Soooooo, chapter 21 is here. Finally. I'm as exasperated as you guys. Now, I do expect some heavy and a lot of questions on this chapter because as I told one reader it may be kinda slightly confusing. I mean, I understand it because it's in my head and thankfully, I understand what's in there...most of the time. So any questions you have at the end, please don't hesitate to ask them. Oh, and another reader told me that Nessie and Jake were like the pack parents. That's exactly true. Alphas have to take care of their people. Hopefully, this chapter will help you see that come out a little. Ok, enough rambling.

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JPOV

Embry was ridiculously pansy-like. And extremely protective. Tricia barely walked throughout our "hike" up to the clearing. He was too overbearing, staying close to her, helping her around roots and over fallen limbs. She'd been perfectly capable of navigating since she'd done it a million times with her friend, and I had tried to pull him aside to tell him to back off a little before he freaked her out. She was only seventeen and if she called foul, he could get into trouble with Charlie and her parents. But he wouldn't listen. He'd shaken me off and went after her. Luckily, she didn't seem to mind.

The trip to that clearing told us very little that we didn't already know. Except for the fact that there were several different scents that we hadn't caught before. More members of Tristan's pack were coming near Forks. Too close for comfort. And there were about ten new scents that I'd smelled, just in my human form.

Ever since Jasper had asked if we could be trained, I'd been trying to allow the wolf in me some freedom. For months, I'd had the notion that he was a separate being, his instinctive voice telling me to take Nessie when she'd been fertile or after she'd started having her period. And I'd also reconsidered that it wasn't my gut that guided me, but the wolf picking a direction for me.

I had a feeling that Tristan's training was about to give my wolf a little more freedom. Which meant that I'd have less control. I'd gone to him with my fears but he assured me that since I was the Alpha, the dominant of dominants of my pack, that I would be able to rein in the beast. Assuming learning all these things would change my wolf's demeanor. There was a possibility that we'd stay the same, just with some fancy new tricks.

As soon as we made it to the Cullen clearing, Shelby, Nessie, and Walker came out the kitchen door. Caden and Seth had their heads bent together with Morgan and Lucas still in wolf form circling them. Nessie came to me, wrapping her arms around my waist and tucking her face into my chest. She was just as nervous as I was. As Shelby went to go stand with her man, Walker came over to us.

I held my hand out, which he took. "How ya feelin', man?"

"A little stiff, but better. Got some food. That seemed to help." He fidgeted on his feet and I knew what he was going to ask. "So, how's my family? My sister?"

I nodded and stroked Nessie's back. "They're good. Worried, but good."

"Tricia knows I'm not sick, doesn't she?" he asked with a smile.

I laughed. "Oh, yeah. She practically told me that you weren't. You're parents on the other hand took it rather well. They all just hope that you make it through."

"I've never been sick a day in my life so my parents are just hoping that I'm ok, but Tricia knows me. She knows I'm not sick."

"She also showed us the place her and her friend go to get away. She said there was something weird in the woods that's been keeping them from going up there."

The color drained from his face as he, no doubt, thought about his sister in the woods with what attacked him. "Did you find anything?"

"Yeah, it was-,"

"Alright, everyone," Caden said from his huddle group. "Let's get started now that Jacob is back. And as you all probably know by now, Walker was attacked last night and will be joining us." Amber eyes turned to me. "Jacob, did you want to tell the pack what you found at Walker's or wait?"

I cleared my throat and stepped forward, leaving Nessie with Walker and Shelby, so that I could stand in the ring of wolves with Caden.

I raised my voice so everyone could hear but spoke directly to Caden. "There were several different scents. More than we were all used to. At least ten different. None were Tristan or Nyla. Or any other that we've scented before, or at least, none that I've scented. They're getting closer and closer to Forks. That means that we can't just keep defending ourselves. We've got to go on the offensive and find them before they get into the town and start ripping apart citizens like Walker."

"Jacob is right. Bodies will start piling up. We've talked to Charlie to keep his ear to the ground. We've convinced him to come to us if something weird comes up. Now, I've promised to teach you all, or at least try, to tap into abilities that my kind of werewolf has. It may not work, but we'll start with Jacob. He's the most aggressive, the most dominant of you lot. If he can tap into it, maybe he can get the rest of you to do so as well." He turned to me. "Alright. Ready?"

Taking a deep breath and another look at Nessie, who smiled encouragingly, I nodded, squaring my shoulders.

"Now, this may seem stupid, but we're going to start with your senses in your human form. Shelby has already had a taste of this training. We're going to try to break the barrier between your wolf and human so that the animal is just under the skin, feeling, hearing, seeing all that you do. Close your eyes."

Feeling stupid, I closed my eyes with the eyes of my pack on me and took a deep breath. Another warm night had surprisingly fresh air rushing into my lungs as well as the musky scent of wolf.

