Thank to love-loves-love, armywife4life and NejisDarkNymph for reviewing the last chapter, you guys really moved me to write more! Thank you.
Anyways, enjoy!
Chapter 8
After the rather eventful visit at the Cullen's, Jacob drove Talae home. It was around 6 in the evening and her parents were home. But she had nothing else planned for the day, so when they pulled up to the curb outside of her house, she of course invited him inside, for a drink, or a game of scrabble... or maybe a messy, hot makeout session?
She shook her head, trying to rid it of the dirty thoughts that circulated there, as she stepped through the front door, Jacob in tow.
"Mom, dad, I'm home!", she shouted, kicking off her shoes.
"Hi sweetie, there's fresh lemonade in the fridge if you want some", her mom shouted from the livingroom.
"'Kay", she said standing in the archway between the hallway and lounge.
"Did you have a good time?", her dad asked, not looking up from his current task; her mom and him were painting the floorpanels in the room redwine-red.
"Yeah, it was cool", she didn't think it'd be a good idea to inform them of her painful sparring-match with Emmett and the following results. Besides, she was all healed up now, no need to make them worry more than they did.
"Oh I'm glad", her mom answered, finally looking up, blowing stray hair away from her face. Her eyes instantly locked on the tall, handsome boy standing slightly behind her daughter. She nudged her husband, making him jerk his head up.
"Hello Jacob, nice to see you again", his father smiled after recovering from the initial shock of Jacob's tall form standing in his livingroom, and wiped his hands on his already paint-smudged pants.
"You too Mr. Littlecreek, Mrs. Littlecreek", Jacob smiled politely and nodded at her parents respectfully, coming forward to shake her dad's hand when extended.
"Please, it's Will", he told him, shaking his head at the tall boy. Damn, he towered over him by a good half-foot.
"Will, then", Jacob's smile stayed on as stepping back besides Talae.
"And it's Lily honey", her mom grinned, adjusting the scarf she'd tied around her head for the time being.
"Lily", Jacob grinned back, "I hope I'm not an inconvenience, Tee invited me inside and who am I to deny her?".
Talae blushed and turned her head away from him with a sheepish smile. Her dad eyed him for a second, but said nothing.
"Not at all dear, make yourself at home, please. Dinner'll be ready in an hour and a half, you can stay if you want", her mom smiled as her dad went back to painting.
"Sure, I'd love to, thank you", Jacob smiled back.
"Right, now that that's out of the way, we'll be in my room", Talae said clapping her hands together once, then lead Jacob down the hall to her room by the hand.
"Door stays open!", her dad shouted. She snorted, knowing he couldn't hold his tongue.
"Make yourself comfortable, I'm going to change out of these sweaty clothes", Talae waved her hand, gesturing to anywhere in the room before she rummaged through her drawers and walked into her bathroom, closing the door.
"Wauw, I didn't picture you as the messy type", Jacob laughed as he surveyed the room. More like a bomb crater, hah!
"Shut it wolfman", she shouted, laughing, from the bathroom. A minute later she walked out wearing a pair of cotton, red shorts and a white, skinny-fitting tank-top and still in her rainbow toe-socks.
"Whatever, at least it's not like there's dirty underwear lying around", she glared playfully at him as she threw her used clothes in the wicker hamper in the corner. She was right though, most of the stuff littering the floor and bed were once-used hoodies and sweaters, books, CD-stacks and more pillows, with the occational stuffed animal.
"Ah-hah. Then what's this?". He was sprawled on her bed, propped op by the many, many pillows against the metal headboard. He'd pulled out a lacy black and red bra from under one of said pillows, and held it up triumphantly by one finger.
She cringed, "Give it here!". She tried snagging it from him, but he held it further away from her, now laughing at her, very amused.
"Jacob, it's not funny! Give me it!", she stomped her foot childishly, before trying to grab it again. He continued to laugh at her as she squeeled in frustration. The sixth time she went for it, leaning over him and the bed to get to it, he tucked her down on the bed with him. She umph'ed as her stomach landed on his and he could feel the metal in her navel press against his abs. Her shirt got bunched at her waist, revealing the heaving tops of her breasts and giving him a clear view of the tattoo grazing her collarbone.
"Nice view", he smirked, finally letting her have the lacy bra back. She blushed and threw it towards the hamper, then shifted her body to sit on the edge of the bed beside him, instead of lying on top of him.
