All characters belong to Stephenie Meyer

Dollybigmomma is my beta queen.

Chapter 21 – Menagerie

BELLA

"What do you mean, he's gone? What the hell did you do with him?"

"I didn't do anything! I just...I just can't tell where he is. I can see he's still in the cave. I just don't know where the hell in the cave he is."

We hurried towards the sound of Sam barking. Edward could see he was with Sam somewhere in the cave, but that was it. They were heading toward water. Edward said the sound of water was getting louder, and Jake was curious as to what it was.

For once, I wished Jake was afraid of the dark. The cave was dark where he was, but light enough to see to walk.

"OH, SHIT!" Edward yelled suddenly and started running, and I freaked out, panicking and fighting back tears, terrified our baby wouldn't make it out of this damn cave alive.

We burst into a narrow cavern, just in time to grab Jake from out of harm's way. Edward grabbed the baby, who was hanging over the water by his diaper, of which Sam had a juicy mouthful. A morning diaper that needed to be changed no less. Edward grabbed Jake, and I saw the way Sam was flopping his tongue, not pleased with the taste. I hugged him, crying and petting him, thanking him for saving our baby, because that was what Jake was. He was our baby.

Edward joined me and hugged Sam as well, and we were all in a group hug with a giggling Jake, who had no idea how much danger he really had been in, crazy little boy. If we moved into this cave, we'd have to fashion some sort of baby gate and keep Sam on guard duty. I didn't know what we would've done without that dog.

EDWARD

I had never been so thankful in my life to find Sam with a mouthful of soiled baby diaper. That dog would be getting something good to eat tonight. I wasn't sure what it would be yet, because I had yet to catch it, but I would get it soon.

Bella held onto Jake for the rest of the time we were in the cave. That little boy was too brave for his own good.

I finally pulled the last chunk of tree branch out of the cave entrance, giving us enough room to escape, and I was shocked by what I found.

There were dead bats, thousands of them. Apparently, they had gone out for their night flight, but didn't make it back before the storm hit and blocked the cave entrance.

"Well, that solves the bat problem," Bella said with a disgusted sneer on her face. It was almost comical the way she hopped through the mess, doing her best not to step on any of the dead rodents.

Sam was going to eat them, but I stopped him. I didn't want him to contract rabies. I quickly grabbed a branch and started sweeping them out of the way. As soon as I found some semi-dry wood, I'd start a fire and burn the carcasses. I didn't want to have rotting dead animals stinking up the island and becoming an attractive nuisance for pest and predators.

The damage done to the island was devastating. Most of the trees had been damaged in some way or another. Much of the plant life had been blown and twisted in such a way that it was damaged to the point it was questionable if any of it would survive.

I decided to check our water source and walked up the creek and past the falls to make sure there weren't any rotting carcasses in it, contaminating the water. In medical school, we'd covered the dangers of bacteria.

Medical school…

I looked back at Bella. I knew at some point that I would have to tell her the truth about everything.

BELLA

Edward started hiking around the island. He decided he wanted to collect all the carcasses and burn them, to prevent the rotting flesh from causing illness. I definitely understood the need to burn the bats. He was sure that some of them carried rabies naturally, and we didn't want that for sure.

I was amazed at how torn up everything was. The storm had blown in a lot of crap from the ocean as well. There were dead and dying fish lining the shore, and our hut had been mostly knocked down and scattered. The trees supporting the main walls had been knocked over. Thankfully, the corn stalks had only been blown over a bit and were still intact. The beans had twined around them nicely, keeping them from being ripped out of the ground. Edward thought we would be able to save them, if we used the rope to prop them all back upright. With the both of us working, we made quick work of the garden, standing up our corn and reinforcing any that needed more dirt pulled up to the roots.

There were pieces of scrap metal of varying sizes that had washed ashore, and Edward seemed to be intrigued by them. He pulled them aside, and I could see the cogs turning in his mind, but he didn't share his thoughts. We needed to take care of immediate needs, but I was determined to go beachcombing as soon as I could, to see what other treasures and useful items might have washed up around the rest of the island.

As we were walking, I heard something scurry into the bushes. Most the time I would ignore the sound, but I was curious to see what could've faired the storm.

I found a beautiful parrot. At least that was what I thought it was. It was a brightly-colored bird that looked like a parrot, and its wing was out and twisted funny. The poor thing was hurt.

I asked Edward to take Jacob and told him about the bird. He told me to be careful, because a parrot had the strength to bite my fingers off if so inclined. I decided to take off my shirt and use it to catch the poor thing and take it back to the cave, where the chickens were still feasting on bugs.

I was surprised when Edward didn't complain or say a word when I told him my plan to help the bird. He just nodded and told me to set its wing and then tie it to its body.

The poor bird was in a panic when I caught it, and Sam seemed a little too interested as he followed me back to the cave. I shooed him off, and he went and lay down, watching the chickens jump around excitedly chasing bugs.

I didn't uncover the head of the bird, just its wings and body. I did as Edward had said and carefully folded the wing back against its body, strapping it in place with an ace bandage. I figured it was reusable, so it didn't matter if I used it on the bird.

