Hello again, another chapter if you like :) Thanks for all the reviews!
Chapter Two
"Mmh, thanks mom, that was dee-lish", she stiffled a burp and took a large gulp of water.
"You're welcome pumpkin, now go get ready", her mom kissed her forehead and took their dishes to the sink.
"Actually, I was thinking of not driving in the car..." she looked cautiously from her mother to her father and back, anxiously awaiting the answer. Her mom and dad shared a look.
"Okay Talae, just, you know, be careful" her dad finally said, "We'll meet you there".
"Thanks dad" she kissed him on the cheek and went to go find some desent clothes. She decided on black, tight jeans, a white plain tank and a black zip-up hoodie with a Guns N' Roses print on the back. She stuffed it in a small duffel bag along with a pair of worn sneakers and meet her parents in the hallway.
"Alright, you got your keys?" she jingled the duffel bag, "right, see you in a bit". They both made their way to the car, locking the front door behind them. She let out a sigh and made her was to the back door. She took off her clothes and draped them over a nearby chair. It was rather dark outside now, so she didn't really have to worry about the neighbors seeing her running around stark naked in the snow.
She felt the snow melt around her toes as she stepped out onto the backporch, bag in hand. She jerked her head left and right and sprinted for the treeline, reaching it within a few seconds. She let out a breath and dropped the duffel bag to a dry spot near the bottom of an evergreen. She straightened her back and stretched her limbs. It had been a few days since last, with traveling and moving and all. She took a quick few breaths and closed her eyes for a second, before falling to all fours on the cold, hard forestfloor. She dug her front claws into the earth and wiggled them a little. She turned her head and swished her shaggy, voluminous tail back and forth. She yawned and stretched, letting out a shrill whine. She picked up her bag with her teeth, getting a good, comfortable hold on it, without wetting her clothes with her saliva, and started trotting west.
She sniffed the air and could quite clearly smell the smoke and burning wood of a fire about ten miles west. She could hear the wildlife chatter all around her, she only heard deer and a couple of birds chipper, it was winter after all, and damn close to human settlements. She held a steady, quickstepped trot, taking in her new surroundings as she went. She fit right into the snowy landscape, she was almost invisible with her ivory coat of fur. There wasn't a lot of wind, but she reveled in the cool, brisk night air, fully enjoying every minute of her time in the dark winterwonderland.
She stopped abruptly as a pungent scent flooded her nostrils. Suddenly a flurry of voices filled her head and she almost thought she was going mad.
"Hey hey guys, aren't you coming with to the bonfire? My mom brought stuff for smores!" an excited young voice yelled out.
"Sure Seth, just gotta check up on the northside, be there in a few" a happy, deeper and sweet second voice responded, though it sounded farther away than the first.
"Right, see you there Quil. Guys, come on guys! I know you're there!" the cheery one persisted.
"Oh alright, I'll go if Jacob goes, whaddaya say man?" a quiet, relaxed voice added.
"Aw man, I had a movie and a bowl of chips all waiting for me at home and stuff. Fine, I'll meet you guys there. Where's Sam and his fellas?" lean, masculine and soft was the voice of the fourth intruder and Talae felt a slight tug in her gut.
"Rad dudes! They're here too. Seth out!" she felt a swoop on her mind and then there was no sign of the young one, it was like he'd disconnected from her thoughts. What was going on?
"I'm almost at you guys, wait for m- wait, you smell that?"
"What Quil, what now?"
"Shut up Embry. What do you mean Quil?"
"It like.. wolf, but.. different. Seriously, how do you guys not smell that? I'm going after it"
"Wait, I think I got it.. We'll met ya there Quil, Embry, come on"
She felt the pressure of the voices get physically closer and she almost panicked. Her dad hadn't gotten a chance to speak with the Elders yet and she was not ready to reveal her secret to these pups just yet, nor did she want to fight them. She increased her pace till she almost hit top speed and went in a nice wide arch around their position, focusing on the scenery instead of thinking.
"It's getting closer to the rez boys, lets get it!" came the one known as Embry.
She got a few images from their minds, they were a good 30 seconds behind her. She pushed herself further, becoming nothing but a blur of white as her paws almost didn't touch the snow in her hasty escape. She knew she could outrun them, it was more her scent she was worried about.
