of high school students and their rides and try and spot what caused his reaction. My guess is it's whatever is causing students to avoid the right corner of the parking lot.

"See, Quil agrees with me!" Embry beams, throwing his arm around Quil.

"I don't think that's what he's talking about." Jacob says, his curiosity causing him to search the parking lot as while. The confused puppy looks on Embry and Melissa, were adorable.

"What are you looking at?" The words flying from both, my and Jacob's mouths, in unison. This gained a few weird looks from the others.

Wish I could say this is the first time this happened, but it isn't.

It doesn't happen often, but it does happen every once in a while.

"I didn't think he would actually come or bring them with him." Quil mutters shaking his head. In the right corner, where the large group of teens were avoiding, there was Quil's grandfather, Quil Ateara III, or more commonly known as Old Quil, with the hall mentors on steroids themselves. Old Quil, Sam, Paul, and Jared, stood by Sam Uley's truck. Seriously, Paul and Jared, who ditched school earlier today, are here.

"Seriously, who comes back to school after ditching it, that day?" I scoff, shaking my head.

"Really? That's your question?" Jacob looks me like I'm nuts.

"Right, what's Old Quil doing with the shirtless brigade doing here... and why are they shirtless and in cutout shorts?" It may be warmer than unusual, but it's not warm enough for a light jacket, let alone shirtlessness.

I mean, it's a great site, a really beautiful six pack site, turns out the rumors about Paul's physical change where not exaggerated. But how are they not freezing their asses off?

"He wants to... talk... to us." Quil says awkwardly, gaining odds looks from us.

"Why are you being so weird about him wanting to talk to us?" Jacob asks looking at Quil with scrunched up eyebrows and adorable little pout.

"Yeah, its not like he's going to give us the talk." I snort. "Is he? Because he's way too late and not related to most of us for that."

"You know how my grandpa is like the central for the tribe legends." Quil says as he rubs his neck. He is definitely wishing his grandpa wasn't here... for whatever reason.

"Yeah."

"Duh."

"Do you really need to ask?"

"He's the one who gave the okay for my mom to hear the tribe legends."

"Yeah, well... you know how he's really... enthusiastic... about the legends?" Quil is looking more and more like he wants to be literally anywhere else right now.

"Yeah."

"I've met the man."

"Again, do you really need to ask?"

"Like how he thinks the legends are real?"

"Yes..." Quil grumbles. "Apparently this morning, he read me and knows... 'my wolf'... will awaken before summer. Or as he explained when I asked what the hell that meant. He's says I have the Quileute spirit warrior gene or whatever... and he wants to read Embry and Jacob to see if he can tell when their wolves will 'awaken'." Waves of utter confusion wash over the four of us. "Yeah that was my reaction too." Jacob and Embry's mouths were hanging open, so Melissa and I did the logical this and each rise a hand to close the hatches.

"Wait, why just Em and Jake?" Melissa asks as she removes her hand from Embry's jaw. "Does he have a secret sexist or racist side or something?"

"You want him to do... whatever the heck he does to see if you have a wolf that's going to awaken?" I ask.

"No, I don't want to say foot in that crazy." Melissa says, twiddling with her brown locks between purple painted nails. "I just don't want us to be excluded because we're girls or because we're not fully native or both."

Damn, the girl knows how to bring out a girl's feminist side.

"God, I wish you didn't make such a great point." I mutter. "So, why's the old bat excluding me and Mel? He's including Em, who's technically not even Quileute."

"He still thinks that my father is Quileute, doesn't he?" Embry asks. Embry has been raised by his single mother, Tiffany Call, who is from a Makah tribe and moved here while she was pregnant with Embry. She has never told anyone who Embry's father is and that includes Embry. Most people think she left him behind when she moved here. Nobody knows if Embry's father even knows he if Embry exists or if he left her when she became pregnant or if he's even alive. The only person she has told anyone anything about him is Embry and she only told that she didn't know him while and she lost track of him before Embry was born.

"Yeah." Quil sighs.

"Where do you guys even think he got the idea about your sperm donor being a big ass wolf, anyway?"

"Please never say that sentence ever again." Embry cringes as the others are trying to decide between laughing and cringing others at my wording.

"So, what's the plan here... aside from getting the mental image of Mama Call and a wolf getting-" A russet hand flies over Melissa's mouth so fast it's almost a blur.

"Don't finish that sentence!" Embry screams. Not only damaging the hearing of everyone in the five-foot radius but gaining the attention of over the half the parking lot, including the La Push Gang and Old Quil. Melissa slaps Embry's hand away from her mouth and gives an innocence 'I don't know what he's going on about' smile to the hundreds of eyes that stopped moving to watch our group.

"What're you looking at?!" I yell giving a hell of a glare, causing the audience to continue moving as if they hadn't just watched our little scene.

"Hey Ana, Mel, Jakey, Emmy, Quily." Catori shouts, waving as she stands at the base of the spruce tree with her backpack on.

"Tori!" My voice echoes as I sprint to her. "How long have you been waiting?" The smiling little ball of energy wraps her arms around my legs.

"Not long, I just got to the tree when Emmy yelled." Catori says as the corners of her mouth turned up in an adorable little smile.

"Hey mini cuz."

"Hey Shorty."

"Hey Tor Tor."

"How was your day Shorty?"

"It was really good!" Catori squeals, bouncing up and down, her backpack shaking. "We made..." Her gaze locks on something behind me. "Oh is that Big Birdy?!" The girl becomes a blur as she races to the aging man.

"Tori!" I yell, the five of guys chase after her, my legs barely touching the assault.

"Looks like we're getting the whatever thing out of the way!" Melissa comments as she heaves in air. "What could go wrong?!"