"Git", she murmured, pulling her shirt back in place. She stood up and pulled her iPod out, plugging it into her stereo. She put on a "chillax"-mix and danced her way back to the bed to Skindred's "Destroy The Dancefloor".
"Yeah, work it Tee!", Jacob laughed as she swayed her hips back and forth, tossing her hair to the beat. She grinned at him when she plopped back down on the bed beside him. He bent his leg, creating a make-shift chair-back for her to lean on. She relaxed her back against his leg, stretching her own two out in front of her.
"What a crazy day", she said, looking at her toes as she wiggled them. She sighed and leaned heavily against Jacob's leg.
"Crazy doesn't even cut it", he chuckled, putting a few strands of hair behind her ear, making her look at him and smile.
They talked for a while, about everything and anything, listening to music, occasionally bawling along one or two corus'. She was so comfortable with him, it seemed like they'd known each other for decades, talking and laughing together came easy, even with embarrasing and personal things; she learned that his mother died in a car crash when he was at a young age and he learned how she'd cope with being miserable at a young age.
Oh, yeah, and Jacob knowing her "secret" was another person added to that seemingly rapid growing list. But somehow it didn't bother her that he knew. He never seemed to blame her, judge her or anything; he just accepted it as a part of her, a part of her past. He'd ask questions and she would truthfully answer. No judging, no shunning, no hate. Just acceptance. He'd trace the scars on her wrist and forearms lightly with his fingertips as she spoke, sending shivers up her arm and down her spine.
The whole time though, Jacob was contemplating if this was the time that he should tell her about imprinting. He was almost certain that she'd never heard of it; maybe her mother's tribe didn't think it important at the time, maybe they forgot... Maybe they didn't imprint. Hell, he wasn't even sure that he'd actually imprinted on her. When it happened, when their eyes met that day, he'd felt like they described it; gravity shifts, the universe moves to revolve around a single person, steel cables tie you to them forever. At first he was angry, confused even; he did so not want his free will taking away. He was still brooding about Bella at the time, with her being happy as a pig in a sty with her freaky family, he hadn't even begun to think about starting a life with another person. And then, pow, there she was, like a lightning from a clear sky, locking her beautiful honey eyes with his, pulling him in. And then that ache had settled, that pull. And it was like nothing he'd ever felt or heard of. He assumed it was tied to her, to the imprint, but no one seemed to be able to answer his questions, even his dad had crinkled his eyebrows at him.
He'd been lucky, or rather, smooth enough to schedule her patrols at times when he wasn't, and, without ever, EVER admitting to it, he was glad he'd met Edward all those years ago; now he knew how to block his unwanted thoughts, or at least distract himself from thinking about sensitive subject. Unwanted thoughts like imprinting. But even he was astounded that he could keep this from his pack, with the amount of time he spent thinking about her.
It would've been easier if she knew of imprinting, too, he thought with a heavy sigh.
"What's wrong?", she asked, bringing him out of his train of thoughts.
"What?".
"You sighed", she said with a smile, "like, somethings on your mind?".
"Actually-", he started, but Lily's shouting voice cut him off. Not today, he thought with an inward sigh.
"Dinner's ready!".
Talae stood and took his hand, almost dragging him face first off the bed, "Come on".
He followed her out the room, down the hall and into the kitchen, happy that she hadn't let go of his hand. A very appetizing aroma of juicy chicken and stirfry noodles hit his nose as they rounded the corner, and he almost drooled.
"Oh god, that smells absolutely delicious Mrs- Lily", Jacob corrected himself, then took a good, long whiff of the food currently being set on the table.
"Well, you learn to cook grade A food when you have a growing pup in the house", Will laughed, ruffling his daughter's hair as he walked by.
"Gee, thanks dad", Talae scowled at him through her now messed up hair hanging in her face. She took off the elastic-band that held her hair in a ponytail and shook the treshes with her hands, before bringing the whole thing back into a high, messy bun instead.
"No problemo kiddo", he chuckled, sitting down at the dinner table, pouring himself a glass of water.
"So listen, Sam and I were thinking about holding a camp-out/training camp next weekend", Jacob started as he walked down the porch-steps in front of her house. Dinner had gone well and she could tell that her parents and her alpha got along, better than she could've hoped even. Her dad had been a little cautious at first, trying to figure out what the deal was between his daughter and her new "boss", but eventually he'd let it go and just enjoyed the evening.
