Ch.24

(Matt Pov)

Finding myself in the landscape, no matter how long I walked to the huge tree in the distance, it would appear that I am not closer. After walking for what felt like hours and the tree still appearing just as far as when I first appeared here, I gave up and sat down. Trying to reign in the frustration and anger threatening to be released for not getting to the tree and wasting time. After sitting by a tree and calming myself down I watched the sky and clouds, reminding me of the first time Alice and I made love. Thinking about her brings me calm and just watching the clouds in the sky brought me even more calm, eventually making me fall asleep. Opening my eyes I see Ivar looking at me smiling and several others meditating in the area on flat stones also.

"Come, let us not disturb them," Ivar says to me gesturing to follow him, nodding I get up and follow him back to the house it would seem from the direction we are going. From the looks of it, I was meditating late into the day around five or six in the afternoon.

"At first I thought you wouldn't meditate as you had your emotions all over the place. Then when you finally did it seemed it wouldn't work since you started to get angry halfway through. What brought you peace in the end?" Ivar says to me after we leave the vicinity of the meditation grounds.

"I found myself in a field with trees here and there, though there was a huge tree in the distance. Bigger than anything I've ever seen before, I felt the need to get to it, though no matter how long I walked I couldn't get closer. Getting annoyed I rested on the ground and watched the clouds, which made me fall asleep finally," I say to him while sighing at what that meant in the end, I have no idea.

"A huge tree? Might have been Yggdrasill, though what the gods are trying to show you, I'm not sure. You will have to keep meditating it seems to get the answer you seek," Ivar says to me after thinking about what I said.

Getting back to the house Ivar and I ate some food before he sent me to Ingegärd who was still teaching Alice it seems. They were in a large library on the west side of the house with a bookcase lining each side of the room. Each case is just a few inches shorter than the ceiling, making them around 12' (366cm) tall. One of those wood ladders that you can push across the bookshelves like in the movies, was on either side of the room connected to the two separate bookshelves. Since the only separation between the two sides was a huge window across from the entrance which had a glass double door leading to a small patio. There were also several tables with very comfortable chairs in the room. Sitting at one of the tables were Alice and Ingegärd, who was teaching Alice something since they had a stack of books on the table.

"Having fun?" I say to them as Alice looks like she is trying very hard to learn and didn't hear me enter the room. They both turn to me and smile at me.

"Matt! Your grandmother is so smart! She knows a lot about runes and is helping me learn Swedish. If you don't hurry up I will be ahead of you," Alice says to me excited that she is learning something new, and Ingegärd smiles at her.

"She's not wrong, I hope you take my lessons seriously," Ingegärd says to me as I take a seat next to Alice and nod to Ingegärd.

"Ready when you are…..Grandma," I say to her still coming to terms with everything after coming here. Though calling her that makes her smile even more at me.

"Call me Mormor from now on, it's Swedish for grandmother," Mormor says to me after hearing me call her grandma.

"Can I call you Mormor too?" Alice says hearing us and looking at her expectantly.

"Sure, you are unofficially my granddaughter," Mormor says to her smiling at her.

"Awesome I never had a Mormor before," Alice says excitedly and makes Mormor look at her with some pity that she quickly hides.

As the days turn to weeks, nothing new has happened. In the mornings I join Ivar in meditating at the pond, not making any progress toward the tree. In the afternoon I have my lessons with Mormor and Alice in runes and Swedish. Alice and I still call everyone in Forks at least twice a week to catch up with them. They all seem just as we left them, though Edward and Bella from the sounds of it have gotten closer. As they have been going on more dates frequently during this time. Charlie is not the happiest about this but understands it is part of growing up. I have also met many clan members in my time here, most are around my Aunts age, and most others are either older or younger by a few years than me.

Ivar did tell me that two people that recently turned into their bears a few days before I arrived at the clan, we met them when one day Ivar and I went to meditate. They are twins Astrid and Lucas Strömberg, from the family line that is usually black bears, making them my second cousins. They are the children of Ivar's nephew, Hugo Strömberg. Astrid and Lucas are both very stubborn people, usually arguing over the smallest thing with one another, and though it is probably due to the bear, being very aggressive, ready to fight at the littlest thing. I have noticed since I started meditating have slightly better control over myself. Now everyone only speaks in Swedish around us, they say it will help us learn it faster and it's true, both Alice and I have become much better at speaking it.

(So from now on just assume they are speaking in Swedish as they stay in Sweden.)

"I told Astrid and Lucas to take you and Alice around the clan compound. They will introduce you to everyone. I have a meeting with the elders, so I can't. Plus it will be good for the clan to see you and Alice. Don't worry about her, everyone knows there is a vampire on the clan grounds," Ivar says to us as we are eating breakfast and sees my worry about Alice.

