Chapter 9.
Vampires vs Bear
On Sunday I was eager to go back to the Cullen's to see if the casts could come off. Kyle drove me and we had the chair in the back, hopefully to return it. Carlisle studied the x-rays and shook his head and for a minute I was disappointed, thinking that I'd have to keep the casts on longer, but his words made me smile. "It never ceases to amaze me how fast you wolves....I mean shape shifters heal! One of my normal patients would have been in the hospital for a week or more and taken eight weeks to recover! I am going to take these off today, but I still want you to take things slow and easy. No shape shifting for at least a few more days; I'd like to see you back on Thursday to make sure you're finished with your healing."
When he took the casts off I was afraid to look, expecting to see hideous scars from all the damage. When I finally did look I was amazed that my skin was perfect! Dr. Cullen helped me stand for the first time in three days and I felt a little bit wobbly, but I got stronger quickly as he checked to make sure I was moving normally. "This is so wonderful!" I gushed. "I know I wouldn't be walking if it wasn't for you; I don't know how I can thank you!" I surprised him when I threw my arms around his neck and kissed his granite cheek.
He escorted me down the stairs and I was finally able to hug Kyle after three days of barely touching. "I'm almost sorry since now I won't have any excuse to keep you with me all night." I stood on tiptoe to kiss him as he held me loosely.
"How about I give you a reason?" Emmett looked our way grinning at Kyle. "I bet I could break a few bones and then you'd have the perfect reason to 'stay together all night,' he imitated my voice almost too well. How do you feel about a little one on one? Unless you're afraid I might mess you up too bad for your wedding!" He taunted Kyle and I looked around to see if anyone was going to stop it.
"Kyle, let's just go we have too much to do today. Besides, you've been sick and you're not at your best. And another thing, if he makes you bleed it could set them off and you'd have more than one to deal with and nobody wants that!" I couldn't stand the thought of him getting hurt, especially so soon after my own accident.
"I'd have to agree with Leah, you two shouldn't go through with this." Dr. Cullen had come to stand beside me and I hadn't even noticed. "Emmett, he's much tougher than you think. We already know what the wolves can do, and I've seen him take on five of them at once. He's not some pup who needs to be taught a lesson; he's a grown man with the capability to do some serious damage to you!"
"Sounds like more reasons the way I see it." Emmett seemed excited at the thought of his first real challenge since Bella had beaten him at arm wrestling. I was starting to feel sick at the thought of the man I loved facing a vampire for any reason, even for sport. Just knowing their bite was poisonous and they could go into a hunting frenzy if he bled....it was too much for me to think about.
"Kyle, come on let's just go. Think about how you would feel if I was the one thinking about going out and wrestling with Emmett."
It was the wrong thing to say. "Well Leah, you're the one who keeps telling me that I can't worry about you and try to protect you all the time! So if it was you, I'd be standing by helplessly while you made the decision on your own. Am I right?" He looked at Emmett and grinned.
"Okay Kyle I get it. You've made your point, now can we just get out of here!" I could feel a bit of panic spreading through me at the threat I saw. I think I would have grabbed him and forced him to leave if not for one thing; Alice danced in behind me and took me by the arm.
She looked me in the eyes and smiled. "It's okay Leah, just let him go. They can take it."
Kyle looked my way almost defiantly, then pulled me to him and kissed me fiercely. I wanted to scream at him as he stepped out on the porch, but Alice held my hand and winked. I knew that anger wasn't in Kyle's decision since he took the time to strip down to his boxers. Emmett instructed him to follow him to their baseball field and I almost cried when I thought about how many near disasters had happened there. Emmett took off running and I watched Kyle jogging after him a few yards before he changed. I wanted to follow, but Alice pulled me back inside.
"Don't worry, we've got ringside seats and you won't have to go running off behind them and get yourself hurt again." I had no idea what she was talking about until Edward joined us and let us know what he was seeing. I was confused at first but then I realized Jasper was at the field waiting for them. My stomach turned as I remembered that Jasper was the one with the least control where blood was concerned. Alice smiled innocently, "Don't worry, Jasper won't be tempted by Kyle in his bear form. And even if he changes back there is a difference that we can sense. It's just something a little off-putting about your blood. Like cookies sweetened with saccharine. If we were really starving I'm sure your blood would suffice, but it's not something we'd go out of our way to taste. And of course the La Push packs would just be vile!" She made a delicate expression of distaste and I smiled.