"That's right, Jake. Take it all in without your eyes. What do you hear? Smell? Feel?" Caden's voice was soft and far away as if he'd taken steps away from me, toward the crowd of wolves.

At first, I could just hear the wind in the trees and Nessie's heartbeat. I was attuned to that sound since I slept next to it every night and she was my mate. But then I thought about what Morgan had said to me on the rez. I was the Alpha, the dominant of the dominant, the king of the pack. But wolves were also the top of the food chain in the forest; therefore, I was the king of these woods. These were my home field advantage.

"Good. You've centered yourself. Now, look inside yourself. See your wolf. Bring him up to just behind your skin. Think of yourself as a glove."

Another deep breath and I moved my senses inward, looking. In my mind, a large russet wolf was curled up in an environment that my head had completely made up. He was curled up, waiting to be needed. He lifted his head as I suddenly appeared in the pathway that my subconscious had created. And as if he didn't recognize me, he lithely leapt into a crouching position, hackles raised, teeth bared.

As if coming from down a long tunnel, Caden's voice called out to me. "Easy, Jacob. You've never done something like this before and he's not going to recognize his own human form."

Clearly, I thought.

This was freaking weird anyway. I knew that my physical body was still standing in the woods behind the Cullen house. But mentally, the…soul of myself was turned inward, toward a wolf that didn't recognize me as the outward shell it used to get around.

Slowly, I lifted my hands in surrender. And then had possibly the most brilliant thought I've ever had. If he and I shared the same body, then we shared the same mental processes. That meant if I thought something in my own mind, he should be able to hear it and process it the way a wolf could.

"Easy, big guy. We're on the same side. I'm your human form."

Those dark chocolate eyes that were exactly like mine narrowed as his animal mind processed what I'd said. Blatant disbelief colored the expression on his wolf face. How I knew that, I had no idea, except we shared the same form all the time. Of course I'd know the damn expression.

Ok, what was something we had in common that he'd believe? After a heartbeat or so of thinking, I wanted to slap myself.

Nessie.

"Nessie," I repeated out loud. "Renesmee?"

A vicious growl came out of the animal, teeth bared once more as he lurched toward me. I could feel his movement in my physical body, moving jerkily with the wolf's movements.

"Easy! Easy!" Jesus, how the hell had we survived this whole time in the same body together? He was primal and vicious. "She's our mate. You and I? We share a body. I'm just your human form. I'm what you use to be with her. She looks human, right? Therefore you can't mate with her in your form. You have to use me."

Another idea came to me. We shared a mind. I didn't need to talk. Trying to pull Nessie's gift into my body, I thought really hard about her. Memories of me and her together in my human form. Anytime we were in a mirror together, or pictures of myself.

Wait a minute. How did I remember what being in wolf form was like, but he couldn't remember me there?

"It's because you were setting him free. He thought your voice was his and you trusted the wolf not to cause trouble." Caden's voice was far off but the wolf heard it and went on red alert again. Dammit, my physical body must be echoing my thoughts.

"Easy, boy. You and I are the same. I promise that I'm no threat to you." The wolf's eyes came back to me, wary but open. After a long moment of just staring at each other, he lowered himself to his belly. "That's right. We're the Alpha, you and me. We control the pack, but right now, I need your help. In my human form, I don't have your abilities, and I need them. Nessie needs them. She and the other females are in danger. The town and the rez are vulnerable. We have to do something. I'm willing to give you power inside of my human self, but I need you to understand that we still have a job to do. No being an asshole about it."

Slowly, as I'd talked to my wolf-self inside my own head, I'd inched closer and closer to him, keeping my voice even and strong. Something told me that I had to assert my dominance over him. I was his ability to interact with the world, with Nessie. He needed me, and right now, I needed him. Caden had been right. Our wolf selves were being hindered by our human selves. This change needed to happen.

"What do you say? Will you help me? Help Nessie? We have to keep her safe. I know you agree with me on that."

More staring, more waiting, more holding my breath. Eventually, he got up onto all fours, the same height as my human body, which was pretty damn tall. Or was I just smaller being inside my own head? God, all this was confusing. Slowly, he made his way over to me, eyes meeting mine.

And then he licked me.

Yup, just licked me from chin to forehead.

Now I knew how Nessie felt. Reaching out, I stroked the space between his eyes.

"I need you to follow me back out, but stay behind my skin. Do you understand? My human self has to use you the way you use me to be with Nessie, ok? I have to tap into your heightened senses. You think you can do that, stay just under the skin?"

His big brown eyes closed as I stroked his muzzle, but he growled in what I assumed was an affirmative that he understood. Ok. This was good. Turning around so that I was standing shoulder to shoulder with the giant wolf, I looked out at the pathway that my subconscious had built.

