Chapter five. Complications. Quil Ateara.

Another snarl ripped from Paul's chest as he sat back, watching as Jake and I communicated with the leech I knew as Edward Cullen. This was fairly simple, as he had the extra talent of mind reading. From what we'd been told, vampires could sometimes aquire gifts when they were changed.
There were now four bloodsuckers, because the biggest of the first two males had gone to get Edward, in hopes of settling any misunderstandings. I felt uncomfortable fraternizing with the enemy.

Once Edward had appeared through the opening in the forest, he stood in front of us, and began to talk.
"Jacob, and Quil?" He said, his voice smoother and calm. Filthy, confident, suckers.
"Edward." Jacob replied through his thoughts, growling from deep in his eyes, hate burned in his eyes, "Its been awhile."
Edward smiled, showing off gleaming, white teeth to us both. "That it has."
I could feel Jake squirming beside me, trying to hold back the one question he had. The one question that held the most importance to him, but it was too much for him to restrain.
"How is Bella?"
Edwards lips pressed themselves into a tight, white line, and his eyebrows rose slowly, "She is very well." He replied curtly.
I looked at Jake, I could feel his pain. "Stop.." I thought, the questions would not help him, or anyone else. Last time Jake saw Bella, he ran for weeks on end, no one else was allowed to go out and morph, it was agony for everyone.
"Stop what?" Edward asked, in a curiously innocent way. I growled slightly and he got the message.
"Oh, right, a subject change would be in order then, Jacob?"
"How about, what are you doing here?" Jacob snarled. Edward, slightly taken aback by the sudden anger flooding through Jake's words, repeated the question to the others.
The blonde boy walked to his side, folding his arms across his chest, and wrinkling his nose slightly. I immediately felt intimidated, and I had no idea why.
"Tracking.. Not that an explanation is really necessary, we have as much of right to be here as you." He said, and through Jake's thoughts I realised this was Jasper, a member of the Cullen family who I only briefly remembered.
"Tracking what, exactly?" Paul threw at them, and Edward once again, repeated this question to Jasper, who gave a brisk nod, acknowledging Paul.
"Right, yes well, you see. Alice saw, a few days ago, that a few of our own kind...." Paul snarled at Jasper, but he continued on, as if it didn't bother him, that the four wolves in front of him, would happily rip him to shreds. "were coming through here, but there are... complications with these vampires."

Jacob decided that at this point he felt comfortable enough to talk for himself and he sauntered off into the woods.
Jasper seemed to be rather offended by the action Jacob took.
"He'll be back." Edward explained calmly, chuckling quietly at his brothers reaction.
A few seconds later Jake arrived, jogging back to my side, with a pair of sweats on.

"What complications?" He demanded without hesitation.
Jasper nodded again and continued. "They are not, what we call ourselves, vegetarians. They drink the blood of humans."
Jake snorted, "Like the majority of you do."
Jasper ignored this remark and went on.
"We feared that maybe, Forks, or the reservation could be at risk, they are.." But, Jasper was cut off, once again, by two females bursting into the opening. The shorter of the two ran to Jaspers side.
"I couldn't see you, so we came back, thinking you may have run into the pack," She said quickly, in a hushed tone, "I s'pose we were right then?"
Her big, golden eyes danced between me and Jake, then over to the other female who had been with her.
I glanced at Jake, and saw that, he too, was staring in her direction.
"Crap."
There, shying away in the shadows of the huge trees, stood Isabella Swan. Her eyes a piercing gold, and her hair wild and wind swept. A mesmerizing statuette.
"I'm sorry." Alice, the small, delicate looking female whispered. Her sympathizing glance directed at Jacobs pained expression.
Jake was shaking, his big hands clenched into fists. His sorrow filled eyes closed tightly. Paul took a few steps forward hesitantly.
"Quil, dude, this is not good.."
"Give him time to catch his cool." I replied calmly. Jake turned his back on Edward, Bella and the rest of the leeches. The rain was thundering down on us now, my fur was plastered to the skin and flesh beneath it.

"Why?" Jake whispered to himself quietly. His rapid shaking slowed as he ran a hand through his quickly growing russet hair. Without turning back, he spoke.
"You were saying? about the others?" He demanded, blatantly. Pinching the bridge of his nose and closing his eyes like an exasperated parent with a disobedient child. The trees around us shuddered in the chilling silence.
"Ah yes," Jasper began, babbling to get the words out as I was swept over with a sudden comfort that confused me, "well, they are a great threat to us. They show no mercy, fear nothing and above all else, they are always thirsty, always wanting more after they've had their fill." He stared at us for a long moment, dark terror filling his butter colour eyes "Always killing with no thought."
Jacob snorted, "Sounds pretty normal of you lot to me."
Edward sighed with frustration at Jakes ignorance toward the obviously serious matter at hand, I worried, that this could be as serious as made out to be, and that my sweet, beautiful Claire was at risk of having the warm blood sucked from her. I shuddered despite the heat I carried.
"Jacob, have we not shown you that we are different?" He asked, cocking his head to one side, his face and tone of voice patient.

To me, they were different from the rest of their kind, them being here, warning us, made them different. Made them that much more human because they cared, but, life would still be better without them. The world would be a happier, brighter place. Maybe then, we could rest at ease with ourselves. At peace.

"Is this all you have come to tell us, Leech?" Jake snarled in response, whirling around to rip into Edward, only to find himself face to face with Bella.
"Stop being a child, Jake!" She hissed. Her skin only very slightly flushed but otherwise, cold and lifeless looking. The smudge under her eyes a deep purple. Her upper lip curled back slightly in anger as a angry ripping sound escaped her stomach, "we came here to help you, not be openly abused by you, for everyone's sake, just grow up!" Jake flinched back, recoiling from Bella's words as if they were a slap to his face. Destroying his ego.

