Esme shook her head sadly as she slowly mounted the stairs. The matriarch was not looking forward to the task that she had assigned herself, but it was something that she felt had to be done. Rosalie's and Jacob's little feuding game had gone on far too long and her daughter's inhospitable behavior would cease this evening.

The verbal sparring of carelessly thrown barbs was bad enough, but to actually treat Jacob, a guest in their home, like a dog was stepping well beyond the boundary of teasing into utter rudeness. Esme gritted her teeth in aggravation as the deplorable incident flashed through her mind's eye. How dare Rosalie act that way and within seconds of having confirmed that she wouldn't be an inhospitable hostess, at that? Her daughter's incivility was appalling, but Esme felt flagrantly lied to and that had been the final straw.

Heading toward Rose's room, Esme glanced at Carlisle's study door. Maybe she should allow him to handle Rose's insolence. The matriarch thought for a moment before shaking the thought from her head; no, that wouldn't be right. Punishing the children was a heartbreakingly arduous task that always seemed to be pushed off on Carlisle. He had more than enough on his plate with trying to find a solution to ease Bella's suffering. Since the shocking discovery of their newest daughter's pregnancy, the doctor had barely taken a moment for himself. Even before the wolf siege, Carlisle had forgone feeding to spend countless hours buried in dusty tomes of forgotten medicinal theory and folklore searching for an explanation and possible positive outcome to this event. With his research continually failing him, Esme had watched her mate become more frustrated with himself, the situation and his inability to control it.

No, her lover was going through quite enough. It would be cruel to ask him to tackle this unpleasant task when there was no need to involve him. Rosalie had been blatantly disrespectful and her mother would address the behavior herself.

Standing quietly at the study door Esme made up her mind, but felt that Carlisle should be kept abreast of the situation. He included her in all of his decisions that pertained to the children, so it would be only right to include him in hers. She would make it clear to him that she was handling their impertinent daughter on her own owing to the fact that she had been the one most offended. The matriarch knew that she could always count on her mate's support, but she found herself needing the reassurance of his words just the same.

As she was reaching out to knock on the heavy wooden door it quite suddenly opened and, much to her surprise, Esme found herself face to face with her wheaten haired son. As soon as their eyes locked, Jasper looked down and tugged at the hem of his waistcoat showing clear signs of distress. It was at that moment that Esme noticed that her solider boy was not quite in uniform.

"Jazz, where are your pants, baby?" Even though the words were softly spoken, Esme's shocked tone did nothing to alleviate the Major's self-consciousness.

"Umm." He swallowed hard while shifting his weight back and forth before closing his eyes tightly as the embarrassment grew too great for him to bear. "Being under lockdown due to these flea bitten varmints has caused my sweet Alice to flip out a bit, Momma. She has been going through my clothes and tossing everything that she deems 'last month's fashion' into a heap to be donated to charity. My little darlin' is planning on a major shopping spree to replace my out of style threads once this siege lifts. Until then, it appears that I'm going to be having a few not so minor wardrobe malfunctions."

"But, Son, your pants."

"Yes, ma'am. Believe me, I know." He shook his head sadly while jerking harder at his shirt tails and waistcoat to preserve some fraction of his remaining dignity. "Every pair I tried to put on got yanked out of my hand and added to the pile. They were too faded, too ripped, not stylish enough. Too baggy. Too skinny. Didn't do a decent job of hugging my butt well enough to please my commanding officer. " He finally forced himself to glance up and meet his mother's sympathetic loving gaze. "It would appear that I don't own a single pair of pants that are Alice approved at this time. I was lucky to get out of there with my favorite shirt and vest; which, I might add, Alice was eying in a most disapproving manner. I just thank the good Lord above that my drawers never quite go out of fashion or I would have a serious problem on my hands."

Esme covered her mouth to suppress a slight giggle at her son's predicament. Seeing how horrified Jasper was at being partially clothed, the matriarch forced her face into a neutral expression, but there was little she could do to buffer her sensitive son from the waves of mirth that she knew she was giving off.

"I'm sure that Alice means well, Honey. Did you try explaining to her that you needed at least a few pairs of pants until she can buy you something more suitable?"

