CHAPTER ELEVEN
ɪɴsᴛʀᴜᴄᴛɪᴏɴ

The playing field held an ominous feeling as the Cullens walked out onto it, their perfect hair moved out of place only by the strongest of gusts from the turbulent wind. Whether it was the darkened sky, the colour of ink or the stilled blades of grass, motionless despite the weather, it did not matter. The vast clearing in the forest seemed to know of our shared discomfort. The wolves were coming. Even the trees stood tense, waiting for the confrontation.

We walked steadily toward the centre of the field, rolling shoulders and stretching arms as if it would make a difference. Marked in the turf were old scrapes of shoes, inches deep like unhealed wounds on the dry earth, the only evidence that we'd ever played our game here before. Rosalie looked down at the deepest scar, scuffing her shoe against it. She scowled, remembering how fast she'd run, determined to stay in the game. Her glare turned upwards, hearing the voice of the person who'd called her out drifting in the wind.

"Hey, Bella!" Emmett shouted teasingly, watching as she staggered behind Edward, arms wrapped around her chest with little effect against the cold. "Is he going to let you take a run at it too?"

Edward glared. "Please don't give her any ideas."

I shrugged my shoulders as Alice and I moved forward to join them, leaving Rose to sulk behind. "I don't know, I reckon she could gorge a couple of eyes out," I said.

Bella looked offended. "Is that it?"

"You've yet to prove yourself."

"Just wait until I'm one of you," she said, grinning as she moved away from Edward.

"When will our guests arrive?" Carlisle asked.

"A minute and a half. But I'm going to have to translate. They don't trust us enough to use their human forms."

Alice frowned as Edward answered. Her sense of anxiety had been brewing since we'd left the house, stemmed from the fact that we were going into the meeting blind. Not even a kiss had eased the tension, though it had certainly begun to help.

"They're coming as wolves?"

Edward nodded, then his expression shifted into one of acute surprise. I remembered Jacob in his large, wolf form. One alone was worthy of fear, never mind a pack.

"Prepare yourselves. They've been holding out on us," Edward said, turning to Carlisle.

"What do you mean?" Alice demanded, moving my arm out of my way as I moved in front of her.

"Damn," Emmett exclaimed, both in excitement and petulant annoyance. "Did you ever see anything like it?"

Emmett's shout was a mere prologue in comparison to the story that described the presence of the wolves among us on the field. Though I didn't wish to admit it, there was something beautiful in their terrifying design. With an air of regality, the pack padded out of the treeline, their yellowish eyes, like balls of compact earth entwined with threads of gold, burning against the darkness of the night. And if the strength of the individuality in their height and muscular build was not intimidating enough, then their numbers were. There were ten wolves. The pack outnumbered us by two.

"What is it? I can't see," Bella hissed, but as the words left her lips, the wolves were already striding further into the clearing and into view. Her jaw dropped open, eyes scanning to count or even recognise each one.

"The pack has grown," Edward whispered.

"Welcome," Carlisle said calmly. His movements were planned and smooth as he stepped forward twice to pass Emmett and Jasper at the front of our own group.

"Thank you," Edward said.

The first wolf dipped his head down toward the ground and then up against, coming to rest higher than it had started as if motioning to himself as the leader. He was not the largest of the wolves, but the glint in his eyes said he was the wisest.

"We will watch and listen but no more. That is the most we can ask of our self-control," Edward said flatly.

"That is more than enough. Jasper?" Carlisle turned, motioning him forward. "My son Jasper has experience in this area. He will teach us how to fight, how they are to be defeated. I'm sure you can apply this to your own hunting style."

"They are different from you?"

"They are all very new, only months old to this life. They will have no skills or strategy, only brute strength. Tonight their numbers stand at twenty. Ten for us ten for you. It shouldn't be difficult." Shouldn't be difficult, but we all inwardly knew that it would be. Carlisle continued, "The numbers may go down. The young ones fight among themselves."

The leader's paw scraped against the broken earth. "We are willing to take more than our share if necessary."

"We'll see how it plays out." Carlisle smiled.

"Do you know when and how they'll arrive?"

"They'll come across the mountains in four days, in the late morning. As they approach, Alice will help us intercept their path."

Alice frowned, her grip tightening on my arm.

"Thank you for the information. We will watch."

Jasper took another step forward but turned to us, ignoring the audience of wolves behind him. "Carlisle's right. They'll fight like children. The two most important things you'll need to remember are first, don't let them get their arms around you and second, don't go for the obvious kill. That's all they'll be prepared for. As long as you come at them from the side and keep moving, they'll be too confused to respond effectively. Emmett?" Jasper said and his brother stepped forward with a reckless grin. "Emmett first. He's the best example of a newborn attack."

Emmett did not take the comment as an attack. "I'll try not to break anything," he said as he bent his knees, holding his arms out.

Jasper smirked. "What I mean is, Emmett relies on his strength. He's very straightforward about the attack. The newborns won't be trying anything subtle, either. Just go for the easy kill, Emmett. Try to catch me."

