Wolves of the Pacific

by greenpeach20

In 1902, Renesmee Cullen grew tired of the tedious life of moving around with her family and decided to make the journey west as a mail order bride. Yet a chance encounter with a reddish brown wolf would change her life forever.

63. Chapter 63

Chapter 63

In Washington amongst the Makka tribe, Embry did has he'd intended and continued to watch Toroeh very carefully when he was with Rae. The two of them continued to get along really well and discovered with each passing day that they had more and more in common. Like Rae, Toroeh was one of many, many children. Rae was older as far as order was concerned while Toroeh was one of the youngest. Only his sister Tomoeh was younger, being closer to Rae's age. Toroeh was nearing his twenties, but was still in his teens. Of that they were certain. Torou was two years his senior and Jjigae was a year his senior. He was the second youngest of 15 kids, so Rae and Toroeh found they could easily relate to one another, coming from extremely big families with mountains of children. Toroeh's oldest brother, Toraz, was nearing 35 while his eldest sister was around 32. His father and the current chief, was around 68 and had been married twice. His first wife and mother to his first ten children had passed away 26 years previously and his second wife, Toroeh's mother, was still alive and quite a bit younger than Tokoruchei. Rae found herself very fond of all Toroeh's siblings and his mother.

She even liked Toraz despite his initial insistence to not like her or the Quileutes. While he'd softened just a bit with his little brother's encouragement given his growing love for Rae, what made him most receptive was Tomoeh. Toraz always gladly bended over backwards for his little sister. More so than his own children at times, though he was a pushover for his kids too, all under the age of 16. Tomoeh had begun to have a small crush on Nathan when they'd first met and she was beginning to like him more and more the longer the Quileutes visited their tribe. Seeing Tomoeh fall for Nathan like she was, Toraz's opinion of the Quileutes improved, but he continued to contribute little to any sort of friendship building that everyone else did. He was more concerned with focusing on Nathan and making sure he was even good enough for his little sister. His father may have been adamant that an understanding needed to be reached and that marriage was the best way to do that, but Toraz still wasn't pleased with it. Of course, that was something he and his father needed to work on between them.

Nathan had, initially, been rather hesitant about Tomoeh. She was a sweet girl and he had nothing against her, but he just wasn't sure he wanted to marry her despite his front (which he insisted wasn't but, of course, the whole pack knew it was) that he'd 'take one of the team' and marry Tomoeh. But the more time he spent with her, he found he was growing rather fond of her. He discovered she made a hobby of collecting seashells from the shores near the tribe. She loved making jewelry out of those shells and had dozens of necklaces that she'd made over the years. During their second week with the Makka, Tomoeh had invited Nathan to go with her. Toroeh and Rae went along and, consequentially, so did Jacob, Embry and Toraz.

"Nathan, have you see this one?!" Tomoeh smiled when she found a large clam shell just under the water's surface. She picked it up and held it in her palm. "It's as big as my hand," she said.

"Looks to me like that should be the focal point," Nathan smiled back. "I don't I saw one with a shell that big."

Tomoeh shook her head, "No, I've never found one this big." Tomoeh handed the shell to Nathan to add to her little basket of shells as well as a cuttlefish bone they had found.

"So how do you get holes in these shells without breaking them?" Nathan asked.

"A lot of patience and precision," Tomoeh answered. "Sadly, sometimes that doesn't work either. I've broken more shells than I care to admit to. Carving the cuttlefish bone is the hardest, though."

"Do you do that yourself?"

"Yes," Tomoeh smiled. "Toraz taught me how to do that. His wife used to love doing this and she would take me with sometimes to forage for shells, but when she had Kokomo two years ago, she lost interest in it. Toraz used to carve wood, but started carving cuttlefish bones since they were easier and he taught me how to do it."

"I'm not the best at carving," Nathan smiled. "My dad's really good at carving wood, but I never could get the hang of it. He tried teaching me, but after cutting my thumb eight times in ten minutes, I gave up."

"Toraz says cutting cuttlebone is a lot easier than cutting wood. Maybe I can teach you."

"I think I'd appreciate that," Nathan smiled. "I find cuttlebones all the time, so maybe I can actually start doing something to them." While they talked, Roxanne appeared, running towards them and jumping into the water, splashing them both. Her playfulness, however, immediately ceased when she caught sight of a fish under the water and got into a stance to pounce.

"How long have you had Roxanne?"

"About 2 years," Nathan said and chuckled at his thought. "She was a lot more friendly when she was a pup. She used to be more affectionate with people besides me, but the older she got, the more selective she became about who she liked. She still likes my siblings and most of Rae's siblings, but she's not crazy about everyone else. She won't growl, but she'll just wander away from people she doesn't like. The only things she still does from when she was a pup is play in the water with us and she sleeps at the end of my bed."

"I noticed she always sleeps in the tent with you," Tomoeh smiled and watched Roxanne. She inched closer to the fish she saw and eventually pounced, catching the fish in her jaws and biting over and over until it wasn't moving anymore. Tomoeh started clapping. "Good girl, Roxanne!" Nathan smiled while Roxanne strutted to them with her catch and placed it before Nathan. He patted her head before she laid down and started eating her fish.

"When she was little and she'd made her first kill, she brought it over to me and looked up at me with these proud little eyes. It was really cute. She just wanted to show off that she'd done a good job."

"It looks like she still does that," Tomoeh giggled.

"Sometimes," Nathan smiled. "The older she gets, the more independent she gets. She still hangs around me a lot but she really likes wondering into the woods for hours and just coming back. She's a free spirit."

"Do you think she'd mind if I petted her?" Tomoeh asked.

"Not right now," Nathan says. "She gets aggressive if you touch her when she's eating. It's best to wait until she's not doing anything and she's calm. If you want, I'll let you know the next time she's okay."

"Okay," Tomoeh smiled. "How did you come up with the name Roxanne?"

"Nothing specific," Nathan said. "I'd heard the name before and I thought it suited her."

"Does she ever hunt with you and your father?"

"She'll join us if I'm with the group, but most of the time she hunts on her own."

"Does she ever get aggressive with you?" Tomoeh asked.

"If she ever has, I deserved it," Nathan chuckled. "I think she bit me once and it was because I tried petting her while she was eating. That's why I'm saying don't pet her right now. I don't want her to bite you."

"Okay," Tomoeh nodded. "I hear pale faces keep wolves as pets all the time."

"They keep dogs," Nathan corrected with a smile. "I doubt anyone in Forks for example would ever be able to handle Roxanne. She loves me because she bonded with me, but she's not domesticated by any stretch of the imagination. She's still a wild animal. What pale faces have are dogs which have been domesticated to interact with humans in a way wolves usually won't. Again, Roxanne is the exception, but that was because of unusual circumstances. Pale faces have bred dogs for hunting and herding and all sorts of jobs, but I've also heard there's been a trend in breeding dogs to basically be little toys. There's a breed called a Pomeranian I think it is. It's about the size of a wolf pup and stays that size and it's got a full coat with a little fox face."

"That sounds so precious," Tomoeh smiled.

"I suppose, but it's not bread to do anything except look cute," Nathan shrugged. "And I have a hard time believing that dog isn't fully aware it's a 10th the size it's supposed to be."

"I'm sure it's precious all the same," Tomoeh giggled. "Sometimes, a loyal companion's all someone needs and it certainly sounds like a loyal companion."

"I don't know," Nathan chuckled. "Roxanne's been a loyal companion to me."

"Yes, but that was special circumstances. You said so yourself remember?"

"That's true," Nathan smiled. "So how did your dad decide he'd marry you and your brothers and sister off? I'm hearing Toraz was hoping one of his kids would be marrying one of us."

"I think he was hoping his son might marry your sister, but daddy convinced him that, since he was the one that led that attach in the first place, your grandpa would be a lot less open to a marriage proposal. He's hoping we'll make the agreement a lot easier."

"Yeah, Natalie's not really up for negotiation anyway. She and Jae are together and dad likes him. At this point, we're just waiting for the two of them to be ready to get married."

"That's nice for them," Tomoeh said. "Why don't they get married now?"

"They want to wait a while," Nathan said. "I imagine Jae will propose soon enough, though."

"I just hope he and Torou aren't getting to each other," Tomoeh smiled. "I know my brother can be really direct and rude, but he meant well."

"It's okay, Jae's over it," Nathan smiled and waved his hand dismissively. "Natalie was very…let's say reassuring."

"I bet she was," Tomoeh said, getting what Nathan meant, and the two of them laughed. "What is it like not having any secrets from anyone? It must get infuriating."

"We're used to it," Nathan smiled. "It's hard to deal with at first but after a few weeks you get used to it. It definitely keeps me and my brothers and sister in line, that's for sure. We can't get away with anything anymore. Sometimes, we can convince dad to just talk to us himself and not tell mom, but more often than not we try to stay out of trouble."

"It's certainly more useful than eyes in the back of his head," Tomoeh giggled. "I don't envy you, I must admit."

"I don't envy me either," Nathan joked and they laughed together.

