A/N: This chapter (and idea) has been slaved over and, hopefully, written into submission. Of course none of this would be possible without foxyvictorianagurl – my fantabulous beta. She edits and inspires without complaining about my numerous questions and concerns, or my continual disorganization.

Chapter 9

Bella's POV

Jacob was in the garage when I arrived, his shirt smeared with grease.

"Hey Jake," I smiled, taking in the familiar scenery before being tackled into a bear hug.

"Bells, welcome back," He grinned, leaning down to sniff my hair, "You stink like a vamp."

I laughed, "Thanks for that. Are we still going to the bonfire or are we staying here to... do whatever it is you're doing?" I glanced around at the assortment of seemingly random parts. To Jacob, however, they were probably categorized and easy to find.

"I'm just messing around with Embry's car. We have to wait for Seth; he's going to come with us to the bonfire." He replied, taking a step back and wiping his hands on his shorts. The pack usually came in smaller groups and switched whose car they travelled in at the end of the night depending on their plans. Usually, I was the only one going home early and not heading to a different get together.

"Embry let you near his baby? He has more faith in you than I do." I teased.

"Who rebuilt your truck and your bike?" He returned, eyes scanning from my converse to my hair and back down more slowly. "You look good. Really good, Bells."

Blushing, I shook my head, "I just got a haircut and Alice bought me some new clothes."

He smiled softly, "You're beautiful, but it's probably best if we get out of here before you get oil and dirt all over you. Come on, I should change. How are you and that leech doing? Has he tried to kill you yet?"

"Jake..." I reprimanded. "He's not like that, he won't try to kill me or change me."

"I'm kidding, really." He held up his hands in surrender, looking back at me with a grin. "How are you, though?"

"Pretty good, it's been really great having them back. Alice especially, and of course Edward. He's just... so different and yet, exactly the same. You know, he would never have let me come tonight before, but now." I shook my head, still a little stunned.

"I know you love them and you missed them, I just don't see how they can come back like that. I don't get how that can be a good thing." He shrugged, searching for a clean t-shirt. "He hurt you, doesn't that count at all?"

"I know, Jake." I said quietly, sitting down on the un-made bed. "But it doesn't hurt now. They came back and that's what counts. He apologized. He feels so guilty it kills him. It's in the past now."

"Okay, you know I support you, Bells. I have to say this. Just this one time. It's a stupid decision, getting back with him. He'll only hurt you again and again. He's a vampire, what future can he offer you?" He looked up at me, "You don't have to answer, but I couldn't let you chose him and never say anything."

"I get it, Jake, he's your mortal enemy and he hurt me. Thank you for caring about me, you know I love you too." I smiled, slightly upset by the overall negative reaction to me getting back together with Edward. At least Jake, unlike Charlie, knew the real reason he felt he had to leave. I'd hoped he might understand, but so far everyone in Forks was against our relationship.

He pulled off his t-shirt, pulling on a new one as we heard Seth knock. All of us piled into my truck and made our way to a low peak over the beach, surrounded by deep green trees. The fire blazing cast eerie shadows from the trees, leading out to the pitch black of the forest and the sea. The inner circle surrounding the fire was warm and bright, a safe bubble in the middle of a nightmare. Well, for us humans. The wolves could see everything, hear every creature.

Edward's POV

Sighing, I turned away once the sound of her engine cut off a mile away. Within minutes I was back at Bella's, sliding into the Volvo and driving to the grocery store next to Newman's camping store. I started browsing, pushing a trolley with one hand and dialling Alice's number with the other.

"Hey, Edward," She greeted cheerfully as she slammed her door in Emmett's face, laughing at his cursing. "Took you long enough, I said to call when you got back."

"I texted you, all day." I rolled my eyes and dropped a box of lucky charms in the trolley, "This was the first chance I had to call you. Bella's with her friends."

"Aw, so you were feeling lonely and decided to call your sister. Am I not worth a proper call, when you have better things to do but put them off for me?" She laughed.

"I do have better things to do, actually. I'm shopping right now."

"Shopping? Where?" She immediately focused on her key word with interest.

"Grocery shopping, so Bella has things to eat at the house." I sighed, smiling to myself.

"Oh, well... if you have any other shopping, I can help. I booked a flight for Friday night so I could visit on the weekend. I figured Bella would have some free time then."

