Chapter 6

The Nessie Clause

Nessie's POV

"Not sure," Mom replies easily, not missing a beat. "You want me to just leave you on the side of the road? You can meet Jake somewhere. I'll text you when it's 'safe', though, knowing your father that will be a while. On second thought stay far away from the house for a while. Until I call and tell you it's ok. Your dad might kidnap my phone."

"He's insane," I say, knowing my mother will defend him.

"I prefer cautious. He was always careful with me, the same as he is with you… Just imagine being a fragile human in your father's care. It was something I loved, but that was because I loved him. It was well worth it." She smiles lovingly.

"Yeah, yeah. Spare me the details." She smiles wider.

"You are one of the details!" She says smiling at me and then, "This good?" She pulls onto the shoulder of the freeway.

"It's fine, Jake will be here soon I'm guessing, if he's not trailing our car."

She closes her eyes for a second and says, "He's about two minutes from here, in his human form now. That's what slowed him down-phasing back."

I raise an eyebrow at her.

"I call sense him-well… his essence, or flavor rather, when I stretch my shield out. He's close. And I know he's human because I don't have any other wolves under my shield." I raise an eyebrow at her. "If the alpha is shielded the rest of the pack is too." She clarifies.

"Oh. Ok. Thanks mom." I lean over and hug her.

"Of course Renesmee, anytime."

"I hope you mean that. Now you're probably going to have to shield our thoughts all the time. Sorry,"

"Ness, it's no big deal. I just have to practice a little more now. Not a problem, especially for my favorite daughter, and her… boyfriend?" It's a semi-reluctant question.

"I guess that's what he is to me. I don't know. We haven't really discussed it yet."

"He loves you, you know that right?'

"I've known that since I was four."

"Well, maybe if he sees that I don't mind you and Jacob being together… I love Jacob like my own son. And your father does too, whether he'll admit that or not is another story, and so, we've come full circle. Conclusion: let me handle your dad."

"Good luck. Lets just leave it at that." And I swing the Ferrari's door open.

"Bye Nessie! Love you."

"Bye mom."

And I turn towards the forest. I'm not really sure where Jake is, but I know he's close. It's just safe to assume he'd be in the forest. I pull out my phone and send a quick text to Jake.

Just in the tree line, adjacent to the freeway.

His response comes quickly, as expected.

Great. On my way.

I don't even bother to respond, because he'll be here in the time it would take for him to receive and respond to my text. I plop down on a fallen log and stare up into the trees, marveling at the way my mother reacted to my news. I was impressed at her composure, but even as a newborn she'd always been well tempered for a vampire-so much so that Uncle Jasper wasn't even comfortable being around her for a short time.

She didn't look angry in the least, and she dropped me off at the side of the road to meet up with Jacob! How surprising she was today! I vaguely recalled a memory I hadn't paid attention to before, one that involved my Dad saying, "I'm sure she'll surprise me. She always does," from when I had thought my mother was asleep, though I know now that she was undergoing the change to an immortal.

How funny it was that my mother surprises me in a similar way as she had always surprised my father. Though I assume it was more disconcerting for him because of his mind reading abilities.

Then, a startling thought, my father had been discussing Jacob the last time he talked about my mother surprising him. How odd, that he would once again be discussing Jacob's imprinting with my mother. Ironic, really.

With that, Jake comes into view. "Jacob!" I exclaim, bolting up from my sitting position on the log and meeting him halfway between the log and where he was standing seconds ago, using my hybrid speed.

"Hi!" I say, still bubbly and excited from my conversation with mom going so well.

"Hey Ness. You're in a good mood…" He looks confused, but happy, simply because I'm happy-and that's one of the many reasons I love Jacob.

"Yes!" I say, still giggly. "I told my mother about us and she's not going to kill you! She even said she'd talk to dad for me! Shouldn't you be happy too?"

"Of course I'm happy Ness." He smiles his easygoing smile.

"Well, that was a stupid question. You're always happy." I couldn't even remember a time when he'd been unhappy-as long as I excluded the chunk of time when the Volturi had sentenced us all to death-because of me. Then again, we were all unhappy then, even my tiny younger self.

"Not always." He amends my statement quietly. "Only when I'm around you really." When he says things like that I swear my heart melts.

"That's sweet." I smile at him lovingly.

"It's true. I'm not making that up." My face must say that I'm not buying it. "Seriously I'm not that romantic-sorry. Just ask the pack. I get really irritable when I'm away from you." I laugh at this.

"If it makes you feel any better, I am always happier around you too."

He smiles at me and looks around at the forest. I look up and I'm entranced by the way the sunlight shines through the leaves of the trees in such a living way. It's like that color green actually represents the epitome of life itself. It's beautiful. I'm going to have to paint it at home.

"So… what now?" He asks lightly. "We're in the forest on the edge of a highway. And, by the way, the Bella I knew in high school would never have dropped off any child on the side of a road. It must be a 'hybrid only' policy."

"I don't know... She trusts you; maybe it has something to do with that. Though the fact that I'm not really breakable would help…"

"Well, either way, we have to go somewhere. Unless you want to just stay in the forest for some unknown amount of time." I don't bother to point out that I could tell him exactly how long we'd been standing in this spot (precisely one minute and seven seconds), not to mention in this position, just because my half-vampire side keeps a running time table going at all times.

