THE SHE-WOLF AND THE RAVEN
Chapter 22: Home
"Thunderbird was very angry one time. He caused the ocean to rise. When the water began to cover things, the Quileute got into their boats. The waters rose for four days. They rose until the very tops of the mountains were covered with water. The Quileute in their boats sailed wherever the wind currents carried them. They had no way to direct themselves. There was no sun. There was no land. For four days the water receded. But now the people were much scattered. When they reached land, some of the people were at Hoh; so they lived there from that time on. Others landed at Chemakum and stayed there. Only a few succeeded in finding their way back to Quileute."
oooo
The football game blared loudly in the background as Leah helped her mother fill bowls with potato chips and dip. They spread the bowls around the kitchen table and the living room table. Then they sent Seth with a few armfuls of bowls for the guests overflowing from the house and under the tent in the backyard. He grinned and took a handful of Doritos before disappearing out the back door and into the cool afternoon drizzle.
"If this continues, we may need to consider a bigger house," Sue said in insincere chagrin. She loved hosting holidays, even if they meant the Swan house was bursting at the seams and she had to cook enough to feed a small army.
"Nah," Leah said with a slight wave of her hand in dismissal. "We'll just get another canopy and ask Thor to keep the clouds away."
"Why didn't you ask him to make it sunny today?"
"And ruin their flag football mud fun? I wouldn't dream of it!"
Sue snorted in laughter and pulled out another plate of steamed clams. She arranged these on a platter before she tested the tenderness of the boiling potatoes. Leah opened the oven, releasing a billowing wave of heat and the smell of turkey, and she checked the meat again.
"Seriously, though, mom. Thanksgiving?" Leah said with an arched eyebrow. She closed the oven and wiped her hands on her apron. "You have grumbled about this holiday since we were kids."
"No, I grumbled about historically inaccurate representations and stereotypes. Besides, well, it's important to Charlie."
"Charlie's heard you grumble about it even longer than we have."
"I know, but this year is different. We do have a lot to be thankful for. I'm back, Lily is back, you're back. Seth and you have married and you filled our family with those darling little grandbabies. My life is full. I don't have to agree with the origin of the holiday to reappropriate parts of it. Christmas was a pagan holiday until the Roman Christians gave it new meaning. I can do the same thing. So I'll add in some of our traditional foods and we can have our own history lesson and make it something new."
"So no feathers?"
"Absolutely not."
Sue carefully flipped the frying trout, making the oil splash out of the pan. "Here, take these clams and mussels out to the guests. They should have inhaled all the chips by now."
"Sure, mom," she said and kissed her mother on the cheek. She held open the backdoor with her hip as she carried the full platter to the plastic table under the canopy tent. In the yard, Thor, Seth, Jacob, Isaac, and Renesmee were huddled around the pups, handkerchiefs stuffed in their back pockets. Their game was paused again to adjust the rules of flag football to incorporate the four-legged participants.
"Sister! Come and join in our revels!" Thor boomed with outstretched arms when he saw her approach. "We would benefit greatly from a warrior of your stature in our practice battle!"
"No, thanks!" she answered. A grey wolf as tall as her waist ran up to her with his tail wagging and drool pooling from his muzzle. She pushed him away with her elbow.
"Kwoli - wait for someone with hands to serve you," she exhorted before he made an attempt to lick the entire platter. She threw a clam into his waiting mouth and he gobbled it zealously. "Don't eat them all. Have some manners and share with everyone else."
The wolf pup licked his chops and whined until she threw down a second serving.
The entire platter was empty before she returned to the house.
Within, the house bustled with the sound of cabinets opening and closing and the chatter of more relatives. Bella and Sarah carried loads of dishes from the kitchen to the backyard while Lily sat on the front porch with Billy and Edward.
"Tell me again, son, what exactly do you do?" came Charlie's voice from the living room. Leah poked her head in to see Charlie seated on the couch, beer in hand. Fenris sat in the armchair nearby, primly attempting to eat his chips and dip with a fork and spoon.
"I have extensive experience in both politics and public relations, though I am currently between employers at the moment," Fenris answered carefully...too carefully. Charlie's cop instincts immediately piqued and he forgot the game long enough to give Fenris a more careful perusal.
"So, you don't have a job?"
"Not currently, no."
