Disclaimer: Twilight isn't mine.

The Unscrupulous Council

Moon Behind the Clouds

Chapter 9

In a series of scattered and numbered buildings standing in the rain, handlers otherwise known as teachers attempted to contain the animals that roamed the halls of Forks High School. Most were simply surviving their social lives. Some had conquered the social stratosphere around them. And some were being eaten alive. Without the pack to stand behind her as they had in La Push, Bella was being eaten alive. Each day a boa constrictor took another swallow. It had begun with her feet and was not working it's way up past her knees to her thighs. If she'd experienced more of the perils of schools, which are unlike most other realms of society, she would have known what was happening. She would have seen these young ladies coming. Instead, Hell Cat followed her new owners, two young females primed and ready to find mates, around the halls of the school. She was named after a domesticated animal afterall. But was Hell Cat more cat than hell giver? Charlie had been working to domesticate her afterall. Had he succeeded so quickly? Time would tell.

If she had that time, given the council and Edward's proposals that wouldn't be sure. Joshua wrestled with hurting an imprint (both wolf and girl) and hurting the pack as a whole; he was also concerned what worse plans Quil Sr would concoct. Edward wrestled with hurting the girl or leaving her with the pack of wolves would leave her at risk of being trampled. The younger wolves didn't seem strong enough to deal with their council or remove their elder wolves. In his opinion, it was time for Quil Sr to be culled. But these were more issues that Bella was oblivious to.

"Is that a new stick of lipstick?" Lauren asked Jessica as she scrutinized the messy tube in Jessica's hand held up to her mouth. The colour looked gorgeous on Jessica.

"No..." Jessica frowned. Clearly it wasn't and she couldn't lie about it. She waited for the not entirely subtle attack about to give her whiplash.

Lauren gave a disgusted look and then dramatically replaced it with a look of concern. "You need to replace your tube of lipstick at least every three months for good hygiene. Isn't that one like, I don't know, a year old?" Lauren controlled her face to hide her smirk with friendly concern.

Jessica held the tube away from her and regarded the lovely shade of dusky pink that offset her her skin beautifully. It was a shade her mother had bought just before her birthday four months ago. Bella had sixteen weeks ago, but said nothing. The pack had tried to celebrate it, but Bella missed her mother. So she had hidden in her room under her blanket.

"I got it four months ago." Jessica said before returning the lipstick to her mouth. Lauren felt alarm that Jessica was going to use it anyway. She turned her face away dramaticallly displaying the disgust on her face giving Jessica pause for thought. "What is it?"

"Well Jessie, I hate to be the one to tell you this but do you have any idea how much c. difficile is probably on that thing by now? I think it's kinda gross. But if you want to spread shit across your lips be my guest." Lauren could barely contain her laughter watching Jessica's eyes open wide. Lauren would have convinced Jessica to give her the lipstick, but it didn't compliment her tones at all. But at the moment Lauren hadn't found a shade that complimented her skin as nicely or better than Jessica's lipstick complimented Lauren's. And Lauren wasn't about to have her friend look better than her. She had found a solution while her mother watched a rerun on Opera last night. It really was disgusting episode about germs. It was expensive lipstick and it was sold much closer to Seattle. Jessica wouldn't be replacing it anytime soon.

Jessica looked sadly at the tube and felt hurt over Lauren's words and disgust. Bella stood by the paper towel dispenser and hand dryer with her books clutched to her chest as she watched apprehensively. She hated when they got like this. A look of determination crossed Jessica's face. She couldn't keep the lipstick. Lauren would tell the boys at school that she had bad hygiene and start spreading rumours to get what she wanted. But she'd make sure that no one else would have it. Jessica opened the lipstick fully extending it before using the lid to chop the end off into the garbage before discarding the tube and lid into the garbage also.

Bella didn't really understand why she was now hanging out with these girls. She had been drawn to the boys throwing balled up paper in the cafeteria and moving all of the books from the last shelves in the back of library far from the librarians watchful eyes and placing the books under the rug even though everyone would see. Just small mischief to pass the time between classes. But the dominant females had sensed a future threat from her. After staring the males down, they had taken the play mate and made Hell Cat their new pet. The Grade nine boys stopped talking to her and the girls pulled her along. The believed that you keep your friends close, but keep your enemies closer. This girl was quicker maturing into competition. They couldn't leave her to go unchecked. She wouldn't be too hard for the average guy to dominate, she was in "special" classes. Special in an Olympic kind of way. Lauren snorted to herself.

