Disclaimer: Stephanie Meyer owns all Twilight Saga and characters.

Renesmee

"So what's the game plan? How are you gonna get the baby out without killing me?" Leah asked grandpa casually. I flinched at her words. Grandma Sue was sitting on one side of the bed and Seth was at the other. Jacob and I were at the foot of the bed waiting for grandpa's explanation.

"I cannot use my teeth like Edward did with Bella because of the venom so I plan to use Seth's claw to get to the baby. Wolf claws and teeth are strong enough to penetrate vampire skin so I am confident I will be able to get to her using this method."

"And if it doesn't work?" She asked, looking straight into his eyes. Grandpa nodded.

"If it doesn't then I will have to use my own teeth. I can always suck the venom out once the baby is safe. It seems that the baby's gift activates when you are in pain so there is a chance you might be unconscious throughout the process. There's also Eve."

"No. That kid's been through enough." Leah said quickly. I nodded in agreement.

"I can do it. I'm not venomous. I was strong enough to tear vampire flesh. I can do this." I told them. They all looked at me unsure. It was maddening but I tried to keep calm in order to show them that I wasn't some fragile child. I could do this.

"That's a viable option as well. We'll decide once its closer to the date. The baby was growing alarmingly fast. It took Nessie a week to grow to this stage but the child's growth spurt seemed to stabilize over the last few hours. This baby is different from Nessie. It seems she requires less blood and nutrients than Nessie did which is why we haven't fed you any blood. You might even be able to have a natural child birth. We won't know until you are further along." Leah nodded. Jake and Sue had cringed when he mentioned Leah drinking blood. Surprisingly Leah and Seth hadn't.

"I still want you all to get some rest. If its ok with you Leah, I'm sending everyone home and they can all come see you tomorrow."

"Ok but can mom stay. I just, I don't..."

"Of course I'll stay." She cut her off. Grandpa smiled to let them know he was ok with it, not that he would dare to take on grandma Sue.

"I'll have the boys set up a bed for you. Actually, I think I hear them coming with it now." Sure enough daddy, uncle Emmett and Embry were coming in with a bed. Uncle Seth, Jacob and I said our goodbyes and we left the room as the bed was being set up. I guessed the pack heard grandpa's orders because most of them had left. The only ones left were Paul, Rachel, Jared, Kim, Brady, Collin, Anna, Quill and Emily. I could hear them all in different places around the house. Only Emily and Kim were in the living room. I saw Anna with grandma Esme and a clean, neat Eve sitting next to her. She was wearing one of my old dresses, yellow with red accents. Her skin was a soft white that made her pink lips stand out. Her hair was coal black and long with slight curls at the bottom. She had a red ribbon and a bow tied around it which made her look like snow white. She was beautiful. She came towards me as soon as she saw me and hugged me with her little arms.

"Esme said Leah and the baby are ok." She whispered to me. I smiled at her and picked her up, unaware of what was happening around me.

"Seth man are you ok? Oh shit!" I heard Jacob say. When I turned to look at them I saw that Seth was staring at Eve in awe. He looked at he as if she was the most precious thing is the universe. It reminded me of the way that Jacob looked at me. Oh my God! I felt my body stiffen in shock. Eve hugged me tighter but she couldn't stop staring at Seth.

"Well, at least I like this mutt better than the last one." Aunt Rose said from the corner. She was holding Chris, feeding him blood in a metal bottle. Her comment made Seth snap out of his stupor. He looked at us apologetically and then he walked out the door.

"What did I do?" She asked me with tears in her eyes.

"Nothing sweetie. That's Leah's little brother. He's just really stressed out about everything that happened. Give him a minute to get some fresh air. He's going to want to meet you." I told her. I handed her to my grandmother who gladly took her in her arms and headed for the kitchen. Probably to get her something to eat. She was convinced that food fixes everything. Anna and I walked towards the door but we didn't leave the house. We could hear them outside talking.

"Calm down Seth!" I heard Jacob tell him.

"What? What happened now?" Paul asked.

"Is Leah ok?" I heard Brady ask right afterward.

"Seth imprinted. He just needs a minute to calm down." Jacob informed them.