Jasper muttered a softly, "Yes, ma'am, but she wasn't having it. You know how Alice can get just as well as anybody. Once my buttercup puts her mind to something there isn't a damn thing that can change it."

"Oh, I know someone who has managed to be successful at changing Alice's mind on several occasions." Esme quirked a brow as she glanced past Jasper into the study. "Is that what brought you to see your father? Were you enlisting his help with bringing Alice around?"

Shock clearly shown in Jasper's darkened eyes. "No, ma'am. I don't want Papa getting after my sweet Alice. I'd sooner just go buck nekkid before I'd land my sweetheart into any sort of trouble. It's not so bad really; what's she's done and all. She's just bored with being caged up. You can't lock a free spirit up and not expect there to be some sort of repercussions. She'll be right as rain as soon as we find a way to get things back to normal. There's no reason at all to involve Papa."

Esme looked confused once more. "Then what were you doing, Son? Surely, you didn't find yourself in any sort of trouble. I know that the emotional landscape must be adding stress to you, but..."

"I needed some pants, Momma," Jasper muttered in mild exasperation. "That's all. Papa was my best bet seeing as Edward's are a bit too tight and Emmett... well I aint build like a linebacker so we don't exactly share the same size either. Papa is a closer fit so I stopped in to ask if I could run a little raid on his closet."

Esme finally nodded her head in understanding. "Then I suppose you should get on with your raid, Major, but do make sure to hide your bounty carefully. I don't think your father will be very amiable if Alice begins to dispose of his things as well."

"She'll be only too happy to buy him new ones."

"There isn't a doubt in my mind that she would. Still…."

"Yes, ma'am. I've got it. I'll be careful, Momma, and I'll make sure to borrowing something that won't clash with my shirt. I can't have my little lovebug getting upset, after all." He rolled his eyes a bit as a mischievous grin curled his lips.

"I saw that, Major Whitlock!" Alice's lyrical voice called out a bit too sharply from the bedroom across the hall.

"Great. " The southerner sighed as he moved to step around Esme to make his way to his parent's room when a shudder went through him that chilled the venom in his veins. Stopping, he turned his puzzled gaze on his mother.

"Are you alright, " the southerner asked with genuine concern.

"Yes, Honey, I'm fine."

"That ruckus that I heard just a bit ago. Something happened with Rose, didn't it?"

Esme sucked her bottom lip between her teeth as she stared into the youth's eyes. With a quiet sigh she nodded. "No offense, love, but I would prefer not to discuss this with anyone except your father."

"But I might be able to help, Momma." The sincere desire to be of assistance was reflected in Jasper's expression. "I heard some clattering and then Rose stomped herself upstairs. I wanted to try to calm her, but usually she reacts poorly to my interference so I didn't even attempt it. Tell me what happened, Momma? Maybe I can go talk to her and soothe things over with Rose for you. Let's face it, when we're all trapped together like this, gettin' on each other's nerves is easy as falling off a log and just as potentially disastrous."

"I appreciate that you want to help, Baby, but right now it would be best for you to just to stay out of it."

"But, I really think that I can…."

"You heard your mother the first time, Jasper. She shouldn't have to repeat herself."

Jasper glanced over at the soft spoken patriarch as he leaned against the door frame in a relaxed manner with his arms folded over his chest. At his father's quiet reprimand, the boy hung his head in shame.

"Young man, you know better than that."

Esme laid a hand on her mate's arm. "He just thought that he could help, Carlisle. There was no harm done."

"I'm sorry, Momma. I shouldn't have pried. Papa is right to remind me of my manners and now that I know you're in good hands, I'll just be going." While still holding his head low, Jasper glanced up at Carlisle and received a little nod of dismissal before he vanished down the hallway.

"Really, Carlisle, there was no need for that."

"As well-meaning as our children may be, they need to learn to accept when their assistance is not desired. I'm just not in the mood to tolerate any disrespect right now, my Love and our boy's continual pressuring was disrespectful."

Esme brushed her hand through her mate's thick fair hair as she issued a sad sigh. "Then you are not going to be in the mood to hear what I've got to say."

Carlisle raised a brow as he studied his wife. "Young lady, don't tell me that you've been sent to see me for being disrespectful?"

