Author's Note: Sorry it took so long. I've had a lot going on, and I had to get in the mood to write this chapter because of the amount of dialogue.

Things to remember for this chapter: The Cullens' stories. Aurelius was the leader of the werewolves that was killed by the Volturi. He had two sons, Bristol and Maximus. Maximus went to save Aurelius but was too late. Maximus had Isis and Max. Bristol had Cyrus and Lars. Cyrus massacred a village which brought about the split amongst the werewolves. Maximus killed Cyrus. Bristol killed Maximus. Max later killed Bristol for murdering his father. When I'm referring to Maximus Sr, I call him Maximus. Lexi is not biologically Isis and Joe's daughter. Genie is blonde. Just in case you forgot because I know it's complicated and confusing to have to remember.

You know I'm not Stephenie Meyer.


Chapter 8: Once Upon a Time

We all shifted to seats on the couches or the floor to begin learning about these werewolves we would call allies and possibly friends. Edward sat with his back against the couch in front of Alice who was perched on her knees nearly bouncing in anticipation. He smiled at Alice's obvious excitement and pulled me down to sit between his legs. He put one arm around my waist and his free hand twirled random strands of my hair. His face was too close to my neck for concentration. I shifted slightly to lean away, to which Edward stiffened and muffled a moan in my hair. Oops. It really is good to be eternally a teenager…But right now, I needed to focus. I gave him a stern look and grabbed both his hands in mine, and slowly my brain began to defog.

Carlisle exchanged a glance with Edward who nodded slightly. Then Carlisle spoke. "Well, I suppose I'll begin since I'm the oldest vampire here. I was born in the 1640s in England…"

I sat completely engrossed in Carlisle's story though I'd heard it several times before when he told me as a human, when he told Nessie, when he told Jacob and Seth. But Carlisle's story truly was remarkable and showed just how great of a man he really was. His resistance to temptation from the very beginning is beyond admirable. I may have restrained, but I was prepared and it was what I wanted. Carlisle just resisted because of who he was deep down. All the werewolves sat stunned throughout his recollection. He left out his stay with the Volturi for the time being and stopped his story before he got to the part of meeting Edward.

The werewolves were staring at him with wide eyes and a few open mouths. I glanced at Edward who had a proud look on his face. The werewolves were obviously thinking how amazing the blonde haired vampire before them was. I smiled because I, too, was proud of my eternal father figure.

"So you've never…" Joseph trailed off after a few minutes of silence. "You've never harmed a human?"

Carlisle looked pensive and a little sad. I could tell he was thinking of whether or not turning four vampires was harming them.

"No, he's always had the willpower. He's never drank from a human in all his years. That's how he is able to work at a hospital. The blood doesn't tempt him at all." Edward spoke up.

"What made you decide to become a doctor, Carlisle?" Lexi asked.

Carlisle smiled at Edward then Lexi. "I wanted to help people. I didn't want to lose my humanity. You see, I was alone for most of my existence," he said. "Having heightened senses is a great way to diagnose. Of course, it was much more helpful before modern technology. Now, I just figure it out before the tests are run."

"I never thought I'd say this about a vampire, but you're amazing, really. That's a beautiful way to spend eternity." Prudence said with an unshed tear in her eye.

Carlisle just smiled softly and nodded his head. Lexi looked almost like she wanted to run over and hug Carlisle. All the werewolves continued to look at him in awe.

Max decided to turn his focus to the werewolves. "Well, now that we know the oldest vampire better. I guess we could talk to the oldest werewolf," Max said. Carlisle smiled gratefully.

We all sat waiting to hear Max and Isis tell their story again, but it was Joseph who spoke.

"I'm nearly eight hundred years old, and one of the oldest werewolves still living," Joseph said. "I've seen many things throughout my life. I've been a part of many wars between our kinds. I've served the royal family of werewolves my entire existence. I was born a werewolf into a family of protectors of the royal family. I served two great leaders before we werewolves split in two.

"I protected and fought along side Gregarious and then his son Aurelius. I went with Maximus Sr. to Italy to bring Aurelius home, but we were too late. After that, it was only a matter of time before Bristol's arrogance threatened our secrecy. I had already decided to side with Maximus no matter the cost. Maximus was the only one who deserved to be a leader.

"I saw the way Bristol treated his people. I saw the way he hated Maximus. When the werewolves were forced to split, I was a little relieved to be rid of Bristol. I went with Maximus when he killed Cyrus for exposing us to vampires and killing so many innocent people.