"Calm down? My sister got raped. My niece also nearly got rapped too, and I imprinted? What the hell is wrong with me?" Anna took my hand when uncle Seth mentioned me.

"Nothing is wrong with you man. You can't control it." Jake told him.

"Who the hell did he imprint on?" Jarred asked. He had left the kitchen when he heard all the commotion.

"Eve. The little girl that healed Leah and Nessie." Jake informed him.

"Oh God! They used my imprint to rape my sister, Jake." I could hear the heartbreak and anger in his voice but I knew that he wasn't upset with Eve. He was upset about what happened to her.

"I know." He said.

"How the hell are we going to help them through this? I don't even know how to process all of this."

"I don't know either but they're stronger than us. They'll get through this either way. Now come on. Come meet your imprint." Jake said.

"I'll go check on Eve." Anna told me with a smile and she went into the kitchen to let Eve know that Seth was coming to meet her. The all came into the house together. I held out my hand for uncle Seth so that I could take him to meet Eve. He took my hand but he surprised me by pulling me towards him.

"I haven't been able to give you a proper hug since you got here." He explained. I smiled into his shoulder as I hugged him back.

"Thank you for saving her. Them." He whispered in to my ear. I was uncomfortable with his thank you so I just nodded and took his hand. We walked into the kitchen as we left the others to talk about what happened. Eve was sitting on the counter with a cookie in her hand. She was smelling it. Her nose crinkled cutely at the sweet treat.

"It isn't bad, I promise." Anna was telling her as she ate her own cookie. I could tell she was trying not to laugh as Eve glared at the offending cookie. I walked up to them.

"Eve, this is my uncle Seth. He's Leah's brother. Seth, this is Eve." I introduced them. Eve looked as him shyly. She hopped off the counter and walked towards us. Seth had to crouch so that he could be closer to her level. He extended his hand to shake it. Eve looked at it and then she looked at me. I showed her an image of what she was supposed to do. I figured that she wouldn't have learned social conventions where they kept her. She took his hand and shook it.

"Nice to meet you." She repeated the phrase she has seen from my vision. Seth smiled at her with such a loving smile that it made my heart melt.

"Come on. I made plenty for everyone." Grandma said as she presented us with a large tray of cookies.

"You can have mine." Eve whispered to Seth as she handed him the cookie.

"You're sure you don't want to try it?" She shook her head and he quickly grabbed the cookie and popped it in his mouth. She giggled.

We all heard a loud anxious bark outside. I ran, recognizing the familiar sound. When I got outside Jake was shushing Daisy trying to calm her. He saw me and let go of her leash. Daisy ran towards me wagging her tail and whimpering happily.

"Daisy!" I couldn't help it. I was so happy to see her. She jumped on my leg and I picked her up. She immediately started licking me. I laughed. I was shocked by the sound. I saw Jacob staring at us smiling. The way he looked at me made my heart swell. I walked towards him, suddenly needing to be close to him.

"If I would have known she would make you laugh like that, I would have brought her sooner." He told me. I placed Daisy back on the ground and I went straight to him. I jump on him and he caught me easily. I placed my hand on his neck and I showed him what I wanted.

"Ok." He said. He carried me to the cottage. Daisy followed behind us. Once we were home Jacob carried me to my room and placed me on my bed before he got into the bed next to me. Daisy hopped on the bed but stayed by our feet.

"Go to sleep, Ness. I'll be right here when you wake up." He said and brought me closer to him almost creating a cocoon. I closed my eyes letting my mind drift, knowing that I was safe.

As promised, Jake was there when I woke up. It was early morning so he was still sleeping. I kissed the tip of his nose and then I got out of bed so that I could take Daisy out. Daddy was in the kitchen making breakfast for us. I was surprised momma was gone.

"She's out hunting. I'm almost done here. I can take Daisy out if you want."

"It's ok. She does better when I take her. How's Leah?" He looked instantly troubled but he quickly cleared his face when he realized I saw it.

