Edited 13 June 2013

{

I slammed on the brakes to keep from crashing into the barricade. A police officer and a couple of men in combat gear with large guns sprinted over to my car. They were shouting something at me through the glass, but all I could focus on was the horizon.

A couple helicopters spun above what I knew was the capitol building. A thin stream of smoke rose up like a pillar into the sky, which must have been enormous, since I was at least three miles away. I gaped at the reality of it, gasping for breath as I strained against my seatbelt.

My door was pulled open roughly and the barrel of a gun blocked me from the outside. It wasn't raised toward me, but the man holding it looked absolutely pissed at me. He was yelling at me, pointing behind me imperiously. I licked my lips and shook my head.

"No, I have to get through," I croaked. The man shook his head and motioned for another man to come over. "My daughter…she was in the library. Please. You have to let me through."

}

-Chapter 5: People Are Friends, Not Food-

"So," Jacob said hesitantly. "I guess we have a lot to talk about?" I nodded my head, unable to speak.

I replayed what just happened in my mind, but it just wouldn't 'take.' I should be used to this level of weird, but all I could think about was how ridiculous and farfetched a human being turning into a gigantic wolf was.

And yet…here he was, alive and well and completely naked.

I turned my head away and looked at the ground, though Jacob didn't seem to be all too worried about modesty. I chanced a look back at his face, which was tilted down as he stared at my mid section. His fingers wiggled slightly – I don't even think he knew he was doing it – and I realized what he was looking at. My hands; my very normal looking hands, which, only a few seconds ago, had been replaced with vicious claws.

Both of our heads snapped in the same direction as a distant wolf howl rang out, penetrating the quiet of the forest. Moments later, the sound of Charlie's voice wafted from the other direction, steadily moving closer. I took a step in his direction, not wanting him to find the wolf boy stark naked in the woods. Jacob bolted in front of me suddenly, his skin vibrating as he blocked my path.

"We have to talk about this," he gritted through his teeth. The wolf howl got closer to us. My eyes widened as I considered what that could mean.

"Is that…" I tried to find the right words. "Is that another one of you? A wolf person?" Jacob hesitated, but nodded, keeping his eyes on me like I would blow up at any moment.

I let out a breath and shook my head, dodging around Jacob so I could stop my dad from going any farther into the woods. A fevered hand clamped down on my wrist and tugged with inhuman strength. I froze, my muscles bunching as I waited for his next move.

"You're not going near him," Jacob growled out. I sputtered, easily pulling out of his fragile grip and wheeling around.

"I would never harm my father!" I exclaimed, flexing my hands as they began to tingle. The mass in my upper arms writhed and shifted in offense. "Meet me out here later tonight if you want to talk – I have to go make sure my dad doesn't see any of this." I gestured at the damaged trees and dug-up soil.

The wolf howl was dangerously close now. Jacob gave a tense nod, though he seemed reluctant to let me leave. I backed away from him until I was a hundred feet away before I turned around and sprinted toward Charlie's footfalls, easily locating his stumbling form as he tried to navigate in the dark.

I slowed my speed to a jog and moved closer. Once he heard me, his flashlight went up, boring into my eyes with a brilliant glare. I raised my arm to block the light, relaxing once the beam fell to my feet.

"Dad," I called. Charlie moved in closer and swooped me up into a hug, letting out a breath I could tell he had been holding.

"Bella," Charlie said in a stern voice as he released me. "What in the hell are you doing out here? Jesus, I thought…" he trailed off, running his hand through his hair.

"Jake saw something in the woods," I blurted out, knowing I had to give some sort of explanation to my father. "He went off after it. I tried to follow, but I got a little turned around." Charlie's face grew concerned, his eyebrows pulling together.

"Why in the world would that kid go off into the woods like that?" He shook his head and tugged me along, heading out of the forest and toward the house.

I grimaced. Now Charlie would want to go searching the woods for Jacob, thinking something terrible had happened to him. Jake was obviously dangerous. I didn't know if he posed a threat to my father, but I didn't think I was going to be able to talk him out of going to look for the wolf boy. My teeth ground in frustration.

