Chapter 1: Legends:
When you move around as much as the Halliwell sisters did it was hard to make friends outside of each other. Piper would start at 22 and be in her first year out of college. Phoebe would be 20 and still finishing college. Posie would be a junior in high school at 17 and Paige would be a 16 year old sophomore. All in all they kept to themselves for the most part and could stay in a town for up to 20 years but that had yet to occur, they typically moved about every 5 years. In the last 75 or so years they added 2 more to their numbers. Piper had found her soul mate in Leo and Phoebe found hers in Coop. Piper and Leo had a son named Wyatt. He was three months old.
This recent move was brought about by directions from the Elders. They were leaving a small town in southern California and relocating to the even smaller town of Forks, Washington. For the past month the Halliwell sister and the two males in the family had been making preparations for the relocation. Leo had gotten a job at the local hospital as a doctor in the Emergency Room. Prue was doing her freelance photography, Piper was continuing her catering business, this time with a restaurant, and Phoebe was going to be running a small martial arts studio. Coop decided that this time around he would work as a handy man. Paige and Posie had registered for school. Posie would be a junior and Paige would be a sophomore. They all felt very protective of their baby sister which is why Posie was posing as a junior, to keep an eye on Paige. Besides setting things up for their social life, Posie had been joining her two brother-in-laws in almost daily trips to their new home. They had done a lot of work to help keep their family safe. The house was large but considering they were a family of seven adults and a baby it fit just right. One of the first things they did was set up warning and protection spells around the immediate property and then again around the house. Next they went about reinforcing the windows and doors of the lower level. After that they went about pretty much gutting the house and finishing it to their liking. The kitchen was expanded and completed to Piper's specifications. A dark room was built off the main entrance for Prue. The large garage was updated so that the family could do their own vehicle maintenance and the small pull barn off the other side of the house was converted into a gymnastics and martial arts studio for Phoebe and Posie. To finish off the upstairs they added 4 more bathrooms and extensive sound proofing between the rooms. The only other two things that had to be done was to get their greenhouse set up, fill up the pool and finish all the wards and protection spells around the property and in the house itself.
They finally finished everything less than two days before the start of school. Leo made sure that everything was ready and then orbed himself into Piper's Jeep. Coop transported himself into the families SUV that Phoebe was driving. Following the two family vehicles was Prue and Paige in the large rented U-hauls. Posie was driving her yellow Porsche. They got there and Piper unstrapped Wyatt out of his seat and carried him into the house. It had the exact same furniture their old house did. As soon as everyone entered, Posie thought back to the day they killed the nexus. It was seven years after they received their powers. The Halliwell Manor, a historical artifact, was their very first home. It had been in their family for generations. It was built on top of a nexus, a point of incredible energy. They had to get rid of the nexus which resulted in the Manor exploding. They were presumed dead and their bodies were never found. But they were hiding out in Magic School and using Prue's Astral Projection to get into the Manor without dying. It all worked out perfectly. The explosion left them immortal, because each one of their astral forms was infected by a part of it while chanting the spell. Their old friend, Brian Morris, was a police officer and he knew their secret, so he covered for them. The secret was passed on through his family line, so whenever one came across the Halliwells, he would help them in any way possible. The latest one was Darryl Morris. He worked in Seattle and had managed to find them their new home.
Posie snapped out of her thoughts and went up to Paige.
"Hey," she said. "Want to help put up protection spells and charms around the house?"
"Sure," she agreed. Paige grabbed the Book of Shadows and sighed. She missed her family. Her father was still alive and a Whitelighter and she could summon her Grams, Penny, her step father, Victor and mother, Patty whenever she wanted, but she still wished they were alive. They went up the stairs and into the attic. It was set up exactly like the one that had been in the Manor. There was also a podium for the Book in the middle of the room. Paige laid the Book on it. Posie took the crystals and a pad and pen. Paige took the crystals from her and orbed out of the room.
"Hey," yelled Posie. She transported out after her and appeared next to Paige. Paige shrieked.
"Watch it," she warned. "You'll burn the grass."
"Very funny," she said. Her power of flaming didn't burn anything because it's only use was for transporting.