"Is there any way to make them not able to read your mind?"

"Not that I'm aware of," Nathan said. "I would think if there is, a wolf would have figured it out a long time ago."

"How long have your people been able to turn into wolves?"

"Since Chief Taha Aki," Nathan said. "I don't know how long ago that was, but he was the first chief to be able to do it. It happened when Utlapa tried to take over. We used to be able to have our souls leave our bodies. We could influence the spirits of nature thanks to that power. So one day, Utlapa told Taha Aki to go into the woods with him and they left their bodies. In this state, they could all read one another's minds. Before Taha Aki could realize what Utlapa was planning, Utlapa already took over Taha Aki's body and killed his own so Taha Aki would be forced to wander as a spirit. Taha Aki watched as Utlapa ruled the tribe using his body. In an attempt to tell everyone what happened, he took over the body of a wolf and went to the tribe so he could have someone listen to him. An elder of the tribe left his body to speak with Taha Aki, but Utlapa slit the man's throat before he could return to his body. It a fit of rage, Taha Aki returned to the wolf's body, but the wolf could no longer contain him and the wolf turned into a man. Taha Aki executed Utlapa, banished his immediate family and took over his thrown. It was discovered afterwards that he could turn into a wolf and so could his sons after him. We don't age as long as we're wolves either."

"I'm beginning to see the appeal," Tomoeh said thoughtfully. "I recall we married into your tribe a long time ago. I hear the goal was for us to obtain that ability but it didn't work."

"That's what I've heard," Nathan nodded. "We have a lot of theories about our wolf spirits but no definite answers. We've been doing this for centuries and we still don't fully understand it I'm sad to say. We know the 'what', but we don't know the 'why'."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, for example, one thing we do, or some of us do, is imprint. It's a special connection that's typically romantic depending on the circumstances. We don't know how or why is happens or what dictates the…I guess 'qualifications' for someone to be our perfect match, but we know it happens. It's extremely rare, though. According to my dad, there are very few known or remembered situations where a wolf has found his imprint. Our chief Taha Aki was the first. According to our legends, his youngest son Suerro did too. My grandpa did, my dad did, Embry Sr. did, and my brother Kevin did. So actually, our generation is a big boom in imprinting because we've had opportunities to meet people from far away."

"Have you imprinted?" Tomoeh asked curiously.

"No," Nathan said with a shrug. "I'm not holding my breath on it. Hell, my sister and Jae aren't imprints and those two are crazy about each other. I've heard there were some wolves why back in the day that wouldn't marry because they wanted their imprint or nothing at all. Apparently, my great uncle Sokajili was like that. He'd been a wolf for a time in his youth and he relinquished his wolf spirit when he became a medicine man. He never met his imprint, so he never married."

"I assume you're not so picky?" Tomoeh smiled.

"Nah," Nathan answered dismissively. "If I'm being truthful with you, I'm not really interested in getting married or anything. What I'd really like to do is travel."

"Travel? To where?"

"Anywhere," Nathan said. "I want to see the world, but I don't want to go to war to do it. I want to see things and do things that I can't see and do here."

"Well, that sounds exciting," Tomoeh smiled. "So if that's the case, why are you bothering with me? I thought your brother Kyle was willing to marry Jjigae."

"It's not that I'm 'bothering' with you," Nathan reassured. "Kyle says he's willing, but he doesn't want to. He's in Connecticut most of the time and your sister would barely see him. That's not really fair. If nothing else, we at least like one another and we'll see each other every day. We'd be an actual married couple and not just a married couple in name only. I doubt our tribes would mend our relationship the way Kyle and Jjigae's marriage would be. Kyle would be cordial and respectful, sure, but it'd be shallow."

"Ours wouldn't be, though?" Tomoeh asked hopefully.

"I don't think so," Nathan said. "That's assuming you want to marry me."

"Do you want to marry me?" Tomoeh asked. "And I'm not asking if you've agreed. I'm asking if you want to." Nathan looked at Tomoeh a moment contemplating his answer. She didn't look hurt, upset, or offended. Just curious.

"I wouldn't mind marrying you," Nathan finally answered. "I say we wait until fall before we make a decision though. Can we agree?" Tomoeh smiled, nodded, and held out her hand.

"Shake on it?"

Nathan chuckled and took her hand in a shake. "Agreed. We'll make a decision in fall."

"Pleasure doing business with you, Nathan," Tomoeh smiled back. Nathan and Tomoeh laughed together and kept collecting shells. Even if they didn't get married, it was definitely the start of a beautiful friendship.

Back in Germany, Kevin and Amber continued to spend virtually every waking moment together. They made a point to keep their conduct purely platonic when they were in public or out in the open. Anna and Levi remained none the wiser about Kevin's and Amber's relationship, even though the relationship remained innocent, never progressing past a stolen kiss goodnight. Kevin kept in touch with the pack here and there regarding any developments with the Makka. Torou and Jjigae were getting along with everyone well enough. Jjigae spent some time with Kyle, learning about his craft and occasionally having more personal conversations, but that was it. Kyle agreed that Jjigae was a pretty girl and pleasant to talk to, but there was not spark that made him want to marry her and Jjigae was of the same mind. She found Kyle interesting, intelligent, pleasant to talk to and very handsome, but she didn't feel anything for him either. At most, the two had a firm agreement: if Nathan and Tomoeh didn't hit it off, they'd go ahead and get married. Although, they were keeping their fingers crossed. It certainly wasn't that they didn't like one another, they just had nothing in common between them that made them feel comfortable being married to each other. Besides, Jjigae had absolutely no interest in a long distance marriage and, quite frankly, neither did Kyle.

With the excuse of wanting to go to the bookstore together Kevin and Amber walked to a park nearby, carrying a book with them just in case. There were children playing together in the park and people there with their dogs as well as couples walking together with their fingers laced. Just to be safe, Kevin resisted taking Amber's hand. Instead, he walked close to her.

"Is there any way you can stay just a little longer?" Amber asked as they walked.

"I wish," Kevin said. "I'll be cutting it really close the way I've arranged my time off. The boat I'll be taking doesn't leave until Wednesday next week, so I'll be staying at least until Tuesday morning."

"When can you come back?" Amber asked.

"When would you like me to come back?" Kevin asked.

"When's the soonest you can take another month off work?" Amber asked.

"Next summer for sure. I can even arrange for spring if you prefer."

"No, not spring," Amber answered regretfully. "I'll be in school, so you'd be without me most of the time. Best to keep our visits during times I'm off."

"You're right," Kevin smiled.

"Do you suppose I could convince mom and daddy to let me visit you?"

Although it was a tempting request, Kevin realized it was highly unlikely. "Truthfully, I highly doubt it. I would think your parents would want to ensure at least one of them is with you and I'm not sure they'd be able to do that."

"I guess you're right," Amber sighed. "I can't imagine they'd let me go alone."

Kevin chuckled a little humorlessly, "Amber, you still have a curfew. Your dad doesn't want you out past 9 let alone traveling by yourself."

"Okay, I get it," Amber said, nudging Kevin's side with her elbow. "I guess next summer's the soonest I'll see you again?"

"I'll make sure to visit you again, I promise," Kevin said. "I have enough money saved up for two more trips. I'm sure I'll have enough saved up for at least one more by the time those funds are used up. But if you want me to come every summer, just let me know and I'll make a point of it. I'll make sure there isn't a summer that goes by that you don't see me."

"Promise?" Amber asked, looking up at Kevin.

"I promise," Kevin smiled.

Amber smiled and leaned her head against Kevin's shoulder but was mindful not to rest her head there long. They returned to the house following their walk and Kevin sat with Amber while she worked on some candles. And so the remainder of Kevin's time in Germany went like that. He and Amber would read together while she worked on a candle or a piece of soap or they would go for a walk together, making up an excuse for the need to go ranging from taking a lunch break to buying wax. And every night, when her parents were already in bed, Kevin would give Amber a goodnight kiss before retreating to his own room. Since Kevin had written her a love letter, Amber wanted to make a love note of her own. So during Kevin's last day in Germany, he read a collection of Browning poems, both Robert and Elizabeth Barret, while Amber carved soap, saying it was for the shop. It was soap that was bigger than most. She started by carving the base of it into a heart, leaving a large chunk of soap uncut. Once the heart was crafted, she carved the remaining chunk into an orchid. Then she began painting, starting with the base, which she just painted red. She blew on it, assisting the heart along to dry. Once it was dry, she moved on to the orchid. The flower remained white with purple towards the center of the with it fading into the white. She painted the little stamens inside with little dots and blew on the flower to dry it. Once it was dry, she painted on some lavender oil so it had a pleasant small. All this while Kevin just read for the two of them.

"Kevin?" Amber said once the soap was done.

"Yeah?" he asked, looking up from his book.

"I made this for you," she smiled and walked over, handing the carving to him. Kevin stared at the flower growing out of a heart and smiled. It was beautifully made as all her soaps were and it smelled soothing thanks to the lavender. "I can put it in a box for you so it's safe."

