I am not Stephenie Meyer and do not own her characters. Just a fan having a little fun, no copyright infringement intended.

Chapter 17

Jacob's POV

"Hey… what do you want to do?" – Quil was already in human form, standing beside me with a heavy expression. He wouldn't look at Nessie, keeping his eyes straight on me without dodging them. I could tell he thought I was crazy, reckless; I even sensed some anger radiating from him.

"Go get Edward and Carlisle… they need to see her before we burn her." – He nodded and left running with Seth at his heels.

"What's wrong with Quil…? I thought he'd be celebrating… instead he looks pissed." – Nessie's head had already stopped bleeding and she was looking as though nothing had ever happened.

Before I could answer her, Quil and Seth came back.

"They're coming… Sue told Bella about our hunting trip, we found them half way."

Quil was just finishing his sentence when Edward and Carlisle stepped into the clearing. I distinctly heard Carlisle whisper "calm down" to Edward. Great… now I was really going to get killed; not that I didn't deserve it. Carlisle walked toward the corpse and began scrutinizing it, while Edward stood there watching me, his gaze fierce.

"I understand that your mental abilities are limited, I understand that you are an impulsive overconfident immature dog, I understand that you're a risk taker… but what I cannot grasp is why you would come here, looking for danger with my daughter without so much as a warning to Bella and I. Please help me understand what possessed you to act alone when you have a family of vampires who can assist you." – He wasn't yelling, his voice was calm and steady, but somehow I could feel the coldness and intimidation in it. I saw Leah make a face when Edward said "family of vampires" and I knew that even though the others aren't as vocal as Leah, they were all put off by Edward's remark to me. This would forever be my eternal place; caught in between two opposite worlds, two lifelong adversaries.

"Edward… I…"

"Dad, I'm fine… you don't need to get angry with Jacob." – Nessie stood up next to me.

"You're bleeding… that's hardly fine. It could have been worse… this could have been a trap. Did you think of that? You do not walk into battle unprepared." – His tone was harsh but it wasn't directed at Nessie, even though it was her whom he was answering to.

"Edward, I'm sorry… not for coming to look for them, because my pack has dealt with worse things, but for bringing Nessie… it… it felt like the right thing to do. I'm sorry."

"The right thing to do? I really don't understand you Jacob… a second ago you where fighting with Bella and me about taking Nessie away… and now, you bring her here to fight? You've already put one of my two loves in danger some time ago… I will not let you endanger the second, you understand?"

"It's not your call dad." – Both Edward and I turned to look at Nessie… hell, everyone standing there turned to look at her. I'd never hear her sound so grown up; it was a bit startling.

"Excuse me?"

"It's not your call… Jacob… Jacob's my mate, we're a unit… I go where he goes." – She staggered a bit upon saying this, probably because Edward looked menacing, but she was still able to say it with complete conviction. I was utterly shocked and apparently so was Edward, who strangely enough turned to look at me as if requesting back-up. It would have been hilarious if not for the gravity of the matter.

"Nessie darling… you don't know what you're saying, you're still so young."

"I'm old enough to know what I want… I told Rosalie in front of everyone: if it comes between anyone, including you and mom, and Jacob; it will always be him."

"You're being ridiculous."

"Was mom being ridiculous when she chose you over her humanity?" – Edward looked flustered at this; my Ness had never spoken to him like that. Bella's humanity was still a pretty sore subject for him; even I knew not to go there.

"I understand that darling… I really do. But being with Jacob and fighting alongside him are two very different things. You're strong and agile, but you will never be a vampire… you're still so delicate, so breakable. Think about what you getting hurt would do to us."

"I… I…" – Nessie turned to look at me, apparently what Edward said had made an impact. He then turned his focus on me.

"Are you encouraging this?"

"No… I'm not… Edward's right Ness." – I couldn't look at her when I said this. – "It was wrong to bring you… "

"But… I can protect you."

"No… you can't… and you won't. Maybe you're as stubborn as Bella, maybe you won't listen to Edward… but I know you'll listen to me. Having you with me in battle will only get us both killed."

"I'm not fragile…"

"I know baby… but still… Edward's right." – For once, I couldn't give her what she wanted… for once, I had to side against her… and again, just like when I wouldn't run away with her, I would disappoint her.

I looked up a saw that she had tears in her eyes. I knew it was though for her to grow up with a family of indestructible vampires; always fussing over her, treating her like a weak little girl who needs protection. For anyone else, that kind of treatment would be welcomed; but I knew my Nessie… she was a fighter, wanting to hold her own, and it was hard to always be the baby.

