Author's Note: So here's chapter two. This note was supposed to be more entertaining, but I'm sitting in the middle of a rather noisy sports bar with a bunch of my hubby's friends, and the noise and the reek of beer is not conducive to mental stability in any form. So, thus ends this note.

Besides...y'all would rather read the story anyway.

By the time light had begun to fade from the sky, Jess and Luc had found themselves once more sitting on the swings in the playground. This time, though, there was no quiet, introspective musing, no shy glances back and forth.

"So she's starting tomorrow? Does she have her schedule yet?" Jess asked. Head leaning back, eyes closed, enjoying the feeling of swaying back and forth with the occasional breezes, she missed the brief spasm of pain that crossed his features before he gathered himself and spoke.

"I believe she does have it, yes, though I haven't looked at it. We've been busy with...our own things lately. I'm afraid I haven't paid much attention to things, not as much as I should have, but I'm...close to completing a major portion of my research, and I've been working on that a bit. To the exclusion of almost everything else, really." He was leaning back against the chain of his swing and gazing at her, the way her hair trailed down along her back, fluttering as she moved. He had just enough time to snap himself out of his perusal as she sat up and looked over at him.

"Yeah, you'd mentioned that. And you're here to study the Quileute now?" He nodded, momentarily speechless at the direct way her eyes locked on his. "You know, I should introduce you to Bella."

"Bella?" he asked, forcing his mind to focus.

"Chief Swan's daughter, one of my close friends. She's really good friends with the Quileute tribe - she's an old childhood friend of the one guy, Jake. I know they're a fairly close-knit tribe, but she might be able to see if any of them would be interested in talking to you." Luc schooled himself to show only curiosity, locking the combination excitement and despair deep within his heart.

"That would be wonderful," he said.

"Well, since your sister - Lili? - since Lili will be at school tomorrow, I'll make sure to introduce myself, and she can hang out with us. I'm sure Bella and the Cullens will be there too, and she can have a chance to maybe explain a bit of what you're looking for to Bella, see if she thinks Jake would be willing to sit down and chat." His mind still racing, Luc just nodded his approval. At that point, Jess stood.

"Well, I should probably be heading home. I haven't even had a chance yet to get my stuff together for school or do my chores today.

"Oh, I apologize for commandeering so much of your time-" he began, but she cut him off with a wave and a brush of her hand against his arm.

"Nonsense. I've had a wonderful day. One of the best I've had in a while, to be honest." She looked at him shyly, and he found himself smiling at her.

"Indeed. I can't recall the last time I spent such entertaining time with such lovely company." He decided then and there that he loved watching her blush, especially when she smiled as well. Standing smoothly, he offered his arm. "Would m'lady deign to permit me to accompany her on her return to her abode?" Her laughter chased away the dark in his soul, and he smiled easily.

"But of course, m'lord." With a delighted grin and a trace of pink left on her cheeks, she threaded her arm through his and they began the walk back to her house. The silence was completely comfortable, a blanket of quiet wrapping them both safely together, and it stayed unbroken until they arrived at her front door. Giving in to impulse, he took her hand and bowed over it, bestowing a gentle kiss on her knuckles.

"Thank you, Jess, for a most enjoyable day. I trust we shall see one another again?" There was that blush again, but she managed to reply without stammering.

"Absolutely. I mean, that would be great." With a final squeeze of her fingers, he turned and walked down the steps and back out onto the sidewalk, taking a moment to wave at her where she stood and stared at him. He could feel her eyes on him until he passed out of her sight - he knew he'd feel her warmth in his heart far longer than that.

"Do you think he'd be amenable to speaking with us?" Carlisle's voice was earnest, and Bella shrugged.

"I'm not sure. I mean, I know how Jake and the pack feel about you guys, but I think after our chat this morning he might be okay. Maybe not with you, Edward," she chuckled, leaning back further into her mate's embrace and rubbing his arm gently. "-but perhaps Carlisle, or Esme. Maybe even Alice."

"What about Caralla? She'll be in town this week. Do you think he'd be okay with her?" Esme said quietly, her voice thoughtful. Bella considered it, turning the idea over in her head a couple of times. Finally, she just sighed.