Edward spoke up. "They're at the field. It's cold and wet and Emmett is sizing up Kyle the bear. The bear is about two feet taller and he stands up and roars. Emmett rushes the bear and grabs him in a ….of course, a 'bear hug.' Kyle knocks Emmett in the head and he lets go." Edward played the announcer to the bizarre wrestling match in his head and I stayed close listening to him tell all the details of each hold, hit and throw. As the minutes went by Edward started to grin more and more until finally I had to ask what was so funny?
"Leah, you don't have to worry about them getting hurt, they've made the field into a mud pit! They're not just wrestling, they're mud wrestling, and they're both covered in it! They're both slogging around almost up to their knees and every time they hit the ground they sink in!" I saw Edward wince. "Ouch, Emmett just managed to throw Kyle into the trunk of a tree; he's on the ground. Looks like round one goes to Emmett!" Rosalie cheered and I groaned, suddenly worried. "He's okay Leah, he's already up and ready for retribution from the looks of him."
I hated getting second hand information from Edward even though I didn't want to see it myself. He launched into more announcer jargon and I found myself watching his face to see the emotions under his words. Every time his eyebrows went up I cringed as I feared he was on Emmett's side and taking some unconscious pleasure at Kyle's downfall.
He looked me in the eyes, momentarily forgetting the sportscaster talk. "You're wrong Leah; I haven't chosen sides; you're all like family to me now, and Emmett asked for the beating he's about to take."
Rosalie looked at him in alarm. "What do you mean he's about to take a beating? That bear better not hurt him or I swear....!"
"Calm down Rosalie, Emmett's not going to get hurt....much. But right now Kyles playing defensive and Emmett's getting a little overconfident. He thinks he's wearing the bear out, but Kyle's been studying his moves and fighting style and he's figured out a weakness or two and....Ooh, there it is! That's gotta hurt!"
"Edward! What's happening? Is Emmett okay?" Rosalie was as alarmed as I'd ever seen her leaving Edward speechless in the face of her questions. "This is useless, I'm going out there myself!" She took off out the door and I got up to follow her but Alice caught my arm.
"It's okay Leah, no one's going to get hurt." She smiled with a funny look on her face. Edward continued with his commentary, describing in detail how Emmett was getting swatted all over the field by a grizzly bear. But still he didn't give up and he kept coming back for more, occasionally getting in a good hit before being tossed into the mud again.
Edward stopped commenting for a second, laughing loudly instead. "They like this! Both of them are having the time of their lives; it's like two little boys in a mud pit! They could keep this up all day....but not likely; Rosalie just showed up. Oh no, this could get ugly. Kyle just tossed Emmett down and Ooh, he walked on him; smashed his face into the muck with all his weight....no, now he's sitting on him! I don't know how much that bear weighs, but he's got Emmett smashed flat! Right now I really wish Renesmee was down there instead of Jasper, this picture is priceless! Kyle's just sitting on him, and he's tapped the mud for a ten count, but it's too much for Rosalie....she's wading in! Now she's facing down the bear. You wouldn't believe it even if you saw it; she's shaking her finger at it and scolding him! Now she's shooing him away like he was a bee instead of a thousand pound grizzly! And it worked, Kyle just got off of Emmett!"
I saw Alice lean in toward Edward with just a ghost of a smile on her face. For one second Edward looked at her and nodded, then they both grinned and laughed. "It's over now, everyone's coming in and they're going to need to stop at the river and rinse off the mud, then I imagine they will all want showers....well, all but Jasper." Alice giggled again and Edward raised his eyebrow.
"Don't tell her now, let him tell her later! Quiet, they're coming in now!" Alice hushed Edward and we sat as if we'd just been waiting with no idea of what was happening. When Emmett and Kyle hit the porch they were both laughing. Kyle had his clothes in one hand and an arm around Emmett's shoulders like he was his best friend. He paused at the door, still dripping water and the occasional splotch of mud, but Emmett pulled him inside, leading him up the stairs to shower I assumed.
I was still watching them go up the stairs when Rosalie came in. She looked awful, dripping water on the floor she looked like a used teabag, wrung out and left behind. Her face was a reflection of how she felt which was even worse than she looked. I felt sorry for her in a way with her gorgeous blond hairstyle still coated in mud, and her previously pink blouse now a mottled gray and her white pants doomed to never be white again. She held her shoes in her hands and the delicate white pumps would never be worn again. She glared at each of us, daring us to say one word, then she stomped very ungracefully up the stairs as mud dislodged and plopped behind her.
I got up to help Esme who had already started to clean up the floor. "Go sit down dear, I've got this under control." She smiled and dismissed me back to the couch to wait for Kyle.