"Write the spell," Paige said. "I'll orb the crystals around the house. It's faster." Posie started to write the spell. In the middle of it she thought she saw something watching her. She looked up and looked around. Paige looked up from where she was planning on putting the crystals and saw her sister looking around. "Something wrong?" she asked.
"Nothing," Posie shook her head. "I thought I saw something." Paige shrugged and went back to planning where to orb the crystals to. She saw Posie writing without looking at the paper. Posie or anyone in her family never did that unless something was wrong. She sighed and got up to orb the crystals around the house.
"Crystals. Circle," she called. The crystals disappeared and reappeared around the house. Posie tore the spell out of the pad and began chanting.
"I call on the spirits
Block all evil out
And all who wish us harm
Without a doubt."
She let the paper fall to the ground, but she used her pryokinetic powers to burn it before it hit the ground. As soon as the paper was burned, the crystals glowed for a second. She looked around still not convinced that no one was watching. She thought she caught a glimmer of bronze hair. She gasped and whirled around. Paige looked up from where she was examining the crystals.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
"I know I saw something," Posie insisted. Paige sighed.
"I'll get Leo to check it out," she said. They were walking when they saw a boy with a girl approach them. The girl had short, red and black, spiky, cropped hair and was bouncing excitedly, but had a nervous and confused look on her face. She was slightly shorter than the sisters and looked similar to a pixie. The boy had blond hair that fell down to his face. He was standing completely still and had a pained look on his face. He was slightly taller than the sisters and had scars all over his body. He was watching the sisters every move. They were both inhumanly beautiful and had gold eyes. The pixie stepped forward with amazing grace and stuck out her hand.
"I'm Alice," she introduced. "This is my boyfriend slash adopted brother Jasper." Posie shook her hand then Paige did.
"I'm Posie and this is my sister, Paige." Paige smiled.
"Are you new?" she said. Paige nodded. "Weird, I didn't know anything about newcomers." Jasper looked at her with concern. Posie detected a double meaning in the words, but she let it slide. She went back to her bubbly personality in a split second. "Are you going to be attending Forks High?"
"Yes," said Posie. "I'm a junior and Paige will be a sophomore."
"I'm a junior too. Jasper and my other adopted siblings, Rosalie and Emmett, are seniors. My other adopted sibling, Edward, is a junior too."
"Great," said Paige enthusiastically.
"Hey," said a voice from behind them. They turned around and saw Leo. "Piper needs you guys in the kitchen." He slowed down when he got to the sisters and as soon as he saw Alice and Jasper, his eyes widened. He looked scared and on alert.
"Alice, Jasper this is our brother in law, Leo," introduced Paige. Leo smiled a little then turned back to them.
"Piper needs you guys. You better go before she blows the house up." They all cracked up laughing when he said that. They remembered when Piper accidentally blew up her bedroom wall when she was fighting with Leo. Alice and Jasper looked confused. They didn't get the joke.
"Our sister, Piper, has a bit of a temper," said Posie. They nodded.
"Well we better go," said Alice. "See you tomorrow in school." They nodded and waved. Alice and Jasper disappeared into the forest.
"School?" asked Leo scared. He checked to see if they were out of ear shot then turned back to the sisters. "You guys better be on alert. Those were from the Cullen Coven."
"Cool," said Paige. The Cullen Coven was a coven of seven vampires. They all lived off of the diet of animals. Apparently, three of them had special abilities. The girl, Alice, could see the future when the decisions are set. Phoebe could see the decisions even before they were set. The blond boy, Jasper, can feel and manipulate peoples' emotions. And the one they whose name was Edward, could read people's mind, but according to Leo, he said that he wouldn't be able to read their minds. "I always wanted to meet them."
"The doctor, Carlisle, will be working with me at the hospital, and you will be going to school with the kids." He turned to look at them forcefully. "I'm asking you, no, I'm begging you, as your brother in law and whitelighter, to keep a very close eye on Bella Swan. She's human and she's in love with Edward and he's in love with her, but he won't show it and he's very good at hiding his emotions. You must look after her. She's also a little clumsy." Paige snickered.
"The old love hate relationship," joked Paige.
