Plans and Schemes

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Twilight characters and write simply for the pleasure.

There's a chill in the air that sends a shiver up his spine despite the amount of layers that he has piled on. There is still a bit of the wolf left in Sam Uley that enjoyed being outside, surrounded by the scent of nature and the wide openness of the land around them. Emily had kicked him out again, this time it was about yelling at Mary for her attitude at the last gathering. Sam wasn't too keen on having his daughter present when Jay would be welcomed into the pack considering her less then stellar performance the last time. Mary was self-important and self-centered…a trait she earned honestly from her parents. She felt the need to always be center of attention and Saturday was meant to be about Jay and the pack, not a human girl.

Having placed his beer on the ground Sam leaned his chair back and closed his eyes. He breathed in the fresh breeze from the ocean, the salty taste wasn't as strong as it used to be but it was there. He could hear his cousin, Mark, stomping around inside his home away from home. The radio was tuned into some sporting event; Mark really didn't care whether it was football, basketball, soccer, lacrosse or curling – a sport is a sport. Mark's was a place where stress didn't find him, it stayed away like…like a brokenhearted ex-girlfriend that joins some immature, lovesick puppy and would much rather be around vampires then you.

Sam slowly opened his eyes realizing that his quiet musing had been ruined by his own bitter thoughts. That ship had sailed a long time ago but there was still that teenage boy in him that wasn't ready to let Lee-Lee go. With a heavy sigh, he reached for his beer, downing it in a big gulp as he righted himself. Over the bottom he could see someone up his cousin's property; a huge figure, all muscle. Sam's immediate thought was of Jett who was coming to hang out and mooch a few beers off of him. However, that thought immediately soured as his wolf whimpered and more details came to light. The figure was bigger – full grown – to be Jett. His hair was cut short while Jett's was long and shaggy…just like the man coming used to be.

His eyes weren't what they used to be but he knew that Jacob Black was making eye contact with him from far away. Jacob's steps were full of determination and anger. It was the anger that made Sam nervous but all he could really do was sigh and become resigned to his fate. Everyone else had basically torn him a new one when he had voiced challenging Leah for the Alpha position. It was immature, stupid and selfish – at the time – but he felt the need to exert his power over Leah and Jacob's power. If anyone deserved to have a say it was Jacob who had sired Jett.

"Jacob," Sam greeted with a nod once the man had stopped at the bottom of the porch steps. Jacob greeted him back in kind with a nod and growl in his voice. "Nice day, isn't it?" Sam couldn't help the shit eating grin that had grown across his face as he felt compelled to just shoot the breeze with his former rival. Maybe it was the fact that there was no comparison between the two of them anymore. Jacob looked the same only more hardened while Sam…well…he was softer. His hand went to his little beer belly and patted as he burped behind his hand. Had he worked out Sam Uley could've looked somewhat like Jacob Black but that required intensive workouts that he couldn't afford while feeding three other mouths.

"It was much nicer the day Leah found I was going to take her place as Alpha of the pack." Sam said decided with not avoiding the giant wolf that was standing before him. The declaration made Jacob snarl and Sam could've sworn he saw his eyes flash lupine yellow for a second. Sam could only shrug with a small frown and hunched down deeper into his chair as the wind picked up.

"Everything alright out here?" Mark asked with a deep frown as he opened the screen door. Neither man bothered to look at him and Sam wondered if Jacob knew or cared that Mark had a double barrel shotgun in the hand, that was no doubt, hidden next to the door out of sight.

"Yea, Mark, we're good. Me and Jacob, here just need to settle some debts." Sam said, nodding for Jacob to sit in the chair next to him on the porch. Mark looked on with a sullen and alert look as Jacob instead took a seat on the porch rail, still glaring at Sam.

"Just don't get no blood on my porch." Mark grumbled as the screen door slammed shut and he walked towards the back of the house. Sam couldn't help but chuckle at his dear old, reliable cousin. Mark had found out about the spirit warriors by accident when Leah had come to collect the reluctant father and send him back to his yelling wife and screaming children. One word led to another, one step in defiance and dominant led to another and before Sam knew it, they both had phased in Mark's backyard and would've torn up the yard had not Embry and Paul shown up when they did.

Sam turned his focus back onto the present, his eyes quickly sizing up Jacob Black. Sam had to admit that he both admired and hated the man before him – always had. Jacob had the status, honor and later the girl Sam Uley had always wanted. Yet, for the first time, Sam found himself pitying Jacob Black. Jacob had missed out on sixteen years of Jett's life and just now showed up to exercise his paternal rights by either threatening or maiming or possibly killing the man that threatened the woman he loved life and that of their son.

"Didn't Leah tell you this was pointless?" Sam asked knowing that the only way Jacob could found out about this bit of dirty laundry was from the wolf's own mouth.

