Author: ChrissiHR, Pre-reader: meliz875, Banner: Dontcallmeleelee
Rating: MA, strong language and adult situations discussed
Timeline: Post-New Moon, no cliff-jump, the Cullens haven't returned.
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Little Red & Her Big Bad Wolves: The Wolf Riders
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Jacob
"Jacob," Bella's Aunt Molly greeted me with a smile, swinging the screen door open to motion me in. "I'm sorry for summoning you this way, but I had to speak to you alone, to explain some changes that will be coming soon that you'll need to be aware of."
I fidgeted nervously in the family room, feeling too big in the small space as usual, not sure if I should sit or stand. This didn't sound like good news.
"No need to be nervous, young man. Come into the kitchen. I made some of that mint iced tea you like so much," she gestured for me to take a seat and grabbed the pitcher from the fridge. She poured us each a glass over ice and little sprigs of mint from her backyard garden.
I took a sip and sighed contentedly, closing my eyes briefly. It tasted so fresh and green, like taking deep breaths when I was phased wolf running through the woods on patrol.
When I open my eyes, I realized Molly was looking at me curiously, so I explained, "Bella makes that for me when she and her dad come over for dinner. It reminds me of running wolf on patrol on a really nice day. I didn't realize the tea was a family recipe."
She smiled and sipped her own absently, "Mm … yes. The mint cuttings for her kitchen garden, and yours, came from mine when you were both still babies. Your mothers both loved how it made their kitchens smell afterward."
My wolf chuffed happily at the thought of Bella carrying on a family tradition like that for our sakes. It made me happy, too—the reminder of the history I shared with Bells, the reminder of my mom. I'd forgotten that Mom used to make the tea, too.
She smiled and sipped her own absently, "Mm … yes. The mint cuttings for her kitchen garden, and yours, came from mine when you were both still babies. Your mothers both loved how it made their kitchens smell afterward."
My wolf chuffed happily at the thought of Bella carrying on a family tradition like that for our sakes. It made me happy, too—the reminder of the history I shared with Bells, the reminder of my mom. I'd forgotten that Mom used to make the tea, too.
"I suspect Bella makes it because she thought you might miss your mother's," she said gently.
"Oh, yeah … I guess I kind of forgot about Mom making it. She's been gone so long now … " I trailed off.
She patted my hand, "I know. Deep down, I think Bella just recognizes that it makes you happy when she makes the tea for you. The reason for your happiness won't matter to her, as long as you're smiling."
I looked at the glass and the edges of my vision blurred as a fuzzy, long-forgotten memory came to the fore. "Mom … mom used to freeze the mint right in the ice cubes. I picked it out of the glass if it wasn't frozen in the ice. It was green and I didn't like salad, so she promised not to put salad in my glass. We compromised on the ice cubes and shook on it," I said, my voice hitching at the memory of my mom pouring the tea over my special ice cubes and patting my head.
I looked up at Molly in wonder, "I didn't remember that until just now."
"You weren't meant to," she whispered sagely and the tightness around my heart dissipated.
"What do you mean?" I asked, relaxed now that the urge to cry over Mom's memory had passed.
"You're coming of age, young Alpha. Many things will be revealed to you in the coming months. That's why I called you here today, to explain what's coming. You need to understand, so you don't let anger and jealousy color your reactions to the coming changes."
"What changes?" The nerves came back, not as bad as before, but I didn't like the sound of where this was going.
"Bella-" she began.
"What about Bella?" I growled.
"Calm yourself, young Alpha. It's nothing bad, only different from what you've been taught to expect."
"You wonder sometimes why you've never imprinted on my niece, is that correct?" she asked.
I felt like she'd just punched me in the gut, but I answered anyway, whispering, "Yes."
"And if I told you again that you weren't meant to?"
"I'd wonder how the spirits could be so cruel. I've loved her my entire life, so much so that I wondered if it wasn't possible to imprint as a human at birth," I explained. "She was there, you know. The day I was born. Mom told me the story not long before she died.
"Renee came to attend Mom's birth at the tribal medical center. Renee was some kind of certified birth coach dou-loo or something and my mom wanted her there because my dad had to deal with the twins and all his tribal responsibilities and there was no way to know for sure that he'd be able to stay for the entire labor and delivery. Babies take a while to come, I guess.
"Becca was climbing a tree outside the medical center while Charlie was watching her and Rach. She fell and broke her arm. Dad left the room for a few minutes to help Charlie deal with the twins and get Becca taken care of by the doctor on call. The doctor had to leave Mom's room for a few minutes, too, to order X-rays for Becca.