His serious expression gave way to a playfulness that Esme would have much preferred to entertain in lieu of her current agenda.

"Let's step inside for a minute, Carlisle." She gave a little nod towards the open door before sliding past him into the study.

The sparkle in his eyes faded as quickly as it had appeared. "This sounds serious, A Chumann." Carlisle followed his mate and closed the door gently behind them. "What's happened?"

Taking a seat before her mate's desk, Esme rubbed at her forehead as she suppressed a groan.

Pulling the other guest chair over towards her, her husband took a seat as he watched his wife expectantly.

"You know, I might be the only person in this house who isn't afraid to come in here."

Carlisle smiled and nodded as he laid his hand lightly on his mate's knee. "It doesn't seem to bother Jasper too badly though since he'll willingly come on in to borrow a book now and again. Apparently to borrow slacks as well."

"We might want to talk to Alice about that."

"I'll talk to her in a little while. Now tell me what is going on that has you so anxious, my love." He ran a hand lovingly through her hair as he silently encouraged her to look at him.

Esme took a deep breath while she allowed herself to become lost in her mate's shimmering black eyes. "It's Rosalie, Carlisle. Her behavior was atrocious and it has to stop now. She was incredibly rude towards Jacob which was also disrespectful towards me."

Carlisle's mate quickly filled him in on the details of the incident, but found herself dismayed when a light smile graced his handsome face.

"This is not humorous, Carlisle. Rosalie deliberately disobeyed me and I won't stand for it. She lied to me."

"I don't know that I would go that far, darling. She did agree not to spit in his food and kept her word," he offered lightheartedly only to find that his mate not in the least bit amused. Clearing his throat, the patriarch shook his head as he turned serious. "No, of course it's not amusing, nor should you accept Rose's behavior. Don't worry, love. I'm positive that nothing like this will happen again. I feel certain that our daughter was just having a little fun and trying to break some of the tension that we have all been laboring under, but there is no good excuse for the disrespect that she has shown you. I'll go have a little chat with Rosalie and enlighten her to the error of her ways."

"You will do nothing of the sort, Carlisle Cullen."

Carlisle drew slightly back as his brow furrowed while he focused on his mate with questioning eyes.

"I will take care of this myself. I only wanted to make sure that you remained in the loop with what is happening. You have enough on your mind right now. Struggling with Bella's health issues is taking its toll on you and I won't have you shouldering more responsibility. This is my cross to bear and I will see it through. "

Her husband looked unconvinced and more than slightly worried. "Sweetheart, you know there really is no way that you can effectively ground Rose for her behavior or take away any privileges. We all apparently are being punished with restriction at this time."

"I realize that, Carlisle."

He heaved a heavy sigh. "Perhaps a stern warning will …."

"She has been warned quite enough. As you well know, this is hardly the first incident between those two and they have both been reprimanded on numerous occasions. Rosalie needs to learn when enough is enough, as does Jacob. I will have a little conference with him a bit later. It's far too easy for this game of theirs to get out of hand and cause tempers to flare. With no decent way to work off that agitation or get distance from each other, what starts as playful could turn ugly very quickly. They both need to understand that and act accordingly."

Carlisle mulled over his wife's words for a few moments then ran his hand through his hair before giving a slight nod. "Of course, Sweetheart, but at least allow me to speak with the boy."

Esme began to protest, but Carlisle waved a hand to cut her off.

"It should come from me since it would be me to whom he would answer. I will not put you in harm's way, Esme. I don't believe that Jacob would intentionally hurt you, but we don't know how he might react in the event that his behavior does require correction. Should he lose control and phase…." A phantom chill raced up Carlisle's spine.

Esme gently patted his forearm. "He won't lose control. He's a sweet boy, but if it makes you feel better."

Her mate nodded. "Some risks are never worth taking."

The matriarch graced her loving husband with a light smile before she leaned over and kissed his cheek. "With you at my side, Doctor Cullen, I know that no harm could ever come to me."

Sitting back in her chair, she let out a quiet sigh. "I guess I need to bite the bullet and get this over with."

"Esme, I will handle it," he offered a final time.