"After Maximus's death, I stood behind Max and Isis when they took over. When Max left to go kill Bristol to avenge his father, Isis was beside herself with worry over her brother and she came to me. I fell in love with her that night and haven't left her side since." Joseph smiled sweetly at Isis and gently kissed her lips.

"Of course, I would've been with Max if he hadn't up and left with only a few men without telling me," Joseph said pointedly at Max.

"I wanted the best person there to protect Isis in case I didn't come back, and I'm pretty sure neither of you would argue that everything worked out just fine," Max said with a smile.

"No, you're right. We can't argue that," Isis said as she stared up at her husband.

"It's nice you two found each other," Esme said with a smile as she grabbed Carlisle's hand.

"Yes, it is," Carlisle said as he peaked at Esme. "Eight hundred years. Wow, that's quite a long life."

"Yes, but it wasn't much of a life until the past couple hundred years. Before the separation amongst the werewolves, I fed on humans on the full moon. It's a life I'll never return to. I'm happier in this life of restraint with Isis," Joseph said.

I saw Jasper nod out of the corner of my eye and knew he related all too well to that.

"I agree with you," Jasper spoke. "I suppose my story is next, but I assure you it's not a pleasant one for the most part."

He grimaced but continued. "I was the youngest Major in the Confederate Army, and I lied about my age. I was even younger than they thought and not even old enough to fight in the war…"

Jasper told his story of his change and his job of building vampire armies. All the werewolves were engrossed in the story. Even Jacob, Seth, and Leah were. They knew bits and pieces of his story, but never the extent of what he did.

"People listened to me, trusted me. Vampires did as I asked. If I wanted them to fight, they fought. When I was human, it was believed I was charismatic, and I carried that onto my next life. I later discovered I had the power to feel and manipulate emotions…"

He pointed out his scars. He told them about Peter and Charlotte and his hatred for his lifestyle. He told them of his confusion and his desire for something more.

"When I killed, I could feel their emotions just as they did, and it tore me apart every time. I couldn't understand how all the vampires I had ever known were unaffected by the killing. I hated it. I hated myself until I ended up escaping rain in a diner in Philadelphia," Jasper smiled at Alice.

"That's where I met Alice. She was waiting on me. I had never met anyone like her before, and I was confused, but I felt comfortable with her. I felt different and calmer than I had my entire existence. I felt hope. She told me she had seen Carlisle's family, and we went to find them."

"So you saw the Cullens, Alice?" Lexi asked.

"Yes, I started having visions of them after my change and I knew I would end up with them. I also knew my life was with Jasper and I had to find him first. And I did," Alice beamed at Jasper.

"So we showed up at their house, scared them half to death so to speak, and moved right on in," Jasper said with a small laugh.

"Yes. It was quite bizarre for two strange vampires to come up to our house like that. Jasper with all his scars and Alice who knew us all by name." Carlisle chuckled.

"Imagine mine and Emmett's surprise, when we come home from hunting to find we have two new inhabitants in the house, who, by the way, moved all of the stuff out of my room and into to garage because my room had the best view," Edward said with a forced huff.

"Oh, will you get over that already? It was over half a century ago, dear brother, and I knew I would need the closet space." Alice stuck her tongue out at Edward, who just chuckled.

"What about your past, Alice?" Lexi asked curiously.

Alice gave a small smile. "I don't remember my life as a human. I only discovered a few years ago what actually happened to me. I was born in 1901 in Biloxi, Mississippi. I was institutionalized because of my visions as a child. A tracker named James, whose name you'll hear again in Bella's story, wanted to kill me, but I was changed by someone who worked at the asylum before he could get to me. James killed that vampire and I began my new life alone with no clue who I was and only my visions of Jasper and the Cullens to get me through. I only discovered this information after Bella's run in with James a few years ago."

"That's terrible!" Lexi exclaimed as she ran over to hug Alice.

"It's okay. I don't remember my life, and I don't think I would want to anyway. I've had a good second life here with my family," Alice reassured.

"What about you, Lexi? What was your life like?" Edward asked.

"I grew up on a farm in Iowa with my parents and my younger brother. We didn't have a lot of money, but we loved each other and things were good. I helped out around the farm with my dad. I helped my mom in the kitchen, and I played with my little brother Matt. He was only ten years old." Lexi gave a sad smile.

