Bella.

Edward had a plan. What it was, I had yet to discover. Alice was the only person that knew of his decisions, only because she could see every single one he makes. They both seemed incredibly on edge about it, talking in hushed tones and arguing over little things whenever they believed to be out of earshot. Though I tried constantly to be sneaky, I was always only able to catch the end of their secret discussions.

The house was louder than usual, with the addition of Carmen and Elezar. They had decided to stay with us, going against Kate's preferences, and fighting alongside my family. I couldn't express just how grateful I was to them. I was still sketchy about Tanya. Though my head still screamed with jealousy over the blonde vampire, she was a lot more pleasant than her sister. She and Kate had rented a room at a hotel in Seattle, after Carmen and Elezar had persuaded Kate to be reasonable and stay within the state. She kept her distance, and I was extremely glad for that.

To summarize, the past few days were tolerable. I was still apprehensive and nervous about the future battle with Victoria's army, and how could I not be? I didn't have any of the details, because Edward and Alice refused to enclose them with me. That simple non-gesture had left me in a very foul mood. I was a vampire, and if anything, this was my battle. She was doing this because of me. Their ridiculous secrets were causing layers of fear to build against my impenetrable skin. The smallest thing would cause an overreaction from me.

Which is why my head was continuously listing off the pessimistic possibilities of why Edward was dragging me to the clearing. The rest of the family, including Carmen and Elezar, followed behind us, only adding more tension onto my shoulders. His grip was tight against my wrist, and despite my rough yanks, I couldn't pull myself free.

"Damnit, Edward. If you value my sanity in the least, you will tell me what's going on!" I screamed in protest as we scaled the forest quickly. He threw his head back to look at me. His golden eyes were amused, his lips pursed tight. He was fighting laughter.

I hissed sharply between my gritted teeth, proving my anger. He couldn't contain himself as his mouth opened, and he laughed loudly. Though the musical sound threw a pleasant chill down my bones, I was still angry. And since he wasn't understanding just how angry I was, I wanted to show him. I quickly adjusted my arm that he had a hold of, and his fingers slid to mine. I grasped them tightly, not easing up until I heard a whimper of pain. He pulled his hand back, and glared at me.

"That was unnecessary."

I rolled my eyes.

"And so is this," I muttered, throwing my eyes to the group of vampires following us. "I just want to know what's going on. For once, I'm strong enough to fight my own battles, and you're not letting me."

His face softened, and he released my hand. I looked around, noticing that we were already standing out in the open. He sighed, and dropped his forehead onto my shoulder. Though my fingers were twitching, wanting so desperately to touch him, I resisted.

"I'm sorry, love. It's just .. I don't like picturing you in battle. I don't like the idea of you possibly getting hurt. It drives me crazy," he confessed, and I sighed in return. I dropped my guard, and almost immediately, my arms wound around his torso. I dug my face into his neck, not quite tall enough to reach his face without standing on my tip-toes. I pressed a chaste kiss to his jugular.

"I'm stronger than you think, Edward. You just have to have faith," I whispered, pressing another soft kiss to his neck, before forcefully pulling myself away from his comforting body. He spoke no words, but the gentle nod of his head and gleam in his eye let me know that he was sorry.

"Now," I began, hoping the fresh vulnerability would win me some answers. "What is this plan that you've been hiding?"

He smiled once, and my eyebrows rose expectantly. I turned, noticing the rest of the family lining up behind us. I squinted in confusion, studying each vampire with curiosity. They were preparing for something. Something that they knew, and I didn't. I gasped in realization, and emitted a sharp groan. I half-stepped away from Edward, and he chuckled at me.

"I had good reason to disclose this information from you. You would've protested, but no worries, you're about to find out," he explained. I opened my mouth, prepared to argue, when I inhaled the disgusting scent of werewolf. My eyes widened, and my neck snapped in the other direction. The smell was growing stronger, as noises in the distance trees grew louder.

"Disgusting," I heard Carmen whimper as she scrunched her nose in disapproval. I gulped, awaiting the entrance of the wolves. To say that I was terrified would be an understatement. Had the wolves decided upon war? Was this what Edward and Alice keeping from me? That I would have to fight and kill people that I once called my friends?

I didn't realize I was shaking until Edward placed a hand on my shoulder. I looked up at him quickly, hoping that the few short seconds we'd get would be enough for him to explain what the hell was going on. He shook his head, but the smile never left his face. I wanted to scream at him. We were going to battle, and he was smiling?

