A/N: This is my baby, and was stopped after Breaking Dawn was written and after he imprinted. I loved this story with all my heart, and was the only one I wrote without encouragement from others. I still think about it, and hope that you find the same enjoyment out of this that I did. Please give me your thoughts on it, I do believe it would have been my best work.
Disclaimer: I own those characters you do not recognize, and the others, I must say, belong to the talented Stephenie.
Category: Books: Twilight
Genre: Romance/Drama/Action/Adventure/Suspense
Summary: The war is raging, the blood being spilled. Lines must be drawn. Which side are you on?
Midnight
by: Dark Huntress
Chapter Three: Strange Oddities
"Evelyn! Phone!" my aunt called from downstairs, stumbling out of my bed, I looked at the alarm clock, groaning when it read six in the morning.
"Coming!" I hollered, stretching my tired muscles as I tripped out of the bed, I was not a morning person, in fact, I was probably the furthest from one.
Opening my door, I glared at my sneering cousin, who looked practically perfect even this early, her golden locks falling perfectly around her face. Lauren glanced down the stairs, and then back to me. I stood there, ignoring the fact that I had a phone call, that person could wait.
"Who would call you?" Lauren sneered, before turning swiftly and slamming the door in my face, scowling, I stomped down the stairs, I really disliked her.
Sighing, I picked up the phone, praying that it wasn't one of the ever faithful people at my highschool that I swore were stalking me. Okay, not really, they were just really attaching people, they seemed like the usual group of do-gooders that many didn't like. Unfortunately, I'm sure they found me pathetic even, feeling sorry for me. An all time low.
"Hello?" I said, sighing, running a hand through my long hair, I wondered idly for the millionth time what it would be like if it was short.
"Lyn?" a strange voice asked, I scrunched my face up, it was a woman, but I couldn't place who it could be.
"Um, who is this?" I asked, feeling foolish, what if it was someone I knew for a really long time and didn't recognize automatically?
"Sorry, this is Jessica Stanley, I know you don't know me, but I'm a friend of Mike's," she explained, how had Mike gotten my number? Oh, wait, my uncle...
"Um, ok, did you need something?" I asked, why would she be calling me? I didn't want to be around Mike or any of his crazy friends.
"Mike's at work, so he couldn't call. But anyways, we're going out with some friends, and Mike wanted to know if you wanted to go. Apparently, he's intrigued by you," Jessica whispered, I could practically hear a squeal on its way.
"Um, well, when is it?" I asked, desperately searching for something to get myself out of it, I did not want to hang with someone who believed werewolves existed.
"Tonight," she responded, a strange chirp in her voice.
"Oh wow, tonight, um...," I looked around desperately, trying to find something to get me out of it. "I have this thing I've got to go..."
"Great, so we'll see you there at eight, bye!" she said, and the line went dead.
Staring at it, I hung up, unsure of what to do. Had Mike's strange attitude switched from paranormal oddities to a big town girl thrown into a small damp one? If it had, it wasn't good. For all I knew, he could be another one of those crazed people that magazines wrote about all the time. How he was such a good, grounded boy from a well rounded family and just poof, he was suddenly mental. And people would just go on and on about what a tragedy it was, that the poor boy was pushed too far for some odd reason. Most likely blaming it on college or his job, maybe both, but either way, would never hardly mention the victim themselves.
Shaking myself out of my thoughts I walked away and back upstairs. I was being paranoid, that didn't happen in small towns, not like this. That happened in huge cities where mass murderers hid in dark, dank alleyways and jumped out on poor unsuspecting citizens. It happened in a place where the police force had to be huge, and never off work. It didn't happen in places like this, with only one restaurant, with one or two stores, and with natural forest beauty all around.
It just didn't.