"The werewolves came on a full moon. I was out in the barn brushing my horse. My dad and mom were sitting outside on the porch with Matt asleep between them. I don't remember much. Just screams. My horse was scared and she bucked and knocked me out. All I remember after that is waking up in a lot of pain and seeing Isis telling me it would be okay soon. Then the full moon," Lexi said.

"That was thirty years ago. I've been with Isis and Joe and Max's pack since," She said.

"That night when a few of Lars's pack attacked, Joe and I were nearby. We followed them, but we were too late to save her family. We followed one wolf into the barn where he found Lexi. She was unconscious and he had clawed into her leg. We were able to kill the wolf and the two others. When the sun rose, we took Lexi with us, and we've thought of her as a daughter ever since," Isis said. Lexi smiled and went to hug her adoptive parents.

"I suppose your story is next, Edward." Esme said.

"I was born in 1901 in Chicago to two wonderful people. My parents were happy and well off and very much in love. I wanted to fight in the war and couldn't wait to turn eighteen so that I could, but I never made it to eighteen," Edward said solemnly and I squeezed his hand.

"My father was the first to go. He died of Spanish Influenza. My mother and I both contracted it as well. She took care of me even though she was sick. We both ended up in the hospital, and I remember laying on my death bed beside her on hers. Carlisle was our doctor, and he changed me. I woke up in this new life with the ability to read minds," Edward said.

"I was alone and wanted someone for company, but I couldn't take a healthy life. Edward was dying, and I considered it. His mother asked me to do everything I could to save him. She seemed to know I could do more than other doctors to save him, so I did. He's been my best friend and son ever since," Carlisle said.

"I had my bout of rebellion where I left and took lives…"

"The lives of murderers and rapists. Don't forget to mention that part." I interrupted him.

He smiled softly at me. "True, but I still took lives. I knew everything they thought, and I couldn't do it, so I returned to Carlisle and this lifestyle where I've been nearly ever since," Edward said.

"Shortly after I turned Edward, I turned Esme," Carlisle said.

"Yes. I'm older than Edward, but he's an older vampire than I am. Physically, I'm even older than Carlisle," Esme smiled at Carlisle. "I met Carlisle once when I was a teenager. I had sprained my ankle and he was my doctor. I believe I fell in love with him then, but it wouldn't have worked out. Instead I married an abusive man my family set me up with."

"I was ashamed. I only stayed because I was pregnant with his child. It was all I had to live for. When my baby died, I had nothing else." Esme's expression turned sad and I felt a sudden wave of happiness from Jasper. Esme lifted her head and gave him a thankful smile.

"I jumped off a cliff after that. I remember pain, and then I awoke to see the love of my life completely unchanged by the touch of time," Esme smiled.

"They thought she was dead, but I could hear her faint heartbeat. I recognized her, and I couldn't let her die. I knew I loved her," Carlisle said looking into Esme's eyes.

I squeezed Edward's hand again and he kissed my neck softly. I shivered a little at the feel of it.

Genie told her story next. It was a sad one. She was born in Sweden in the 1800s and scratched when she was in her early twenties. She doesn't remember much except waking up and being a werewolf. She wandered around most of her life all alone. She hated what she was and she hated killing, but she couldn't stop herself. She had no way to restrain herself in order to become adjusted to her bloodlust, so she fed. She tried to kill herself numerous times, but the moon would always heal her. She loathed her existence until she ran into Max's pack in the 1970s and she'd been with them since and learned to deal with the bloodlust.

"When you know nothing of this life, it's hard to resist. We've all learned to resist the blood through years of practice and being physically restrained on full moons until we could handle it. I never had the option until I met them," Genie said.

After that, Rosalie and Emmett told their story. Rosalie made her story as light as she could and kept it as short as possible. When she got to the part about being Edward's expected mate, she rolled her eyes. Edward shook his head. Emmett snorted. He actually snorted. She told them about finding Emmett and taking him back to Carlisle.

"I thought she was an angel, but I felt the flames through my body. I wondered why there was an angel in hell, but I knew if she were there, it wouldn't be hell at all," Emmett said.

Seth "awed" on cue rather dramatically. Jacob coughed, "Suck up!" Nessie smacked him. Edward burst out laughing at that. I glared at Edward and effectively shut him up. I smiled smugly, and he placed kisses along my neck, effectively wiping that grin off my face. It was a cycle.