"Even without being able to read her thoughts… you know her better than I do." – Edward was probably commenting on my thoughts, and for once, I didn't mind. His tone was sad, regretful.

Nessie started walking towards the forest, away from us. – "I need some time away from everyone… I'm taking a walk." – She said it without glancing back at us. Did that mean away from me too? I took a step forward but hesitated.

"Ness?"

"Yes Jacob… away from you too."

Nessie's POV

I'd been walking for two hours now, not going anywhere, just walking in circles. I didn't know what to think or how to feel. I didn't know why this whole thing had such an effect on me. No one was asking for anything unreasonable. It wasn't like I was being separated from Jake, or sent away, or locked up in a guarded tower. Why would I want to subject myself to the dangers of a fight, anyway? People run away from fights, people feel good when they're protected, so why was I taking this so hard?

I thought of Jake and how it had felt when he asked me to come along. It suddenly started to make sense… my feelings. Everyone in my family looks at me like some invalid, like the baby they need to take care of. For once, I thought maybe Jake could see me differently, maybe he could see me as his equal.

The fact that he had trusted me, that he had thought I was good enough and brave enough and strong enough to come with him had made me love him even more. But a few ounces of blood later, he was on dad's side and not mine. He was stating what everyone in my family had stated since the beginning: I was small and weak and something to look after. Somehow, it was even more painful coming from him.

I kept walking, trying to calm myself; telling myself that it wasn't a big deal, that I would probably react the same if I were Jacob, but for some reason, I couldn't shake it off.

After another hour of wandering, I knew he would be worried, so I decided to give it a rest and go find him. As much as I was upset with him, I still needed him; and after three hours without him, I missed him.

I arrived at the cottage, following his scent. I didn't smell him inside so I rounded the house and arrived at the garden in the back. Grandma had designed the garden herself, adding these antique wooden benches under the shade of the trees. Jacob was sitting there, his elbows resting on his knees and his head resting on his palms. He looked up when I was a few feet away, and kept his cautious eyes on me as I made my way toward him.

When I reached him, I placed my hands on his hair, as he wrapped his arms around my thighs and rested the side of his face on my upper stomach. I continued to run my hands through his beautiful dark hair for at least five minutes, until he looked up at me.

"Are you ok?"

"Yes." – I lied. It was repulsive to lie to Jacob, but I didn't want to make a bigger deal out of it.

"I'm sorry… I'm a jerk."

"No you're not; you want to protect me… I understand that."

"But it's not what you want." – He wasn't asking me.

"No… it's not." – He shook his head and took in a deep breath.

"I don't want to let you down… but I couldn't live with myself if I took you with me to fight and you got seriously hurt… or… or…"

"Killed." – I had a huge knot in my throat; the vision in my dream of Jacob dead making it's what into my thoughts. Why couldn't we be normal, why couldn't we live boring uneventful lives? It would all be better if we were both regular humans, fighting over what movie to go see or what restaurant to dine at. But then again, would we love each other with the same intensity if we weren't "freaks"?

I instinctively climbed on top of Jacob's lap and began to kiss him. The thought that we both could die at any moment, that we were not "invincible", made me appreciate and value every minute, every second even more. When you're immortal, it seems like you have all the time in the world, like you can pass up a moment and it doesn't matter because you have forever to make it happen again. But now, both of us considering the other one's possible demise, it seemed stupid to pass up even the slightest second not being with each other.

I could sense he felt the same, from the way he kissed me. It was passionate but not fierce, eager but not rushed, deep but not hard. He leaned back on the back support of the bench, so that I was almost lying on top of him. I could feel his hands caressing the back of my thighs and couldn't care less that we were in broad day light, because it felt so right.

He wasn't wearing a shirt, which made everything much better; the scorching fire of his skin reaching the very core of me. I wasn't nervous like in my dad's Ashton Martin, but I was apprehensive. I knew what I wanted but wasn't sure what his reaction would be; by now I really couldn't take another rejection. Despite my hesitance, I put my hand on his cheek and projected what I wanted, my heart beating faster at the anticipation and worry of his answer. He opened his eyes when I was done projecting and looked into mine, showing me nothing but the purest love.

"Ness… are you sure?" – My heart skipped a beat upon his answer. Was he actually saying yes?

"Jake, I love you."

"But… are you sure?" – I nodded, because by this time it was impossible for me to muster a word, considering he was asking me as he trailed kisses down my neck. My nod was all it took to change the mood; I heard Jacob's heart start beating faster, as did mine.

