"Emmett!" Esme pulled her son's fist out of the wall and immediately applied a loud, resounding smack to the back of his hand that made even Carlisle flinch.

"Ow, Momma!" he yelled out and pressed his hand to his chest the moment she let go. Esme had just been a shadow of herself lately, but now she was back. And you did not want to mess with her.

The woman pointed to the hole in the wall, then put her hands on her hips and gave him a firm look. "What is that?"

Actually, he didn't want to answer that question. "I stumbled?" he replied, trying to look innocent while rubbing at the smarting spot on his hand. It was still dusty from the plaster, and Esme now had a white smear on her dark blue cardigan. He hoped she wouldn't notice.

Her face hardened. "What. Is. That?"

Of course there was no acceptable explanation for why he had punched a hole into the wall. But when he did it, he had actually figured they were already in trouble, so a little more damage wouldn't matter all that much. It really wouldn't if it were just Carlisle standing in front of him, but unfortunately, Esme was here too. And she was pissed.

"Sorry… I was scared for Rosalie and then it just happened. I'll fix it."

"Oh, you better fix it. And don't forget all the other damage that happened to this room," she replied and waved her hands about. "And the hallway."

Emmett frowned at her. "Um... that wasn't my doing. Well, at least not all of it."

"Did you throw punches? Were you part of the fight in here?"

"Yes, but-"

"Then no buts," she told him with finality in her voice.

"This isn't even my room and Jasper started it, just saying," he mumbled and kicked in frustration at the carpet underneath him. The perfect image of a petulant, little boy.

"That's why you two will work together, understood?"

Emmett gulped, then nodded his head. "Yes, ma'am." He had enough common sense to not infuriate his mother further by arguing.

She turned her gaze to her other son in the room. "Understood, Jasper?"

"Yes, ma'am," he replied, quick like a shot.

"Good, now where were we?" Esme expectantly looked around, until she fixed her eyes on her husband, who had remained quiet the whole time.

"I'd like to tend to their wounds. Rosalie was supposed to be first, but I think she needs a moment to cool off. How about you come with me, Jasper?"

"Sir, that won't be necessary," the soldier answered and hung his head so that his hair would maybe cover at least part of his deformed nose. He was fully aware that it was broken and had swollen up to the point that he couldn't breathe through it anymore, but he still did not believe that Carlisle should tend to it. It would heal on its own.

Carlisle sighed as his son always tried to make his injuries appear harmless. "That was not a request, son."

The poor boy looked like he had repeatedly ran into a wall.

Rosalie entered her room and slammed the door shut behind herself.

Shedding out of her coat, slowly, very slowly and in between struggling to keep her ear in place by pressing her shoulder against it, she then marched over to her closet and chose a clean, peach-coloured blouse to wear.

She had spent all day in her current outfit, and now that it had not just absorbed all kinds of smells, it was spotted with venom as well and she just wanted to get changed and then get going.

Again, pressing her shoulder against her ear, which drew a sharp hiss from her lips, she unbuttoned her stained blouse and shed out of it with only a few difficulties.

There was a knock on her door, but she just ignored it. Emmett wouldn't knock to enter his own room and right now, Rosalie was not up to seeing anyone but him.

When she didn't react to the third time knocking, the door just opened.

"My room," was all she said without ever turning around.

"Rosalie," Esme chided and cleared her throat. "You heard me knock."

"But I didn't invite you in, so you stay out. That's called manners, mother," she replied contemptuously and looked her mother up and down before turning back around again and focusing on the task at hand. Her ear hurt so bad, but she had to ignore the pain as it would only slow her down.

"Young lady, I advise you to drop that attitude."

Rose wheeled around. "Or what?" she asked, standing there with a half-buttoned up blouse. During the movement she had also moved her shoulder, and a sharp pain rushed through the right side of her head and her hand shot back up to readjust her almost completely severed ear.

"I know you are upset, but taking it out on me is not advisable."