The next story told was that of the rest of the werewolves. Prudence and Randall were human brother and sister. Lars's clan approached Pru the day of the full moon when they were seemingly human and took her. Lars wanted to take her as his mate, but she didn't want it. They kidnapped her brother Randall and asked her to comply, threatening to kill him. She did in order to save Randall. They changed Pru, but they also changed Randall.

"I agreed in order to save his life. They told me they let him go and that he could live a normal, human life. I should have known they would lie. They changed him before they let him go. I never knew until I was told later," Pru said.

"I couldn't just leave her with him. I knew she only agreed because of me. I went out in search of any werewolf who could help me when I finally found Max's group," Randall said.

"But not before I fell in love with Pru," Chris spoke up. "I worked for Lars, and I saw how he treated Pru. When I found out he turned Randall before letting him go, I couldn't take it anymore. I knew Pru needed to get away, and I decided to do anything I could to help. I recruited my two best friends, Zander and Billy."

"I helped Chris and Pru, and we all escaped together," Zander said.

"We all found Pru, Chris, and Zander soon after their escape," Randall said.

"I didn't help. I didn't want to leave my life behind," Billy said rather shamefully. "Later I realized how much I missed them and how much I hated my life with Lars, so I left to find them."

"It's okay, Billy. You're here now," Pru smiled at him. "During the escape, I fell in love with Chris too."

"And to this day, Lars hates all of us and would want nothing more than to see us all dead," Chris said.

"Oh, and don't forget about Brenda," Pru said. "She would love to sink her teeth into me."

"Who's Brenda?" Alice asked.

"Brenda is who Lars took for a mate after Pru," Billy said. "She actually likes Lars for some reason, and she hates being second choice."

"Wow," was all I could say.

"Yeah, it's a regular werewolf soap opera," Pru said with a smile as she leaned into Chris.

"Oh, just wait until you hear Bella's story. The girl never had a chance at a normal life," Emmett said. Rosalie smacked him on the back of the head again. I felt Edward take in a ragged breath behind me, and I turned to look at him. I needed to wipe that sad look off his face, so I kissed him. It wasn't a gentle kiss. It wasn't sweet. I crashed my lips into his before he ever saw me coming. I deepened it before he even registered what was happening. I grabbed two handfuls of his hair and pulled him closer to me. I kissed him with all the passion I had.

When I pulled away, I heard a few cheers from Seth and Emmett and could sense the shock coming from the rest of the room. We usually refrained from that much public affection, but he seriously needed to change that expression. My breath was ragged and all I said was "Normal… overrated."

When I turned around, everybody was staring at me like I suddenly grew another head. Well all except Nessie who had her head turned and pressed against Jacob's shoulder. I would've been the color of a fire truck right about now if blood still pumped through my veins. I felt Edward's lips on my neck turn into my favorite crooked smile. Well, mission accomplished, I guess.

"Anyway, I moved here when my mom remarried to live with my dad. My first day of school Edward wanted to kill me," I began, but I felt Edward wince behind me. He hated I was so casual about that. He didn't kill me, so I didn't really see the problem.

"He took an extended vacation to get away from me, and when he came back, he decided to get to know me since I'm the only person whose mind he can't read," I said.

"And she's the one person whose mind I always want to know, but it's how I fell in love with her," Edward said with a kiss on my neck.

"Then he saved me from being crushed by a van in the parking lot," I said.

"And she figured out what I was with a little help from a certain Quileute," Edward scowled at Jacob.

"Hey, in my defense, I didn't believe any of that. If you would have told me a year later I would be a wolf and you'd be my sworn enemy, then I'd have laughed in your face," Jacob said with his hands palm forward in surrender.

"Well anyway we started dating. I met the family. Alice became my best friend. The first problem came when James decided to track and kill me. It's the same guy who wanted to track and kill Alice," I said. "Basically I ended up in the hospital after Edward came to my rescue and saved me. I was actually bitten by James, but Edward sucked out the venom."

I smiled proudly at him. "Did I mention my blood called to him, but he saved me anyway?"

"Because I loved you," he said sweetly.

"Things were well and good until that one incident, and then I went with Alice to save Edward…"

"That was no minor incident, Bella. I attacked you," Jasper said sadly.

"You tried, but you failed. It was my stupid fault for cutting my finger on the wrapping paper," I said.

"No, it was my fault for not foreseeing you'd cut yourself on your birthday," Alice said.

"No, it's my fault for ever putting Bella in harm's way again," Edward said.