"The baby started growing quickly again a few hours ago. This time its taking a lot out of her. She's weaker and she can't keep anything down. Not food or blood. We are feeding her intravenously for now. Carlisle is certain that it will stop eventually like it did before. But if it doesn't we may need to intervene before she gets too weak for our original plan." I took a deep breath to calm myself. Tears were threatening to come out but I needed to be strong for Leah.

"Its ok to be angry, love. Its been a long and emotional road but, like I told you, Carlisle is positive that its just a growth spurt and that it will stabilize again."

"Why? What's his point of reference?"

"Nahuel and Hulien. Carlisle called them last night. Hulien told us that Nahuel's mother, Pire, had a similar pregnancy. Nahuel would also grow in spurts from the womb but that stopped once he was born."

"Maybe its related to gender. Does that mean that the baby might be a boy? That doesn't make sense." I said confused. Males carry the gene for venom. Leah's body would have rejected that.

"I don't know baby. We have to wait until the child arrives to run DNA tests."

"Ok. I'll take Daisy out now."

"Very well."

I went through our usual trail until we got to the meadow. I let Daisy run off leash so that she could do her business and I sat on the ground. I started thinking about Leah's condition and I felt my depression coming back. I wondered if I was suffering from post-traumatic stress briefly but then I felt Daisy slip into my lap distracting me. I looked at the treed watching the sun come up and light up the meadow. It was beautiful. It made me wonder how many sunrises Leah had left. I felt the pessimism and self-loathing creep into me again. The tears were flowing down my cheeks when a shift in the wind brought aunt Alice's scent to me. It was only a moment later before she was sitting next to me.

"This is all my fault. My best friend might die because of me." I said out loud more to myself than anyone but I couldn't help the sadness that my voice held.

"She will live through this." She said. Her voice was so certain that I would have believed she saw the future. "As much as I try to predict the future there are some things that I can't prevent. I don't know why this happened but I do know one thing."

"What?" I asked her.

"None of it was your fault. You saved her. You saved all of them. You did." It was not the first time I heard this but the words were still foreign to me. I wrapped m arms around her waist. She hugged me back, stroking me hair to sooth me as I cried into her bosom.

"I'm trying so hard to believe that but it still feels like my fault. If only I would have discovered my gifts sooner or maybe if had..." I stopped, unwilling to say out loud the real reason why I felt so guilty. "I could have stopped them." I said flatly.

"Of you could have died trying. Nessie you took down two vampires but you took them out one at a time. They were more experienced than you and I can tell you from personal experience that experience counts. I have the ability to see exactly what my enemy will do and I still have difficulty fighting experienced vampires."

"You're right. I know you're right. I just..."

"You still feel guilty… It seems to me that maybe there is something else that is bothering you. Maybe something that you haven't figured out yet." She said as she continues to stroke my hair. She was right but I wasn't ready to talk about it.

"Maybe. I should head back. I want to be there when Jake wakes up."

"Ok. But promise me you'll come talk to me when you feel you're ready."

"I will auntie. Thank you." I kissed her forehead and I left for the cottage.

Jacob was already eating by the time I arrived. I came in with Daisy and she quickly went to his side to give him her puppy dog eyes. He smiled and threw her a piece of bacon.

"Good morning." He told me.

"Sorry. I wanted to be here when you woke up."

"Its ok. Edward went back to the house. He told me about Leah. Come here. Sit. Eat." He said as he got up to offer me his chair and food. I looked at him amused.

"What?" He asked me confused.

"Come. Sit. Eat? Are you talking to me or Daisy?" He smiled and got up to offer me his chair. Once I was seated, he went to the kitchen to get another plate. I sat on his chair and started eating some of his food. He came back with a new plate of food and sat on the chair next to me. We ate quietly. It wasn't awkward but I could tell there was something on his mind and the tension just kept building making me anxious.

"What? What's wrong?" I asked him.

"Why haven't you talked to me Ness? You've talked to pretty much anyone except me."

"That's only because everyone keeps talking to me, telling me that it wasn't my fault. Telling me to let love heal me. I get it. I am fine. I'm trying to process everything." I put my fork down on the table, unable to look at him. He took the leg of my chair and turned the chair so that it was facing him. It wasn't an angry movement but it took me by surprise. He was setting us up for a long conversation. I looked at him and waited for him to begin.