"Then leave," she pressed out through gritted teeth and shut her eyes for a second until the sharp pain lessened again. "Because – again - I did not invite you in." Rosalie was aware that she was extremely rude right now, but Esme just shouldn't be here. She needed time to herself to collect her thoughts and calm down to think clearly again, and Esme's presence was indeed not welcome.

"I want you to come with me so your father can take a look at your injury."

"It's nothing."

Esme raised an eyebrow before she crossed her arms over her chest. "It doesn't look like nothing and it surely doesn't sound like nothing. You wouldn't be so insolent if you were fine."

"Mother," she groaned and lifted her shoulder again, so she could use both her hands to fasten up her blouse. "I don't have time for this now. Next week you can yell at me all you want, I promise, but now I got to hurry."

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm going to Alaska," she stated matter-of-factly. This was not up for discussion as she had already made up her mind. They could still talk about her behaviour when she'd return with Maddie, but not a second sooner.

"No, you are not."

Rose's eyes narrowed. Esme was her mother, but she was not a little girl. She could make her own decisions. "Watch me."

Esme did not like being challenged and she was not going to let her daughter leave like that. So she seized her by the upper arm and practically forced her over to the bed where she made her sit down.

"I said no," she told her firmly and let go of her, only to then tower over her petulant daughter.

A gasp rushed from Rosalie's lips. "What is wrong with you? With all of you?! My sister is hurting and you just sit here and twiddle your thumbs! I will fix this."

"She's with Tanya, she'll help her." The elder spoke as calmly as she could, because Rose was getting more and more agitated and that wasn't good. It would only add to her pain and use up the blood she had recently consumed and desperately needed for healing.

"Doesn't look like it. Maddie's been there for over a week, and all this time she's been like that? Why did nobody tell me?"

"What good would it do if the entire family is upset? I wanted you and Emmett to enjoy some time together."

"Yes, thanks for nothing. She'd be fine by now, but instead you let her suffer for over a week… it's your fault as well, isn't it? It's not just Jasper - and Alice for that matter - but you and Carlisle as well… I get it now. You were trying to hide it from us." Rose stared at her through narrowed eyes and looked like she expected an answer.

This did make Esme uneasy. It wasn't just that Rosalie had found out so quickly and was quite obviously angry with her, but also to be reminded of it again. She knew it was her fault. If she had only said no, she could have prevented Maddie leaving, which would have prevented this fight and her children's various injuries. These were the consequences she would have to deal with now. "Rosalie, stay put and let Tanya take care of it. Please."

Rosalie's jaw clenched for a second while she pointed her index finger at her mother. "You don't tell me what to do, not now, not when it comes to Maddie. She trusts me and I can assure you that I can help her. I know her."

Esme's patience was wearing thin, but she needed to ignore Rosalie's constant provocations and backtalk. "It took her days to open up, having even more people up there asking questions will make her draw back again."

The blonde grew suspicious and she tilted her head to the side, all the while holding her hand firmly to the side of her head. "What are you hiding?"

"Come, your father is waiting." Esme was already by the door, her fingers wrapped around the doorknob, but Rose held her other hand up to stop her.

"What did you do to her? Did you hurt her?"

Her hand dropped back to her side at hearing that question and for a moment she contemplated on what to tell her. Her daughter was in no position to make demands, but she figured it would not be beneficial for their relationship to keep something from her. She would find out eventually. "All we wanted was for Jasper and Maddie to talk. So instead of sitting both of them down in the living room, we gave in to Jasper's request and let him take her to the forest to put their differences aside, and that's how all of this happened. I truly didn't know."

"Great." Then she got up and searched her closet for a pair of sneakers.

"What are you doing?"

She blinked her eyes at her. "I'm going to Alaska." Esme had just told her how much they had screwed up and so she should be glad that she would take care of their mess now.

"Give me your car keys."

Rose was taken-aback by that. She spun around and practically gaped at her. "No."

Esme narrowed her eyes at her daughter, then reached for Rose's discarded coat on the armchair just a few feet from the door and fished the keys from one of the pockets.

She held them up, almost triumphantly, then stuffed them into the pocket of her trousers.

