Disclaimer: I am not Stephenie Meyer; I do not own the Twilight series, just a fan having fun. No copyright infringement is intended.

Chapter 13

Nessie's POV

Once the meeting was over, Grandpa quickly excused himself and went upstairs to the lab to start testing the creature's arm, taking Grandma with him. Aunt Alice was extremely put off by the fact that she did not see the attack coming, so she and Uncle Jazz left, to get some distance from me and Jake, so that she could concentrate on looking into the future and finding some sort of clue that could help us figure everything out.

"Come on Rose… the mood here is killing me." – Uncle Em took Aunt Rosie's hand and they also left the house running.

"Bella love, your eyes look really dark… when's the last time you went hunting?"

"When we went together, before you left."

"Bella." - Dad was giving mom a reproachful look. – "That was more than a week ago, that's not good."

"I didn't want to go without you… I've never hunted without you." – She was pouting at my dad, her perfectly beautiful face looking more human than vampire. My dad smiled at her and kissed the tip of her nose. – "Silly girl." – Then he turned to look at me, knowing I wasn't in the best mood, worry still very much in me.

"Nessie darling, I think hunting will help take our minds off all this… come with us."

"Sure… we have to go hunting anyway… let's go Jake." – I turned to look at him and didn't find the face I expected. He looked very serious and thoughtful. He cleared his throat before speaking… never a good sign.

"Baby… I can't… everything Carlisle said is really important… I have to call a pack meeting, Sam's and mine… we need to figure things out too." – Like mom, I'd never gone hunting without my significant other; I can't remember a Saturday when I hadn't hunted with Jacob, I wasn't sure I could do it.

"But this doesn't have anything to do with you… you don't have to get involved." – I was panicking, first of all, because I desperately wanted to leave Jacob out of this; and secondly, because I didn't want him out of my sight. My statement sounded more like a plea, like a child's desperate plea.

"If it has to do with you… it has to do with me. Besides, these wolves can hurt people and we can't have that, not here. We need to prepare." – There was no hesitation in Jacob's voice or face, I knew I couldn't persuade him otherwise and I knew he needed to fulfill his alpha role. So I just took in a deep breath and nodded.

"Would you walk me out?" – Jacob's voice changed from firm to shy, the sweetness returning in his tone. I looked up and was immediately overwhelmed by his beauty and the love in his eyes. I smiled and nodded once more.

I walked outside, in front of him, until I reached the beginning of the forest. When I turned to face him, he was leaning back on a fallen tree branch that lay diagonally, resting on another tree. He had his hands inside his pockets, with his face leaned down but looking up at me, his hair falling over his dark eyes. It was extremely sexy and I suddenly remembered our "car incident". I just stood there not knowing what to do or say; his stare unnerving me.

I finally couldn't take it anymore so I walked up to him. As soon as I was close enough, he took his hands out of his pockets and placed them on either side of my waist, caressing my belly with his thumbs. I gently swept away the hair from his face and kept my hand on his cheek, not projecting anything, just feeling his soft warm skin under mine.

"Will you be ok without me?"- He sounded sincerely worried.

"No." – He smiled and bit his lower lip, blushing slightly. I'd never seen him do that and it killed me. How could I let go of him? How could I go hunting as usual after watching him do that?

"Ness… you're projecting." – It wasn't a warning or a reproach, he was actually amused. I had no idea what I had projected, because it hadn't been on purpose, but it had made him blush so it couldn't be decent. I quickly pulled my hand away but he grabbed it and kept it in place, never breaking eye contact with me.

"I like it." – The way he said it wasn't seductive or sexual or teasing, it was sincere and innocent. We stayed looking at each other for what seemed like a lifetime, my hand still on his face and his hands still caressing my waist.

"I wish I could read yours."

"Well, my thoughts aren't half as dirty as yours…" – He was teasing now, making me giggle.

"What did I project?" – The curiosity was killing me, mostly because I've never projected something by accident; I always choose a thought and think it and then show it, nothing has ever slipped away unconsciously. When I asked, Jacob blushed again and again bit his lower lip, looking down, the sides of his mouth twitching from where they wanted to break out into a smile.

"The time I phased after your fight with Blondie." – I immediately felt a flush of red go straight to my face. That is something I never wanted him to know, much less see!!! I took my hand from his face and covered mine with both hands, the heat of my flustered cheek burning into my palms. Jacob started laughing his loud bark laugh and I just wanted to hit him. He pulled me closer and instead of just holding my waist with his hands, he wrapped his arms around it, closing any gap that had been between us.

"Come on Ness… please don't hide your beautiful face from me."