She got closer to the town and sped through gardens and backyards, smelling her way to the fire. She heard a mingle of soft voices and laughter. She turned her head; good, she had a minute to spare. Quickly finding her way to the back of a shed in someones yard, she phased back and hurridly ripped her bag open and pulled on her clothes. She skipped towards the warmth of the flames as she slipped on her sneakers and tugged on her hoodie as she neared the campsite. She glanced back at the forest and their husky scent was getting closer.
She was finally at the campsite. It was full of people, all Quileute, native looking with their bronze skin and dark hair. She searched for her parents. Shit, they weren't there yet. Sniffing around she found another familiar scent and gladly headed in its direction. She mingled through the crowd, offering smiles and apologies when people bumped into her. She found Leah talking to a woman who looked remarkably like her. She sighed in relief and started for her.
Leah sensed her coming and turned around to face her as she came within proper speaking-range.
"Hey Talae, you made it!" she offered Talae a small handwave that eagerly got returned, "this is my mom, Sue" she gestured to the pretty lady next to her. She lifted her hand and Talae took and shook it firmly in greeting.
"Nice to meet you Mrs. Clearwater" she smiled at the older woman and she smiled back.
"Oh please call me Sue. So, you're Will Littlecreeks daughter huh?" she nodded, "where are your parents?"
"Oh they'll be here any minute now, ah there they are" she saw her parents enter the grounds and waved them over.
"Oh lords, is that you Sue?" her mother exclaimed, a hand over her mouth.
"Lily? Will? Oh my, it's been ages!" Sue grinned and gave them both hugs. Formalities aside, they started cathing up and talking about the old days as Leah poked her shoulder and jerked her head in the direction of the actual fire, indicating for Talae to follow her.
They sat on one of the logs that surrounded the bonfire, keeping a safe and comfortable distance to the licking flames.
"So, how are you liking Washington so far?" Leah, the icebreaker, asked and crossed her legs. Mimicking her movements Talae fidled with the rim of her hoodie.
"It's pretty nice so far, we've only been here since noon-ish. I love the nature, though its definently smaller than Anchorage", she snorted very unladylike, which caused Leah to snort to. They looked at eachother and burst out laughing.
"Smooth Talae. Very charming" she grinned, trying to stiffle her laughter.
"Hah, me in a nutshell. So, do you go to school around here?" her laughter calmed to a friendly smile.
"Nah, I have a part-time job down at the docks, helping out as security" she said, unzipping her sandy cardigan as the heat from the fire slightly got to her.
"Oh, cool", she didn't question why a slim girl like Leah would be working dock-security, she knew why, "wanna do that the rest of your life?" she smirked.
"Hah, no. I plan on going to college at the end of the summer actually, gotta do something useful with my life. What about you, school or work?"
"I'm continuing my senior year at Forks High on monday, I'm only 17 after all" she shrugged her shoulders, "and I don't know anyone".
"Aw. You know me" Leah grinned at her, poking her knee, "I think we'll get along just fine".
"Rad", Talae grinned back, double poking Leahs knee. She could smell the ones from the forest around the grounds, but decided to try and ignore them, hoping the smoke and the many people would help mask her scent.
She and Leah spent the next half hour getting to know eachother. Leah was surprisingly open about her life. They shared a broken heart, though Talae had gotten over it quite quicker than her new friend had. They somewhat shared taste in clothes, music and school favorite subjects. They shared alot more than that, but Talae wasn't letting her know just yet.
"Oh man, have I ever! It's like the greatest game in the 21st century", Talae flailed her arms for effect.
"Oh, please, they'll never make anything near as good as the original" she pointed out and Talae had to agree, "Okay okay, what about tattoos and piercings? Show me yours and I'll show ya mine" Leah winked and giggled.
"Hah, challenge accepted!" she flexed her arms, "you first".
"Well, you've probably already seen this one", she lightly touched her shoulder and Talae nodded. "I got this one for Christmas", Leah brought her black ballarina-slipper-wearing left foot up on the log and pulled up her jeans, revealing a small dreamcatcher on her ankle, no color, ornated with two feathers that reached the mid of her foot. She let Talae have a good look at it before she pulled her jeans back down and placed her foot on the ground. "The feathers are for my mom and brother". She pulled down at the neck of her t-shirt to reveal a tribal-styled soaring eagle on her collarbone, over her heart, "this one's for my father. He passed away last year..", she looked away sadly as she readjusted her collar.
