A/N: And finally it's done! Writing depressing things is hard when it's sunshiny out, finally had a day of rain that put me in the mood and I got it all done before it escaped! Slight lemons ahead, and of course angst with our favorite couple. Enjoy!
Give Into Me Part 3
Bella gaped at Jen, mentally asking herself why she always managed to befriend crazy people, but before she could say anything out loud, Paul stirred with a groan. "What the hell hit me?"
Bella snatched a blanket off the porch railing and threw it over his back as he slowly straightened, shaking his head slightly. "Paul? Are you okay?"
He peered at her in confusion before catching sight of Jen over her shoulder, letting a growl erupt from his throat as he swept Bella behind him and tensed his body…only to have nothing happen. Bella met his gaze as he looked at her over his shoulder, seeing the panic in his eyes. "I can't…I can't phase…I can't feel my wolf…"
He looked back at Jen with a glare and clenched his fist tightly. "What did you do to me?!"
She held her hands up in a placating gesture, putting a few more feet between the agitated shifter and herself. "It's just temporary; the spell will wear off quickly. I didn't want to do it, but it was that or injure you and shifters heal slower from offensive spells. I'm not here to hurt you, or Bella. I'm supposed to protect her."
Bella stepped from behind Paul, placing a calming hand on his arm before addressing the woman she had trusted and called a friend. "You claimed I'm a witch, but Paul said your scent isn't human. Why wouldn't he smell a difference on me? And it's not like I have balls of light flying out of my hands at random."
Jen crossed her arms, leaning against the railing as she sighed and met Bella's gaze. "It's more complicated than that. What I mean is, you come from an old family of witches, a long time ago. There's a possibility of you developing abilities especially with your knack for stumbling into the supernatural. The Council wanted to keep an eye on you, in case your abilities did surface. They were beginning to lose hope, the more diluted your blood the lower your chance of powers ever emerging, and you're the last chance your family line has to reclaiming your bloodline. After this, your descendants will be regular humans."
"And why is that such a bad thing? Obviously I don't have any kind of powers, except for getting into trouble with every kind of supernatural being on the planet and I'd hardly call that a mark for the pro column."
"Because of the responsibilities of my kind. Witches are supposed to help keep the balance in the supernatural realm, to prevent any one faction from becoming too powerful. Our powers are the only thing that works on all supernatural creatures, from vampires to werewolves to shifters and everything in between. But we've grown weak in the last few centuries, too weak to prevent uprisings like the Volturi. And it's because of witches like your ancestor, instead of marrying a warlock to keep the blood strong and pure, they intermingled with humans and we lost some of our most powerful bloodlines and it's weakened us to the point of barely being able to defend ourselves. The rest of the supernatural community has dissolved into chaos; vampires running rogue, werewolves hunted almost to extinction, shifters being unprepared for their jobs as protectors. We even have rogue factions of our kind out running amok and causing trouble in the humans' world that is becoming noticed more and more. The Council is desperate to reclaim any blood they can, even the weakest of abilities could help strengthen our people." Jen bit her lip, having the decency to look ashamed as she met Bella's stunned gaze. "When we first met, my job was to watch for any sign of abilities and then take you straight to the Council for an explanation. But the more I got to know you, the more I felt awful about my intentions in the beginning and I vowed to protect you from whatever trouble found you. I know you don't have any reason to trust me, but I swear that I'm not here to hurt you. I'm trying to help you, in case your abilities do emerge you're going to need someone to show you how to control them so people don't get hurt. As far as the Council knows, I'm still keeping an eye on you but I wouldn't tell them about your abilities if they did ever show up. You're happy here, you have family and someone you love, there's no way you would want what they would ask of you."
Bella gripped Paul's hand tightly; her head spinning as she tried to absorb everything Jen had told her. She was unsure about how to respond, the overflow of information was giving her a headache. Before she could respond Paul growled out a question. "What is so important about Bella that this Council wants her so badly? We already went through this with the Volturi; they claimed she had some sort of gift too. Why should we trust you when you were sent by people who essentially want to kidnap her for their own gain?"
Jen nodded thoughtfully as her violet eyes darted between them, choosing her answer carefully. "You have more reasons not to trust me than reasons to. But remember, if I truly was still doing the Council's bidding, I could have taken Bella in Arizona and no one would have known until it was too late. I stalled as long as I could and then Bella returned here and gave me a cover to give them, but I don't know how long they'll believe me. That's why I need your help to keep her safe, why she needs to solidify the bond with your Alpha as soon as she can. Once that happens, by our laws the Council cannot touch her, she's protected as the Alpha female and her children after her."
