a/n Greetings, friends and lovers! There's a new outtake up you'll like if you like the Seth and Jen story line. As it is, there's also a lot of information in there you won't get from this story. I view Seth as having taken on a role as Jacob's deputy, seeing what's what and gathering what information he can about anything pertaining to Jacob's extended family. I like to think Seth is very good at this.

Hope you like this! We're going back to childhood. This takes place a little before the Christmas after "Birthday." Enjoy!

BREAK

Jacob sat on the couch next to a little girl who appeared to be around six or seven. Long ringlets danced around her round, flushed face, and she wore a huge smile on her face. She was watching, with bright eyed interest, as her uncle whittled her a little Christmas ornament. She'd seen Jacob do this before, but for some reason, watching Seth do it seemed even more fascinating to her.

Her voice was very serious as she asked, "Did your daddy teach you to do that like Billy taught Jacob?"

Seth's hands paused for a second and he glanced up at her. They started up again as a smile spread across his face. "He sure did."

"That's good," she said, nodding her head. Bronze ringlets bounced wildly around her head, and Jacob vaguely wondered when had been the last time that Edward had managed to get a brush through her hair. She wasn't paying any attention to him, so he reached slowly for where a soft brush sat on the coffee table. "It's nice you have something to do to remember him."

"I also have his fish fry recipe." Seth grinned. "Handed down from father to son for generations. It's top secret."

"It's very good," she said, smiling. She was acting so polite right now, Jacob thought, but how long it would last was anybody's bet. "I don't like fish, but yours is yummy."

"Well, thank you, darling."

Jacob's fingers closed around the brush, but before he could even lift it, her dark eyes darted to him before narrowing. A second later, she was perched on the back of Seth's chair, and the little brat was actually hissing at him.

"Dammit, kid," he growled, putting down the brush and getting up. "Your dad's going to be home tomorrow. You want him to go at that rat's nest? You know how impatient he can get."

"No," she snarled, before resuming her hissing.

Seth had stopped whittling and was looking back and forth between the two of them, seeming to struggle with holding back a smile. "I can't believe she's hissing at you." He turned to Renesmee. "What's up, kid?"

She scowled, but stopped hissing. Reaching down, she pressed one of her little hands to Seth's cheek, and after a second, he burst out laughing. "Alright," he chuckled, "I see your point."

"Hey!" Jacob frowned at his friend. "What the hell, man? Do you have any idea how hard it is to get her to sit still long enough to brush her hair?"

"I can do it myself!" A second before she moved, Jacob made a tackle for the hairbrush, and got there a split second before she did. He held it high over his head, triumphant, while she scowled up at him from the arm of the couch. "Give it!"

"You only brush the top," he reminded her for the thousandth time. "You have to brush underneath, too. You've got a lot of hair, kiddo."

"Give it!" She jumped, and he jerked his arm down and away before swinging it back up as she descended back to the floor.

Jacob sighed heavily. Seth had a full on grin on his face. This was ridiculous. "How about this," he said, desperate. "I'll wrestle you for it. If you win, you can brush your hair and deal with your dad when he gets home. If I win, you have to sit still the whole time while I brush your hair."

"Come on, Jake, she's tiny." Seth rolled his eyes, picking up his whittling again. "You'll kick her ass."

"She's tiny," he said dramatically, "but she's pretty tough."

"I am." Renesmee lifted her chin, a little defiantly. She studied him for a second before she held up one tiny hand. "Deal."

He shook her hand and walked over, putting the brush on the table next to Seth. "We'll be back."

Seth frowned. "Where are you going?"

Renesmee sighed, and it almost made Jacob laugh. "Mama says we have to play outside." She stuck out a bottom lip. "She's afraid we'll break furniture."

Seth laughed and followed behind them as they made their way into Bella and Edward's front yard. Snow blanketed the entire property, and Jacob had a fleeting concern that the pair wouldn't make it back on time. Then he shook his head - no need to worry. These people were so used to snow, it was a little frightening. Soon, Bella would be home, and she could tame the little monster that was her daughter.

Because it wasn't that Jacob didn't love the kid. It was just that there was only so much Baby Edward he could handle on his own. Five days seemed to be about the max, for now.

"Alright, kid," he said, making a show of getting limbered up, "remember, if I win, I get to brush your hair. If you do, you can do it, but you have to do a good job."

She didn't say anything, but she crouched down, baring her teeth and growling quietly at him. Up on the porch, Seth dusted some snow off the porch bench and sat down to watch the show. Jacob grinned - he had no intention of losing. It made him feel a little bad, but he really did have to brush her hair.