"No, Carlisle. They are my children and my responsibility as much as they are yours. Rose and I will muddle through. It's not as though I haven't been on the receiving end of her temper before."

A low growl rumbled in Carlisle's chest at his mate's words, but Esme simply stood to leave causing him to mirror her actions.

"I'll go make sure that Emmett doesn't intrude. He is generally not given to overprotectiveness, but then again he has never had to stay in the house before during one of these rare occurrences."

"I'm not going to be that hard on her, Carlisle. I just need to get my point across."

"I know, sweetheart." He slipped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her into his embrace as she reached the study door. Gazing lovingly into her eyes he spoke softly. "But you know that it doesn't take much to set us off when we feel that our mate is in danger. I would be a raging beast if I was in Em's shoes. We can't afford to accept that behavior, but I understand it entirely." He tapped the pad of his finger to the tip of her nose. "You are everything to me, and I hate to see you put yourself through this. I really wish that you would let me deal with Rosalie."

Esme drew her mate into a long deep kiss before reluctantly pulling away. "If you punish Rose then I have to be the one to wrangle Emmett. I don't like those odds. Just looks like a way for things to go from bad to worse." She rubbed her hand gently over Carlisle's cheek as she offered her mate a sad smile. "Go see to our son. Rosalie and I will be just fine."

"If you change your mind or you need me…."

Pushing him gently away she shook her head. "You know that I am fairly formidable, Doctor Cullen, but I will still keep your offer in mind. Now let me go before I lose my nerve."

"But that's why I'm working so hard to delay you." He reached out for her, but Esme ducked away from his grasp.

"I should have known you had some sort of personal agenda." She gave her mate a wink. "Now go on downstairs before I warm up for Rose by practicing on you, young man."

The matriarch landed a playful smack to her lover's backside before quickly turning away and wandering down the hall towards her daughter's bedroom with confidence in her stride.

Shaking his head at his wife's spunk, Carlisle gave a quiet groan as he headed towards the stairs following the sounds of his sons' muted voices.

"Come in," Rosalie called out in response to the soft knock on her bedroom door as she sat on the bed wrapped in a plush emerald robe as she towel dried her golden hair. Looking up, she was slightly shocked to see her mother step lightly into the room and close the door behind her. Esme's disappointed expression caused the young woman's mouth to go dry, but Rose forced the foreboding feeling away. Without a doubt her mother was here to give her a good dressing down and rather suddenly Rose felt her mood begin to sour.

"Before you say anything, I know that you don't approve, but the mongrel had it coming. He's been asking for it all evening."

"And what have you been asking for, Rosalie?"

Esme kept her voice soft and low hoping that if she remained calm her daughter would follow her lead, but instead her calmness seemed to spur Rosalie on to greater agitation.

"I beg your pardon? I'll have you know that I was minding my own business when you ordered me to feed the mutt. It was you who felt the need to involve me, so all of this is your fault, Esme."

Esme closed her eyes for a moment to collect her thoughts. "Rose, I don't think my asking you to see to the needs of our guest should cause you any great hardship. It is common courtesy and nothing more."

"Then why couldn't you just do it yourself? Why do I have to always be the one to dirty my hands with that irritating canine ? I never wanted a dog in the first place. I wasn't the one who brought him home, so why is it my job to feed him, clean up after him and take him for his walks?"

Esme's jaw clenched for just a second before she softly hissed, "Rosalie, that is quite enough. I've had it with your insolence."

"Oh like that's a shock, mother." Rosalie rolled her eyes as she stood and made her way over towards the adjoining bathroom. "You know you really shouldn't hide your feelings like that. It's not healthy to keep them bottled up."

"Rosalie Lillian Cullen, where do you think that you're going?"

The teen stopped and glanced at her mother with a raised brow. "I need to brush my hair out."

"The only thing that you need to do, young lady is retake your seat. I have not dismissed you."

"This is my room, if you haven't noticed. I hardly need anyone's permission to do as I please in it."

"Then perhaps you would care to take this discussion to your father's study. I'm certain that he won't mind and there are fewer distractions to steal your attention."

Esme could have sworn that her daughter paled at the mention of Carlisle's study, but the girl effectively squelched her trepidation as she glared at her mother through narrowed eyes.