"That sounds cool", she smiled, walking alongside him to his car, "Who'd be attending?".
"Well, a couple of the newer recruits, you, Sam and his beta, you know Jared, myself and Leah, then maybe Paul, Seth and Embry. Quil has babysitting", he answered, stepping onto the snow-ridden sidewalk.
"Okay, anything I should bring? Tent, goodies, earplugs?", she asked, moving forward to lean her back against the side of the car.
"Earplugs, really?", he chuckled, cocking his eyebrow at her.
"A weekend with a bunch of guys and one other girl? Please, if I want any sleep at all, I'll need earplugs to keep out ya'lls snoring", she snorted, crossing her arms over her chest.
"Ouch, that hurt", he chuckled, clutching his hand over his heart for effect. He move to stand in front of her, invading that little invisible bubble that read "personal space" in big, fat, flashing letters. His warm breath fanned over her face in gentle waves, and did not help cool her reddened cheeks.
She bit her lower lip, her mind going blank on witty comments, her eyes kept darting back and forth between his darkened ones and his full lips, that she had learned were indeed very eatable.
"What are you doing tomorrow?", he asked in a deep, lowered voice, tugging a stray strand of raven hair behind her ear, their bodies inches from touching.
"Hanging.. with.. Sunday...", she breathed, now totally focused on his lips moving.
"Too bad", he smirked, stepping forward, effectively closing the space between their bodies, pressing her against the car.
"Mmhm", was all she could muster as a responce, overwhelmed by his husky and alluring scent. She rested her hands on his chest, arching her back, pressing her stomach flat against his. She loved being so close to Jacob, something deep inside her satisfied when they touched. She couldn't explain it, but she certainly wouldn't deny it.
His hand went up to tangle in her hair at the back of her skull as he lowered his head and ever so lightly touched his sultry mouth to hers. She forgot how to breath for a second as the intensity of the kiss suckerpunched her right in the gut. Her hands found way to the rim of his jeans, slipping her thumbs just past the denim fabric at his hips, pulling them flush against hers. She blushed as she felt just how much he really was enjoying their special moment, opening her mouth to him as she felt his tongue caress her lip. She moaned into his mouth as his fingers feathered over her ribcage.
And just like that, he pulled away from her, kissed the soft spot below her ear, making her bite her lip. He somehow manages to step away from her wanting body and open the car door, rolling the window down as he got into the drivers seat.
"Revenge is a bitch, huh?", he smirked, revved the car to life.
She stood, shocked, for a moment, touching the spot under her ear, she could still feel his hot lips on her skin.
"Oh, I'll get you someday, Black, just you wait and see", she grumbled, walking backwards away from the car, stopping just before the gravel-path leading up to the porch.
His smirk didn't fade at all as he blew a kiss her way before pulling away from the curb and disappearing down the road.
Oh great, now she was all hot and bothered, the chilly late-january air doing nothing to cool her flustering body down.
She stomped back to the house, sitting down on the porch-steps with a thump. She took several deep breaths, filling her lungs with cold night-air.
"What are you doing out here?", her dad asked as he popped his head out the front door, when she'd been sitting there for five minutes.
"Just chilling", she smiled back at him. He closed the door behind him, coming to sit besides her.
"Yeah, I can feel it", he chuckled, zipping up his winter-jacket, "so how you doin' cupcake?".
She sighed, feeling rather content despite everything, "I'm doing good".
"Yeah? Good. You know we moved here for you, we want you to be happy, you know that", he said, bringing an arm around her shoulder, pulling her to him.
"Yeah I know. And I'm sorry you had to. I'm sorry you had to leave everything behind, just because of my stupid "gift"", she air-quoted, rolling her eyes, before leaning into his side.
"Hey, don't give me that, you know we'd do anything to make you happy. Even if it meant packing up and going to the northpole we'd do it. We can adjust anywhere, but there's only so many places you can truely be yourself", he squeezed her tight, feeling his own body heat up slowly. It was like leaning on an electrical-heater.
"Hah, the northpole", she snorted, "thank you dad. I really think I'm going to be happy here".
"If you are, we are hon'", he kissed the top of her head and stood up, pulling her up standing too, "Now come inside, your mom made brownies earlier and I think there's icecream in the freezer".