"Normal rules apply," he reminded her, crouching down a little. "No biting." Still no answer. Her dark little eyes were focused and determined. "On three. One... two..." She tensed, and he braced himself. She looked pretty bent on kicking his ass. "Three."

He barely had time to dodge out of the way when she shot forward at him, but he was able to catch her easily. She shrieked with laughter as he snatched her out of midair and lightly tossed her back into a snow drift.

Nobody would ever be quite sure how what happened next happened.

His first thought, oddly enough, was not one to register pain. It was a thought of, Oh, fuck, I have to let her brush her hair.

The next thing he noticed was the sound of her crying. Tears flowed down her pink cheeks as she pressed her little hands to his face. He was overwhelmed with images of himself prone on the ground, his right leg bent back at an odd angle. Seth was on his other side, but Jacob couldn't hear his voice.

Because as soon as he realized it was broken, the pain set in. He hissed sharply, and Renesmee's tears doubled. "Oh, God, sweetie," he groaned. "Please don't cry, honey."

She was sobbing. It was unlike anything he'd ever seen from her. "I'm sorry," she blubbered. "I didn't mean to. Please don't be mad at me, Jacob, please?"

"I'm not mad." Jacob gritted his teeth. The only thing worse than a broken leg, it seemed, was a broken leg and a bawling, one year old, half-vampire imprint. "Can you do something for me, kiddo?" She nodded, and her curls bounced wildly around her face. Her big bottom lip jutted out as she tried to stifle her tears. "Can you bring me my phone? It's on the kitchen counter."

She was off like a shot, and Jacob groaned, leaning back farther into the snow. "Fuck," he groaned, feeling his eyes water.

"How bad is it?" Seth's voice was amazingly calm for a sixteen year old kid. Jacob had to remind himself that Seth wasn't that much younger than him.

"It's bad." He grimaced. "Feels like multiple bones, and I can feel it starting to try and heal already. Carlisle's going to have to rebreak it." He let out a half cry, half moan. "Fuck, it's gonna kill."

Renesmee was back, phone in hand, and she gave it to Jacob. He started to dial, but realized a line had already been connected. Jacob could hear Carlisle's clear voice saying his name. "Jacob?"

"Hey, doc." Jacob reached over to pat Renesmee's head. She was still whimpering, and she scooted in a little to pat at his arm, trying to comfort him. It was the cutest thing he'd ever seen in his life, and he ruffled her hair a little. "Can you get over here? My leg's busted and it's already starting to set."

"I'm on my way." Jacob could hear the rush of wind as Carlisle ran through the wilderness. "Renesmee was very upset - she said she ran into you too hard?"

"I guess," he said, sighing and grimacing again when the motion caused a fresh shot of pain to shoot up his leg.

"How much pain are you in?" Carlisle's voice was quick.

"A lot." Jacob groaned again, unable to keep it contained. "Please tell me you have drugs," he begged, his voice thin and desperate. "Fuck, it hurts so bad."

Renesmee's tears started up again full tilt, and Jacob's attention was diverted again from his pain to hers. Seth scooted around Jacob to pick her up and put her in his lap, where she could still reach Jacob, and wrapped his arms around her. "It's okay, kiddo," Seth assured her, his voice still very calm. Jacob was going to owe Seth after this. "We're tough guys. Did you know Jake's broke his leg before?"

Nessie sniffled and shook her head. "Uh-uh."

Carlisle's voice was in his ear again, promising him morphine and that he was less than a minute away.

"Yep. Before you were born, somebody tried to screw with your Aunt Leah." Seth grinned down at her, and it made his dark eyes crinkle. "Jake was not okay with that. Busted his leg up to save her."

The sound of footsteps reached Jacob's ears, and he glanced back in time to see Carlisle come to a sudden halt at behind them. He surveyed the scene, his light eyes full of concern. He glanced first at Jacob, then at his whimpering granddaughter. When she looked up, meeting his eyes, the tears started up again, but without the sound.

"Am I in trouble?" she asked, her voice very quiet. She knew, in the absence of her parents, her grandparents were the ones to dish out the discipline. It was always very loving, but firm, and it almost seemed to make her more remorseful than when her father scolded her.