"And how long you have been living in Canada?"
"Approximately a decade."
"And before that?" Charlie asked. He set his beer down on the table and leaned forward with his elbows on his knees.
"It is a long, arduous tale which few would find uplifting," he answered.
"Try me."
"As you wish," Fenris said and by the light glint of his eyes Leah groaned inwardly. She knew that expression and it never ended well. Fenris primly placed a chip into his mouth, swallowed, and his face glowed with overly sincere earnestness. "Before I came to dwell in Canada, I was imprisoned by my adopted father in the land of my kin. He did not approve of my ambition to conquer your world and rule as a benevolent god and so he sentenced me to life in prison. I escaped and traveled to Canada."
Charlie spluttered on his beer and quickly grabbed a napkin to clean up his plaid shirt. Leah took that as the opportune moment to make her appearance. She glided into the room and gave Fenris a pointed glare.
"He's joking, Charlie," Leah interjected. "Fenris, not everyone understands your humor."
Fenris arched one eyebrow in response. "I assure you, I speak only the truth."
"Sure, sure. And I used to play first base for the Seattle Mariners," Charlie let out with a gruff, chiding groan. "At least tell me you can't turn into an animal like Jacob."
"Oh, I can assure you, I cannot turn into an animal in the same manner as the young wolf," Fenris said. His grin grew along with his amusement. Leah rolled her eyes and gave up any attempts to rescue Charlie. His daughter was a vampire. He could handle Fenris.
ooooo
"This is a strange way to toast, brother," Thor whispered in a voice that was anything but a whisper. His plate of food overflowed onto the table and he took a large gulp from his plastic cup. "I remember feasts on Midgard in past centuries where it was tradition to serve wine or ale or beer, but these overly sweetened beverages that sparkle in my mouth make my nostrils tickle. Tell me, why is it that I can find no spirits in this town? Do they have religious prohibitions against strong drink?"
Fenris paused his attempts at cutting his turkey to wink at Leah. He gave a dramatic sigh. "I am afraid these regions of Midgard no longer permit the sale of strong drink. You will have to abstain until you return to New Asgard."
Thor grumbled and took another drink of his Sprite with a grimace. "Surely not, brother. Only this morn, your bride's father spoke to me of his favored ales. Mayhaps the good man can advise me where to find such markets, even if they be sold far from here."
"I cannot say, Thor," Fenris answered. "I welcome you to continue your search, though." He help up his own glass of wine and gleefully imbibed a large sip.
Leah shook her head and bit back her chuckle. Fenris' elaborate spell work had kept his brother more sober than Thor wished to be and he didn't intend to let Thor in on his joke anytime soon.
Jacob pulled out his chair next to Leah with a third massive helping of food on his plate.
"Jake, leave some for the rest of the guests," Sue chided him from across the table.
"I'm eating the portion reserved for the Cullens," he answered with his mouth full of turkey. "I will enjoy it for them." He tossed his head in the direction of his soon-to-be in-laws. Edward and Bella did not bother to pretend to eat but whispered quietly to each other at the end of the table.
Fenris cocked his head to one side and considered them for a moment before he resumed his analysis of his salad. He placed all olives under the table so he would not have to eat them. Leah was about to stand for seconds when she heard a startled gasp accompanied the appearance of two more heartbeats. Whispers grew into incredulous shouts. Leah saw that instead of two pairs of golden eyes, brown and green took their place. Edward and Bella's mouths fell open in expressions of rapt awe. Edward's hand delicately traced the rose-tinted cheeks of his wife and she took his soft, warm hand in hers.
"What happened?" she whispered.
His reply was interrupted by a choked cry. Jacob sprung to his feet so fast he knocked over his chair. His hands flung to his neck and his nostrils flared on his too pale, hardened face. He fled the table to disappear into the forest with Renesmee following after, concern evident on her face.
Fenris watched disinterestedly. "I do not believe he will require this," Fenris said as he stole the roll off of Jacob's plate. He passed the remaining plate down to where the Cullens could barely keep their hands off each other. He cleared his throat to get their attention. "Eat heartily. This food is much too delicious to allow it to be wasted."
"Turn them back," Leah whispered when he returned to his seat.