But Rose did not look worried at all. "You do know that I can hot-wire a car, don't you? Besides, I could just as well run up there, I don't care."

Still, Esme wouldn't budge. "You are staying here." Then she grabbed Rosalie's wooden hairbrush from the dresser standing next to the door and turned around again, facing her.

"Really, mother?" Rose asked, eyeing Esme and the brush in her hand. That woman had lost her mind.

Esme pulled off the pink hair tie that was wrapped around the handle and put it around her wrist, then went over to the bed, sat down and pulled Rose down with her.

"Esme, what are you-" she started to ask, then felt her head being pushed to the side and the brush being dragged through her long hair. Rose covered her ear even tighter to protect it from the bristles. Still, just the slight pulling at her hair made the wound hurt even more and she pressed her lips tightly together as to not cry out.

Esme took more and more strands of her hair in hand, then tied them together with the elastic.

"And now what?" To be honest, this was not what Rosalie had expected to happen. Her voice sounded a little strained as she was still recovering from the fresh, burning pain that Esme had unknowingly inflicted.

"Your ear."

"Seriously, Esme, are you deaf? I don't care about this scratch, Alice's fighting skills are pathetic."

And Esme was fed up. "Rose, right now we'll either fix your ear or your attitude, what's it going to be?" she said sternly and gave her a look that promised there were only these two options and no other, so she'd better choose wisely.

Well, to Rose neither sounded pleasant, because both scenarios would cost time and she didn't have any. She had to get to Alaska, she just had to. "Fine."

They left the room and headed for Carlisle's study. Just when they entered, Rose realised that this was the first time she saw his study in this new house. It looked just like his studies always did, the old mahogany desk, shelves covered in medical books and classics, lore and whatnot. He had a couch in the corner and old paintings on his walls. Peculiar how he always found the time to arrange for these things to come with him whenever they moved, but all Esme packed for Maddie were just some clothes she didn't care about, CDs and books.

Carlisle was just putting some gauze away that he had used on Jasper and looked up when the two women entered.

"There you are. Come, take a seat," he said and motioned to one of the chairs in front of his desk.

"Before you start, Carlisle," Esme said, holding up her hand, then turned to look at her daughter who had just seated herself. "Rosalie, I believe you still owe your father an apology."

Rose just looked at her in confusion. "What for?"

"For what you said earlier."

"All I did was say the truth, I don't think I need to apologise for that."

Stubbornness was always strong with that one...

"You were way out of line."

Rose knew that Esme was not going to drop it. It was beyond annoying when she turned overly authoritative and expected everyone to listen to her no matter how stupid her orders were. But this extreme behaviour always followed times when she had been passive and withdrawn due to sadness or worry, like she was trying to make up for the times she couldn't fully function as a mother.

"Fine," she replied and gazed at her father. "Carlisle, I'm sorry that your hobby is more important than your family." To be honest, she knew she was crossing a line here but she just couldn't stop herself. Besides, as long as she was injured and hurting, she wouldn't face punishment.

Esme closed her eyes for a second and took a deep breath. "Rosalie, do you need me to take you to your room for a moment?"

Rosalie's eyes bulged.

Now Carlisle finally spoke up. "Esme, please. She's in pain." He knew his daughter, knew how she lashed out when she was in pain. When all of this would be over, she'd come to him and apologise, be herself again. But now she tried to get everyone to back off. She did not care if she would hurt someone's feelings or get herself into trouble for her loose tongue - all she wanted was to be left alone. By having her sitting here in his study, he was not planning to make her miserable, just patch up the wound and then let her rest until she would feel better.

"Alice did this?" he asked as he gently guided Rose's hand away from her ear and pressed some gauze against it.

Rose drew in a sharp breath due to the pain and despite not wanting to snitch on her lying sister, she replied, "Yes." They had seen Alice attack her, so there was no point in beating around the bush.

"Hm-hm." He would definitely have a little chat with his sweet, little seer in the near future.

"Any other traumas, Rose?"

"My coat and my blouse are ruined, that hurts," she said, all the while checking her nails and never looking up. "They were brand-new."

