"Would you all please just settle down?" Jacob growled in exasperation, trying to rub a headache out through his eyes with the tips of his fingers. He was too old for this. Unfortunately, the rowdy teens before him had no way of knowing his true age, at least not until the mental link between them began to improve. Some of the people on the council knew his true identity and his true story, but not these brats. Soon he wouldn't be able to hide it from them, but until then he was trying to use his youthful exterior to create some kind of kinship with the kids.
They were just so loud. And boisterous. After half a century leading a solitary life, Jacob didn't know how much more he could take.
He knew that he had been like that once, and he winced as he saw one of the older wolves throw a book at one of the newer recruits.
There weren't that many of them, five in total, and Jacob was hoping that they had hit their max. With the diminished threat of a single vampire, Jacob had been sure that only a few would turn.
Jacob watched the arc of the books it was thrown back at the attacker with at least double the strength. He smiled a little. This generation's batch was quite a mix, with physical skill and intelligence thrown in in almost equal measure. Usually those who shifted earlier were genetically coded to do so simply for their capacity for brute strength, but while Jacob questioned some of the candidates in that respect, he was rather fond of the diverse group nature had thrown together.
Jack was a little bit of a bully. He wasn't cruel, but Jacob could see that he craved power over the younger kids. Jack had been the first to turn, leaving him with a sense of entitlement. Jacob had never been gladder of his ruthless pursuit of Edward. If he hadn't continued to shift well into the years, Jack would have become Alpha, at least until someone took his place. He was a good kid, Jacob could see that, but he was a little too heated, and would make bad judgement calls. Jack had all the makings of an excellent leader, but a little too much self-righteousness and ambition to truly make it work.
His favourite victim was Sam. The small boy had turned third, pretty much right on the mark. Perhaps he hadn't been the best choice physically, but Sam was extremely intelligent, and Jacob was learning, and excellent strategist. He reminded Jacob a little of his grandfather and namesake, but he was as different from the Sam that Jacob had known as he was similar. What surprised him most about the pair, the antagonist and his prey, was the odd dynamic that seemed to have sprung up between them. Sam was constantly being picked on by Jack, but he seemed to take it all in his stride, occasionally giving back as much as he got. Jacob wondered where the boy got his confidence from. Despite the conflict between the two, they seemed to be fast on the track to becoming good friends. Sam actually seemed to be the only person who could get Jack to calm down.
Another thing that had shocked Jacob was the rate at which the transformations occurred. Usually it would take up to six months for a single individual to accept his nature and turn. Period of depression, confusion, anger and everything else had characterised every transformation that Jacob had ever been told about or experienced.
But this group was functional only two months after the first shifted, some kids even changing within days of each other. And the transition from human to wolf, giving up a wholly logical and rational view of the world, a view that denied the existence of monsters popular in children's stories, had been a breeze for these kids.
They seemed to unanimously accept that their world wasn't what they thought that it had been, and get on with the change. Simple.
Jacob recalled his own painful transition. Trying to avoid Bella altogether, then dropping hints and watching impatiently and she scrambled to leave the inside of her head long enough to piece them together. It had been the worst time of his life.
He had no idea why these kids had it so easy. They even tackled training better. These kids had mastered, in a short two months, what it had taken Jacob's original pack almost six.
Jacob tried to understand. It was important to him that he knew what made this group so different to the ones before them. If there was something odd about them, to would affect the way that he would lead them.
Jacob had briefly considered whether it had been his rightful alpha status that had given them the edge. After all, when he had changed Sam had taken the role of alpha, a role that was not his by blood. Perhaps that imbalance had altered the pack dynamics and their difficult transitions had been an early symptom of the disunion it would bring to the pack.
After he had first transformed, he and Billy had revisited the old stories, their origin stories. Jacob still remembered them, though he had no one to tell them to himself. He had given up his father's seat in the council and only recently reclaimed it, in name only. But their stories held detailed descriptions of the packs that had come before, each and every one speaking about the time spent building up the pack.
Jacob knew from these stories that his pack's experience was unprecedented. Even with a rightful alpha leading the group, the packs had always struggled to come together. Which left Jacob right back where he started.
The pack only grew louder as he tried to quiet them. They were still new. The mental link had yet to take full effect, and Jacob had yet to fully embrace his role, meaning that the pups were still able to bend the rules and disobey him.
Jacob had no idea how the young ones would react to finding out that their youthful leader and friend was older than most of their parents. He knew that the alpha was often older than the rest the pack, but sixty eight was stretching it. Full disclosure was important in the early stages to kick start training and awaken instincts, but Jacob still blocked his thoughts the way he had trained to. Even after years of being alone, Jacob wasn't quite ready to give up the privacy of his head yet.
He knew that he was hesitating. A group that adapted this fast could have had the whole shared thoughts thing up and running already, but he wasn't quite willing to let it happen yet. It wasn't just his age that he was worried about, there were other things that were best left hidden. Jacob didn't want the talented group to poke through those dusty boxed in his head before he got the chance to. Even then, he was worried about what they might reveal.