"Of course, my love...after dessert," he answered with a wide grin.
ooooo
The next day, Jacob was waiting for her on her front porch when she woke in the morning. Two pups happily nestled into his lap and chewed on sticks while he scratched them behind their ears. Leah, still in her pajamas, sat next to him and took a stick from one of the pups. She threw it across the yard for the little pup to chase. His tail wagged so hard she thought it could have knocked over a human if one had been so unfortunate as to be in its path.
"You seem happy...even happier then that last semester of college. The happiest I've seen you since before, well, you know," Jacob observed.
"Yeah, I am," she said and surprised herself by actually meaning it.
"I'm glad."
"I needed the time and space away."
"Yeah, that can help sometimes."
"So, why are you here, Jake?" she asked. She knew him too well. By the way he fiddled with his thumb and sat too tall, she knew he had an ulterior motive besides just "hanging out." "Aren't you, you know, going back to Wyoming or something like that?"
"Yeah, well, the Cullens sent me to take care of some business for them here."
"Business? What are you now their secretary as well as their lapdog?"
"Shut it, Lee. Look, this is important."
"Fine."
"Our family has decided not to return to Forks - like at all. The Cullens don't want to be responsible for another generation of wolves phasing or bringing any more of their kind here. They realized that their very presence has been like a magnet for other Cold Ones to come here and they don't want to cause any more problems. We will visit while Sue and Charlie live, of course, and they will be happy to come back in case we need help with anything, but only if they are asked. They won't make this a permanent home again."
"Wow! That's going to make Sam and the elders really happy."
"That's what I came to tell them. There's another thing too. You know that massive beast of a house they have hidden on all that acreage? Yeah, they have decided to give it to the tribe."
"What?"
"Yeah. While it's not a lot compared to what used to belong to our people around Forks, they want to give it to us since it did used to belong to us. I let the elders know and they will be asking if you will take over as caretaker of the property."
"Why me?"
"Well, for one thing, you could use a place to stay that's outside of town, outside of public eyes, and with lots of space to run on. For another, alpha wolves shouldn't be living as close as your husband and Sam would be if you stay at your mom's. That's bound to cause some tension. Finally, it's pretty pragmatic. You will most likely outlive all the others since I don't see you giving up phasing anytime soon."
"I don't know whether that should make me depressed or relieved."
"Probably both."
"I hadn't even thought that far ahead yet."
"Yeah, well they like to think ahead. The elders know you'd do a good job of it, too. So, they will talk to you about it later. Think about it. They have some cool ideas, you know, like a youth center or a guest house rental or museum or something. There's enough land that you could build it all and still have space for your pack of wolves to run in."
"Man, I'm gonna have to tell Fenris to be nicer to them. I'm gonna feel bad about what a jerk he's been. Sorry about yesterday, by the way."
"Don't be. That was a trip," he said with a wide grin. "I will never make fun of the Cullens for their bloodlust again. That was worse than laryngitis...and Edward and Bella are wondering if they can convince Fenris to do that for every holiday."
"They disappeared pretty quick there. I probably should have been worried they were upset, but I don't think I'm that nice of a person."
"Yeah, well, they might have been enjoying feeling human a bit too much to want to, you know, be human around everyone."
Leah snorted. "I don't want to know anymore, please."
"It's enough to say, it's good he didn't turn them back until well after dessert."
"Ugh. Enough, Jake! Aren't they almost your parents-in-law?"
Jacob grinned and ran one hand through his short hair. "Yeah. Two more months and they I'll have vamps for in-laws."
"You have the most awkward family, ever, Jake. You ready to marry into it?"
"So ready! I'm even more ready to be done with high school and college for at least a decade! I mean, I'm glad I finally got my degree and all that, but I really have had enough of high school drama for, yeah, like ever."
"At least until you all move again."
"Even then. Maybe I can convince them to let me be the weird uncle that stays with them or their mechanic friend who rents a room or something. Anything to not have to go through high school again."
Leah snorted a laugh. "You know, Jake, as weird as this sounds, I'm glad we won't grow old together."
"Me too, Lee. We will have Christmas dinners to look forward to for centuries."
oooo
Leah leaned against a tree trunk a few feet away from where the rest of her family circled around their father. Fenris' five children listened eagerly as he projected an illusion of the bifrost and the golden spires of a palace towering over the tiered, fortified city on its flanks.