When I was done, I carefully took it over by the chickens, so it would see that I had other animal friends, and I wasn't going to hurt it.

It looked to me and then to the chickens curiously as I sat back and watched it hop around, flapping its one good wing.

"Sorry, buddy, but you can't fly for a while. You can hang out with us until you're better, though."

It walked in a funny waddle over toward the chickens. They were focused on the bugs, so they didn't notice the parrot at first. The parrot picked at a couple of bugs, still watching me, and I chuckled to myself.

Then all hell broke loose. One of the chickens finally noticed the newcomer, and they all started clucking as if it was the end of the world. They fluffed their feathers and started making a show of themselves, trying to set pecking order. I'd swear the parrot rolled its eyes!

One of the chickens came forward to challenge the parrot. The parrot nipped at its toe, and I was worried that it would bite it off. I realized that might not have been a good idea.

The chicken ran squawking back to the others and made a show of hopping around on one foot. The parrot waddled over and then stood upright, as if it was challenging the chickens to try something. It really was almost comical the way the hens all scattered.

I grabbed a piece of fruit and offered some to the parrot. It eyed it for a minute and watched as I ate some of it myself, before it finally took it from me. "See, it won't be so bad here. I'll look out for you, and I'm sure the girls will warm up to you soon. You're very pretty," I said speaking in a kind, soothing tone.

I noticed the hens coming back, and I walked over to the hen with the nipped toe. I had yet to tell Edward, but I had named them all. This was Lauren, poor girl. She was the head of the little hens. Jessica was next in line, and Tiffany and Jennifer were the last in the pecking order. I named the rooster Wild Bill Hick Cock because it just seemed fitting.

Lauren let me pick her up and check her toe. I noticed the parrot watching me carefully, as I comforted the frazzled Lauren. It was obvious that she was making a show of things and being overdramatic about the whole toe thing. I washed it off, giving her a clean bill of health, and held back my giggle as she hobbled back to the other girls.

I was surprised when the parrot walked over to the group of them and started pecking at the bugs. I could see Lauren and Jessica back up nervously, but Tiffany and Jennifer walked over, ruffled their feathers and settled down next to the parrot. The parrot looked at them curiously for a moment and then did the same. I guess it would be fine after all.

Edward came back with Jacob for lunch. Both were wet, and he told me that they'd had a shower in the falls. I laughed a little at Jacob's sour face. He did not like getting in the water to bathe. I was glad Edward took turns with me on cleaning him up.

"I see Polly has settled herself in with the girls," Edward said pointing to the parrot.

"Polly?"

"Yeah," he said in a duh voice. "What else are you going to call a parrot?"

"Of course," I said as I passed him his lunch. "What was I thinking?"

He shrugged teasingly. "I don't know, but I really wish I did."

"Any sign of the goats?" I asked, worried I hadn't seen or heard anything from them since the storm passed. I really hoped they were okay. I would've brought them into the cave, but they didn't trust us enough to follow us yet.

"No, I'm going to go out again after lunch to look for them."

Edward hadn't been gone long when I heard him shouting, "Holy shit! You fucking little bastard! Get the fuck off me, you stupid little shit!"

I ran out to find him with a small brown fury creature on his head, but he was jumping around too much for me to make out what the hell it was. "Edward, what is that?" I shouted over his cursing. When it heard me, it ran off up into a nearby tree.

"I don't fucking know. The little freak went fucking psycho when I went to move the body," he said pointing down to a dead female monkey.

I looked at the little brown creature and could see it peeking through the leaves at us. I could tell it wasn't very big, when I saw it on Edward's head. I looked at Edward worried. He was all scratched up, and his hand was bleeding from a pretty bad bite.

"Why don't you take Jacob back to the cave and clean yourself up. I'll deal with this."

"Bella," he said my name, about to protest, but I held up my hand.

"It's just a baby, Edward, and you were taking its mom," I explained. His face saddened, and he looked like he felt guilty. "You didn't know," I said pulling him to me and kissed his lips lightly.

He smiled softly. "I like it when you kiss me," he whispered, and then I'd swear he blushed.

I couldn't help but smile at him. He really was such a sweetheart under all that awkward. "Well, be a good boy and go get cleaned up. I have a baby monkey to attend to."

He pouted lightly, sticking out his lip, and I couldn't resist kissing it just one more time. He smiled softly and whispered thank you. He picked up Jacob and hurried away, looking warily at the trees. My boy was scared of monkeys.

I walked over to the body of the mother and checked for a pulse. There wasn't one. I gently closed her eyes and petted her head softly. I knew the baby was watching, and I hoped he would come down. I sat down next to the mother and took her hand, petting it softly, waiting for the baby. I could see him moving closer out of the corner of my eye. He finally made it to the ground and sat on the opposite side of his mother. He picked up her hand the way I held her other and petted it softly. I tried to let him know I was sorry by the look in my eyes. The poor little thing leaned down and curled on its mother's chest, pulling the limp arm over him. My heart broke a little for this baby. I gently started to rub his back, and he made a soft whimpering sound.