The sound of incoming footsteps and crunching soil made me pause abruptly, causing Charlie to glance at me in confusion. A few seconds later, Charlie's ears were able to pick up the sound as well, and he shined his flashlight in the direction the footsteps were coming from.

A shirtless Jacob jogged up to us out of the forest, clad only in a pair of shorts that he hadn't been wearing before. Charlie grunted and shifted his feet, obviously realizing Jacob was dressed down a bit since he had last seen him at the house. He opened his mouth, probably to ask him what in the world he was doing out in the woods without shoes or a shirt on, but I spoke first, trying to divert his attention.

"So, did you find it?" I asked Jacob. He shot me a confused look as I glared at him. "You know…the thing we saw in the woods?" A brief look of comprehension crossed his face before he frowned and shook his head.

"Oh," Jacob coughed. "No. I didn't find it. I just…fell and ripped my clothes. A…friend dropped these shorts off for me." The look on Jakes own face made it obvious he doubted anyone would believe his pathetic story, but he didn't back down from it either.

Charlie gave Jacob a long look before he let out a tired sigh and shook his head.

"I don't even want to know," Charlie turned away from Jake and looked down at me. "You're OK, though, aren't you, Bells?" I nodded quickly, holding my breath. "Alright, then; let's go back in the house. The pizza's probably cold by now."

Charlie mumbled something incoherent about a 'stupid kid' and trudged through the backyard, switching off his flashlight as he pulled open the screen door and left us in the yard. I followed Charlie's example, pointedly ignoring Jacob and his constant stare as I walked into the house.

Billy's eyes widened as he caught sight of his son's shirtless state, and he immediately shifted his gaze to me. His black eyes must have found something damning in my expression, because his jaw set and he gripped the armrests of his wheelchair.

The awkwardness was broken by Charlie, who tossed an old flannel button up shirt to Jacob, who thanked him and quickly pulled it on. The shirt was too small, making Jacob look even more hulked-out, but it was better than nothing and nobody complained.

Jacob and Charlie sat down, each grabbing a slice of pizza. I frowned at the box, internally grimacing at the possibility of having to eat a piece of regular food. Charlie noticed me standing there and offered me a slice, his attention still halfway focused on the sports on the television screen. I waved my hand in refusal.

"No thanks; I'm not that hungry," I said. "I'm actually kind of tired. Probably going to head on up to bed." I nodded my head in the direction of the stairs.

"Alright," Charlie turned to me. "I'll leave you a couple pieces for later if you get hungry." I smiled a hopefully-realistic smile and nodded, turning and practically running up the stairs.

It was later than I thought it would be when Charlie finally fell asleep. He had stayed up until nearly midnight watching television downstairs before he called it a night and went to bed. Once his breathing evened out, I kicked the covers off and glanced at my alarm clock. 12:43. The petty part of me hoped I had kept Jacob waiting in the woods for me.

I quickly disrobed, tossing the pajamas I had changed into onto my bed. I let my skin reform, molding a hoodie, jeans, and sneakers, before I gently pried my window open. It squeaked as it went up and I froze, listening for Charlie. Luckily, he hadn't woken up, but I would need to grease this window in case I ever had to make another nighttime getaway. It would be useful the next time I had to feed.

I leaped out of the window and landed with a soft thud on the ground, pausing to appreciate the feeling that going without clothing on afforded me. I walked around to the back of the house at a normal pace, not wanting to use my full speed out in the open, even though I knew no one would be able to see me.

It was dark out tonight – much darker than it ever got in Phoenix, though my eyesight wasn't hindered at all. As the damp grass squished under my shoes, I looked up at the starless sky, frowning at the constant cloud cover. It would have been quite a sight, I was sure, to see the stars here.