"You still must know about Asgard, even if your eyes will never see it," he told them. He placed one hand on the furry forehead of Bayak and garnered the mental image of his question. He laughed. "No, there are no salmon, but some very fine silver thiku fish."
An image of a fish the size of Leah's forearm appeared. It was silver and striped with blue lines along its back. The wolf pup sat back on his haunches, satisfied now that his question was answered.
"Here is Yggdrasil," Fenris continued. He created what appeared to be a huge, branching tree in the center of the circle for all of them to see. "The World Tree. Our bards say the Great Weaver wove the immense, layered tapestry of the universe with magic that transcends the powers of Time and Fate. In the center, he placed the mighty tree of Yggdrasil, the crown of his tapestry. All the Nine Realms are interconnected through its branches and trunk.
"The legends say that all life in Yggdrasil is interrelated and this explains the similarities in flora and fauna across realms. For example, oak trees are found on Midgard and Asgard. Variations of what you call horses are found from Vanaheim to Alfheim. There are some species of canines found on every single realm. These shared similarities in flora and fauna are distinct from outside of the Nine where there is a much greater diversity of types of life."
As he spoke, he cast illusions of the creatures of each realm along with scenery of the realm he referred to. The pups watched in fixed admiration, their tongues panting as they eagerly listened to their father. Fenris cast a picture of the stars and the planets orbiting in the sky above them. They all turned their heads upwards to watch.
"These similarities can be explained through the Convergence. Once every epoch, all Nine realms align during this mystical time when the threads between realms disintegrate and movement between the realms is as easy as a squirrel climbing the branches of a tree. Midgard becomes the central pathway to each of the other realms - what some refer to as the crossroads - and this allows the transference of life between all the realms.
"Each realm has its own distinct climate and seasons and magic, but Midgard is unique in its diversity. As its name implies, it is the middle, the central realm of order. It also is, what you might call, a microcosm of the climate zones of all the other realms. It has ice that rivals Jotunheim, deserts as dry as Muspelheim, forests as lush as Vanaheim, and mountains as high as Asgard's once stood. Its seasons are short and constantly changing as often as its inhabitants.
"When life from the other realms falls into Midgard, the magic of the land creeps into their blood, teaching them to live and survive and thrive even in places so vastly different than their origin. Those on Midgard may change and adapt much more quickly than their counterparts on the other realms, changing to become indistinguishable from their kin, but their origin remains the same. Thus, the magic that holds this realm together is interwoven with change. The creatures upon this realm, also, are constantly changing to adapt to their environments in a way not found on the other realms. This change is aided by shortened life spans and faster cycles of birth and death.
"Thus, some of our scholars argue that all Midgardians are shape-shifters in their own way. The inhabitants of this realm live in the delicate dance between soul and flesh, eternal and mortal, noncorporeal and embodied, perpetually. They inhabit constant change while longing for permanence. Midgardians shift and change between generations to reinvent themselves anew again and again in a thousand different forms and shades and sizes."
Fenris snapped his fingers and his illusions vanished. He lowered his tone and walked past each of his pups running a finger along each of their heads and looking them in the eye.
"Some of us are made for one era, one place, and one people. Others are made to fit anywhere and during any time. You, my children, carry the blood of multiple realms and, as one of those realms is Midgard, you inherit great capacity for change. You dance the line, never quite belonging in any place you set your feet, and so belonging in all of them by the very nature of your liminality. You shift and change and adapt to what each age and era and people require of you. That is your gift and your curse, your strength and your weakness. Guard it and tend it well."
The ivory wolf cocked his head to one side and whined until his father came and placed a hand on his forehead. Fenris concentrated on his eldest boy and then nodded.
"It is a good question," he said. Fenris turned where Leah leaned against the tree. "Isaac wishes to know if the other Quileute tales are true. Can the Quileute also turn into whales and fish if they are part of the other ceremonial societies?"
Leah openly gawked and shook her head. "No…Yeah, we used to have those stories and they were true for the wolves but the others aren't. I mean they can't be, right? Ok, I never thought of it."
Isaac whined and pressed his forehead against his father's palm again.
"In addition, since the tales of the Cold Ones are based on truth, does it follow that the cannibal ogre woman, Dask'iya or Tatakwayal and Kilatob, the giants, also exist?" Fenris interpreted for Isaac.