"Mom said I was born in the five minutes it took for the doctor to sign the order for X-rays and administer pain meds to Becca. Renee delivered me herself. It all happened really quickly. Bella was two at the time, but she didn't freak out. She climbed up on the bed and sat beside Mom. Mom said Bella looked at me so longingly while Mom held me that first time that she offered to let Bella hold me next.
"Bella was the first person to hold me after my mother, even before my own father. Mom said she curled up on her side around Bella and laid me in her lap, supporting my head for her. She said Bella kissed my head and said, 'Love you, Baby.' Those are the first words Bella ever said to me."
I looked Molly right in the eye as I expressed my fondest wish, "I hope those are the last words—the last voice—I hear before I die as well."
Her face lit up in a dazzling smile, "I had no idea you were such a romantic, Jacob Black. You're a born ladies man—just like your father."
I looked Molly right in the eye as I expressed my fondest wish, "I hope those are the last words—the last voice—I hear before I die as well."
Her face lit up in a dazzling smile, "I had no idea you were such a romantic, Jacob Black. You're a born ladies man—just like your father."
Ew …
The smiled faded naturally and she continued. "You and Bella do share a special connection. There are things … things you don't know about imprinting. Secrets that aren't mine to tell," she rushed to explain before I could ask what she meant.
"However, there are things about Bella, and Charlie as well, that I can tell you. She's a member of my family and I'm the oldest surviving member which gives me certain rights. First and foremost, you need to know that Charlie knows about the wolves," she explained.
"What?" I whispered incredulously. Then the implications set in. "You told him?!"
"Don't shout at me, young man. I did not tell him. He figured it out when he was five years old. He's known most of his life. He's not stupid!"
The supernatural world as I knew it just got turned on its head as I considered how Charlie could possibly know about the pack.
"There were no wolves in La Push when Charlie and my dad were kids. My great-granddad stopped phasing when my dad was still in diapers," I reasoned.
A sad smile crossed her face, "Your great-granddad wasn't the final wolf to give up phasing from the former pack. There were two others after him. One of them is still alive."
"What?" My mind worked at light speed as I considered the possibilities. Then it hit me, "Old Quil?"
She nodded.
"Does he … when did he phase last?"
"He's been phasing once every couple of years to slow down our aging to be sure we'd live long enough to pass on our knowledge to the next pack."
"'We'? His phasing slows down the aging process for both of you? Are you his imprint?" I asked, not sure if that was too personal a question, but I was dying to know if it was a quirk of imprinting.
"I am not, but the reason I age with him is because I'm a marked mate," she swept her hair aside to show me the two crescent-shaped marks where her neck and shoulder met.
"He bit you?" I was horrified, seething with anger. I felt terrible for even considering biting Bella the other day, but to know a wolf had lost control and scarred his mate in such a way was unforgivab-
"No, Jacob," she cut off my internal rant in response to the parade of emotions playing across my face, "he marked me symbolically during an intimate moment. It is an instinctual action, but a leap of faith that is required on the part of the wolf and his mate—putting their trust in the spirits not to separate them. Marking has drawbacks. It must be discussed between mates before it is done because it renders the mates fertile only to one another. The woman will never bear children for anyone other than her mate. The wolf will never impregnate another woman other than his mate. It causes no pain. It's actually very … " she blushed like Bella to the roots of her hair, " … very enjoyable for the mated couple."
I squirmed uncomfortably in my chair. I really didn't want to know these things about Quil's gran, "Umm … so the marking is significant? It's an alternative to imprinting for mates who don't imprint? It slows down your aging, too, or matches yours up with his or something?"
"Yes, but we'll have to leave it at that for now. My Quil will have to reveal the rest of the real details about imprinting. I'm under Alpha orders to leave those explanations to Quil," she answered, but I wasn't sure which question she was answering 'yes' to; one or all of them? Then her words sank in.
"Alpha orders? Sam knows about this?" The thought that Sam had kept this important information about an alternative to imprinting filled me with rage again. My hands shook.
Molly laid her hand over mine and the tremors ceased, "Sam is not the Alpha who issued these orders."
Oh, so … "My great-granddad?"
"Yes," she confirmed.
"What are those orders?"
She sighed. She looked like she was trying to think of a way around the orders to explain them without breaking them, "We have orders to give the greatest pack secrets only to the next true Alpha and his claimed mate after he ascends to Alpha."
"So Sam knows these secrets already?"
"He does not."
"I don't understand," and I was getting sick of being talked in fucking circles.
Then she dropped the bomb on me, "You know Sam is not the true Alpha. You are. We can only reveal the former pack's secrets to you if you take your rightful place as the next hereditary Alpha."
