A/N: A not-so-long installment, this time, but I think it's a pretty fun one, and it'll shed some light on a few unresolved issues. This officially marks the point in the story where all the background information is laid down, and we can move on to new, fun stuff =)
As always, I appreciate your feedback! Please review… I'm open to any and all suggestions!
Thanks for reading,
~Crit.
Chapter 7: The Vampire/Werewolf showdown that never was.
Previously, in Jacob and Nessie's Loft, present –day:
If Bella wanted to hurt him, Jacob thought, then he was dead. Even in wolf form, he wouldn't be able to fight her, not Bella. He knew he would never be able to live with himself if he did. If they fought, he would die.
Edward suddenly straightened, as if he'd caught a scent. And then he turned rapidly, leaping to his feet, and suddenly his eyes were boring into Jacob's. Bella took a moment to catch on. "Jacob…" Edward began.
"Oh god," Bella moaned. "You heard us."
Jacob couldn't move. All of his senses were heightened; he could hear the central air as it whirred quietly in the ducts, he could hear the creaks and groans of the old building, the metal-on-metal slide of the elevator. He felt himself begin to tremble.
"Jacob, calm down," Edward said firmly. "Get control of yourself." Jacob tried his best to listen to Edward, but it was getting difficult. He didn't want to phase, but his protective instincts were beginning to kick in. He couldn't look away from Bella. She was tense, straight as a metal poker with the effort of staying in place. Edward threw out an arm in front of her, and she gripped it with a force that would have snapped most peoples' bones.
"Jake," she said miserably. "I'm so sorry. I can't help it."
"Why?" he hissed through clenched teeth. He didn't trust himself to open his jaw. "What have I done, Bella? What have I ever done to you?"
"Nothing," she said, still looking as though she was trying very hard not to leap at him. "It's what you're going to do." Her voice was bitter. He could practically hear the venom in it. Jacob realized with a jolt that she was talking about Renesmee.
"I would never hurt her!" He snarled, his skin vibrating dangerously. "You know that, Bella."
Bella looked at him almost pleadingly. Jacob could tell that she was fighting with her very strong vampiric instincts. There they stood, two former best friends, just barely keeping their tenuous holds on the natural compulsions that, were they to succumb, would cause them to attack each other. Edward stood in between them, helplessly, waiting for something to happen.
"I can't help it," Bella gasped. "I'm sorry Jacob. I—I have to go." Edward reached for her, but she threw off his hand. "Stay here. Wait for Renesmee. Tell her I'll be back." She made a dash for the door, throwing one last look at Jacob over her shoulder before leaving. Edward moved silently to the door and bolted it.
Jacob felt his body calm down as the danger subsided. He turned to Edward, bewildered. "What," he said slowly and clearly, "was that?"
Edward motioned him over to the couch, which Jacob gratefully slumped down on. Edward, of course, did not need to sit, but he did anyway, whether out of habit or solidarity Jacob was not sure. "Jacob, Bella has been…" he looked like he was considering his words carefully, "conflicted about your leaving with Renesmee these past few months. Her rational, humane side recognizes that this is the best course of action, and that your being with our daughter is inevitable. But she is a vampire. And in that, she has no more control over her instincts than an animal. Renesmee is her young. We've seen how protective vampires are of their mates throughout the years, but there was no way to predict how a vampire mother would be when protecting her child; there has been no precedent for it. The answer, as it turns out, is what you just saw in Bella." Edward looked disturbed by what he was telling Jacob. Jacob couldn't say he blamed him. "I've spoken privately with Carlisle about it. He seems to think that Bella's objection to you and Renesmee is so strong because you are of a rival species. Her first instinct, upon Renesmee being physically threatened by you, is to destroy you." Edward's look was apologetic.
"Wow," Jacob replied, "thanks for putting it nicely."
"That was putting it nicely, Jacob."
"Oh." Jacob felt completely and totally disoriented. This certainly explained why Bella had been acting so distant lately… she'd been trying not to kill him. He tried to think of when Bella had started acting that way, but he honestly couldn't. Most of the time, his attention was focused on Renesmee. "How long has she been feeling this way?" He said, running one hand through his shaggy hair. He was sweating. He hadn't even realized.