"Yes, please," Kevin smiled and handed it back to Amber to secure in a box. "That's beautiful, Amber."

"Thank you," she smiled. "Consider it my response to your love letter." She found a box and gently tied the soap down in the box so it would be secure, but make sure not to glue it. She wanted Kevin to be able to remove the soap and admire it.

"To think you were making that for me this whole time and I didn't even notice," Kevin chuckled.

"I'm relieved you didn't," Amber responded and closed the box once the soap was secure. She walked back over and handed it to him. "Now you have something to think of me with."

"I'm surrounded by things that make me think of you, but I'll never turn down a new one," Kevin smiled and accepted the box. Amber glanced behind her shoulder to make sure no one saw them and when she was sure, and then turned back to face Kevin and leaned down to give Kevin a kiss.

"I love you," she whispered.

"I love you too," he whispered back.

Sadly, the day came when Kevin had to catch the train back to Le Havre to catch his boat to New York. He packed the day before with Amber sitting on his bed watching him and talking to him, savoring their last moments together before he had to return home and she wouldn't see him again until next summer. He did, however, promise beyond a reasonable doubt that he would come to see her again next summer. That morning, Anna made mushroom tarts one more time for Kevin and even had the recipe written down for him. Anna made him promise to translate that into English and give it to a young lady he fancied so there might be a hope she could win his heart. Kevin just laughed and promised he would try. Amber smiled victoriously to herself. She already knew the recipe and didn't even need it translated. Levi said his goodbyes to Kevin before leaving for work and agreed he looked forward to seeing him again next summer. Anna and Amber walked with Kevin to the train station to see him off. They talked while they waited, but when the conductor announced it was time to board the train, Kevin gave Amber and Anna a hug at the same time. With Anna not looking, Kevin silently kissed Amber's neck and pushed, 'I love you', into her head so they could have a private moment. Amber hugged him tighter and silently gave him a kiss on his cheek. When Kevin pulled away, he went on the train and poked his head out the window so he could wave goodbye. When the train moved, Amber went to the edge of the platform and didn't stop waving goodbye until he was completely out of sight. From there, he made the trip back to America with an odd combination of hopefulness and yet desperately missing Amber.

Shortly thereafter, Kyle needed to return to Connecticut as well. He expressed to Jjigae and Torou that it was a pleasure to meet them and hoped to see them again soon. Though, as had become their personal joke, Kyle hoped to jjigae that when they met, it would still be as just friends. By the time Kyle returned home, Kevin had returned from Germany, having gotten off the boat mere hours ago, and was already writing another letter to Amber. He wrote her two: one letting her know she was home and reaffirming that he'd return in the summer, and one that was strictly a love letter. He also started plotting making a bracelet for Amber. It was a way to, in essence, make his intentions known without her parents knowing that's what it was. Amber would know, though, and that was all he needed. And given that Tomoeh had been teaching Nathan how to carve cuttlebone and was getting very good at it, Kevin had a feeling he knew exactly what he'd do.

"Where was your brother?" Tomoeh asked Nathan the following morning after he'd learned Kyle and Kevin were both home safe.

"Germany," Nathan said. "That's where his imprint is."

"Is it very far?" Tomoeh asked.

"Yes, very," Nathan nodded. He went ahead and drew a map in the dirt for perspective and circled the general area where Germany was and the dot representing where they were. "There's an ocean between them most of the time. He can only visit her when he had the money to do so."

"Why doesn't he bring her here?"

"That's what I keep asking him, but it's a really difficult situation. He wants to bring her to America, but she can't right now because of school and family. And he can't go to Germany because of work and family."

"How do they plan to make it work?" Tomoeh asked.

"I don't know," Nathan said. "I just hope they do. Their feelings for each other recently intensified."

"You mean that imprint bond?" Tomoeh asked, having been given a more in depth explanation of imprinting since it had first been brought up.

"Yes, exactly. It's not platonic anymore. It's romantic."

"That must make this harder," Tomoeh lamented on Kevin's behalf. "I hope she can come be here with him soon."

"That's what we're all hoping. Kevin is planning to give her a proposal bracelet. He really likes the carvings you've been showing me how to do with the cuttlebones and he wants to make her a bracelet out of that."

"That's really sweet," Tomoeh smiled. "If you and I do decide to marry, what would you make me?"

"I'm not saying," Nathan smiled. "It's supposed to be a surprise. It's bad enough you're even semi-expecting it."

"Oh, come on, please tell me," Tomoeh pleaded with a giggle, but Nathan would not relent.

"You'll not get a word out of me," Nathan laughed. "You'll just have to wait and be surprised."

"You're so mean," Tomoeh smiled and sat back down in the rocks to stare out into the ocean. Toraz had started to trust Nathan, so the two of them were able to sneak off every now and then, but they were never left alone for too long. But since they were alone right now, Nathan decided to have a little fun and kissed Tomoeh on the cheek, earning a squeak followed by a giggle from her.

"I can be very mean, Tomoeh," Nathan said and she pushed him into the water. Roxanne ran into the water with Nathan and started trying to play. Nathan splashed some water at Tomoeh and she got in the water and started splashing right back at him. Roxanne jumped between them while they splashed one another and only stopped when Toraz walked to the shore and cleared his throat, indicating he was there.

Rae and Toroeh continued to get along very well. Embry was finally starting to warm up to him a little, but he maintained an hard exterior. He had every intent of sticking with tradition and making sure that boy proved he'd be able to provide for Rae. Frequently, at dinner, Nathan, Tomoeh, Toroeh and Rae would sit together talking and getting to know each other. Rae and Toroeh were even discussing plans for spending part of the year with the Makka and part of the year with the Quileutes. Toroeh knew that Rae wanted to see her family more often than Jacob's sisters got to see theirs. She didn't want that to happen. Toroeh began promising that he'd make sure she didn't have to. Embry was skeptical of the proposal, but humored the kid and even offered suggestions of when those visits would be.

A mere month and a half into their visit with the Makka, Toroeh proposed officially to Rae, which she eagerly agreed. And so began Toroeh's hard work of proving to Embry that he was worthy in the form of making her a bracelet, as per Quileute tradition, which he made out of seashells that he strung together with his sister's guidance, as well as catching fish and fixing up his tent so that it was satisfactory. Given the change in circumstance and the need, traditionally speaking, for the groom to be to perform a favor for the mother in law, Embry brought Rae and Toroeh back to the Quileute tribe so Toroeh could perform his service and, eventually, have the moon ceremony assuming Caevia gave her approval. Once they'd arrived, Toroeh wasted no time helping Caevia out, particularly with all the younger kids. Caevia usually got a lot of help from Aidie and, now that Peta and Gaeli were older, from them some, but Aiya, Zephyr and Grae never failed to be handfuls. The twins were just as much of handfuls, but they were usually playing with their friends whose parents were kind enough to help keep an eye on them.

"So you come from a big family too, is that right?" Caevia asked while Toroeh was keeping Grae and Zephyr from getting too rough when playing and helping Aiya clean.

"Yes," Toroeh said. "My sister Tomoeh is the youngest of all of us, but I'm not far behind her. My dad's been married twice and between them he's had 15 kids. Just three more than you and Embry. None of us are twins or triplets though. I can't begin to imagine what that's like," Toroeh chuckled almost sympathetically and Caevia smiled.

"It's not for the faint of heart," Caevia said. "Embry, both my husband and my son, and my daughter Aidie had been beyond helpful through the years. My husband tells me that our son complains that he feels like he's been a father since he was about five since that's when the triplets were born. Taraq and Bayak were a little easier than the triplets, but they more than made up for it with all the trouble they always get into."

Toroeh chuckled, "Sounds like my siblings. To my credit, I may be the youngest son, but I still have my fair share of experience with little kids. I'm already an uncle at least 17 times over."

"17 nieces and nephews? Sounds to me like you've had plenty of practice with kids," Caevia smiled.

"I have more than I know what to do with and there will be plenty more to come. My oldest brother says he's not interested in having any more kids, but we'll see."

"How many does he have?"

"Six," Toroeh said. "Except for myself, Torou, Jjigae and Tomoeh, all my sibling are married and have kids. Now that Natalie's not an option for marriage and I'm pursuing Rae, I think he'll continue seeing Diara."

"Who?"

"She's a woman Torou was seeing before Toraz attempted to attack you guys. Father told him to make himself available for a marriage treaty and Torou, begrudgingly, agreed and told Diara that they had to stop seeing one another."

"Did you mention to her that Torou wasn't getting married?" Caevia asked.

"I did, but she's still sore. I can't blame her. So Torou is leaving tomorrow to return home and start apologizing to Diara."

"I hope things work out for them," Caevia smiled. "It wasn't as though he ended things maliciously."

"That's what I told Diara. She said she'd be willing to talk to Torou, so that's where they're at now. They just need to sit down and talk to one another. If she takes him back, he said he's going to ask her to marry him. That's what he'd been planning to do until Toraz tried attacking you guys." Toroeh glanced in Rae's direction who was talking with a few of her sisters and Natalie. "Though I can't say some good didn't come of it."