Bella's face flushed red at Jen's blunt statement, (honestly how many people knew the intimate details of what was needed between her and Jacob?) and she ran a hand through her hair as she took a deep breath. "Maybe it's not the wisest decision, but I do trust you Jen. At least what you've told me tonight and you can prove it by helping us. You may just be the answer to our problem."
Paul frowned in confusion and Jen raised an eyebrow at her, making her smile for the first time in weeks as she sat on the swing and motioned them to gather around, quietly outlining her plan.
Jacob ran along his newly imposed borders, looping along the outskirts of Forks as he stayed alert. There had been no sightings since the Cullens left but he refused to let down his guard and risk any vampire slipping past their borders. It was his third shift of the day, if the human part of his mind had been in control he would have collapsed from exhaustion long ago, but the wolf was running things now while the man slouched miserably in a corner, too ashamed to put up a fight with his other half.
Even while the wolf ran them into the ground patrolling, the only thing Jacob could think of was the shame and horror of how he'd lost control of himself in Bella's room the night before. He flinched as he remembered coming back in control, seeing the fear in Bella's eyes as she'd lay helpless beneath him, the magnitude of what had nearly happened sending a shudder of repulsion through him. He had never seen Bella look at him that way, not even when he was in wolf form, and to have her see him for the monster he always felt like…it was enough to convince him that turning over control to the wolf as far as being a protector was the best thing to do.
He was tired of fighting for control constantly, the battle had worn him down over the last month as he'd kept himself away from Bella, and his one moment of weakness had nearly cost him her forever. It was almost a relief to the let Alpha inside him take over and run the show; all Jacob had to do was make sure that was all they focused on to keep Bella safe. The wolf ran on instinct, on senses, and while he knew the Pack was dismayed at the shift, they surprisingly said nothing about it, instead simply listening to the Alpha wolf's commands.
Seth and Embry's minds were quiet as they ran their own patrols, his wolf suspected almost too quiet but he huffed to himself and focused back on patrolling, his every sense running at top speed as he began to loop back towards La Push. There were only empty cabins this close to the border, used by partying kids or weekend retreats mostly, but he was shocked when he caught a faint smell as he passed which made him skid to a stop.
"Bella…"
He couldn't understand what she was doing this far out, he could faintly detect Paul's scent so that explained how, and his head cocked to the side as he slowly followed the trail, so distracted he didn't notice Seth and Embry quietly phase out and leave him alone in the Pack mind. He padded silently on, unable to resist her familiar scent, and soon came to an old cabin that he believed belonged to the Atera family. He couldn't stop the low growl or the increase of his heart rate when he saw Bella, sitting on the steps and watching the forest intently. He hovered just inside the tree line, man and beast battling for dominance and what to do, when he saw her stand and walk down the steps, her eyes meeting his as she paused. "Jacob. I know you're there."
Her soft voice carried easily to him, even as a wind blew against her, ruffling his fur as he watched her. Hesitantly he took a step out of the trees, his gaze locked on her as he moved forward, ignoring the human side of his mind that was yelling at him to leave. The wolf was tired of his insistence that they stay away from their mate and was determined to follow through the claiming this time. He had nearly reached her when a sound to the right caught his attention and he whirled to see a tiny woman next to Paul, a glowing ball of light in her hand as she chanted words in a strange language. The fur on his back bristled, the Alpha sensing her as a threat, and he dropped into a crouch as he growled and prepared to spring.
"Jacob!" Bella's voice distracted him and he turned his head to look at her just as the ball of light flew from the woman's palm and collided with his chest. The impact knocked him off his feet, sending him tumbling with a roar of fury, pain knocking the breath out of him as he hit the ground some twenty feet away. Darkness dimmed his vision and his limbs grew sluggish, he could barely make out Bella kneeling several feet away from his flailing limbs, her gaze anxiously watching him. "Jacob, it's ok. Don't fight it; it's all going to be ok."
The paralyzing sensation swept over him, his last sight was Bella kneeling on the ground as Paul and the strange woman approached behind her, and then darkness swallowed him.
Bella watched as Jacob slept; the steady rise and fall of his chest slightly soothing her frazzled nerves. Jen had warned her that he would sleep longer than Paul had, the strength of the spell needed to incapacitate and Alpha, especially a near feral one, meant a longer recovery time. She could only hope he would wake up before the spell wore off, she highly doubted they'd get another chance at this. Glancing out the window at the raging storm she hoped Paul and Jen had made it back to Jacob's house ok. They hadn't noticed how pale and drawn Jen was until after Paul had carried Jacob's unconscious human form indoors, sliding him into a pair of cutoff sweats at Bella's request. He'd hurried to Jen's side as she slumped against the wall, sweat beading on her upper lip, and tried to wave him off feebly as she struggled to straighten. "I'm fine, I just haven't cast a spell that strong before. I just need rest."