"That was very considerate," I said with a chuckle, "I'm sure she'll make time for you. If she's working you can always hang around the book store, it's not very busy there."

"How is she? Both of you?"

"Bella's good, she's wearing an outfit you got her to the pack bonfire. She said she'd send you a photograph as proof. We had a disagreement about the bonfire; with werewolves being so volatile it is a serious danger but she has her own life. She convinced me." I sighed, worried about her despite her reassurances.

Alice sighed too, "I can't see anything about her when the mutts are around. It bothers me, it's like she doesn't exist anymore. I can see why you wouldn't want her to go. Physically, the wolves have the ability to kill her without thought. An accidental change or a comment taken the wrong way can inspire such animalistic rage in them. But you could do more psychological damage by not letting her go, it's guaranteed. Until they actually hurt her, you have to let her go."

"I know, that's the problem. I can't hurt her again, Alice." I paused to choose a selection of pastries.

"Damn straight you can't, we'll all hunt you down. I feel the same though, not being able to 'see' her. I don't want to let her go anywhere dangerous after we just got her back, I just want to keep her safe. And stylish." She joked.

I laughed, "Oh, Alice, what are we going to do with her?"

"Get a designer bubble to keep her in." She giggled.

After she'd given me a detailed description of everything that had happened in the twenty two hours I'd been gone and a number of predictions on things as mundane as the weather, she hung up to go hunting with Jasper and Rose, promising to text me even more incessantly than she had been.

I finished shopping, anxious for the hours to pass to ten thirty. Once I had checked out and packed all the food away downstairs I took the toiletries upstairs and started clearing a cupboard in my room and a drawer in the bathroom for her. Time would pass very slowly, I thought wryly.

Bella's POV

"You really do smell like a vampire," Seth commented as we pulled up on the side of the road, "what did you do, roll on him?"

Jacob chuckled, "She wouldn't be alive if she'd been rolling around with a vampire."

"I'd be happy to oblige if you need someone to roll around with," Embry said as he walked over to us, winking at me. "Well, if you showered first."

Seth and Embry continued to discuss how I 'really stunk like a parasite' as they walked ahead and Jacob laughed beside me. "Do you want to borrow a jacket? I think I left one in Sam's car the other day, I could grab it for you."

"I have a jacket," I frowned at him, "it's not that cold."

"No, to cover the stench." He laughed quietly again.

I sighed, "It can't be that bad, give me a break."

"Don't say I didn't try to help." He smirked. He intertwined our fingers as he spoke, as he usually did, but it was different now that I was with Edward. He seemed to have a jealous streak about Jacob as it was, so I gently untangled my hand and bit my lip, hoping he understood. He looked hurt by the gesture and paused, turning towards me just as Sam, Leah and Paul strode toward us.

Sam stood before us, flanked by the others as the rest of the pack slowly made their way over. Emily joined Sam, looking apologetic. Jake turned to face them, stiffening and moving as if to put his arm around me before thinking better of it.

"What's wrong?" I asked, bewildered.

"Perhaps we should talk about this over –" Emily began before Paul cut her off.

"You shouldn't have brought her." He stared at Jake, challenging.

"She always comes, what's your problem?"

Sam cut in, voice full of authority. "You know what the problem is. She's practically one of them; we can't have her at the pack meeting. She certainly smells like them. It's clear from that where her alliances lie."

Jacob's eyebrows rose, "What new secret are we sharing tonight that she doesn't already know?"

"You're right; we should never have let her participate in the meetings. She already knows too much, she can't be here tonight." Sam replied calmly.

"I'm not going to tell them anything, not that they care, anyway," I interjected.

"Jacob," Sam's warning was clear as they stared each other down. Jacob finally sighed, shaking his head.

"This is ridiculous."

Leah stepped forward, "No, it's not. They made us this way; they ruined our lives. They only thing we have now is this: protecting our people and our land from them. Having one of them here isn't going to help us."

"The Cullen's aren't going to attack you or your people!" I tried, again, to get through to them.

"They're as filthy as they others, they'll hunt us as their ancestors did. We can't have that scum here." Paul gave me a pointed look.

"She's not scum." Jacob growled.

"Are you saying the Cullen's aren't as bad as the others? As those that killed our forefathers?" Sam asked.

