A/N: Wow! You all are wonderful leaving such great reviews. I worry every chapter that you'll throw up your hands in disgust, but you don't (or at least you don't tell me if you do). Thank you again. You all make me smile. :)

Disclaimer: I don't own these characters. Stephenie Meyer does.

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Chapter 14:

Edward ran down the stairs, turned right into the living room, and right again into the first floor study. Everyone but Carlisle, Bella, and Alice were already there. Rosalie paced the floor, biting at her fingernails. She had never been a huge fan of Bella's and now they were preparing for a inevitable war with the wolves, and it was all her fault. Rosalie hated fighting, even though she was good at it. And she hated it more when it was a cause that could have been avoided.

Esme, twirled a strand of her long brown hair absentmindly, while standing with the boys, looking at a map of Washington state. It was spread out on top of a two hundred year old redwood executive desk. Despite her appearance, she was a fierce fighter, especially when it was her family she was protecting. And Bella was definitely her family.

Emmett stood to the right of Jasper, a wide, intensity filled smile spread across his face. He loved a good fight and had wanted to go against the wolves from the time he found out there were wolves to fight. Fighting was his element. What he did best. There was no doubt in his mind that they would win. No matter what.

Standing at the center edge of the table, scrutinizing the map, Jasper was also in his element. It reminded him of the days he spent as a Confederate officer. Looking at maps. Making strategy decisions. He had rose through the ranks of the newly formed C.S.A. army quickly. He was good at strategy, and had been excellent at making people see things his way. It wasn't until he became a vampire did he know of his ability to manipulate emotions.

Jasper ran his fingers through his thick, blonde, curly hair as he thought over strategy. The best approach with the least casualties. The wolf problem would come first. Then would come damage control with Charlie Swan.

Rosalie was the only one who physically saw Edward enter the room. Her brow furrowed upon seeing him, but said nothing. The rest of them knew he was there but were to busy in conversation to acknowledge him. He pushed the sleeves of his dark gray sweater up and took his place beside Esme. Before he contributed in the discussion, he leaned over and gave his mother a kiss on the cheek. Esme smiled as only a mother can and wrapped her arm protectively around his waist.

Everyone's thoughts jumbled in his head, even though he didn't want to really hear them. He tried to zone them out and focus on the conversation they were having. "Alice told you want she saw." he stated.

"Yes, right before she went to get you." Jasper answered, not looking at him. "She had a vision right after the EMTs left. Good thing it wasn't any earlier. If she had, they would have thought she was having a seizure or something. That would have added to our already full plate of problems." temperament filled his voice.

"If you have something to say to me, say it." Edward growled.

Jasper shot his eyes toward him. "Why? Just read my mind. It's what you do." Jasper replied curtly.

"Boys." Esme broke in sternly. She never had any biological children of her own. However, with decades of experience being the mother-figure to a house full of vampires, she had strong maternal instincts and authority in her voice. "Now is not the time to be going at each other." she said calmly, but she definitely meant it.

Jasper and Edward stared at each other for a moment, then nodded a truce.

He heard Jasper's thoughts-- I'm sorry, Edward. It's just... things have gotten very complicated in a very short amount of time. I'll keep my comments to myself, he grinned at Edward. As long as you don't try to read them.

Edward nodded and curved his lip ever so slightly at him. "You're right, Esme." Jasper spoke to her. "We have just a few hours until 'something' happens with the wolves, and we need to give that our full attention." He waited for some sort of acceptance from her. She smiled and rubbed his arm warmly.

He took her hand in his and kissed it lovingly. The vibe in the room shifted from tension to more mellow. Jasper returned to his map and continued with strategy, thinking more calmly now. "We have no idea what the wolves are planning." he looked around at his family. "So we have to be ready for anything."

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The pack congregated in Billy Black's living room. There were nineteen of them now. Leah Clearwater and Mary River were the only two girls. Seth was no longer the youngest, as Quil's cousin, Ethan Rain, became a werewolf a the tender age of eleven 3 months ago.

Sam; the head of the pack, the oldest, and protector; leaned against the wall next to the fireplace. The rest of the pack sat anywhere they could; on the floor, on the faded green couch, on the matching love seat. It wasn't an enormous-sized space, and the wolves weren't the smallest creatures in the world.

Also attending the meeting were Billy Black and all of the elders from the tribe. They felt, in such a case as this where the treaty had been broken, it involved all of them.

The clock on the wall read 12:53 pm.

It had already been decided that the pack would go and pay the bloodsuckers a visit that very day, but what hadn't been decided was what they would do with them once they got there. There were whispers and some loudly voiced opinions, but mainly there was just a constant dull roar of voices all mixing together.

When Billy began speaking, everyone in the small living room stopped talking and gave him their full attention. "A sad day has came to us." he began. He thought someone had to get their minds focused on the task at hand. "A day we have hoped never would. The bloodsuckers broke the treaty. The one called Edward fed on and changed a human." he sighed heavily, hurt in his voice. "Our Bella. Whom we thought very highly of." he glanced over in Jacob's direction before continuing. Jacob was watching his father, but his face was expressionless. He sat, knees to his chest in the far corner of the room under the window. His head rested on the wall. He hadn't spoken a word since the meeting started over an hour before.