Talae used all of Sunday hanging with, well, Sunday. Despite her spacy-nature she was really smart, and after they'd used all morning and noon finishing homework and getting ahead on assignments, they were free to spend the rest of the day as they pleased.
"So, how come you're not going to school on the rez?", Sunday asked, standing on the front porch while Talae pulled on a light jacket, "Aren't you going to be cold?".
The native shrugged, zipping up the jacket, "I'm warm-blooded". They walked down the steps and the gravelpath and started down the sidewalk. They'd decided to walk the way into Forks, to a place called Mocha Motion, to get a cup of something and hang out.
"As for the school choice, it's just closer", she explained, stuffing her hands in her jeans-pockets.
"Hm, logical. Even though you get stared at a lot", she said, looking to the sky as if she had an epiphany.
Talae was lost for a second, "they still stare? God, I've been there 2-3 weeks, people need to get over themselves".
Sunday just threw her a grin in responce. They walked in silence for a while, listening to the nature around them before they turned down the main road leading into Forks.
"So what's going on with you and Caleb?", Talae asked as she kicked a smaller rock further ahead of her. She wasn't completely blind and had picked up on the vibes between her two new friends.
Sunday smiled and got a far away look in her eyes, before turning to her friend with the smile still plastered on her face, "I think I like him".
"Oh Sunny", she said and shook her head, smiling, "you think he likes you back? I'm assuming this isn't like-like, but like-like".
She giggled, "Yes, I believe it's like-like. I don't know if he likes me back, I think so, he asked me out this friday".
"That's great! Where are you going?", she clapped her hands, excited for her friend.
"Just dinner and bowling at Sunset", she smiled as she skipped a few steps.
"I'm so happy for you Sunny", Talae grinned, drawing the skipping girl in for a sideways hug.
"I am too", she giggled, giving the arms wrapped around her a tight squeeze before they fell back to their owner's side.
"How long have you liked-liked him?", her hands were in her pockets again and she kicked another rock along the sidewalk.
"Hmm, a few months, but we've been friends since sophomore year", Sunday told her, adjusting the tote-bag on her shoulder. The houses on either side of the road started to get closer together as they approached 'downtown' Forks.
"Cool. He's a real sweetheart, you'd be great together", she smiled, now kicking a chunk of iced-over snow, watching it crumble as it slid along the ground.
"Yeah...", she answered in that same far-away voice, before turning to her friend with a wicked grin that Talae had come to desipher as the sign for embarrasing conversation and trouble, "like you'd be great with Jacob Black". Ah, there it is...
"I knew you couldn't go the day without mentioning that", she sighed, rubbing her the side of her face with a hand.
"Well, excuse me, but it's Jacob freaking Black we're talking about!", Sunday grinned, playfully shoving Talae with her shoulder; she let her, taking a quick step to the side to "steady herself". "You can't hold out on me forever. Just admit that you and Mr. Dark and Handsome have something going on".
She sighed again, heavier this time, debating the issue. Maybe it'd be nice to have someone to talk to about it, some girl-advice. Plus, it would get the stubborn-as-a-mule girl off her back. "Fine, there is... something going on...".
"With?". Now she was just being evil.
"With me and Jacob", Talae muttered, looking at the ground.
"I KNEW IT!", Sunday exclaimed with a laugh, "now tell me everything!".
On the rest of the way into Forks, Talae told Sunday about the times they'd kissed, Sunday trying to drag every little detail out of her, and about their "tender moments" that they'd have now and again; like when he'd taken her hand at the diner in Port Angeles. She tried to explain her complex feeling towards him without the wolf-aspect, and Sunday proved herself a good listener. She was only half-way through her explanations when they entered the coffeeshop and sat down at a table in the corner, sipping on hot chocolate.
She was slightly apprehensive about the thing between Jacob and her; she didn't know that much about him, they'd only known each other for a few weeks, and she was having trouble figuring out how the feelings she almost denied she had for him at all, had formed so quickly.
But it felt good talking about it to a friend, and Sunday swore she'd keep tight.
