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Rematch

Not far from the house, Edward started grumbling. I looked curiously at him. Renesmee's eyes were big.

Finally, I could see that in front of the house, Jacob and Emmet were waiting. Jacob ran toward us. He understood that Renesmee, Edward and I needed to be alone sometimes, but he still didn't like it. He stopped a few steps from us. Renesmee reached out toward him, and I willingly held her out for Jacob. Jacob listened as she touched his cheek. He grinned at me. "You seduced me?" he asked.

I rolled my eyes. "You know it's true."

"I do. I just never thought you'd confess it," he answered with a shrug. I curled Renesmee into my chest again. On Edward's expression, I knew this was the only thing she had told him. She understood that what we had told her was only for her.

We turned toward Emmet.

He grinned at me, and I frowned. What now?

A few seconds passed, and then we were in front of him, a few steps away. I heard the others in the front room. I raised an eyebrow.

"What's wrong, Emmet? Punched a werewolf?" Though Jacob and the other werewolves were shape-shifters, we still just called them werewolves. It was easier.

Emmet's grin grew wider. "That wouldn't even manage," he answered, shaking with laughter, now. Then it ripped through his lips, and he laid back his head and laughed like a bear.

"Seriously, Emmet, I'm going to punch your face and brain into one if you don't explain!" I growled.

He looked at me again. "You really can't figure it out on your own?" he asked, disappointed. "Well, then let me quote – you. Me. Arm-wrestling. Dining room table. Now." I stared at him, and he filled in a low: "Unless you're too afraid …?"

It had been a while since he'd challenged me. After a while, he grew annoyed with loosing. So this caught me off guard. He had surely been waiting for the newborn powers to disappear.

I frowned. "I'll beat you. Just like all the other times." It was more to assure myself that I said it.

"Sure, sure," Emmet agreed, grinning hugely, not at all agreeing.

I handed Renesmee for Edward as the others came out. I could see that Edward seriously needed a reason to not lose control. Besides, losing control would make Emmet way too happy.

"Do I have to remind you that Esme is quite fond of that table?" Alice asked, dancing toward us.

I Scowled at her. "No," both Emmet and I answered in the same time. The we both walked – actually, I had the feeling I was more dancing – over to the place where I'd destroyed the old rock for exactly this, but now there was a new one.

I gritted my teeth and made myself ready.

"If I win, I'm allowed every bit of right to make fun of your sex life once again," he grinned. I frowned. No way was I going to live with that.

"No," I answered.

"Scared?"

I didn't do anything but scowl at him. He just grinned, and somewhere behind me, Rosalie laughed. Jasper snickered. I had no choice. I agreed.

"Fine. But if I win, the old treaty is intact, and you'll bow down and call me your superior."

He cringed. "Good one."

"I know."

We took each other's hands – and then it began.

It wavered back and forth between us. It was really hard to keep him from winning. I had the feeling he was playing with me, letting me push our hands down his side, then making them closer to mine, before letting me push him away again.

Suddenly, he smashed my hand down into the rock, leaving a mark. Edward growled. It only hurt a little.

Emmet got to his feet, dancing around. Then he turned toward me, smiling. "So, Bella," he continued, and I knew what was coming. "House still standing? Or haven't you had time to smash it down lately?"

I just glared at him. Then I got up, too, stepped over to his side and then calculatingly smashed my fit into his chest. He was pushed many feet back. He silenced and stared at me.

I grinned at him. Then a snarl came from behind. Rosalie, no doubt. Except for her, everyone was silence.

"Care for a rematch?" I asked lightly. Edward hissed.

"Nice," Jasper muttered.

"Shut up," Alice warned.

"Fine by me, little sister. I just hope you're fine with your daughter watching while I kick your face to unrecognizable," Emmet smiled, almost looking like an angel. A really annoying angel.

"Actually, I'm not fine with her watching while I make you into tofu."

I crouched down into my hunting crouch. No need to agree on the terms. If he won, I should call him superior – If I won, he would leave me the hell alone.

As he launched for me, I stepped to the side, hitting for his thick head, hoping to smash it in.

He caught my hand and swung me against the rock we'd been sitting at moments ago – only I let only my feet touch it, using the rock to cast myself toward him, leaving only dust behind me.

I smashed into him before he could avoid, and we hit the ground. He bit for my shoulder, the closest part of me to his teeth, but I flinched back in time. No way I was going to have scars like Jasper.

We got up and faced each other. A playful snarl ripped my throat, a sound much like it coming from his.

I was just about to attack again, when Renesmee cried out her agony. Both Emmet and I grew to a stop in the exact same time.