Bella sent her back to Jacob's with Paul, convincing them both it'd be better if it was just her when Jacob woke up anyway. Shaking herself out of her thoughts she stood to stretch her aching back when she saw him stir, her pain forgotten as she leaned over him anxiously and watched as his eyelids slowly opened.
"Bells? What…" His eyes widened and he rolled off the bed away from her, staggering slightly when his feet hit the floor, and he lurched unsteadily towards the living room and the front door.
"Jacob Ephraim Black sit down!" The outburst echoed through the cabin, making the driving rain outside seem quiet as Bella watched Jacob stiffen and slowly turn to face her. "We don't have a lot of time so please sit down and let me explain."
"Bella I can't…the wolf…"
"He's gone Jacob, at least for a while. It's just you and me here right now." She watched his eyes dart around anxiously, even cut off from his wolf she could see his muscles twitching with the urge to phase and run. "Jacob…please."
Her whispered plea caught his attention and his gaze snapped to hers, some of the wildness fading to be replaced with worry for her. He finally gave a stiff nod and moved to stand rigidly by the fireplace, crossing his arms tightly over his chest. Bella blew out a breath, at least it was a small step in the right direction, and perched on the arm of the chair next to her. "Jake…I…there's something I need to tell you."
She took a deep breath to steady her nerves, already feeling the blush rising in her cheeks, and cleared her throat. "I talked with Old Quil-"
"I know."
His voice was so low she almost didn't hear him over the crackling fireplace and her eyes snapped to his dark one, swallowing before whispering, "What do you mean you know?"
He sighed, gaze darkening as he hunched forward and every muscle tense as he bit out. "I was there, when you went to see Old Quil. I heard what he said, what I…what the damn wolf wanted-"
He cut himself off abruptly, his dark eyes glittering with anger and disgust with himself as he turned to grip the hearth with both hands, the fire flickering shadows over his face. Bella sagged against the chair, remembering seeing the flash of black hair out the window and thinking it was Quil. "Oh Jake…"
Her broken whisper barely carried over the drumming rain and she saw him start to turn towards her before he stopped himself, fighting the urge to comfort her. She watched him sadly, the pieces coming together in her head. "That's why you've been pushing me away. You were afraid…Jacob, why didn't you talk to me?"
He let out a bark of humorless laughter, releasing his death grip on the stone and shoving himself away to start pacing in front of her, yanking his hands through his hair in frustration. "What was there to talk about Bella? I'd just gotten you back, I wasn't about to lose you again, much less to this…this monster inside me. If that meant staying away from you, even if every minute is fucking agony and it takes every ounce of strength and will power not to go running to you…then I'll do it. I'd rather be a feral wolf than the monster I'd be if we…if I-"
He turned away as he growled angrily, tugging so hard on his hair Bella was worried he would pull it out. Jumping to her feet she came up behind him, hesitating before gently placing her hand on his back. He froze as their skin met; the only movement was his breath coming in short, harsh pants. She soothingly rubbed small circles on his skin, wishing she could see his face, and quietly asked, "What about me Jake? Where was my choice in this? It doesn't just affect you. You think you're the only one going crazy by staying away? I've been going out of my damn mind wondering what I did to make you pull away from me. Terrified I might never get you back, that you'd be lost to me, to all of us that care about you, forever. That'd I'd never get my sun back…do you have any idea how that felt Jacob? You can't sacrifice yourself for me Jake, I won't let you. I won't survive it. I love you Jacob, every part of you, including your wolf. I've never been afraid of you and I never will be."
She suddenly found herself pinned against the cabin wall, Jacob towering over her as seething rage lit his eyes, and his arms caging her in as his hands gripped her arms. "Don't say that! Don't you dare say that! I saw how you looked at me last night; I saw the fear in your eyes. You were afraid of me, of what I would do to you." His grip loosened and he suddenly slumped to his knees, the anger giving way to shame and despair. "You were right to be afraid…I lost control for one second and I…I am a monster. I deserve to have you hate me; I don't deserve to have you at all."
