A/N: Back again, children! Odoroita, we have two new reviewers: Sydneeannmarie and darlene10104! Thanks so much for taking the time to review! Cyber-cookies!

Eh… I'm not entirely sure whether I angstified or de-angstified New Moon at this point… whatever! ^_^

We'll keep this AN short and sweet today… enjoy!

I went to visit Jacob early the next morning, wanting to give him as little time as possible to guess my identity. I waited until just after Charlie left, then drove like a maniac to La Push. And no, I don't mean I drove like Edward when I say I drove like a maniac—I mean I swerved between the lanes, turning the radio up as loud as it could go, jerking early commuters out of their morning daze. I cackled at them through the windows.

I'll admit it. I was glad I had my friend back, okay? And I was ecstatic to know that he hadn't betrayed me after all.

The house was dark, no lights in the windows, but I was eager to wake them all up (just because I'd forgiven him didn't mean I couldn't wreak a little havoc as revenge). I knocked perkily on the door.

"Come in," I heard Billy call after a moment, and a light flicked on.

I let myself in, catching sight of Billy leaning around an open doorway just off the little kitchen, a bathrobe around his shoulders, not in his chair yet. When he saw who it was, his eyes widened briefly, and then his face turned stoic.

"Well, good morning, Bella. What are you doing up so early?"

I smiled at him happily. "I'm here to pet the doggy!"

He stared at me, eyes blank with shock. "Um… I, uh…"

I sighed long-sufferingly. What is it with humans these days? No sense of humor. "Jacob. I'm here to see Jacob."

He looked me over uncertainly. "I'd bet he's still asleep," he finally said, nodding toward the tiny hallway off the front room. "He's out late a lot these days. Kid needs his rest—you probably shouldn't wake him."

Sleeping on the job. Tsk, tsk. "I'll just have a peek, if you don't mind. Then I'll leave. Could you tell him I'll be waiting for him at the beach?"

"Sure, sure," he agreed.

"I'll be happy to drop by later if he's unavailable, too," I added cheerfully. Billy saw right through my sugarcoated threat.

"I'll tell him."

"Awesome. Fabulous." I started off towards his room, opening the door and looking in.

He was still wearing the same black cut-off sweats he's worn last night. He lay stretched diagonally across the double bed that took up all of his room but a few inches around the edges. Even on a slant, it wasn't long enough; his feet hung off one end and his head off the other. He was fast asleep, snoring lightly with his mouth hanging open. His face was peaceful with deep sleep, all the angry lines smoothed out. Despite his ridiculous size, he looked very young now, and very weary. Pity pricked at the outskirts of my mind.

I approached his bed quietly, smilingly patted his head a few times, turned around, and left.

Billy watched me with curious, guarded eyes as I bounced back into the front room. "All right, I pet the doggy. I'll be off—you just remember to tell him where I am!" I wagged my finger playfully at Billy, who seemed to be in a permanent state of shock now. I ambled toward the door, waving to him over my shoulder. "See you, Billy!"

I peeled out, tires screeching; I could see Billy still staring at me from within the house. I drove down to First Beach and parked in the empty dirt lot. It was still dark, but I didn't mind. Walking down the path on to the beach, I was thankful I was no longer mortal, because the temperature would have been decisively chilly. There was no one there, so I skipped down the beach toward the north seawall. It would be a beautiful morning—although, admittedly, I felt that nowadays I may find many things beautiful that I didn't before.

Through the darkness a long bone-white driftwood tree materialized, stranded deep on the rocks. Surely it wasn't the same tree Jacob and I had our first conversation by, but it reminded me enough of it. I jumped from rock to rock, making a little game of it, laughing probably far too much for such a mundane activity. I stood on the highest rock, arms out, feeling the wind like I was flying.

"Bella!"

I turned around to see Jacob come laughing out of the darkness. "What are you doing?" he called.

"Playing pretend!" I called back. I jumped off the rocks and landed before him. "So. Did you figure it out yet?"

He immediately looked sulky. "No. For the life of me, I have no idea. You didn't give me any time, for one thing."

"Not my fault you're slow." I giggled.

He looked at me, confused. "Speaking of changes… when did you get all… you know…"

"Happy?" I filled in teasingly. "When I realized that Edward was the one that made the mistake. Not me. He's the one missing out. All I realized was that I was worth something."

He rolled his eyes. "I could've told you that."

"It's something I needed to figure out myself." I admonished.

He smiled. "Well, it's good to have you back."

"It's good to be back!"

"But you never told me—"

I waved a hand. "Yeah, yeah, I know. The whole point was that you're supposed to guess." I cut him off as he was about to protest. "I know, I know. The thing is, I'm fairly sure that I'm rare, seeing as I haven't ever heard of this myself."

One of you is born every thousand years.

"Well, that's not all that rare, then," I answered her out loud just to see Jacob's reaction.

Only one of you has ever transformed into a vampire, and he was killed during his transition period, so he had no time to fight back.

"That's unfair."

