Clear Sunny Skies (On The Morning of the Apocalypse)
by meretricula
Review by Einfach Mich
Rating: T
Characters: Jacob/Leah Jacob/Seth
Summary: so it turns out imprinting doesn't work exactly the way everyone thinks it does. (I am attempting to make the Twilight canon marginally less creepy. I think it says something about the Twilight canon that quasi-incest is less creepy than it.)
Clear Sunny Skies (on the morning of the apocalypse) aside from having one the most awesome titles ever, is one of the most intriguing imaginings of Jacob's life after the events in Breaking Dawn. Though, I'm sure most people will be intrigued the most by the fact that Jacob ends up in a sexual relationship with both of the Clearwater siblings. Yes, you did read that sentence correctly. Now, before you start to freak or get the wrong ideas THIS IS NOT AN INCEST FIC! At no time to Seth and Leah ever engage in what can remotely close to a sexual relationship. They are siblings, that is all. However, they do share Jacob.
“...when he came home from work, Seth had cooked burgers and left four for Jake, and Leah had bought his favorite brand of beer and put it in the fridge to chill, and from the looks of it at least one of them was going to put out. It was a pretty awesome evening.”
This story begins shortly after the end of Breaking Dawn, when Kim dumps Jared, and beings a domino effect of incidents that show that maybe imprinting doesn't work the way the Pack had assumed. This gets even more personal for Jacob, when he realizes that he has stopped wanting to be around Nessie all the time.
"You're supposed to be whatever she needs, right?" Seth tucked his head against his sister's shoulder, peering at Jake with curious eyes. "I mean, that's what everybody says about Claire and Quillen. Maybe Nessie needs you to not be around right now."
Suddenly, Jacob's life opens up to new possibilities. After all, if he doesn't need to take care of Nessie what should he do with his life? His answer is to take a road trip, and Leah being, well Leah, insists that the entire Black Pack (namely Jake, Leah and Seth) should all go. The events of the road trip are not as important as the way this new environment spurns a change in Jacob and Leah's, as well as Jacob and Seth's relationships. The sex isn't graphic, but it is sensual, and very realistic. It also has a thread of humor and delight that runs through out the interactions between these three. It balances the more serious moments when the story truly explores what love really is.
”Leah laughed a little, weakly, and swatted at him. "Like you could get rid of us, you jackass. We're your pack."
"Yeah," he agreed. It sounded nice, put that way. "Yeah, you are."
That is another thing I love about this story. Twilight gave us very specific definitions of love, setting it in stone. Real love doesn't work like that. It is tricky, complicated and very messy. Sometimes it comes in the shape of a white knight, sometimes it's your best friend. Sometimes it's both of them, and in the world of Clear Sunny Skies we learn that sometimes you don't have to choose between two loves. That really, truly “loving” is allowing the two people you love the most to love each other.
"I'm glad you have Leah," Seth said. Jake blinked at the non sequitur. "I'm not just - being a good sport, or not serious, or whatever. I love you, and I know you love Leah, and I'm glad."
"Um," Jake said, slightly terrified. Seth didn't talk generally about his feelings, thank God.
"I worry, you know? That I'm going to imprint on somebody and I'll just - leave you. And I know everyone says that you want it once it happens, you want it more than anyone or anything, but it sounds awful, and I don't want to leave. But if it does happen I'm glad you'll have Leah.”
One of the things I like the most about this story is that while it does an amazing job of show a respectful representation of polyamorous relationships, it does it while being very consistent to the canon characterizations of Jacob, Leah and Seth. This enriched the story, and allowed me to believe that this could have be a different, and perhaps a better Happily Ever After for all three of them.
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