A/N: I love reading your reviews so much, I can't even tell you. Easily, best part of any day for me. So thank you to everyone who takes those few extra moments to leave feedback. It's so appreciated:)

Also, most of this chapter annoys me but I can only rewrite it so many times before I want to start throwing breakable things. Hopefully you'll like reading it way more than I liked writing it, lol.

A Dancing Lilly

The two weeks following the meeting with the tribe were busy for everyone. There was a lot of work to be done, both physically and in beginning to create relationships with the Quileutes that would enable them to work together in the years to come.

Bella's dad's house was now updated and new furniture had replaced what was scuffed or battered. Both bedrooms had new beds, there was a new couch and loveseat in the living room, and a small bathroom had even been added downstairs. New hardwood floors and fresh paint worked wonders in brightening the place up. Everything Bella wanted to keep herself was boxed up in the garage of the old Cullen house, ready to load for their return trip.

Changing rooms had been finished behind the Fuller and Littlesea houses, and the vamps had decided to go ahead and build one at the edge of the forest in Charlie's backyard also, just in case any wolves needed to stay there.

Collin was no closer to phasing, as far as they could tell. He still hadn't had a significant growth spurt, and his emotions were unchanged any time Jasper read them. He and Brady continued to spend a lot of time with the wolves and vamps, which meant the Littleseas and Fullers were all firm friends with the whole Whitlock clan. They'd even spoken to Peter and Charlotte over the phone a few times when they were visiting. There was a general plan in place for Collin and Brady to come to Montana after they'd had a little time to settle into being wolves to undergo some training with the vamps.

Paul and his dad had gotten together a few times, although Paul still found himself uncomfortable in Terrance's presence. Rebuilding any kind of trust between them would take time. Leah and Emily, on the other hand, had made progress in huge leaps and bounds on repairing their relationship. If you didn't know their history, you'd have no idea they'd been estranged.

For a number of reasons, the three wolves had decided to stay behind in Forks for a few weeks. Not only did they want to be there if Collin phased, but Angela and Leah were at the very beginning of their relationship and Leah didn't want to be over seven-hundred miles from Seattle, which all of them could understand.

To that end, Bella had decided to leave her truck with her big sister for the time being. There was no rush for Bella to get it to Montana, as they had plenty of vehicles already, and having the truck meant Leah had the freedom to see her imprint whenever she wanted.

Emmett and Rosalie had decided to run back to Montana so Bella and Jasper could ride in Esme's SUV. Esme had also offered to run, but Bella asked her to travel with them instead. Saying goodbye to her dad's house had been far more emotional than she'd expected, even with the reassurance from the tribe that it was always available for her if she came to visit.

"It may technically belong to the Quileute tribe now, but it will never stop being the Swan house," Connie Littlesea had told her.

Felling a little lost and parentless, Bella had found herself seeking out Esme's company more and more often.

They were also into the second week of April, and her due date in July felt a whole lot closer suddenly. Having Esme nearby made her feel a little bit less anxious.

Jasper, Bella, Esme, Rose, and Emmett were planning to leave the following day, and the Quileutes had invited the whole family to a huge cookout at La Push. They hadn't yet made a firm decision about the vamps staying off tribal land in the future, but they'd been free to come and go during the two weeks since the tribe-wide meeting.

Bella had taken her cooking lessons seriously, and had prepared two seafood dishes to bring along, while Esme had baked some cakes and cookies to take.

Angela had come down to visit Leah for the weekend, so she was coming along as well.

"I only have two months left in this term," Angela said as she and Bella loaded one of their huge coolers with drinks. "I've been rethinking my next three years."

"Really?" Bella asked, only a little surprised by that. Being separated from Leah didn't cause them physical pain but that didn't make the distance any easier. "What are you thinking?"

"Montana State isn't too far from you guys. Bozeman is less than a hundred miles away. There's also the possibility of taking classes online. More and more colleges and universities are offering those."

"True," Bella nodded. "You know I'll support whatever you decide. It would be great to have you closer. Whether that's in Bozeman or you living with us, both options would thrill everyone."

"You don't think anyone would have a problem with me moving into the house with the wolves?" Angela asked a little nervously.

"No, not even a little," Bella laughed. "It would make the whole family happy. Honestly, I wouldn't lie to you," she assured her. "Talk to Jasper about it, though, if that would put your mind at ease."

Angela nodded and decided to do just that. If anyone could give her reassurance, it was Jasper. Not only was he one of the owners of the two houses, but he was always honest. Angela trusted that he'd tell her the truth.

"Whoa, look at that," Bella whispered to Jasper.

Jasper turned to see Collin walking towards them and he was at least two inches taller than last time they'd seen him. The change was enough for Bella to see, even with her human eyes. "He's definitely getting closer. It's probably a good thing we're leaving tomorrow," Jasper said quietly. "My guess is his instincts as a new wolf will be harder to control. Better he has his first transformation with no vamps around."

Bella agreed. The wolves in her family had talked about how much rage they'd felt, and as much as she liked Collin, Bella wasn't all that eager to be around a brand new wolf.

"How are his emotions?" she asked.

Jasper took a moment to dig as deep as he could. "Better than we'd expected, honestly. He's got a little more anger than he typically carries, but not by much. The level isn't anywhere near what Leah and Paul described."

"Good," Bella nodded. "Going by the smile on his face, he's not hostile to any of the vamps yet."

"True," Jasper agreed. Collin had stopped to talk to Rose and Emmett and was just as open and friendly as he'd always been.

"Where's Brady?" Bella asked, looking around.

Jasper nodded to the right of her. "Talking to his mom. He looks exactly the same, and his emotions haven't changed at all."

"Hey!" Collin said with a huge smile as he walked over to them. "One step closer, huh?"