But then again, it had to start somewhere, and I didn't particularly want to be the first one to experience it. If Mike really did believe what he said (and there was no doubt in my mind that he did), then I could be placed in a very dangerous situation. Jessica, however, and what other friends they had came, then, it wouldn't just be me and him. Jessica seemed normal enough, nothing sounded like she was out of her ever loving mind.
But didn't most crazy people sound normal? Heck, sometimes, they even acted normal for awhile. Didn't people always talk about their crazy neighbors seeming perfectly normal for several years before they went off and shot people?
This was ridiculous, I was not in any danger, I was being paranoid and irrational, definitely not something my father would want from his daughter. No, he wanted the perfect beautiful daughter that I'd never be. Or rather yet, he wanted a perfect, athletic, heartthrob son. Neither of two he got.
"Evelyn, two minutes!" my uncle hollered, a huge bang issuing from the downstairs after his announcement.
"Daddy, you better not be touching Gabrielle again," Lauren screeched, followed by hurried footsteps down the stairs.
Sighing, I changed, slipping out of my worn pajamas and into a faded pair of jeans. Grimacing at the large holes that sported the knees, I quickly pulled on a paint splattered red shirt and walked out of the room. Only to rush back in a few minutes later to grab my shoes, cursing my forgetfulness for about the millionth time...I think.
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The work site looked the same, the other workers already laboring away at the new addition to the house. Most stopped when we arrived, waving their helmets in the air and calling out welcomes. My uncle got out, taking his small brown sack lunch with him, I got the cooler full of soda.
Sitting it down, I pulled my hoodie tighter around me, shivering, it was going to be cold today. The mist stuck to my uncovered hair, eyelashes, and cheeks, forming tiny droplets that slid downwards. It was almost worst than a huge downpour. When rain fell heavily, it would sometimes bounce off for awhile, but with this, it fell gently, allowing it the time to soak through all material. It was maddening!
Waving to my uncle, who saw, but ignored, I moved over to the house, hoping that Emily would be there. She said she would, and wanted me to stop by, but then again, she could have just been being pleasant. There was some poor girl sitting out in the rain, and she took pity, and couldn't help but invite her back without seeming rude.
My hand halted in mid knock, I couldn't, I just couldn't. I would not force myself on her if she didn't want my company, and no one wanted my company. No one, besides Mike, who seemed to want to make me believe his ludicrous ideas.
I didn't want to spend my day out here, but then again, it would be much better to not barge in where I wasn't wanted. Emily already had enough to worry about, and I wasn't going to add to them. She was to kind for her own good, she should of just left me out there yesterday, saving us both the trouble. But, at least this way, I wasn't ill...yet.
Looking to my right, I groaned, there was Mike, staring at me intently. I did not want to talk to him, he was insane, beyond it actually. It'd be a different manner if he was old, and believed in some of the legends and stuff that older folks seemed to believe. But he wasn't, he wasn't much older than me, and should have had enough common sense to know the difference between fiction and fact.
Knowing that I would have to speak to him otherwise, I knocked, hoping that I wouldn't be putting Emily too much out of her way. I didn't want to be a bother, but at least this way I would have to think of the insane thoughts he seemed to have.
"Hello, Lyn!" Emily cheered, her large does eyes shining as the scent of coffee and breakfast wafted to me, she was a wonderful cook.
"Morning," I mumbled, unsure of myself, again I felt like I was intruding where I wasn't welcomed.
"Well, come in," she said, and I did, taking off my shoes and hanging up my hoodie on the hook, swearing to myself I would by myself a jacket soon.
We entered the kitchen, and I was glad to see that I was empty of anyone else but us. I had envisioned the room full with the other men, incredibly huge, all hunkered around the table eating. I would have felt even more out of place then, knowing that they were completely at ease, and I was intruding in their home.
"Do you want anything to eat?" she offered, and I declined, explaining that I usually didn't eat a very large breakfast, or one at all. "Really?"
"Yeah," I said, shrugging my shoulders.
"No wonder you're so thin," she said, and before I could reply I had a steaming plate of eggs and bacon. "There you go, you won't go hungry on my watch!"