"Tell me, Toroeh," Caevia said, making him look at her again. "What is it specifically that made you decide you want to marry my daughter?"

Toroeh smiled a slightly dazed smile that Caevia found reassuring, but she waited for him to answer. "It was a lot of things. When I first saw her, I was instantly drawn to her for some reason. And when she smiled at me I just…I don't know," Toroeh smiled and scratched the back of his head. "I guess I just fell for her. When I got to talk about her, the first thing we talked about was how we're both one of a bunch of kids. She told me about being a triplet and I thought that was so interesting. None of my siblings are twins let alone triplets and hearing her talk about the weird 'triplet' things she and Sharisa and Jae do was just fascinating. She teases me about being the youngest boy out all my siblings. She tells me she's at least an 'upper middle' child."

Caevia laughed, "I suppose that's one way to place her order."

"She also tells me Grae was an accident?"

"Yes, he was," Caevia smiled and looked at Grae staggering around with his older siblings. "He was a happy accident, though. I wouldn't trade him for anything. I wouldn't trade any of my children for anything."

"My mom's the same way," Toroeh smiled. "She's only mothered five of us, but she loves all my brothers and sisters as if they were her own. Even if she's only older than my oldest brother by six years."

"So she gets along well with your older siblings?"

"Yes, she does," Toroeh smiled. "It's not as though mom and dad were seeing each other while his first wife was alive. I think she'd been gone about 2 years by the time mom and dad started seeing each other. Dad tells me sometimes that he loved his first wife with all his heart and when she died, he thought he'd never love another woman. But then he started getting to know my mom. She was helping him with some things when some of my siblings were younger and she started making dad feel better. After mom helping him out and listening to him and working him through what he was feeling after losing his first wife, he started to love my mom and mom started to love him."

"It's good to hear your mother was exactly what your father needed," Caevia smiled.

"She was," Toroeh smiled. "They've been married 22 years now."

"Well, I look forward to meeting her," Caevia smiled. "So if Embry and I give you our blessing to marry Rae, when can I expect grandkids?"

Toroeh chuckled, "I'll ask Rae."

"Good answer," Caevia smiled.

Toroeh helped Caevia with the kids and some other chores for only two weeks. He even hunted and caught fish enough to feed the whole family, all 14 of them, for that whole time. Though he was hesitant to admit it, Embry was really impressed with the kids and Caevia had come to be rather fond of him. Since Caevia was curious, she did ask Embry to find out if things had worked out with Torou and Diara following him returning home. To her relief, Diara did take Torou back, reportedly with a great deal of pleading and convincing on Torou's part, and they were getting married soon. Wanting to attend the wedding, Toroeh asked Rae to return with him to the Makka tribe so they could attend. Jjigae and their father would be attending as well, of course, wanting to see Torou get married. It was the perfect opportunity to invite a number of people from the Quileute tribe to join in the celebration, strengthening their growing friendship that much more.

Sadly, Kevin and Kyle would not be attending that wedding, but they promised they'd attend Toroeh's and Rae's wedding which was official. Or, at least, Caevia and and Embry had given their approval for the wedding. In all the time leading up to that, Nathan and Tomoeh continued to get to know one another. By the time Toroeh and Rae had been given Embry's and Caevia's blessing, Nathan was surprised to find he'd fallen for Tomoeh. The two of them had grown to be really good friends and she understood him in a way no one outside the pack really did. Having made his decision, Nathan used the time everyone was asleep and opted out patrol for the night. He searched high and low up the coast looking for at least three cuttlebones just in case he messed up and, using the skills Tomoeh had taught him, carved a big pendant that was three rings. Then he sewed them together with tiny shells he'd found until it crafted a bracelet that was Tomoeh's size. Nathan kept the bracelet on his person for days before it was finally Torou's and Diara's wedding a few days later.

Torou's and Diara's wedding was very different from what the Quileute tribe practiced. Their wedding was midday rather than at night under the moon, but it was still at the shore. The ceremony was different and focused more so on the couple rather than a comparison with the first of the tribe like with the Quileute wedding. After they were declared husband and wife, however, there was a big feast with plenty of dancing. However, since it was what she wanted, Toroeh promised that he would marry Rae under her people's traditions and they would marry among the Quileute tribe before returning to the Makka tribe where she would stay except for the winter. Toroeh agreed they would return every year in observance of Christmas and so she could stay in touch with all her siblings. When dancing had been initiated, Nathan danced with Tomoeh and they danced around Roxanne who occasionally joined in the fun but would also return to sitting somewhere and just observing. She'd warmed up to Tomoeh in recent weeks since she was around Nathan a lot. Tomoeh had gotten more confident around Roxanne too, knowing her quarks and when and when not to approach Roxanne with any attempts at petting. By the end of the night, everyone was exhausted and most had retreated to bed already. Nathan, however, asked Tomoeh to join him on the beach for just a little longer. Before leaving for patrol, Jacob was pulled aside by Renesmee when she noticed Nathan walking to the beach with Tomoeh.

"So he's going to ask her?" Renesmee asked Jacob.

"Yes, he is," Jacob said.

"Is he sure?" Renesmee asked. "I'm sorry to be this way, but he's still so young. I don't want him to ask her just because we're trying to be more friendly with the Makka. We seem to be getting along well enough with just Rae and Toroeh getting married. And they're getting married because they want to."

"Nathan wants to marry Tomoeh, so you don't have to worry about that," Jacob reassured with a smile. "Nathan wouldn't be asking her if he didn't want to."

"Does he love her?" Renesmee asked.

"In his own way," Jacob said, but the answer was less than satisfying.

"What does that mean?" Renesmee asked, now extremely concerned.

Jacob took a deep breath, "What I mean is that he loves her, but he's not IN love with her. He doesn't love her the way I love you or the way Embry loves Caevia, but that's an unfair comparison. The two of them have grown to like each other a lot and there's enough of an attraction there that Nathan is willing to marry her."

Renesmee still looked rather unhappy with that answer. "I don't know," Renesmee went on. "I don't want him stringing the poor girl along."

"He's not," Jacob said. "Tomoeh's pretty much in agreement with Nathan, at least from what we've seen. She's fond of him and seems to like him enough to be willing to marry him. It's not as though the two of them hate one another or barely know each other. They have a connection, Renesmee, but it's not what we have. As nice as it might be, we can't assume all our kids will find what we have. He cares for her and they'll be happy together."

Renesmee still appeared unconvinced, but she didn't argue further. "If you say so," she breathed out.

"Renesmee," Jacob said and Renesmee looked up at him again. "If you want me to put an end to it, tell me now and I will." Renesmee contemplated, wondering if perhaps she should take Jacob up on his offer. Eventually, though, she shook her head.

"No, don't do that," Renesmee said. "If you say Nathan cares for her enough to be married to her, then I'll trust your judgment."

"I am in the boy's head every night," Jacob smiled, trying to lighten the mood. Renesmee smiled just a little.

"I guess we'll see what the moon ceremony says," Renesmee said.

"Exactly," Jacob replied and leaned down to give Renesmee a kiss. "If it's blank, then we'll call the whole thing off. I promise."

"Okay," Renesmee said. "I just want Nathan to be happy."

"I do too," Jacob said. "That's why I left the decision up to him. And think of it this way, at least Nathan's marrying Tomoeh because he cares about her. If he didn't marry her, Kyle would have married Jjigae and we both know that would have been a business arrangement at best." Renesmee shuddered and Jacob chuckled before giving Renesmee another kiss. "It'll be alright, Renesmee. I promise."

"Okay," Renesmee finally smiled and gave Jacob another kiss before patting his shoulder. "You get to patrol."

"I'll see you in the morning," Jacob said and kissed Renesmee one more time. "I love you."

"I love you too," Renesmee replied back and Jacob followed the pack into the woods for the night. Nearer the shore, Nathan walked with Tomoeh basking in the moonlight together. It was a half-moon tonight and there was a slight chill in the air.

"It's starting to get cold," Nathan said.

"It always gets that was this time of year," Tomoeh said. She looked down at Roxanne who was walking between them and patted the wolf's head momentarily before pulling away.

"It's the same up where we are. It gets cold and the water doesn't always help," Nathan smiled. "It's getting closer to fall. We'll be going back soon, especially since Toroeh and Rae are going to get married on our lands."

"Yes, I'd heard," Tomoeh smiled. "She said she wanted to get married under Quileute tradition. I'm eager to see what that will be like. I know you've told me already, but it sounds like a fun time."

"I've enjoyed every wedding I've been to," Nathan smiled.

"So did you decide what you wanted to do?" Tomoeh asked with just a hint of nervousness. "About us I mean?"

"I have actually," Nathan said and finally pulled out the bracelet he'd made from his pocket and presented it to Tomoeh. He was relieved that she was surprised when she saw it. "So now I just need to know if you're in agreement."

"You made that all by yourself?" Tomoeh said and accepted the bracelet to look at it. She couldn't have done a better job herself and she was really impressed.