"We will," said Posie. "As a personal favor to you." Leo gave them a brief hug.
"Thanks," he said. "You guys look up more about the Cullens. I'll help Prue, Piper, Phoebe, and Coop, and I'll explain about the Cullens." They ran up the stairs to the attic ignoring their requests for help. They opened the Book of Shadows.
"The Cold Ones," read Paige. "They were supposedly vampires. All that is fact, The Cold Ones are vampires. The Native American tribe, the Quileutes, call the "Cold Ones" Apotamkin. The Apotamkins have cold skin, incredible speed and strength, are immortal, undead, drink blood, and more Supernatural powers, such as their eyes changing color." They saw illustrations of Cold Ones. On the page next to it they saw the Quileute legends. Posie began reading.
"The Quileutes have been a small people from the beginning," Posie said. "And they are a small people still, but they have never disappeared. This is because there has always been magic in their blood. It wasn't always the magic of shape-shifting — that came later. First, they were the spirit warriors." Paige took over.
"In the beginning, the tribe settled in this harbor and became skilled ship builders and fishermen. But the tribe was small, and the harbor was rich in fish. There were others who coveted their land, and they were too small to hold it. A larger tribe moved against them, and they took to their ships to escape them." Posie stared wide eyed at the Book. Paige shrugged and kept reading. "Kaheleha was not the first spirit warrior, but they do not remember the stories that came before his. They do not remember who the first to discover this power was, or how it had been used before this crisis. Kaheleha used the magic to defend their land. He and all his warriors left the ship — not their bodies, but their spirits. Their women watched over the bodies and the waves, and the men took their spirits back to their harbor." Paige glanced at Posie. "Rough," she muttered.
"You bet," agreed Posie. She took it as her cue to begin reading. Since they were both half whitelighter, they had a certain bond, even though Posie did not receive any whitelighter abilities. "This next part is from the perspective of Ephraim Black." thought Posie out loud. "They could not physically touch the enemy tribe, but they had other ways. The stories tell us that they could blow fierce winds into their enemy's camps; they could make a great screaming in the wind that terrified their foes. The stories also tell us that the animals could see the spirit warriors and understand them; the animals would do their bidding. Kaheleha took his spirit army and wreaked havoc on the intruders. This invading tribe had packs of big, thick-furred dogs that they used to pull their sleds in the frozen north. The spirit warriors turned the dogs against their masters and then brought a mighty infestation of bats up from the cliff caverns. The dogs and bats won. The survivors scattered, calling our harbor a cursed place. The dogs ran wild when the spirit warriors released them. The Quileutes returned to their bodies and their wives, victorious. The other nearby tribes, the Hohs and the Makah's, made treaties with the Quileutes. They wanted nothing to do with our magic." Paige took over.
"We lived in peace with them. When an enemy came against us, the spirit warriors would drive them off. Generations passed. Then came the last great Spirit Chief, Taha Aki. He was known for his wisdom, and for being a man of peace. The people lived well and content in his care. But there was one man, Utlapa, who was not content. Utlapa was one of Chief Taha Aki's strongest spirit warriors — a powerful man, but a grasping man, too. He thought the people should use their magic to expand their lands, to enslave the Hohs and the Makahs and build an empire. Now, when the warriors were their spirit selves, they knew each other's thoughts. Taha Aki saw what Utlapa dreamed, and was angry with Utlapa. Utlapa was commanded to leave the people, and to never use his spirit self again. Utlapa was a strong man, but the chief's warriors outnumbered him. He had no choice but to leave. The furious outcast hid in the forest nearby, waiting for a chance to get revenge against the chief. Even in times of peace, the Spirit Chief was vigilant in protecting his people. Often, he would go to a sacred, secret place in the mountains. He would leave his body behind and sweep down through the forests along the coast, making sure no threat approached. One day when Taha Aki left to perform this duty, Utlapa followed. At first, Utlapa simply planned to kill the chief but this plan had its drawbacks. Surely the spirit warriors would seek to destroy him, and they could follow faster than he could escape. As he hid in the rocks and watched the chief prepare to leave his body, another plan occurred to him. Taha Aki left his body in the secret place and flew with the winds to keep watch over his people. Utlapa waited until he was sure the chief had traveled some distance with his spirit self. Taha Aki knew it the instant that Utlapa had joined him in the spirit world, and he also knew Utlapa's murderous plan. He raced back to his secret place, but even the winds weren't fast enough to save him. When he returned, his body was already gone. Utlapa's body lay abandoned, but Utlapa had not left Taha Aki with an escape — he had cut his own body's throat with Taha Aki's hands." Paige and Posie gasped.
