"Renesmee!" Jacob spit out between laughs, holding his stomach. She whacked him again, giggling. He rolled around on the ground, trying to get away as she lifted the bat again. "Nessie!" He feigned pain.
"Jacob hurt?" she asked, frowning. He smiled and shook his head. Grinning, she smacked the bat down again. He screamed out in laughter, jumping to his feet.
"My turn!" he declared, chasing her. Giggling, she dropped the bat and dashed into the forest. He kept a steady pace behind her, not running to his potential. She jumped onto a tree branch and pulled herself up, trying to confuse him. Playing along, he looked around, pretending to be confused.
"Nessie?! Where'd you go?" he called, chuckling.
"Right here!" she cried, jumping out of the tree. He span around and caught her, eyes wide.
"I almost dropped you, Renesmee!" he scolded, trying to keep a straight face. She beamed at him.
"Jakie wouldn't hurt me." He rolled his eyes, dropping her to the ground. She ran in circles around the tree, making fun of his pretend confusion. He smiled at her, shrugging his shoulders.
"Guess I'm just stupid, Nessie," he offered. Cocking an eyebrow, she stared up at him, shaking her head.
"Jakie smart! He just pretend!" she accused with a smug smile. He chuckled and lifted her up, throwing her onto his shoulders. She clung tightly to the top of his head, petting his hair.
"So black..." she muttered, smoothing it down. He laughed hoarsely.
"Well it's not curly and pretty like your's."
"But mine's not black!" she pouted, smacking the top of his head as hard as she could. He chortled and took her off, placing her gently back onto the ground. She made a face and spun around.
"What's wrong?" Jacob asked, squinting in the direction. He heard soft talking, but nothing else. She grinned, racing towards the direction of the voices. He followed obediently, not fully understanding at first. As he got closer, he recognized the voices. Edward and Bella. He rolled his eyes and caught her arm, bringing her to a stop.
"We are not spying on your parents, Nessie." The voices stopped, and there was now soft laughter coming from the woods.
"You can come, Renesmee," Bella called out, her voice even and light. She sprinted towards the voice, followed by Jacob. They emerged into a clearing, clearly handmade, a beautiful green tint to it. The woods towered over them, but sunlight shone in from the gaps in the branches. Nearby, a river flowed quietly, the sound a peaceful, steady rush. It was Edward and Bella's meadow.
"We were just, eh, reminiscing," Bella muttered. Jacob had assumptions about what had been going on, but nothing he could say in front of an impressionable child. He kept his eyes focused on Renesmee, jumping forward as she almost tripped over a tree root. She'd obviously inherited her mother's off-balance. He caught and steadied her before looking around, his eyes not yet reaching Bella.
"Ha, I remember this place a little too clearly," he teased, turning towards Bella, his eyes amused. His breath caught in his throat. He couldn't breathe, couldn't think, couldn't do anything but stare into those big, crimson eyes, wondering why he'd ever looked away. A part of his mind told him, 'No, this is not right.' but it went unnoticed by his concious thinking. All he could think was Bella. In the corner of his eye, he saw Edward freeze, staring unbelievingly at him. None of this was noticed by her.
"Yeah, if it hadn't been for you, I'd be six feet under the ground right now, Jake," she admitted, smiling weakly. His heart stopped, then picked back up at triple speed. He took an unconcious step towards Bella, and Edward growled, jumping in front of her defensively.
"No! Not this again, Jacob!" he snarled, putting his arms out. Something inside Jacob flared, anger swelling in his heart. He felt a trembling and moments later he was covered in fur and flashing his teeth at the vampire standing in his way. He lunged at Edward, snapping his jaw.
'You think I would hurt her?!' he thought, swinging a claw at Edward's face. He was pushed back and Edward lifted his arm, clawing a deep gash across his snout.
"SHE'S MINE!" he screamed, getting ready for another swipe. Suddenly, Edward was being pulled off of him, swearing and spitting in his direction. Bella had her arms locked tightly around the struggling vampire, looking at them both in disgust.
"What's wrong with you two?! In front of Renesmee, no less!" Jacob looked at Renesmee quickly, guilt filling his chest. His eyes flew between her and Bella constantly, and he felt two tuggings, grounding him, pulling him, splitting him.