"You're not fine Nessie. You're never going to be fine until you talk about what happened and how you really feel about it."

"I've already said how I feel about it."

"Bullshit! This is me you're talking to Ness. You can't fool me. The moment that I felt your fear it was like my connection to you went into overdrive. I can feel everything you feel. Everything Renesmee. You're not ok, I thought you were but you're not."

"Then you tell me what's wrong with me?" I don't know why I was getting defensive but I never had him confront me in this way. I wasn't sure why he was doing it but I didn't like it.

"I left you. You ran off. They took you." He waited for a moment. "They were going to rape you but Leah told them to take her instead." He waited again. I felt the tears slip down my cheeks. "He tried to rape you. He kissed you, touched you." I don't know if he was trying to see which statements caused s stronger emotional reaction or if he was just being a jerk but I heard enough.

"Stop it!" I said angrily.

"Then talk to me! I can't take this damn silence anymore. I can't stand the mood swings and the constant pain and the guilt. You have been avoiding dealing everything that happened. Please Nessie. Talk."

"First of all, I not mad that you left. Andrew was right. You weren't going to stay away from me for long and I should have known that from the start. I acted like a child throwing a temper tantrum." I said, I started with the easier topic but then I moved on to the next one. "My first kiss should have been you. I wanted it to be you. I'm angry that it wasn't because you are all I ever really wanted." I wasn't looking at him but I heard him take a sharp intake of breath. I waited but he didn't say anything so I continued to the more difficult subject. More difficult than discussing my feelings for Jake.

"Leah sacrificed herself for me. She told them that I didn't have a period so that they would go after her instead. She lied. The moment she regained control of her body she lied to save me and I didn't. I couldn't have done same thing. I could have showed them the truth. I could have showed them that I was the fertile one and she was the one who stopped having cycles but I didn't. I wish I could say that it was because I was afraid they would kill her but that wasn't it. I was afraid for myself. I didn't want him to rape me. She sacrificed herself for me and I couldn't do it for her. I was scared. I was a coward. She doesn't deserve what happened to her. It should have been me. It was supposed to be me." I was sobbing now. I still couldn't look at him so I looked at my hands instead. He didn't touch me or hold me like I expected him to. I took a few breaths to try to calm myself. He still didn't touch me. I finally looked at him, my curiosity overriding my fear. He stood the moment I looked at him. His face was a mask but his eyes were concerned. He signaled for me to stand, still not touching me. I stood.

"How do you feel Ness?"

"Confused. Angry. Hurt. Guilty." I said honestly but after a moment I realized what he was looking for. "But better, actually. It was hard to say that out loud."

"Good. Now its your turn to listen..." He swallowed hard before he started. "I was childish too. I left you instead of facing the reality that things were changing. I should have realized that, like everything else about us, our relationship would change and that it would change for the better." I nodded and looked down to the floor. He lifted my chin with one finger so that I could meet his eyes. Then he continued.

"What Leah did is not something that anyone can do. And its not just cause she's older and more experienced than you, which she is… but she's made of different stuff than most people. She has gone through a lot. She's been through things that most people don't ever have to go through, which is why she was able to see that she could do it. I was in her head and I saw why she did it. It was an obvious choice for her because she loves you, because she's as protective of you as she is with Seth, but also because she knows the difference. She knows the difference of when a man who loves her touches her, makes love to her. You don't. You actually seem to think that what that bastard did was your first kiss." He got closer to me and finally touched me. He placed a gentile hand on my waist and brought me closer to him, closing the distance between us. I could feel his entire body against mine. I tensed suddenly and he pulled my chin up again to look at him.