Emmett lunged forward like a tumbling boulder, gaining speed the further he pushed himself. Like a great bear, I thought, just as Rosalie had described him. Just like the bear she'd saved him from. But though Emmett was strong, Jasper was fast. He moved at the speed of the wind, seeming to dissolve into a blur as he dodged and then dodged again, Emmett's hands coming within inches of him but never touching. Then, in one swift move, Jasper was on him, his hands wrapping around Emmett's shoulders, his teeth closing in on his neck as his brother froze.

Emmett swore, his grin leaving. "Again," he growled.

"It's my turn," Edward said.

Rosalie rolled her eyes. "Let the boys argue about who goes first and whatnot," she said. "Us girls can have our own fun."

Esme paired off with Alice as Rosalie walked purposefully my way, a sly grin on her face. She was wearing leather, and as she advanced onto me with an attack, her clothes seemed to disobey the laws of their material. The leather wrapped around her, moving like a second skin as she dodged and twisted. My own moves were equal in force and opposite in direction, not allowing her to get a hold of me.

"You're better than I thought you'd be," Rose said.

"William," I replied, not letting myself be distracted by saying anymore words when his name was explanation enough.

The fight ended with my hands on her shoulders and face near her throat. Rosalie growled angrily, but congratulated me the same, before Alice hurried to my side, Esme following behind.

"My turn," Alice said, pulling me further back into the clearing.

"If I give you a kiss, will you go easy on me?"

Alice grinned wickedly. "You don't need me to go easy on you."

She jumped forward, her lithe figure dancing around me like a ghost. The fight of a vampire was a strange one: it was not a fight of hits and scrapes but rather a battle of strength and speed and skill in pursuit. It was a game of cat and mouse, of hide and seek, with the roles forever changing. One moment, Alice was at my heels, zipping around with her hands near to wrapping around my neck, until I threw her forward. The next moment, she was wriggling from my iron-like grasp, caught beneath my strength.

Jasper made his way toward us, his expression level and unbiased. "You're pulling your punches," he said, analytical eyes landing on me.

"I'm not pulling my punches," I huffed, narrowingly missing one of Alice's burst of a sprint.

"You're stronger and taller. How isn't she on the floor yet?"

"Because she's smaller and quicker!"

And she likes to play dirty, I thought, remembering the kiss on my cheek as I'd just managed to push her away.

The practice fighting drew to a close as the wolves began to get restless, a huffing sound coming from their snouts. Alice stuck to my side as the rest regrouped. "I heard you mention William," she said lowly. "What are we going to do?"

"Truthfully?" Alice nodded. "I don't know. But it ends now."

"We'll be doing this tomorrow. Please feel welcome to observe again," Jasper said to the wolves.

"Yes. We'll be here," Edward said, speaking for the leader- Sam- and then paused, sighing. "The pack thinks it would be useful to be familiar with each of our scents so they don't make mistakes later. If we hold very still, it will be easier for them."

"Certainly. Whatever you need," Carlisle said.

The wolves started forward cautiously, bending their heads as they stepped as close as they dared. Sam lead, heading first for Carlisle, and then spreading further into the group, wincing at each new scent. The smallest and skinniest of the wolves stopped at me lastly, bending his head firstly, before he lingered, nudging his head toward me as if to say something.

"Edward," I said warily, calling him forward. He came to my side with Bella following him and smiled as he saw the wolf.

"That's Seth," Bella said quietly, and the wolf seemed content to have been recognised.

"He wants to know if you'd be comfortable with speaking to him," Edward said.

"Me?" I asked. He nodded. "Alright."

The wolf began to walk back to the treeline, the brown, fawn colours of his coat illuminated by the rising sun, which painted the darkening sky with coats of deep orange and red.

"Where is he going?"

"To change back so he can talk without going through me," Edward said. "He has something for you."

Edward moved away with Bella, going off to talk with Jacob about some plan she'd been formulating. Alice and Jasper hovered nearby.

Instead of a wolf, a young boy of about fourteen returned from the woods, his chest bare and shorts long. He was timid at first as he stepped toward me, but then he glanced to Jacob, who was dressed exactly the same and unfurled from himself, mimicking the older boy's stance.

"Elide?" I nodded.

"Seth?"

"That's me," he said, smiling warmly. "I found something on the beach the other day." He stuttered slightly as he reached a hand into his pocket, pulling out a crumpled piece of tissue paper. "I thought it would be best if I gave it to you."

"No!" I exclaimed in elated disbelief as my eyes came to rest upon the item. Seth placed it in my hands. "I thought it was lost."

The gold necklace was hot against my cold hands; the delicate swirls and intricate flowers that decorated the front were fogged by the contrasting temperature. I clutched it in my hands, feeling as if it was lifting me up, shedding all of my weight until I was floating, nothing like the weighted feeling I'd once associated it with.

"Thank you," I whispered, looking up to see his sweet face smiling down at the item in my first.

"You're welcome," he said kindly, bending his head as he'd done in his wolf form, and then Seth met with Jacob and disappeared back into the forest, leaving me with the necklace I thought had been lost to the ocean.

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