"Hmm…" I think for a moment about the painting I want to do when we get back to the main house-after we're sure dad won't kill Jacob-and I realize I do have somewhere I need to go. "I have a few stops to make, you can just… I don't know go visit Emily, or something. I will meet back up with you later."

"Where are you going?" He actually sounds curious.

"To get art supplies. I have a new idea for a painting, but it's going to take me forever to nail the color scheme, and mix the color just right, let alone finalize a sketch. It's a big project-but a fun one. I just need to get some supplies, and I can work on it later."

"And I can't accompany you to an art store?" He's looking at me like I'm crazy. "I've been with you to art stores all over, literally." He's not joking. I tend to utilize our frequent family trips out of state to try out different art suppliers.

"Yeah, but they're really boring for non-artsy people, so I don't want to make you stand there staring at a wall. That's no fun for you."

He stares at me like I'm missing something. I stare at him blankly, until he just sighs, and shakes his head.

"Where is this art store?" He asks me, and he actually looks interested in the answer. I'm impressed. The only person who ever looks interested about going to the art store is Alice, when she needs new design pencils.

Art is my past time, just like dads is music (and reading), Uncle Emmet's and Jasper's is fighting, and/or gambling. Aunt Rose's is fashion, and Alice does a little bit of everything: anything that involves planning for an event (it helps to be prepared for every possible thing that could ever go wrong) or designing clothes. Grandpa Carlisle's is medicine and Grandma Esme is into charity work and she helps the family when needed.

We all have our own way to kill time, and mine is art. I love the way I can take a paintbrush and just create a whole new view of something. I remember reading a quote somewhere that said, "Art is the only way to run away without leaving home." It's a goofy quote, because I really love my home, but it stuck with me, and I use it as inspiration. Because my art is the one thing that most people never 'get'.

I'm not your traditional artist.

"It's about ten minutes from here on foot."

"Ok, lets go." He grabs my small hand in his, and I attempt to ignore the sparks that shoot up my arm where he's touching me.

As we run I think about my recently completed projects, effectively denying my mind the chance to obsess over the fact that Jacob still has my hand. The last one I painted was one that nobody, not even Jacob, could figure out-even though he normally figures it out when no one else can.

For me, art is like looking through a lens. I see something and I know I want to paint it, and I just know how. It's like when I was staring at the tree leaves with the sunlight coming through, and I just knew that it was going to be one of my close ups-almost like looking into a microscope.

In contrast I've done one or two where I've zoomed out so far into the atmosphere that you can't even distinguish the object. When I did one like that of the main house it took my parents two weeks to figure out what it was. Because I wouldn't tell them. I never tell anyone.

They have to guess, or make it up themselves, because art is about the perception of the viewer. Normally Jacob 'gets' my paintings when no one else can. I'm sure my dad sees what they are in my thoughts, but he never tells anyone else. And he always tells me his first guesses before he hears the real answer in my thoughts. I'm going to have to ask mom to shield me next time. I hadn't realized how easy it was for her.

This one won't be hard to figure out if I do my job correctly. There's a very unique look of the leaves I see in my head: Bright green, with sunlight streaming through each divot on the surface. It's beautiful, and if I can nail the colors precisely it will be one of my fast favorites.

Jacob slows to a stop, and I come back to the present. We've reached the art store quicker than I'd planned and I zip into the building. Jake and I go from the paints aisle to the sketch pencils aisle, and finally to get a new canvas.

After I've selected all my items I head to the cashier to check out. I pay and take two of the three bags, only to have Jacob insist on carrying everything.

"Jacob," I complain as we make our way towards La Push. "I can carry things you know."

"It's not that I don't know that so much as you shouldn't have to carry things. Especially not where I'm right here."

I chuckle at this a little. He makes it sound like his only purpose is to traipse around carrying my shopping bags.

Suddenly my phone buzzes.

I press talk quickly, knowing my mother is calling and not texting even before the second vibration.

"Hello?" Jake and I have come to a stop in the forest. "Mom? You there? Do Jake and I need to flee the country? The continent?" I'm joking-but only on the surface.

"I'm not really sure yet. Your father was… upset, when I told him." Then my mother is interrupted by some commotion in the background, but all I'm able to catch is "Just like…" and "Jacob was safe" and then finally "Because he was your best friend".

"Is that Alice?" I ask tentatively.

"Yes!" Alice's voice chimes in from the other end of the phone.

"Hey. So…?"

"It would appear as though Jacob is currently protected under what I would call the 'Nessie Clause' wherein as long as you want Jacob safe, he shall remain that way, because you love him, and your father loves you." My mother explains carefully.

"Ok. So, we can come home now?"

"I think so."

"Ok. Bye."

I hang up the phone, pleased by the result of the conversation. My Jacob is safe! That's a relief.

"What's the verdict?" Jake asks, slightly nervous.

"Dad's not going to kill you." I tell him with a smirk.

"Say's who?"

"My mother seems to think that I do."

"You lost me." He admits, confused now.

"Apparently there's a 'Nessie Clause' which says as long as I want you here, safe, and with me, he won't do anything to you, because that would indirectly impact my happiness."

"Oh." Jake still looks a little confused.

"That means you're in the clear."

Silence.

"Jake, he's never going to hunt you down."

"Yeah?"

"Yes." I assure him. "Because I'm never going to stop loving you."

Hey guys! I know it's been forever. I had some trouble with my ideas for this chapter, but I managed it. Hope you all like it, and I hope you like Nessie's little pass time. I thought it would be something she would do. Please let me know what you think .

Thanks,

R&R