"How dare you threaten me."

"Don't take it as a threat, Rosalie. It's just a simple fact. Either you sit down and talk to me in a civilized manner, or you can continue acting like a spoiled child and force me to involve your father. Either way the end result will be the same; you will eventually have to talk to me." Esme held her daughter's glare. "Now, please sit down, Rosalie."

A nearly silent growl rumbled in the fair haired woman's throat as she stubbornly stood her ground.

"Rosalie, I will not ask you again."

"Good. Then this meeting is over. Please feel free to show yourself out. I trust that you can find the door, mother." With a dismissive toss of her head the obstinate blonde turned her back on Esme and stalked towards the bathroom once again only to find her progress impeded by a delicate hand firmly gripping her shoulder. "Let go."

The loud crack of her mother's palm against her backside echoed in the room moments before Rose registered the stinging pain. Shrugging off the hand that impeded her movement, the teen rubbed away the burning sting while snarling at her eerily calm disciplinarian.

"Rosalie Lillian, you are too smart to act this foolishly. I have never known you to so completely refuse to acknowledge your wrong doing. You can't honestly tell me that you believe that what you did to Jacob was acceptable."

"It was more acceptable then the time he chewed up my shoes. Or… I don't know, how about the time he put that dead skunk in my car? I understand that Jacob doesn't have to follow the same rules of respect that the rest of us do, but I don't see why I should have to give him respect when he doesn't show me any. Please enlighten me, Mother because that doesn't seem fair in the least."

Esme's expression remained neutral, but inwardly she groaned. As disappointed as she was with her daughter, Rose's argument was irrefutable. The matriarch's sense of fairness was demanding that she concede and allow her Rosalie's behavior slide once again, but hadn't that been what she and Carlisle had been doing all this time in the hopes that she and Jacob would eventually grow weary of their games? Instead, the insults and pranks had escalated into what she now felt obliged to correct before it grew any further.

Folding her arms, Esme calmly surveyed her hellcat of a daughter. This stand-off was the direct result of her and Carlisle's inaction and as much as she hated it, she knew what had to be done.

"Rosalie, I do understand your view completely, but your father and I are not responsible for Jacob. He has certainly not been helpful to the situation and Carlisle is going to have a word with him about that; however you could have been the bigger person and not allowed him to rile you up. He is nothing but a child, Rose while you are a mature young woman. You have allowed him to drag you down to his level and I'm sorry that it doesn't seem fair, but I am going to put a stop to the foolishness. Had you taken the high road and walked away, he would have become bored and stopped. Instead you've acted childish and now you get to reap the reward for your disobedience."

"What disobedience? You asked me to feed him so I did. What more do you want?"

"Rosalie, you know that your behavior was inappropriate. You are very well aware of how a guest should be treated in this house."

"He's not a guest. He's a mange riddled stray who keeps hanging around because you feed him."

"ROSALIE! That's quite enough. I am through putting up with this insubordination." Esme's eyes flashed before she regained control over her frustration. "I can see that talking isn't going to do a bit of good so I guess we might as well just cut to the chase." Quickly capturing her daughter's wrist the matriarch issued a firm, "Let's go" as she made her way over towards the bed.

Too stunned to resist, Rose following along until her mother took a seat making her intent suddenly perfectly clear to the wide eyed youth. With a shake of her head, Rosalie yanked her wrist free from her mother's grasp and took several steps back.

"You must be out of your flaming mind. You can't be serious. You can't do this; not here and certainly not now." The girl's words came out in a low hiss as she became aware of her precarious situation.

"I most certainly can and will." Esme tapped her foot against the floor in irritation. "Young Lady, you have gone out of your way to earn yourself a good hard spanking. My plan was for something much milder to give you a little motivation to straighten your act out, but if you insist on fighting with me I will give you what you deserve."

"But…but… Emmett is in the house."

"You father will handle any issues involving your mate."

The look in Rosalie's eyes turned from anger to mortification as she lowered her voice to the barest of whispers. "What about Bella and Jacob?"

"What cannot be cured must be endured." As her errant daughter continued to stare at her, Esme sighed softly. "Rose, if it helps any to know this, your father gave Bella a mild sedative to help with the pain. She is completely incognizant at this time so there should be no issues where she is concerned."

