Beyond The Dawn - A Twilight Fan Fiction

Book 4 - Edward - Chapter Three

                                                                     3

                                                         "Ceremony"

I stood sentinel with Bella on my right, and she gripped my hand tightly as we made our way toward the tribe's ceremonial grounds on James Island. On my left, Renesmee had linked her arm through mine as she stood stoically beside me. Somewhere behind us were the rest of my family; I did not bother to look. No one made a sound; observed silence was essential now, as the traditional Quileute ceremony to honor the dead had already begun.

We made our way down the expansive Quillayute River at dusk, riding in small fleet of three 50-foot boats. Our group totaled roughly twenty-five, and we were comprised of the remaining Wolf Pack, my family, seven Quileute Elder chiefs, and a handful of younger Council members. The ride, even in our motorized coaches, would take almost an hour. And once we docked, there would be an additional twenty minute ride by vehicle to the top of James Island, still known to the tribe as Akalat.

I looked to my daughter, who kept her eyes straight ahead. Carlisle had announced to us all, just before we departed, that there would be no more transfusions and no more bones re-set. He'd done all he could, and the rest was officially up to Jacob. Based on Carlisle's past medical research with Jake, it could go either way. And the answer would be there waiting for us upon our return. Carlisle had been fairly certain that Jacob would show signs of aging, however small, if he were unable to phase again. There would also be the matter of paralysis; while he'd begun to slightly feel the tips of his fingers before we left, Carlisle didn't want to make promises to anyone, particularly his granddaughter. Renesmee looked to him imploringly, but he'd shaken his head and refused to speak any more about it.

So here was my little girl, forced to stay strong while she awaited the fate of the love of her life. I couldn't help but smile and be reminded just how perfect a mix of her mother and I she'd become. She was beautiful, strong and stubborn as hell, with a heart of gold and compassion to rival the holiest of men. Leaning sideways, I planted a kiss on the side of her head. In response, she laid her head on my shoulder and gripped my arm tighter. On we went, our poses remaining the same until the inner bay of James Island came into view.

In time, we docked. Billy spoke a few orders once anchor dropped, and we made our way off of the boats and toward the waiting Jeeps and F150's. The continued silence was deafening, despite the roar of the engines as we made our way up the mountain. From the passenger side window I could see throngs of tourists making their way back down, both on foot and in trolleys that belonged to the Parks Department. They watched our fleet with undisguised interest, no doubt wondering where we could be headed so close to dusk.

Based on my own research, I knew we were headed to a part of the island that was forbidden to all but the Quileute Tribe. They had been 'granted' these portions of the grounds as part of the so-called compromise between the tribe and the U.S. government that allowed both parties to use the island. No one, not even members of the Park Department, other than tribal members were allowed to step foot on the tribal grounds; every grain of dirt, every blade of grass was considered sacred. I suppressed a chuckle as workers in green linen uniforms watched our caravan with looks of disdain as we made our way, unchecked, toward the ceremonial grounds.

We came to a stop before a large green gate. Ahead of us, two young Quileutes stepped from a Jeep at the front of the queue and opened the gates wide. One by one, our vehicles drove forward. After parking just on the other side of the gate, we all stepped out. My family fell back slightly to allow the Quileutes to take the lead. We followed them quietly to the massive cabin ahead of us. It took quite a bit of focus to ignore the thoughts of the Quileutes, as well as my family. This was last place I wanted to be intrusive, but I couldn't ignore the sound of some distinctly Quileute minds damning our presence. They were voices that I wouldn't get to put faces to until after the ceremony, and I was guessing that Billy hadn't warned them of my particular 'talent'.