The wolf and I looked at each other.

"I guess we follow the yellow brick road."

Together we stepped forward and walked about five huge strides before an extremely bright white light engulfed us, and I was thrown back into my physical body.

Breathing hard, I went to my knees in the dirt. Behind my eyelids, I could still see the images of me and the wolf standing just at the edge of that walkway, waiting. The wolf had moved ahead to put on the mask of my body. The shift in personality change was nearly painful so I just knelt there in the dirt while my wolf filled out the glove of my human body, just as Caden had suggested.

Immediately, everything changed. I could hear every single heartbeat around me, even Shelby's baby's, along with all the animals near us. The scents were overwhelming, so many of them. Sweet, sour, disease, salty. I could now also hear the blood running through veins at different speeds and tones. I could also tell who was in wolf form, though I didn't know how.

"Jacob!" a voice I knew well shouted. The sound was shrill in my ears with Nessie so close to me, like a whistle blowing right beside me.

And though it pained the human side of me, the wolf just wanted it to shut up. With a growl, I felt my body turn in her direction and stare at her with eyes that weren't mine. We heard her breath suck in and go down into her lungs, her blood pump faster as her heart worked harder.

"Easy, Nessie," Caden said in a soft tone. "He's very disoriented right now. His wolf is just under the surface."

Slowly, just as I had with the wolf in my head, she eased her way over to us. My wolf and I both could see her try to gather herself, try to calm her heartbeat and appear strong. The irritation in the wolf died down in the face of his love and approval for her. Our alpha female was being strong, not just for me or her, but for the entire pack. When she stretched out a hand, the wolf inside me turned my head so that my cheek rested in her palm.

"It's just me, Jake. You know me."

A purr came out of my chest.

And then a scent hit me hard and strong. The scent of a summer storm off the ocean. Nessie's arousal. But it was ten thousand times stronger. I could smell the hormones running through her body, lighting up and heating up certain areas of her body. The wolf immediately wanted to push her face first into the dirt and mate with her the way animals do.

And I must have made a move toward her because Caden said, "Jacob, do you really want to mate her right here in front of your entire pack?"

The wolf was all for that idea. He wanted the entire pack to watch as we took our mate so that there was no doubt in their minds that we were Alpha and had complete dominance over our mate and the pack.

"Jacob," Caden said with a warning.

Looking over, I found that my hands had roamed down to Nessie's jeans, fingers searching for the button. Closing my eyes, I forced myself to grip her hips instead and breathed.

"Jacob, you need to bring your human-self to the surface a little more. I didn't tell you this because I actually didn't think that this would work, but your human side needs to be in control around your mate, especially since she's not one of you. The wolf is dangerous to her."

At that, the human in my mind lost the little control it had been gaining. The wolf turned my body around and snarled at Caden. He took offense of anybody thinking that he'd hurt his mate.

But Caden's right, I whispered in my head. Taking Nessie like this is wrong. It would be different if she was one of us, but she's not. She'd be mortified if you force me to do this to her. She wouldn't want us. Is that what you want?

In my mind, the wolf next to me shrank down with a whimper.

That's right. She's mostly human. She doesn't have the animal instincts that we do. Right now, I need you to help me protect her. We can't do that if we're mating her.

The wolf growled, both in my head and in my body.

In my head, I stroked the wolf's shoulder.

Maybe later, if she'll have both of us at the same time, we'll be with her. When the wolf perked up in my head, I pointed a finger at him. But it's her choice. Remember? No being an asshole?

In my head, the wolf huffed and sat back on his haunches. All of this was metaphorical of course. I was still conscious inside my body but it was as if I could just close my eyes and picture me and a giant russet wolf standing shoulder to shoulder behind my eyeballs watching everything, two pilots switching control of my body.

When I opened my eyes again, the wolf was still just under my skin. I could feel myself stretched out, a new presence filling up the empty spaces.

Nessie was watching me worriedly. I mustered up the most Jacob-y grin I could find and flashed it at her. Her features softened as she leaned in to press her lips chastely to mine. The wolf caused another purr but he kept his act together and let me be in charge of being with her.

A throat cleared behind us. "Jacob, shall we get started?"

Shelby came forward to take Nessie's hand and pull her back to the house. I could feel the wolf's need to snarl at the intruder, the one wanting to take our mate away from us. But again, I reasoned with him, thinking that Shelby was friend and we had a job to do. We couldn't get distracted right now. I held the snarl back by force of will alone as the wolf inside me calmed down.

Ripping myself and the wolf away from Nessie, I turned around and stood up straight.

There must have been an outward sign of what was going on because all of my wolves backed up with a gasp. Those of the pack in wolf form dropped down low to the ground with whimpers.

Caden nodded with respect. "Good. You seem to have control so far."