"Holy Moses, I hope not!" Leah exclaimed. She pushed herself off the tree to walk over to place her arm around Isaac. She kissed his nose and rubbed the top of his head behind his ears. "I never once stopped to think about that. That is a pretty creepy possibility."
"What your mother means to say is that you are well-equipped to meet any foe in battle. You will continue to train and further your skills so that whether you meet weapon or spell, you will learn to best your opponent and keep your people and your home safe," Fenris answered.
"Sure, that's exactly what I meant to say," she said with an eye roll. Isaac huffed a laugh.
"Speaking of skills-it is time to practice what I showed you last time," Fenris said. He stretched out his hand and blue and red flames sprang up from his palm. "Now, your turn."
Leah gaped and ran her finger through the colorfully dancing flames. She squawked as the heat of the non-illusory flames burned her flesh.
"My lady, this is fire magic practice, not illusion-casting. Have you no more sense than to place your hand in open flame?"
"Can I do that?" she asked, disregarding his sarcasm. She kept her hands cupped a healthy distance from the flames but near enough to feel the heat against her skin.
"No."
"But you said I have undeveloped magic."
"You do…magic to shift forms. You do not have this magic in your blood. These children unite the magic of two realms and so not only acquire both of our innate abilities, but also have potential neither of us has on our own."
"And you think teaching our not quite fully grown pups how to throw fireballs from their hands is a wise idea?" Leah asked.
Fenris released a long suffering sigh and rubbed his hands against his forehead. Leah took the hint and stood.
"Fine, fine. You all practice being magical. I'm going to go get lunch ready."
"An excellent idea. We will require sustenance shortly," Fenris said.
As she turned to leave she noticed only four pups and she glanced around the clearing, but the black pup was nowhere to be seen.
"Umm, hey, where's Bayak?" she asked.
Fenris glanced around, as equally confused as herself. Isaac barked and jumped up against the trunk of a nearby tree, pawing at the bark with his front claws. Fenris placed his hand against Isaac's forehead to discover the reason for the commotion. Fenris' eyes trailed up the tree to the uppermost branch where a blue jay hopped from branch to branch and remained nearly hidden by pine needles.
"It appears Bayak is in the tree," he said with a sigh.
"The wolf climbed a tree?" Leah asked dubiously.
"Nay. The lad transformed himself into a blue jay and flew up into the tree. I can sense his magic from here."
"What? He's not old enough to phase!"
"You are welcome to inform him of that after we retrieve him from his perch."
She put her hands on her hips and stared up at the flittering bird. "Bayak, you come back here this instant."
When the bird failed to obey her, she shouted up at the top branch again. "I am serious! If you don't come down here now, I will turn into a falcon and drag you down in my claws."
At that, the bird flew down and landed on her shoulder. "As proud as I am that you figured out how to do this, do you know how to turn yourself back?"
The blue jay cawed and shook its head from side-to-side.
"I suppose if all else fails, we can install a bird cage in the back bedroom and gather some appropriate avian fodder," Fenris said. He held out his arm for the bird the climb on. "Do not give me that look, Bayak. I will not be rescuing you. You must transform back yourself."
The jay squawked again and bobbed his head from side-to-side.
"My love, perhaps next time we should try for chicks instead of pups," Fenris said. Leah only groaned in response.
Ooooooo
The remodel of the guest house on the old Cullen property took more time than she anticipated and she made it back to the main house later than she meant to. She was covered in paint and her arms were full of bags of tools. She slammed the front door closed louder than she intended. She dropped the tools with a clamber when she heard a scream from the corner of the large living room.
Curled in a ball and hiding under a table lay a boy. He looked no older than her own children appeared to be when human, but he was obviously only human. His face was red from tears and smudged with dirt. Round glasses sat crooked on his nose and his unkempt brown hair fell into his swollen eyes. He gave Leah a wide-eyed stare and crawled further into the corner of the room as if the walls could swallow him up.
"Ummm, hi? Who are you?" she asked. She hadn't known the children expected a guest and, unless they were playing a new form of hide-and-go-seek, she didn't think this was normal behavior. The boy buried his head in his hands and failed to answer.
"Oh, hey mom," Sarah called from the kitchen. She sat on the counter, her legs dangling off the edge, with a plate of cheese and crackers on her lap.