"I did," Nathan smiled. "I had a good teacher."

Tomoeh blushed a little before looking up at Nathan again. "Are you asking me to marry you?"

"Yes, I am," Nathan chuckled. With a smile, Tomoeh handed back the bracelet and extended her left wrist.

"Well, I accept," she answered. Nathan grinned and latched the bracelet around her wrist that she offered. Once it was on, she looked at the bracelet again and sighed. "Don't tell Rae, but I like this better than the one my brother made for her."

Nathan chuckled, "That was the general idea." Suddenly, Nathan whistled at Roxanne so she would come from behind him and go to his other side so he could walk a little closer to Tomoeh. "Tomorrow, I'll ask your father officially."

"I'm sure daddy will say yes," Tomoeh smiled. "So when should we get married?"

"That'll depend on the moon ceremony. We have to marry under a certain cycle of the moon to ensure greatest happiness and prosperity. If we marry without one or there's a blank reading, it's bad luck on the marriage."

"Well then, we'd best make sure we have one," Tomoeh smiled. Wanting to give Nathan a small thank you, she looked up at him and gave him a quick kiss on the lips. "When should we announce it?"

"We'll tell your dad in the morning. We'll tell my tribe as soon as we get back. There needs to be a formal announcement following the moon ceremony that my grandpa will give. Mom will announce under what moon we need to marry and everyone will start getting ready for the wedding."

"That'll be exciting," Tomoeh said.

Nathan smiled and took Tomoeh's hand in his and they walked further down the coast together until deciding they should get back and turning around. As he promised, Nathan went to Tokoruchei first thing the next morning and told him he'd proposed to Tomoeh. Experiencing a strange mixture of relief that the Quileutes and Makka would be bound by marriage, at least among the ruling families, and a sadness that his youngest daughter would be leaving to live with the Quileutes. However, his wife assured they weren't losing a daughter, but gaining another son. While Nathan spoke with Tomoeh's parents, Renesmee took the opportunity to pull her aside to talk. She'd barely said two words to the girl since they met and she wanted to rectify that.

"So Nathan's asked you to marry him?" Renesmee asked while the two sat together on the shoreline.

"He has," Tomoeh smiled. "I'm happy he did."

"I hope you don't mind my asking, but how do you feel about him? I know this whole situation was rather abruptly put on all your shoulders given the situation."

"It was," Tomoeh nodded, but she continued to smile. "I think it worked out for the better, though. Nathan is very kind to me and I like him very much. When daddy told us we'd have to marry into your family, I was terrified. I'd feared your sons would be cruel or forceful, but Nathan's nothing of the sort. You raised him to be a wonderful young man and I look forward to marrying him."

"I guess I'm wondering if you love him," Renesmee asked again.

"Not like you and your husband," Tomoeh smiled kindly. "I asked him about you and the way he spoke of you and Jacob; It was something to be envied for sure. However, Nathan always told me he wasn't really interested in imprinting. In fact, he'd said a few times he didn't really care about getting married either. I'd asked him why he was even considering marrying me if that were the case. He said it was because he liked me enough to be willing to marry me, especially if it meant our tribes could be better friends. We've been enemies for so long, or so it's seemed, that anything that can rectify that was well worth pursuing."

"I realize he's not imprinted on you," Renesmee said. "I only want to know if you love my son regardless of such a connection."

"I do," Tomoeh said. "I really do."

"I only ask because I don't want the two of you rushing into anything. I already made that mistake before I met Nathan's father. I married a pig farmer in Olympia because I wanted out of my parents' house. Were it not for the fact that it did lead to me meeting Jacob, it would have been one of the biggest mistakes of my life. He was kind and cared for me, but I didn't love him."

"I promise, I'm not marrying him because I want away from my tribe," Tomoeh reassured, finally realizing why Renesmee was being so hesitant. "I swear to you Renesmee, if I didn't care for your son, I would not be marrying him. I know daddy was the one that put us all up to marriage in the first place, but I don't mind telling you that, if I really didn't want to marry your son, all I'd have to do is go to him right now, snuggle up to him and bat my eyelashes and daddy would call it off no questions asked."

Finally, Renesmee smiled, "A daddy's girl I see," she teased.

"All of us are," Tomoeh smiled. "Daddy's a big softy most of the time. When he came to you with a marriage proposal, it was only because he felt we'd all left on bad terms and nothing was resolved. He was acting out of desperation. He was more relieved than I think your husband realized when your son suggested we spend a season getting to know one another."

"I was relieved too," Renesmee agreed. "Please accept my apologies for being so rude to you. I just want Nathan to be happy. I want both of you to be happy."

"No worries, Renesmee," Tomoeh smiled. "Nathan does make me happy and I make him happy. Your son would never in a million years have asked me to marry him if I didn't."

"I know," Renesmee smiled. "That boy's so much like his father. He's my little black sheep. Seeing as Kevin ran away to join the army, he's by far given me the most metaphorical grey hairs, but Nathan's a close second. Did he ever tell about how he stole a man's wallet when he was a little thing?"

"You'll have to be a little more specific," Tomoeh said and, suddenly, Renesmee looked at Tomoeh, mortified.

"More specific?" Renesmee asked. Tomoeh went silent, realizing she let something slip.

"Well…..he's told me of a few times he's done that. Nathan's a bit of a thief, but he always says he'll only steal from people he feels deserve it."

"How reassuring," Renesmee said sarcastically with a sigh. "I suspect there's a lot I don't know about."

"I'm afraid there is," Tomoeh laughed a little awkwardly. "Please don't tell him I told you, but most of the time, depending on what it is, the pack will agree not to tell you about something because they know it will upset you."

"I suppose I can't say I'm surprised," Renesmee sighed again. "You understand what I mean, then, about Nathan being a close second in giving me grays."

Tomoeh smiled sincerely. "He doesn't do it to upset you."

"I know," Renesmee said. "He is his father's son. Jacob's mother has told more horror stories than I care to recall from when he was a boy. Apparently, when he was a boy, he used to steal pennies from the Meat Monger's assistant all the time."

Tomoeh giggled, "Yes, Nathan told me about how Jacob had told him he'd hidden it somewhere and Nathan dug it up like a buried treasure. Apparently, he's still mad that you made him share all his candy."

"I specifically told that boy he could have two pieces of candy," Renesmee scolded, yet she was laughing a little at the memory. "I told his father too, but no, they had to actually buy $2 worth of candy. That's far more candy than he could eat himself, so it only seemed fair to share. And shame on that boy for making his sister eat those licorice candies."

Tomoeh laughed a little harder, "He'd told her rainbows would appear if she ate them or something like that, right?"

"Yes, he did," Renesmee said, rather irked. "Made his poor sister cry," Renesmee said.

"Oh, he loves her," Tomoeh reassured with a smile. "My brothers used to do things like that to me too."

"I'm afraid I was an only child so the misconduct of siblings tends to be beyond my understanding," Renesmee said.

"You don't have any brothers or sister at all?" Tomoeh asked, surprised by the possibility and Renesmee shook her head in confirmation. "That must have been so boring."

Renesmee, having never gotten that response before, started laughing. "My parents always ensured I was busy with something or other so I was never bored. Lonely, yes, but never bored."

"Nathan's told me you aged quickly and moved around a lot when you were a kid so you never really got to make friends. Is that true?" Renesmee's smile weakened and she nodded.

"Caevia, Rae's mother, is really the only friend I had as a child. She helped raise me when we first welcomed her in our home and when I reached adulthood, she became my close friend and confidant. But until I came to reside with the Quileutes, she was the only real friend I'd ever had. Even when I came to be with Jacob, making friends for me was an uphill battle."

"I think Nathan mentioned no one trusted you at first," Tomoeh said. "He says he doesn't know much about it, but he knew you had trouble fitting in at first."

"Well, with the language barrier and a bias, yes I had a very hard time fitting in. Of course, I can't say I blame them given their previous encounters with Forks' citizens and what not. They embraced me after I saved two children from death by bullet wounds."

"That's good to hear," Tomoeh smiled. "I assume you've been the healer since then?"

"I was a healer in training since then until Sokajili passed away about three years ago. He was the medicine man that trained me."

"Nathan's uncle too, right?"

"Their great uncle, yes," Renesmee nodded. "Kyle was especially torn up with he passed away. Him and our chief. I can't recall by how much, but Sokajili was William's older brother."

"You mean Kayechiwetchwe?"

"Yes, that's his real name," Renesmee nodded. "Forks named him William."

"I see," Tomoeh said. "So were they close growing up?"

"They were," Renesmee said. "Sokajili abdicated to William in fact. He never wanted to be chief. He wanted to be the medicine man, so once he was accepted as an apprentice, he gave up his right to succession and passed it over to William. If my math and Jacob's estimation serves me well, William's been chief for 27 years."

"That's a long time," Tomoeh smiled. "How old is your husband if you don't mind me asking."

"He'll be turning 40 in December," Renesmee said. "I'll be turning 59."

