Author's note: I don't own the characters, I just play with them. Please let me know what you think of the story. I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Bella's Point of View

As dawn broke we were all in the yard, barring Darius who was on his computer watching for anything Carlisle might do. My nerves were high, I'd never fought before, even in school. I'd always been the bookworm type. There had never been cause to actually fight.

I found myself wishing that I'd taken some sort of martial art or self-defense class, but then as a human, I had been too clumsy for them to have done me any good. It was only as a vampire that I had the grace to move any way I chose without finding myself on the ground. Now I had to learn and learn quickly.

Then I thought of Jasper and my nerves faded away. He wouldn't allow me to get seriously hurt. He would teach me what I needed to know and despite my past, I needed to know this.

"OK, Bella I want you to watch carefully. Peter, basic moves only. Try to hit me."

I watched as Jasper blocked blow after blow, kick after kick, Peter wasn't able to lay a hand on him. I watched more closely how to block the blows, it looked so easy but I doubted it was going to be so.

"Now Bella, it's your turn. Char, you pair up with Bella for now." Jasper said.

I managed to block her first punch and could have celebrated. That lack of attention allowed her to get a kick in. I focused and soon I was doing pretty well, not that Char didn't connect occasionally with a punch or a kick, but I was blocking most of them.

"Now Char quit holding back" Jasper instructed.

She'd been holding back? I was in trouble now. The blows and kicks came at such a rapid speed that it was all I could do to block half of them. Jasper was growling and I knew I was doing something wrong. I focused harder and soon she wasn't hitting me at all no matter what she did. In fact, she couldn't touch me no matter what she did.

"Bella," Jasper said with a frustrated tone to his voice, "let your shield go, now isn't the time for it." I looked at him in confusion. My shield?"

"Well," Peter said, "We know it can protect her."

"I don't have my shield up Jasper," I explained.

Jasper approached me and put his hand inches from my face. "I can't get closer than this Bella. You've put up your shield. I want you to relax. We'll take a short break, and try to put your shield away."

"OK, Jasper I'll try," I said.

My shield must have come up when I couldn't protect myself adequately from Charlotte. I tried to relax and let it go, but it stayed. I tried to fold it away like it had done when the burn was over but it stayed. After a while, I just sat on the grass and thought of other things. The night before came into my mind and I relived every kiss, every caress, his body and mine moving together. I felt my shield pop as if it was a bubble around me.

"I got it, Jasper,"

"OK, you'll partner with me then. Perhaps you won't feel the need to protect yourself when training with your mate."

He started slowly and I blocked everything. Eventually, he sped up a little but I still blocked him, as I succeeded with the exercise, his speed kept increasing until I was blocking punches and kicks as if I'd been doing it my whole life. He stopped and smiled at me. I smiled back. I'd done it. I was learning how to fight.

"Now I'm going to put you with Peter, but I want you to make an effort not to use your shield."

Peter stepped forward and instead of coming straight for me, he did as Jasper had done, starting slowly and increasing in speed as I succeeded. I managed to block him throughout the exercise.

"Next we're going to show you some holds, and how to get out of them."

We worked through the morning and if I could get tired I knew I would be exhausted but my sense of pride growing. I could do this. I could be equal to my mate. I could learn to protect him instead of him always protecting me.

At noon Jasper called a halt to our practice. He sent Char to go with me while I fed. Training is thirsty work and I understood why he insisted we hunt the night before. I ran through the forest joyfully taking my kill from the first herd of deer we crossed paths with.

I bounded back to Char who was waiting thirty feet or so back from me. Together we ran back toward the house. The speed running as a vampire brought me was still something that amazed me. I went under and around tree branches, not that they would hurt my diamond hard skin, but it was fun. It felt as if I flew.

We were greeted by serious faces, the most serious was my Jasper's face. Knowing there was bad news coming I went to Jasper and put my arms around him.

"What is it, Jasper?" I asked.

Jasper's point of view

How did I soften the blow for my precious mate? She was going to be heartbroken and most likely she was going to want revenge.

"Come into the living room Darlin' and sit down"

Warily Bella followed me. When I had her safely on the couch I joined her.

"I'm sorry Bella, but Charlie is dead."

There was no way to soften the blow, there was no way to make this any easier for her.

"No," Bella said, "Charlie is alive, he didn't know about us, he didn't know anything about us. We left all the evidence of Edward trying to kill me, didn't we. There's no reason for him to be dead. He probably thinks I was killed in a home invasion or something. He couldn't guess what really happened."

"Charlie was beaten to death last night, Bella after I told Carlisle that Edward was dead. We think it was in retaliation. We think Carlisle was responsible."

"But he would never hurt a human."

Bella's point of view

They were wrong, they had to be, but as I looked around I knew they weren't. Carlisle killed Charlie. Just killed him for something we'd done. Rage began to build inside me and suddenly there was wind. All of the vampires with the exception of Jasper, who was holding my hand were pushed up against the walls. Everything was destroyed. The furniture was turned into flying matchsticks, the vampires were pressed into the walls. Darius's computer shattered when it hit the wall.

"You have to calm down Bella," Jasper shouted over the mayhem. Jasper pushed calm into me and slowly the wind died. Our friends fell from the walls and I was left staring at utter destruction.

I broke, sobbing tearlessly and climbing up onto Jasper's lap. Charlie was dead and it was all due to Carlisle. I would kill him for this.