"I mean physical."

She groaned. "No."

"All right." He nodded his head, then systemically cleaned the wound with cotton swabs and disinfectant as quickly as he could. He put some fresh gauze over it before taping it and would have sealed it as well, but Rose didn't want that.

It would have only taken longer.

"There, all done."

"Great, thanks," she replied, then got up and headed for the door.

Carlisle frowned. "Where are you going?"

She looked a bit uneasy at the question. Esme was against her going to see Maddie, and she figured Carlisle might be, too.

"Rosalie, I asked you a question."

"To Alaska," she mumbled as she averted her gaze.

Esme shook her head. "I told you, you are not going."

"But-"

"As long as you are injured, you will stay here," she clarified and fixed her daughter with a direct stare.

"This isn't an injury," Rose protested. "I don't even feel it!"

Sadly Carlisle shook his head, recognising the lie. The young woman in front of him was hurting, and he too couldn't let her leave until her ear would be healed. "No matter what you call it, it still is a wound that needs to heal. Rest now, and later we can go hunting."

Unsurprisingly, she folded her arms across her chest and was again not willing to listen to them. "So basically you are grounding me," she accused.

"You don't listen to a word we say and you are in a horrible mood at the moment, it would only make sense for us to ground you. But this is about your damaged ear, it needs to heal first before you can walk the streets again. Don't take it as a punishment," Esme explained calmly.

"I can cover it with my hair," she hastily replied and pulled the elastic from her high ponytail. Her blonde locks fell around her face, and she turned to her father while giving him a hopeful smile. "See?"

Carlisle seemed understanding, looked like he might even consider letting her go, but then Esme spoke again.

"You are in pain and therefore irritable and we want you to stay home until it's better."

Esme was really getting on her nerves today.

"I have something called self-control," she snapped at her, her eyes ever so slightly darkening. They hadn't been their usual colour ever since she stepped into the house, but now they were definitely darkening just another notch. "You might not know what it is because your precious son doesn't have any, but believe me when I say that I have a grip on myself."

Funny how Esme was always so protective of her sons. Now with Edward out of the picture, Jasper seemed to be her new favourite that she wanted to protect at all costs. Rose knew there was more to this story than just a couple of insults - she desperately tried to keep her from seeing Maddie and learning the truth.

Esme's jaw clenched. "Rosalie, we are done talking about this. Go to your room and stay there."

"I don't get why I am being punished for something Jasper has done! He has always been mean to her, and now look at what he's done. I just want to help Maddie. We all know she's not all right, so why, instead of letting me fix it, prolong her suffering instead? I really don't get it."

"She is safe and I can assure you that our relatives will do whatever they can to help her," Carlisle replied.

"But they suck at it, don't you see?"

Carlisle held a hand up. "Enough."

Father, please just let me try," she begged, giving him a look he usually couldn't say no to. "Please."

His heart broke at having to see her like this, but he had to tell her it wasn't going to happen. "That's not possible, sweetheart. I'm sorry."

Rose's face scrunched up and she turned away from them for a moment as she raked a hand through her hair. When she faced them again, she spoke very calmly. "You know she has trust issues and she's going to do something stupid very soon. She cannot handle her emotions, she doesn't know how... so please, just let me help her."

The problem was that Carlisle knew Rosalie was right. His youngest needed guidance and support in moments like these or she would start acting on instinct, which would only add to her pain and confusion. Still, Rosalie was not fit for travel. "Not now and not like that. I want you to rest now and then later you can give her a call, how's that?"

Internally Rose was fuming. It just didn't make any sense to her why they would want to keep her from helping her sister heal. She knew her better than anyone, so why were they so against the idea of her going to Alaska? Her wound wasn't that bad, it hurt, naturally, but it did not restrict her in any way.

Eventually, she sighed. "Fine."

Does this look like an Esme-chapter to you? Because it does to me... no clue why she suddenly decided to be so active.

Anyways, thanks for reading and reviewing guys! And sorry for the wait, but last week was a mess and this week is not going to be any better :-/