"You and Jacob don't look it at all," Tomoeh said.

"Well, thank you for saying," Renesmee smiled back. "Jacob's hoping it'll be a much longer time before he's chief. We all are. We're not ready to lose William yet."

"Daddy spoke well of him," Tomoeh said. "Right now, Toraz helps daddy with a lot, but daddy's still the chief. He's still in good health, so we don't imagine Toraz will be chief any time soon."

"If you don't mind my asking, what made Toraz decide to attack us?"

"Honestly, I don't know. He told daddy, but he's not said a word about it. Our soldiers were just doing what he told them to. We didn't really find out about all this until Toraz returned with a number of men injured. Daddy had him in his tent for hours just yelling. And when your husband and chief came, we feared it was a declaration of war."

"I promise, it would have been a last resort," Renesmee said. "To my knowledge, the tribe hasn't had a war since Jacob was a boy. He said the Quileutes and Hous were at war and inevitably the only thing that fixed the relationship was Jacob's sisters marrying into the tribe. Jacob was too young at the time. I think that was when his grandpa was still alive actually. William hasn't had a war go on during his reign as far as I've been told and I think he prefers to keep it that way."

"I don't wonder why," Tomoeh said. "Toraz hasn't said why he attacked. I think he's just trying to put it behind us."

"I agree that's the best course of action," Renesmee smiled. "Well, Tomoeh, welcome to the family."

"Likewise, Renesmee," Tomoeh smiled back.

Renesmee felt a lot better after speaking with Tomoeh and just as was predicted, Tokoruchei gave his approval for Nathan and Tomoeh to get married. When she had the chance, Renesmee reassured Jacob that she felt a lot better about the marriage now that she'd spoken with Tomoeh and she was confident she and Nathan would be good together. All Quileute guests as well as Toroeh's and Tomoeh's family followed to the Quileute tribe. Most of them resided at Cullen house for their comfort and where there was plenty of room. Thankfully, the Cullens were returning for Thanksgiving, so they arrived near the end of October to the news that Nathan and Rae were both engaged. Edward and Bella, more so than the others, had the same reservations about Nathan getting married. It wasn't necessarily odd for a couple their age to get married, but they just weren't sure they liked the political nature of it. However, they found they rather liked Tomoeh as well. They'd met her very briefly over the summer but didn't get to speak to her until that October.

As soon as they were able, Renesmee set up the fire at the front of the house that she'd started using for determining dates for marriage. She started with Toroeh and Rae, Embry confirmed he approved the union, and Renesmee determined they should marry until the quarter moon, which was in two days. After they had their day, Nathan and Tomoeh came forward and Renesmee did the same thing for them following Tokoruchei confirming he gave his blessing for the marriage. She was able to determine they needed to marry under the new moon, a few days after Toroeh and Rae. With the announcement of both weddings, the tribe got to work on preparing and Kevin and Kyle made arrangements to be there for both weddings.

"Your brother's getting married?" Alfonse asked when Kevin told him he'd be off for a week. "How'll you get there in time?"

"You let me worry about that," Kevin smiled. "Looks like your secretary will need to start working again," Kevin teased as he brushed Anastasia's cheek.

"She did a rather good job when you were gone this summer," Alfonse smiled. "You'd best be careful, Kevin, or Mr. Huntington may be hiring Anastasia to take your job."

"Considering he can pay her in candy, she certainly works for cheaper," Kevin chuckled and patted Anastasia's head.

"How old is your brother?"

"He turns 16 in December," Kevin answered.

"That's a rather tender age for a boy to marry. A women, it's not beyond acceptable, but a young man?"

"It's to help our tribe and the bride's tribe have a bond between us."

"Oh," Alfonse said. "I see. It's that type of arrangement. Wouldn't it make more since for you to do it, then? I thought you were the eldest."

"I am, but I'm…..let's say 'no longer qualified' for such a task."

"You mean because you're all the way out here?"

"Yeah," Kevin answered briefly. "The same applies to Kyle. My little sister is as good as engaged at this point and Nathan's the only one that's really in a position to get married. He agreed and now they're getting married."

"I suppose whatever works," Alfonse shrugged.

"Just curious; how's Ana doing?"

"She's a serpent as always," Alfonse mumbled. "I don't think I've spoken to her in a week."

"I believe it's been a week and a half, sir," Diane blurted out.

"It's not long enough," Alfonse said.

"With all due respect, young Baronet, it isn't good to speak ill of the lady's mother while she is present," Diane attempted. "She is still her mother."

"Fine," Alfonse said. "I will reserve my contempt for when Anastasia's out of the room."

Kevin glanced at Anastasia who was blissfully unaware and unaffected by the conversation. She was sitting up on the edge of the desk basically leaning against Diane while everyone spoke. That night when Kevin and Kyle had their things together, they made the run back to Washington and were there by the next day. Renesmee greeted Kevin with a big hug, not having seen him since Christmas. They all caught up while getting things together for the wedding that night. Toroeh's family was helping as well and Rae remained with her mother through the day with all her sisters coming and going, helping her get ready and helping to ensure the white rabbit fur dress fit properly. It was during those few days that Kevin finally got to meet the Makka. He offered a comforting word to Torou and his congratulations for his recent marriage. Torou and Kevin managed to hit it off rather well from the beginning. He took some time to get to know Toroeh and eventually Tomoeh. He'd known her through Nathan, but it was a pleasure to meet her in person and vice versa.

Rae's and Toroeh's wedding went on that night to a near blistering cold, but the bonfire they lit kept everyone warm once it was. They all eagerly danced around the fire both to honor the new couple and also to keep warm. Kyle danced with Jjigae for fun while Kevin danced with Aidetzi. Nathan and Tomoeh danced around the fire a few times before going back to the beach to sit and watch the others dance the night away.

"This was fun ceremony," Tomoeh said, out of breath, when they sat down and looked onto the bonfire.

"I told you, we know how to throw a party," Nathan chuckled.

"I hear a tent was made especially for them?"

"For the week, yes," Nathan agreed. "After a marriage, the couple gets to be alone for three days to start a family."

"Well, that sounds fun," Tomoeh giggled and Nathan joined.

"I'd argue it's the best part," Nathan said and they laughed a little more. "We've never talked about that, have we?" Nathan continued.

"You mean about sex?"

"Our love lives, yeah," Nathan said. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. I'm just curious."

"Well," Tomoeh said, straightening her back. "If you are asking if you're my first, then no, you won't be. What about me? Will I be your first?"

"No," Nathan answered bluntly and Tomoeh giggled.

"Can I ask who was?"

"Some girl from the Hou tribe," Nathan said. "It happened around the time I changed to a wolf. I just went through a huge growth spurt and I started liking women. I went with dad and grandpa to visit my aunts and cousins and there was one girl I started talking to. We talked for a while and I guess I just got bold and asked her if she'd be willing to sleep with me."

"Well, you certainly wasted no time," Tomoeh teased. "I assume she agreed?"

"She did," Nathan smiled. "We went to the woods, Roxanne followed and, well, you know how it goes. Apparently it was her first time too and when we started, she told me I hurt her and I needed to slow down." Nathan started laughing. "You should have seen my dad's face. When we were on our way back, I looked at dad and asked him if the first time is supposed to hurt for women. That man stopped right in his tracks."

"Did he really?" Tomoeh giggled.

"Yes, he did. He looked at me and said, 'I assume you're asking because it's already happened' and I nodded. He told everyone we'd catch up and that we needed to talk for a while. I followed dad the long way home and we were quiet for a while. I think dad just wasn't sure where to start."

"How did he start?"

"He asked me how it was," Nathan said and Tomoeh laughed more.

"What did you tell him?"

"I told him it was fine until she yelled, 'that hurt' at me, then it was good again once she said it was alright for me to keep going."

"And what did your dad say?"

"He said I went too fast and to remember to slow down next time." Tomoeh kept laughing. "Seeing as you're laughing at me, I'm eager to find out what your first time was like."

"About the same as what you described honestly," Tomoeh smiled. "There was a boy I was with for a while. He and I stopped seeing each other over the winter. Another girl really liked him and he liked her, so they're together now. But anyway, after a while, he asked if I'd be willing to sleep with him, I said I would. I do remember him just going in without really warning me, so it did hurt a little, but it was fine once we got going. I was a little disappointed though."

"Why?"

"It just…..I don't know. It was feeling good, but then he was done and I felt a little unfulfilled."

"Yeah," Nathan said, rubbing his head a moment. "That's what she said to me actually. I asked dad about that too."

"And?"

"He said she didn't have an orgasm and if you want to make sure, you have to rub this little thing right above where you go in."

"I love how your father was so blunt and honest with you," Tomoeh smiled.

"Believe me, I am too. It's served me well since then," Nathan smiled.

"Am I allowed to know how many women you've been with?"

"I'll tell you if you tell me," Nathan smiled.

"That many?" Tomoeh smiled.

"What can I say? I'm a charming guy," Nathan said.