"But, Jac…."

"There is nothing that can be done about that. If we ask him to step out of the house we will be putting him in danger. The pack would very likely harm him if they catch him alone."

Rosalie swallowed hard as she silently pleaded with her mother.

"Honey, if you had not fought me, this would already have been over and there would have been a good chance that Jacob would be as oblivious to our discussion as Bella. By now, I can only assume that raised voices have put him on alert so all bets to that end are off. You will just have to accept it, but you know that we will not tolerate him teasing you over your punishment."

The young woman turned her face away from her mother as she scoffed. "Like you can stop him."

"You father will do whatever he must to bring Jacob in line. As much as Bella seems to need him, if he can't behave himself we will ask him to leave and Carlisle will have a talk with Billy before Jacob is allowed to step foot back in this house. Rose, this childish competition to outdo each other through insults and pranks has to stop; at least for now. We are all under a great deal of stress and I'm sure that part of the teasing between you is an attempt to relieve some of that pressure, but you are in danger of taking things too far. If it continues someone is going to get hurt. Maybe not physically, but emotional trauma is often much worse." Esme took a breath before allowing the hurt that she was feeling to have the freedom to color her tone. "If that wasn't bad enough, Rose, you lied to me."

The blonde snapped her full attention towards her mother. "I would never…."

"But you did. When I told Jacob that you would never embarrass me with a lack of hospitality, you were quick to affirm that fact, but what did you do? Actions speak louder than words, Honey. You insulted Jacob and in doing so proved what little respect you have for me."

Rose's gaze hardened at the accusation, but her eyes glistened as venom welled up within them. The youth crossed her arms, raised her head slightly and closed her eyes as she fought back the tears brought on by the pain of her mother's words.

"I was only trying to have some fun."

"I know, Sweetheart."

Rose cleared her throat before she leveled her gaze back upon her mother. "It is never my intention to show you disrespect. I have a great deal of respect for you, Esme. I regret that I made you believe that I don't."

Esme crooked her finger and motioned for Rosalie to come closer.

Take a breath, Rosalie crossed the short distance that separated her from her mother.

Gently grasping her daughter's hands in her own, Esme looked up at Rose with a stern expression. "I don't want to ever have this discussion with you again, Rosalie. I know for a fact that you know how to behave. I'm not saying that I don't expect you and Jacob to have moments of playful teasing, but you need to realize when it has gone on long enough. He's a young boy still. I expect you to set the example for him to follow and know when to call a truce."

Rose nodded before she found herself eased across her mother's lap.

Oh for Christ's sake.

Gripping handfuls of the comforter tightly, the young woman swore to herself that she wouldn't make a sound. She wouldn't give that damn mutt the satisfaction of hearing her cry nor did she want her mate any more distressed than he must already be. She felt a cool rush of air against her shower warmed skin as her mother flipped the robe up to uncover her backside. Burying her face in the crook of her arm, Rose held her breath as she waited for the first smack to land. She wouldn't wait long.

A half a dozen quick stinging swats and the girl felt herself shifted back up and onto her feet. She gave her mother a confused look prompting Esme to order softly.

"Rosalie, go get your hairbrush and bring it back."

A long forgotten memory of her human youth flashed vividly in the girl's mind's eye causing her to swallow nervously as she held her mother's gaze.

"Rose? Go on. Your brush. Go get it."

Rosalie's feet felt like lead as she shuffled into the bathroom and gathered the heavy hard ebony wood brush. She had long been fond of the sturdy antique tool, but now she found herself regretting its inclusion in her personal items. She wasn't sure if it would hold up against her hard flesh, but she was certain that it would hurt like hell when it broke across her behind. As she made her way back towards her mother she swore silently that the first thing she would do would be to buy one of those new plastic backed numbers that wouldn't stand a snowball's chance in hell against her rear.

As the downtrodden young woman reluctantly approached her mother, Esme held her hand out expectantly. Rose inhaled deeply and raised her head to look her mother in the eye. She had never been a coward and the youth was not about to act like one now. Swallowing back her nervousness, she gently placed the implement into Esme's outstretched hand.

