8.
Around the middle of my second year, they introduced me to Jacob's clan.
We went down to the La Push beach for a campfire and night of telling stories. When we got there, the fire was already lit and all the members of both Sam and Jacob's packs were there, along with Jacob's father and another leader that I did not know. I sat in between Bella and Esme on a whitewashed tree trunk, which had been washed in from the sea. The evening began slowly as introductions were made between the members of the packs and I. We talked for about an hour, keeping everything casual.
The silence fell over our little gathering suddenly. I could tell the storytelling was about to begin. It was Jacob's father, Billy Black, who spoke. I watched as the dancing flames cast shadows on his ancient face.
"Taha Aki was the last of the Great Spirit cheifs of our kind. He was a man of peace and was known for his wisdom. But there was one man named Utlapa who believed that they should use their magic to expand their control over the neighboring tribes and build themselves an empire. When the spirit warriors left their bodies, their minds were all connected with each other. When Taha Aki heard what Utlapa wanted, he banned him from the tribe. Utlapa left and hid in the nearby forest, unbeknownst to Taha Aki.
"Every so often, the Spirit Chief would leave the village to go to a sacred and secret place in the mountains. He would leave his body behind and search the surrounding areas for any dangers or threats to his people. One day, Utlapa followed Taha Aki on his way to his special place, planning to kill him. Utlapa left his body after Taha Aki did and when Utlapa joined him in the spirit world, Taha Aki knew immediately what was happening. Utlapa took Taha Aki's body and killed his own. Taha Aki followed his body in his spirit self down the mountain to the tribe. For weeks, he watched with despair as Utlapa made sure everyone believed he was Taha Aki. And then Utlapa's first edict came: no warrior was to enter the spirit world because he had a vision of danger. Of course, in truth, he was afraid that someone would discover his secret while in the spirit world, where Taha Aki was waiting to tell someone what had happened.
"Taha Aki could not stand by anymore. He brought a great wolf down from the mountains to kill Utlapa and free the tribe, but Utlapa hid from it behind his warriors, knowing it was Taha Aki who had sent the animal." There was a pause as Billy readjusted himself in his wheelchair. He took a sip of water before continuing his story.
"Taha Aki had been away from his body long enough to be in agony. He felt doomed of never being able to cross the line between life and death. The great wolf followed him through the forest and Taha Aki felt jealous of the animal. And at that moment, the Spirit Chief had an idea that would forever change the future of the Quileute people. He asked the animal if he could share his body with him and the wolf complied. As a single being, the wolf and the man went to the village.
"An old warrior, Yut, disobeyed the orders of the false chief and left his body, joining the spirit world with Taha Aki. Yut gathered the truth in an instant and welcomed Taha Aki back. Almost instantly, Utlapa realized what had happened and raced towards Yut's body with his knife. Yut went back into his body in time, but was too old to fight Utlapa off before warning the others. Taha Aki watched as Yut's spirit left the world and he returned to the wolf's body, feeling a great rage. The wolf shuddered and transformed into a man before the eyes of the warriors. The man did not look like Taha Aki's old body, but like his spirit self, which the warriors recognized instantly. Utlapa tried to run but Taha Aki had the strength of the wolf and killed him.
When everyone realized what had happened, everything returned to normal. From the on, Taha Aki was known as the Great Wolf or the Spirit Man. He led the tribe for many years because he did not age. He fathered many sons, who in time found that they too could turn into wolves on reaching manhood. They were all different because the wolf form reflected the spirit of the man. Some became warriors like Taha Aki and did not age, while others did not like to transform, and therefore started to age."
They told me other legends about their kind also, filling me in on their unique relationship with the Cullens.
"Our kind is the sworn mortal enemy of 'the cold ones', the vampires." It was Sam Uley who spoke, the Alpha of the other wolf pack. "The only reason we allow the Cullens to live near us because of their unique diet. They have proven to us over the years their persistence to not harming humans, and so we formed a treaty with them, allowing them to live in our area, as long as they did not harm a human or come onto our land."
Jacob glanced at Renesme, who was of course sitting by his side. "Bella was the first one to pull us together. Our worlds had to coexist because Edward was her love and I, her best friend. Nessie was the one who pulled us to form a sort of friendship. There is a law between our people that says that no wolf can ever harm the object of another wolf's imprint. It is one of the worst sins of our kind, because we would never be able to forget or forgive."
I spoke up, looking at Jacob. I was remembering what Bella had told me about imprinting. "Can you explain this imprinting thing to me?"
Jacob nodded. "Our kind imprints on the person he's bound to the moment he sees her. Some describe it as being pulled toward that person; the connection with everything else is severed, and only the imprintee matters, leaving us with a deep need to provide the imprintee with anything she needs or wants." He glanced quickly at Bella, too quickly. "Imprinting can't be forced on anyone, no matter how much the shapeshifter may want it, and there is no way to stop it once it's happened. It is an undescribable attraction that comes without warning which cannot be broken."
"Is it hard to be away from one another?" I asked both Renesme and Jacob.
Renesme spoke up in her soft, clear voice. "We could not go one day without being in contact with each other. We've never tried, but we think the separation involved would cause us both great pain."
"But what would happen if a wolf was rejected by his imprintee?"
Jacob shrugged. "Not sure. It's assumed to be almost impossible, since they are a "perfect match" for each other. Plus, he would be anything she may want or need, making rejection extremely unlikely."
"And how long will you two be together, than?"
"Well, once a shapeshifter imprints, he's able spend the rest of his life aging alongside his love, once he's able to quit phasing, that is. But in our case, since Renesme is immortal, I can live with her as long as I phase every so often."
"Amazing," I muttered, mostly to myself.
The night wore on, others in the tribe sharing stories and telling jokes. The fire died out slowly, and that was when we said our goodbyes.