"Only since it was decided that you would be moving in here, with Renesmee." Edward looked grim. "Despite my reassurances, and yours, she seems to think that you two are going to take your relationship to a different place while you're living here. And the thought of it has kicked her instincts into high gear. I won't lie to you, Jacob… some of the things she's said would probably make you think twice about being a part of this family."
Jacob really didn't want to know. "What do I have to do?" he asked, for once letting go of his pride and turning to Edward for help. "I want to know how to fix this."
Edward had no immediate reply. Jacob hadn't really expected that he would. They sat in contemplative silence for a while before Edward replied. "I'm not sure you can. For now, I would say that it's wisest to simply attempt to control yourself around Renesmee. The deal we made still stands. Of course, now that you know the whole story I'm sure you're more likely to hold up your end of the bargain." Jacob nodded vehemently. "It is my hope that, when you and Renesmee do embark upon a romantic relationship, Bella's instincts will change. But it may take time. Vampire instincts are very strong, very primal… you of all people should understand how that works." Jacob thought about the pull of the wolf, about his time in the woods of Canada, when he'd lived entirely on instinct alone. His animal side was powerful, hard to control sometimes. Yes, he thought he could understand.
"I'd never hurt her," he repeated suddenly. Edward looked surprised.
"I know that, Jacob. Of all the people I've had to consider protecting Renesmee from, I've never once considered you."
That was something, at least, Jacob thought miserably to himself. He'd never thought that he'd see the day where he and Edward would be on one side, with Bella on the other. Once, she had trusted him with Renesmee's life. He felt the loss of her trust like a gigantic wound, one that his healing powers couldn't close over quite so quickly.
"She wants to trust you," Edward said, replying to his thoughts. "Her instincts are simply too strong. But Bella, the person she is beneath those instincts… she has always trusted you, Jacob. She always will."
"Doesn't make it any easier," Jacob said, shaking his head.
"I know." Edward's shoulders actually slumped. "It hasn't been easy for me either. I'm glad that you know. I should have spoken to you about this long ago." He looked up at Jacob, and there was something akin to sympathy in his golden eyes. "Please don't blame Bella. She feels badly enough." There was the distinctive sound of a key turning in the lock, and then the door rattled against the deadbolt.
"Hey!" Renesmee's voice sounded faintly from the other side of the door. "Let us in!" Edward was at the door in a second, sliding the bolt open. "Why'd you lock us out?" Renesmee said jokingly. "Thought you'd keep the place yourself, once you saw how nice it was?"
"That's right," Edward replied fondly, clearly not intending to offer any real explanation.
Renesmee's upper half was completely hidden behind the stack of boxes she was carrying. Behind her, Emmett had a stack that was almost as tall as he was, all of the boxes labeled 'Books'. Jacob snickered at that; if they were trying to keep a low profile by acting human, attempting to set a Guinness record for heavy lifting wasn't a very practical start. "Hey, we ran into Mom downstairs… she said you're heading out?" Renesmee ended her sentence with a huff as she set her pile of boxes down.
"We are." Edward hadn't missed a beat. Jacob wondered if he was really that smooth, or if he had picked the altered plan out of somebody's head. Probably a bit of both.
"So soon?" Renesmee looked a bit disappointed. Jacob wondered how she'd feel if she knew the real reason for her parents' sudden departure. He wasn't sure he wanted to know whose side she'd be on. He watched silently as Edward put a hand on her shoulder.
"We should really be heading back. Your mother and I didn't go hunting with you last night… she's hungry, and this city is so full of humans. Your Uncle will help you get settled before driving the van back."
"Yeah," Emmett piped up. "I think that's a good idea… Jake's gonna need a hand breaking in that big screen."
Renesmee smirked at her uncle. "Find your own friends, will you?"
"Aw, don't be jealous, Nessie… I'll give him back in one piece." Jacob had to chuckle at Emmett's wide grin. There was nothing the guy enjoyed more than teasing his niece, except for maybe taking down a bear or two.
Renesmee eyed her uncle carefully. "You'd better," she said lethally. "I won't have you two sparring in my house." Emmett shot Jacob a look that clearly read, I'm game if you are. Jacob shook his head.
"Sorry man… Nessie's place, Nessie's rules."