"She told me it was over and done with." Jacob admitted after a beat of silence, his shoulders falling and the anger having dissipated for the moment; rational having seemed to won out for the moment.

"How'd you find out?" Sam asked rubbing his hands together for warmth. Sam listened as Jacob recounted him the meeting that took place between him and Leah with Billy and Sue as moderators or moral support.

"I don't blame you," Sam admitted once Jacob had finished. "For one, I would do the same thing and two…it's just how you've always been. Jett's the same way." Sam said with a warm smile, thinking about the boy. "He's has that strong sense of justice in him too. He's a lot like you…and Leah…it's scary."

"What am I supposed to do?" Jacob asked and Sam wasn't sure if he was asking for advice or if it was rhetorical. The question hung in the air, refusing to move or respond.

"What do you want to happen?" Sam asked drawing upon past conversations when he felt the same sense of hopelessness, loss and regret as Jacob. He raised an eyebrow as Jacob chuckled dryly, a dark smirk on his face.

"Leah asked me the same thing…would it even matter?"

Sam could only shake his head because in their world where the spirit world decided what was best for everyone and who was best…wants didn't matter.

"Well…don't think about what you want…think about what you want for your boys." Sam said deciding to give the paternal response. He wasn't Husband of the Year but he tried to always do what was best for his kids and looking at the man beside him, Sam Uley didn't doubt that Jacob Black would do what was best for his sons.

Sam wasn't sure what spurred him on but he found himself telling Jacob that he knew about Jett. The way Jett and Levi would rough house around, how he teased Matt about his singing because he couldn't carry a tune (so much like his dad), the trouble that Jett got into whenever he hung out with the twins and how he and David always came together to struggle over their math. The fight he had to endure to become the Jr. Alpha of the next generation. His playful mannerisms and about the level of seriousness that was just underneath the surface of his carefree and boyish smile. How Jett treated the men interested in dating Leah. Sam didn't even leave out how Jett had attacked him the first night that Jacob had arrived for 'challenging' Leah's position.

He knew just about everything there was to know about Harry Michael "Jett" Clearwater as he did about Levi. Jett had, in a sense, become the old pack's son. They all cared about him, loved him like their own and without a doubt would kill and die to ensure his safety. Sam wanted Jacob to share in this bond – they all did. Leah was stubborn and Jett even more so. Jett needed his father, even if he and Leah weren't aware of it. Jett needed Jacob and as Sam watched Jacob's expressions, as he heard about his son with a bittersweet smile; Sam knew that Jacob needed Jett too.

Her footsteps echoed throughout the house, reverberated off of the walls, the porcelain vases and figures. The furniture had not been needed when the Cullens left so many years ago and so remained behind. Each piece is familiar and spoke of a home that no longer existed. She stopped outside the room that once belonged to her father, Edward, and is now 'Jacob's room'. Compared to the other rooms of the mansion it is small, two walls filled with floor to ceiling windows giving a beautiful view of the forest. As a child, the room held her father's records, cassettes and CDs of his favorite composers. A couch substituted as a bed to play into the ploy that they were all normal teenagers – although just a tad bit eccentric.

She stood at the threshold of the room looking in like a polite guest. She frowned realizing that she was an outsider within her own family's home. She had taken Alice and Jasper's old room as it held a huge a huge walk-in closet for all of her clothes, shoes and purses. It hadn't bothered her before that her husband refused to share a room, let alone a bed with her. It was some a pleasant solution to a problem that neither seemed able to resolve or absolve. She hated him, loathed his touch, his presence and everything that was him – a part of him.

However, now, she hated the distance that existed between them. She hated it for the simple fact that while the distance, was either growing or remained the same between them, it was shrinking between him and the rest of the world. He started having 'family' breakfast with Jay, cooking eggs, bacon and pancakes. Some days the two just had a simple bowl of cereal. At first the change was awkward, there was a strained silence between them and Jay was as anxious around Jacob as someone faced with the fact that they were locked in a room with a cobra. Over time that strain began to disappear and the two began to talk some, share their 'plans' and even discussed possibly 'making' plans with one another. At the root of their talks were always Leah and/or Jett.

Renesmee hissed as she felt the stained polished wood from the doorframe bite into the flesh under her nails. She could smell her own blood in the air and it sickened her. The stench reminded her of the day she gave birth to Jay and all the other failed birthing attempts before that one. Her blood didn't smell sweet and intoxicating like Jacob's used to or a human's. It was bland, stale…almost dead, reeking of the undead genes that were part of her genetic make-up. It was a grim reminder that she was neither human nor vampire. It reminded her that outside of her family she had nowhere else to go, nowhere that she belonged. But they did and had found it.