Jacob looked nervous now. "Bella, who are you talking to?"

I drew Nemesis. "Remember this?"

"Oh yeah."

I snorted. Yeah, you wouldn't forget Nemesis when she was inches away from your jugular. "I should really be saying, remember her."

I held her out, letting go as she began to glow brilliantly. With a magnificent flash she changed from her weapon form to her human form. She landed on her feet lightly, dressed in the same black kimono as she always was, and turned to face a flabbergasted Jacob. She bowed courteously. "Nice to meet you."

"Wh-wh-what-" Jacob stuttered, astonished. "Who the hell is that?"

Nemesis straightened, putting a hand on her hip and raising a sharp eyebrow. "That's not very polite,"

We exchanged smirks.

"This is Nemesis," I threw my hands out and presented her like a showgirl. "She's my sword."

She held her hand out for him to shake, face deceptively emotionless. He glanced first at me, unsure, then reached his hand out, only to yelp and draw it back like he'd been burned. Just before their hands had connected she'd changed hers into a blade.

We both cracked up.

"That's not funny," He said sulkily, eyes flickering between us warily.

"Aw, come on, she didn't even nick you," I snickered. "You're lucky she decided to be blunt."

We exchanged another look, then broke down in giggles again.

"Will one of you please explain just what is going on here?" he asked loudly, face irritated.

"I told you. She's my sword."

"That doesn't explain anything. What are you?"

"You might want to sit down for this," I said instead, stalling. I leapt back towards the rocks, perching myself on one cross-legged. Nemesis walked up to me and vanished in another flash of white light.

"Where'd she go?" Jacob asked.

I tapped my forehead. "In here."

"What—"

"I'll explain now, if you'll give me the chance." I looked to him pointedly. He sighed, zipping his lips with his fingers, sitting down opposite me.

I took a deep breath. "I'm what they call a soul reaper. Nemesis, my sword, isn't just that—she's a manifestation of my soul's power. She was born of my own will…"

I explained it all to him, managing to leave out the part about being bitten, saying I was merely in one of my moods one day when I'd heard a voice talking to me in my head. He nodded, taking it all in remarkably calmly—but really, what right did he have to judge? He was a fucking werewolf.

There was a silence when I'd finally finished explaining the basics of what I was, editing some things—I was immortal, far stronger than I had been when I was human, and able to wield various magics.

In other words, I could kick his ass around the block.

"I have just one question," he said quietly. "Would you happen to know anything, then, about the remains of the vampire we found in the forests around Forks?"

"Oh, yeah," I answered automatically. "That was me."

"That was you?"

I raised an eyebrow. "You doubt me?"

"No, on," he said hastily. "I was just… surprised, you know. Looks like you've got a lot of power in that little body."

"So in other words, you doubt me. Do I have to remind you of just how pwned you were last night?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," his eyes took on a certain smugness. "You just caught me by surprise last night. That means nothing."

I could feel Nemesis perking up. "So you think you could take me?"

"I think I could beat you."

I grinned, jumping up. "Let's go, then. Morph."

He stood as well, looking hesitant. "Wait, first I need to know just what happened with Laurent."

"Fine," I sighed. "I was just hiking again, feeling restless, when I came into this meadow, and there he was." I shrugged. "He fed me your typical conversation about how it was nothing personal, just thirst, he'd be quick, blah blah blah. I let him think I was still human, acted all scared till the last minute, chop chop, done."

"It was a bit more than a chop-chop, wasn't it? More like a chop-dice-slice-ginsu knife-maschetti."

I looked up at him indignantly. "I just got a little carried away, okay? Besides, I didn't have any matches on me."

"Well, you do realize that's our job, right? We're protectors. We exist because they do." His face was serious now, worried. "But lately we've been a little too late—they always get to the hikers first." His face lightened temporarily. "I guess we should name you an honorary member of the pack, seeing as you killed a leech for us."

"I'm surprised that you could kill one of them."

"Oh, please," he rolled his eyes. "It's chasing them that's the hard part. Once we've got them, it's easy as pie. Especially if it's just one." He looked down. "But there's something else I need to tell you, about this whole thing."

I waited impatiently.

"It's not… entirely safe for you to be around me, Bella."

"Pardon me?" I asked incredulously.

"If I get too mad… too upset… you might get hurt."

I gave him an unmoved look. "So if you're too mad, you turn into a wolf?"

"Yeah."

"Once this conversation is over, I'll show you just who needs to be afraid." I huffed. "But you forgot one last thing. If Laurent is dead, then someone's killing people now."

His eyes flicked to mine, and away. "There were two. We thought his mate would want to fight us—in our stories, they usually get pretty pissed off if you kill their mate—but she just keeps running away, and then coming back again. If we could figure out what she was after, it would be easier to take her down. But—"

"She's after me," I cut him off. I could feel anger, tight and hot, building in my chest. "Her name's Victoria, and she's not Laurent's mate. They're just friends. Edward killed her mate, James, and she's still after me—a mate for a mate. She doesn't know that it's not like that anymore." I tried to calm myself, clenching and unclenching my hands as power shook them rapidly. "But I want you to leave her to me when you find her… this one's personal."