"I don't know. I'll ask him if he's okay with meeting me and - Esme, since you seem to know more about the history and theory around all this, would you mind talking with him? If he's cool, that is. I don't know how much more information he could give us, but I think he'd do better if it was just a one-on-one with me there." The other woman nodded, her golden eyes gleaming with curiosity.

"Absolutely. Tell him whenever and wherever he would be most comfortable is fine with me." Edward and Rosalie both seemed to tense up at that, but Esme just rolled her eyes at them. "Honestly, if he agrees to talk, knowing Bella will be there too, do you really think he'd attempt any sort of ambush or maliciousness? It will be fine."

"I don't know - I doubt he'd do anything that might hurt Bella," murmured Edward. "But I hesitate to give the wolves that much power over any one of us." Bella turned to her boyfriend with a huff.

"Edward Cullen, stop it. Just stop it. Jake would never ever do anything to hurt me - or anyone I care about - and I can't think of a single reason he'd have to be vicious to Esme. IF he agrees to meet with us, it won't be in anger. He's too confused right now." She hadn't meant to say the last bit, but it slipped out before her mind could reign it in. Luckily, aside from some pensive looks on her family's faces, no one mentioned it.

"It's settled, then. Bella will ask Jacob to meet with her and Esme. The rest of us will do what we can to fill Caralla in on what we know so far. Do you think he'd be okay with speaking with you tomorrow after classes?" Carlisle's voice was both firm and questioning.

"You know what, why don't I call him now?" Bella said, climbing off of Edward's lap and pulling her phone from her back pocket. Though she knew it wouldn't do any good - they'd be able to hear her anyway, damn vampire hearing - she wandered into the kitchen as she dialed the familiar number. Two rings sounded in her ear before Jake's voice came through.

"Bells. What's up?"

"Hi, Jake. Um, yeah...I...well, I hope you're not mad at me, but Carlisle said he saw a strange girl on the property -" ~Yeah, leave out the bit that she might be an angel for now,~ "- and I mentioned the girl you'd seen. His description matched what you'd told me, anyway."

"Did he talk to her? What's her name? Where's she from?" The frantic note sounded almost like whimpering, and Bella fought a smile as she tried to speak naturally.

"He said she talked a bit, and apologized for trespassing, but then she took off, and he didn't follow. Um, anyway, I was wondering - would you mind meeting me and Esme? There's...well, something's strange...I don't know -"

"There's a storm coming," he cut in, and she knew instinctively that he wasn't referring to meteorological occurrences. She sighed in relief.

"Yeah. That's what we're thinking. I've had some dreams, and the - well, anyway, we think it might all involve the pack as well as the Cullens, possibly more than that even. And since you're the only one who trusts me enough to trust the Cullens as well, however sparingly...well, Esme said that if you'd be willing to talk with her, you could name the time and place. And I'd be there too, so it's not like there's be anything bad planned. Not that there ever would be -" She knew she was babbling, but she was interrupted by, shockingly enough, his chuckle.

"Sure."

"It could be when - wait, what?"

"I said sure. I'm assuming she wants to talk as soon as possible. How's tomorrow after school sound, by the sunning rock at the river?"

"I - um - sure. That's, that's great. I wasn't expecting you to, you know, agree so easily. So, um, I guess...we'll see you tomorrow?"

"Yep. Later Bells. Gotta run - my turn on patrol tonight."

"Later, Jake." She turned and walked back in, a bemused look on her face. Esme arched an eyebrow at her in question as she sat back down with Edward again.

"He's agreed. Tomorrow after school, by that big flat rock beside the river."

"Well, that's one thing taken care of then." Carlisle smiled. "I guess he wasn't as difficult to convince as you anticipated?"

"No, he wasn't. It was weird, actually. But I'm just happy it wasn't a battle." She settled down again, curled against Edward, and was just about to lean her head on his shoulder when her stomach growled. Loudly. Emmett burst out laughing.

"Sounds like someone needs fuel," he chuckled. Blushing, she sat up.

"Well, I haven't eaten since breakfast and it's - what, early evening? I'd better be going, though. I promised Charlie I'd make dinner and hang out with him a bit tonight, since I haven't really been home much." Sheepishly she smiled as they all stood when she did, everyone wanting to give her a hug and kiss before he headed out - or in Emmett's case, a grope and a kiss. Laughing, she allowed Edward to take her hand and lead her out to the car to head to Charlie's house. She wondered briefly how conversation would go after she left as she slid into the passenger seat.