"I love you. I will never hurt you, Ness. You don't EVER have to be afraid of me." He told me as he stroked my bottom lip with his thumb. My entire body shivered. The hand that was on my hip holding me against him moved slowly up my arm leaving a trail of goosebumps until it reached my neck. I had been staring into his eyes the entire time. I was completely captivated by them, unable to look away. His hands were on m neck but they were to large that his fingers lightly stoked my face. His head lowered and stopped when our noses touched. He kissed it chastely, as I had done this morning, and then he whispered, "This. This is your first kiss." I closed my eyes and I felt his lips press against mine. I felt a wave of emotion course through me. His lips moved, taking my bottom lip captive. My own hands trailed up his chest and to his neck. I could feel every inch of skin that he touched on my neck and face but somehow, my entire body tingled. I knew he could feel it too. I had no control over the love that I was feeling for him at the moment and I knew that he could feel it through my skin. Our lips explored one another softly, as they exchanged slow but firm bursts of love with every passing moment. It wasn't a passionate sexual movement, it was sweet, loving and perfect. Something was changing between us. I could feel is as the seconds past it was like the connection we shared before had a few weakened links which now grew stronger. I wasn't sure what I was doing but I didn't need to. He set the pace and, a few moments after it began, we both parted slowly. "I love you." I told him. I knew that I was stating the obvious but I needed to say it. He lowered his head and gave me chaste but sweet kiss on my cheek before he said "I love you too, Ness. Always." His arms surrounded me and held me my tightly against him.

"What changed? A couple of days ago you said that this was wrong." I asked him. I don't know why but I need to make sure this was not out of pity or some sense of duty.

"You changed. Its not going to be like what the other's have. You are still too young, but I have to learn that even though I don't have control, I have to trust the imprint because my love for you has never been and will never be wrong."

"Thank you." I whispered. He kissed the top of my head.

"You're growing up and you demonstrated that when you saved Leah. Leah isn't the only one who's made of something different than the rest of us. Yes, you were afraid at first but you pushed your fears aside and you fought back. You could have left her there, Ness. If it had been any other imprint, Leah would be dead right now. Anyone one else would have been too afraid to even try to think of something to save her."

"They're human. They couldn't have done anything."

"Oh yeah. Tell that to your mother. She didn't let the fact that she was human stop her and you didn't let the fact that you were out powered stop you. That leech had the ability to paralyze you and leave you defenseless but you went into that room anyway to save your friend. You're not a coward, Ness. You didn't shrivel up and let life happen to you, you took charge, like the kind, strong young woman you are and I am so proud of you for it." For once, those words of praise didn't bother me. His love was like a balm on all the open wounds I was trying to hide.

"Ok." I whispered. He smiled at me. It was a genuine Jacob smile that made me smile back at him.

"I'm hopping in the shower before we head over there. Can I use your bathroom?"

"Of course." I told him. I started cleaning up when I heard the shower turn on. I was almost done with the dishes when I heard a wolf howl in the distance.

"What now?" I was exhausted again. I head the water in my bathroom shut off and Jacob ran outside with a towel wrapped around his waist. It would have been funny except for the fact that a second howl hit the air before I had time to process we were in high alert. I ran outside behind Jacob.

We reached the perimeter and my heart nearly screamed when I saw why they were on alert. Duilio was nodding angrily at something my father was telling him. Daddy and my uncles had gotten there before us. He looked older, like a 10 year old. I saw the relieved expression on his face when he saw me and I ran towards him at vampire speed.

"Duli! What are you doing here?!" I said as I hugged him.

"I've been calling you for days. I even called dad a few days ago but he didn't call me back so I came." He said. His voice was older too. Like a teenager rather than a ten year old child.

"Come on kids. Let's go home." Daddy told us.

Jacob

For three days I waited for her but she never came. It was excruciating. I had her literally next to me but I never felt so far away from her. I could feel every emotion that she was feeling. They were all trying to comfort her but she refused to be comforted. She was being stubborn. Like her mom. It was her pain that woke me. I felt it crash into me in my sleep and when I opened my eyes she was gone. I became immediately alarmed. I almost phased right there in her room but I heard Edward in the kitchen tell me to calm down and then he told me that she was with Alice. I ran over the conversation I had with him because I still wasn't sure he would be ok with what happened between Nessie and me. The last thing I wanted was to hurt them.