"You weren't supposed to see that." - My voice was muffled but I knew he could understand. My statement made him laugh again.

"You're so adorable!!! A few minutes ago you were showing me worse things… and now you feel shy, for this?" – I could tell from his voice that he had his huge "Jake" grin on, but as much as I loved it when he smiled like that, I couldn't take my hands off my face.

"I know… I'm a silly girl."

"Yep… you're also a perve." – I could feel the vibration of laughter in his chest. – "Here I was all mortified that I would pervert you when all along you're the one that's been taking advantage of me… a guy can't even phase without his depraved girlfriend peeking at him."

He continued to laugh while I continued to hide my face; I don't know why I was so mortified. He was right; some minutes ago I was deliberately stripping him and showing him really sensual things, so why would I be embarrassed over this? I decided to stop the dramatics and took my hands off my face. Once I did this, he started playfully kissing my neck, making me squirm from the sensation, his juicy pecks tickling me.

"Ss…ss…stop it!!!" – I could barely speak from my giggling. He stopped but kept me securely pinned to his body.

"I want to see more… show me more… what other pervy things have you been doing?" – He was smiling his half smile, the one that drives me crazy, and was pulling my hand back toward his face. I playfully struggled but eventually gave in and placed my hand on his cheek. Whatever slipped out of me made him abruptly stop smiling; again I had no idea what I'd projected. For the half second before he spoke, my mind raced to try and find something in me that would make him stop smiling.

"Ness… is that what your nightmare was about… about me dying?" – He was holding me even tighter, pressing his forehead to mine. Again, I had no intention of him ever finding that out; the only person that knew about that horrible dream was my dad, mostly because I couldn't hide anything from him; and of course, my momma probably knew because he couldn't hide anything from her. Just remembering the dream made me want to cry, but I kept it in because I couldn't worry Jacob.

"I didn't want you to see that… it's nothing."

"It's not nothing Ness… if it was so on the surface that it came out by accident, it means you've been thinking about it, worrying about it." – He was so right I couldn't lie to him.

"You can't die… please… please don't leave me." – I pressed myself closer to him and closed my eyes, trying to keep the tears from coming.

"Ness… I'm the biggest meanest bad ass wolf out there; nothing's gonna happen to me." – He was half joking, but I didn't find it funny, not in the least, because he could still get hurt.

"You're not invincible Jake."

"Well, not exactly… but almost. We scared the shit out of the Voltury 6 years ago… and they were vampires… vampires Ness!!! You don't think we'll easily massacre some small time pack of dogs? I would actually be looking forward to a confrontation if I didn't have to worry about you… I bet the guys will be thrilled with the prospect of a fight."

"You need to take this seriously Jake!!! Dammit!!!" – His attitude was pissing me off, he couldn't take this lightly.

"Oh come on Ness… stop the dramatics. It's been a long time since the guys had a good fight!!! My only worry is you… other than that, this could actually be fun."

"How can you say that? What if it were me, huh? What if you thought I was in danger, what if you'd seen me being killed by one of those things, and I just boasted about being half vampire and "invincible" instead of being careful? Momma's right, sometimes you can be such a child. Get out of my way, I'm done with you."

I pushed him away and started walking back to the house. I couldn't handle his dismissive attitude toward something so crucial; his life was my life… I would surely perish without him. It was as if he didn't care that this whole thing scared the crap out of me.

He caught up to me and stood in my way so I couldn't get passed him.

"I'm not being a child… I'm just being realistic… a dream is not reality Ness!!! Don't you know who I am? I'm the god damn alpha!!! This is nothing… those things are not a threat!!! You're the one that's being childish!!!" – He was yelling really loudly and I knew my parents could hear him; why my dad hadn't come out to punch him for talking to me this way was beyond me. At this point I would have actually enjoyed watching my dad put him in his place.

I pushed him as hard as I could, but it was like trying to move a mountain.

"Get the hell out of my way Jacob Black… you're nothing but an insensitive dog!!!" – I immediately regretted calling him a "dog", because I knew how much it would hurt me if he ever called me a "leech" or a "bloodsucker". An image of the jerk in Jacob's work popped into my head and I felt as offensive as him. I couldn't take it anymore; I felt disgusted with myself, so I just dropped to my knees and started crying, a mixture of frustration, anger and guilt invading me.

Jacob had fistfuls of his hair in his hands and was pulling at it, his eyes pressed closed and his entire body shaking. We'd never fought before… I didn't like it. "Let them handle it" I heard my momma whisper to dad, inside the house; good, because dad coming out would only make things worse.