Tears filled Bella's eyes as she watched him, his head bowed forward in defeat, his admission draining all of his strength. She reached out and ran her fingers through his hair, ignoring how he tensed, and let her fingertips slowly drag down his skin until she cupped his face in her hands, bringing their faces so close they were almost touching, pleading in a soft voice. "Look at me Jacob Black."
She waited patiently for his eyes to open, she could feel him trembling as he fought some inner war with himself, and finally his eyelids lifted to reveal his pensive gaze. "I want you to listen, closely. Obviously you didn't hear everything at Old Quil's or you wouldn't be pulling this idiotic martyr act. Yes, the wolf wants to claim me as yours. But he can't do that unless I want him to."
Jacob's gaze slid back to hers sharply, confusion wrinkling his brow. "What?"
She smiled, tracing his jaw with her fingertips and feeling the stubble he'd let grow in his absentmindedness, scratching lightly at her skin. "I have to be willing to be claimed, or the wolf can't do anything. And I want you Jake, or your wolf wouldn't be this frantic about it. That's what I wanted to talk to you about that night, I wanted you to know everything before we…before anything else happened. I wanted to make sure you knew I was willing to do it because I love you, not out of some twisted sense of duty to save you. I want this Jacob, I want you. All of you."
She wasn't sure Jacob was still breathing at this point, his stare unblinking as he remained frozen before her. She moved closer to him, leaning against his chest as she pressed feather light kisses over his face, moving across his forehead and down his cheek, stopping after pressing one to the corner of his mouth as he finally let out his breath, eyelids sliding closed. "Bells…"
The deep rumble from his chest sent a shiver through her and she saw his hands flex and clench at his sides, still afraid to touch her. "Jake...it's ok. You won't hurt me. The wolf is gone right now, it's just you and me, just Jake and Bells."
His brow wrinkled in confusion and worry and she pressed a finger against his mouth as he opened it to ask. "Later."
He accepted her whispered answer but she could still see his fear and mistrust of himself in his gaze and she moved her lips to a hairs breadth away from his, gazing into his eyes as she whispered, "I love you Jacob."
His eyes slid closed at her declaration then flew open when she pressed her lips to his, his arms automatically snapping to cage her to his body as he hesitantly kissed her back. Bella went at his pace, knowing he needed to trust himself with this before they went further. She let her eyes flutter closed as she enjoyed the feel of his lips against hers, soft and warm as he tentatively tilted his head to deepen the kiss ever so slightly. She bit back a moan when the tip of his tongue traced the seam of her lips, unable to stop herself from clutching his shoulders as she opened up to him and his taste exploded in her mouth.
A whimper escaped her as his tongue stroked hers and she suddenly found herself pinned to the wall, one of Jacob's hands cradling the back of her head and the other at her back to keep from slamming her against the wood. She automatically wrapped her arms around his neck, shifting her legs around his waist and a soft gasp escaped her as she felt the length of him pressed against her core. Jacob shuddered against her, pulling away to trail kisses down her jawline and she sucked in a much needed lungful of air, dropping her head back and baring her neck to Jacob. He growled low in his chest at her display of submission, the vibrations running through her and sending a bolt of heat straight to her belly. She sucked in her breath sharply at the sensation, just barely keeping her eyes from rolling back in her head, and panted out Jacob's name as he placed open-mouthed kisses down her neck. "Ja…Jake…"
He pulled away reluctantly, meeting her gaze with eyes almost pitch black and she felt another wave of heat wash over her flushed body at the unbridled desire she saw. "Bed is that way."
Jacob snorted, glancing towards the bedroom and slid his burning gaze back to hers. That's not a good idea Bells. Pretty sure that's an antique and Old Quil would never forgive me for breaking it."
She flushed at the promise his words held, trying to decide if it was embarrassment or arousal, and tried to focus on anything but his teasing fingers at her back, rubbing circles into the skin above her jeans. "Well I assume you have a better idea then?"
He nodded, reluctantly moving his hands to her waist to set her on her feet, thumbs rubbing the skin of her hipbones before he bent to press a searing kiss to her lips. "Don't move."
She playfully smacked his arm, a little thrill going through her when she saw his smile, her smile, light up his face before he darted across the cabin to the bedroom. She managed to stumble over to the couch and sink down, listening to Jacob rummage through the other room, curious what he had in mind. He soon reappeared in the doorway, a pile of blankets in his arms, and he quickly moved to spread them over the bear rug in front of the fireplace, making a pallet of the assorted furs, quilts, and blankets he'd found. Bella watched him, feeling mesmerized as her gaze traced the lines of his muscles under his skin as he moved. He suddenly looked up, catching her gaze as he smoothly rose to his feet and stalked over to her, her hand automatically reaching for his when he came close.
