His little nod is an acknowledgment of her need to wall herself back up as they get out of the jeep and he leads the way across the field—the old newborn battlefield in the woods, full of memory and a little sorrow, but a symbolic place now for vampires and werewolves—at a slow unthreatening amble, and it's a good idea. He doesn't know how sensitive the wolves are to things like human emotion, but better safe than sorry, even if it's been a lot easier to deal with the wolves since—
"Jasper!"
—since Seth took over after Jacob left. An impossibly young-looking boy, fifteen at most, comes bouncing out of the forest, deep tan and dark neatly cut hair, all wide eyes and bright smiles, sprinting across the grass and stopping on a dime a few feet back, bouncing on his toes. Even if you didn't know what he was, the word puppy would absolutely cross your mind. Jasper smiles back without showing his teeth, which results in an affectionate little smirk.
"Seth. Hello, Leah," he calls past Seth to the bear-sized gray and silver wolf that's slunk out of the woods, but barely, crouching at the edge of the trees and staring balefully. Leah growls and shakes herself, but she doesn't advance any farther, so Jasper will take that to mean she'll hold to the peace agreement. He turns his attention back to Seth, not letting any of his tension show, hands in his pockets and everything. "Seth, this is Natasha. She's a part of the family now. Natasha, this is Seth Clearwater, the alpha of the wolves around here. All of them now, isn't that right? Both packs, since Sam stepped down?"
Seth, who's been staring a little flabbergasted at the human standing so close to the vampire everyone knows has the hardest time around humans, takes a moment to notice he's been asked something. "What? Oh! Uh, yeah, that's me." He brushes a hand down his hair nervously and holds it out, straightening his shoulders, doing his best to look like a grown-up. "Hi."
no subject
"Jasper!"
—since Seth took over after Jacob left. An impossibly young-looking boy, fifteen at most, comes bouncing out of the forest, deep tan and dark neatly cut hair, all wide eyes and bright smiles, sprinting across the grass and stopping on a dime a few feet back, bouncing on his toes. Even if you didn't know what he was, the word puppy would absolutely cross your mind. Jasper smiles back without showing his teeth, which results in an affectionate little smirk.
"Seth. Hello, Leah," he calls past Seth to the bear-sized gray and silver wolf that's slunk out of the woods, but barely, crouching at the edge of the trees and staring balefully. Leah growls and shakes herself, but she doesn't advance any farther, so Jasper will take that to mean she'll hold to the peace agreement. He turns his attention back to Seth, not letting any of his tension show, hands in his pockets and everything. "Seth, this is Natasha. She's a part of the family now. Natasha, this is Seth Clearwater, the alpha of the wolves around here. All of them now, isn't that right? Both packs, since Sam stepped down?"
Seth, who's been staring a little flabbergasted at the human standing so close to the vampire everyone knows has the hardest time around humans, takes a moment to notice he's been asked something. "What? Oh! Uh, yeah, that's me." He brushes a hand down his hair nervously and holds it out, straightening his shoulders, doing his best to look like a grown-up. "Hi."