Having summed up a will of angry and bitter defiance Renesmee crossed the threshold and walked into Jacob's room with an air of dominance and ownership. He only had this room because her family – she – allowed it. He had no right to keep her out and away from his possessions.

The room was simply furnished: a bed with dark blue sheets and matching pillowcase, a shelf filled with magazines – car magazines, a few Indian objects like a dream catcher, a few wolf carvings that were quite possibly supposed to represent his pack and a couple of pictures. These held Renesmee's attention more as they were pictures of him as a boy with his mother, Sarah. There was no denying that she was beautiful and Renesmee frowned when she saw the internal love and beauty she had for little Jacob reflected in her eyes. Another was of him and Billy seated on a porch together. Jacob held a sheepish smile, his head tilted as if caught in the middle of shaking his head at something Billy had said. He was small…younger in that picture with a hint of baby fat around his face that Renesmee couldn't recall ever having seen in his face. The rest of the pictures told a story of his childhood, moments frozen in time that Jacob selfishly kept to himself and Renesmee found herself enviously wishing she knew about. She had frowned and even growled at the scattered pictures that held Leah but they were group shots. Those she couldn't hate as much…that was until she found one of just the two of them.

The picture was innocent enough just at first glance unless you already knew the history between the two individuals in the frame. The longer one looked, the more of a back story could be constructed but the end result would be the same - the two were in love. Both were on a, now familiar, porch Leah seated on the rail and Jacob leaning against it. His arms formed a trapezoid of russet colored muscles that looked hard as marble. He had no shirt on and his sculpted abs were barely hidden under the shadow this his own body created. Leah was long, lean legs exposed in short shorts, that seemed better suited for Hooters or bed clothes, and ended at a slim waist. The two were looking at each other. Their expressions gave the impression that they were sharing some kind of secret; a secret that only they knew. Leah was on the brink of laughter and Jacob's smile was devilish.

Jealousy welled up inside of Renesmee at how comfortable and 'perfect' the two looked side-by-side. The fact that there was a picture from over sixteen years ago that he held onto, cherished enough to put in a frame. A violent rage began to build up deep inside her – a hatred that had always sat simmering within her bowls. Secretly, she had known that the only reason he had returned was for her. Jay had just been an excuse but in the end it always boiled down to that bitch.

She wanted to break the frame, destroy the picture and then begin a rampage in the small room. Destroy everything that he holds dear. The frame was in hand, arm raised and tense, prepared to dash Jacob's loving memories like so many of her hopes, wishes, dreams and childhood fantasies were.

The only thing that prevented this whirlwind of angst and destruction was the crunch of tires on gravel down the road. Fear had consumed her. She no longer felt the security that Jacob, as her imprint, would never hurt her. With the growing distance between them it could also mean his tolerance was shorter. How would he react if she destroyed his precious 'Lee'? The air of dominance, defiance and ownership left her and she fled from his room, seeking out sanctuary in the living room where Edward's piano still remained.

She later felt childish when it turned out to be just Charlie Swan. The two sat with an expensive tea set in between them, an intricate emerald colored design decorating the rims and saucers of their cups. Charlie drunk his tea and ate the neat little tea cakes as he prattled on about how happy he was to have her back in town. She was using him as a buffer for when Jacob returned and realized that she had been in his room.

It must've been the growing distance between her and the others that made up her family, or her vanity having come through and was desperate for the positive attention, affection and adoration that she used to receive as a child that made her welcome and want to keep Charlie close. He was the only biological family member that she could recall from her childhood, aside from her parents, but she could never find it in herself to call Charlie other than by his name. Grandpa was a title reserved for Carlisle or maybe it was because of the lie that Bella and Edward had conjured up; that Renesmee was Edward's distant niece or cousin whose parents had died in an accident. She'd forgotten the details and the variety of other lies created over the years that allowed her and the Cullens to join human society. Jacob had once told her that Charlie didn't believe the story and saw her as his grandchild – you have Bella's eyes, Jacob had said when pushed as to why.

Her eyes.

She wondered if she still had her mother's eyes and if Charlie still saw a bit of his wayward, stubborn child in Renesmee. As she came back to the conversation, the small smile that had graced her lips disappeared when she realized Charlie was talking – fondly – about Jay. Charlie was excited to have a great-grandson and had already made plans for all the things that they would do together. Charlie would take him fishing (river and deep sea), they'd take a day trip to Seattle to watch a Mariner's game. He was looking forward to attending one of his many sporting events, having them all over for dinner and in short sharing parts of his life with the next generation.

Jealousy and envy welled up inside Renesmee again over the amount of affection being lavished over Jay, by her own grandfather at that. Jay wasn't worthy of love – especially not Charlie's. Jay was a monster, had stolen away her femininity, usurped her family's love and attention and when put in comparison with Jett proved how weak of a 'soul mate' she had been for the Alpha of the Quileute pack. She wanted to scream at Charlie to love her but not him – never him. She didn't want to share Charlie anymore then Jacob wanted to share all of La Push with her. She had to fight back a dark smile as her lips parted, before they turned into a small frown and allowed her body to call up the pain she had felt only moments ago.