My jaw dropped at the sudden realization that more important information was be being kept from the pack because of my refusal to step up, "Shit."
"Language," she admonished me, future Alpha status be damned.
"Yes, ma'am," I mumbled.
We sat in unsettled silence for a few minutes while I gathered my thoughts.
"Language," she admonished me, future Alpha status be damned.
"Yes, ma'am," I mumbled.
We sat in unsettled silence for a few minutes while I gathered my thoughts.
"Don't beat yourself up over it, Jacob. You're not ready yet."
"How do you know?"
"I just do. You will know when it is time. You'll follow your instincts. Don't doubt them."
"Even if they're telling me to bite the holy fuck out of Bella's throat and render her sterile to other men?"
"Yes."
I gaped at her, shocked. All I could do was blink.
"I'll give you a minute," she said with a smirk as she sat back in her chair, cupping her glass between her hands. "I'd like to remind you to watch your mouth while you're at it, too."
"Yes, ma'am," I mumbled, shaking out the mental kinks as I tried to process everything I'd been told so far while she waited silently for me to catch up.
"Okay ... okay, so can we backtrack a bit?" I asked, "Charlie knows about the wolves and there are things I need to know about Charlie and Bella?"
"Yes, there are things you need to know about my family specifically, Jacob. These are the things I'm allowed to tell you now. You've heard the stories before about how outraged people were when Quil and I married?"
"Yeah, people were still pretty ignorant and racist back then, I guess."
"Don't fool yourself, Jacob. People are still ignorant and racist now," she snapped, then lowered her eyes in apology. "Forgive me. It's still a sore spot. I spent many years keeping a low profile on the reservation and barely showing my face in Forks at all, so much so that even my own niece thinks I'm dead."
I started to interrupt, but she cut me off, "No, she can't know yet. It isn't time."
I huffed, but kept quiet while she continued, "Have you ever considered why my Quil married outside the tribe?"
"You're his imprint. The spirits chose you. It's not for us the question why-"
"Bullshit. I'm not his imprint, Jacob Black. Weren't you listening?" she cut me off, frustrated.
I raised my eyebrows at her language and tried to keep the mocking smirk off my face.
"Bullshit. I'm not his imprint, Jacob Black. Weren't you listening?" she cut me off, frustrated.
I raised my eyebrows at her language and tried to keep the mocking smirk off my face.
She rolled her eyes. "Don't give me that look. My house, my rules, and I’m an adult. I'll swear a blue streak if I want to," she griped. She waved her hands, "Ignore the imprint nonsense for a moment and ask yourself 'why was Quil drawn to a no name, pale face girl from Forks instead of a pedigreed, blue blood native girl from an old Quileute family?'"
I thought it over and offered the only suggestion I could come up with, "You brought something to the gene pool that the tribe was lacking at the time?"
She nodded.
"Something important?" I hedged.
She nodded again.
"Something that is passed down in your family?" I calculated the possibilities and offered another wild guess, "Something that Charlie and Bella inherited, too?"
"Bella, more so than Charlie, but, yes," she answered.
"There are a lot of things about Bella that make her different from other humans, even different from the imprints," I reasoned. "She's not afraid of werewolves. The imprints love the warrior, but keep a healthy distance from their wolf because of what happened to Emily. Bella loves my wolf, in fact, and sometimes inexplicably speaks Quileute to him even though she doesn't understand more than a dozen or so words in the entire language. She dated a vampire. She said the Cullens told her she smelled better than most humans and Deadward told her she smelled so good, she was like his own personal brand of heroine, the creeper. She talks in her sleep, has dreams that tell her things or help her figure things out. That's how she figured out the secret about the vampires and the pack-"
"These dreams are already manifesting? You know this for a fact?" Molly jumped on that piece of information with a tone of awed disbelief.
"Yeah, they scare her sometimes, so she tells me when I lay down with her to help her get back to sleep. She worries less about me when she tells me, so I can worry with her. I don't worry, though. I'm just more careful," I replied apologetically.
She nodded, but didn't elaborate on her interest in Bella's dreams.
I picked up where I left off, "Umm … so she has the dreams. She's intuitive in a way that most humans aren't. She knows when she's being watched even if she doesn't hear a sound. She said the mind-reading leech complained that he couldn't hear her thoughts and she was able to fight off the effects of the empathic bloodsucker. It was difficult, but she did it when he tried to relax her and put her to sleep. The psychic one couldn't always accurately predict her future; there were holes in Bella's future where the leech was blinded. Bella thinks it was because there were the times when she didn't want the psychic to be able to see her future, when she wanted to keep it a secret, like she was blocking her. Bella's like, leech-resistant or something."