"He sounds like a demon," commented Posie. Paige shrugged and continued. "Taha Aki followed his body down the mountain. He screamed at Utlapa, but Utlapa ignored him as if it were the mere wind. Taha Aki watched with despair as Utlapa took his place as chief of the Quileutes. For a few weeks, Utlapa did nothing but make sure that everyone believed he was Taha Aki. Then the changes began—Utlapa's first edict was to forbid any warrior to enter the spirit world. He claimed that he had a vision of danger, but really he was afraid. He knew that Taha Aki would be waiting for the chance to tell his story. Utlapa was also afraid to enter the spirit world himself, knowing that Taha Aki would quickly claim his body. So his dreams of conquest with a spirit warrior army were impossible, and he sought to content himself with ruling over the tribe. He became a burden — seeking privileges that Taha Aki had never requested, refusing to work alongside his warriors, taking a young second wife and then a third, though Taha Aki's wife lived on — something unheard of in the tribe. Taha Aki watched in helpless fury. Eventually, Taha Aki tried to kill his body to save the tribe from Utlapa's excesses. He brought a fierce wolf down from the mountains, but Utlapa hid behind his warriors. When the wolf killed a young man who was protecting the false chief, Taha Aki felt horrible grief. He ordered the wolf away. All the stories tell us that it was no easy thing to be a spirit warrior. It was more frightening than exhilarating to be freed from one's body. This is why they only used their magic in times of need. The chief's solitary journeys to keep watch were a burden and a sacrifice. Being bodiless was disorienting, uncomfortable, horrifying. Taha Aki had been away from his body for so long at this point that he was in agony. He felt that he was doomed—never to cross over to the final land where his ancestors waited, stuck in this torturous nothingness forever."
"Are you sure he wasn't a demon? Cause I want to go back in time and kill him," said Posie.
"Ditto," said Paige. "Your turn." Posie started reading.
"The great wolf followed Taha Aki's spirit as he twisted and writhed in agony through the woods. The wolf was very large for its kind, and beautiful. Taha Aki was suddenly jealous of the dumb animal. At least it had a body. At least it had a life. Even life as an animal would be better than this horrible empty consciousness. And then Taha Aki had the idea that changed us all. He asked the great wolf to make room for him, to share. The wolf complied. Taha Aki entered the wolf's body with relief and gratitude. It was not his human body, but it was better than the void of the spirit world. As one, the man and the wolf returned to the village on the harbor. The people ran in fear, shouting for the warriors to come. The warriors came to meet the wolf with their spears. Utlapa, of course, stayed safely hidden. Taha Aki did not attack his warriors. He retreated slowly from them, speaking with his eyes and trying to yelp the songs of his people. The warriors began to realize that the wolf was no ordinary animal, that there was a spirit influencing it. One older warrior, a man named Yut, decided to disobey the false chief's order and try to communicate with the wolf. As soon as Yut crossed to the spirit world, Taha Aki left the wolf — the animal waited tamely for his return — to speak to him. Yut gathered the truth in an instant, and welcomed his true chief home. At this time, Utlapa came to see if the wolf had been defeated. When he saw Yut lying lifeless on the ground, surrounded by protective warriors, he realized what was happening. He drew his knife and raced forward to kill Yut before he could return to his body. 'Traitor,' he screamed, and the warriors did not know what to do. The chief had forbidden spirit journeys, and it was the chief's decision to punish those who disobeyed. Yut jumped back into his body, but Utlapa had his knife at his throat and a hand covering his mouth. Taha Aki's body was strong, and Yut was weak with age. Yut could not say even one word to warn the others before Utlapa silenced him forever." Paige shivered. Posie ignored it and continued. "Taha Aki watched as Yut's spirit slipped away to the final lands that were barred from Taha Aki for all eternity. He felt great rage, more powerful than anything he's felt before. He entered the big wolf once again, meaning to rip Utlapa's throat out. But, as he joined the wolf, the greatest magic happened. Taha Aki's anger was the anger of a man. The love he had for his people and the hatred he had for their oppressor were too vast for the wolf's body, too human. The wolf shuddered, and — before the eyes of the shocked warriors and Utlapa — transformed into a man."