Talae put a soft hand on her knee, "I'm sorry". Leah smiled at her and continued, "I have no piercings, well, except for my ears, but that's like mandatory" she shrugged and Talae gently retracted her hand, not wanting it to be awkward. "Your turn".
Talae brushed some of her hair behind her ears, "I've always liked piercings", she turned her head twice to Leah could see the whole rim of each of her ears covered in studs and colorful rings, "and I have a bananabell in my navel.
"As for tattoos , I got this one for my 16th birthday", she pulled down her own collar and a black and white tattoo of five feathers forming a star grazed her collarbone. She let Leah look at it before she refitted the collar, "then this at my 17th birthday just last wednesday", she pulled up the sleeve of her left arm so Leah could see the minimalistic bearpaw with red lining and shadow on her forearm.
"Nice, no scabs", Leah said with a knowing smirk and ran her fingers over it. Talae tried to ignore it and let down her sleeve when she was done.
"Yeah, I heal quick", she didn't meet Leahs stare, "this one was my first, I got it when I was 14. My dad did it himself, having learned the skills when he lived here in his youth" she lightly touched her right shoulder, though not making any move to uncover it.
Leah regarded her for a few seconds, not able to contain her curiousity anymore, "well, lets see it!"
A few more moments of silence, then Talae met her stare with a lopsided grin, "alright, just, don't freak".
Leah eyed her warrily with crossed arms and Talae slipped her right arm out of her hoodie. She lovingly circled the tattoo with her fingers before letting her hand fall away so Leah could see.
"That's..." Leah gasped, unconsciously touching her own shoulder. She reached a shaky hand to circle the tribal design, grazing the jaw of the hidden wolf. "It's white...". If she'd been light skinned, the tattoo would've been hard to see, but given her native origin and tanned skin it stood out quite nicely in the light of the fire.
Leah lifted her head and met Talaes honey-colored eyes, mouth hanging just slightly open. Talae smiled knowingly at her, and pulled her sleeve back up, "before you ask the obvious question, yes, I am what you think I am".
"But.. how?".
"Long story short, my father was born and raised here, full-blooded Quileute, and my mother full-blooded Inuit, coming from a small tribe up in northern Alaska. Their last shapeshifters stopped phasing a couple of generations ago, as their natural enemies were hunted to extinction and the rest stopped trying to invade their lands", she took a calming breath, "they wanted to help me when I first found out, but the Elders felt it would help me more to be among my own".
Leah blinked hard a couple of times, trying to register it all, "Wow... so, how come you phased? I mean, that would mean-"
"Yes. A group of three nomadic vampires had come to Anchorage, and they lurked around my neighbourhood and school, although I'm pretty sure it wasn't because of me. I got all the classic symptoms, high temperature, rage-fits and anger-outbursts, the shakes".
"But, you were only 14?"
"13 actually. I dunno why I phased so early, maybe because they were so close all the time. Anyway, one day I was walking home from school and it was dark already, ya know Alaska, and I started trembling as I walked past an alley. Then I heard a muffed scream coming from it, and my instincts just took over. I ran in and saw a crouched figure over one of my schoolmates. It hissed at me and I saw the blood dripping from its fangs. I growled back and pounched, only when I knocked it to the ground it was with a pair of huge ass paws. I ripped its head clean off, and then I... ran".
"Go Talae", Leah smiled at her, "what about the girl?"
"She died, luckily she just died, she didn't turn. However, I couldn't phase back for like, a week, so I hid in an old warehouse.. then when I finally did phase back, I was like, naked ya know... lets just say I did find my way home" she grimaced, thinking of the not so fond memory.
"Man... this is just so... wierd. But in a good way", Leah smirked, "so, how's it working with like, your hair and all" she gestured to the thick, voluminous ponytail that reached past Talaes shoulderblades.
She brushed a strand of coffee-brown hair behind her ear, "yeah, well, I tried having it short once, didn't suit me. I actually like the shaggy coat, and with my build it just fits me nicer".