Talae had patrol that evening, right after the sun had set. She walked Sunday home, which was on the other side of Forks, when the last pink and red rays of the sun colored the sky. They hugged and with Sunday inside she ran to the nearest tree-line. Listening for the slightest sounds, she undressed and tied it in a into a neat bundle; she'd have to make a quick run home after changing-clothes for later. She stuffed the soft package in her mouth and sprinted into the woods, phasing in mid-step.
"Hey Tee! You're a little early", Seth's voice filled her head, putting a smile on her face. She really liked Seth, he was always so vibrant and happy, you couldn't help it when he rubbed on you.
"Yeah, I know. I'm just going to run home with my clothes", she replied, already halfway to her house.
"'Aight. Where have you been all day?", he asked then, and she could feel his genuine curiosity.
"I've been hanging with a friend from school, Sunday?".
"Yeah, you've mentioned her. Did you have fun?".
"Yes sir, thank you for asking", she 'sent' him a smile, "How are you doin' out here?"
"I'm okay, the snow is clumping on my paws though, it's annoying", he grumbled, "but nothing unusual".
"Alright, I'll be there in a second", she phased back as she stepped out of the forest and into her own backyard, jumping awkwardly as she pulled on her jeans, not bothering with shoes.
"Hi mom, dad! I'm going out again, patrol, see you tomorrow!", she shouted as she walked in the backdoor and into her room, undressing and throwing on a pair of sweats and a loose tanktop, going commando.
"Be safe!", she heard her dad shout as she emerged from her room again, and out the backdoor as she yelled, "Always!".
The sun was clear of the horison now, only the echo of it lighting up the space it occupied just five minutes ago and darkness was creeping surely over the rest of the sky. Her 'night-vision' kicked in though, so she had no trouble seeing and jogged to the treeline to shed her clothes yet again. A medium sized zip-lock bag was tied to a branch up in a tree a couple of yards into the forest. She'd marked the tree with a little white x at the bottom; all the damn trees looked alike. She bent her knees and kicked off the ground, jumping the 25 or so feet to get to the branch. It was relatively sturdy and broad so she could sit on it and relax, dangling her feet over the edge as she put her clothes in the bag, and zip it before she let herself fall to the ground with a soft thud.
She dug her toes down through the snow and into the bark and mulch frozen beneath it, taking a deep, cooling breath. The forest was tranquill at the moment, only a few animals were awake and moving about. She jogged deeper into the darkness as the trees didn't allow much of the moonlight to shine down through the branches above.
She phased smoothly and said goodnight to Seth as his shift was over. She'd be joined by Leah soon enough; when Seth had gotten home to kick her off the couch.
It was only about 5 pm, her patrol ending around midnight, were Jacob would take over for her with Embry. She found it a bit odd, not ever having a shift adjecent with him, but she didn't question her alpha.
She started running the eastside of the territory, just going back and forth in lazy ovals over the entire area, paying close attention to any renegade scents in the air or inhumanly fast movements between the trees.
The darkness of the night had completely taken over when Leah announced her entry, the skies were clear with thousands of stars twinkling down upon them whenever they hit a clearing in the dense forests.
"So how'd it go at the Cullen's?", Leah asked, even though she'd already been told the short story by Jacob.
Talae cringed, "like an elephant loose on a porcelain-shop; catastrophic".
"Aw, I heard it wasn't all bad", Leah snickered through the mind-bond.
"Meh. Well, at least they're nice people".
They kept talking about everyday stuff for a few hours. She was running over the furthest eastern part of Quileute territory now, getting ready to circle back north when that sickly sweet scent invaded the cool air around her. She stopped abruptly, spraying snow and dirt as her front paws dug into the ground. She sniffed the air thoroughly; it was faint, but it was definently there.
"Leah, I got something, call the others, I'm heading after it", she relayed her discovery along with where she was.
"No wait Tee, wait!", Leah was nervous for her friend now, knew she couldn't handle much damage, "there could be more than one!".
Talae didn't like the fact that she was viewed upon as weak now, and growled her responce to Leah, "it's getting farther away, we'll loose it. Just get the others, fast!". She was not weak, and she was going to prove it. She had already begun sprinting in the direction of the smell, weaving in and out through the trees, treading as lightly as possible.
An warning howl was heard miles away right after she had answered Leah, and she knew her fellow she-wolf was running as fast as she could to get to her.