"I can't do that, Bella," he told me somberly. "But what you just said is important. It's exactly what we needed to know. We've got to tell the others right away."

He began to pull me back toward the truck, but I stood my ground. "Wait just a minute!" I insisted. "What do you mean, you can't do that? You will do that, or I will make you!"

"Now isn't the time!"

"Oh, I think now is the perfect time," I crossed my arms. "If you and your little werewolf club won't let me fight her, I'll find her myself."

"Can we discuss this later?" he pleaded. "After I tell them?"

I deliberated, dragging it out as Jacob squirmed nervously. "Fine," I said at last, glaring at him. "But don't think I'll forget—hey!"

He yanked me up and towards the truck.

"Where are we going?" I demanded.

"I'm not sure yet," he admitted. "I'll call a meeting. Just wait here for a minute, okay?"

"Where are you going?" My eyes lit up. "Are you going to change?"

"Yeah," he answered gruffly.

"I'm coming with you."

"No you're not!"

"Yes—"

"It'll take me two seconds! I'll fight you later—later today, if you want, just hold on one minute!" He dashed off into the trees, leaving me sulking next to the car.

Honestly… and he said he wasn't sexist.

When he came back, I immediately bombarded him with questions. "Where did you go just now? Why couldn't I come with? Why'd you go into the woods? You're such a sexist, you know. I could take you and Victoria, at once, with my arms tied behind my back—"

"Slow down, will you?" He sighed. "I just went into the woods there because I needed to contact the others. You see, when we're wolves, we can sorta… hear each other. Not, like, hear sounds, but hear each other's thoughts—no matter the distance. It really helps when we hunt, but it's a big pain otherwise. It's embarrassing—having no secrets like that. Freaky, eh?"

"Not really," I said, already wanting my other questions answered.

"I just wanted to make sure it was cool with Sam. I was afraid he's tell me I couldn't bring you."

"You act like that would have stopped me."

"Well, it would have stopped me," he said morosely, explaining just how official Sam's word was.

"And by the way, I'm not a sexist!"

"Yes you are, you big hairy jerk. 'Oh, Bella, I'm not sure if that would be safe—oh, Bella, I think I could beat you—'"

"They're here," he interrupted.

They emerged from the trees, looking just as ludicrously similar and synchronized as they did the last time I saw them. There were four of them, their faces immediately changing from serenity to rage as they saw me. I smirked and waved.

"What have you done, Jacob?" Sam demanded.

One of the others, one I didn't recognize—Jared or Paul—thrust past Sam and spoke before Jacob could defend himself.

"Why can't you just follow the rules, Jacob?" he yelled, throwing his arms in the air. "What the hell were you thinking? Is she more important than everything—than the whole tribe? Than the people getting killed?"

"She can help," Jacob said quietly.

"Help!" the boy shouted. His arms began to quiver. "Oh, that's likely! I'm sure the leech-lover is just dying to help us out!"

"Don't talk about her like that!" Jacob shouted back.

"I can defend myself, Jacob," I murmured.

A shudder rippled through the other boy, along his shoulders and down his spine.

"Paul! Relax!" Sam commanded.

Paul shook his head back and forth, not in defiance, but as though he was trying to concentrate.

"Jeez, Paul, get a grip," one of the others said, probably Jared.

Paul twisted his head towards Jared, his lips curling back in irritation. Then he shifted his glare in my direction. To my irritation, Jacob took a step to put himself in front of me.

That did it.

"Right, protect her!" Paul roared in outrage. Another shudder, a convulsion, heaved through his body. He threw his head back, a real growl tearing from between his teeth.

"Paul!" Sam and Jacob shouted together.

Paul seemed to fall forward, vibrating violently. Halfway to the ground, there was a loud ripping noise, and the boy exploded.

Dark silver fur blew out from the boy, coalescing into a shape more than five times his size. His dark, enraged eyes focused on me.

I felt Jacob move beside me, but I was faster. As Jacob ran across the road, leaping forward and diving into a phase, I had already sprinted between him and Paul, drawing Nemesis smoothly against the wind created by my own speed. As a sharp tearing sound broke through the air, Jacob changed into a massive, russet brown wolf.

I blocked Paul from Jacob's gargantuan teeth with Nemesis, crouching behind her to use all my strength as I pushed Jacob away—which turned out to be far too much.

He flew all the way back across the street and into the woods on the other side, only the friction of his claws against the ground preventing him from going farther. Unremorseful, I stood fully, facing Paul.

"Forgive me, Jacob," I called back at him, unable to hide my cold smile. "But I believe this is my fight."

A/N: sooo I decided to post 2 chapters at once b/c I'll be leaving for Trinidad eeeeearly tomorrow morning and won't be back for 10 days… sorry! But I promise when I get back I'll work hard! Thanks for your support!