"What's wrong with her Edward? These mood swings, this constant guilt…"

"Everyone deals with traumatic situations differently. My sister went on killing spree. My mom committed suicide. Leah is focusing on her baby and suppressing everything else… I think, Nessie is focusing on Leah but I'm not sure. She's trying to bottle it all up because she feels her pain is not as important but mostly I think she's using Leah as an excuse to hide something. She's not saying what needs to be said because either she doesn't want us to worry or because she doesn't want to process everything that happened. I don't know Jacob. Maybe she doesn't even know what's bothering her. Maybe she just needs to talk maybe she needs time but we won't know anything until she talk about what's really bothering her. I think its related to this constant guilt she has. Renesmee is not an irrational person but this guilt is eating her up with no substantial reason. She's my baby girl and I don't know what she needs. I don't know how to make this better Jake." The sadness in his voice was literally heartbreaking. He was holding on to the kitchen counter like he was holding on to his dear life. I put my hand on his shoulder. He looked at me and I knew that if he could he would be crying right now. I wasn't familiar with this Edward. It was worse than when Bella was pregnant.

"Let me try, I think I can get through to her." He nodded and sighed heavily.

"If anyone can, it's you. You always had a way of getting through to these Swan women." He gave me a sad smirk and he walked out the kitchen.

"I'm going to go check on Leah. The baby is growing again and she's getting weak but don't worry. Carlisle has it under control."

"Oh, ok. Tell her we'll be over there to visit soon." I told him.

I was beyond relived that I got her to talk to me. I could tell that it helped her. Her emotions were calmer. I already felt calmer and more controlled which meant that she was too. She needed to acknowledge what happened in order to move past her guilt. She also needed to know the difference between what happened to her and a real first kiss. I could still feel her warmth on my skin. It wasn't a sexual passionate kiss. It was full of love.

My connection with her for these past few days didn't just become stronger, it also changed what we had. I felt it the moment our lips touched. She was my everything but she was also my mate. MINE. She never felt this mine before. It was going to be difficult to have a relationship while she still looked 14 but nothing worth having was easy. She wasn't a four year old. She was a young woman and she's been through more than what I gave her credit for, even before this event. Nessie was right. As weird as it was, our relationship wasn't wrong. It wasn't about sex or anything convoluted, it was about me finally acknowledging that she was my mate, my equal, the other half of me. I barely had time to rinse out the soap before I heard the alert go out. I tuned off the water, grabbed my towel and ran out the door. I heard the voices as soon as I phased.

Its the Volturi kid Jake. Embry told me.

Great, just what we needed. What the hell is he doing here?

Nessie. He's been trying to contact her but obviously with everything that's going on, he hasn't been able to.

Damn it. I'm glad he's here for Nessie but we can't have him know about Leah. If Aro finds out.

I know. He said he's alone. Edwards explaining a little bit of what happened. He told him he won't tell him everything because Leah and Nessie are a little sensitive about what happened that kid is smart. He knows that his mind isn't safe. He told Edward he's leaving as soon right after he sees Nessie and that if any Volturi sets foot on our land that we have his blessing to rip them apart.

I always knew I liked that kid.

We arrived just as Edward was finished talking to Duilio. He was clearly upset by what Edward told him. I saw the relieved look on Duilio's face when he saw Nessie. There was never any doubt in my mind that Duilio loved her which is the only reason I would overlook the flecks of red in his eyes. Edward gave me a warning look as soon as I thought about his eye color. I should have known he would be protective of him.

That kid had only been here for a few months but he spend every second of the day with Nessie. Naturally, Edward and Bella grew attached to him. I still remember Edward, Bella, Nessie and Duilio all laying on the bed while Bella read the kids a story. Like one big happy family. Another time, Bella and I came home, to find Edward sitting on the couch, one kid on each side asleep. Even I had to admit it was cute. The kid even looked a bit like them except for the blue-gray eyes and the hair. Other than that the kid had their pale skin, his brown hair color was a few shades darker than Bella's but he had Edwards, strait airy texture to it. The worst part was that he had Edward's cocky half smirk and attitude. The four of them had been a family. Nessie and Bella took it hard after he left us but nobody knew about Bella's pain except me. She wouldn't cry in front of Edward or Nessie but I finally took her aside and told her to cut the crap so she let it all go. I guess Edward was right about me and these Swan women.

"Come on kids, let's go home." I heard Edward tell them and we all turned around to go home.