"Thanks," I responded, picking up the silverware and eating it slowly, my stomach not rejecting it, but not entirely welcoming it either. "Its delicious."
"Thanks," she answered before turning back to the counter, she was currently chopping up several pieces of steak and placing them in a large boiling pot. "So, what do you have planned for today?"
"This I guess," I answered, sliding my plate away, not even half eaten, there was no way I could eat that much even if I was starving. "Well, except for tonight."
"Oh, what are you doing tonight?" she asked, her hands quickly tying her long hair behind her so it wouldn't fall in her line of sight again.
"I was invited to go with Mike Newton and a bunch of his friends, I couldn't think of any way out of it," I explained.
"Really? They're two years older than you, why wouldn't you want to go?" she asked, wiping her small hands on the white apron. "That Mike guy seems pretty good looking."
"Yeah, but he's insane," I said, biting my lip instantly, I hadn't meant to tell her that, I didn't really want her to know what some people thought of her.
"What do you mean?" Emily said, looking at me briefly before going back to what she was doing.
"Well, he just believes in some monster crap, stuff little kids are afraid of. Says he's seen them before, all nonsense," I said, waving my hands around.
"Really, what kind of monsters?" she pressed, crap, I thought, I really didn't want to get into this, me and my big mouth.
"Um, werewolves," I whispered, hoping she didn't hear me, she did.
"Really," she said, her voice strained, her movements had become jerky and strange. "Did he mention why he believes this?"
"Yeah, he said he saw one, like a huge wolf the size of a horse, black I think. Ridiculous," I said, trying to laugh it off.
"When did he say he saw this?" she continued, her body was still now, her hands clenching the side of the counter, I felt uneasy.
"Um, a year ago I think, I can't remember exactly," I said, standing I started over to her, stopping when she rapidly shook her head.
"Did he say anything else, Lyn?" she said, her body was shaking, her muscles stretching tight as her breathing hitched rapidly.
"Um, well, see, here's the funny part, he says he saw the wolf morph into Sam, which is dumb," I went on, gulping as another fit over took her. "Are you okay?"
"Yes," she answered, her knuckles turning white by the pressure she was using. "Do you think you could do me a favor?"
"Sure," I replied, biting my lips again and interlocking my fingers.
"Go to the grocery store and pick me up some flour, I need some for my cookies this afternoon," she instructed, her body still shaking.
"Are you sure? I don't think I should leave you like this," I wanted to touch her, let her know that I would help her with whatever she needed, but I couldn't.
"Yes, I just need to sit down," she said, her eyes turning to me and pleading with my own. "Please, just go get it for me, just tell the grocer to put it on the tab. He'll charge it to the council."
"Okay," I answered, grabbing my shoes and hoodie, I left the house, hoping that she would be alright while I was gone.
Walking to the car, I silently wondered about the woman in the house. She had baked cookies yesterday, surely they weren't out. No, I knew they weren't, there had been a clear plastic container on top of the refrigerator with cookies in it. Why would she lie about that? Was she really sick and didn't want me to see? Maybe that was it, she was too nice to not invite me in, but sick enough that she didn't want me to know all the details.
Sliding in the car, I shut the door. Starting the engine, I turned the heater on, smiling as the warm air hit my chilled flesh. Looking through the fogged up windows, I frowned, noting the six dark figures appearing from the woods around the house. By how it seemed, and how some of the workers reacted (especially Mike), they shouldn't have been back yet. Even as I watched them, Mike had left his shovel and got in his truck, not even bothering to tell my uncle, his tires squealing on the road.
I hoped nothing was really wrong, nothing serious especially. But by the way they were all practically running to the house, there must be something worse going on than just the flu. But how did they get back so fast, they couldn't have been that far away obviously. And, did cell phones even get reception this far out? Mine didn't anyways, Forks was even dead. I hadn't bothered with it at all since I'd arrived. How did they know that Emily was so sick and needed someone at this very moment? It just wasn't adding up.
