Back to the Start
Disclaimer: all characters and copyright belong to SM.
Deconstructing
The only thing that registered with Bella was Jacob. At any other time, she might have thought twice about her actions, but in her relief, she was beyond thinking straight. She ran toward him, stumbling and tripping all the way, until she was pressed up against his enormous russet figure, her face buried in the shaggy fur of his shoulder. She could smell the piquant scent of musk and woods…and dog? She didn't care. He had kept his promise. He was back and still in one piece. He was safe. That was all that mattered.
The wolf's muzzle fell open, pulling back over his teeth. It would have been a frightening expression, except his tongue lolled out the side in a wolfy grin.
Bella giggled.
Jacob's grin widened over his sharp teeth. He crouched down on his front legs and dropped his head so that his face was no higher than Bella's, staring at her, measuring her response, looking for signs of distress.
"Oh, Jacob." Bella breathed. "I can't believe its really over."
The answering rumble deep in his chest sounded like a confirmation.
Bella reached her hand out, her fingers trembling slightly, and touched the red-brown fur on the side of his face lovingly.
The black eyes closed, and Jacob leaned his huge head into her hand. A thrumming hum resonated from deep in his throat. His fur was soft and rough under her questing fingers, and warm against her skin. She ran her fingers through it curiously, learning the texture, stroking his neck where the color deepened. She hadn't realized how close she'd gotten. Without warning, Jacob suddenly licked her face from chin to hairline.
"Ew! Gross, Jake!" Bella complained, jumping back, and smacking at him, just as she would have if he were in his human form.
Jacob dodged out the way, and the coughing bark that came through his teeth was obvious laughter.
Bella wiped her face on the sleeve of her sweater, unable to keep from laughing with him. It was at that point that she realized that everyone was watching. She suddenly felt self-conscious, and she flinched a little. A couple of the guys had already phased back and were standing there smirking. The others, still in wolf form, were also watching, though it was hard to make out what they were thinking.
Lastly her gaze landed on the ancient golden wolf at the end of the row of phased wolves. Bella noted the silvery gray streaks mingled among the gold on his muzzle. He looked tired, his black eyes half closed, head drooping. She suddenly felt guilty for monopolizing Jacob's time in this way. He was needed elsewhere.
"Jake." She said hesitantly. "Your father…?"
Jacob cocked his head to the side, looking behind him at the golden wolf, clearly concerned when he noted the exhausted posture. He turned his head back toward Bella, nudging her gently with his nose.
"I'll wait inside." Bella whispered, leaning in, and pressing a soft kiss right between his eyes.
Waiting was the hardest part, but Bella knew that Billy had to be Jacob's priority right now. The older man had essentially saved her life, for which she felt incredibly grateful, but also incredibly guilty. If she had listened to him, and gone inside the house like he had asked in the first place, then maybe he wouldn't have phased in the way he did.
Who knew what effects that this transformation would have on Billy's already weakened body? Would he struggle to phase back into his human form? She tried to remember what the outcome had been for his ancient ancestor, Taha Aki, when the same thing had happened to him.
As far as Bella could recall the details had been sketchy about the aftermath of his transformation. When his third wife sacrificed herself to give him enough time to kill the vampire, Taha Aki never rejoined the tribe or changed back to a man again. He lay for three days beside the body of his wife, growling whenever someone tried to touch her, and then he went into the forest and never returned. His whereabouts afterwards remained a mystery.
It was hard for Bella to sit still. The truth was she was dying to know what was happening. Just knowing Jacob-and everyone else she cared about - was safe, was just about enough to tide her over. Then she thought of Charlie, still out there in the dark, dealing with all the chaos of the fires, and it kickstarted her anxiety all over again.
Finally, the front door opened and Jacob strode in, pushing his father in front of him in his wheelchair. Someone had the presence of mind to cover Billy's naked form with a blanket. Bella cursed herself for not having thought of that herself. Following behind Jacob and Billy was the rest of the pack.
Bella looked worriedly at Billy. His face was drained, his complexion ashen. He looked like he had aged ten years. The lines around his face were more pronounced, deeper. She rushed over to him, falling to her knees, and reaching out for his hands.