We sat for a while, letting him cry over losing his mother. His face turned toward me, and he watched me for a while, and then I offered myself to him, holding my arms out to hug him. He hopped into them, and I hugged the little baby, rubbing his back softly. "I'm so sorry you lost your momma," I whispered. He snuggled more into me, and I carefully stood up and walked back to the cave.

Edward was making dinner when I returned. The chickens came to greet me, and I was surprised to see Polly in the mix, fitting right in with the hens.

"I told you she was a girl," Edward said, pointing to Polly.

I chuckled, and the baby monkey seemed curious of the birds.

"I see you got him settled down," Edward said pointing to the baby monkey in my arms.

"Yes, he just needed time to grieve over losing his mommy. I'm sure you can understand why that would be upsetting."

Edward nodded his head yes stiffly.

Sam came out of the side cove, with Jacob holding his tail like a leash. I went to remove Jacob's hand from Sam's tail, and the monkey freaked out, springing off my head and hanging from a root in the cave ceiling.

Of course he was scared of Sam. I pulled Jacob's hand from Sam's tail, and he licked my hand in thanks. I tried to show Jacob how to pet Sam softly, and Sam patiently lay down and let us torture him for a minute. I knew he understood Jacob was just a pup and treated him accordingly. Edward called Jacob away, trying to save Sam from the petting lesson, and Sam rolled on his side and let out a huff. I rubbed his side, and he rolled onto his back, so I rubbed his belly.

What happened next was just silly. The monkey had snuck down and eased up on Sam, poking his hind leg, and then sprang back up to the ceiling. Sam didn't even flinch. He knew I would never let anything hurt him. He rolled back over onto his tummy and laid his head in my lap. I scratched behind his ears as the monkey came down and poked him again, springing away. This time I laughed a little. "Oh, poor Sam," I said giving him a good scratch, "You have babies harassing you left and right."

He let out a huff in answer, and the monkey came in for another sneak attack, poking him again. This time, Sam just looked at him with a, "What do you want?" expression.

The monkey hopped around excitedly and then came in and poked him again. This time he didn't return to the ceiling, though he did run away. Sam just dropped his head, and I continued to pet him. The monkey made five more poking trips, before he finally came and settled into my lap while I petted Sam.

"See?" I said addressing the monkey, "Sam isn't so bad."

The monkey hopped down and started running his fingers through Sam's hair, and I realized he was grooming him. I was pleased he had accepted Sam as part of his family, and Sam seemed to enjoy the monkey running his fingers through his fur.

Edward brought me a plate of food, and the monkey backed away when he approached. "So, what are you going to name the little bastard?"

"Edward!" I scolded.

He sighed. "Well, have you picked a name?"

"No, I haven't."

He let out a sigh and pulled Jacob into his lap. "Well, how about Oliver?"

"Oliver?" I asked wondering where the hell he'd gotten that name.

"Yeah, Oliver, like Oliver Twist, you know, because he's an orphan."

I chuckled. "Okay, fine, the monkey is Oliver, but I'm calling him Ollie."

Edward nodded in agreement and went back to feeding Jacob. Ollie made his way over to me, and I offered him some of the food from my plate just like Edward was doing with Jacob and he took it. He curled in my lap and watched Edward with Jacob and I did the same things Edward was doing and Ollie seemed to relax a little more in his presence.

"So do you still want to move into the cave?" Edward asked.

"Yes, if we can make it safe for Jacob. I think it'd be a good idea. It's secure, and well, all our stuff is here already."

Edward nodded his head. "I was thinking of a way to block off that section of the cave, but I also think I have an idea of how to get more light in here."

"Really?"

"Yeah, a lot of scrap metal washed ashore. If we polish it, we can use it to reflect the sunlight into different parts of the cave."

"That's brilliant, Edward! I was just thinking of making candles."

"Well, you can still make candles for nighttime," he suggested. "It'll be getting darker earlier when the seasons change."

I couldn't help but laugh at Polly, perched on a low root with the other chickens. She really did fit right in with them.

I got ready for bed and settled Jacob down. Ollie swung down from the ceiling and plopped next to us, snuggling with Jacob and me. Edward scowled a little, but didn't protest. I couldn't blame him. Ollie had scratched him up pretty good.

I was surprised when Edward pulled me into his arms, and he wasn't even sleeping. I looked up at him worried and glanced back at Jacob.

"He doesn't see anything wrong with our hugging, Bella. You cuddle him, and he sees it as the same thing."

"Well, it's not," I said moving away, but Edward pulled me back to him and growled.

"He didn't see anything offensive."

"He watched me have my first orgasm this morning," I whisper-yelled.

"He doesn't know that. He doesn't even know what an orgasm is, Bella, just…please."

He looked so pitiful, all scratched up by Ollie and pouting with his lip out. It made me want to kiss it. He must've seen my focus change to his lips, because he slowly leaned down, but waited for me to slide my hand up into his hair and pull him the rest of the way to my lips.

He kissed me until I was panting, and I pulled away. "No more. Not until we have our own room."

He just nodded in agreement and buried his face in my hair. His warm breath on my neck sent chills down my spine.

I would be setting up Jake's bedroom first thing tomorrow. I didn't know how much more I could take.

A/N: Thanks for reading and please review!