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By the time I'd reached the small little town of La Push, I'd realized just how stupid and paranoid I was being. Obviously, Mike's story had made a stronger impression on me than I wanted or had originally thought. Really, Sam and the others could have easily had walkie talkies on them, and Emily could have had one as well. I was being overly suspicious, and getting into things that wasn't any of my business to begin with. I just needed to get the food and go back, hopefully Sam would have Emily in bed and resting.
Parking the car, I got out, stretching my legs before hurrying inside the invitingly warm store. The bright lights momentarily blinded me as I wove my way through the aisles searching for the desired item. There were only five shelves, white painted metal, all reaching to the very ceiling. Each one was stuffed completely full, items easily falling off it if the ground shifted just so beside it. The coolers that lined the back wall weren't much better, I could almost see the doors popping open. Overall, however, it looked like the small store could feed the area easily (it held a rich enough selection and cheap enough prices) that I suspected it got quite a bit of business.
Finding the package, I quickly grabbed it and took it to the cashier. After charging it to the tab, I left, smiling and waving at the man I had seen just the week before. He seemed to have remembered me, and had struck up a nice little conversation before sending me on my way. He hadn't asked me about charging it to the Uley tab, he had just accepted it, as if I was someone who could be trusted completely. And yet, he didn't even know me, for all he knew, I could have been some girl that stole all the time. Then again, he knew my uncle, so he could easily tell on me.
It was strange how everyone acted, trusting and kind, almost to a point that it was dangerous. The world was not a safe place, yet Forks and La Push seemed like they were almost cut off from the rest of the revolving planet. There, life continued on, gangs were still killing people and there were still starving children on the streets. Yet here, it was like time had stopped, and the only thing that changed was technology and clothing style. It was like going back to Mayberry, where everyone still enjoyed the simple things in life, where everyone would sit on their front porches (well they would if it wasn't raining all the time) with lemonade and a conversation on religion or the hometown baseball game coming up. It was strange and foreign, but not unwelcomed.
Maneuvering my car out of the gravel space, I started back down the road, playing with the radio dial as I went. There didn't seem to be anything interesting on, so I gave up, turning it off so the announcer's voice wouldn't bother me. Too soon the peace of the ride was broken as I came back upon the work site, all the workers were busily working around on large bulldozers and other pieces of equipment that I had no idea what they were.
Getting out I reached to grab the package, wincing as I remembered the rain and getting the thin paper all wet. Why hadn't I taken the plastic sack the man had offered?
"Evelyn!" my uncle yelled, surprising me, I jumped and slammed my head again the top of the car, cursing his name. "Get over here!"
Sighing, I let go of the flour and shut the door, not bothering to lock it, no one was going to steal it anyways. What did he want now?
"Coming!" I hollered, jogging over to where my uncle stood impatiently, a severe look crossing over his normally stoic features.
"Where have you been?" he demanded, his large arms crossed over his chest as his bushy caterpillar eyebrows were scrunched down as far as they could go.
"I had to run an errand for Emily, why?" I answered and asked all at once, scrutinizing him just as he did me, he never bothered me before.
"Because, I need you to do something. I didn't bring you up here to go gallivanting around whenever you please," he grumbled, his beady eyes glaring at me.
"Sorry," I mumbled, not wanting to fight, the faster I got this over with the better, I really didn't want a confrontation.
"The cement mixer quit, I need you to go pick up so parts from the salvage yard," he explained, and I was lost, where was the salvage yard? And even if he explained the parts, and told me their names, I was not going to be able to find them. "Here's the list."
I looked at it, confused as I could be. All of them had names, then some letter with numbers mixed in, how did men understand this stuff? Many couldn't figure out the periodic table, but mention any of these things, and they could tell anyone everything about it. Really, if they used half their brains when they were in school, the world would be a much better place. Though, I couldn't say much, women did the same thing with gossip and scheming deep secrets out of people so they could talk about it with others. So much wasted intelligence.