"Oh, darling," Carlisle said, laughing, "of course not." He knelt next to Seth, at Jacob's shoulder. Taking her from Seth for a moment, he gave her a quick hug and a kiss before setting her on her feet. "There's no need to cry. Jacob will be fine." He rubbed his hands together, looking around, and Jacob wondered what he was looking for. "Well, darn it, there's no nurses here." He sighed heavily, before casting his eyes on his granddaughter again. He smiled down at her warmly. "Can you help me, Renesmee?" The man was a genius, Jacob decided. Renesmee bobbed her head again, this time seeming to make more of an effort to stop the tears. "Go into the guest room, and make sure there's a whole bunch of pillows and blankets in there for me, will you? We'll put Jacob in there and make him nice and comfortable so I can fix his leg. Here." He handed his bag to her, and she took it, wide eyed. "Take my bag up, too. Be very careful - there's medicines and tools in there." He patted her head. "Off you go, nurse."

"Yes, grandpa." She reached down to pat Jacob on the cheek, showing him that she would try not to cry so she could help her grandpa fix him. Then, she darted inside, leaving the door open behind her for them.

"Alright," Carlisle said, glancing at Seth as he to Jacob's feet. "You get him up under the arms, and I'll get him under the legs." Carlisle glanced up at Jacob. "This is going to hurt, son." His voice was apologetic.

"I'll try not to scream," Jacob said, gritting his teeth. It was hard, as they lifted him, not to, but he managed it all the way upstairs. Under other circumstances, he would have laughed at the sight that greeted him. Renesmee had found what seemed to be every available pillow and blanket in the house and piled them at the foot of the bed.

As soon as he was situated, Carlisle reached down into his bag, pulling out a loaded needle. "Ready?" he asked, giving it a gentle tap before putting pressure on Jacob's arm. He didn't allow Jacob to answer before injecting the needle and pushing the plunger.

/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/

When he came around, he could smell something cooking and hear a quiet humming. The humming stopped after a few seconds, and he heard Edward's voice.

"Guess who's awake, darling?" His voice was crooning, soothing.

"Jacob?" A hot little hand landed on his arm, pushing softly to rouse him.

Forcing his eyes open, Jacob met Renesmee's brown ones. They were wide and worried, but there were no tears. He tried to bring his hand up to pat her head, instead only managing a limp wave. He giggled, and out of the corner of his eye, saw Edward's amused smile. "Grandpa got a little carried away with the drugs," he said, and he could hear how mushy his voice was. "Sorry, kiddo."

She blinked, her face becoming confused. Her head snapped back to look up at her father inquisitively. A soft chuckle rose from Edward's chest. "Pain medication," he said simply. She cocked her head slightly, and Jacob wondered vaguely what she was thinking. Edward's chuckle continued. "Yes," he said, answering whatever thought she'd had. He ran a hand over her disastrous curls. His voice seemed reassuring. Edward glanced up at him over her head. "She wanted to make sure you were okay. She's never seen you doped up before." He grinned lopsidedly. "Carlisle went to work, so the nurse and I are keeping an eye on you. How's the pain?"

Pain? Jacob tried to focus, but the idea of pain was positively ludicrous. He giggled.

"Right. Feeling no pain." Edward tapped his own forehead. "I'll add that to the mental chart I'm keeping, nurse," he informed his daughter. She nodded seriously before reaching out for Jacob's arm again, patting it gently. He gave Jacob an apologetic smile. "Carlisle called after he reset your leg, and we came home as quick as we could. Sorry about that. I didn't realize the little monster had that much muscle already." He reached up to ruffle his daughter's hair, and a frown crossed his face. "You realize," he informed her, "that now, your hair is even more of a mess, right?"

Renesmee gave a soft sigh and faced forward again. Jacob laughed hysterically when she rolled her eyes at this.

The guest room door opened, and Bella poked her head in, smiling. "Hi," she said, smiling at her friend as she approached his bed with a tray in her hands. A huge bowl of steaming soup and a large chunk of bread met his eyes, and his mouth watered. "I made you some soup."

"You," he said, pointing at her with a floppy arm, "are a great friend." He grinned as she shook her head, a soft laugh issuing from her lips as she put the tray on a rolling hospital tray at his bedside. "Seriously." His voice slurred the word.

"Eat," Bella ordered. She walked around to sit at her husband's side, and Renesmee crawled from her father's lap to her mother's. Bella's eyes focused on her daughter's as Renesmee pressed her hand to Bella's cheek, showing her something. "I know," she said, smiling. "He's pretty funny."

"You making fun of me, kid?" Renesmee giggled when he reached out to tickle her under her chin. "'Cause it's really not nice of you. I oughtta give you a noogie."

"You," she said, pointing imperiously over at him, "eat." Her voice booked no refusal, and he picked up his spoon.

"Whatever you say, boss."

Anything, as long as she didn't cry.

a/n Sorry for the slow update again. I have a crazy life. Review!