It was Molly's turn to sit and stare with her mouth hanging open, "You're saying this is all fact? It has happened already? She's got an immunity to supernatural creatures?"
"I guess so. Doesn't stop the leeches from thinking she's delicious. It's scary. It's like they know she's immune to supernatural influences and it makes her more irresistible to them."
I stopped, realizing what I'd just said, "That's why they're all after her, isn't it? The thing she gets from you? The immunity? If she was turned-" my arms shook as I fought back the urge to phase at the thought of a leech biting my Bella, "If she was turned, she'd be some kind of super vampire, immune to the gifts of other vamps, no matter how gifted they are?"
Molly nodded, the sad smile on her face again, "It's both blessing and curse. Your brothers complain bitterly about protecting her—the leech lover, but what they don't know is that she's one of you. Bella, Charlie, and I may not look it, but we're all part-Quileute."
"But how? Does Bella know?"
"She knows she has a distant Quileute relative, besides me, but she thinks I'm only a member of the tribe because I married into it."
"Which family are you descended from?" I asked, thinking it had to be a name that had long since died out as the tribe's membership shrank.
"One of the oldest; we are direct descendants of the oldest daughter of Taha Aki and his third wife, Nayeli. Hach'libiti is the daughter from which our line came."
"You know the Third Wife's name?"
"I know many things your father does not, Jacob Black."
"The Third Wife was literally named 'Beloved' and her daughter was … " I racked my brains, trying to draw the translation from memory, "'Great Strength'?"
"Something like that," she agreed.
"Why hasn't this been passed down through the generations like the story of the wolves and the cold ones?"
"You remember the story of the origin of the spirit wolves?"
I nodded.
"You remember then that the practice of spirit walking was strictly forbidden after the incident that befell Taha Aki?"
"Yes, spirit walking was deemed too dangerous a practice for the warriors. The shared mind and body of the phase was safer for the warriors and for the tribe so that the body of a strong warrior could not be inhabited by the mind of a weaker or unworthy man."
"Yes, that's true, but the practice of spirit walking wasn't given up altogether and those who could do it didn't die out. What I mean is that the practice wasn't lost, Jacob. It was cultivated and developed through the generations by a small, but dedicated group of women who all carried the spirit walking gene, until the female descendants of Hach'libiti had harnessed the spiritual magic of the gift and broadened their gifts to span a wide range of abilities. They had to keep it a secret even within the tribe. Over the millennia, they became known as the Wolf Riders because they had a special affinity with the pack and the wolves in particular. Many of them became marked mates so their gifts would also strengthen the next generation of wolves. They aided the pack when they could without being found out. Spirit walking was still strictly forbidden, even if it had developed into many other strengths that benefitted the tribe."
"How did they harness and strengthen their gifts?" I wondered. If they could do that, the pack might be able to do the same to make our wolves stronger.
Molly cleared her throat delicately, "Ahem. They … Jacob, would you agree that life is the most mysterious and magical thing in the inverse?"
I nodded cautiously.
"And the making of a life one of the most sacred?"
That rang a dim bell, so I nodded again.
"There's a reason why life is so revered by our tribe. Creating a life requires the most sacred and powerful magic of all; the union of a man and a woman."
"You're talking about sex," I blurted out, then clamped a hand over my big mouth as my eyes widened in shock. I just said 'sex' in front of Quil's gran.
She tried to hide her amusement.
She failed.
When she stopped laughing , she explained, "The Wolf Riders intermarried with the pack. The children of the wolves were stronger and healthier, but it was the energy created by the man and woman making those children that made them stronger still."
And … she lost me.
She huffed in annoyance, "It wasn't passing on just the genes that made the next generation of wolves and wolf riders stronger. It was the sex itself. The quality, the frequency, the sacred intent poured into the act by the mates acted as a kind of generator to build up more power. There's a reason all the members of the pack are so horny, dear. It’s not just because they’re all teenagers when they phase. They're driven to build up a surplus of strength and power for the wolves and wolf riders."
What. The. Fuck.
Seriously? Fucking like bunnies would make us stronger?
"Your Bella is a wolf rider, too. She has a very rare combination of several of the spirit walker gifts. She is easily the strongest and most powerful wolf rider born since the practice went underground two millennia ago."
"How do you know that?!" I gasped.
"The gifts you say she's displaying are only the beginning. She hasn't even gone through the tribulation yet."
"What's the tribulation?" I didn't like the sound of that.