"We've come to an understanding," I said in a voice that was deeper than normal.

"Sounds like the Alpha has more important things to do than chase his mate," Caden taunted.

We didn't take the bait. Instead, I looked straight at Morgan who seemed to feel my eyes on her. Her light brown eyes looked up to me.

"We do." And then I looked back at Caden. "Now, teach me something."

"Alright. Look at me and tell me what you see."

Thinking this was a joke, I laughed. "I see a tall, blond werewolf."

Caden marched over to me with a serious face, clapped his hand over the nape of my neck and forced my nose to his.

"Don't get cocky. You think just because you and your wolf have an agreement to share a body that you now know everything? You will take this seriously. What I'm teaching you will save not only your life but your mate's."

The wolf wanted to rip him apart where he stood, but Caden was right. Taking a deep breath, I beat back the wolf just enough to leave me in charge.

"That's better." Caden turned around and stalked off. "Now, look at me and tell me what you see."

I must have stared at him for about three heartbeats before we all figured out nothing was happening. I just saw Caden.

"Use the wolf's eyes but stay in charge. Call into service what you need from him. Right now, he's your arsenal. You pick the weapon to use."

Closing my eyes yet again, I concentrated on what my vision was like when I was phased out. It was sharper, more focused. But more importantly, everything had shiny detail to it, a sort of outer layer that wasn't there in human form.

When I locked onto the image of that detail, I opened my eyes.

"Holy shit," I breathed.

Everybody standing in the clearing now had that shiny detail about them, but in the form of shapes surrounding their bodies.

"They're called auras. These will greatly help you in figuring out who's been where and when. If you notice, they all have different colors to them. I call it a color signature that's only specialized to that one person."

Looking at Caden, I found that he had ghost of grey smoke hazing around him. As he moved, it moved but always came in the form of a wolf, almost like he was standing inside of the ghost of his other self. I stared out at the pack and found that they all had the same thing, in different colors. Variations of the basic colors were suited to each pack member. Surprisingly, Morgan's was a pale purple-pink. Out of curiosity, I looked over to Nessie.

And my breath caught. Her aura was nothing but haze, no shape. But it was the color that had me almost on my knees. It was the most gorgeous shade of golden-orange. The color of sunset on the beach. The kind that fades into pink and purple. It suited her beautifully. The color was strong but still feminine.

Somebody behind me, probably Caden, clapped his hands and laughed.

"Alright, now we're talkin'." Yup that was Caden. "Ok, guys. This is the point I want the rest of the pack at before we all leave."

When I turned back to Caden, the smile on his face terrified and thrilled me at the same time. I was weaponized, to a point, now.

"Wait, before we start. How is this a good weapon, seeing auras?" I asked.

Caden's grin got wider. "Excellent question. You see the color on everyone? That leaves a trail, a color trail. If you know the color of whom you're chasing, then you know who you're after. Now you can differentiate instead of chasing shadows. You'll know who and what you're after."

"Why didn't you teach me that?" Shelby asked.

"Because your senses were already heightened. You and your wolf were already in a perfect communion. I wanted you to hone what you already had. Now, tonight, you'll learn with the rest of them." Then he looked back to me. "Jacob, you and I will split up and work with them. Now that you know the process, explain it the best you can."

As he took off for Morgan and the group gathering around her, Seth came to stand in front of me. His aura was the darker green to Shelby's non-surprising light green color.

"Show me," he demanded.

This was probably going to be easier for him than it was for me. Seth was on edge lately, aggressive, just like the wolf. The two of them were already connected. All he had to do was cement it.

"Close your eyes. Concentrate on that other voice that you always fight with. With me, I saw a made-up landscape where the wolf was waiting to be used."

Giving him a few minutes to get his bearings inside his own head, I looked over to our females. Nessie was holding Shelby's hand. Both of them were watching us with worried expressions. The urge to take Nessie rose up inside me again, but I beat it back, telling the wolf it wasn't time.

When her eyes met mine, I knew she saw it. She saw the other presence inside me, watching her, wanting her. For a few moments fear and confusion fought across her face. And then her eyes roamed my body, and heat replaced the other two. When her eyes met mine again, an answering heat came out of her body, something I could actually feel against my skin.

Abruptly, another heat seared my skin, but it was coming from Seth. Looking over at him, I saw him staring at me, his chocolate eyes alien in a familiar face.

"Alright, Seth. Bring the wolf just under your skin, but don't phase. Think of yourself as a glove. You're the wolf's way of interacting with the world, so you have to stay in charge or he'll try to control your body."

A deep growl crawled up his chest. The animal was taking over, pissed off at my teachings.

"Seth, control it. Shelby is watching you. Do you really want to scare her? Make her think you're out of control? I know you're in there. Push him out of the way. Put yourself ahead of him."