Once I made it to the tree line, I sped up and started running. Trees – both alive and fallen – passed me by, but I couldn't see any giant wolves roaming the forest. An eerie howl pitched over the sound of rushing air and I instantly corrected my path, heading for the sound. It seemed a bit backward, heading toward the sound of a giant, vicious animal, but I was confident I would be able to take care of myself if this Q and A session should turn violent.

I slowed as I came to a creek – well, it was a little too big to be called a creek, but much too small to be a river. The constant green of the forest seemed to thin around the trickling stream of water here, and the lush shrubbery near the ground faded into rocks and mud from the constant erosion of rain and creek water. It was there that I finally saw them.

Three enormous wolves were perched on the other side of the creek, positioned around a russet-skinned man who, coincidentally, only wore a pair of shorts. As I approached, one of the wolves, a dark, silver-furred beast, snarled at me. The one next to it, a dark brown-colored wolf with a grey patch spattered on its face, growled lowly in concert with the grey wolf.

The russet colored wolf on the other side of the man was obviously Jacob; I remembered the color from earlier tonight – or, well, technically yesterday. He didn't snarl or growl at me, though he did watch me closely with highly intelligent eyes for an animal. I halted at the edge of the creek and looked back at the man, who I assumed was their spokesperson – or was it spokes-wolf?

Suddenly, without my mental consent, a laugh bubbled up out of my throat at the ridiculousness of the situation. I was standing in front of a bunch of people who could transform into gargantuan wolves – most that were wolves right now – who wanted to know what I was. I guess it was hitting me all at once, now, that this was light-years away from anything close to normal.

The growls started again at my ill-timed laughter and I brought myself back under control, clearing my head with a deep breath. I eyed the man again with unease, feeling completely out of my depth.

"I don't exactly know how to start," I said in a raised voice. "I'm Bella Swan, but I guess you already knew that…" I trailed off. The man's muscles twitched minutely and his stance relaxed.

"Yes, we did," he nodded. "I am Sam Uley and this is my pack. You are not human." His sentences were clipped and to the point. I huffed.

"You aren't exactly human, either," I mumbled, eliciting a deeper huff from the Jacob-wolf, who let out a whine before he darted off into the forest. "Where is Jacob going?" I asked, though I got no response.

Jacob came back in less than a minute, this time walking on two legs and dressed in the same shorts he wore a few hours ago. He shot me an unconvincing smile before he looked at Sam, who seemed to glare at him. The awkward staring contest lasted over a minute, ending with a curt nod from Sam and a relieved breath from Jacob. The latter turned to me again.

"We need to know what you are, Bella," Jacob said. "Our tribe has never come across something…someone like you before. We need to know if you're dangerous to the people of Forks."

My lips parted in a partial gape. I wasn't sure how to respond. I was dangerous; I killed people. Jacob's eyes seemed to implore me to tell the truth, but I knew telling him I had to kill to live was a bad idea. I cleared my throat.

"Uh, no offence Jacob, but you go first," I waved my hand in his direction. "What are you?" Jacob glanced at Sam again, who nodded.

"We're werewolves," he said, though I couldn't say I was completely shocked. "Certain members of our tribe inherit the ability to phase when our enemies are near."

"Enemies?" I pried, genuinely curious what sort of enemies a group of werewolves could have.

"No," Sam cut off whatever Jacob was about to say and turned to me. "We told you what we were; now it is your turn." I frowned at the phrase.

"I…don't really know," I admitted. "I became this way in Phoenix, apparently."

"Apparently?" Jacob asked. I nodded.

"I lost most of my memories around the time that it happened – other memories, too, but mostly the ones that had to do with the attack," I could tell Jacob was about to ask about that as well, so I continued. "The terrorist attack on the capitol building? You must have heard about it on television." A look of comprehension dawned on both their faces, before it gave way to more confusion.

"A terrorist attack made you…what you are?" Sam questioned. I could hear the disbelief in his voice. I shrugged.

"Like I said, I don't really remember. I don't know how I became this way and I don't know why it gave me these…powers." I cringed at the term 'powers.' That implied I was some sort of super hero, which I definitely wasn't.