"You both need a day off, everyone needs a break once in a while," Mormor says nodding at what Ivar said.

Shortly after eating and getting ready for the day, we can hear Astrid and Lucas are here since they are bickering over something. They may be twins but don't look it other than their facial features. Astrid has bright red hair, is around 5'8" (173cm) tall, and has a very athletic physique. Lucas has light brown hair, is 6' (183cm) tall, and has muscle but with a somewhat thick layer of fat too. Walking downstairs they stop fighting and smile at me, but give Alice a judging look. Not in a too bad way, just curious since neither has met a vampire and have grown up hearing how terrible they are, so both have slightly prejudiced views on them. Alice has gotten a lot more confident after coming here and no longer shies from people, I feel that may be due to Mormor.

"Long time no see you two," I say to them giving them a familiar hug, since I've been at the clan, these two I have gotten close to. I view them as family completely and they have grown close to me too since I'm the only one in the clan who was close to their age.

"So this must be the vampire, she smells sweet like candy," Astrid says after hugging me and looking at Alice. Nodding in agreement Lucas stares at Alice also.

(Yes I know I said differently earlier but I'm not gonna edit the chapter way back then, so moving on they smell sweet to wolves and bears.)

"And you smell like earth or fresh dirt," Alice says to them shrugging at their stares. Getting a smirk from Lucas and a smile from Astrid.

"I like her! You caught a good one for your mate Matt," Astrid says looking at Alice with a happy smile.

"Yep, couldn't be luckier," I say to them pulling Alice into a hug, which she smiles and returns.

"Alright come you two love birds, we should introduce you to the rest of the clan. Though they heard about a 'friendly' vampire on the grounds, not all are going to be nice. We were taught growing up that all vampires are evil and should be killed on sight. Though no one should be dumb enough to attack you, since you are the future clan head's mate," Lucas says as we leave the house and head off to where the rest of the clan lives.

"I'm the future clan head?! I don't want that, I don't think I could do that, to begin with anyway. Wouldn't my Aunt be next in line?" I say to them shocked, I would think my Aunt would be next since they don't discriminate against gender.

"Before you arrived yes your Aunt was next in line, though she never seemed that interested in the prospect. Then there is you, the legendary polar bear blessed by Odin himself, at least that is what your Aunt told us before leaving back to the city," Astrid says as we are walking down a trail in the forest and smirking at me.

"What!" I say to them shocked that the clan thinks of me as this demi-god.

"My Matt is special," Alice says while holding my hand and skipping beside me.

"Well, from the sounds of it, it would seem so. Though the clan doesn't necessarily believe it. You know it's easier to believe if seeing it," Lucas says yawning as we walk and stretching his arms above his head.

"Could show everyone, though I don't feel like turning a bunch," I say to them and they nod in understanding.

"Don't worry only the oldsters will be asses probably, about Alice or whether you are a polar bear blessed by Odin. The younger people are a lot more excepting and want a change from the old ways anyway. Why follow some rules that were made over a thousand years ago still, like updating them already," Astrid says annoyed about some of the traditions. One of them being men and women can fight, but generally, the men are the warriors and the women are the rune masters or shamans in some cases. Even as shifters.

Arriving at a large house, not as large as my family's house. But a little smaller, a mansion in its own right. It was a very large modern log cabin-style house. At the entrance like our family house is a wooden carving of a bear, our house has two, one of a polar bear and one of a brown bear. This house has a carving of a black bear, so by assumption Lucas and Astrid's family house.

"Welcome to our family's house, though not as impressive as yours," Lucas says as we walk up to it.

"Our parents are home, luckily our farfar is not home. He's at the elder's meeting with your farfar. He is pretty prejudiced against vampires, always telling us to kill any we meet when we were growing up. Hearing that a vampire was allowed on clan grounds pissed him off beyond belief," Astrid says as she and Lucas enter the house and motions for Alice and me to come inside too.

"You two are back already? Don't tell me you angered the clan head and he sent you both home?" a woman's voice says after we enter the house.

"Mom relax, we brought Matt and his mate to meet everyone. Why not start here?" Astrid says annoyed that their mom is expecting them to have messed up.

"That's why I smell candy?! I thought Lucas was eating candy again, with his overly sweet tooth," their mom says walking out of the kitchen area and brushing her hands on the apron she is wearing. She looks almost like a spitting image of Astrid, with red hair same height, and an athletic build.

"Nice to meet you both, come and sit. I'll fetch my husband and we can get to know you both," she says before removing her apron and going upstairs gesturing for us to sit on the couch in the other room. Nodding we follow her request as Lucas and Astrid take their seats on the couch. Alice sits in my lap grabbing my arms putting them around her waist and getting comfortable. Astrid laughs at her and Lucas just yawns looking like he's gonna fall asleep any second.