I began to unbutton his cutoffs as he started to pull my dress up. I stopped kissing him and put my arms up, letting him slip the dress right off my body. I had never been this naked in front of Jacob. I was wearing a tube top and the underwear I had bought in my shopping trip with Alice and momma and kept hidden. It wasn't skimpy, not in the least, but I was sexy; I knew at some point they'd come in handy.

Jacob growled playfully and picked me up as he stood up, carrying me like a bride.

"I'm taking you somewhere private." – He was smiling a half smile, his hair falling over his wild excited eyes.

"I… I don't care." – He laughed when I said this.

"You will if Bella and Edward get back early from their hunting trip."

"Oh".

"Yeah oh… Edward already wanted to kill me once today; I don't want to push my luck. The only reason they went hunting was to blow off some steam, instead of blowing me off. "

Jacob carried me for what seemed like way too long, until we reached a part of the forrest heavily guarded by foliage and bushes. There were purple lilies growing everywhere, making the area seem more pretty than wild. He threw my dress over the grownd and placed me on top of it, hovering over me with his inmense body, supporting his weight on the palms of his hands, as if doing a push up.

We continued to kiss, this time much more passionate and rushed. I wanted him closer to me so I wrapped my legs around him, pulling him toward me; my sudden impulse causing his heart to stutter a bit before pounding even harder. I began to pull down his cutoffs, having trouble in doing so because of how close we were to one another. As my hands worked to pull it down, I touched his bare buttom, making him smile against my mouth. The part where his back ends and his butt begins was glorious, I could feel the tightness of his muscles and felt like an idiot for never paying much attention to this area… never again.

He started to make his way down, trailing kisses all over my bare skin, lingering a bit longer on my breasts. This was an area he had never explored before, and I welcomed it, only wishing he would just take off my tube top and bra. I began to shake from head to toe, a reaction that would have been really embarrassing if it would have been with any other guy, but this was Jacob, so somehow it wasn't. He continued to trail kisses, lifting my tub top up just enough to kiss my belly, but stopping short of my lower abdomen. I wanted him to keep going, but he just stopped and looked up at me.

"Baby… is this good?" – I couldn't believe my ears. Had he no idea of the effect he has on me? By now, didn't he know that he sent shivers down my spine just by looking at me? Couldn't he see that I was shaking from head to toe with pleasure and anticipation at the mere sensation of his lips on my skin? He was really just too good to be true, a guy that's perfect at everything and doesn't even know it.

His vulnerability made me want him even more, taking his face in my hands and pulling him back toward me so that our noses where almost touching. He was looking into my eyes, searching for the answer.

"Jake… you're driving me crazy… don't you know that?" – The words came out in pants.

"No… tell me… show me…" – There was a plea in his voice and it suddenly hit me; he was apprehensive, almost insecure about his performance. I couldn't understand why, but he was. So I let my hands do all the talking, proyecting every sensation he was giving me and how much I wanted him to keep going. That was all it took, he continued to kiss my lips, this time with much more self assurance and confidence; there was suddenly no more hesitation. By now we were both panting and moaning, our hands and lips exploring each other's bodies.

I felt his strong hands more downwards and take hold of my panties, slowly pulling them down, when a voice far away made us both freeze in our positions.

"Jake!!! Jake!!! Where are you man?!!! Please… we need you!!!" – Quil's voice sounded panicked. Jacob and I turned to look at each other with surprise and confusion.

"Jake!!! If you can hear me, phase!!! You need to get down here, now!!!" – Yep, Quil was definetly panicked. Jake got up off me but stayed kneeling on the grownd, so I sat up to be at his eye level.

"Jake… you need to phase… find out what's going on."

"Shit… this is the worst timing ever!!!" – He was running his hand through his hair, trying to calm himself. – "If I phase and find out this is about nothing, I'm having Quil for breakfast."

It was kind of funny to see him so angry. Don't get me wrong, I was pissed too, but somehow I could read in Quil's voice that something really was up.

"Listen, the sooner you phase and find out what's going on, the sooner we can… um… continue this." – I felt my face flush and felt like an idiot. What kind of reaction is that when a minute ago I was pulling down his pants? He thought so too because he laughed.

"Ok, I'll be right back, don't move a muscle." – He gave me a quick kiss and went behind a surrounding bush to phase. Now I was the one laughing. I few second's ago we were about to see each other completely naked and now he goes and covers himself to take off his pants, which again, were the ones I was just about to take off myself? We truly are a strange couple.