"You're so full of it," Tomoeh giggled and punched Nathan's arm.

"Honestly, it's only been three," Nathan finally said. "None of them were really long term at all. My mom's not to know, of course."

"I think she might anyway," Tomoeh said guiltily. "She asked me when we were talking if you'd ever told me about the time you'd stolen a guy's wallet and I told her she needed to be more specific."

Nathan laughed, "Damn it," he said. "You should have just said yes and mom would have specified. She hasn't brought it up to dad at least."

"She didn't seem too mad. She'd said she wasn't that surprised anyway. She called you her little black sheep."

"Yeah," Nathan smiled. "Mom calls me her black sheep and grandpa calls me a wolf in sheep's clothing."

"You seem nice enough to me," Tomoeh smiled.

"You never answered my question," Nathan said suddenly.

"Which one?"

"Where I asked you how many people you've been with?"

"Oh," Tomoeh smiled. "Just two. The first was with that guy I'd told you about and the second one was someone that I just slept with to feel better. I'd told him, the guy I'd been seeing I mean, that I didn't mind and I wasn't angry, but I really was. It hurt my feelings and I just needed a pick-me-up."

"Well, if it's worth anything, he lost out on a good thing."

"Aw, thank you for saying, Nathan," Tomoeh giggled. "See? You're not so bad."

"You sure about that?" Nathan asked, giving her a cruel smile.

"I know so," Tomoeh said confidently.

"Have you checked your wrist lately?" he asked. Tomoeh laughed and looked, but her face went white when she saw the bracelet he'd made her was gone.

"Wha-," she began and even looked like she might cry. Nathan pulled out the bracelet so she could see it and, after taking a deep breath, she laughed a little. "How did you do that?"

"Just a crafty sleight of hand," Nathan said. "To this day, I can't believe no one ever seems to notice."

"Well, you're very talented. Now I demand you put that back on this instant," Tomoeh ordered, her smile ever present and Nathan gladly put it back on. "I'll agree you're a wolf in sheep's clothing, but I still think you're not so bad."

"Depends on who you ask," Nathan smiled. "By the way. My grandparents are building us our own house."

"You mean like what your parents and Rae's parents have?" Tomoeh asked excitedly.

"Well, not quite that big, but I did ask for two floors. They already started working on it. They promised it'll be done by the time we're married."

"I can't wait to see it," Tomoeh said.

"Out of curiosity, what did you and mom talk about that day I talked to your dad? All I knew was she'd apparently been really apprehensive, then after talking to you she told dad she was pleased and thought we'd be good together."

"I'm glad she thinks so," Tomoeh smiled. "Really, she just wanted to know if I loved you or not."

"And what did you tell her?"

"I told her I did," Tomoeh said. "It might not be the way your parents love one another. Far from it. But I do love you."

"Really?" Nathan smiled kindly.

"Yeah," Tomoeh said. "Do you love me?"

"Yeah," Nathan smiled. "Yeah, I do." They smiled at one another and Nathan reached over to take her hand. She glanced down to make sure her bracelet was still there which made Nathan laugh a little, and then she moved closer to him and rested her head on his shoulder.

"Nathan," Jacob said when he walked up behind the two. When he had Nathan's attention, he directed him to follow into the woods so they could talk. When they were alone, they walked to the bluff and looked out onto the ocean.

"Everything alright?" Nathan asked when they were sitting.

"I just wanted to have a little talk with you. Father to son," Jacob said.

"About what?" Nathan asked.

"Well, you're mother was worried, as you know, about whether or not you were happy."

"I am," Nathan said. "Tomoeh's a nice girl. I love her."

"That's good," Jacob said. "So long as this is as easy on you as possible. I know this wasn't exactly your first choice. Of course, if your mother knew what your 'first choice' was, she might suffer an aneurism."

Nathan laughed, "You mean about wanting to travel?"

"Without a plan on top of it," Jacob said. "I know you wish you could have gone out and seen things. Even if your mother would never allow it, I know this puts a bit of a damper on that dream."

"It's alright," Nathan reassured again. "I can always do it later. I'm not aging a day after all, right?"

"So long as you hold your wolf's spirit. But then, I don't know if your mother's immortality plays any role in yours."

"That sounds like a Carlisle question. Even then, he can only guess," Nathan said.

"Exactly." Jacob and Nathan were quiet a moment. "Maybe by then, you'll have a plan."

"I don't want one," Nathan smiled. "That's what makes it exciting. Going south with nothing but my wolf, my know how, and the energy to do it; that's what I want to do. I don't want a map or any direction. I just want to run and see the world. The continental world at least."

Jacob chuckled, "You remind me so much of me."

"Did you have plans to travel when you were my age?"

"I traveled plenty, but it was north. I've passed so many mountains and snow caps and seen white wolves almost as big as me. You want to know a little secret?"

"We have secrets?" Nathan asked and the two chuckled.

"I suppose this is because I'd never really thought about it. When I was a boy, my grandpa told me about an ice demon he'd come across when he was a wolf. He'd told me of a monster that was gray of skin and looked about to snap, yet it was limber and moved like a jumping spider. It had horrible sharp teeth and wrecked of decomposition. He said the monster is worse than cold ones because it was a monster that was once human but gave into the starvation and ate human flesh. He said the monster was almost as fast as him and screeched like a deranged animal and an insatiable lust for flesh. He also said it was pure instinct. While cold ones can think and plan and are devious, the ice demon is a base monster that acts on pure instinct."

"And you were trying to find one of these things?" Nathan asked with a laugh.

"I don't know if it was a goal, but I was certainly curious what such a creature would be like. Grandpa also said you're not supposed to kill them. It should be a last resort. If you kill them, their souls are released back into nature and it disrupts the delicate balance."

"And our cousins claim that's what Dask'iya was?" Nathan said.

"Yes, but they're wrong," Jacob said adamantly. "Dask'iya was a ogres and only ate children. These ice demons are not so discerning. If you're breathing, they'll kill you and eat you. Or that's what grandpa told me."

"Grandpa was a wolf too wasn't he?" Nathan asked. "Wouldn't he have seen the monster and then you?"

"My grandpa retired his wolf as soon as his sons joined the pack," Jacob said. "When dad and Uncle Sokajili changed, he retired, so dad never got the chance. Usually, that's been the rule of thumb: when the new pack comes, the old pack retires. You and your brothers might be the first to be part of a preexisting pack."

"There's a first for everything," Nathan said. "Do you think if we went out there, we might find one?" Nathan asked.

"Well, we'd be looking for a long time," Jacob chuckled. "I've been searching for one since I became a wolf and I still haven't found one. Those things are rare, which frankly is a good thing. Though I've heard tales that they're more common among the Algonquin. They have a name for the monster, but you're not supposed to say it."

"What is it?"

"You're not supposed to say it," Jacob chuckled. "Story claims that if you call their name, they come to find you."

"Seeing as you've been searching for these things for nearly 30 years, apparently not," Nathan chuckled.

"I never call their name," Jacob said with a chuckle.

"Maybe you should and your luck would change," Nathan suggested. The shared another laugh and kept looking out onto the ocean. "I kind of wish Tomoeh and I could do it together. She really likes the idea of traveling."

"So it would seem, but she's not graced with your speed and stamina unfortunately. Besides, it's rather expected you two will have kids right away. That's another thing I wanted to talk to you about."

"It's alright, dad, I know where babies come from," Nathan smiled and Jacob laughed humorlessly.

"Yes, I'm aware," Jacob said. "You're too much like me sometimes. Anyway, what I'm talking about is raising children."

"I'm sure we'll be okay," Nathan said. "Tomoeh and I have all of you to help and her parents and siblings too. At least, when we visit we will."

"I suspect the two of you will need it," Jacob smiled.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Nathan laughed.

"It means you're not at a point where I'd consider you ready to be a father," Jacob said. "You're still very impulsive and juvenile to say the least. You have a lot of growing up left to do."

"Well," Nathan said, "I'll have to grow up with my kids then. You weren't much older than me when you and mom had Kevin. And you weren't much for maturity yourself dad."

Jacob chuckled, "I suppose that's true. It's just….no one teaches you how to be a parent. You can help look after kids and even care for them, but it's not the same when they're yours. When they're yours, your world changes. It's not just you and your wife anymore. It's the two of you plus this little human being that you're responsible for. You and this little kid you need to teach and raise to be a good person. There's a lot of stress involved. You'll always have those moments where you're going to wonder what you did wrong or what you should have done or how you could have been better. But it's very rewarding. Your mother and I wouldn't trade any of you for the world. You four are the only people your mother and I love more than one another. Even saying that, it's a lot to take on. More so when you're still just a kid yourself."

"I've got you for reference," Nathan said, but Jacob laughed with the slightest hint of condescension.

"Nathan, it doesn't matter how much your mother and I help. We can suggest and recommend and maybe even do ourselves, but you'll still have to decide for yourself what's right. Every child is different and what works for one child might not work for the other. Let's take you and Natalie for example. You two may be twins but you're day and night. Everyone always told your mother and I that raising a little girl is harder than a boy. For Kevin and Kyle, that might be true, but not with you. You were a lot harder. Out of all the kids, you're the one I wished had come with a manual."