Those alien eyes turned toward Shelby, who looked terrified as she watched her mate turn into something he'd never been.

Her fear must have been the turning point, because Seth blinked rapidly and shook his head. "Jake?"

"Yeah, man, I'm here."

His eyes roamed around the clearing, and I knew that he'd already put the wolf's eyes to good use. "Whoa," he whispered.

"Can you see them?" I asked.

He nodded. "There are so many colors. No wonder women have problems with decorating."

That made me laugh. Caden turned around to watch us. Behind him, Morgan's eyes were closed and her brows were pulled down low. Lucas stood close to her, protecting her.

"Jacob, touch him."

"What?" I said to Caden.

He nodded to Seth. "Touch him."

Seth and I looked at each other with eyebrows raised. Slowly, we each held out a hand. Once we got close enough to each other, I could feel the wolf in me take over. Before I knew it, our hands were clapping forearms like magnets drawn to each other. Seth's eyes widened as our auras mixed. In my head, I could picture Seth's wolf and mine rubbing their sides together. Not in a sexual way, but in a comforting way.

"Wolves are pack animals," Caden said. "Constant touching is comforting. It lets them know that they aren't alone." He started walking over to us while our wolves purred. He stopped just short of touching us. "Now, Jacob. Let's see how much of an Alpha you are. Push his wolf back. Force it to lie down again."

I swallowed hard. "How?"

"Think of your Alpha voice, the one you use to give orders sometimes. Use that tone through your connection, but don't say anything. Your wolves are connected through your hands. If you can do this, eventually you'd be able to do it without touching them."

"Do what?"

"Calm them."

Looking out past him, I could see that Morgan and Lucas had moved around the pack, as had Leah who'd been gathered around Caden. Most of the pack either had their eyes opened with that other presence filling them or still had their eyes closed getting linked to that familiar yet foreign entity.

"That's a lot of wolves," Caden said with a whisper. "You and Seth will have a connection with them that I can't touch. If they get too out of control with their newfound abilities, they will need to be calmed. If not, it could turn deadly."

Looking into his eyes, I saw fear. And a realization of my own surfaced.

"You didn't think we'd be able to do it, tap into our wild sides. Did you?"

He swallowed hard and wouldn't meet my eyes. "Not all of you. Maybe some of you, the really dominant ones, but not all." He took my elbow, pulled me to the side, and lowered his voice. The connection between me and Seth was broken, but I could still feel our wolves reach for each other. "I want you and the rest of the pack to take a week to get used to this. I'd make it an order if I could."

Studying him for a moment, the wolf's eyes registered the flickers of Caden's eyes, his throat working in a nervous way. I could hear his heart pounding harder and faster, pushing his blood through his veins.

"What are you so scared of?" I asked.

Taking a deep breath, he licked his lips before saying, "I didn't expect this. But we have to tread carefully. The training for tonight is over. Like I said, a week to get used to this. If we push too much, we could have a bloodbath. Those wolves are dangerous. What I sensed from you as you went through the connection tells me that your kind of wolf is just as dangerous as mine. If we take it too far, the wolves will take over and you'll lose the entire pack. This needs to be done slowly." Glancing over at Seth, he nodded. "Prove me right about you and go calm your second in command."

Stepping back over to Seth, we gripped arms once more, our wolf auras twining around each other. My wolf nudged his back toward his body, slowly trying to get the giant beast to lay quiet in his human host.

And that's when I felt it.

Seth's unwavering loyalty. To me. Nessie. Shelby. The pack. The only way he'd ever be moved from second in command is if I ordered it or over his cold, dead body. He was there to stay and support me. The thought even came that he'd do whatever it took to take care of Nessie should anything happen to me, and he knew that I'd do the same for Shelby.

In my mind, I tapped the connection I felt to Seth and expressed my gratitude. I could practically feel the wolf inside of him puff up with pride.

Smiling, I thought really hard at him. Lie down. Easy. We're ok, we're cool.

In my mind's eye I could see Seth's wolf go down low to the ground as he backed up, retreating into Seth's body. The aura was being pulled back as the wolf inside of Seth receded.

My new sensitivity to my senses picked up that the air around me was moving. Glancing away from Seth, I found our teacher staring at me with a sort of awe on his face.

"What?" I asked.

Caden shook his head. "Nothing. It's just…normally it's not that simple."

"Well," Seth said in a matter of fact tone. "When you respect your alpha and his decisions, and you trust him with your life, you'll follow him anywhere."

Shock had my jaw dropping when he dropped to his knees with his head bowed. And then my eyes went to the rest of my pack. All fifty of them, the ones that weren't on patrol, were turned toward me with their wolves plain in their stares. All of them alien yet familiar. Across the clearing I could feel the presence of my wolf spread out invisibly through the air, touching, calming each one of my wolves. And as each one was calmed, as each otherworldly presence receded, my pack dropped to their knees with their heads bowed.