"What can you do?" Jacob asked, more life in his voice. "We've seen your…claws, and know you're really strong and can run faster than normal, but…" he let the sentence hang.

Without a word, I began to reform my right arm. The red and black tendrils drooped and hardened as they flattened and tapered at the ends, sharpening my new appendage into an enormous blade that reached the floor, replacing my lower arm entirely. Where my upper arm met my elbow, the opposite end of the blade grew out until it reached above my shoulders. The dark-grey blade shined dully in the dark, catching the eye of everyone before me.

The two wolves immediately snarled and crouched low with their muscles taught, itching for me to make a move against them. Sam and Jacob seemed to shiver and quake in rage, though the look in their eyes was unmistakable – fear. I dropped my head slightly and tilted my awkward blade-arm halfway behind me, though there was no way my body could hide it.

"It's not just claws," I said after it appeared everyone had control of themselves. "My body can…change and shape shift into almost anything I can imagine. Though, as you can see, they tend to be weapons."

"Oh," Jacob choked, unable to say more. He looked at Sam, who was unable to take his eyes off my blade.

"Yeah," I sighed, shifting my weight awkwardly. I pulled my blade back into an arm, wanting them to stop looking at me like I was some sort of monster – which was exactly what I was. Once I had two arms again, I continued. "Like you already know, I'm really strong and I can run pretty fast – though, I've never timed how fast. I heal fast, too." I winced, remembering how I had found out that bit about myself.

"Does Charlie know?" Jacob asked. I shook my head.

"No, and I'd kind of like it to stay that way. You won't tell him, will you?" I questioned.

"No," Jacob replied. "To be honest, Bella, I'm not sure your dad could take it." I nodded in agreement. Charlie liked his life simple, and knowing about me would not be conductive to his lifestyle.

"Jacob says you have no heartbeat," Sam said, his eyes going back and forth between my face and my normal-looking arm. "But you are warm blooded. How is that possible?" I shook my head at his question.

"I have no idea," I sighed, putting my hand against my chest and feeing for the beat that wasn't there. "I think I'm actually missing most of my organs. Most of my insides are that red and black stuff." Sam nodded, accepting my answer.

"And what do you-" Sam cut off, clearing his throat. "How do you…survive?" I took a small step back, both understanding his question, while at the same time wishing I didn't.

"What do you mean?" I asked in a monotone. We both knew what he meant. He took a breath and spoke again.

"What do you eat?"

"Sam," Jacob interrupted. "She had pizza with Charlie, Billy, and me tonight. I mean she…" Jacob frowned, most probably remembering that I hadn't had anything to eat tonight.

"Bella?" Sam asked again, seeming to grow taller as his muscles started to twitch again. I swallowed.

"I don't…I'm not," I took another step back, causing a growl to rumble lowly in the wolves' chests. "I'm not a danger to Forks." At least that much was mostly true. I didn't want to be a danger to Forks. I wouldn't feed here, for sure. Sam raised an arm, silently keeping the wolves rooted to their spot. A lick of fear ran through my body. I didn't know exactly how strong a werewolf was, but it was a possibility that they could seriously hurt me.

"Bella?" Jacob parroted Sam's question. "Tell me you don't…" He didn't say it, but I nodded anyway, ashamed, but unwilling to drop my guard and look away from them.

"I have to feed on people," I whispered.

Abruptly, the silver wolf snarled and leaped at me with startling speed. I only had time to brace myself before I was pinned underneath the massive beast, his jaws snapping at me as I held him up by his chest. I could feel the claws on his front feet digging into my flesh, exposing patches of my cherry-red insides as I concentrated on not accidentally eating the wolf. I could feel my sinew itching to grab and rip and absorb his large body.

"Paul!" Sam's voice called over the snarling. More footfalls came closer and I watched the brown wolf circling us. With moderate strength, I heaved the horse-sized wolf over my head and sent him flying into the collection of trees on my side of the creek.