I didn't get a chance to ponder my new insecurities, as the first wolf emerged from the trees. He was large, with shaggy black fur that seemed to flop with his every step. I gulped, taking a step back. It had been awhile since I had seen any of the Quilete boys in wolf form. The second wolf followed gracefully behind, and I quickly recognized the dark russet color fur. It was Jacob. Soon after that, more wolves began to descend. I was amazed at the numbers of them.

"I'm going to be the translator for the evening," Edward announced once the wolves were lined up opposite of us. I was trembling with fear, still unsure of the situation. My eyes switched from Edward, to the wolf that was Jacob, and then back to Edward. Jasper, who was obviously aware of my strong feelings, coughed loudly. Edward's stern face softened, and he smiled in my direction.

"There will be no battle tonight, love. Please stop freaking out, you're overwhelming Jasper," he spoke quietly to me. A flood of relief washed over me, but all I could do was nod. The fear was quickly replaced by a strong curiosity, and though I wanted to scream a million questions at Edward, I kept quiet and allowed the scene to unfold in front of me.

Carlisle was the first to step forward, nodding his head politely at the wolves. Some of their own heads tipped forward, but for the most part, they remained as still as statues.

"I'm sure you've heard the entire story from Edward. We just wanted to gather you to get a feel for our alliance. We won't waste time on the details. We're all very well informed of the story here," Carlisle explained, and I couldn't help but let out a sarcastic snort. He ignored me, and turned his gaze to Edward, who was watching one of the wolves carefully.

"We lack the proper knowledge of vampires that may be a necessity to killing them. If there is a proper way of killing one, we're going to need to know," Edward announced in a hollow voice. Carlisle nodded, before tipping his head toward Jasper.

"Jasper will be teaching us various techniques. He's the most experienced in this situation."

I rocked back on my heels, listening intently to every word they were saying. But as my brain slowly processed every sentence that had just been spoken, I realized what was going on. The wolves were fighting with us. They were risking their lives, and fighting with us.

"No!"

I couldn't help my outburst, as I jumped forward quickly. Edward was at my side instantly, gripping one of my forearms and staring at me in concern. He was whispering in a hushed tone, asking questions too quickly for me to comprehend.

"You can't ask them to fight with us! I don't want them risking their lives because of me!" I shouted angrily. He winced, and his face turned to the ground. Carlisle sighed loudly, but that only added my anger. A few of the wolves were cackling, and I could hear the taunting in their loud barks. I growled loudly. Didn't they understand that this was dangerous?

"Bella, they're more than capable-" Edward began, but I shook my head furiously. I turned my head to large one who stood in front. He was staring quietly at me, his body moving with every deep breath that he took.

"Sam," I cooed softly, addressing him by his first name. "You don't have to do this. It's entirely too dangerous. This isn't something that you should be involving yourselves in. I could never forgive myself in any one of you get hurt."

We gazed at each other for a long period of time. I suddenly wished I was the mind-reader in the family, though Edward was being a very terrible translator at the moment. His gaze never faltered as he stared at me. I felt the layers of anticipating and anger breaking down as this mysterious wolf eyed me intently. I sighed, finally breaking the moment and glaring at the dead grass below my feet.

"Bella, they're not doing this for you," Edward suddenly explained. I winced from the harshness of the sentence. "They're doing it for the town. They have a duty to protect Forks, and they feel that helping is very necessary."

I was silent, but nodded. Edward laughed suddenly.

"And Jacob would like to throw in that he's mainly doing this for you." I turned to the russet wolf, and grinned, my sour mood suddenly lifted. I sighed in defeat. When had I ever gotten my way when it came to these creatures? You'd think I'd be used to the disappointment by now. I nodded, causing Jacob to bark happily.

"Now that Bella's done being stupid, can we actually learn something?" Emmett whined loudly from his place in line. I scowled at him, but laughed when Rosalie rolled her eyes and jabbed an elbow into his stomach. He groaned with a loud umph, and closed his mouth for the time being.

"They want to reschedule this for tomorrow. They've got a few things to take care of back at La Push," Edward said. Carlisle nodded, smiling politely.

"Of course. What time would you like to meet?"

"Ten is good for us as well. We will see you tomorrow," Edward announced, before turning his back on the wolves. I sighed, feeling the nervousness of the meeting drift off of me. Edward jerked his head backwards, motioning for me to return to his side, and I moved to happily oblige, when the putrid odor of the wolves grew unbearably close. The next thing I knew, my face was planted firmly in the dirt, and something cold was nudging my cheeks.