"Cool," said Paige. Posie glanced at Paige and Paige continued reading where Posie left off. "The new man did not look like Taha Aki's body. He was far more glorious. He was the flesh interpretation of Taha Aki's spirit. The warriors recognized him at once, though, for they had flown with Taha Aki's spirit. Utlapa tried to run, but Taha Aki had the strength of the wolf in his new body. He caught the thief and crushed the spirit from him before he could jump out of the stolen body. The people rejoiced when they understood what happened. Taha Aki quickly set everything right, working again with his people and giving the young wives back to their families. The only change he kept in place was the end of the spirit travels. He knew that it was too dangerous now that the idea of stealing a life was there. The spirit warriors were no more. From that point on, Taha Aki was more than either wolf or man. They called him Taha Aki the Great Wolf, or Taha Aki the Spirit Man. He led the tribe for many, many years, for he did not age. When danger threatened, he would resume his wolf-self to fight or frighten the enemy. The people dwelt in peace. Taha Aki fathered many sons, and some of these found that, after they reached the age of manhood, they, too, could transform into wolves. The wolves were all different, because they reflected the man they were inside."
"So a black wolf means a black heart," said Posie. Paige laughed. Posie continued reading. "Some of the sons became warriors with Taha Aki, and they no longer aged. Others, who did not like the transformation, refused to join the pack of wolf-men. These began to age again, and the tribe discovered that the wolf-men could grow old like anyone else if they gave up their spirit wolves. Taha Aki had lived the span of three old men's lives. He had married a third wife after the deaths of the first two, and found in here his true spirit wife. Though he had loved the others, this was something else. He decided to give up his spirit wolf do that he would die when she did." The page ended and Posie flipped it.
"The Third Wife's Death," Paige read. ""Many years after Taha Aki gave up his spirit wolf, when he was an old man, trouble began in the north, with the Makahs. Several young women of their tribe had disappeared, and they blamed it on the neighboring wolves, who they feared and mistrusted. The wolf-men could still read each other's thoughts while in their wolf forms, just like their ancestors had while in their spirit forms. They knew that none of their number were to blame. Taha Aki did not want to have a war on his hands. He was no longer a warrior to lead his people. He charged his oldest wolf-son, Taha Wi, with finding the true culprit before hostilities began. Taha Wi led five other wolves in his pack on a search through the mountains, looking for any evidence of the missing Makahs. They came across something they had never encountered before—a strange, sweet scent in the forests that burned their noses to the point of pain. They did not know what creature would leave such a scent, but they followed it. They found faint traces of human scent, and human blood, along the trail. They were sure this was the enemy they were searching for. The journey took them so far to the north that Taha Wi sent half the pack, the younger ones, back to the harbor to report to Taha Aki. Taha Wi and his two brothers did not return. The younger brothers searched for their elders, but found only silence. Taha Aki mourned for his sons. He wished to avenge his sons' death, but he was old. He went to the Makah chief in his mourning clothes and told them everything that happened. The Makah chief believed his grief, and tensions ended between the tribes. A year later, two Makah maidens disappeared from their homes on the same night. The Makahs called on the Quileute wolves at once, who found the same sweet stink all through the village. The wolves went on the hunt again. Only one came back. He was Yaha Uta, the oldest son of Taha Aki's third wife, and the youngest in the pack. He brought something with him that had never been seen in all the days of the Quileutes—a strange, cold, stony corpse that he carried in pieces. All who were of Taha Aki's blood, even those who had never been wolves, could smell the piercing smell of the dead creature. This was the enemy of the Makahs. Yaha Uta described what had happened: he and his brothers had found the creature, who looked like a man but was hard as a granite rock, with the two Makah daughters. One girl was already dead, white and bloodless on the ground. The other was in the creature's arms, his mouth at her throat. She may have been alive when they came upon the hideous scene, but the creature quickly snapped her neck and tossed her lifeless body to the ground when they approached. His white lips were covered in her blood, and his eyes glowed red."