"Would you all just shut up? Edward blames himself for natural disasters in Taiwan. Alice can't see everything. Jasper, you've learned to control your bloodlust. Bella, you were just clumsy. If you want to play that game, then it was my fault for being mean to Bella or could've been Emmett's for making her laugh. Now all of you shut up for the final time. It was nobody's fault," Rosalie huffed. Emmett looked a little in awe of his wife.

"So after we save Edward…"

"That was my fault," Rosalie said in the smallest voice I've ever heard her use.

"I should've talked to Alice myself," Edward said.

"I should've been looking out for Bella all along," Alice said.

"I shouldn't have told you not to," Edward said.

"Seriously! Everybody stop! It was nobody's fault." I fumed.

"Mom, maybe you should back up and tell the whole story. I think everybody is a little confused," Nessie said.

I looked around at the perplexed faces of the werewolves.

"Right… I really don't want to tell that part," I said.

"At her birthday, she cut herself, and I wasn't prepared, so I charged at her," Jasper whispered.

"It made me realize all the unnecessary danger I was putting Bella in, so I made everybody leave, and I left her," Edward said. "I'll spend the rest of my existence regretting that."

"She was so broken when Ed… the Cullens left that she was miserable. I tried to cheer her up as best I could, but I turned into a wolf during that time," Jacob said.

I told them about jumping off the cliff and Alice thinking I killed myself. I left out the reason why I jumped off the cliff-- just to hear Edward's voice. I told them about going to Italy to keep Edward from trying to kill himself. I told them about Victoria and the newborn army and how the wolves helped us.

"We got married and went on our honeymoon to a private island…"

"And they had a little too much unprotected fun and three months later we were all blessed with little Nessie," Emmett interrupted and ruffled Nessie's hair.

I left out the parts of my story where Jacob thought he was in love with me. I left out the details of exactly how Nessie was born. I left out feeling the venom when it changed me.

"And I wake up as a vampire who just had a child that she can't see because she's half human. Then I find out Jacob imprinted on my daughter. Then Alice has the vision…"

"Imprinted?" Max asked.

Jacob explained to them about imprinting. I told them about the Volturi and how we had to gather so many vampires to witness Nessie was not turned as a child. I told them how Alice and Jasper traveled the world to find another person like Nessie. I told them how happy and peaceful the last few years had been until the werewolf showed up.

"Wow. I think your story trumps my story anytime," Pru said.

We talked a little while longer. It was well into the night when the werewolves left. Shortly after they left, Jacob, Seth, and Leah did too. Less than a minute after they exited, Jacob howled and Edward chuckled to himself.

"Dad, was that Jacob howling? What's wrong? What's so funny?" Nessie asked.

"Seth and Leah imprinted," Edward laughed.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Later that night, Edward and I were curled up in our bed talking about the day when I remembered what I wanted to ask Edward earlier.

"Hey, earlier when Jacob was a wolf so Isis could see what he looked like, Nessie petted him. Why did that make you upset? It was harmless, really," I said.

Edward's lips were in a tight line and his eyes were deadly. "It wasn't that," he growled. "It was Jacob's thoughts. He was wondering if he rolled over, if Nessie would rub his belly."

I stared at him for a minute before laughing hysterically. So that was why he was upset.


AN: Okay, so this chapter is kind of a fluffy filler. I've been dying to have Edward get mad for Jacob wanting Nessie to scratch his belly.

I want to say thanks for all the sweet reviews and encouragement. You're all the sweetest people on the planet, and I'm not just saying that for more reviews. Ooh, we finished the bathroom remodel, and it looks darn good if I do say so myself.

I posted the first chapter of another fiction I'm going to write called "Bulls and Blood." Yup, it's about the rodeo. I thought Cowboy Emmett, Jasper, and Edward would be fun. And Esme is a total badass. I just wrote one chapter to set it up because I couldn't get it out of my head. It's going to get better I promise. Also, "Old Moon" is still my number one prerogative. But I have a billion different ideas for different fics right now that I really want to write. Okay, not a billion, more like twenty. Yeah, I know. Don't fret, "Old Moon" will be finished. I promise.

REVIEW! Please? I will pull an Edward here. "What are you thinking?"

And go give a look-sy at Chapter 1 of "Bulls and Blood." It's a different style of writing than this is, and it's all human.

Oh, also if you want to read any really good fics out there, I have several really, really good ones saved under my Favorites. Check them out.