"Of course not, but she's not one of them. She's Bella – she made your birthday cake, Paul, for God's sake! You can't just throw her out because she's friends with them." Jacob defended.

"She smells like them now, she dresses like them, she spends all her time with one of them. She spent the weekend in a house full of vampires. She could slip up and give something away. It would be like having one of those leeches spying on our pack meetings, our traditions. They already know the border is weak, with most of us here, thanks to her. We can't trust her." Sam replied calmly, as though he wasn't insulting me so entirely.

Jacob took a deep breath, obviously communicating silently with Sam (through years of working closely together their connection was uncanny and highly useful for the two highest ranking members of the pack). By now, all the other wolves at the bonfire had gathered behind Sam, ready to defend against all threats – which, in this case, seemed to mean me. These were my best friends, the ones I'd turned to for comfort for over a year now.

Jacob nodded to Sam, turning towards me. "Bella..."

"You all can't be serious," I whispered, amazed none of them stood up for me after everything.

"Maybe you can attend the bonfires that aren't related to pack business, just not pack meetings and things," Jake began, receiving a sharp look from Sam.

I shook my head incredulously. "I get it, I'll go."

"Please, Bella, it's not you..." Jake tried, stepping towards me.

I backed away. "Of course it is. I'm the one who isn't welcome here anymore; I'm the one who can't be trusted to not share your secrets with the enemy – who, by the way, doesn't care less whether your defences are down or that you don't like water in your wolf form, they just want to get on with their lives. I can't believe you'd all turn on me like this."

"We're not turning on you," Jacob said gently, as elected spokesperson while the others pretended I wasn't there. "It's just a risk having you here. We still want to see you, but you can't be at pack meetings while you're with them." He declared.

"I'm not with them! I'm dating Edward; I didn't choose a side in this supernatural, ultimately one-sided, war. But I get it, you don't want me here, I'll go." I sighed, turning away.

"Bella, please understand, we can't help it." Jacob sighed but didn't move from his place with the pack.

"They're evil, she made her choice." Paul reassured him as I walked back towards the car. I saw Seth, with his deep brown eyes; move further into the trees, his face sympathetic.

"Who wants a hot dog?" Sam asked once I was nearly at the car, clapping his hands together and then their footsteps moved in the opposite direction, towards the heat and security of the bonfire.

For once, the idea of sitting around it didn't bring on a sense of being included and loved.

I climbed into the truck, slamming the door and speeding down the road – well, as much as was possible in the Chevy.

I drove for a few minutes, outraged, before I noticed that tears were obscuring my vision. I pulled over to the side of a dark road, banging my head against the steering wheel before giving into the tears and crying loudly in the quiet cabin. They didn't want me anymore, exactly as Edward had said when he left me. Jacob, who had been the steadiest thing in my world, had sided against me, had decided he didn't want me either.

When I finally looked up, the light sprinkle had picked up and the sky was black, everything cloaked in darkness. I heard wolves howling, as the pack often did at their meetings; to celebrate. I closed my eyes for a moment while I started the engine. Where had the treaty line been? I wasn't due to meet Edward for hours and I couldn't remember where I was supposed to wait. Giving up, I decided to drive home and call him from there so he wouldn't see me like this. A few stray tears continued falling and I wiped them away with the back of my hand, but it was useless.

I pulled onto the road, looking around to make sure none of the wolves had followed me, as if they cared. I looked back at the road, immediately slamming on the brakes. A dark blue car caught the light from my head lights as it pulled into a U-turn right in front of me; seeming to notice me it sped up and slid slide-ways on the wet road. I watched with fascination, the threat not registering, hitting the brake, but the Chevy was still sliding into the back end of the blue car. It had been just too close.

All of this occurred to me in a second, my hands only barely having time to tighten on the steering wheel before I was jostled forward and then slammed back in my seat. My head throbbed for a moment and I dizzily blinked into the bright light of the other cars headlights as they illuminated a nearby tree. There were cracks in my vision, I though distractedly. No... It was the windscreen.

Cold night air surrounded me, the terrible sound of crunching metal deafening. I tried to sigh and couldn't find the air, giving in to a warm sensation in my forehead and closing my eyes. I heard the screams of the driver of the other car as my head softly fell forward, stars shooting across my closed eyelids into infinite darkness.

Distantly, the wolves howling dropped off into silence and finally, everything was peaceful.