We almost didn't notice Jasper when he came strolling in. He was whistling and he sat next to Alice with casual nonchalance. He glanced up the stairs, then back at Alice, and with his voice barely above a whisper he told her, "You were right, that was too good to miss!" The three of them seemed to know what I'd missed, and Carlisle, Esme, and even Bella didn't seem to mind that they'd been left out of the loop.
"Is anybody going to clue me in to what I missed? Come on you three, someone tell me!" Bella came alongside me.
"Kyle will tell you all about it." She whispered in my ear. "But right now we're going to let Rosalie cool down before we get into it. She is the most vindictive of us, so please don't say anything to her." Before I had a chance to ask her how she knew what was going on she slipped back beside Edward and I saw them speaking to one another in that fast whisper they used. Of course.
Kyle was the first one to come back down the stairs, with his hair wet and his big smile. I hurried to him and put my arms around his waist, and he surprised me when he lifted me and swung me around. "Leah, that was a blast! I don't think I've ever had the opportunity to just cut loose like that before! Even when I'm hunting I have to always be careful or there won't be anything left to eat. These guys are amazing; they're better than a Timex....they take a licking and keep on kicking!" He laughed at his own joke. We then heard Emmett at the top of the stairs and Rosalie's distressed voice as well. It was almost impossible for me to hear what they were saying, but one glace at the Cullen's and I knew they were getting an earful.
When Emmett came down the stairs I saw Esme go up. Emmet seemed like he didn't have a care in the world and as he hit the bottom I saw he and Kyle looked like they were about to do a chest bump! He strutted into the living room and everyone was watching him, especially when Kyle went and stood nearby. "I think I have found a sport I like better than baseball!" Emmett laughed.
"I'd hardly call that a sport friend; letting me soak up a mud pit with your face is hardly sporting!" Kyle grinned
"Yeah, and knocking your furry butt into trees isn't very sporting either. But I would have beaten you if you hadn't figured out I didn't need to breath and squished me into the mud with half a ton of bear meat!"
"You don't need to breath?" Kyle feigned innocence. "I just thought you were already dead so I couldn't suffocate you! I mean the worst thing that could happen is we'd get a neat fossilized impression of where you bought it!" I stepped out of the way as Emmett lunged for Kyle and put him in a headlock.
"Seriously you guys, we need to get the rest of the wolves to play with us; this was so much fun!" Kyle elbowed him in the stomach and Emmett let him go. "The field is perfect when it's all muddy, you really can't get hurt! I'm serious, we can call it training day and invite all the shape shifters to come play!"
Kyle chimed in. "We can call it the Supernatural Olympics!"
"No, that's too formal" Emmett cut in. We can call it.... the Supernatural Smackdown!" He raised his voice and his eyes lit up and he and Kyle spontaneously gave one another a loud high five while the rest of us watched stunned. "Seriously, I was having a great time until Rosalie came out thinking that I was being killed!
"I wasn't going to kill him; I was just waiting for him to concede defeat." Kyle shrugged.
"You did not win that one! If Rosalie hadn't come out when she did I was going to mount a counter offensive that would have had you picking trees out of your teeth!" Emmett grinned.
"So, you're saying she was a distraction? It looked more to me like she saved your muddy carcass! At least I didn't need to have Leah come out and save me!" They were both laughing and talking trash.
"Oh, that's right! I forgot she can change like you do! That's it, next time we gotta get the girls involved too!" Emmett and Kyle were about to slap another high five when a small voice caught their attention.
Esme stepped quietly into the room and spoke softly. "I do not believe I would allow any of my young ladies...." she nodded her head in my direction, "....to participate in what would ultimately amount to female mud wrestling, even in the name of fun! Now if this is a pursuit you....men would choose, then please leave the women out of it. Am I clear?"
"Yes ma'am!" they both spoke in unison and I almost laughed.
"Well, I think that's my signal to go. Leah, are you ready?" Kyle came to me and slipped his arm around my waist. I kissed Esme's cheek as we headed for the door. Just as Kyle reached for the doorknob Rosalie came bounding down the steps showered, blow dried, and dressed in another stunning outfit.
"Leah wait! I have something you might want to use for your wedding. I know it's usually the bride that has something old, new, borrowed, and blue, but this is really something for your groom to wear. It's blue, and I hope you like it!" She handed me what at first looked like a blue neck tie, but as I infolded it I saw it was really a huge collar and a short nylon leash. "It works even better after the wedding!" She patted my cheek and gave Kyle a dark look before she walked to the far side of the room, turning her nose up as she passed Emmett, and sitting herself elegantly in the farthest chair.