Molly looked like she was choosing her next words carefully, "Several events must happen before she can gain control of her gifts, before they will begin to adapt for her to use them actively rather than passively. They are a series of natural and supernatural events—supernatural intercession in the course of her everyday normal human life. It's the price. That much magic and power doesn't come without a price. This is the price we must pay to keep the line of wolf riders alive. We call it the tribulation because it can be painful or difficult. Every wolf rider's tribulation is a little different. I'm sorry, I can't tell you what the events are, but I can warn you about something else. It's the main reason that I brought you here today.
"Bella is, as far as we know, the last remaining wolf rider of child-bearing age to carry the active gene. Young Quil is a carrier of the passive gene. There are no guarantees that he can pass it on to his own daughters some day. It is essential that Bella find a wolf mate with whom she can carry on the line or it will die out with her. My sister and I did our best
to carry on, but I wasn't able to give my Quil any surviving daughters and my sister had only one surviving child, Charlie.
"There is more. The raw magic that Bella is capable of harnessing and using to protect humans is limited only by the power she can build. You are an Alpha, or will be, and that makes for a very potent lover, but Bella may need even more because of her potential. We honestly don't know. She may crave the physical release of sacred intercourse with others besides yourself even before the tribulation. She cannot be told why it's happening until after the tribulation begins, in much the same way that you couldn't be told before phasing. Your fear could have prevented the phase if you knew it was coming.
"I brought you here to explain to you that her insatiability, her desperate need for more than one lover, is not a sign that she is not your mate or that she is being unfaithful to you. She will need other lovers to tap into her full potential if she is to endure the tribulation. Her tribulation will be greater because her potential is greater. It will be your job to guard her against those who would judge her unfairly, to support her without question, and to find a way to coexist peacefully with other lovers that she may take and bear children for in addition to those that she bears for you if you do not claim her with your mark."
to carry on, but I wasn't able to give my Quil any surviving daughters and my sister had only one surviving child, Charlie.
"There is more. The raw magic that Bella is capable of harnessing and using to protect humans is limited only by the power she can build. You are an Alpha, or will be, and that makes for a very potent lover, but Bella may need even more because of her potential. We honestly don't know. She may crave the physical release of sacred intercourse with others besides yourself even before the tribulation. She cannot be told why it's happening until after the tribulation begins, in much the same way that you couldn't be told before phasing. Your fear could have prevented the phase if you knew it was coming.
"I brought you here to explain to you that her insatiability, her desperate need for more than one lover, is not a sign that she is not your mate or that she is being unfaithful to you. She will need other lovers to tap into her full potential if she is to endure the tribulation. Her tribulation will be greater because her potential is greater. It will be your job to guard her against those who would judge her unfairly, to support her without question, and to find a way to coexist peacefully with other lovers that she may take and bear children for in addition to those that she bears for you if you do not claim her with your mark."
Hold the fucking phone. Pale face magical granny say what?
"I'm, I'm, uh … let me get this straight, my Bella is going to need to take other lovers in addition to me for the purposes of magical sex and the reason I probably didn't imprint on her is because I need to accept these other lovers and actually encourage her to have sex with other men?"
"Umm … yes and no," Molly answered apologetically.
"Explain," I demanded.
"Not just human men, but possibly one or more of your own pack mates and since your pack is comprised of both men and a woman … " she insinuated as she blushed again.
"Wha … ? Oh. Oh." Bella was going to … oh, well then. One of my brothers and maybe my pack sister, too? Maybe this wolf rider thing wasn't all bad news. I grinned, mulling over the possibility of having magical sex with two hot women.
"Wha … ? Oh. Oh." Bella was going to … oh, well then. One of my brothers and maybe my pack sister, too? Maybe this wolf rider thing wasn't all bad news. I grinned, mulling over the possibility of having magical sex with two hot women.
Molly smacked me.
"Ouch!"
"It's spiritual, sacred sex, Jacob! Not girl-on-girl porn!"
"Right. Sacred, spiritual," I affirmed with a nod before I got distracted again, murmuring, "Two girls, four breasts-"
"Jacob… "
"Shutting up now."
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Want to see the first sneak peek from Little Red & Her Big Bad Wolves? It was released shortly before the holidays for the Tricky Raven Holiday Contest for Authors and Artists. It's called Little Red & Her Big Bad Wolves: A Party of Four and you can read it on Tricky Raven
If you enjoyed these sneak peeks of a future project, you'll love my other current works in progress, the short story, Snowed In (for mature audiences-only) and my multi-chapter fic, Yours, Mine, Ours (also for mature audiences-only). Both can be found on Tricky Raven.
Thanks for reading!
~ChrissiHR