"Huh?" I said, unsure of what to do, did he honestly expect me to be able to go and locate this stuff for him? He must be insane.
"I need you to go get me those parts," he repeated like I was stupid, he tapped his beefy finger on the paper with each word.
"Yeah, I know that," I grumbled, scowling at him as he removed his large hand from the list. "But how do you expect me to find this stuff? I don't even know where the salvage yard is."
"Its down this road, turn left, then right, you'll come to a four way, turn left again til you hit Rocky Road, follow it til it ends and then take a right. You can't miss it," he said, rolling his eyes, like it was my fault I didn't know where all this stuff was. "And, all the stuff is on the list, you'll just have to look."
I felt my mouth open, for one, I didn't understand the directions to the yard at all. I could never take directions well, like I could actually remember all of that. It was just a bunch of gibberish to me, almost as bad as the parts I was supposed to find by just the names off the paper. Even if I did know what I was doing, it would take me all day, and I just knew my hoodie was not going to shed the water for that long. My converse shoes were already yelling in misery.
"Listen, I don't know what any of these parts look like," I explained, shoving the paper near his face, taking it back quickly once I realized what I was doing.
"Stupid girl," he whispered, turning his beady eyes around at all his workers, probably trying to decide which one would be the best to send with me.
His gaze lingered on Mike, who had returned sometime during my absence obviously, though I'm sure he was continuously looking over his shoulder. I mean, he was probably judging the distance from him and his truck, gauging just how long it would take him to reach it and grab his werewolf killing rifle.
My uncle turned from him, scrunching up his face as he went from one worker to the next, sometime returning to one more than once. He didn't seem to be finding anyone expendable, which was fine by me, it was going to be really awkward riding with any of them, I didn't know any of them really.
"Billy!" my uncle hollered, causing me to jump. I looked over to the house where a large man sat in a wheelchair, the man I had driven here on my first day at La Push.
"Hello, Richard," Billy welcomed, his strong arms moving him over to where we stood, the large russet hands folding themselves in his lap. "How are you?"
"I'm fine, Billy," my uncle said, smiling and shaking hands with the man. "I have a request for you, would you mind taking my niece to the salvage yard and find some parts for me?"
"Ah, I'd be happy to, but I'm afraid I couldn't tell you the difference between a cylinder and a gasket," Billy said, frowning slightly. "Jacob knows parts though, he'd be happy to help you."
"It'd be appreciated, Billy," my uncle continued, glaring at me, I mimicked a deer in the headlights look, what did I do?
"Well, come with me," Billy instructed, wheeling himself away towards the house, I hoped Emily was alright.
Remembering the flour, I ran off to the car before racing back to the middle aged man, wincing at the sloshing water in my shoes. It was really uncomfortable.
Opening the door for him, I waited til he was all the way in before following. Emily was at the stove, busying herself with some form of desert, it smelled delicious. The plates from their lunch were washed, gleaming slightly in the artificial light overhead. She looked absolutely fine, I was sure Sam wouldn't be letting her work if she was sick as she seemed this morning.
The others were lounging in the living room, sitting absently around the television, intent on some kind of game. Billy went that way, I went to the kitchen, already running through my head what could have happened. Maybe she had asthma?
"Hey," I said, handing her the flour, looking her up and down thoroughly, she didn't look like she was about to collapse.
"Thanks," Emily replied, never once meeting my eyes, what was going on? "Do you want anything to eat? I saved some."
"Um, I would, but I gotta go to the salvage yard for my uncle," I explained wringing my hands together, the air was really tense.
"Perhaps when you come back then?" she tried, and I looked away towards the clock on the wall, wincing at the time.
"Maybe," I said, not giving her a straight answer, she shot downcast eyes towards the ground before smiling slightly and nodding her head.