"Come here, Rose."

Esme pushed back slightly on the bed before pulling her daughter onto her lap. Shifting the girl at bit to make sure that she was comfortable, the matriarch began to slowly and carefully work the knots out of the silky shimmering tresses.

"Rosalie, I don't expect us to have an issue like this again, but if we do you will answer to me and then to your father. Are we clear on this point? I'm not trying to threaten you, Baby. I just want you to be aware of the repercussions of this sort of behavior."

"Yes, ma'am." Rose felt herself begin to relax as if hypnotized by her mother's gentle brushing.

"Good, and I will be expecting you to offer an apology to Jacob." She felt her daughter tense for a second before she nodded. "Baby, if Jacob begins to take things too far and gives you problems I want you to come to either Carlisle or me, especially right now. A little joking around is fine, but too much given how tense everyone is…."

"I understand, Mom. I can't honestly say that I'm sorry for what I did, but I get the point that we were getting out of hand. What I do regret is upsetting you." Tears pooled in the young woman's eyes at the thought of having hurt her mother.

"Shh. It's all forgiven, Rose. We'll just chalk it up to live and learn, alright?"

A gentle knock resounded on the bedroom door.

Wiping a tear away, Rose cleared her throat before offering a quiet. "Come in."

As the door cracked open, Carlisle's head popped inside. "I just wanted to check on my girls."

A slight smile from his adoring mate immediately put his mind at ease.

"Is everything okay, Kitten?"

"It will be once I figure out how I'm going to apologize to the mutt."

"Rosalie." Esme admonished softly.

"Mom, he is still a dog. My behavior, right or wrong, will never change that fact. You'll probably have to spray the house for fleas when he leaves."

"Maybe we should give him a bath and flea dip." Carlisle remarked with a wink that caused his daughter to smile.

"Carlisle, you are not helping."

"It was just a thought, my love."

"Which should have been kept to yourself, young man, unless you want to be the next one over my knee," Esme rebuked firmly as she pointed the hairbrush in her mate's direction.

Carlisle held his hands up in surrender. "I'll be good."

"You had better be." Esme gave him a stern look before the faintest of smiles crossed her lips. "Now get yourself out of here and let your daughter get dressed. She has a little unfinished business to take care of down stairs."

"Yes, ma'am." The patriarch snapped to attention at his wife's command.

Rosalie did her best to stifle a laugh, but her glittering eyes gave her amusement away. "We'll be down in a few minutes, Daddy."

"Alright, Kitten. I need to go check on the boys anyway. I left Emmett and Jacob cleaning up the mess. Can only imagine how that will turn out. With those two, they are liable to cause more damage than they fix." He rolled his eyes as he gave a soft sigh. "We'll be looking for you to join us soon."

With a final smile of encouragement, Carlisle ducked back out of the room closing the door behind him.

Esme just shook her head in dismay. "At least we know where you get it from. You can tell that it is your father's venom that runs in your veins."

"You have the same venom."

"Well that's true." Esme thought for a moment. "I guess I can just control it a bit better."

Rose shifted around to catch her mother's eye. "I don't know about that. You have your moments, Momma, and you know it."

Esme gasped in shock. "I do not."

"Oh, really? Don't try to act all innocent or should I go ask Jasper about the time…"

AN: Yeah, Rose got off very light, but Esme felt bad about Rosalie having to take the brunt of the punishment while Jacob walks free. That sense of fair play raised its head so Esme just went with a bit of a wake up call and a stern warning. Hopefully that will be enough to check Rose's future endeavors though that is still questionable.

There is also a chance that this story might go on a tad bit longer than planned. There is talk of a clash between the Major and the Mutt. Not sure on that one, but...

Thanks for everything, guys. You all are the best and I have exciting news. "Dark Justice" has been nominated for "Most Promising in canon Twilight Fanfic" in the Energize WIP Awards. How cool is that? I'm interesting to see how it does up against more main stream stories so keep your fingers crossed and feel free to cast a vote if you get a chance. ;-) Voting starts on the 13th. *happy squeal* You guys know that it is your support that has made that possible. *hugs*

Special thanks to my super beta, Splinter. I would be much more insane than I already am if it wasn't for her.