2. Betting Against Alice

A Week Earlier: Day 1

"Because you're a girl."

Alice had been bored of watching Emmett and Jasper wrestle and had wanted to join in. Emmett, unwilling to admit he wouldn't fight her because he was afraid of the very high possibility of her winning, had said the first sentence he could think of as an excuse to stop her from joining in.

"What kind of half-assed excuse is that?" Alice demanded angrily.

In her vision she had beat Emmett and she was determined for it to come true. Nothing was more fun for his siblings then watching huge, muscular Emmett throw a toddler-like hissy fit because he lost. It was amazing how the eldest, physically anyway, Cullen child could morph into a three year old. Usually one whose mummy and daddy had to scold him to shut up and stop whining (to everyone's surprise Esme had used those exact words last time).

Emmett was determined to stand his ground. "Girls are the weaker of the sexes," he informed his sister. "It just wouldn't be fair," he continued condescendingly.

"Bullshit!" Alice exclaimed. "If that's true then why are you so scared to take me on?"

"Only scared for your safety, little sister," Emmett replied with a smirk. He was enjoying how much this was winding her up.

"Bullshit!" Alice exclaimed again. She then turned angrily on her husband, who was watching the two of them argue with amusement. "Can you please get Emmett to stop talking complete and utter BULLSHIT?"

"Tell your wife you know I'm right," Emmett shouted at him. Jasper stood for several seconds staring between his wife and his brother, trying his hardest to calm them both down.

"Oh I get it, not man enough to stand up to the ball and chain, are we now brother? Guess we know who wears the pants in that relationship – oh wait we already knew that!" Emmett teased him. Jasper knew that if he agreed with Alice then Emmett would never let him live it down. It really depended on what he thought could last longer – Alice's temper or Emmett's teasing.

"You know Emmett is sort of right," he said carefully, trying to gauge her reaction. He was surprised at the torrent of anger that spieled from her; maybe he had underestimated her temper when it came to this. Jasper quickly put all his effort into calming her down.

"Maybe you're right," Alice agreed, unable to argue anymore under the current of calm Jasper poured into her. Emmett smirked happily and Jasper had to hold back I sigh of relief, had he possibly got out of this?

"Oh! Jasper, Edward wants to speak to you," Alice said, pretending to have had a vision. Jasper flitted of towards the house.

Now her husband's calming influence was no longer present, Alice turned back to her brother.

"You are talking bullshit and you are going to admit it!" Alice growled at him.

"Is that so, little sister?" Emmett asked condescendingly, he was firm in his belief of himself. Even though he hadn't really meant what he'd said he wasn't going to back down now - he never backed down. Alice has finally got something wrong, he thought gleefully to himself.

"Yes!" Alice said angrily. "I'd bet on it!" she added with a smirk.

"You're on!" Emmett said, quickly biting the bait that Alice had dangled in front of him. The long-standing Cullen phrase 'never bet against Alice' resounded through his mind. He hesitated for a moment, before gleefully deciding this was his chance to prove that phrase wrong. "What are the stakes? Money?" he asked.

Alice rolled her eyes at him. "Everyone in this family has enough money. No the stakes are much higher then that," she proclaimed. "Honour is what's at stake here."

"Honour, eh?" He paused and then continued, "And unlimited gloating rights?"

"Of course," Alice agreed.

"So if I admit it's bullshit you win, and if you admit it's not bullshit I win. Deal, little sister?" He couldn't help but smirk at her; he was never going to admit to it. It was just some bullshit excuse he made up – but she'd never hear him admit it.

"Deal." She wore a matching smirk.

Jasper and Edward suddenly appeared beside them. Edward looked confused and Jasper annoyed.

"Alice, what?" Edward began to ask, but was cut off as he focused on her thoughts and saw the visions unfolding there.

"You can't be serious," Edward said. "I'm having nothing to do with that. When Carlisle and Esme get back from that medical conference, tell them I've gone to Alaska," he snapped at them before disappearing back toward the house. Alice smiled happily.

"It's even more fun without serious old Edward around," she said mysteriously. Emmett looked curiously at her, than turned to Jasper.

"Jasper, brother, we have work to do. Let's talk." Emmett gave a nod of his head as if to say 'this way' before disappearing off. Jasper looked curiously at his wife, before following his brother, feeling apprehensive.

Two can play at that game, Alice thought and flitted off to her sister's room. She knocked on the door – even though it was an unneeded gesture.

"Come in, Alice," Rosalie said wearingly. Alice danced into the room with her face in full-on pout mode. "What's up?" Rosalie asked in a distant voice, not taking her eyes of her reflection in her giant mirror.

"You really should tell that husband of yours to have more respect for women," Alice said, purposefully sounded wounded. Her words had the instant effect she'd known they would. Rosalie whipped round to look at her sister.

"What do you mean?" she snapped.

"He told me women were the weaker of the sexes," Alice said dejectedly, putting her 'poor little me' pout to full effect. Rosalie growled at that and stormed out, muttering angrily to herself.

*****

"Come on, Jasper. This is our chance to prove Alice wrong." Emmett said enthusiastically.

"By being sexist?" Jasper asked confused. "Did you miss the part where we live in a household with three strong-minded women?" Jasper could not envisage how this new bet of Emmett's could end well. If Esme found out they were toast. If Rosalie found out they were extra burnt toast.

"Just because you don't wear the pants in your relationship," Emmett teased again. Jasper was about to retort when a high-pitched screech ripped through the air.

"EMMETT!" They heard Rosalie shout.

"I'm not the only one with a pant-wearing wife," Jasper muttered smugly to his brother.

"Hey Rose, babe," Emmett said, in a failed attempt to appear calm.

"Women are the weaker of the sexes?" Rosalie growled at her husband.

"It was just a joke, Rose, Emmett said hastily. "I didn't mean it."

"Tell me you don't think it's true!" Rosalie demanded.

"Is that the same as admitting its bullshit?" Emmett asked hastily.

"What?" Rosalie snapped. "Yes because it is bullshit!" she shouted at him.

"I can't do that, Rose," He admitted, sending dejected.

"Why not? Do you believe it?" Rosalie was getting angrier and angrier. Admittedly some of that was Jasper's doing, he was hoping Rosalie would get Emmett to admit it was bullshit, and therefore the whole stupid bet could finish without him getting into too much trouble with Alice. However quite a lot of the anger was just Rosalie.

"No!" Emmett said quickly. "But I'd lose the bet."

"Bet? What bet?"

"The bet with Alice. If I admit its bullshit she'll win so I have to get her to admit it's not bullshit," Emmett explained quickly.

"BUT IT IS BULLSHIT!" Rosalie screeched at him.

"Rose, Rose, listen to me." Emmett was desperately trying to defuse the situation. "It's not about whether it's bullshit or not to me. It's a battle of wills. It's not about women's rights or whatever; this is just a friendly challenge between siblings. If I get Alice to admit it's bullshit it won't be because she actually believes it, it'll be so I'll leave her alone," he said the last line with a smirk.

Rosalie scowled at him. "You're a complete and utter idiot, Emmett Cullen!" Then she flounced off, having already decided whose side she was on and it wasn't her fool of a husband's.

"Let the games began!" Emmett said with a smirk.

Jasper just sighed. This couldn't be good.