I felt a rush of wind and saw him in wolf form, tilting his head up as if to listen better. A minute or two later he returned, kneeling in front of me, already dressed and human. From the expression on his face, this wasn't good.

"Ness… it's those things, they're in the forest headed this way. Sam's pack is trying to push them back, but I don't know how long they'll hold… the guys are with them too. According to Quil, they seem set on coming this side, and willing to fight their way through." – Whatever tingly lustful feeling I had a second ago, vanished in that very moment.

"What? What do you mean "this side"?"

"I mean beyond the treaty line."

I got up quickly and threw my dress back on in a rush.

"My family… you think they're after my family?"

"Damn Ness… I don't know, but I don't think this is a coincidence."

"How many?"

"Quil counted twelve, but Leah saw at least six more on the outsides, trying to get past them by going around them."

"Ok… so we outnumber them, right?" – I was trying to count in my head but was too panicked to get anywhere. Emmett… Leah… Alice… Jasper… Sam… Rosalie… Jared… Alice, no dad…

"No, Sam ordered his pack not to fight." – Jacob's voice came out angry and bitter.

"What? Why?"

"He's not willing to help us."

"But, aren't you supposed to be like brothers?"

"Ness… when I say "us" I mean your family. He still has it in his head that all they're after is vampires, that once they get what they want they'll go away and not harm any humans, or wolves."

"But… but what about Leah?"

"The damn dog is so stubborn, thinks it was an accident, that somehow she got in their way or something. He just wants to prevent a fight from happening, so he thinks all of us wolves should back down, that the vamps can take care of themselves. He's willing to stay inforcing the perimeter, but if they get past, he's not going to cross the treaty line."

"What are we going to do?" – All sorts of images where invading my mind, not one of them good. It was as if all my fears where coming true. Jacob took me by my waist and looked directly into my eyes.

"It's ok, don't worry about this, Ness. Trust me, trust your family. We freaking stood up to the Volturi, we fought an army of newborn vampires, these hybrids are nothing compared to that. There's nothing to worry about." – What he was saying made sense, but I couldn't shake off my anxiety. I had so much to lose, it was unreal.

"Listen Ness… you have to go home and find Edward alright? Tell him everything and tell him to find me." - I nodded.

"I… I have to go now." – After what had almost happened between us, it was insane to be parted from him. I could tell he felt the same because his eyes looked conflicted and pleading, almost as if he wanted me to stop him, ask him not to go; and I would have, I was just about ready to crawl on my knees and beg for him not to leave me, but this was Jacob, the man I love, the man who was born to fight, the man who was meant to lead, the man who would always be at the front of any battalion. To love him I had to accept this, and to love him, I would also have to let go of my own self pride and accept his protection and my own weakness. I needed to let him go fight and stay behind.

"Jake…" – He leaned closer, his eyes pained.

"Just be careful." – He nodded, understanding my resolution.

"Find Edward." – And with that, he blasted away running, phasing in mid sprint. I watched as he disappeared into the forest and ran the opposite direction, toward the cottage.

Dad must have read my thoughts a mile away because he came out of the house as I approached, mom at his heels.

"Where is he?"

"He went south, they're along the treaty line."

"Bella love, go get Emmett and Jasper." – Mom disappeared before my eyes and returned half a minute later with both my uncles.

"Yeah!!! It's party time!!!" – Uncle Em's loud voice echoed through the forest.

"Let's just get this over with nice and easy… no showing off." – Uncle Jazz turned to look at Emmett, slightly smiling. Then turned toward dad with a more "business" tone. – "So, how many."

"At least eighteen." – I answered, wanting to feel somewhat a part of this.

"Cool, six a piece… I get the big ones!!!" – Uncle Em spoke as if he was calling "shotgun", and something about his confidence rubbed off on me, giving me the glimmer of hope that maybe Jacob was right.

"See ya baby girl… bye sis." – Uncle Em kissed my forhead and then gave mom a hug with one arm, before walking into the forest.

"No worries Nessie, we'll take care of this, it ends today." – Uncle Jazz kissed me as well, insusing me with calm, and winked at mom, as he followed Emmett.

Mom walked up to dad, toching his face with the tip of her fingers, tracing his perfect features like a blind person recognizing a loved one.

"Come home to me, alright?" – The began to kiss in such a passionate way that I had to look away. As I waited for my teen parents to get it together and stop the PDA, I realized I hadn't even kissed Jacob goodbye. It had all happened so fast, and I was so intent in not making a scene, that it had slipped my mind. When I turned back to face my parents, dad was looking at me, with mom hugging his waist.