Kyle and Emmett shook hands at the door. Kyle treated me like I was still hurt, holding my hand as I went down the porch steps and helping me into the truck. I had laid the leash on the porch railing, and Kyle picked it up with a grin. "You just never know when something like this might come in handy!"
It took several minutes for us to navigate the driveway and as soon as we made the main roads I asked Kyle what had happened after Rosalie got to the field. "Well, she first ordered me to get off of Emmett before I killed him. Then she scolded me for even getting him involved in such a ridiculous competition. Emmett was trying to calm her down and he got mud on her pretty pink blouse and she almost attacked him. I walked away to let them deal with their own issues and she turned on me again. She called me all kinds of things; mostly related to being a stupid animal and not having any sense. No big deal; she was mad at Emmett and it was overflowing to anyone nearby. But then she made her critical mistake. She started trashing you Leah! I really don't want to repeat it, but it was just the wrong thing to say to me after I've come so close to losing you. Emmett tried to shut her up, but she was on a roll. I even saw Jasper wincing at what she said and when Emmett shrugged his shoulders I assumed he thought she deserved whatever she got." Kyle kept driving with his eyebrows knit together as he remembered.
"So what happened? No one at the house would tell me, but Alice and Edward seemed to think it was pretty funny."
"Um....I really should have held my temper. I need to learn to do that more often. But she just wouldn't stop, and I don't even think she realized what she was saying. I scooped up as much mud as my paw can hold and flung it at her face. I scored a direct hit, then I charged her and knocked her off her feet while she was trying to spit out the mud. I think I rolled her a few times until she looked like a donut dipped in chocolate. She didn't even wait for Emmett to come and help her up. She was plenty mad and she tried to hit me back, but she just doesn't have the strength, and she was too angry to use any skill. Emmett made a feeble attempt to salvage her honor, but the game was over. She was coated in mud and just as mad at Emmett as she was at me. I really didn't hurt her; I mean they can take so much more than I did. But even Emmett and Jasper understood that she'd crossed the line." He looked upset, but I was sorry I'd missed it. "Leah, I've never hit a woman before! I didn't think anything could make me go that far, and I'm ashamed I wasn't more in control."
I patted his arm. "Kyle, don't be too hard on yourself. Rosalie hasn't been a real woman for almost a hundred years. Not to mention she's been trading on her good looks for even longer and you only did what so many of us have been dying to do for a long time. And you didn't exactly hit her, you just got her dirty....very dirty from what I saw!" I tried not to sound so pleased, but I was happy that he'd stuck up for me; again. Now the hard part would be to make sure I didn't make too many messes he would need to get involved in.
"I just got so carried away with the fun....Leah, this just isn't right! I have got to learn that being in an animal form doesn't excuse my behavior!" he slowed down, and turned the truck around. In minutes we were back at the Cullen's being greeted at the door by Esme. "I need to speak with Rosalie if she's available." Without being called Rosalie glided down the steps with a stone cold, look on her face.
Kyle didn't waste time on small talk. "I had a chance to calm down and realized I needed to come back. I had my reasons, and maybe I could justify what happened, but I know without a doubt that there is no reason for a man to ever treat a woman the way I treated you this afternoon. I'm ashamed of myself. I never want to be that kind of man; even if I'm a bear. I came back to humbly apologize to you for my behavior. Please let me know if there's any way I can make it up to you, and I'll also be happy to pay for the clothes I ruined. I hope in the future that nothing like this ever happens again. I'm truly sorry." We both stood at the door waiting to see how she would respond.
I watched her stillness, almost afraid to take a breath. When she moved I thought she was going to slap him, but instead she laid her hand on his cheek and looked into his eyes. "Thank you Kyle. You have no idea how many years I've waited for a man to say those words to me." She glanced at me and smiled slightly. "Now I have another reason to envy you Leah." Her comments left me puzzled, but she drifted away from the door and went back up the stairs without another word.
Esme appeared at the door with a sad smile on her face. "Rosalie has a very sad story of how she came to be with us. It's not mine to tell, but if you can ever hear it you night understand a bit more of why she is so....prickly. It was nice of you to come back Kyle, it means more than you know.
As we drove back home I had to be content to hold his hand when what I really wanted to do was smother him in kisses. More and more the things I learned about him made me certain that I hadn't made a mistake. At home Mom was excited that I had my casts off. But without wasting time she was on the phone to her seamstress friends and they got together so I could try on Mom's dress. Kyle and Seth went off together while we had a fitting and made plans on how to make the dress exactly what I wanted.