My eyes wandered over to Caden out of curiosity. Even his head was bowed. Shelby and Nessie came into my line of peripheral vision. Once they felt my eyes on them, Shelby dropped to her knees, and Nessie's eyes went to the forest floor, her head bowed as Caden's was.

Shaking my head, I quickly strode over to her. With my fingertips under her chin, I forced her eyes to meet mine.

Swallowing hard, I said, "Don't you ever bow to me. I am not a king."

She smiled as the tears that I hadn't caught earlier flowed down her cheeks. "Yes you are. You always have been. King doesn't have to mean a gold throne and bejeweled crown. King is just another word for leader, pack leader, alpha, or even chief." She took my hand in hers and pressed it to her heart. "They love and trust you. This is your family, our family."

Looking back out over them, I found all eyes on me.

"She's right," Caden said. "In our type of packs, the pack leader is rarely revered, but always feared. It's easier to keep your people in line. But this one instance, I believe that it's better to rule with love than fear."

"Jacob," Morgan called from her place between Lucas and Derek. She stood up when our eyes met. "I think I speak for the entire pack when I say that we'd all follow you into hell. You've given us so much. A lot of us were lost before we phased for the first time. And when we did phase, you welcomed us with open arms. Anything we have ever come to you about, you've accepted." She looked at Derek, who nodded. "Derek and Adam for instance. You just accepted them. You've accepted us. Our faults, things we're ashamed of. You've always done everything you could to make us feel like we're not stranded or forgotten. Do you really think we'd leave you to fight battles on your own? Do you really think we'd rather have anybody else leading us?" Morgan's eyes shifted to my right. "That goes for Nessie, too. Even though she's younger than most of us, she's the mother we never had. That feminine accepting presence that all of us need every once in a while. If something were to happen to you, Jake, there's nothing we wouldn't do for her, either."

As one cohesive group, the pack stood up at the same time, and I could feel their inner wolves be brought to the surface just enough. Lucas threw his head back and howled into the oncoming night, his wolf allowing him to vocal chords to do so. And then he phased. Throughout the clearing other wolves added their voices to Lucas's as they too phased into their wolf counterparts.

Even Caden, though he didn't shift, threw his head back to add his voice. Shelby went to stand beside Seth, her throat stretched into a graceful line, her voice mixing with my family's.

Nessie squeezed my hand. When I looked over at her, she smiled and nodded toward the pack.

Taking the hint, I squeezed her hand back, stepped away from her, and phased. My own howl mixed in with the rest, a leader becoming equal with his people.

RPOV

Grinning from ear to ear, I backed up until my back hit the side of the house, watching as Jake stood in front of his pack, and joined them. The sound was haunting but beautiful. A family that was celebrating together.

Something brushed the back of my hand. Looking over, I found Walker staring wide-eyed at the group of wolves with their heads thrown back. He looked scared and exhilarated all at the same time. I gripped his hand in mine. The movement seemed to have startled him because he swallowed hard and took a deep breath before he looked over at me.

"Jacob and I won't let you go through this alone. You're safe with us, ok?"

He nodded. "But what about my family? My sister?"

"You're one of us now. They get a protection detail, too."

Surprise flashed in his eyes. "Wait, there's not a one or the other choice? I don't have to pick, or just leave them behind?"

I squeezed his hand again. "Absolutely not. We'll get you to control this and then you can see them. Hell, with this calming thing, you might get to see them sooner. But trust me, we want to keep your family safe as much as you do. Forks and the rez are our territory to protect. That includes the citizens, not just the land."

"She's right."

Turning around brought me face to face with my mother. She smiled and took my other hand.

"Not only do you have the wolves, but you have us as well. Welcome to the family, Walker."

"Where are the others?" I asked not seeing Dad or my aunts and uncles.

Mom smiled. "Your dad wanted to go hunt bears with Emmett. They'll be back soon."

Speaking of hunting, that was one thing I hadn't done in months, and to be honest, I was feeling the effects. When Jacob and I had been together earlier today, I'd felt more pain than I ever had at his intrusion. It didn't bode well. Carlisle had a theory about balancing my two sides. Without feeding blood to my vampire side, he feared that the vampire gene may recess, rendering me completely human. I'd tried to hide it as best I could, but Jacob had known that I was hurting. Unfortunately, he felt that it was all his fault and wouldn't let me tell him that it was because I needed to hunt. He'd locked himself in the bathroom for hours before we came down here for the training.

"What is it, honey?" Mom asked.

Pulling my mind away from last night, I looked up at her with a smile. "I just need to hunt. I'm starting to feel a little off."

Mom's eyes went round with understanding. "Jacob," she said in a normal tone.