"Maybe doing it in front of Renesmee isn't such a good idea," Rosalie suggested, but then she saw Edward – his jaw was clenched, eyes on Emmet, waiting for a mistake to justify him ripping his throat apart. "Or in front of Edward."

Emmet grinned. "Fine," he said, muffling my hair. "We'll do it again, little sister," he promised, ignoring Edward's sudden snarl.

"Agreed," I said with a grim smile.

Renesmee reached out for me, but before I had her securely in my arms, I was in Edward's. His eyes were, wary, on Emmet who grinned back.

Renesmee touched my cheek, showing me everything. I smiled at her anguish as I left the rock as dust and launched myself at Emmet. I felt real horror in her, as Emmet tried to bite me.

"She's not the only one feeling that way," Edward murmured.

"Bella, you have to do that again!" Jasper laughed, suddenly at our side. Edward grumbled, not at all agreeing.

"Sure thing, Jasper," I told him.

"Be sure to kick his ass, please. That would be so satisfying," he grinned.

I grinned back. "Agreed," I repeated.

"Bella!" Emmet called, and I turned around – this was almost impossible, though, with an unwilling Edward holding me.

"Yes, Emmet?" I asked.

"When you and Edward go home tonight, why don't you leave Renesmee here?"

I frowned, knowing one of his jokes was coming. Still, I said: "Why?"

He grinned triumphantly, and I instantly regretted not just calling his bluff. "Because Edward looks like you're finally going to destroy that cottage of yours."

Edward grumbled and held me closer – only this made Emmet's joke so much funnier.

We walked back to the house where Emmet sat down to watch a game. He seemed very satisfied. So did Rosalie and she sat down beside him with a huge smile.

"You know, Emmet, maybe we're not the only ones who'll be destroying something tonight," I said.

Jasper laughed, Alice smiled, Rosalie stared – Emmet totally ignored me.

Edward, seeming more in control, brushed my hair as I gritted my teeth. "Don't think about him, love," he whispered.

"How can I not think about someone who's clearly in no possession of enough brain cells' to comprehend an insult?"

Emmet finally turned. "Oh, Bella, I'm not insulted. I'm very happy that you think I'm going to destroy something, too." He turned back to the TV, but this time he lay his arm around Rosalie, sighing.

I grumbled. "Then why don't you die with joy?" I asked. "Or do you just hate for others to be happy?"

Again – nothing.

I rolled my eyes and walked away from the sofa, sitting in a chair not far away. Then I whispered in Renesmee's ear: "Go take the remote controller and shift to whatever channel you'd better like."

She immediately stalked toward Emmet, grabbed the controller and shifted to some puppet show, clearly for children.

Emmet first looked at her too-innocent face, and then glared at me – who was hugely smiling.

"Ha, ha, very funny," he snorted. "Happy now?"

"Very."

"Bella," Alice suddenly called. I turned toward her with an asking glance at her beautiful face. "Emmet actually did destroy your cloth." I looked down. Oh, right. He did. I suddenly realized that this meant that Alice was going to make me shift, and that she was going to help me – rather do it for me – choose what to wear. I was suddenly very angry at Emmet. "You will have to get something else on. Come with me!"

She grabbed my hand, and we ran – me, not too much – toward the cottage, and my huge walk-in closet.

I watched as she worked her way through my cloth, looking for something very elegant.

"I thought cloth were supposed to mirror a person's personality," I commented as she gave me a silk shirt. She just hissed at me.

I sighed. Alice would be Alice, and I would be Bella. And, according to Alice, cloth didn't matter to me, and therefore, she could have her fun. Well, as long as I could move.

"You know, you were too inspirering before," she mumbled, and I looked at her with a not-understanding look. She sighed. "Jasper would like to challenge Emmet, too, now."

I laughed. "Doubtless."

"You know, sometimes I think you weren't born to be human, but to really just be a vampire. Maybe you weren't a danger-magnet, but a future-magnet. Maybe all those vampires came for you, because you were supposed to be vampire and not human."

I stared at her. In a strange way, her words made sense. I sighed. "I'm glad I'm adjusting," I whispered.

She grinned at me. "Of course you are."

"Alice, I still can't get over when you left," I sighed. "It didn't feel right."

She nodded. "I know what you mean," she agreed. "But although it doesn't feel that way, it was right."

"I know. I'm grateful for what you did – for me, for Renesmee." After a second, I added: "You know, I have to take over the family business with J. Jenks."

She stared at me. "Why?"

"Because Jasper's scaring him to death, that's why," I answered.

