Disclaimer: See it in Chapter 1.

What would this story be like without The-Critic1337 beta-ing? Craptastic and confusing, that's what it would be like. So thanks again to the wonderful Critic who fixes my typos, spelling errors, and the things that make sense in my head but come out as a confusing jumble of nonsense when I write them down.

This beginning part doesn't have much to do with the story I suppose, but I like Seth. Who doesn't?

-SurrepTRIXus-

Chapter 25: Diplomats

Edward and I sparred and I took him down twice before we sensed Tanya nearby, just as the dusk turned to night. She looked disappointed to see me, but was polite enough not to say anything. Edward invited her inside, and I thought her eyes looked unnecessarily hopeful. Alice started asking her questions about what she had been up to since they last saw each other, and the conversation turned to cordial small talk. But I still sometimes noticed she would stare at Edward for a little too long, and then he would look a little uncomfortable and pull me closer to him. Alice kept shooting her dirty looks.

Within a few minutes of Tanya's arrival, Seth came by. I opened the door for him before he could knock.

"Sorry, Seth," Edward said with a smile. "Esme's not here."

Seth scowled. "Dammit! I'm hungry!"

"Seth, don't swear!" I chided. For all he had done, I still thought of him as a child sometimes. "I could make you something. What are you in the mood for?"

He shrugged. "Anything I guess. I just didn't want to go back home for dinner. Leah's been a real pain in the a-, er, butt lately."

"What do you mean?" I asked as he followed me into the kitchen, although I had a pretty good idea of what he meant. Despite the fact that none of us needed to eat, the Cullens kept a well-stocked kitchen as part of the human charade.

"It's bad enough I have to hear what she's thinking when we're both phased, but she's even worse when she's not. She just has a really bad attitude, you know what I mean?"

I nodded as I opened the refrigerator to retrieve the ingredients for macaroni and cheese. I did know what Seth meant. I knew what Leah was going through, but I couldn't help but feel sorry for Seth being caught in the middle of it all. I set the milk and cheese on the counter and my eyes caught sight of a bunch of bananas. I laughed out loud.

"Hey, Edward," I called.

"Yes?" he responded from the living room.

"Banana-nut muffin."

I heard Edward's peals of laughter and I smiled wider. Seth looked at me quizzically.

"It's just a joke," I explained and handed Seth a banana to eat while I prepared the macaroni. "Do you want to hear the muffin joke?"

"No, he doesn't!" Edward appeared in the kitchen. "Seth, you don't need to hear the muffin joke."

"Uh-uh! You can't do that!" Seth complained. "You can't tell me there's a joke and not tell me what it is!"

"You don't want to hear it," Edward insisted jovially. "It's not a very funny joke."

"It's a fine joke!" I protested. "There is absolutely nothing wrong with my muffin joke!"

"You really don't want to hear it," Edward said to Seth again.

"I think I do!" Seth grinned.

"Well I don't want to hear it again!" Edward's tone was stern, but his eyes were teasing.

I made a face at him before I turned to Seth. "I'll tell you later, since somebody doesn't have much of a sense of humor."

Edward smiled and pulled me close for a quick kiss. I thought he would go back into the living room with Tanya and Alice, but he chose to stay and the kitchen with Seth and me while I cooked. I couldn't help but smile at the fact the beautiful Tanya had been abandoned by him so that he could spend more time with me.

"The others will be back in a few hours," Alice suddenly called from the other room. "They came across Kate while hunting, and they're all heading back now." I heard her voice return to its normal tone as she continued her conversation with Tanya.

"Oh, great!" Seth said excitedly. "Esme can cook something for me! Oh, not that I don't think your macaroni won't be great, Bella, but you're not making enough."

I looked at the two pounds of pasta that was cooking. I would never get used to the appetite of werewolves.

*****

As always, Alice's visions proved to be correct. The rest of the family and Kate returned to the house within a few hours while the night was still pitch black. They cheerfully greeted Tanya and Seth. All of them looked happier and more relaxed after hunting. I felt a brief pang, wondering how many happy moments we had left, but I pushed the feeling away. If this was one of the last, I wasn't going to waste my time worrying about it.

Emmett was about to tell Seth about the bear he took down, but Seth stopped him.