After a long while, he spoke.
"You may think that we are monsters the same as you, but, we only exist like so, because you do, Bella." He whispered, both their faces inches away from each other.

He turned his back again, ripping from the pants he wore in a sudden burst of anger, replacing it quickly enough with the comfort and security of his fur. Where human emotions disappeared.

"And were off." Paul snickered as Jake sprinted past him. Heading back into the forest.

* * *
Claire Young

"Thanks, Claire, for today. It really helped." Leah sniffled as we pulled up to my house.
"No problem, Leah, really." I replied for about the millionth time, taking the door handle and ripping the seat belt off my waist.
"Wait!" Leah cried, grabbing my free wrist quickly, "how do you think the guys will take it?"
I studied her serious expression for a second, one leg swung out of the rusted old car.
"Like they would if it was Seth imprinting, Supportive." I exasperated, sighing heavily to make sure she realized my patience was wearing thin. She nodded and gripped the steering wheel nervously. I took sudden pity on Leah as I remembered my mothers words, "Everyone sees the world and feels the world in their own way, some are weaker than others.." I took her hand gingerly in my own.
"It will be fine, you'll see."
I stepped out into the stormy rain throwing the hood of my jacket on and running for the front door, stumbling along the way. By the time I took the first step of the porch, the lightening started and the door swung open. A large hand shot out, catching me before I fell again and dragging me into the house.

"Have fun?" Quil asked, propping me upright on the wooden floor.
"Best outing of my life." I retorted sarcastically, shooting him my best death glare.
"Do you think it made a difference?"
"I don't know." I said, honestly, as I wrenched off my boots and Quil helped me out of my heavy rain coat.
"Well," He started as he wrapped his big, solid arms around my waist protectively, "thank you anyway."
"No problem," I said grinning up at him, "was it a good run?"
Quil hesitated before answering. "Hmm, for the most of it."
"What do you mean?" I asked curiously as he led me into the kitchen. Sam, Emily, Jake and Paul had all made themselves comfortable around the large oak dining table, speaking in low, hushed tones. Emily's elegant, russet skinned hand rested on Jakes.

"What's going on?" I demanded now, feeling the authoritative tone come through my voice. It was my house. I had every right to know the dealings that went on within it.
"We ran into some.. old, friends, whilst out today." Quil explained.
"Other wolves?" I questioned aloud. Everyone at the table had fallen silent, the conversation stopped at my expense.
"Not quite." Paul said. Paul, surprisingly enough, had always been calm and patient with me, unlike he was with everyone else. His foul temper was never let loose around me.

I looked at Jacob Black, confused by what could have such a light hearted person in so much anger.
"I never actually told her that legend." Quil sighed.
"What are you talking about, Quil Ateara." I demanded, staring up at him.
He looked at me with a sudden twinge of sorrow.
"We, Claire, are not the only mythical creatures that this world holds secret to."
I gaped at him now, the room had fallen silent once again, and the pouring rain could be heard clearly as it smashed against the roof and sides of my small house.
"In out legends and tales, we call them the cold ones." Sam said gently and Jacob looked to me with cold, angry eyes.
"Vampires," He spat, "filthy bloodsucking, Leeches. Sucking the life and soul out of her.. out of Bella." His voice broke at the end of his sentence, and he buried his face in his arms which he rested upon the table.
"Vampires?" I repeated in a whisper, looking to Quil, who had concern in his light, brown eyes. Like the information I had just been given could be too much for me.

This wasn't true. Like when Quil told me he was, what we would call, a werewolf, it didn't scare me in the slightest, in fact, it fascinated me. I wanted to know more. Beautiful creatures such as these actually existed in our world and we had no idea. Creatures I read about and dreamed about, even at a younger age, had nightmares about.
But, they lived, they always had, and this knowledge had me amazed and craving to learn more.
At that moment, Chloe entered the room, and the gathering had to be stopped.

My older sister and myself were alike in many ways. We shared the same black sea of curls atop our heads, though hers was cropped shorter than mine, and we had the same skin tone, but we were so different too. Although both our eyes were big and bright, Chloe's were so dark they almost shone like the night sky. She was also painfully shy and even while she was the coming age of nineteen she had not yet gotten a job.

Everyone but Chloe and Quil uttered their goodbyes before trudging out into the rain.
"I sure know how to clear a room, huh?" Chloe muttered under her breath.
"Hah, any applications brought home today, Clo?" Quil asked playfully ruffling her hair as Chloe sat down in one of the now empty kitchen seat, pulling her large shoulder bag onto her lap.
"Only about another two million," She snorted, rolling her eyes, "how was Miss Leah then, Claire?"
"She was, um, good.. I guess.." Was all I could manage, shooting Quil what was supposed to be a glare. The information I had just received still sinking in slowly.
Quil seemed to notice and he quickly excused as from Chloe's presence, dragging me by the arm to my room, shutting it behind us gently.

"Tell me what's going through that head of yours?" He sighed, sitting on the checked print bed cover.

I grinned at him and climbed into his lap like a child, curling into the warmth of his body.
"Nothing you need to know." I giggled, pulling his face down to mine and pressing his lips my own. His arms wound around me, so I was locked in his vice tight grip. Quil's kisses slowly became more and more passionate, his tongue sliding across my lips. I let them part, breathing in sweet scent. I broke away and kissed down his neck gently, teasing him.
"Claire?" Quil eased me off.
"Mmmm?" I murmured in response, smiling at him innocently.
"You, are mean."
I laughed sweetly and pressed myself back into his chest and he encircled me with his huge arms