"A vampire," stated Posie.
"Exactly," said Paige. ""Yaha Uta described the fierce strength and speed of the creature. One of his brothers quickly became a victim when he underestimated that strength. The creature ripped him apart like a doll. Yaha Uta and his other brother were more wary. They worked together, coming at the creature form the sides, outmaneuvering it. They had to reach the very limits of their wolf strength and speed, something that had never been tested before. The creature was hard as stone and cold as ice. They began to rip small pieces of the creature apart while it fought them.
"But the creature learned quickly, and soon was matching their maneuvers. It got its hands on Yaha Uta's brother. Yaha Uta found an opening on the creature's throat and lunged. His teeth tore the head off the creature, but the hands continued to mangle his brother.
"Yaha Uta ripped the creature into unrecognizable chunks, tearing pieces apart in a desperate attempt to save his brother. He was too late, but, in the end, the creature was destroyed.
"Or so they thought. Yaha Uta laid the reeking remains out to be examined by the elders. One severed hand lay beside a piece of the creature's granite arm. The two pieces touched when the elders poked them with sticks, and the hand reached out towards the arm piece, trying to reassemble itself.
"Horrified, the elders set fire to the remains. A great cloud of choking, vile smoke polluted the air. When there was nothing by ashes, they separated the ashes into many small bags and spread them far and wide—some in the ocean, some in the cliff caverns. Taha Aki wore one bag around his neck, so he would be warned if the creature ever tried to put itself together again.
"They called it The Cold One, the Blood Drinker, the Apotamkin, and lived in fear that it was not alone. They only had one wolf protector left, young Yaha Uta. They did not have long to wait. The creature had a mate, another blood drinker, who came to the Quileutes seeking revenge."
"The mate's always seek revenge," said a voice from the doorway. Posie and Paige looked up and saw Phoebe, Prue, and Piper there. Phoebe was the one that spoke.
"How long have were you three standing there?" asked Posie.
"Since you began reading the history," answered Prue. Phoebe and Piper sat on an old couch that belonged to their great aunt Pearl and Prue sat on an arm chair.
"Continue," said Piper. "This is very interesting. Leo sent us up here so that we could get 'educated' as he put it." The girls all laughed softly. Posie continued.
"The stories say that the Cold Woman was the most beautiful thing human eyes had ever seen. She looked like the goddess of the dawn when she entered the village that morning; the sun was shining for once, and it glittered off her white skin and lit the golden hair that flowed down to her knees. Her face was magical in its beauty, her eyes black in her white face. Some fell to their knees worshiping her.
"She asked something in a high, piercing voice, in a language no one had ever heard. The people were dumbfounded, not knowing how to answer her. There was none of Taha Aki's blood among the witnesses but one small boy. He clung to his mother and screamed that the smell was hurting his nose. One of the elders, on his way to council, heard the boy and realized what had come among them. He yelled for the people to run. She killed him first.
"There were twenty witnesses to the Cold Woman's approach. Two survived, only because she grew distracted by the blood, and paused to sate her thirst. They ran to Taha Aki, who sat in counsel with the other elders, his sons, and his third wife.
"Yaha Uta transformed into his spirit wolf as soon as he heard the news. He went to destroy the blood drinker alone. Taha Aki, his third wife, his sons, and his elders followed behind him.
"At first they could not find the creature, only the evidence of her attack. Bodies lay broken, a few drained of blood, strewn across the road where she'd appeared. Then they heard the screams and hurried to the harbor.
"A handful of the Quileutes had run to the ships for refuge. She swam after them like a shark, and broke the bow of their boat with her incredible strength. When the ship sank, she caught those trying to swim away and broke them, too. She saw the great wolf on the shore, and she forgot the fleeing swimmers. She swam so fast she was a blur and came, dripping and glorious, to stand before Yaha Uta. She pointed at him with one white finger and asked another incomprehensible question. Yaha Uta waited.