The sound of branches snapping and a high-pitched yelping came from that direction and I immediately leaped to my feet and put my back away from the wolves, once again shifting my arm into a large blade as I crouched in a fighting position. My blade rested with its tip on the ground behind me, ready to swing and cleave anyone who approached me. The patches of damaged tissue on my chest healed over instantly, weaving the artificial threads of my hoodie back together.

Sam, Jacob, and the other wolf were on my side of the creek now as well, all eyeing me and waiting for me to attack. I hesitated, though; I didn't want to kill them. They seemed absolutely pissed – Paul especially – that I killed people, so there had to be some shred of decency inside them. The silver wolf – Paul – came running back, stopping alongside the brown wolf and snarling loudly at me as he pulled his black lips over his very-white, very-sharp teeth.

"Paul, don't," Sam shouted. The wolf's muscles bunched and he sprang again, ignoring Sam's edict.

I dodged to the side quickly and slammed my fist into the left side of the wolf's face; the satisfying crunch of bones came from underneath his skin and he howled weakly as he once again smashed through the trees. This angered the other wolf, who rushed me as well. I braced my legs and crossed my blade against my chest, catching the wolf's throat with my hand while the edge of my blade dug into the thick flesh of its chest. I flung the wolf in the direction I sent Paul, spewing a trail of blood as he sailed through the air.

Jacob seemed to realize I wasn't actively trying to kill the wolves, and yanked off his shorts, phasing into his russet-colored wolf form nearly instantly. Sam followed suit, erupting into a huge, jet-black wolf – he was even bigger than Jacob's wolf, giving off an almost-palpable aura of power. The two wolves that had attacked me came slowly into my sight again, one barely able to walk while the other's muzzle was puffed up and slightly caved in. They both whimpered as the Sam-wolf growled at them, making them duck their heads and stop next to Jacob.

Jacob and Sam phased back into human form in front of me, forgoing decency. It was then that I noticed the bundle of cloth wrapped around each of their ankles, which they bent down and unwrapped, revealing the shorts they had taken off. I hummed at their ingenuity; they had thought up a way around the nakedness problem, so long as they didn't suddenly transform while still wearing their shorts.

"Sam," Jacob said after they were dressed, bravely taking his eyes off me. Sam shook his head but kept his gaze locked on me.

"We don't have a choice," Sam said gravely. "She's no better than a human drinker and she's obviously a threat to our tribe and to Forks." The wolves seemed to snarl in agreement, chomping at the bit to move closer and take a snap at me even though they were in absolutely no condition to do so. Their conversation was lost on me; I wasn't sure what 'human drinker' meant, but I wasn't about to let my guard down to ask.

I wanted to fight – the potential thrill of smashing bones and cutting their flesh apart was a heavy draw. I wouldn't instigate the attack, but I also wouldn't lie down if they tried to kill me. They were faster than I was, too; I had seen the way Paul had lunged at me and I remembered how quickly Jacob had caught me earlier tonight. This wasn't a fight or flight situation; it was fight or die.

Resolute in my decision, I stilled my body and waited to react to whatever may come.

"The Cullens don't feed on humans!" Jacob argued, drawing my attention absolutely. The Cullens? "What if she could do the same? She could feed on animals!"

"We cannot take that chance, Jacob," Sam spoke with authority, chancing a glance at his broken wolves. The one with the sliced flesh seemed to be recovering faster than the one with the crushed face, though the former was still whimpering and its coat was spattered in blood. "She admitted she kills to live, and that is something I cannot allow to happen, no matter how much you care for her."

I wasn't sure what shocked me more; the fact that Jacob, the boy I barely knew, was fighting for me, or the insinuation that the Cullens weren't human. I had sensed there was something…predatory about their family, but my suspicions seemed all-but-confirmed now. I wasn't sure what they meant by eating animals, either. Charlie ate animals all the time – bacon was one of his vices, actually.

The thought of feeding on animals had never actually crossed my mind. In the beginning, once I knew there was something seriously wrong with me, I had tried to eat regular food. Chips, granola bars, and even hamburgers all came back up after I ingested them. And then I had accidentally consumed that poor man. The thought – the idea – of killing and absorbing a living, breathing animal had never come up.