Lauren and Jessica pulled each other close, arm in arm. "Come on Isabella." Lauren giggled, her mood dramatically improved. Lauren didn't like the name Bella went by the name she was usually called. It was too chic in her opinion.

Bella followed the duo grudgingly three paces behind them as they optimistically headed off to class. Bella wanted the younger boys to take her back.

"With purchases of fifty dollars or more, you will receive a gift from Penny's Department Store at the main entrance. Gift supplies are limited, so hurry now." The announcer came over the speakers. Leah rolled her eyes. She had heard that announcement a dozen times already. Doesn't look like many people are spending more than fifty dollars today or the supplies aren't as limited as they supposed. But would they shut that off? She'd like to rip the speakers out of the building.

"Are you almost done Hell Cat?" Leah called impatiently. Shopping with Leah wasn't a fun task. She was very opinionated about what Bella should wear.

"I don't know if this one is a good idea." Bella said quietly. Leah just barely heard her.

"Oh come on! It's got to be practical for learning how to swim in the pool and sexy enough for the beach come summer. Not to mention cliff diving." Leah reconsidered. She'd love to see Paul's reaction when Bella's bikini top came off next summer when she jumped off the cliffs. He'd thank her later.

"Why do I need to learn how to swim?" Bella whined.

"You aren't living in a desert anymore. We consider it a basic survival skill. Your father goes fishing all the time. We hang out at the beach a lot. Paul wants to take you sailing. Seth wants to teach you how to surf. And I want to point and laugh while you learn how to swim, how to sail and how to surf. Now open the door and let me see." Leah commanded. There wasn't much Leah could do for the pack now that she was temporarily human. But any and all small errands, they laid on her. Paul found it frightening that his imprint couldn't swim. He wasn't going to stalk her everywhere she went, but there were far too many large bodies of water in the vicinity around here and too many drownings for an imprint to not know how to swim.

"I think I need a one piece." Bella said quietly looking at the mirror in her change room nervously. This was too much skin.

"Bring it sexy!" Leah hollered! "The longer you take, the louder I get!" She grinned and counted down three seconds and on the count of three, Hell Cat dove out of the change room just as Leah predicted. Bella wouldn't want Leah to call too much attention to them.

"That's good. You need more cleavage. Looks like you're growing up top anyway." Leah analyzed Bella's form holding the girls arms away keeping her from covering herself. It wasn't the skimpiest bikini Bella had tried on today, but it was the most flattering on the girl. "Blue. The blues are definitely better on you. I always wear red. It looks best on me. You don't look as good in red clothes but those lips would look good in a red shade." Bella was torn between covering her body and covering her mouth. But she wasn't getting her hands back either way. "I'll take it." Leah announced.

Bella gratefully went back to her change room. Or stall to be more exact. Just as she stripped the bikini from her, she was down to the tiny underwear Leah had brought with her to try on the bikini bottoms in when she felt something on her ankle. Looking down, a tiny head and little hand reached out for her. Bella shrieked. "What's wrong Hell Cat?" Leah asked as fear filled her depths.

"Graydon no!" A woman's voice called. The ankle biter and managed to twist himself through the five inch opening at the bottom of the divider between stalls. His mother was attempting to drag him back to her side. The one year old boy gave her an impish grin as he twisted his head. "That's it! You're going back in the stroller!" The woman announced.

"What's the matter wittle Bella? Do you need protection from the big bad one year old infant?" Leah taunted Bella as she came out of the change room. Bella blushed and ignored Leah.

Leah never made jokes about Bella's intelligence now, but everything else was open season just like everyone else she knew. For Leah, the sensitivity this showed placed Bella as a dear and valued friend. It was the subtle things that differentiated Leah's friends from her enemies.

"With purchases of fifty dollars or more, you will receive a gift from Penny's Department Store at the main entrance. Gift supplies are limited, so hurry now." The announcer repeated.

"Cock sucking asshole..." Leah growled at the ceiling wishing the announcer a slow and painful death. But even Leah had enough decency to blush when she saw a mother cover her child's ears hearing her.

On a lake, at a quiet cove, an abandoned house stood guard over a three meter wide steep beach. The rotten shadow of a dock barely broke the surface of the dark waters. Joshua remembered a story about a child who fell victim in that house. The story was that the child fell through the rotten wood of the second story and was skewered by broken metal railing. By the time his friends had gotten help, he had bled to death and his organs had shut down. He stood in the doorless entryway of the ruins. A hole filled with tree's some feet lower than the brick perimeter of the house hinted at the basement that used to be here. The one item left on this small island home that had once been connected to the main land in a different time, was the bell. The rope was long gone, so he hit it hard enough to clang out over the empty lake far from the modern world. Joshua wanted to stand in wolf form, but he didn't want Quil Sr to listen in on this discussion. He would have to trust this Cullen.