"Oh, cool".
"What about you, you must be tired of hearing me endlessly ramble on, when did you first phase?"
"Around the time my dad died. My little brother phased too".
"How come? I mean, are there leeches around here?" Their voices had long since been vacated to whispers.
"Yeah, well, vegetarian ones... I'm sure your dad will tell you about it later" Leah shrugged her shoulders.
"Alright, I'll take ya word for it" Talae stood up and stretched, "Oh goodness, where is that ol' fart anyway...".
Leah stood with her and shook her legs, "Hey, wanna come meet the guys? I'm sure you'll fit right in".
"The guys? As in the pack?" she whispered the last words and Leah nodded smirking, "Oh, great, my first day and you're throwing me to the wolves". She told her about her "mental" encounter in the woods.
"Dude, you're serious fast if you outran Jake".
"Hah, thanks. Well, I'm pretty sure they're as confused as you were, and don't give me that look, I could see it in your eyes!" She laughed as Leah gave her incredulous stare.
"Come on you twit", the shorthaired Quileute hooked her arm through the Inuit's and almost dragged her over to a group of guys standing by a cooler, laughing and shoving eachother. Talae and Leah shared a look. Tsk, boys.
They made their way into the little circle and the shyness creeped back into Talaes body, hunching her shoulders lightly.
"Hey guys, how's it hanging?" Leah started, not letting go of Talaes arm. She could practically feel the poor girl trembling.
A collective "Hi Leah" was heard.
"It's hangin' slightly to the left, actually" a smug looking guy added with a smirk. He had mischievous eyes and an impish look to him. He was build, like ripped. They are all ripped, Talae noticed and if it hadn't been for the low lighting, they would have all noticed the redness of her cheeks.
"Haha, you're so funny Paul" Leah said sarcastically, cocked her hip and curled her lip in disgust.
"Hey sis, who's the new girl?"
"This is Talae guys, Talae say hello", she smirked.
Talae eyed her evilly and Leah snickered, "Hello", She offered a smile and a small wave. Another collective "Hi Talae" was heard.
"Talae this is Paul, Embry, Quil, Jared and Collin" indicating to each of them," and this is my lil bro' Seth" she drew her brother in and nookied him, which was quite a feat seeing his soaring height. He shoved her and tried to fix his hair.
"She just moved here from Anchorage" Leah beamed.
"Welcome then Talae" Embry was the first to step up and offer his hand. She took it gratefully and gave it a firm shake and flashed him a toothy smile. He stiffened a little when he saw her sharp canines and quickly threw Leah a glance before smiling back and letting go of her hand. Quil and Jared quickly stepped up too and shook her hand, as did Seth when he was satisfied with his hair.
"Thanks" she glanced around the circle, smiling.
"Nice to meet you" Paul stepped up last, casting her a lopsided grin and a raised eyebrow. She took his hand. He gripped it hard, almost hurting her, before she caught on and squeezed his hand a little harder. His lip twitched as he tried hard not to flinch. She smirked at him and he finally caved and let go.
"You too Paul", she said casually brushing a stray hair behind her ear. She looked at Leah who grinned at her, and the guys exchanged quiet looks.
"Aaaaaanyway, where's Jake and Sam?" Leah asked, looking around.
"Sam's over there with Emily and her fam. Jake's out doing some... errands..." Embry avoided her gaze and Leah nodded knowingly. Talae knew what they meant, it meant this Jake was out trying to track her. Yeah, good luck with that.
"There you are honey!" her mom came up beside her, "Who are your new friends?". Talae presented them to her mom and a round of handshaking commenced.
"Hi boys. Sweetie, your dad and I are going home now, we just had a nice talk with the elders and the cheif. Do you wanna... walk home?" Her mom said cautiously, trying to pick her words with care.
"Actually, I think I'll ride with you home. Bye guys, see you around". She turned to leave with her mom.
"Hey wait" She stopped and looked at Embry, as he continued, "we're, uhm, all hanging out at Emily's tomorrow, wanna join us?".
Leah nodded eagerly and dared her to say no.
"Alright, I'll come" she grinned and got the address and time from Embry, "Bye!" she waved as she followed her mom to the car.
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