Nathan burst into laughter. "You mean just have the placenta turn into a paperback how-to book on how to raise me?"

"I'd have paid for that," Jacob grumbled. "But no matter how much your mother and I would have loved that, it's not how that works. A lot of being a parent is figuring it out as you go."

"That's why I'm happy to have the best family unit to help us along the way," Nathan said. "I know you have to, but try not to worry so much. I for one think I'll be a great dad."

"You'll be a weird dad; that much is certain," Jacob said.

Nathan smirked and said with hubris, "That's right," and they both laughed.

After the wedding, Toroeh and Rae retreated to their little tent to be alone for their three days together while everyone went to bed. Nathan went back and said good night to Tomoeh before going on late patrol with the rest of the pack. Toroeh and Rae had decided that they would remain with the tribe for the remainder of winter and go back to the Makka in spring. Just a few days later, the tribe was preparing for Nathan's and Tomoeh's wedding. She spent all day at Renesmee's home getting fitted into the rabbit fur dress and Nathan spent the day with Jacob and his brothers. Travis returned that morning with his mother, father, aunt, brothers, sisters and cousins to see the ceremony. Renesmee eagerly invited Rachael and Rebecca to join her at the house to get Tomoeh ready, giving all of them the chance to officially meet. By then Renesmee had grown to be good friends with Tomoeh's mother as well.

When it was finally time for the ceremony, Nathan and Tomoeh sat together in front of the wood pyre ready to light it when they were married. As she had for Toroeh and Rae, Renesmee presided over the ceremony and William and Jacob performed the story of the wolves their tribe was birthed from. After the history and the fertility dance that to this day always made Renesmee blush to see, more so whenever she'd personally performed it, Nathan and Tomoeh lit the pyre and they were married. The tribe danced with them around the pyre as was tradition. While Nathan and Tomoeh danced together, Jae and Natalie danced and finally left the group to relax. When they were, Jae looked at Natalie, thinking about something he'd been pondering all day.

"Hey, Natalie," Jae said.

"Yeah?" Natalie smiled.

"What if you and I got married?" he asked. Natalie smiled, but she was very surprised.

"You mean now?" she giggled.

"No, not now," Jae shook his head. "Later. When we're ready to have a family. Right now I'm enjoying it being just the two of us."

"So am I," Natalie smiled.

"But later," Jae continued. "Maybe a few years from now, I can give you a bracelet I made myself and we can get married under the moonlight and everyone can dance for our good marriage."

"I think I'd say yes to that," Natalie smiled and gave him a kiss. "When were you thinking you wanted to get married?"

"I don't know," Jae shrugged and smiled with their noses touching. "Maybe another two or three years."

"So long?" Natalie asked with a sigh.

"Like I said, I'm enjoying it being just the two of us," Jae smiled. "But when we do get married, how many do you want?"

"Kids?"

"Yeah," Jae said.

"Not 12," Natalie said and Jae laughed.

"No? Not enough?"

"Too many," Natalie giggled. "I think closer to four. Like me and my siblings."

"How about eight? We'll meet in the middle."

"I'll go as high as six," Natalie negotiated with a smile.

"We'll talk about it later," Jae smiled and gave her a kiss. Natalie laughed and rested her head on his shoulder.

Later that night when Nathan and Tomoeh finally retreated, they walked into the woods where the Cullens had built the house they'd made for them. Nathan requested it look out onto the ocean and that it be on a hill. That put the house somewhere between the Cullen house and Embry's and Caevia's house. They created a clearing, using the wood from that, so the house had a perfect view of the ocean. The way was guided by the trail Nathan and all the kids followed when they were younger and branched off to a little two floor house. The entrance faced the trail and the house appeared similar to two boxes with the top hanging off the edge of the bottom box. The foundation of the hill going up was all that ensured that top floor was sounds. There was a little door that led into the house and covering one segment of the house was stone.

"First impressions?" Nathan asked Tomoeh.

"It's adorable," Tomoeh smiled and went over to the house to look at it more. Yet it was near impossible to see much given what little moonlight was available under the new moon was blacking out the back entrance of the house. "Can we go inside?"

"That is its purpose," Nathan smiled and walked over to let them into the house. Once inside, Nathan took a second to locate the lamp and turned it on to illuminate the room.

The first room they entered was a little kitchen with counters on both side, a cooling unit, a stove and a sink. There was enough room for a few people to fit in and past the archway was a dining and family room. Stairs pressed against the wall by the hill going upstairs. Directly across from the kitchen were two glass doors looking out. Just outside those doors was a little patio. And when they walked upstairs, there were three bedrooms, the biggest of which being the farthest from the stairs. They glanced into the smaller bedrooms and bathroom, all of which were modestly decorated. The master bedroom had a large bed against the wall to the left which looked directly out onto a French double door set up through which they could see the ocean view.

"This is so lovely," Tomoeh said. "I never thought I'd ever wake up by the ocean."

"My parents had a view like this and I was a little jealous," Nathan smiled. "I told grandpa I wanted a view just like it and they've certainly delivered."

"They did," Tomoeh nodded. "Just so you know, there will be no 10 plus kids," Tomoeh spun around to look at Nathan. "I've seen childbirth and I'll not go through that 10 times over."

"Not to worry," Nathan smiled. "Honestly, I'll be happy even if we don't have any at all."

"No, we will," Tomoeh smiled. "I've had a nice long talk with my mother and sisters and if they're all right, after tonight a baby's sure as spring."

"Oh really?" Nathan chuckled and walked over to her. "So three days to ourselves should be plenty?" he continued to joke.

"More than," Tomoeh agreed, "but more never hurt. You're here at nights all three days too, right?"

"Yes," Nathan nodded. "For three days, it's just us. No one's coming, no one's going, it's just us. We won't be bothered except in an emergency and I doubt, with a pack as big as ours, that there's likely to be an emergency."

"If you say so," Tomoeh smiled. Standing close together, they looked at one another smiling.

"This is a little weird," Nathan finally said.

"Why's that?"

"I've never slept with my wife before," he said and Tomoeh giggled.

"We'll, I've never slept with my husband before either. So this can be a little adventure for both of us."

Nathan smiled and leaned down, "That's true."

Then Nathan gave Tomoeh a kiss. Not their first per se, but this one was definitely different. However, once they'd started, they didn't stop until they fell asleep in the bed together looking out onto their new view. They remained together in their house only leaving their bedroom to eat before going right back upstairs. Once they'd stripped down, they'd not redressed the whole three days. On their third day together, Tomoeh found an atlas in one of their bookshelves while Nathan was making them something. He pointed out the map of the United States for her to look at and she studied it while Nathan cooked. When they returned upstairs, she took the atlas with her and opened it to the map, laying on the bed looking at it.

"So where are we?" Tomoeh asked. Nathan laid down right behind her, holding her against him before pointing at the top left hand corner of Washington state.

"We're right here," Nathan said.

"And where did you want to go?"

"South," Nathan said. "I hear tales of the tribes down south. There are tribes like the Mayans and the Aztecs that were said to be advanced beyond their time yet had a fascination with blood and death. There's an empire south called the Inca too." Nathan went to the next page so they were looking at South America. "Their empire stretched from the tip of Colombia," Nathan pointed to Colombia, "all the way down through Chile," he continued as he dragged his finger down the page, spanning the Inca Empire. "According to what I've read, they worshipped their chief who they believed was the sun god. They were called the 'Children of the Sun'."

"You want to go that far?" Tomoeh asked eagerly.

"If I can," Nathan said. "I hear lovely things about Brazil too. We have family friends there if I'm not mistaken. I doubt mom's spoken to them in over fifty years, but if I tell them I'm Renesmee Cullen's son, they're know exactly who I am."

"I wish we could go together," Tomoeh sighed. "I'm told the beaches south are breathtaking."

"That's what I hear," Nathan smiled. "I hear the beaches are bright, the sun is out, the water's clear and full of pretty fish."

Tomoeh sighed, "That sounds like a dream."

"It does," Nathan said. "And Brazil has a rainforest called the Amazon."

"What's a rainforest? I'd think that's what we live in."

"No," Nathan smiled. "We live in something more along the lines of a tundra. At least I think that's what it's called. The rainforest is supposed to be swarming with colorful birds and flowers and bugs and fruits. There's something called a Poison Dart Frog that's a bright color and its poisonous to the touch. Tribes in the rainforest used to rub their arrowheads on them to make their arrows poisonous."

"Wow," Tomoeh smiled. "You've really read up on this haven't you?"

"Been doing it for years," Nathan smiled. "Ever since my brother and Embry Jr. went to fight, I was a little jealous of the fact that they got to see the world, even if it was mostly so violent. I want to see the world without going to war."

"I think without war is the best way to travel," Tomoeh smiled back. "I wonder if you and I really could do all this."

"I would love that," Nathan said and kissed her ear.