She grinned at me. "He liked you," she stated.

I grinned back. "Very much."

She finally found a pair of pants that she found good enough for me. I quickly put them on, and then sighed.

"What's wrong?" she asked, knowing that it wasn't a respond to her choice of clothes. If the choice was on my shoulders, there wouldn't have been put much thought into the decision.

"I just thought if I'm ever going to have even the slightest chance of beating Emmet." I looked hopefully at her. "Can you see that?"

She smiled widely at me. "Nope. I can't tell what you'll become in the future. But if you want my advice, and to not get any more humiliated, don't challenge him for a while, please."

I muffled a hiss. "You're only saying that so that I won't give Jasper any good ideas." I thought about it. "If we both tried to take him down …" I grinned. It surprised me that my new nature made me so wild. But there really was nothing to do except for learning to live with it. And that was what I was doing.

She cringed. "Please, Bella, be reasonable! Besides, Rosalie would get involved, you know that."

I nodded with an apologetic smile.

Then we ran back to the house. I tried to outrun her, but it was difficult, especially now that my newborn powers were gone. In the last months they had slowly disappeared. Emmet had, without doubt, been holding an eye on me.

When we came back, Renesmee sat besides Edward at the piano. She turned her head to me and smiled dazzlingly. I something near danced to her side, pulling her into my arms before sitting beside Edward. His fingers started playing my lullaby, and I hummed with him. There were no words for what that melody meant to me.

A rhythmic sound from upstairs, and I realized that Alice had left the room. I looked cautiously at the stairs as she approached. She smiled at me, completely innocent. This made me think not.

"Why are you looking like that?" I asked her. "All smug."

She smiled winningly at me. "I'm not smug."

"Go tell that to someone else – but before, tell my why you're so utterly happy."

She rolled her eyes and reached out for Renesmee. My eyes narrowed. "Oh, please, Bella!"

"What are you planning?"

Alice let her arms fall to her sides. "I thought Renesmee might like to go for a drive," she answered, again that too innocent smile.

"Excuse me?" I asked. "What?"

"You know, maybe she'd like to go see Seattle? Something outside the house and the forest?"

My eyes narrowed even more, but not entirely because of her words. Because of Seattle. I still didn't like it, though Victoria's newborns were no more there. Still, the thought of Renesmee there …

I shuddered.

"Please, Bella."

I looked dubiously at her. Then I decided: "No dice."

"What?"

"I know you're up to something."

"Bella," she sighed and slid down beside me on her knees. "Do you love me?"

"Ugh, Alice! I'm not gonna fall for that!"

She hissed miserably and walked away, a deep grumble in her throat. She stopped at Rosalie's side, sending her a meaningful glance. I held Renesmee closer to me. Apparently, it was not only Alice that were in this. What about Jasper? Emmet? Esme? Even Carlisle?

Edward?

I immediately turned around, eyes still narrowed. He smiled soothingly at me. This only made me more confused.

"Seriously!" I hissed.

Jasper snickered, sensing my confusion and anger. "Easy, Bella," he cautioned with a crooked smile. There was something wary about it. He still didn't trust the newborn in me too much, though he'd been coming around.

"What's going on?" I asked him, my eyes boring into his.

"Bella, can't you just let your daughter come out for a few hours?" Alice begged.

"Not when you're like that." Then I thought about it. Maybe Renesmee did need to get out. I sighed. "Can I come?" I surrendered.

"No!" she said immediately.

I groaned.

"I could go," Jacob suggested. He half grinned at me when my eyes looked suspiciously at him and then shrugged.

Edward stopped playing and laid his hand against my neck. He knew what they were thinking, what they were planning for our daughter. If he didn't stop it, there must be nothing wrong with it.

Doubt wavered around me. I didn't know if I could trust Edward on this. What would Alice do in Seattle? I didn't like this. It wouldn't be the first, or the last, time Alice outrageously surprised me. And I knew from experience that I probably wouldn't like her surprise. I slid my hand down Renesmee's spine and held her securely and then got up. I hesitated a few eight-parts of a second, and then danced across the room toward Alice. The little vampire smiled exasperatingly and held out her arms for my daughter. I pulled back my hand till I held Renesmee in the armholes, waiting for Alice to take over around her waist. Unwillingly, I let go.

As Alice nearly ran to the door, her gazelle-like running sure to win every boy's heart over, Rosalie got up. I turned toward Jacob. "You," I commanded, pointing at him. "Tell me everything that happens when you get back!"

He ducked his head. "One lifetime of servitude," he mumbled teasingly as he passed me. I grinned bitterly.

Then they were gone.