"Sarah, why is there a terrified teenage boy in the living room?" Leah asked. The boy didn't stir or make a sound.
"Oh, I found him at the grocery store. He's mine," Sarah answered with a shrug and between a mouthful of crackers.
"What do you mean he is yours?" Leah asked, her concern growing exponentially.
"Oh, hi mom!" Isaac called from the hallway. He walked in and gave his mother a kiss on the cheek. He was so tall now he had to bend down to reach her. He stole a cracker off his sister's plate and threw it in his mouth. He leaned against the counter and his gaze followed Leah's to the shivering bundle in the corner. "Yeah, I told her not to, but she didn't listen."
"Sarah, please tell me you didn't kidnap a poor kid from the grocery store," Leah said.
"Of course not. He will see it's for the best as soon as he stops freaking out."
"She found him in the frozen food department and barely waited long enough to get him out of the store. She carried him home in her mouth the whole way, screaming like a scared rabbit," Isaac interjected.
" Wait, you phased in front on him?" Leah asked. She closed her eyes and rubbed her temples to ease the headache that was threatening.
"Of course. He was easier to carry that way," Sarah answered, as if she had merely offered the boy an umbrella.
"Sarah, you can't do that. You have to let him go."
"No, I don't. He is mine."
"That's not how it works. The boy...what's his name?"
"I don't know."
"Sarah, you didn't even ask his name? Seriously?"
"It wasn't important."
Leah threw up her hands and groaned. She checked the clock on the microwave. Fenris would still be out for at least a few more hours. She was on her own till then. She took a deep breath and faced her daughter.
"I take it you imprinted on him. We've talked about this and told you what to do in case it happens. This isn't the way. He still gets a choice in this, even if you don't. You need to break him into our world gradually, not scare the poor kid half to death."
"Why wait? We will be together forever and he is mine. That's all that matters."
Isaac bit back his chuckle and gave his mother an amused laugh.
"I'm glad you find this amusing," Leah said as she lightly pushed his shoulder. "Why didn't you stop her?"
"And miss seeing dad's face when he finds out? No chance! He will use the kid for target practice and then turn him into a naked mole rat. Or just set him on fire."
"No! Isaac don't you give him any ideas! Mom, you won't let him, right?" Sarah asked, panic evident in her voice as she jumped off the counter and grabbed Leah's hand.
"Of course not, but Sarah, you have to let him go and I need to talk to him. Remember what I told you? You have to pretend you are human. No wolf stuff to people who aren't initiated. No magic. No turning yourself or others into animals."
"Yeah, yeah. You've given us this lecture a thousand times."
"Yet here we are. You apparently needed it a thousand and one times."
"Well, he's been initiated so it doesn't matter now. He can stay in my room," Sarah said with a smug grin.
"Oh no. No, no, no. You are not keeping him here. He has a family and a home and he will not...under any circumstances...be staying in your room...ever."
Isaac burst into laughter and doubled over the counter as he laughed. Sarah glared at him and crossed her arms over her chest.
"Why not?" she asked.
The hard glint of her eyes and the stubborn pucker of her lips resembled her father so strongly that Leah could only sigh and collapse onto one of the bar stools by the counter.
"I am so not ready to have this conversation with my 11 year old. Sarah, first we take him home and then we will have a long talk.
Sarah huffed in protest and pouted but did not argue. Leah sent both of her kids out of the house so she could deal with their "guest". She cautiously approached the boy and knelt to the ground to urge him out of the corner.
"Hi. I am so sorry about all this. I promise you are safe. What's your name?" Leah asked in a voice she hoped would calm him.
"J-J-Johnny," the boy stammered. He pushed his glasses farther up his nose and peered up at Leah hesitantly. "I-I-Is s-s-she g-g-going to eat me?"
"No. Come on out of there and I will take you home. I will explain the best I can on the way."
"K-k-k."
Leah made a mental note to call Bella Cullen that night and ask how they dealt with their daughter's preteen age in an adult body...especially with imprinting involved.
oooo
They looked out over the ashy, barren plains of Svartalfheim. Behind them, the New Asgard sprouted as a tiny oasis, an acorn which was just sending out tentative roots but would one day become a towering oak.