Their fingers laced together easily, Jacob gently tugging her to her feet as he rubbed the back of her hand and she saw some of the fear leaching back into his gaze. She raised their hands to her lips, placing soft kisses to his knuckles as she tried to reassure him. He let out a breath, pulling her with him as he backed towards the bed he'd prepared, but Bella could still see warring emotions flickering over his face and she knew she had to keep himself from overthinking it. She slipped her hand from his, moving to swiftly pull her tank top over her head, hearing Jacob's sharp intake of breath as she tossed it on the couch.
She couldn't bring herself to meet his eyes yet, afraid it would shatter her false bravado and she'd completely lose her nerve, and kept her gaze on the floor as she unbuttoned her jeans and tugged them off. Throwing them after her shirt she took a deep breath before raising her eyes to meet Jacob's, chewing on her bottom lip nervously. His eyes were nearly coal black, his breath coming in quick pants as his hands clenched at his sides and his gaze raked over her. She flushed at the intensity of his gaze, hoping the black lace boyshorts and bralette were the right choice. "Jake?"
Her nervous voice seemed to break him out of his trance and he met her gaze with his smoldering one as his hands twitched towards her. "Damn Bells…you're killing me."
His voice was almost pained and he took a deep breath, making her smile as some of her insecurities fell away. She stepped closer to him, his eyes falling half shut as he watched her carefully take his shaking hand and place it on her hip, her lips moving to press a kiss against his chest. "It's ok Jake."
She felt him shudder against her and then he was lowering her to the floor, his mouth pressed firmly to hers as his fingers began to explore her torso. She couldn't help the moan that left her mouth as his touch dragged burning trails across her skin, wishing the lace on the bralette wasn't so low on her ribs and his fingers could touch more of her. As if reading her mind he pulled her up and tugged the lacy garment over her head, sending her into a slight panic as she moved her hands to cover her breasts. Jacob caught her hands in his, lacing their fingers together as he held her gaze, the love and desire making her breath hitch as he pressed a gently kiss to her lips. "Don't ever hide yourself from me Bells. You are beautiful."
She relaxed in his arms, remembering this was Jacob and he would never lie to her about something like this. He seemed content to kiss her thoroughly, until he was convinced she believed him and she whimpered as she grew impatient for his burning touch again. Arching her back she hissed in pleasure as his fiery skin pressed against her, making Jacob groan and dig his fingers into her hips, placing open-mouthed kisses down the column of her throat to her collarbone. He paused, pulling back to finally drink in the sight of her and Bella waited for his reaction. "You are so damn perfect Bells."
His husky voice made her breath catch and she reached up to trace his jaw, sighing as he pressed a kiss to her palm. He pulled away, tugging her boyshorts down her legs and slipped his cutoffs down his own, tossing them both towards the couch as he lay beside her, tracing mindless patterns into her skin with his fingertips. Bella rolled to her side, seeing him swallow nervously and it helped to know she wasn't the only one new at this. "Jacob…"
His onyx eyes met hers and she couldn't help leaning forward to press a fevered kiss to his mouth, leaning their foreheads together as she pulled back. "Make love to me Jake. Please."
Elsewhere…
A flash of light and roll of thunder woke Paul up with a start, blinking in the darkness to clear the sleep from his eyes until he could see. He didn't recognize where he was at first and then his memories slowly trickled in, Jen helping them subdue Jacob…her near collapse and him carrying her back to the Blacks house…her lips pressed against his…her body writhing beneath him as his name escaped her lips…
"Damn it…" So it hadn't been a dream. He finally recognized the twins' old room, and his eyes slid to his side to see Jen curled up next to him, her tattooed back free from clothing. He swallowed hard as he hesitantly started to move off the bed when she rolled over and threw an arm around his waist. "Stay…"
Her mumbled request tugged at something in him, he never stayed with any of his one night stands as a rule, to keep unwanted attachments from forming. But then again Jen wasn't his normal one night stand; he hadn't planned on ending up here at all. Slowly, unsure of himself he lay back down and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, stiffening as she curled against his chest and hummed contentedly before drifting off, leaving him to stare at the ceiling in confusion.
A/N: Tada! Hope it was worth the wait, I thought about a full lemon scene but decided not for this time. It will be shown in a few flashbacks in the next chapter though! And what about Paul/Jen? Anyone see that coming? More will be explained about Jen and how Bella figures into that mess soon. Thanks for reading, drop me a review to tell me what you think!