"Billy, I can't thank you enough for- "
"Hush, child." Billy said wearily. "Its okay." He patted her cheek fondly.
"Is it, though?" Bella examined his face, noting again the deep lines that seemed burrowed into his skin.
"Yes." Billy reassured her. "It's just taken a lot out of me. I just need to rest."
Bella glanced up at Jacob for confirmation. "Its true, Bella, honey. Stop stressing. He just needs some food and a few hours sleep."
"Really?" Bella felt the tight ball of tension in her stomach begin to ease. "Honestly and truly?"
"He's fine, Bells. We all are." Jacob promised solemnly.
Bella turned her attention to Jacob's brothers. The pack was shirtless, as usual, and while all the others seemed unchanged, Sam seemed even more serious than usual. He was heading to the phone, probably to call Leah.
Quil was getting a roasting from Embry and Jared about them all having to step in to save his ass. He accepted their teasing with good grace, joining in with their banter. Jacob threw them all a stern look and they immediately fell silent. Everything was still too emotionally raw for him. It had been a close call. He didn't feel like laughing.
Walking over to Bella, he threw his arm around her shoulders, pulling her against him. "I'm just going to help my father get some clothes on, then I'll be right back."
"Okay. I'll make up a few snacks while you're gone."
"Thanks, honey." Jacob smiled his thanks as he dropped a quick kiss on top of her head.
"Miss me?" Jacob asked a little while later, pulling Bella down onto the old couch with him.
Bella didn't need to answer. She just curled up against his chest, listening to the steady sound of his heartbeat as everyone else settled in.
Billy looked much brighter now. He'd had a long, soothing bath, the warm water and a fresh set of clothes doing a lot to revitalize his waning energy. To everyone's astonishment he walked into the living room, using Jacob's shoulder as a crutch, rather than using his wheelchair. Bella had never seen Jacob's father standing upright and was amazed at how tall he was, he must be six foot four at least. It seemed that the aftereffects of his unexpected phasing were having only positive results so far, now that his initial exhaustion had worn off. How long those effects lasted remained to be seen.
The others stood around the edges of the tiny living room, each of them wearing somber expressions. They were just waiting on Harry Clearwater and Old Quil to arrive so they could all sit and deconstruct what had happened that evening.
Bella nearly jumped out of her skin when the phone rang. She quickly hurried out to the kitchen to answer it, expecting it to be Charlie. She had been waiting for his call for most of the night, not wanting to contact him herself as she didn't want to disturb him while he was still in the thick of it.
"Dad?"
"Oh, Bells, good its you." Charlie emitted a gusty sigh of relief.
Bella pressed the phone closer to her ear. "How are you? I've been so worried."
"We took a bunch of arson hits in town tonight. We're on top of it now, but I've still got my hands full. I think its best if you stay in La Push until I can come and collect you."
"Is everyone okay?" Bella was concerned with how exhausted he sounded.
"Look like it. They just targeted the businesses. The school gym is just a shell. The local store got hit pretty bad. Newtons didn't escape, either. Luckily the sprinklers kicked in there, so the only real damage was the outside of the building."
"Oh no. Poor Mike!" Bella said absently, wondering if she was still going to have a job in the morning.
Charlie lowered his voice. "Bells, I need to ask…Jake and the others…did they come across anything? Anything unusual?"
Bella knew what her father was asking. She could hear the tension in her his voice. "Yes." She confirmed in a clipped tone. "It was vampires who started the fires."
Charlie drew in a sharp breath. "I wondered…but…I don't understand. Why?"
Bella didn't want to burden her already exhausted parent with too much information. If he knew that she had been the target it might push him over the edge. That could wait until they were face to face. "We're discussing that now." She said cryptically. "Don't worry, Jake and his pack removed the danger. Its safe."
"God, this is so out of my comfort zone." Charlie admitted edgily.
There was the sound of someone in the background calling his name.
"Yeah, I'm coming." He said testily. "Look, kiddo, I've got to go. Keep close to Jake and Billy. Promise me."
"I promise." Bella replied earnestly.
"Good girl. I'll see you soon, kiddo."
"Take care of yourself, Dad."
"I always do." Charlie said as he ended the call.
A/N-thanks for reading!