She heard Seth yowled back in response not long after. She heard his eager questions in her mind, but focused on the task at hand as Leah explained the situation to him. Not long after Quil and Embry joined in the fun, further away though, and Leah filled them in too. Finally an ear-splitting howl ripped through the quiet night as their alpha finally made his presence known. He got quickly got the short version, and also tried to get Talae to slow down and wait for them.
"No, I'm almost there", she argued as the scent got stronger, egging her hunting-instinct on.
"Tee, I'm serious, I don't want you hurt!", Jacob growled back, on the werge of barking out an alpha command. The others ignored the undertones in his words, and so did she, dismissing the curiosity she could feel the others sharing, pushing herself faster towards the target.
"And I'm not going to be!", she snapped back. She could see a clearing coming up ahead and by the density of 'eau de leech' in the air, it, or they, were probably just up ahead. She slowed her moments and snuck toward the clearing soundlessly.
"Dammit Tee!", Jacob snarled in her mind, but she tuned him out, trying to be as stealthily as she could.
It was dark, but she cleared a few trees and got a good look at the clearing. The moonlight shone brightly, enlightening the circle shaped patch of snowcovered ground in a silvery light. A group of dark figures stood slightly off the center, huddled together and murmuring among themselves. It seemed like they hadn't heard her so she snuck around, still in the shadows of the trees, staying close to the ground. For once her ivory coat came in handy and she crouched low in the snow, blending in with her environment.
"Don't... move", Jacob growled in her mind, she could feel the pack was getting closer by the second.
The figures were clad in heavy, dark cloaks and had no heartbeats. There were six of them, and their faces laid in the darkness of their hoods, but she could see some sort of emblem in shining gold on their cloaks, just over their dead hearts.
"They look frightingly familiar...", Embry mused, seeing the image in her mind.
She focused on the emblem; the base form was a 'V' with a shield consisting of four parts in the middle. A pair of detailed leafs and vines encircled a red gem above the shield. The whole thing was very pretty.
"That looks even more frightingly familiar...", Quil echoed, taking a mental gulp.
She could feel the terror and anger form, first in the mind of Jacob, spreading to Leah, Seth, Quil and Embry and soon herself. The shared conscience overwhelmed her mind for a second and she accidently let out a low growl. The figures snapped their head up in her direction and hissed loudly. Oops.
"Hold on Tee, we're there in ten", Leah thought as she pushed herself in front of the others, "seconds, that is".
"Ah, there you are", one of the figures stepped forward, dropping his hood. It was a man with long, blonde hair tied at the nape of his neck. He was beautiful as all vampires were, buthe disgusted Talae. He was unnatural and foreign, his scent burning up her nose as the wind gusted. She let out another low growl and stepped slowly away from the treeline, crouching, ready for any sign of hostile movement.
"A female", another said in a ringing voice, another man, though he was much slimer and shorter than the first. "Hmm, she is not afraid", he let out a short, menacing laugh. "Oh Victor, please let me skin her, I'd love a coat made of that pelt". She bared her teeth and snarled viciously at him.
A girl with an almost innocent face stepped slightly infront of the blonde, shielding him. "Now now Anna", he laughed, putting a hand on her shoulder, "Maybe when we are done with them, Ivan, maybe then", he smiled a sickening smile at the slim man, who huffed and crossed his arms.
The blonde lifted his head and took a long breath, "her pack is close".
Who were these leeches? They shouldn't know about the pack at all and it unnerved her a great deal, much more than his curious, amused, crimson eyes.
The hair on the back of her neck and halfway down her spine stood and she bared her teeth at them as the blonde took off his leather gloves, signaling the other vampires to get ready. They took defensive fighting stances, but Talae knew they would be on her in a heartbeat if she made the wrong move.
She snarled again and took a warning step forward simultaneously with the pack coming to an abrupt halt behind her, breaking free from the shadows and into the light.
Jacob stepped up beside her and nudged her shoulder with his head, "Get back Tee". She fell into place behind him, besides Seth as Leah and Embry took their places at Jacobs flanks. The three of them growled at the vampires, Jacob sounding his threat the loudest and meanest.
"Ah, here we go, there's the alpha", the blonde man said, giving his gloves to the silent female beside him.
"What about Sam's pack, Jake?", Seth asked, sticking close to Talae's side.
"Their on stand-by not two miles from here. If any of them escapes, or if they prove stronger-", the guys snorted, "- they're ready to move in".