"You'll have the rest of your eternal life to kiss him, I promise you." – I smiled and nodded. I'd never known dad to make a promise he couldn't keep.

He disappeared into the forest, but not before kissing mom one last time and me as well. We both stood there, staring after the men in our family, mom's cold conforting arm around my waist.

"So, mind telling me why you're wearing your dress inside-out." – My heart stopped, was I? A quick glance down confirmed it to be true. I turned to look at mom, who was still gazing out into where dad had gone, but couldn't make out her mood. That's the thing about vampires, if they don't want you to, it's almost imposible to read their expressions, because they can stand so still and stone-like, with their glorious features giving nothing away.

"I… um…" – It was embarrassing to have her ask that, and even more embarrassing to even begin to think how I could answer.

"I'd just like to know what you let my best friend, possibly soon to be dead friend, do to you." – That definetly sounded pissed, even thought it came out melodic and beautifull, the way her voice always sounds.

"Nothing."

"Nothing? So you decided to take your dress off and put it on inside-out for the fun of it?"

"We didn't have sex."

"Then what happened?"

"Do you really want me to answer that?" – Mom wasn't a prier so I couldn't understand why she had gone all dad on me all of a sudden.

"I honestly don't know Renesmee. Jake, he's so… so big and impulsive and willfull, I just don't want you to feel pressured into something you're not ready for."

"He's not the one applying the pressure mom." – She turned and looked at me with shock. I knew I'd probably dug my own hole, but I wasn't about to let her think something untrue about Jake.

"You mean… you're the one pressuring him?" – There was disbelief in her voice.

"Umm… well, yeah. I mean, he… he has this whole thing about doing it the right way, mostly because dad threatened to kick his ass, but mostly because he has trouble looking at me that way… and… well… I love him… and why wait."

Mom started laughing, scaring the hell out of me. That was definetly not the reaction I expected.

"What's so funny?"

"Jacob… I'm trying to picture him saying no to you." – A smile curved my lips. It really was kind of sweet that a guy like him would want to wait while I, the younger inexperienced one, would push to go all the way.

After a while of my mom's laughter, I couldn't help but laugh as well, until we where both in hysterics.

"So you're not mad?" – I asked when she was done laughing.

"Renesmee… you're so much like me, it's insane. I was after your dad too, only he's not as easily persuaded."

"Uh, I really didn't want to hear that." – I made a disgusted face while momma laughed at it.

"So, you think dad was right… I mean, do you regret waiting?" – I needed to ask, now that we were all open with each other.

"I honestly don't know… I wasn't brought up to really believe in marriage… but it was important for your dad and so it was worth the wait, to make him happy. I think that maybe because I was human… and mortal… I had a tendency to want to rush into things, but now I understand that we have nothing but time, so why not get it right, be patient."

I knew she was right, but there was something preventing me from being patient… my nightmare; the fear that Jacob could be taken away from me, that our lives have no guarantee, that one second could change everything. I placed my hand on momma's cheek and projected my dream, confiding in her the way I always have, since birth, but lately had forgotten to do because of my time with Jacob.

Her eyes went blank as she stared into nothing, seeing in her mind what I was showing her. When I was done her eyes showed me love, understanding and reassurance.

"Renesmee… neither your dad nor I would ever let that happen; besides, Jacob can take care of himself, I promise. There was a time when I worried about him too, because I still saw him like my human friend; he seemed so young and sweet and harmless to me, but trust me, he can fight with the best of us, there is no doubt in my mind about that. I would trust him with my life, with your father's life, with yours. So whatever happens, I promise you now, your nightmare will not come true."

Momma caught a tear that escaped my eye and kissed me softly over the area it wetted. I felt relief upon hearing her speak so confident and convinced and was finally able to let go of the nightmare, once and for all.

It was dark already, this having been one of the longest days of my life. It seemed like ages ago when I'd gotten down from the airplane and reunited with Jacob. So much had happened since then, it was hard to believe it had only been one day; and it wasn't over, not until I had Jacob lying next to me in bed, ready to sleep and put an end to it.

In the distance, we could both hear heavy pounding like thunder, even though it wasn't raining; and the roar of the air, even though it wasn't windy.

"Come on, let's go inside… they'll be back before we know it."

I'm so sorry I didn't update sooner; with Christmas and starting the New Year, I had very little time to write. Thank you so much for sticking with me, I hope you keep giving me your reviews. I know I've had some problems with my spelling, especially names; I promise I'll be more careful. Please tell me what you think!!! Am I being true to the characters? Is it suspenseful enough? Anything… everything!!! I want to know!!!