Immediately, Jake was right in front of us, worry clear in his eyes. Reaching out, I stroked the space between his eyes. "I tried to tell you earlier. I need to hunt, otherwise, I would have been ok. It had nothing to do with you."

Next to me, Momma shifted uncomfortably, which made me smile. Vampires didn't fidget. I knew that she knew that I was talking about my relationship with Jacob in the bedroom. As my mother, the topic clearly made her squeegee.

Jacob leaned forward to press his nose to my forehead.

"Let's go hunting before we go home, ok?"

"Wait," Walker said. "I get why a wolf would hunt, but you?"

I laughed. "My family and I are vegetarian vampires. We don't feed from humans. Otherwise their eyes would be red, not topaz."

"Why aren't your eyes that color?"

"Because my eyes are my mother's eyes when she was human. I'm only half human." I motioned to my mom. "This is my mother. Edward Cullen is my dad. I thought you knew they were my parents."

His eyebrows rose. "I knew their names, but not what they looked like. I always thought they were a myth or something."

I laughed. "Nope. We're all real."

Taking on a pained look, he rubbed his forehead and the bridge of his nose. "So, how do you hunt?"

I shrugged and grabbed his arm. "Why don't you come with us? I'll show you how my family and I survive."

"Sure."

I gave Momma a quick kiss, gripped a hunk of Jacob's fur, and we started walking for the tree line. A moment later, Morgan and Lucas joined our group, flanking us on either side while Adam and Derek took up space ahead and behind us. All in wolf form.

"That's a lot of security," Walker muttered.

"Jake and I are the alpha couple. They take our safety very seriously."

"So, Jacob was born into the Alpha title, right?"

"Mhm."

"Ok, so tell me again what the difference is between an alpha and a dominant?"

I wasn't sure I could explain it, but I'd try. "Ok, first, to explain this, let's forget about werewolves and the different types. Let's just talk about wolves. It might be easier. This is how I see it, ok? I don't know if it's right but I'll see what I can do."

As I thought about it, Adam led us further into the woods while the others watched the environment around us. Jacob kept nudging me, begging me to rub his head and purring into my ear.

"Ok, for me, 'dominant' and 'alpha' are interchangeable. However, in some instances, an alpha is always dominant, but a dominant is not always an alpha. And then you have the betas. Betas need the dominants to survive, but a dominant can survive outside the pack on their own. Let's take Jake and Seth, and forget the born-into-it thing. Say they were just regular wolves. Jacob had to fight to the top to become alpha male. Seth, as second in command is dominant to the rest of the pack, but a beta to Jacob, who is the ultimate male of the pack."

As we continued walking, Walker took it all in to process it. While he did that, I stretched out my senses to find food. It was quiet out, but then again, we weren't far enough away from the house. With all the wolves howling, the deer and mountain lions had probably tucked themselves down for the night. This was really going to be a hunt, not just a chase.

"So you're saying," Walker said. "That Seth could be labeled as an alpha male, but since Jake was born into it, he's the alpha male. And you use the word 'dominant' for all the alpha males of the pack so as not to create confusion."

"That's right. Couldn't have said it better myself."

"Going with that theory then, with Caden's type of wolf, they must just call the alpha male the pack leader. All the dominants are called alphas, and the rest are betas."

I shrugged. "I'm not sure about his type of pack, but it could make sense."

"So, what exactly is going on around here? I was attacked by a werewolf. Is there some sort of turf war going on or something?"

I sighed. "It's a lot more complicated than that."

He nudged me with his shoulder. "We have time."

Digging my fingers into Jacob's fur, I held onto him for strength. "Our kind has a type of royalty, the Volturi. A long time ago, they came to kill me and my entire family because they thought that I was a child that had been bitten instead of born. Nobody had ever heard of a vampire fathering a child. But when they came to take care of business, they realized that they had been lied to with the accusation. Though they were still going to try to destroy us, my aunt showed the leader, who could read thoughts by touching someone, what would happen should he chose to go to war with us. They'd lose and he'd die. There are three leaders: Aro, Caius, and Marcus. Caius didn't understand Aro's need to stop the battle and he was very angry. My family thinks that he and Jane, one of their most prized possessions, came up with a plan to destroy us anyway. Last year, Jane showed up with Tristan and his pack, which included Caden. Caden switched sides and joined us, but Tristan and the rest have been brainwashed."

"But what caused that? Why would they come after you?"

"Caius has a bad history with the Children of the Moon and he tried to kill them all off in Europe. We think he had Jane convince Tristan's pack that my family and our 'guard dogs' were responsible for the decimation of their kind. Tristan wants Jacob's head on a platter as a trophy. If Tristan and his pack could defeat us, Caius would have Jane kill them. The eradication of the werewolves in Europe would continue after the clan who had made the Volturi look like fools were destroyed. That way nobody-human, vampire, or werewolf-would ever question the superiority of the vampire royalty."