"Bella, we need to leave," Edward said, his voice strained. She looked at him and snorted, annoyed.
"No. I want to know what the hell is going on!" she demanded, glaring. She looked to Jacob expectantly, but he was too wrapped up in his confusion to do anything. Edward stared pleadingly at Bella, who continued to glare at him.
"Put your shield back on! Now!" he begged, his eyes panicked. She stared, confused, but obliged to him. She stretched her protection like a rubber band, wrapping it around herself once more. She looked to him expectantly, waiting for her explanation.
"Jacob, is it gone?" Edward asked, his voice desperate. A shake of head from the wolf was enough to make his sight go red. He felt himself shaking, and his teeth were clenched tightly inside his mouth. He tasted poison. He stared hatefully into the black eyes of Jacob, and they glared back, challengingly. Bella cleared her throat. When nobody paid attention to this, she resorted to yelling.
"What is going ON?" She walked over to Renesmee and wrapped her arms around her protectively. With this touch, Renesmee filled her head with a repeat of the scene, tinged with fear and worry. "You two are scaring her!" she screamed, eyes flickering between them.
Edward closed his eyes and breathed in deeply, trying to steady his emotions. He walked to stand beside his wife, keeping a steady rhythm to his breathes. He kept his tone calm, although there was an undercurrent of fury beneath it.
"You had your shield off, while you were letting me into your... thoughts." He paused, letting out a deep breath before continuing. "I guess that the reason Jacob never imprinted on you was simply your shield, not his inability to love correctly." Edward smiled a bit at this, hearing Jacob's growl. "Nevertheless, when he saw you without it...," he trailed off, pinching the skin between his eyes together. Bella stared into the woods around them, uncomprehending. After a moment, she turned to Jacob, gaping.
"You... imprinted... on me?" she asked, the words sounding strange. He nodded, scratching behind his ear with his hind leg. She fell to the dirt, catching herself quickly. After a few moments, she pointed at Renesmee, pained. "But you love her!" He let out a sigh and ran into the woods. Moments later he re-entered the clearing, transformed into his human form again, his sweatpants pulled on hastily.
"It doesn't make sense to me either, Bella!" He took a step towards her, his eyes hurt. "I'm not in love with her, though. She's so little! I... I love you..." he shook his head. "I didn't before, I didn't! All those feelings were gone!" he promised, his eyes watering. "But I need you. I'm breathing you, I'm tasting you, Bella, I can't take this!" He swayed towards Renesmee, holding out a hand. She stepped forward and touched it gently, smiling uncertainly up at him. "I care so much about her, I'd die for her without a second thought, you know that! But you're... you're my second half." He stared into her eyes intensely, and she sighed in frustration, shaking her head. She rose to her feet, pacing around the clearing.
"I love Edward!" He cringed, turning away. "We've been through this! Way too many times! This is ridiculous!" She said, stomping her foot against the dirt of the forest floor. Renesmee ran forward and hugged Jacob's waist, filling his mind with visions of her mother and father, and then clouded ones of Bella and Jacob. She put a questioning vibe to her thoughts. Who? He sighed, shrugging. She let go, taking a step away from him. Her expression was a mixture of confusion and anger.
"I need to leave," Bella whispered, her eyes troubled. Edward nodded and walked towards her, ready to follow. She looked into his eyes and shook her head. "Alone." He frowned but nodded, giving her a quick peck on the mouth before she ran, navigating through the woods. Edward turned on Jacob, furious.
"You stupid mutt," he spat, taking hold of Renesmee's hand. He pulled her in the direction of the house, but Jacob growled loudly, shaking his head.
"You are not taking her from me too, leech," he promised. Renesmee slid her hand out of Edward's, her lower lip trembling.
"Daddy, Jakie!" she said, trying to articulate her feelings. She gave up and touched his palm slightly, leaking her sadness into his mind. He groaned, frustrated, and swung at a tree trunch, breaking it in half.
"Whatever! You can play with the stupid mutt! But we're going back to the house, Nessie, and there's no question behind that," he ordered, glaring at Jacob, daring him to refuse.
"Fine with me," he replied, his voice heated. The three of them walked in the direction of the house, a large distance between the two adults, enemies once again. Some things never change.