"Jacob, they know about us", Talae finally got out, "they know about the pack, they know what we are". She was on the edge between anxiety and wrath, her instincts telling her to rip their godforsaken heads off now, but she knew that there was more than met the eye with these one; they emitted confidence and strength, not at all fazed with standing face to face with six horse-sized, deadly, angry wolves.
"All the more reason to kill them quickly", Quil lookedat her and nodded. She nodded back, steeling her gaze on the offenders.
Silently they picked out their targets; Jacob would go for the blonde, as he seemed the leader of the group, Victor the vampires called him. Talae would take on the small female by his side, Anna, and Leah wanted the cocky, slim one; Ivan. Embry, Seth and Quil arguing about the rest.
"Now, how to-", the slim man, that laughed before, started, but was cut off as Jacob gave the kill-command and the whole pack moved into motion.
Talae focused on her target, aware of the battles around her, but eyes on the girl in front of her. She circled her, snarling, trying to force her into making the first move. When all she did was turn her head to follow the she-wolf's movement, Talae sprung at her from the side, snapping her powerful jaws at her neck. The vampire dodged barely and a look of surprise briefly crossed her features, but quickly returned to indifference.
They fought for a while, Talae untouchable, the vampire a few fingers poorer. Within a couple of minutes the fight was almost over as Quil, Leah and Seth had eliminated their targets, dragging the pieces into a big pile while still carefully watching the others fight. Quil was quickly at Embry's side and they made short work of a hissing, bald and bulky vampire.
"Need help Tee?", Leah asked, almost amused by the way her pack-member was dancing around the small leech.
"Nah, I'm good", she replied, dodging a kick to the head with ease. All vampires were gracefull, and this one was no different, but she was getting increasingly frustrated that her hits weren't hitting home and it showed in a little crinkle in her forehead.
"Just finish her already", Embry laughed, tearing his freshly beheaded vampire limb from limb.
Leah and Seth went to help Jacob take down the leader-leech. He hissed when he saw the two wolves come up behind their alpha and snapped a foreign word at the female vampire. Her head snapped up at his command, taking her attention away from the battle at hand. Wrong move, bitch.
Talae darted forward and used the strength of her momentum to effectively rip off the vampires right arm from the shoulder-socket. The female shrieked in pain and bared her teeth at the she-wolf. But instead of attacking, she turned around and jumped infront of the blonde.
He ran a hand down her cheek and smirked at Jacob before he moved backwards and ran from the scene.
"Leah, Quil, after him! I'll alert Sam!", Jacob barked, now focusing on the leech-female, Anna, infront of him, the two wolves instantly obeying his order and dashing out of the clearing. She hissed venomously at him and made to attack. But the pack were stronger and outnumbered her, and easily tore off her head, followed by another arm and two slim legs.
"Jacob, I can catch him!", Talae pleaded, ready to speed through the forest on his word, ready to kill.
"No! You are staying here. Phase and get a fire going, Seth stay here with her, Embry you're with me", it was not a suggestion, it was a down-right order. She whined pathetically as he sped out of the clearing after Leah and Quil, Embry hot on his heels.
"Aw, cheer up Tee", Seth nudged her towards the thicket.
"Ugh, now I have to get naked in front of you. Do we even have a light?", she grumbled, defeated.
"Duh", he shook his backleg, indicating to a pants-pocket.
"Great... still nakedness", she eyed him. She adored Seth, he was becoming the hyper little brother she never had, but getting in her birthday-suit infront of him was not on her to-do-list.
"Tee, you'd have to sooner or later, might as well be sooner that you get comfortable with it", he reasoned, then added, "I'll swear I won't stare".
She laughed at him, feeling a little cheered up, "okay, okay, I'm doing it". She phased swiftly, only slightly embarrassed at first, but she found that it felt near natural. And she wasn't ashamed of her body. Anymore.
She rummaged the pocket of his cut-offs, still tied to his leg, which didn't make it at all easier. She found the zippo-lighter and kicked the remains into a neat pile in the middle of the clearing. She found a few dry sticks of wood and lit the whole thing on fire.
"Do you see any stray pieces?", she asked Seth's sandy-colored wolf-form. He took a good look around the clearing, sniffing the air as well, then shook his head 'no'.