Billy turned his attention to the rest of the pack. "But there were extenuating circumstances this time. The bloodsucker didn't seek her out to kill her. He seems to care for her. We know that Bella was in a car accident. Dying according to her father." he shook his head sadly. "He has no idea she is a bloodsucker now." He paused a moment, allowing the words to unjumble in his head. He realized that sometimes when you wanted to speak, your ears didn't want to hear what your mouth has to say. He closed his eyes and sighed. "Only a little while ago, I received word that my friend, Charlie Swan, had a heart attack at the bloodsucker's house."

Upon hearing the news, Jacob clinched his jaw, closed his eyes, and lightly beat his head against the wall. He had seen Charlie only an hour before. He mentally kicked himself for not realizing that something major was wrong- major besides a daughter in a coma. He held on, refusing to let the rogue tear that was threatening to fall spill out. He swallowed hard to compose himself and began listening again.

Seth was the first to speak. "Do you think they will try to change him? I mean, is he dying?"

Billy shook his head. "I don't have any more information on Charlie, and I don't know if they plan on 'changing him', as you call it--"

"Who cares?" Paul's fiery voice filled the room, cutting Billy off mid-sentence. Paul was known as the wolf with the hottenst temper and the most willing to fight. "They broke the treaty. Simple as that. We should take them down before they can change Charlie, or kill anybody else for that matter. Isn't that why we are what we are? We were made to destroy the bloodsuckers, so why are we debating this?"

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"We have to be ready for anything." Jasper continued. "A full on attack. An ambush."

"Look on the bright side, maybe they'll come just wanting to talk." Emmett added in jest.

Jasper glared at him, but went on, ignoring his comment. "Now, if it were me, I'd torch the house and run us out. Sure it's raining, but if they set enough fires in the right spots--" he stopped abruptly when he noticed everyone was looking at him strangly. "Well, anyway. We have to be ready--"

"--for anything. We know." Emmett rolled his eyes. "Come on, Jasper. We can sit here and stare at this map like it's going to bite us or we can get prepared."

"What do you think we are doing?" Jasper shot back.

"Talking." He crossed his arms and addressed Jasper directly. "All you are doing is talking. 'What if' this and 'what if' that. "What if' the freakin' sky falls and we all get crushed by a meteor. The fact is since Alice can't see the future when the wolves are in it, we have no idea what is going to happen."

Jasper crossed his arms, mimicking Emmett. He was actually getting intrigued. "Alright. What are you suggesting?"

Emmett grinned brightly. "Simple. Cut out the middleman."

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Billy pointed his finger at Paul, his voice full of authority. "We are debating this because, even though the bloodsuckers are outnumbered, they are still skilled and fierce fighters. We all saw that not but a few months ago when we helped them with the red-head and her army. It has to be considered, that if you go through with this, we could have casualties." He looked around at the 'kids' in the room. They ranged in age from 21 to 11. "Treaty or no treaty. That has to be considered."

"With all due respect," Sam finally spoke. "This is not a democracy. We need to think about the consequences, sure. But in the end, the treaty was broken. It has to be honored."

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"Cut out the middleman?" Jasper asked confused. Then, understanding filled his features. His lips turned up slightly. "You mean, attack them first."

Esme gasped, her free hand jumped to her mouth in horror. "We can't. Carlisle won't go for it, and neither will I."

Jasper looked at her. "Esme, this is the only way to eliminate the 'what-ifs', if we attack first--"

"We turn into monsters ourselves." Esme answered quickly. She protectively hugged Edward tighter. "You are right. We have no idea what will happen in a few hours, but we will not attack them first. If they come after us, I'll be the first one fighting, but I will not be responsible for killing without just cause." She focused on Jasper's eyes. Her tone soft but pleading, "Do you really want to become that kind of monster again?"

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Billy held his calm. He was used to dealing with young, headstrong men. "Honor the treaty how?" He asked Sam.

"By destroying them." Sam answered simply.

"No." Jacob replied, his voice calm but deep. Surprised, everyone in the room turned to face him.

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Jasper stood silent for a few moments. Esme words ringing in his ears. "Do you really want to become that kind of monster again?" Edward heard the internal conflict going on within Jasper. He tried to shut it out, but he couldn't. Monster vs. Protector, what a fine line to walk, Jasper thought.

When he finally spoke, he had pain in his voice. "Esme." he said softly. "I love you, and I respect you. Attacking first is what I feel is the best option. Not because I want to become a monster again, but because I want to protect my family."

"They are coming after us." Emmett added, supporting Jasper.

"Maybe, maybe not." Esme said calmly defiant. "Jasper, you know I love you, and I would never turn you away. However, the only way I will get behind this plan, is if we put it to a family vote."

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Seeing the packs eyes on him didn't phase Jacob. He expected it, and he expected even more confused looks when he got finished with his speech. "Not all of the bloodsuckers broke the treaty."

Paul rolled his eyes, "Geez, Jacob. If this is about you being sweet on Bella--"

"It's not." Jacob bit back. "Look, I think we should go to the Cullen house tonight and-- offer them a deal."

The pack moaned, but Sam raised his hand to cut them off. "What kind of deal?" he asked intrigued.

"We offer them a new treaty. They can stay here in Forks, and we won't hurt them."

"In exchange for?" Sam asked curiously.

Jacob looked at his father, then down to the floor. Finally he looked back at Sam with the same expressionless face as before. "Edward. We destroy Edward."

The pack whispered among themselves. Most of them couldn't believe what Jacob was saying. Some snickered at the plan, but it was Sam who again spoke up. "They won't go for that. They'll do everything they can, fight, to protect him."

Jacob's eyes turned coal black. "We won't give them a choice." he said as a dangerous smirk crossed his lips.