Short buildings of baked clay bricks lined roughly cobbled streets. Young trees fought to cast shade alongside the road and around the simple homes. Open fields of wheat and barley surrounded the town, their tender shoots waving in the light breeze.
Aesir walked or pulled carts along the road. They could not yet grow enough hay for horses or oxen, but Sif's skills in magic were expanding. In her care, the land softened and grew more fertile, aided in no small part by the rain storms Thor summoned each day.
They were not firmly established yet, but someday they would be.
Fenris transported another crate of seeds and chickens from Midgard. The fee he charged the Aesir to navigate them between realms and curry their packages was enough to comfortably support their small family in Forks. Until the Aesir could build their new bifrost, Fenris would not be lacking in employment...which Thor delighted in as it ensured regular visits from his brother.
Thor and Sif met them on the road outside their budding apple orchard. Sif carried a basket of fresh bread and water and directed them to a brick bench shaded by the side of their home.
Fenris clicked his tongue as he appraised his brother.
"The blame is yours, good lady," he chided Sif. "When the oaf visits Midgard, we return him to you the size of a young boar but when we come upon him here, we find the glutton is fattened for roasting again. What has occurred? His stomach rivals yours, though yours grows with child and his remains barren."
Sif rolled her eyes before placing her hand on Thor's ample belly. "Aye. Next time, I will leave the child-bearing to him and the battling to me as it makes no sense to have us both so heavy laden."
Thor only grinned and leaned over to kiss his wife. She snorted, but her eyes glistened with her proud delight.
Her clothes were simple now. They lacked the former elegance of past days, but the queen of Asgard wore the evidence of her station in the carriage of her neck and the haughty turn of her lips when Aesir did not bend to her wishes. She glowed with an inner happiness which was more lovely than any of the finery of old Asgard's feasting gowns. It would not be long before the Aesir welcomed a new little prince and the first Thorson.
Some Aesir chose to settle in Tønsberg, but most followed their king and queen to the wilds of what they now called Aesaheim. It would take thousands of years to heal the land of the damage inflicted upon it by the Dark Elves, but they had time. It might never match the grandeur of the old Asgard, but it was now their home. It was the place for the Aesir to grow and thrive and become who they would choose to become as a people.
On a certain night each year, the Aesir gathered under the brilliant canopy of stars. These were not the stars of their youth but their bards were already weaving tales to help their young learn these new constellations. Beneath these stars, far from the absent rush of the Great Falls, the Aesir spoke the names of their kin in Valhalla. They lit their candles and painted the sky with tributes to their memories.
Fenris and Leah came to join them. Each year, no matter which realm or planet they traveled to, they always returned to join the Aesir and share in their celebrations of both their past and their future. The pair watched the glimmer of lights floating into the sky. Leah leaned her head against his shoulder.
"You made peace with your past here," she observed quietly. "I can sense it. Whenever we come, you don't have any of the uncertainties you used to have. You have even let go some of your bitterness with your father.."
He nodded. "I will not deny it."
"I'm glad...but, Fenris..."
Fenris dropped his eyes from the sky to meet hers. She bit her bottom lip and pulled his arm into hers.
"Fenris, sometime, you need to go back."
"Go back where?"
"Jotunheim. Your birthplace. You need to know your people better and you need to make peace with that part of you as well."
Fenris growled under his breath and his entire posture stiffened. "You wish me to die, then."
"No. I want you find peace. You've got more hang ups than an old fishing net and if you don't sort out your past, it's gonna keep drowning you."
He sighed and she could feel both his fear and his resignation within him.
"Perhaps. Someday. But not today. Today, I am here."
"And I'm very glad of that," she answered. He pulled her into an embrace and kissed her deeply. For that day, at least, they were where they belonged.
ooooo
She came back to Quileute in the spring just as the daffodils began to bloom. The forests dripped with the constant drizzle and the sky sank into perennial grey like freshly molten silver. Leah inhaled deeply so she could drink in the lush scents of moisture and old growth and decay and life.
Home. No other place compared and she could feel the magic of this place reinvigorating her already.
There were more houses, more people, a new community center, a larger school on the expanded LaPush reservation. Change permeated each street and neighborhood as apparent as moss on tree trunks. She could feel the new memories and new songs that sprung out of this patch of earth like daffodil sprouts in spring.
She still remembered the old songs.