Jacob finally calmed himself and dropped to his knees in front of me. He took my face in his huge hands and started kissing me all over, wiping my tears with his lips.

"I'm sorry… I'm sorry… so sorry." – He kept repeating it as he continued to kiss every inch of my face and neck.

"I didn't mean to call you a dog… I didn't mean it… I was horrible." – I could barely speak through my sobs.

"I had it coming… please baby… stop crying."

"I can't… you didn't… I never ever wanted to call you that… but you're such a cocky jerk."

He stopped kissing me and pulled back to look at me. - "Ok, are you apologizing or just insulting me more?" – He could already make jokes… I really loved this man. I couldn't help but laugh in between my sobs, which made him smile.

"Any other insult or are you done?"

"I think I'm done." – He smiled again when I was able to say this without sobbing.

"You're right though… I can't just dismiss your fears even if I don't think you have anything to worry about… because you don't Ness. If it comes to a fight, with your family and our packs, those things won't stand a chance. Can you just trust me? Believe in me?"

"I do… but I still worry… tragedies happen all the time… you're human… even momma worries about dad."

"Ok, first off, your mom is a panicky apprehensive little vamp… and your dad is kind of a sissy." – I heard both mom and dad growl inside the house, but I couldn't stop from laughing.

"He could easily kick your butt though."

"That remains to be seen." – We both heard dad say inside the house "I'd gladly show you." Jacob rolled his eyes at me and whispered – "Sissy and nosy."

I laughed again while Jacob got to his feet and took my hands to help me up; completely unnecessary but I still liked it.

"I really have to go Ness… call the meeting… you see, I'm not taking this lightly… I'm just… how did you put it? A cocky jerk?" – He made me laugh again, by this time the knot in my stomach was gone.

"Let's just say "overconfident", ok?"

"How about "right on the money"?" – I rolled my eyes and made him laugh. He took my face in his hands again and kissed my lips, not nearly long enough as I would have liked, but close enough.

"Let's never fight again… I really didn't like that." – I answered by placing my hand on his cheek and projecting how awful I felt after calling him a "dog" and projected how badly I never wanted to offend him again. When I was done, he opened his eyes and said – "Promise?"- The vulnerability in his tone killing me.

"Promise." – I answered. I would rather chew my own tongue off than say something derogative to him again. He took my hand and we walked a bit farther into the forest, he stopped and turned to look at me.

"So… wanna watch me phase?" – He wiggled his eyebrows at me and my dad simultaneously called out: "Watch it". I blushed and so did Jacob; this new habit of his was really sexy and I suddenly didn't care what my dad thought.

He kissed me one last time, but instead of walking towards a tree to strip, he just stood there looking deeply and intensely into my eyes and pulled his shorts down. Neither of us broke eye contact, which meant I really didn't see anything… he was so close to me that I would have to look directly down to see anything, not even my peripheral vision allowing me to keep looking into his eyes and see much beyond his torso. Even though I saw close to nothing, it was still really exhilarating and I could feel my face getting hotter by the second.

"You're trouble Jake." – I said to him, imitating what he has said to me days before, outside his work, shaking my head as if in disapproval. Still not breaking eye contact, he leaned closer to me so that our faces were just an inch apart and I could feel his sweet breath.

"You have no idea." – And with that, he phased. He'd never phased so close to me; my hair was blown out of place, the force of the current of air forcing me to shut my eyes, a bolt of electricity running through my body from the impact of his morph. When I opened my eyes he was gone, just leaving behind the imprint of his large paws on the wet ground.

Jacob's POV

I was running with great force across the forest, my paws hitting the ground hard and all the leaves and branches stirring as I made my way through. The run was therapeutic; my fight with Ness still very present in my mind. I didn't want to upset her, so I'd started joking as always to lighten the mood, but everything that had happened really hurt me. Nessie had never gotten angry at me, never. And she definitely had never yelled at me or called me names, which was the worst part. The face she was giving me was engraved in my head and wouldn't go away; I always thought I'd be on the other end of her loving and caring expression, never imagined even in my worst nightmares that I could inspire such anger in her; she looked just about ready to hit me. My heart felt really heavy and not even the thought that she loved me and didn't mean it could take away my sorrow. How many other fights would we have? Was there something wrong with me? Was I a bad soul mate? Because I'd never seen Emily and Sam fight, Bella or Edward, not even bad tempered Blondie and impulsive Emmet.

"You're such a girl Jacob."- Leah was in wolf form and had listened in on my thoughts.

"Shut up Leah… I'm not in the mood."

"When are you ever in the mood?"

"For your shit… never. Now, make yourself useful and get the others, we need to have a meeting."