But that's what they were talking about. I hadn't described how I fed, but somehow these wolves knew it was violent. They knew because they knew the Cullens did something similar with animals, although I had no idea what the Cullens were. They weren't…whatever I was, that was for sure; I would have been able to tell.

It was at that moment when the realization of what Jacob had said hit me completely. Could I live off of animals? Would I be able to go without killing people anymore? Joy and relief flooded my body at the possibility of it, and I knew I had to find out if it would work.

"I'll try," I said with less venom than I would have imagined, relaxing up into a half-crouch. Both Sam and Jacob turned to me. "I don't know if it will work, but I'll try to…eat an animal." I wrinkled my nose at the concept, though I had never even tried it. Sam gave me a long look and nodded before he spoke.

"Jacob and I will follow you," he said in the same voice he used with the wolves. "If you are not able to feed off of an animal or if you refuse, we will destroy you immediately." He gave Jacob an equally hard look before pointing his glare at me. I shook my head at him and snorted, shifting my arm-blade in front of me and drawing their attention to it.

"No," I said in a cold voice. "I don't believe you will. I think we both know who would win in a fight, Sam. I don't want to hurt you – I don't want to hurt anyone, which is why I will try to feed of an animal – but don't think you can beat me, because it's obvious you can't." I looked pointedly at the rapidly recovering wolves, which bristled as I looked at them.

To his credit, Sam did not back down. He held his tongue, though, and both he and Jacob went behind a tree to shift, quickly coming back over to us as wolves. Sam looked at Paul and the unnamed wolf for a moment, and they both nodded, relaxing further on the wet ground. He looked back at me and lifted his head quickly while huffing out a breath, silently telling me to go ahead of them.

I turned around with difficulty and started running through the woods, keeping my blade behind me as I went, to keep it from slicing through the trees as we blurred past them. I could hear the two wolves behind me, their panting and heavy footfalls easy to distinguish, even as the wind rushed past loudly. I opened my senses, allowing my eyes to sharpen and scan for any sign of life.

It was an unnatural feeling, being on the hunt for food when I wasn't already starving. I began to ponder how weak practically starving myself made me, when I caught sight of a deer a little over a mile ahead. It was resting in a small clearing with another deer, oblivious to our approach. I inched into a dead sprint, my feet pounding against the soft ground with a frantic pace, though I couldn't seem to outrun the wolves behind me.

The doe startled at my approach once I was near enough for it to hear me, and it quickly leaped to its feet and made a break for the opposite side of the small clearing. But it wasn't fast enough.

I barreled into the animal, impaling it with my blade and nearly severing it into two pieces almost immediately. Hot blood splashed my face from the wet impact, sending the mutilated animal tumbling to the ground with me on top of it.

My blade quickly dug in, much to my relief, allowing my body to start to break down the warm flesh of the deer. I dug my left hand into its neck, allowing for more contact and speeding up the process. I cringed at the slurping and sucking sounds the collapsing tissues of the deer made as they were converted, but held fast as the process finally completed.

I stood up and looked at what was left of the animal. There were more chunks of meat and pieces of bone than there would be if I had fed on a person, and the tufts of fur were quite macabre as they blended into the red carnage, but I felt good. There was no rejection – no squirming or shifting pieces inside me. I smiled and turned, allowing my hands to reform as I looked at the wolves, who watched with their lips pulled back over their teeth in a wolf-like grimace.

I nodded to them, letting them know it worked. Sam nodded back and flashed into the dense forest, once again returning as a bare-chested man.

"We still have much to discuss with you," Sam said, and the relief that was plainly visible on his face – though mixed with disgust – made me want to grin like a fool.

End notes: So, this chapter turned out to be much longer than I had expected it to. I didn't want the encounter with the wolves to linger for another chapter, so I sort of crammed it all into this one. Hope you don't mind.

And yes, Bella is immune to mental powers. Thanks for the reviews; they are much appreciated.