The start of the drive was quiet, both of them wrapped in their own thoughts. As Bella idly watched the scenery pass by, not paying attention to anything but her own whirling mind, she was startled by a flash of white in the trees. Sitting up straighter she attempted to look out the window but as fast as Edward drove, there was no chance. She settled back down and glanced at him, answering his unspoken question.

"Thought I saw something, but I guess not." Unsure why she was hesitant to mention the quick glimpse of whatever it was, she was relieved when he simply nodded and turned back to face the road. A few moments later he spoke.

"Bella, I know how much it bothers you to have Jacob and I at odds, and I know he would never intentionally hurt you, but..." He paused and looked at her, his butterscotch eyes filled with emotion. "If anything were to ever happen to you, even accidentally...Bella, I don't know what I'd do." He closed his eyes briefly, and then to Bella's confusion he pulled the car over to the shoulder. Turning to her, he took her hand in his, and she was puzzled by the intensity of his gaze.

"Edward, what is it? What's wrong?" He simply stared at her for a long while, and she felt herself get more nervous as the silence spun like taffy. Finally, when she was sure she was going to snap from the tension, his whisper reached her ears.

"I hadn't wanted to do this here, not now, but..." At that point, he seemed to come to a decision and he met her eyes squarely.

"Bella, I love you. More than life, more than my own existence."

"I love you too, Edward," she murmured, wondering what had him so wound up. He switched to clasping her hand with one of his own and reaching into his pocket with the other. No matter what she might have expected, the little box he held was not it. Her eyes darted back and forth from the closed box to his gleaming eyes. He smiled as he understood the sudden panic on her features.

"Relax, Bella. I have far better ideas for when I propose to you." Her eyes widened even further at the announcement, so casual, so nonchalant, and she knew she was gaping at him like a landed fish. She could see the corner of his mouth tilt up in a smile he tried to hide.

"Rest assured, this is not an engagement ring. You can stop hyperventilating now." His tone was fondly amused, and she tried to regulate her breathing. "However, it's no less serious." He opened the box one-handed, and she tore her eyes from his face long enough to look down. The cabochon-cut ring gleamed, seeming to almost absorb and reflect every glimmer of light from around it. And set into the face of the stone itself, etched and inlaid with a master's skill, was the Cullen crest, the shimmery silvery metal gleaming against the dark red stone it was set into. It was absolutely breathtaking, and Bella reached out one finger to trace the surface, finding to her shock that it was as smooth as silk with no discernible difference between the stone and the design. It was truly a flawless piece, and she was awestruck.

"I know in Greece Carlisle gave you the pendant, but as we all agreed it was a bit lavish for everyday wear, we thought - I thought - that you should have something you could keep with you at all times." He paused, taking a deep breath he obviously didn't need, but the action served to pull her attention back to him as he lifted the ring from the box.

"You have managed to bring us all together, Bella. Somehow, someway, you were the glue we didn't know we needed. It's been so amazing, feeling our family grow stronger in each other and in ourselves. I hoped you'd be happy with this ring and wear it always. It's just a small way of showing you how much you mean to me, to all of us. I wasn't half the person before as I've become since meeting you, and I know the rest of the family feels the same." With tears in her eyes she regarded her man, her beloved, and nodded, shakily extending her left hand. He smiled and reached for her right one.

"I wasn't kidding about the future proposal, and I'd like there to be no conflict about which ring you'd rather wear there." With that he slid the exquisite ring onto her right ring finger and she was stunned by how natural it felt, how well it hugged her finger, as though she'd been wearing it for years. She smiled through the dampness in her eyes and he pulled her into a tight hug, nestling her head underneath his chin.

"You've made us all so very happy, Bella. You're incredible. Thank you." When she finally sat back up and he put the car back in drive, pulling back out on the road, she saw a smirk cross his face. Sniffing, pulling herself back together, she turned to him.

"What's so funny?" she asked. He just looked at her and grinned.

"Now everyone will know that you're one of us in every way that matters. Your classmates might have a few...questions." Bella laughed.

"Not every way...but I'm patient. And I think I can handle the questions. I'll just tell them I'm lucky to have a group of incredibly wonderful vampire sex toys." He chuckled along with her, reaching out to clasp her hand as they turned into Charlie's driveway.