"No Quil Sr I see?" Edward's voice announced his presence. Joshua hadn't been sure of a time and so he had asked Edward to wait for a time when he could call Edward to this place. The bell simply alerted readiness without using his own voice. Edward could see that Joshua was concerned that Quil Sr cared too much for himself and his offspring to be concerned about the health and safety of the pack.

"I have spoken with the council outside of Quil Sr. They agree that the imprint is heavily weighed on the mating imperative. The girl has not come of age yet and has barely been imprinted on. I will give my pack mate the best I can. If Leah hasn't mated within the pack by the time Paul and Bella's first child is has their first summer, we will trade the girl for Una. The council need a timeline. The pack can live forever. The imprint will not." This should fulfill the point of the imprint. Paul would never have a child without his mate. Joshua reasoned. It was the best that he could offer the boy. "We will not hurry the girl and we will not allow Quil Sr to hurry or harm the girl. Can you agree to this?" Joshua asked the vampire. He couldn't believe that he was negotiating handing over a human to a vampire. This had to be a first for the pack. With any luck, Leah would fall for one of the boys soon.

Edward's face was an unreadable mask of calm as he listened carefully to Joshua's thoughts. The man was usually so honest. Old Quil had done so much to taint him. They were silent as a cold breeze heading in from the north blew over them. "How likely is it that separation will harm or kill the girl?" Edward asked.

"We really don't know. If it seems to be hurting her, either she comes back to us or we hand over Paul and the child."

Edward was quiet and thoughtful. "And if Bella never has a child?"

Joshua shrugged. "Then the council will be very disappointed. But that's highly unlikely. I haven't heard of an imprint who didn't."

Edward and Joshua discussed further details and another meeting time at a later date. In human terms, this could take a very long time. But for immortals, this wasn't a particularly long time line. If only Edward could wait that long to be with his singer.

November was unseasonally cold. An arctic cold had settled over the olympic peninsula. The wolves hardly noticed. But Bella had felt it every day. She felt it particularly tonight. Lauren, Jessica and a bunch of girls from her grade had built a campfire in the woods and were drinking in the still evening. With the wind settled down, the cold didn't seem so bad.

"Jenna your guzzling more coke than rum! It's not fair to waste it like that! Hand it over." Jessica stomped over to a worried and wide eyed Jenna. "Here, chug this." Jessica held the bottle of rum up to Jenna's mouth and tipped it back. Jenna choked back the rum. Jessica didn't stop pushing the bottle of rum in Jenna's face until she started coughing into the bottle. "Eww! Sick Jenna! All you had to do was say uncle."

Lauren rolled her eyes. Bella continued to nurse her first beer. She had given her word that she wouldn't drink. She had lost her words at the campfire. She figured she could nurse one beer all night and no one would notice. She was right. As long as you weren't Jenna and hogging the coke.

The bonfire wasn't very impressive. But Bella had kept quiet as usual. It appeared those who didn't know how to build a good fire were also the biggest loud mouths and had taken over. If they had thought to ask one of the quieter girls, there were at least three of them willing to help and who knew how to build a decent fire. An impressive fire would have kept them warm. Instead, Bella was freezing and waiting for this little 'girls only' party to come to an end.

The end of the night came and many girls left. Soon they were down to Jessica, Lauren and Bella who had walked over from Lauren's house. A large house south of Forks. A drunk Lauren and Jessica led a quiet Bella. She stared at the ground following the sound of their giggling voices. Jessica whispered in Lauren's ear.

"Let's ditch her here. She'll be bawling her eyes out!" Lauren snickered. They looked behind them. Bella was still watching the ground. They walked some distance quietly before Lauren snatched Jessica and they hid behind a thicket and low pine tree. They breathed as quietly as possible.

Bella had walked some distance before she noticed that she couldn't hear the two girls anymore. The boa constrictor was up to her neck. The girls fought within themselves against laughing shrilly in the dark. The wind picked up and blew clouds across the moon blocking all of the light that Bella could see into the forest with.

"Guys? Where are you?" Bella called. She shivered back into her parka shoving her hands into the pockets. At least she was dressed for the weather. Lauren and Jessica had flashlights but waited until they were absolutely sure that Bella was gone before turning theirs on. They chugged back more vodka and red wine before heading back to Lauren's place.

AN: Yes, I'm a bitch to my Bella. *Insert evil laugh here.*