"What took you so long?" Andrew demanded of the person at the door. "Bella's only been waiting for you."
"She's safe?"
"Of course she is. Got some cuts and the doc's got her on watch for a concussion but other than that she's fine."
"Your understatements are not appreciated." The female shifter growled.
"She's fine now. Come on, she's in the living room."
"Hi, mom!"
"Or doing a terrible job of hiding behind the stairs, there's always that."
"Don't you have a girlfriend to harass?" Bella whined.
"Yes, and you have a boyfriend that harasses you, so get off my back about being overprotective."
"Are you gonna marry her?" The smaller girl gushed.
"Are you gonna marry him?" Andrew simpered.
" Maybe. He's pretty awesome. We'd have to work on him not freaking out every time I do something he considers dangerous but it could work." Andrew blinked in shock.
"I was joking."
"I wasn't. You're going to marry that girl someday. She hasn't run away yet, and she's not going anywhere soon."
"That's not something you say lightly."
"I know," she snorted. "Charlie made the mistake of marrying Renee; then again, Jason and Mom are a better example."
"Look where we are now," Leah offered dryly.
"You made a mistake." Andrew informed the she-wolf. "That doesn't mean you and Jason aren't meant to be. People fight, it's nature. If life was supposed to be all sunshine and unicorns then none of us would have ever met. Charlie and Renee would still be together and Renee would cut back on all her… activities. My mother wouldn't have died and Jason's parents would still be around. It didn't happen that way and I'm glad for that. Jason is the best and Bella is the little sister I never had."
"Speaking of Charlie and Renee, where's everyone else?"
"Carlisle and Esme drove over with Charlie to Phil's to talk about custard problems." I told the woman I called my mother. Realization dawned on her face.
"What?!"
"Apparently Renee wants me back."
"Bullshit!" Leah snarled. "If she wanted you back she could have taken you a long time ago, but she didn't. She doesn't want you back, Bells, she just doesn't want to deal with Charlie."
"She's pregnant." I informed them.
"Lord, give me strength," Leah sighed, rubbing her temples. "Let's go." She growled.
"Pack up, vampires. We're headed for Phil's." Andrew called.
Everyone was out the door and in their respective cars (Leah drove Andrew and I; The Cullens rode in Carlisle's dark Mercedes.) in under five minutes. This would be something.
"How dare you?!" The she-wolf snarled when she caught sight of Renee.
"Excuse you? If anything I should be the one saying that! You and that crazy boy kidnapped my child and brainwashed her into hating me!"
I coughed and burst into a hysterical laughter, to the point that I was forced to my knees and doubled over, clutching my stomach.
"Nice try, Renee, but they've done more for me than you ever have."
"I gave you life-!"
"Apparently that's all you've done." Esme growled. "At least, according to what I've witnessed."
"And what do you know about my daughter that I don't?"
"What you know about Bella could fill a library," Leah sneered.
"Well? Out with it!"
"She has nightmares, for one thing. And she doesn't trust many people, much less men." Charlie offered. "What the hell were you thinking, Renee? Did you just not watch over her? And what gives you the right to say that she can't have something? Clearly you haven't bought her a single thing because she came to Forks with practically nothing, and then tells me that you have the gall to deny her the things she got from Jason and Leah! Are you out of your God-given mind?!"
"They took her from right under my nose, Charlie! She shouldn't have anything to do with them!"
"Jason told me that she always went to him." Leah recalled numbly. "She would go to his house in the middle of the night and ask for food and he'd let her stay there until it was time for her to go to school the next day. He always told her to stay with Renee, and she did for a while, but she always went back to him. She always went back, and he always took her in. As far as I'm concerned, you were unfit to be anyone's mother, and I don't know if that's changed yet."
"You think you can tell me how to live my life? How to raise my daughter?!-"
"I made Bella a meal the first time she was invited to our house. She took a few moments to inspect it, tried a few bites, and the rest was gone within minutes." Esme hissed. "It would have been seconds if she hadn't been asked to slow down every now and then. I don't know how she fared with you, but that's not raising your daughter, Ms. Renee. That's child abuse."
"If you all want her so bad then keep her. She's a menace anyhow. All she'd do is take up more space that could be used for our new little one."
I groaned and placed my head in my hands.
"What's the matter?" Phil asked the question on everyone's mind.
"Don't let her throw anymore parties, Phil. Yes, they're grand and elaborate and good for meeting people, but that kid might not have the same opportunities as I did and the last thing any of us need is for it to starve for lack of resources. Don't spoil the kid rotten either. Can we go home now, Dad? I've got dinner to make and people to talk to."
"Are you sure? I wouldn't mind spending the night if you wanted to."
"Yes, please."
Andrew stepped forward and wrapped her in a hug.
"I'll keep watch and let you know what changes. You know how to find me."
"Thanks," I sighed. Loath as I was to admit it, I was tired and this day wore on me like if I'd climbed a hundred trees in under a minute.
Needless to say, Renee was kind enough to let us go without a fight and I felt really bad for the new couple. We'd just shaken Phil's faith in his wife severely and I was desperate enough to hope that they could work it out. The last thing Renee needed was to fall back into her old ways and Phil was too good to have a broken heart.
LEAH! Everyone's favorite she-wolf is back in business and taking people down with her! Who hates Renee even more than they did before? Does anyone think the Cullens should not have interfered? Review!