Biting my lip I sat at the table, waiting for Billy to get Jacob to go with me. I could feel the butterflies come alive within me, Jacob was easily the most handsome of the group of godly creatures, and he just had to be the mechanics expert. He was also the most silent the night before, it would have been much easier on me if it had been Quil or Embry, someone who liked to joke around.
It wasn't that I didn't like him, or that I instantly found myself repulsed by him, in fact it was the opposite. I was attracted to him obviously, what girl in her right mind wouldn't be? But, for some odd reason, I found myself thinking about him more than I should have been. It was like there was a tie between us, an invisible thread connecting us together. Maybe it was the shroud of mystery that fell around him, or the pain I saw in his eyes. But something, something drew me to him.
Jumping when I felt a hand on my shoulder, I looked up into his perfect face, heat flooding my cheeks. He looked at me with black, grief-stricken eyes, just hollow reminders of what they once had been. The way they all looked at him, even now, as Emily turned to him, I could clearly see the sadness in her own expression. Why did he seem so sad?
"Ready?" he asked, the rich baritone of his voice washing over me in heated waves, I nodded dumbly and waved goodbye to the others as we walked out the door.
Going to the car, we hopped in, me obviously driving. Starting the engine I took off, biting my lip. The inside of the car seemed so much smaller, uncomfortably so. I wanted so bad to touch him, to stroke the hard set jaw, and wipe away all the tenseness in his face. It was impossible, I knew that, I wouldn't let my yearnings delude reality. Yet here, so close, it was hard to keep my hands to myself.
"You missed the turn," he said, causing me to jump.
Turning into someone's drive, I turned back around, cursing myself mentally for losing my focus so readily. I was hopeless, I blame teenage hormones.
"Do you have the list?" he asked, and I handed it to him, my butterflies that wouldn't leave my all of a sudden too full stomach sprang to life.
I was mute, unable to say a single thing. It was strange, to think of him as the talkative one, even though I wouldn't exactly call it talkative when all you've said is a few words. It really was pathetic how I could get all tongue tied though in the presence of some handsome boy. It wasn't fair.
Stopping once we got there, I hopped out, hugging my arms, it was freezing. Looking at my comrade, I frowned. Jacob wore a short sleeved shirt, and didn't seem to feel the cold mist at all. I couldn't imagine walking out in this without some form of protection, in fact, everyone I saw did. Even though most of the Forks population had grown up here, their bodies were not adjusted enough to such a cold without some form of light protection. But why could Jacob go around like it was a nice warm autumn day?
It was uncanny the way he moved, so silent and graceful, not at all like the way I would have expected. As I followed him silently, I could help but watch the way he traveled. He never glanced down to make sure his feet didn't stumble over the many metal objects on the ground, the same ones I had fallen over once or twice. He was in tune with everything around him, like apart of it.
He quickly seized the desired items, before I even realized it, and we were heading back. Again I lost myself, but Jacob did nothing to take me away from my thoughts. I was thankful for it, really, but still, in a way, I wanted him to get me to stop thinking before I got carried away. But everything, all the little glimpses, small nothings that I had noticed that other's wouldn't have. Many years of observing others as an outsider, watching their small movements that made up there lives, had given me a general idea of the normal vibe of teenage life. But these people, they were off, completely and totally.
Their grace, it was unnatural, too much like a dancer to actually be real. There was no way these tall people were meant to have that sort of movements, their body shape and size just shouldn't have allowed it. The mysterious shroud of secrecy encasing them, like there was something they were hiding from the world. Their eyes always held some sort of reserve when I spoke with them, not dislike, but not open.
I knew it was none of my business, that I was being nosy and could possibly end up in trouble because of it, I was intrigued. Something about them was drawing me in, grabbing a hold of my body and pulling me down a long spiraling tunnel that I could not seen an end to.
I would find out their secret, consequences be damned.