Jacob hoped that the age thing wouldn't come as too much of a shock. The community, those in the know, had taken steps to try to ease the kids into the idea. A new story had been added to the town memory, one of a man who continued to take spirit form beyond what was normal. Jacob was grateful that the exact details of why had been kept out of the story, but he knew that it was only a courtesy that they offered him while he was still alive. Once he was really gone, the details out emerge and Bella's death would become just a part of a cautionary cold-ones story.
"Kallem, will you stop throwing the stationary around? Thank you." Jacob scowled as the boy attempted to thrown the book again, but was surprised to find that his arm was a bit heavier than normal. Good. Jacob was purposefully using his alpha voice and was pleased that it was working.
"Alright." Jacob waited until silence fell. The new tone was doing wonders for obedience. "So…"
He trailed off, unsure of what to say. These kids were progressing so fast that he didn't know what he could teach them. He had done most of his raining alone, not as part of a pack, so he wasn't quite sure what steps to take for their improvement. He could just watch, help where he could, but in reality, these kids were teaching themselves.
Standing in front of them, with all eyes on him, Jacob felt powerless. It wasn't that he didn't have power in the situation, it was just that these kids showed more promise than he could utilise. He needed serious help in dealing with them properly. But there was no one else.
Jacob cleared his throat, hoping that some insightful advice would appear in his head, or written on the wall opposite him, anywhere really.
He was spared any continuation of the awkward conversation by one of the boys speaking up.
Harley was a spitting image of his grandfather, an obvious member of Seth Clearwater's bloodline. The similarities didn't end with the physical. Harley reminded Jacob of his friend so much that he had to stop himself from mixing the two up. The teen was quiet and smart, too smart for Jacob's liking sometimes. He was severely curious, had been from the moment of his birth, Seth had told him, looking around him with great round eyes. Hadn't even cried out, just stared out at the big world. He was never rude, but sometimes a bit cheeky. e He was HHe was the group's designated peace keeper, he had a level way of calming everyone down. Jacob also knew that the same power could be used to stir people up, and he was waiting for Harley to discover that.
"Alec, are we ever going to actually see a vampire? I mean, I've been told that they exist, but I'm still not sure if I actually believe it." A few of the other boys nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, when do we actually get to put this training to use and kill something?" Pond piped up.
The kid's real name wasn't Pond. Jacob thought that it was something like Gerry, but he couldn't be sure, as the only people who seemed to know was the boy and his father, and both were keeping tight-lipped. Why the brawny kid had chosen Pond for a nickname, Jacob would never know, but it had stuck and the boy went by no other name. He was the second to have changed, the tallest boy in the group, even taller than Jacob, and built well. He was a good choice for the pack, explaining why nature had turned him second. But he was a trouble maker. He saw his position in the pack as a great big adventure, his chance to exercise the blood-lust that his heritage had given him.
Jacob hesitated before answering. He didn't know what he should tell the boys. That this whole ordeal was pretty much pointless? That they wouldn't be able to kill any vampires? Jacob wasn't about to take then to Edward's place for an excursion. But he didn't want to tell them that they had changed, that they were training, giving up a huge part of their time, for nothing. They would still change for as long as Edward was around, but Jacob wasn't ready to remove the vampire by force.
"There is a lot of stuff that I have to tell you guys. I'm not sure that now is the right time. Maybe when the link is established properly-?" Jacob trailed off at the disappointed and outraged mix of emotions on the faces in front of him.
"The link could be running already." Harley said softly. The other boys turned to him. Jacob was uncomfortable. He had hoped that none of them would figure that out, but he should have known better. He was at a loss for what to do, what to say.
"What do you mean Harley?" Kallem questioned his friend.
Kallem had changed last. No one had really expected him to. He was Leah's son, conceived and born after she started aging again. Leah had taken the removal of the vampire threat as a chance to break out. She had left the whole community as soon as the pack had disbanded. The binding nature of the wolf inside her had gone, and there was nothing to hold her to the reservation or Forks any more. She had returned year later, with a husband and a child on the way. She had imprinted after all. Her and her husband had been so much in love that in had been uncomfortable for anyone else to be anywhere near them. Everyone was happy for her, but marrying an outsider had diluted the blood line. Their first child, a girl named Kali, had all of her mother's spunk, but her father's patience and kindness. As a result she was universally loved. Then came Kallem. Jacob didn't know the origin of the family's obsession with K, but he liked the kid.
Kallem and Harley had been really close before the shift. The distance had put a strain on their relationship, but now it was thriving in the pack atmosphere. Jacob remembered what it had been like to turn late.
"We all know the old stories." Three of the kids nodded. Pond looked down guiltily.
"There's never been a pack that progressed as fast as we did," Harley waited while self-congratulatory whistles flew around the room. "So we should have been able to link up by now."
He looked directly at Jacob while he was speaking. It wasn't an accusatory glare, merely curious. He wasn't about to call Jacob out in front of the group, but Jacob knew that he owed them all an explanation.
The room erupted into confusion at the kid's words. At least the rest of the group couldn't grasp the implication behind Harley's words. That bought him only a little time. Jacob sighed as his headache returned full force. While he went back to patiently rubbing at his temples, he knew that he had to do something about the secrets he was hiding. And fast.