I've been distracted. It's extremely short because I lost my notes.
"Where's Hermione?" Bella asked curiously, sipping at her cup of blood. "I didn't mean to imply I'd be drinking her blood."
"That wasn't the problem," Edward told her, brushing the hair off of her face. "Hermione just got a bit emotional with you having to drink blood."
"Then why did Jacob rush out after her? And what was that ripping sound?" Edward stifled a sigh, wishing that she'd file away her curiosity for a later time.
"There's more to Hermione than we originally thought and that is all I'm saying at the moment." Edward kissed her on the forehead. "Just know that she's okay."
"Why am I so small?" Hermione asked curiously, staring at Paul's large, slightly intimidating form before looking down at her own, smaller and less intimidating one. "I look like a fluffy puppy compared to you." She ignored Leah's barking laugh.
"You don't look like a puppy," Paul argued.
"She does," Leah piped up and Hermione huffed, glaring at her imprint as if to say 'told you'.
"Shut up, Leah," Paul hissed. "Look, sweetie, how can Leah claim that you look like a puppy when she hasn't seen you?" He gave her a smug, wolfish grin but Hermione's expression didn't change. Leah kept quiet. "I think it's good that you're small. It means that when we're under attack, you won't be perceived as a threat and will be kept safe from harm."
"Are you seriously telling me that being small is good because then you can lock me up, away from danger?"
"I never said that," Paul defended. Leah sighed, fed up with the conversation but unable to avoid it.
"With you being underestimated, it makes you our secret weapon. It also helps that the Pack have no clue that you've changed, thinking you're in England, and so, when they attack and possibly hurt you-" Paul growled but was ignored. "-then you'll have them guilty for weeks on end and can get them to do basically everything for you."
"Let's hope it doesn't get to that point," Seth said with both Paul and Hermione agreeing full-heartedly.
"I'm naked," Hermione commented blankly, looking down at herself curiously. "And I look the same. Exactly the same."
"Is that a problem?" Paul asked, tilting his head as he got a better look at all of her. She was ignoring his suggestive looks and so he was trying to smother his lust for another time. "You still look beautiful."
"But you all look like you took steroids on a daily basis. Even Leah is more muscled! Me? I'm just still my puny, short-ass self."
"I like your puny, short-ass."
"You're the most biased person in the world when it comes to me."
"Doesn't mean it's not true."
"How long is this going to to take?" Paul whined, leaning against a nearby tree and pouting. Hermione ignored him, just like she'd been doing for the past twenty minutes. "Fine. Ignore me, but you're sure this is going to work?"
"Yes, Paul," she grumbled. "And we'll even prove that it works once I've finished."
He was silent for a moment and it gave her a moment of peace.
"Do you want to go back to England?" He watched her movements still and her back stiffen.
"I'm not leaving you," she snapped. She glared at him over her shoulder. "How could you even think that? Unless this is about me leaving here so I'm safer because I have only one thing to say to that as well: Fuck you."
"I didn't ask for either of those reasons," he told her and she sensed the honesty in his voice. "You wanted to find out why you're like that. Remus seems to know a lot about wolves, both werewolves and shifters, I just figured that if you spoke to him, he'd have a probable explanation."
She sighed and her movements seemed softer than before as she carried on warding the Cullens' area.
"I'd love to know why this happened but it isn't important at the moment. Bella and the Pack and the baby are what's important and until this is all resolved, I'm staying. Okay?"
He nodded, and then realised that she couldn't see. "Yeah, okay."
"She's avoiding me, isn't she?" Bella asked Seth as she slurped at a cup of blood. "I don't even know what happened to her because nobody will tell me! Does she at least know that I didn't want to drink her blood?"
"Yeah, she knows," Seth confirmed. "She just doesn't like that you've been put in this situation."
"Nobody here likes that I've been put in this situation," she pouted, cradling her large stomach as if she could physically protect the baby from any harm. "That's why you're all here, isn't it?"
"No," Seth argued. "We came to protect you. Sam wanted you gone, we didn't agree. Your leeches are here because they love you and though they fear about what the baby is doing to you - because, let's be honest, having a vampire baby in a human stomach isn't ideal - they still stuck around to protect you. Hermione's here to protect you."
"Once I've changed, I won't need to be protected anymore," she stated petulantly. "I'll be the strongest out of everyone."
"Ten bucks says Hermione can take you."
"She's cute," Emmett stated the moment he saw the happy little wolf totter up to the house. "I always wanted a puppy." He bent down so he was closer to her height and clicked his tongue, offering his hand as he would if she was a normal dog. She growled at him and lunged to take off his hand but he laughed and dodged her, ruffling the fur on her head when she drew near.
"Oh dear," Jacob mumbled. "She doesn't like it when you mess up the fur."
"Oh come on!" Emmett exclaimed with disappointment. "She didn't like it when I messed up her hair and now she doesn't like this? Hermione, you got to give me something to work with."
She lunged at him again.
Just wanted to say that I thank you all for sticking around. The forum I'm on is having so many events and I'm just trying to get as many points down as possible to take a lead ;) I've got the beginning of a plan for this again and another short Paul/Hermione one which I'm loving! I'll let you know when it's posted.