"Well, now that order has been established, I think I'd best be going," Edward said, clearly amused by the banter between the three of them. "I believe Bella's waiting for me." He embraced his daughter, kissing her gently on the cheek.
"I'll miss you, Dad," Renesmee said, sounding suddenly much younger than her advanced mental age… younger, even, than her physical age of seventeen.
"I love you, Darling." Edward's whisper was barely audible. "Take good care of yourself, and stay safe." He stepped back and gave her a pointed look. "That means cooperating with Jacob, where your well-being is concerned."
"Only if he cooperates with me," Renesmee responded hard-headedly. She shot him a look over Edward's shoulder. Jacob rolled his eyes.
"As if I could avoid it."
Emmett's low chuckle broke through their banter. "Alright, Nessie, let your Dad get out the door," the big vampire said jovially. He turned to his adoptive brother. "I'll be following you guys in a little while." Edward nodded and made his way out the door.
It was past midnight by the time Emmett made his way back to the van start the return trip upstate. True to his word, the vampire had set up shop right in front of the flat screen, clicking through the hundreds of global sports channels until he found a game worth watching. Jacob joined him, happy for once to not have to share his bag of microwave popcorn with three starving wolves. Nessie went in and out of the room between putting away all of her own things, and eventually ended up staying until the game was over. They watched a couple old episodes of Seinfeld at Renesmee's insistence ("Don't you want to know how real New Yorkers act?"), and then Emmett decided to hit the road. Jacob engaged in a typical masculine shoulder-slapping farewell with the large vampire. He was actually going to miss him. Renesmee was Jacob's best friend in all other things, but as far as sports-viewing partners went, nobody could hold a candle to Emmett.
Jacob watched Renesmee bolt the door firmly behind her uncle. She turned to face him, a huge grin on her face.
"What?" Jacob said curiously. He hadn't thought it was possible, but Renesmee's smile actually got wider.
"We made it," she said victoriously. "We're here. Finally." Her eyes swept quickly over the loft before she crossed her arms over her chest, practically oozing satisfaction. Jacob couldn't help but snicker.
"Could you be any more pleased with yourself?" He said sarcastically. As predicted, she lunged at him with a not-so-gentle punch to the arm. Jacob caught her small fist in his hand on the rebound, stopping a potential second hit.
"Plenty," she retorted, "Just give me a minute to think of how." He still had her tiny, cool hand enclosed in his large, warm one. Jacob knew he had to let go. Nessie was leaning against him. Jacob realized with a sudden jolt that he no longer had to control his thoughts. Edward was halfway across the state. He wasn't sure whether he was relieved or terrified. And now Nessie was looking up at him with those wide, dark eyes.
"Jake?" She said quietly.
"Yeah, Ness?" His voice was a little lower than usual.
"I'm glad you're here with me." She slid her free arm around his waist. "Thanks for coming."
He released her hand and wrapped his arms around her. "Thanks for asking me." Her head was resting on his chest, copper curls nestled just inches from his face. Jacob breathed in her smell surreptitiously, and then let her go. Just a friendly embrace, he told himself firmly.
"Oh wow," Renesmee said thickly, fighting a yawn. "I'm actually tired!" Jacob smirked. Unlike her parents, Renesmee needed sleep, but she didn't need as much as the average human. She didn't usually tire out until around three or four in the morning. But then again, it had been a pretty big day.
"We should turn in, then," he said, nudging her towards the stairs. "I could use some rest too. Besides, you've got school tomorrow." She seemed to perk up as she remembered school.
"I really can't wait," she said as she led the way up the stairs. "I know you think I'm a geek, but I'm really excited about studying again. I wonder if there will be any interesting people in my classes."
"I don't think you're a geek," Jacob said defensively. Renesmee just chuckled.
"Well it'd be okay if you did." She turned to look at him as the stopped at the top of the stairs. "I sort of am."
Jacob worked very hard at manufacturing an innocent expression. "Never," he said in an exaggerated voice. His reward was another quick punch to the arm before Renesmee started off down the hall towards her bedroom.
"Whatever… I'm going to bed." She paused at her bedroom door, looking over her shoulder at him. "Goodnight, Jake."
"'Night, Ness." She shut her door with a soft click and Jacob was alone in the hall. He stood there, staring at her door without moving, for a very long time before he was able to go into his own room and go to sleep.
