|2| Broken Beta {Paul Lahote}

VI

Paul and Juliana sat up straighter at the familiar bird whistle of Billy's way of telling them to quiet while Juliana's eyes were alert now and now all trace of exhaustion, were all long gone.

Embry sat up straighter and so did Quil across the circle from him, while Jared nudges Kim and then pulled her gently upright into a sitting position.

Emily produced a spiral-bound notebook and a pen, looking exactly like a student set for a real important lecture, which nearly everyone that is around the campfire, could see at the moment now.

Sam twisted slightly beside her, so that he was facing the same direction at the others members of the pack, so, in the same direction, as Old Quil, and a chuckle came from Jacob, and then a second later, from Juliana as well as they noticed Bella's shocked face.

Leah Clearwater, her face a beautiful and irritatin' mask of cold emotions in her unique case, no emotions at all, as she shuts her eyes, and prepared to be wowed by the stories.

Her brother Seth, he leaned into the direction of the elders eagerly, and his eyes were wide open, as Juliana, she was smiling a little bit at his face and the awe-filled expression on it.

The fire crackled, sending another explosion of sparks glittering up into and against the backdrop of the dark, and starry night sky.

Billy cleared his throat, and, with no more introduction than his son's quiet whisper that only a couple of them all had heard, he began telling the stories in his rich, deep voice.

The words poured out of his mouth with precision, as if he knew them by heart, but also with feeling and a very subtle rhythm. It was like a poem of a sort... almost.

"The Quileutes have always been a small people from the beginning," It was always Billy, and it always would be, until Jacob took over one day. Or it would be Juliana perhaps, should, she still wish to be a part of the pack. "And we are a small people still now but we have never disappeared. This is because there has always been magic in our blood. It wasn't always the magic of shape-shifting-- no, no, that came later. Much later. First, we were spirit warriors."

Juliana was paying rapt attention to her father's words, despite being very much annoyed, that he was staring, at her and Paul, the entire time.

She felt Paul squeeze her hand in his and she looks down at their entwined hands, and saw that hers was shaking now, as she looked at the both of their hands tightly clasped together.

The frantic scratching on the pages now, of Emily's pen made it clear, that she was struggling to keep up with the practiced storytelling vibe, that Billy Black gave off.