She dug through an old chest in the Clearwater home until she found them: Granny Grace's rattles. She put them on her ankles and listened to the rhythm sung by her feet as she walked to the burial grounds. She was not the only mourner, though few recognized her. It had been a long, long time since she last came to visit her home. As her funeral invitations outnumbered her wedding invitations, she found it harder and harder to return. She couldn't miss this one, though.
There in the last canoe he ever built (the one his great grandson helped him paint) lay the first alpha of the LaPush wolf pack. It was tradition now to bury the wolves the old way, like the warriors of their ancestors, in their canoes. For the old, retired wolves, before their hair fell white as crocuses on their weathered foreheads, it became a tradition to weave a blanket in the old way too. Instead of using the long hair of their dogs, they used their own long wolf hair. These blankets hung in their living rooms once they stopped phasing and then joined them in their journey to the Land of the Dead when they were buried.
Sam's blanket, woven by Emily during the last year he phased, now covered his canoe in brown and turquoise weavings of wolves howling at the moon.
After the minister read passages of scripture and prayed, Sam's daughter and granddaughter played a duet of Beatles tunes on their guitars. Leah let her feet keep time and added her own rhythm to their songs.
Sam would have been pleased, she thought. He was surrounded by his generations of descendants, none of which had phased. The Cullens, true to their word, did not return except for brief visits. Jacob stayed with them, his hair still black and his tawny skin still smooth, despite the passage of decades -just like Leah. They were their own breed of immortal and the bittersweet draft of agelessness granted them more perspective on the lives the Cullens sought to live. She was glad she could always visit Jacob, no matter how many years apart they spaced those visits. It granted her a sense of continuity and rootedness that she struggled with after the rest of their original packmates slept in their own burial canoes.
It was one of those rare sunny days which transformed the ocean into a rippling collage of warring colors. When all the mourners disappeared to return to Sam and Emily's house for a meal, she left them. Instead, she made her way from the cemetery to the beach, a raven perched on her shoulder. She let her fingers stroke the soft, iridescent feathers as she walked.
She sat on a driftwood log to watch the curling froth of the wave break. The raven fluttered down from her shoulder to perch upon the log. He ruffled his feathers before pecking at the weathered wood of the log. In the distance, A-Ka-Lat island stood tall and regal, guarding over their land as it had always done. Chiefs would come and go and be buried in the land, part of the memories of the past, but the island, that slice of t'sigati, stayed and she felt the magic of the place strengthen her like a clay pot in a firing oven. No matter how many stars she traveled to or distant people she lived amongst, this was her home.
She closed her eyes, continued to stroke the feathers of the raven on her lap, and she felt like a tree with her roots finally planted where they belonged. The final song of the funeral service filled her head and she hummed it to herself:
"There are places I'll remember
All my life though some have changed
Some forever, not for better
Some have gone and some remain
"All these places have their moments
With lovers and friends I still can recall
Some are dead and some are living
In my life I've loved them all
"But of all these friends and lovers
There is no one compares with you
And these memories lose their meaning
When I think of love as something new
"Though I know I'll never lose affection
For people and things that went before
I know I'll often stop and think about them
In my life I love you more."
The raven fluttered his wings and cawed in response. Then the she-wolf transformed herself into raven and the pair took to the sky together.
Ooooo
Author's Notes:
The "Story of the Flood" tale at the beginning comes from: Reagan, Albert, and L.V.W. Walters, 1933, "Tales from the Hoh and Quileute", Journal of American Folklore, V. XLVI, pp. 297-346
"feathers" comment: The relationship between Native Americans and Thanksgiving is understandably contentious. (Google it if you want to know more). As a holiday created by Abraham Lincoln to unify the divided country around a shared mythical past, representations of the actual historical context of the event can be a bit utilitarian and missing pertinent details. Thanksgiving plays and art tend to show Native Americans with feathered headdresses...Leah's comment refers to that stereotype since the Quileute historically did not wear feathers in that way and yet the dominant culture likes to force everyone into one stereotype and make disparate people groups to be "the same."
"In My Life" is by the Beatles.
t'sigati: word referring to the land-both supernatural and natural.
Twilight tales of "Cold Ones" are not actually based on Quileute tales. The cannibal ogre woman, Dask'iya or Tatakwayal and Kilatob, the giants, however, are part their cosmology.