Dark Side of the Moon

Don’t follow me Seth, you have no idea what you’re getting yourself into.

It had been two days now since I had picked up on Jasmine’s scent out in the woods that bordered the Cullen’s place. Even at that point the scent was obviously days old and was tinted with something unfamiliar, I could only imagine a leech that they had ordered to come steal her away from me.

I told you Jake, where you go, I go.

Go back to Sam, Seth. You know why he’s letting me do this, but he wanted the rest of the pack to stay back for now. This could be a dead lead, or not even a lead at all. And either way, this is something I need to do alone.

If he really wanted me to stay, he would have ordered it.

I’m ordering it now, Seth. Go back.

I have to admit that part of me was surprised as I saw his head drop and retreat in defeat, he was actually listening to me. Unable to convince myself to stop and say I was sorry, I pressed forward with even more urgency. I was right to do what I did, I had no idea where I was going and surely the leeches would have expected me to go searching for her trail, so this couldn’t possibly be as simple as it seemed; but I had to try. Part of me wanted to believe that they really were that dumb, but all of me never would. Jasper, having an unyielding hate for me, would have made sure that there was no way for me to find his daughter so easily.

- - - - -

As to be expected, things didn’t go all the way back to ‘normal’ after the situation with Irina. As much as Tanya tried to keep me from noticing, I couldn’t help but pick up her subtle movements to keep Irina and myself apart. Carmen would try to comfort me whenever an awkward moment would present itself, and Kate had taken to remaining neutral on the subject; refusing to pick a side between her sisters. As far as Eleazer, I didn’t see him much and therefore was unsure of where he stood entirely, though I was sure he would never let any harm come to me.

To be honest, I saw little of anybody at all. I took to my room mostly at night, as always, and during the day had divulged myself in perhaps a little too much hunting. It had really hit me that I didn’t know when, if ever, I would return home, so I tried to make the best of my time in Alaska. Surely, my father would not be satisfied for me to return until Jake was far from any existence in La Push, or even at all.

I decided to try my hand at tracking; I guess you could call it a hobby; anything to help to pass the time. I guess it would sound comical; being a creature with infinite time on her hands, trying to make it fly by as quickly as possible. No serious tracking, of course, far more recreational, and only for hunting purposes.

By day I was able to flush my mind of most things, but at night I was not so fortunate. Insomnia seemed to be seeping in on me; my thoughts were obviously angry with me for trying to suppress them and had taken to keeping me up at all hours; torturing me with everything I didn’t want to remember…every outcome I didn’t want to imagine, and at times it would go off on its own, making side plans. I cursed under my breath as one night my mind wandered so far as to Italy; Edward had gone to the Volturi once and they had turned him down, but would they do the same to me? Sure, I was gifted, but nothing that wasn’t expendable; my father had the same thing and yet he was so much more in control of it. Just thinking of my father made me think of his face when we had discovered that Edward had ran to Italy and I knew I couldn’t make him go through that for me. One of the other plans my mind had wandered too was far too obvious; running away to be with Jacob forever. It sounded perfect, but was not without flaws. Forever was a long time to be hunted, and I would never want that for Jacob.

I sighed, begging once again for sleep to take me, even in knowing that the dreams would be equally torturous.

There had to be a solution.

- - - - - - -

Another day had passed and still the trail was strong enough to keep my confidence that I was going in the right direction. I continued my running at a quick pace, telling myself again and again that every leap closed the gap between us that much more. I tried not to think about what would be waiting there for me, surely she would not be left ‘unprotected’. It killed me to think that those leeches were protecting her from me, as if I could ever live with myself if I hurt her; I could never hurt her.

I passed through another state line but didn’t care to read it, all it showed me was that I was making progress, I was going somewhere. I halted suddenly, realizing quickly that the scent had changed, I could still pick up the scent of one of them, but Jasmine’s scent was no longer attached. I panicked momentarily, doubling back to try and find where the break had occurred.

This was the only lead I had, the only hope I had to see her…. And I couldn’t bare the thought of once again being empty handed.

I backtracked for what seemed like hours, but I was sure it was only a few miles….. But still, that was a few miles in completely the wrong direction. How had I not noticed before that he scent had been diminishing? I cursed myself for becoming too comfortable with the scent of the other creature, it clouded my judgment and blocked me from thinking fully and clearly.

My mind seemed to be racing in a million different directions as I slowed down to smell every tree, every bush, ever rock that lay in the dirt below my large paws. Something had to give away where they parted, where Jasmine went one way and the other creature strayed to the other. I was so attuned to Jasmine’s heavenly scent (so unlike the sickly sweetness of any other of her kind) that it flabbergasted me that I had made such a huge mistake.

My ears perked suddenly as I caught a new scent, another vampire… there must have been one waiting and they switched her off, knowing full well that I would follow the first trial. That didn’t matter to me anymore, I ran off in the new direction, finally able to breathe in her scent again.

As much as I wanted to bolt through the forest at my full speed, I couldn’t risk making another mistake. I forced myself to slow down just slightly, taking every scent of the trail in carefully, making sure they would not fool me again; and surely they would try.

I caught on quicker to the plot a few hours later as I picked up the scent of a third vampire, they had switched off once again. My heart grew in my chest as I anticipated our reunion; however far away it might be; letting my mind get completely ahead of me as it wandered to wherever she was being held away from me….

But not forever.