"Good", she went to stand beside him, leaning on his shoulder with hers, crossing her arms over his chest. For a moment she forgot she could just shift back, but Seth's fur was soft and he did a really good job at averting his stare. Her eyes were transfixed on the orange flames that licked at the torn leeches' pieces. She snorted at that thought, followed by a dry laugh. Leeches Pieces, only flavored death, not chocolate.
Seth gave her a questioning stare, she shortly explained about her idea and he gave the wolf-equivilant of a snort, comming out as grunts and huffing. She gave him a lopsided grin and rubbed his furry shoulder.
She sighed as the flames finally died down of their own accord and stepped away from Seth to take on her wolf-form again. If they hadn't caught that vampire by now, he'd escaped.
She quickly found out that that was, unfortunantly, the case. But not before Sam had ripped his arm off, from the elbow down, in passing. He'd been a fast motherfucker and she couldn't help but brood over the fact that she might have been the only one who could have caught him. He had reached the sea before he could've been dismembered further, and being creatures of flesh and blood and a beating heart and lungs that needed oxygen, they could not follow.
One of Sam's younger pack-members had been hurt trying to flank the vampire, but he'd live. Sam, Jared and Jacob had also taken hits, but they were almost all healed up already. It was a miracle nobody else got hurt.
"Nah, we're are just that good", Seth reassured her, shoving her lightly as they trotted off in the direction of the rest of the pack.
She shoved him back and he ducked around a tree before appearing at her side again. The mood was pretty easy and relaxed, even though they'd just been majorly overrun in comparrison to how long they'd gone without any sign of vampires.
They met up with the others at a remote corner of First Beach, where a small fire was destroying the lead-leech's arm. Though the packs were pretty laid back about the whole thing, Jacob and Sam were furious.
"They had the same crest that those old, Italian parasites had", Sam thought, thinking back on the emblem on their cloaks.
"Easy Sam, we can't be sure. We'll have to ask the Cullens", Jacob reasoned, trying to keep his voice level.
"I'll come with you, in the morning", he agreed, though with some hesitation. Jacob nodded. Most of Sam's pack was sent home, though they'd switched to double shifts; two wolves would be patroling every corner of the territory now, making it four from each pack all the time, indefinitely. Sam offered to relieve one of Jacob's wolves since Sam's pack had more ressources and the younger alpha agreed, not wanting to exhaust anyone with all-nighters.
Quil and Embry volunteered for the rest of that night so everybody could go home and rest. On the way home Talae asked Leah what "the old, Italian parasites" refered to.
"They are some ancient and allmighty coven out of Europe. They're supposed to be like the royal family of leeches", she answered with a roll of her eyes.
"Hmm", Talae thought with a frown on her wolven features, "you think they're going to be a problem?".
"I don't know. We've had quarrells with them in the past, but that was mostly concerning the Cullens", Leah 'shrugged'.
Talae gave her a questioning stare and she elaborated; how some of them had appeared when a vampire named Victoria had amassed an army of newborns and tried to avenge the death of her mate by killing Bella, and how they'd come to kill Renesmee when she was but a few months old, based on false accusations. They sounded like nasty fellas.
After that tale, the young she-wolf made her way home, bidding the remaining awake wolves a safe goodnight. She put on her clothes and padded barefooted to the backdoor, letting herself in and locking the door behind her. She drug her suddenly tired body to her room, only bothering to kick of her jeans before collapsing on the bed. Her skin chilled with cooling sweat trailing down her back and chest and the inside of her knees. Though she didn't feel cold she pulled up the sheet from the foot of her bed and tugged herself in.
She wasn't exactly satisfied with the events of that evening. She was angry, hurt even, that the pack considered her weaker, when she knew from experience that she could handle her own. She'd been at it longer than most of her pack members, if not all! She'd never been mortally injured, obviously, and she'd never sustained a wound that she couldn't deal with herself. She was more that capable of taking down a vampire on her own. She was not inferior.
But she couldn't question the alphas orders.. could she? She'd always been independent before and it suited her well. A tiny voice inside of her made suggestion that coming to Washington had been a mistake, and that she was better on her own, but she quickly silenced that little demon. She was generally happy here, and could easily see her future in this place.
Somehow she'd just have to convince the damn pack that they did not have to baby her. With logic or violence, take your pick boys.
For now she was content at just closing her eyes and stretching her tired limbs one last lazy time before drifting off to sleep.
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