"And how many wolves are in Tristan's pack?"

"Caden says about the same as in ours."

Walker nodded. "That's why Caden wanted this training to happen. Equal numbers doesn't necessarily mean equal force. He wants your wolves to have the same abilities as Tristan's."

I smiled at him. "You learn fast."

He shrugged. "History was always a good subject of mine. Both sides have to be prepared for it to be an even fight."

Ahead of us, Adam stopped, phased back to human and held up his hand. I could tell he was listening to the woods around us as his head swiveled on his shoulders, eyes scanning the dense darkness.

"There's a lion nearby," he whispered.

"Dibs," I whispered back.

When he turned back to me, I shrugged.

"I need the game with the most kick. A deer won't last me very long. I haven't hunted in a few months."

He nodded. "Fine. You and I go for the lion. With him here, that means there's deer around somewhere. Jake, stay close to Walker. You're the strongest of all of us."

Immediately, we all split up. Derek and Adam stuck close to me. Crouching low, I followed them into a thick patch of trees.

Adam leaned back. "Derek and I will circle around and push him toward you. You think you can handle taking him down?"

"Absolutely. I'm ready for a good meal."

As they disappeared into the darkness, I crouched lower into the tall shrubs and waited. Over the past couple days I'd had feelings of instant headaches and fatigue. Right now, one of those episodes felt like it was about to hit.

Closing my eyes, I sank down even lower and tried to breathe deep. There was a rustle in the shrubs and two seconds later they burst apart as the mountain lion shot out, straight for me. Surprised into motionlessness all I could do was watch as it came at me with fangs bared and claws out.

With its approach, I stumbled back onto my ass and tried to crabwalk backward. It wasn't good enough. The lion was getting closer, stalking toward me, a low growl slipping between its teeth.

Just before it launched into the air, I could see the muscles in its shoulders bunch. No doubt Derek and Adam were coming to check on me, but they were going to be too late, and I was too weak to take it on.

In midair, a giant dark blur t-boned the animal, lurching it away from me. They rolled over the grass and tree roots as another blur ran past me. I recognized Walker immediately, which meant Jacob was wresting with the lion.

"Snap its neck. It's less cruel that way," I managed to say.

The cat let out a vicious snarl as Jacob pinned it down and Walker circled behind it. With unwavering hands, Walker gripped the sides of the cat's head and twisted. Looking away, a sharp crack echoed in the woods and all other sounds died off. I always felt bad about the killing part, but it was a necessity. And right now, I needed what the animal had to offer.

On the breeze, the scent of the blood hit my nose making my head spin and stomach rumble like thunder. Jacob gripped the back of the neck in his teeth and dragged the dead animal to me. After he pressed his nose to my forehead again, he sat down next to me, huffing in my hair.

"Thanks, Jacob."

Dragging the animal into my lap, I ripped out some of the fur around the neck and dug in.

The moment the blood hit my tongue, a rush of power flooded through me. It was like every nerve in my body fired off at once. It was almost painful, but I kept drinking. My stomach felt like it was going to burst as it filled up with more than it could really handle. I also felt the walls in my mind crash down. I'd put them back up when Shelby and I had gone outside to join the pack. Now, they came crashing down.

But the aches in my bones and muscles disappeared, leaving me feeling like I wanted to go a few rounds with Jake between the sheets.

With my shields down, I projected. Jacob made a joked sound beside me that was followed with a low purr. Adam and Derek grinned at each other. Morgan and Lucas, still in wolf form, nuzzled each other and watched me and Jacob with low growls.

"What the hell was that?" Walker asked.

With my eyes locked onto my mate's, I answered, "I can project my thoughts when I'm not concentrating. The power rush knocked down my mental walls. Sorry."

In one smooth motion, Jacob stepped forward, phased, and swept me up into his arms.

"Morgan and Lucas, take care of the lion. Tell Seth and Caden I took Nessie home to rest after feeding," Jacob ordered in a nonnegotiable tone.

"Absolutely," Morgan said. "Oh, no you don't," she said to somebody else. Probably Walker. "They have a cabin about a mile away. That's where they're going."

"Derek and Adam, you come with us. I want my mate, but I won't be stupid about her safety."

"Right on your heels, Jake."

And then two wolves flanked us as Jacob carried me all the way to the cabin without looking anywhere else but my eyes with enough heat to burn even this wet forest to ash.

Hmmm...who else is sensing some Nessie/Jake steamy time? ME! Hopefully you guys are up for another lemon cuz that's what's coming. Remember, if you have any questions or comments, feel free to review(I love those!) or PM me (love those too!). Luv you guys! xoxoxoxoxo