"Those all sound, like, fun…but, I don't think Jacob – rather, Leah wouldn't approve." Renesmee had learned over the years how to read people, pick out details in what they said or didn't say. Charlie had made no mention of Leah or Jett. No doubt, he knew of the connection between the three long before Jett began to show his father's physical traits.

"What?" Charlie breathed out. She could tell that Charlie had, at the least, mixed emotions about Leah Clearwater. After all, she was the daughter of his girlfriend, Sue Clearwater, and was that figure that loomed over Charlie's entire life, the possibility of their being 'another' that could destroy a family.

"Yes, Leah has forbidden me from coming onto Quileute Lands." It was only a half-truth. She wasn't allowed on Quileute Lands but it was Jacob who instated the rule…but Charlie did not need to know that.

Renesmee isn't quite sure exactly all that she said; whether they were truths, half-truths, complete lies or if she was simply unloading a lifetime's worth of insecurities and deepest darkest fears. All she knew was that Leah and Jay were each at the core of her problems. Leah had been the catalyst with her long, tanned legs, full lips and wild ways. She had already seduced Jacob Black and imagined her surprise to find out that a child had been born of their torrid affair. Jacob had spent their entire marriage comparing the two women and Renesmee just 'never felt good enough'. Jay didn't respect her and Jacob remained indifferent to this slight. The boy hardly acknowledged her and even came home bragging about everything 'Leah allowed' and that 'he didn't have to listen' to his mother. Leah was slowly stealing the family she fought to hold together and loved.

She watched bemused as Charlie's eyes softened, a lump formed in his throat that made it hard for him to swallow and his own pain came to the surface. The long held regrets, sorrows and pains from his own failed marriage with Renee when Bella was a small child. It was no secret that Renee went through men, good and bad, like bottles of water. Charlie had always wished he'd done more, maybe fought to keep his family together instead of letting Renee walk out with Bella and never look back. Renesmee witnessed his insecurities whenever he was with Sue. He was intimidated by the doctors and male nurses she worked with, always anxious about 'impressing' Seth and, especially, Leah Clearwater and struggled dealing with his shy personality that made expressing himself an everyday struggle.

"Oh, Ness, sweetie, I'm sorry to hear that." Charlie said placing a warm, calloused hand on top of hers. There was sincerity in his voice and Renesmee both loved and hated it. He understood but there was also pity in his voice – a mutually shared pity. She wasn't meant to be pitied but envied.

"Thank you, Charlie," Renesmee answered in an attempt to show gratitude. "I knew you'd understand."

"Have – have you two maybe tried counseling? Or maybe family therapy?" Her hand tightened at the suggestion. He was trying to make suggestions to improve the situation but Renesmee didn't want any of that. She wanted someone to simply side with her and realize how horrible, selfish and mean Jacob and Jay were.

"Jacob refuses to go and…there's also the issue of…their 'genetic' conditions." Renesmee stated hinting at the wolves that were inside of them. Jacob had proven to Charlie that the legends he grew up hearing being retold by Harry and Billy as children were true. He had to have pieced together their strange behavior and lack of layers as part of the idiosyncrasies of the wolf.

"Well…I hadn't thought of that." Charlie admitted with a heavy sigh, his brow creased in concentration. Renesmee had never noticed it before but it was the same face that Bella made whenever she began to concentrate on something. "Well…maybe if I talk to Leah about letting you," Renesmee cut Charlie short with a sharp 'no' that was more forceful and suspicious then she wanted.

"No, I – I don't want Leah thinking that I'm letting her get to me." Renesmee recovered. It seemed to be an answer that satisfied whatever curiosity that Charlie would've had. "You can go where I can't for the moment. How about you just keep an eye on Jacob in my absence? Remind him that he's married to me." Renesmee felt her smile grow as Charlie quietly nodded his head in agreement. There wasn't any doubt that Charlie would do all that he could to help his granddaughter keep her family together. He wouldn't want to see history repeat itself; a spouse leaving the other, taking their only child and the child shunning the left behind parent. She waved at him as he drove away having already told him how grateful she was to have, at least someone, in her corner. All that was left was to find some way to break Jay's relationship with the rest of the dogs.

A/N: Sorry for the delayed update but life has just been real busy these last couple of months and I do not foresee it lightening up anytime soon. Still writing whenever I can but it's never enough time. If only there was more time! But here's a short update and I'm hoping to have a longer one next time as part of it...a bit of it is already written. Thanks for sticking me and my sucky updating schedule.

Deuces!