"Get off of her!" I heard Edward snarl. I looked up, confused at what was going on, but gasped when I saw Jacob on top of me. He was barking loudly, his large lips curled into a happy grin. I turned to glance at Edward, who was stomping angrily towards the large wolf. I couldn't help it. I laughed.

"Bella, are you okay?" Edward asked gently, kneeling down to my side. He threw another harsh glance at Jacob, and muttered for him to move or he'd snap his legs. I try to speak, but I was overcome a strong case of the giggles. Jacob's soft fur tickled my face as his tongue lapped at my cheeks, and through my laughter, I groaned.

"Ew, gross, Jake! Get off of me!" I whined. He barked again, but moved himself off of me. I took a step toward Edward, but he grimaced. I sighed, and rolled my eyes.

"Thanks Jake," I muttered, leaning closer to the jubilant wolf. "He won't be kissing me anytime soon."

Edward laughed, Jacob barked, and I grinned. This was a good feeling.

Edward.

"So, explain to me why you couldn't fill me in of this plan before we met the wolves?" Bella asked curiously, as she threw herself onto the large bed. The majority of the room had been packed into cardboard boxes, but we would have to have the bed shipped to our new home. The gold comforter swirled around her body, making her skin glow brighter than it already did.

I extended an arm, folding some boxes close. I sighed, and snuck another glance at her. She was still staring.

"Remember that little fit you had earlier?" I asked, knowing that she would acknowledge exactly what I was referring to. She pursed her lips for a moment, a gesture that drove me crazy with desire to kiss her, and hummed a soft hmm.

"Yes."

"I was trying to avoid that. I figured you had too much pride to burst in front of the wolves," I explained, and threw her a sheepish smile. Her eyes, which were quickly diluting to a soft orange, widened for a second. Then, her eyebrows burrowed and she scowled at me.

"A lot of good that did," she mumbled, tilting her head to look down at the comforter. I took this opportunity to study her. Her soft brown hair, which was still damp from the shower she had just taken, hung in loose ringlets around her shoulders. She was clad only in an oversized Forks gym t-shirt, and a pair flannel shorts. It amused me greatly that she still dressed as if she were going to sleep, but I respected it. She looked beautiful regardless.

I closed another box, securing it with a layer of duct tape, before gently dropping it to the ground.

"Edward?" she asked softly.

"Yes, love?"

"Are we still going to live in Alaska?" she inquired, her voice gentle as if she were asking a dangerous question. I chuckled once, and nodded my head. I recognized my mistake, forgetting that she wasn't looking up at me.

"Of course," I answered confidently. She sighed, and tilted her head to stare up at me.

"Even after I went and opened my big mouth? It's enough that Kate already hates me, but apparently Irina, and-" By this point, I had dropped the box I was currently packing, which consisted of the insides of my top dresser. The items clattered noisily to the floor, but I ignored the sound as I moved to Bella, and clamped a hand firmly over her mouth.

"I thought we agreed that you wouldn't blame yourself for that," I scolded. She huffed against my hand. "To put an end to your constant worries, we won't be living with them. Esme has hired an interior designer who is currently working on the house as we speak. It'll be done by the time we get up there."

She exhaled a breath, and I smiled softly at her. I removed my hand from her mouth, and let it trace the pale skin of her face. My fingers moved to her cheekbone, my thumb rubbing across it once before traveling down to her bottom lip. I grinned when I saw her eyes close, and I continued to massage her face. She took me surprise though, when she urgently gripped my face and crushed her lips to mine.

My lips folded upwards against her, and I chuckled against her kiss. She pulled away for a second, giggling breathlessly as her orange eyes gazed up into my own, before she moved in to kiss me again. I waited for the impact, but unfortunately, it never came. I opened my eyes to look at her, but her eyes were focused on something on the floor beside the bed.

Before I could notice anything, she was leaning down to retrieve the item. She held it between her fingers, before looking up at me. I turned to see what it was, and when I did, I gasped. My surprised reaction must've fueled her curiosity, because her fingers quickly snapped the box open. I groaned.

She had found the ring.

Oh, hell.

Let me apologize for not only the short length of the chapter, but the delayed update! I had a huge case of writers block. I know exactly what I want for this story, but it's getting my words out that makes it a bit difficult sometimes. It's weird that I find writing at 4 AM the best though. I produce better quality chapters when I'm sleepy, I guess. Haha. I'm trying to push the plot a lot faster. I don't want to write anything pointless, which I find I do a lot. But I hope this chapter is okay. I'm actually quite satisfied with it. Anyway, more reviews would be lovely! I love hearing what you guys think, so don't be shy! :D