"It was a close fight. She was not the warrior her mate had been. But Yaha Uta was alone — there was no one to distract her fury from him.
"When Yaha Uta lost, Taha Aki screamed in defiance. He limped forward and shifted into an ancient, white-muzzled wolf. The wolf was old, but this was Taha Aki the Spirit Man and his rage made him strong. The fight began again.
"Taha Aki's third wife had just seen her son die before her. Now her husband fought, and she had no hope that he could win. She'd heard every word the witnesses to the slaughter had told the council. She'd heard the story of Yaha Uta's first victory, and knew that his brother's diversion had saved him.
"The third wife grabbed a knife from the belt of one of the sons who stood beside her. They were all young sons, not yet men and she knew they would die when their father failed.
"The third wife ran toward the Cold Woman with the dagger raised high. The Cold Woman smiled, barely distracted from her fight with the old wolf. She had no fear of the weak human or the knife that would not even scratch her skin, and she was about to deliver the deathblow to Taha Aki. And then the third wife did something the Cold Woman did not expect. She fell to her knees at the blood drinker's feet and plunged the knife into her own heart.
"The blood drinker could not resist the lure of fresh blood leaving the third wife's body. Instinctively, she turned to the dying woman, for one second entirely consumed by thirst. Taha Aki's teeth closed around her neck. That was not the end of the fight, but Taha Aki was not alone now. Watching their mother die, the two young sons felt such rage that they sprang forth as their spirit wolves, though they were not yet men. With their father, they finished the creature. Taha Aki never rejoined the tribe. He never changed back to man again. He lay for one day beside his wife, growling whenever anyone tried to touch her, and then he went into the forest and never returned. Trouble with the cold ones was rare from that time on. Taha Aki's sons guarded the tribe until their sons were old enough to take their places. There were never more than three wolves at a time. It was enough. Occasionally a blood drinker would come though these lands, but they were taken by surprise, not expecting the wolves. Sometimes a wolf would die, but never were they decimated again like that first time. They'd learned how to fight the cold ones, and they passed the knowledge on, wolf mind to wolf mind, spirit to spirit, father to son. Time passed, and the descendants of Taha Aki no longer became wolves when they reached manhood. Only in a great while, if a cold one was near, would the wolves return. The cold ones always came in ones and twos, and the pack stayed small.
"A bigger coven came, and my pack and I prepared to fight them off. But the leader spoke to me as if I were a man, and promised not to harm the Quileutes. His strange yellow eyes gave some proof to his claim that they were not the same as the other blood drinkers. We were outnumbered; there was no need for the cold ones to offer a treaty when they could have won the fight. I accepted. They've stayed true to their side, though their presence does tend to draw in others.
"And their numbers have forced a larger pack than the tribe has ever seen." Posie finished shivering.
"Who wants to bet that the last paragraph was about the Cullens?" asked Phoebe. They all raised their hands.
"Who wants to bet that it was Grams who asked Ephraim Black to write this when we summoned her a few decades ago because Leo said she had a mission?" asked Piper. They all raised their hands.
"Who wants to bet there's a pack now?" asked Prue. They all raised their hands.
"This isn't much of a betting war if we all agree," said Paige. They all laughed.
"Why are we taking the fact that we live in a town with vampires and werewolves so easily?" asked Posie.
"Because they aren't evil," said Coop coming into the room. Leo was behind him with Wyatt in his arms. Wyatt orbed to Piper.
"Sweetie," cooed Piper. "What did we say about orbing in the house?" Wyatt laughed.
"We talked to the Elders," began Leo. "They want to wish you a safe-" Posie cut him off.
"Cut to the chase," she ordered.
"The Elders actually told you to move here to make sure the shape shifters and vampires get along,"
"Wait," said Prue. "Shape shifters?"
"Yeah," said Leo. "The werewolves are actually shape shifters. The Elders told me. The wolves think they are werewolves, but they're not."
"Goody," said Paige. She glanced at the clock and it read nine thirty. "We better get to bed, or we'll all be late in the morning." They agreed and rushed to their own rooms not bothering to get any dinner.