"Fine, but you're calling Sam."

"Whatever… whose the girl now?" – She growled at me and thought of three different and very painful ways of killing me. I dismissed her hostile attitude as always and continued to run until I reached Emily and Sam´s cabin. Sam came out as soon as the cabin was in sight, so I phased back right in front of him.

"Is there a problem?" – He was in full alpha mode, not even bothering to greet me.

"Not right now… but possibly later. We need to call a meeting, your pack and mine."

Sam nodded, took his pants off and phased. About two minutes passed before Sam's entire pack appeared in wolf form. Sam barked at me, signaling that they would follow, so I phased and we all started running.

"Everyone there?"

"Yes." – They all thought in unison. From what I could see, Leah, Seth and Embry were already reunited in our special meeting place. Quil was still running to get there; an image of Clair begging him not to leave her replaying over and over in his mind.

"You'll get back to her soon."

"Thanks… I'm almost there."

Quil and I arrived at the spot almost at the same time, the other pack trailing behind me. As soon as we were all there, Leah left so we could all phase back and returned fully dressed. We all sat down in the ground in a circle and everyone turned to look at me. No matter how long I've been the alpha of my pack, it still makes me nervous to be in the lead. I took in a deep breath before I spoke, not wanting to show my insecurity.

"Hello everyone, thank you for coming. The reason I called this meeting is because I've learned of a potential threat to our community and think it's necessary to share with you this information so that we can all be prepared if in fact this threat presents itself."

Everyone nodded and Sam raised his hand imploring me to keep going. I explained in detail everything that had happened with the Denalis, told them about the creatures first appearing a few months back in Volterra and about Carlisle's hypothesis and assessment of the situation. When I was done, Sam spoke.

"Thank you Jacob. I can see your concern, considering that these creatures appeared both times very close to vampire populations… but I must say… this has nothing to do with us." – Everyone in Sam's pack nodded in agreement, while mine turned to look at me. I felt the pressure but didn't let it get the best of me.

"It has everything to do with us Sam. These werewolves are known to be blood driven animals, they have no control, they hurt people, turn people, kill people. We are defenders of the human race and if those things show up here, it's our responsibility to take them out."

"First of all, you are not certain that they are truly werewolves. Secondly, have there been any reports of animal attacks on civilians? Do you have any proof that these creatures are not just after vampires? Because if not, they don't seem any different from us."

"What?" – I was dumbfounded. I never expected things to go this way, because I was sure I'd have Sam's support on this. What he was saying really caught me off guard. I cleared my throat before I spoke again.

"Sam, we can't take that chance. Besides, the Denalis are not a harm to humans, there is no reason why these things would rightfully attack them. Do not compare them to us."

"I must remind you Jacob that some time ago we did not care much if the vampires were "vegetarians"; the treaty was made by our ancestors but before that, we would have hunted them for just being the evil creatures they are. How can you be so sure that these things don't mean well? They would have to be acquainted with the Denalis to know they don't harm humans, a concept rather rare in the vampire population; as far as they could be concerned, the Denalis are vampires and evil."

"Sam, I'm not saying we should go hunt them… I'm just saying we should be prepared if they come here."

"Of course Jacob, but if they do not harm humans, there is no reason for us to get involved. We have our treaty with the Cullens, but that's as far as we go. We cannot get in the middle of their own fights." – I wanted to reach over and strangle Sam. It was my family he was talking about. Was he actually proposing we step aside and let them get killed?

"What about the Voltury? We got in the middle of that."

"Yes Jacob, but those were special circumstances. They were after your imprint and would certainly pose a threat to us, eventually. They were after all our enemies as well. If these creatures mean humans no harm, than they are not our enemies and Renesmee is safe."

"But her family isn't!!!"

"That, Jacob, is not our business." – Now I really wanted to strangle him. My hands were shaking and I felt as though I was about to phase, so I took in another big breath and decided on another approach.

"Sam, what if it was Emily? What if it were Emily's family the ones we were talking about?" – I felt Leah shift in her seat next to me at the mention of Emily's name, but I didn't pay attention; my focus was solely on Sam. My question struck a chord in him because he broke eye contact and looked down, thinking. When he finally spoke, his voice was softer but not less determined.

"Jacob… our imprints are part of our packs, we have a responsibility to protect them because if one of them should get hurt, it affects us all. Having said that... as alphas we have the duty to look out for the "greater good", for the safety and well being of our packs and our people. If Renesmee isn't directly in danger, we cannot risk the safety of our pack to protect outsiders. My priorities are in place, first our pack and our people, then other civilians. I'm sorry, but vampires can take care of themselves; it is not our function to protect them. You need to be objective."