"I gotta go," he said with chagrin. "I gotta take over patrol from Paul, and I'm late he'll kill me." Knowing that Paul was prone to over reacting, it might not just be a figure of speech. "I'll be back later, though, and I'm gonna want to hear that story."

"You got it," Emmett grinned.

Seth left the house, and Carlisle turned to Tanya.

"Have you heard anything else about Carmen and Eleazar? Have they been able to get in contact with their nomad friends?"

Tanya shook her head. "Carmen called me this afternoon. They know where Eleazar's friends are headed, but they haven't been able to catch up to them yet."

Carlisle gave a strained smile. "Well, we can hope they catch up with them and convince them to come by."

Edward suddenly looked out toward the door. I knew well enough by now to know he had heard someone's thought before any of us could sense they were there.

"Seth's coming back," he explained to all of us. "And Jacob will be by with Embry in a little bit. Sam wants to send them as diplomats to meet Tanya and Kate, discuss the boundary, and maybe work on some plans for the future."

Rosalie looked like she was going to say something unflattering, but Edward spoke before she could.

"Because Jacob gets along with us better. Would you rather have Sam come by himself?" he said looking directly into her eyes. She gave a disdainful snort before crossing her arms in front of her chest and looking away.

At that point Seth opened the door without knocking, adjusting his shorts like he had just put them on.

"Did you get that, Edward?" he asked with an infectious smile. He was always such a happy kid.

"Yes, thank you." Edward grinned back.

"Yeah, Sam just wants to make sure these guys here," he gestured to Tanya and Kate, "know where the lines are and respect the treaty and that kind of stuff. But I should let Jake tell you all that. He should be here soon."

"He's coming up now," said Edward. And then he chuckled softly. "I think he's a little annoyed at you."

"Probably," Seth shrugged. "But he doesn't have to live with Leah, or he'd understand why I came over!"

I heard Jacob and Embry outside. I opened the door as they walked up to the porch. Jacob did look annoyed, and Embry didn't look very pleased either.

"I thought you were supposed to stay outside, Seth," Jacob said with a scowl as they walked inside the house.

"Sam said he thought it would be better if I waited outside. He didn't actually tell me to do it. And I thought it would be rude to just sit out there after I had already been inside."

"Speaking of rude," I interjected. "It's good to see you too, Jake. I'm fine, thanks for asking."

"Sorry, Bells!" he said sheepishly before he lifted me off the ground in a bear hug.

"Hey, Embry." My voice was muffled by Jacob's arm, but I was smiling.

"Hey, Bella," Embry greeted me. "Do I smell macaroni and cheese?"

"Yeah, but there isn't any more," I said as Jake set me down. "Seth ate it all."

"Oh, are you hungry?" Esme asked. "Can I make you anything?"

"If it's not too much trouble…" Embry looked hesitantly at Jacob, but he didn't find any disapproval in his face. "That'd be great."

We waited until the Jacob, Embry and Seth had eaten before getting down to business. Their requests were pretty straight forward, and since Tanya and Kate were vegetarians like we were, they didn't have much objection to agreeing to the terms.

"Have you decided what you're going to do when the Volturi get here?" Carlisle asked Jacob.

Jacob yawned. "We wanted to discuss that with you, but I don't think we can do it tonight. I'm dead tired, and I have to get some sleep before tomorrow."

"What's going on tomorrow?" I asked, always curious about what Jacob was doing.

Jacob glared at Embry. "Embry's dragging me to the Makah reservation."

Embry grinned guiltily. "My mom's visiting my aunt and I don't want to have to go alone. It's always such a snore-fest over there. I hate these family reunions!"

I couldn't help laughing.

"What's so funny?" Jacob asked.

"With everything going on right now it's easy to forget that you have actual lives! It's all so… normal!"

Jacob laughed at me. He, Embry, and Seth said their good-byes before they headed to the door.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Bella," Jacob said. "And I have a surprise for you."

"Oh," I groaned. "Come on, Jake…"

"Relax, Bella. It's not a present. Not really, anyway. Don't worry, I know you'll be happy about it. See you tomorrow." Jacob grinned and the three of them exited the house, leaving me to puzzle over what the surprise might be.

For some reason, I think banana nut muffins are hilarious.

Thanks for your reviews! They make me feel warm and fuzzy.

-SurrepTRIXus-