Before Sam had finished, Leah, who was sitting on my right, started growling at him. Even in her human form, she was still really scary and her growl still echoed through the forest. Sam looked really taken aback by her reaction. I knew this would solve nothing, so I gently placed my hand on her shoulder; as soon as I did this, Leah stopped growling and relaxed in her seat.

"Jacob, please don't take this personally. I believe we are getting ahead of ourselves; we are just conversing about this, throwing out possible scenarios, discussion tactics… you are not even sure if this things are a threat. If the Doctor is right and these creatures are really werewolves, the kind that go on murderous rampages and infect other humans, than we will fight them." – He was right. This meeting was just to brief everyone and let them know what was going on and what could possibly happen; I didn't need to get worried or worked up about it. It was even possible that in fact the vamps would not even need our assistance.

I wanted the meeting to be over, so I got to my feet and walked forward, Leah and Quil rising when I did and walking next to me, flanking me on each side. Sam did the same and we met half way; only Jared by Sam's side. He extended his hand towards me and we shook.

"Thank you for the information Jacob. I expect you'll be letting us know what the Doctor finds."

"Yes, of course. Thank you for your time Sam." – With a serene smile, he turned and ran into the forest, followed by his entire pack. I felt relieved once they left; I knew he was right, but it still angered me that he wouldn't support me, support Ness, without first having proof; that he really didn't care about the Cullens. I suddenly realized I was alone in that… caught between two opposite worlds.

Once everyone was gone, Quil patted me on the back.

"You did good Jake… relax… whatever happens, you have our loyalty." – Even though I already knew this, it still felt good to hear him say it. My spirits were not high after the meeting.

"Yeah, don't worry Jake. Besides, Nessie's half vampire… if these things are attacking vampires, she is directly at risk. Sam knows this. When push comes to shove, he'll back you up… I know him." – Leah blushed a bit when she said that last part and I felt bad for her; after all this time and she still loved him. I made a mental note to be nicer to her.

"So, is there anything we can do right now?" – Embry was standing with his arms crossed; Seth to his left nodding excitedly.

"We'll just double up on patrols and extend our perimeter. If these things plan on coming here, we'll know about it."

"Would you like me to stand watch on the Cullen house?" – Seth had his goofy excited grin on, probably because he liked the Cullens and Esme always cooks him his favorite meals.

"Not yet Seth… let's not get ahead of ourselves."

"Ok… so… can I get back to Clair?" – Both Leah and Embry rolled their eyes at Quil; I would have probably done the same if I didn't know how horrible it is to be far away from ones imprint.

"Sure, sure." – Quil phased on the spot, not even bothering to take his pants off, speeding back towards town.

"I can't wait for Clair to grow up… maybe she'll stop being so needy." – Embry was half joking and I couldn't blame him for his comment, because I knew how much he missed Quil and me since we imprinted. I could only hope that he would imprint soon so I didn't have to carry the guilt of bailing on him.

"That's doubtful Embry… look at Nessie, she's just as clingy." – Leah was giving me her sadistic evil smile, but I refrained from any reply because I know how hard this whole imprinting thing is on her. I couldn't even imagine Nessie being in love with someone else, let alone have to accept it. Leah was a tough girl, I'll tell you that.

Once Leah realized she couldn't start a fight with me, something she loves to do, she decided to leave, taking Seth with her. – "Como on bro, let's go see if mom's home."

"So… you getting back to Nessie now?" – Embry looked so lonely it killed me.

"She's hunting with Bella and Edward… I'm sure they'll keep her busy… you wanna go do something?" – Embry's face lit up and I knew Nessie would understand, because she's always had a soft spot for him.

"I just got the new "Guitar Hero"!!! You can rock the guitar and I'll play the drums!!!"

"Ok, cool… let's go."

We started running back to Embry's house and as I ran, I sent a text message to Nessie.

The meeting went well. I'm spending the afternoon with Embry… he needs me. I hate to leave you but I need to be a good friend to him. Love you more than you know.

About two seconds passed before my phone vibrated in my pocket: a text from Ness.

I love you more. Be careful. I'll wait for you in bed… leave the window opened for you. XOXO

And with that, I was able to enjoy the afternoon with Embry; knowing my Nessie, the reason of my existence, the happiness of my life, would be waiting for me… in bed.

Thank you so much for adding me to your "favorites" list… it means a lot. Please leave me your reviews!!! I don't have nearly as many as I'd like!!!

PS. This chapter is dedicated to my dear friend Mojito… love ya, thanks for reading.