"Looks that way," Jasper laughed. "You excited?"

"What's not to be excited about? I get to be a protector of my tribe and keep my people safe."

"I'm glad you see it as the honor it is," Bella smiled. "Nervous at all?"

"Not much," Collin shrugged. "Since Leah, Paul, and Seth are sticking around for a little longer, I'll have them to help me adjust. And the new council is already planning a party for the whole tribe to celebrate me becoming a wolf."

Jasper and Bella both broke into wide smiles at that news. It was exactly what they were hoping for.

The new council had been chosen democratically, and consisted of eight people. Four were from families with the wolf gene, and four without. Everyone had decided the council should be larger than the previous one, in the hopes that more members would mean a broader array of opinions to consider. Once any new wolves phased, they'd be allowed to sit on the council but wouldn't have the power to make any unilateral decisions that impacted the tribe as a whole.

They'd also decided on term limits, just like any other town government. The wolves would be the exception to that rule - as long as they were actively phasing, they would be part of the council. If the pack ever grew big enough that they constituted a majority, new members would be voted in. No one wanted a repeat of history, so they'd put rules in place to ensure the wolves never had an outsized say in what happened to the tribe.

"Holy shit," Bella whispered suddenly as she grabbed Jasper's arm with one hand and put the other on her stomach.

"What's wrong?" Jasper asked quickly, though tuning in to her emotions, he realized she was excited, not worried.

Bella took his hand and put it on her Lilly-bump, and he nearly yanked his hand right off in surprise. He looked at Bella with a beaming smile. "Holy shit," he breathed. "I can feel her moving."

Almost before the words were out of his mouth, the Whitlock clan was crowded around them.

Bella reached for Rosalie's hand and pressed it against her stomach, moving it around for a few seconds. "There!" Bella laughed.

"Holy shit," Rose whispered with a huge grin, then quickly grabbed Esme's hand and showed her where to put it.

"Oh my goodness," Esme breathed, breaking into a brilliant smile of her own.

After that, everyone took their turn feeling the baby move. Bella had felt a little uncertainty early in her pregnancy that she'd feel awkward with people touching her stomach, but had quickly found that she only felt happiness when her family did it, knowing they were just as awed and overjoyed as she was. Add in to the equation that they could now feel their Lilly moving and the awe and joy was amplified by about a thousand.

After a few minutes, Jasper got impatient and batted everyone else's hands away. "Move it, it's my turn again," he growled playfully.

Bella covered Jasper's hand with hers, and the two just stared in each other's eyes, both of them completely overwhelmed by the force of their emotions. Jasper's eyes filled with venom tears and he leaned down to press a gentle kiss on his mate's lips.

"Thank you," he whispered, and let Bella feel all his love and gratitude that she was giving him a gift he'd never even thought to dream of for himself.

Saying goodbye to the wolves in her family, even though she knew it was temporary, was harder than Bella had thought it would be. She realized that not a day had gone by since the beginning of January that she hadn't seen Paul, Leah, and Seth.

She'd been a little sad through the beginning of their drive back to Montana, but the closer they got to home, the more excited she got. Charlotte and Peter occasionally were gone for a couple days at a time if they went farther away to hunt, but this three-week separation was the longest by far since Bella had met them.

Pulling up in front of the cabin, Bella let out an excited squeal when she saw Charlotte and Peter waiting for them. Just barely waiting for the car to stop, Bella wrenched open her door and hopped out, and was immediately pulled into Charlotte's arms as she let out a happy squeal of her own.

Bella held on as tight as she could. "I missed you."

"We missed you, too," Charlotte laughed.

Peter stomped over with a playful glare and gently pulled Bella out of his mate's arms and into his own. "My turn."

"Oh, fine," Charlotte huffed, then immediately turned and launched herself at Jasper, who caught her with a laugh. "Welcome home."

"Our Lilly's sure been doing some growing," Peter said with a smile as he put his hand on Bella's baby bump. Then immediately snatched his hand back. "What the fuck was that?"

"Our Lilly flower has started unfolding her petals," Bella laughed and gently put Peter's hand back on her stomach.

"Whoa," he breathed, then snorted a laugh when Charlotte swatted his hand out of the way.

"Oh my," Charlotte whispered, venom tears stinging her eyes. After another few seconds, she gently pulled Bella into her arms and just held on for a minute.

"Pretty amazing, huh?" Esme asked with a smile.

Charlotte looked up and nodded, eyes wide with wonder.

"Can she hear us?" Peter asked curiously. "Is it time to start switching to darns instead of damns?"

"She might be able to," Jasper admitted, remembering his own promise he'd made to his Lilly flower that he'd watch his language if she nailed her growing-baby test. "She can definitely hear sounds inside her mama, like her heartbeat."

Peter's face was surprisingly serious as he nodded. "I'll start workin' on that now."

"Come inside, I've got some dinner ready for you," Charlotte said as she took Bella's hand and started tugging her up the porch steps.

Bella's eyes prickled with happy tears to be back with the brother and sister she loved so much.

"He's a wolf," Leah said as soon as Jasper answered his phone three days later.

"Collin? How's he adjusting?" he asked.

"Pretty good, to be honest, though it's only been a day. The kid's hardly got any anger at all. Maybe being well-informed beforehand really is the key," Leah answered. "He's mostly excited."

"Good," Jasper said with a smile.

Because Jasper was always conscientious about Bella's humanity, and never tried to use it as a way to keep information from her, he'd answered Leah's call on speaker.

"What does his wolf look like?" Bella asked her.

"A little bit like Jacob, I guess," Leah answered after she thought about it. "Kinda reddish-brown. Not as big, though. He's closer to Seth's size. I'll take a picture and send it to you. How's my niece?"

"Active," Bella laughed. "We might have a dancer on our hands."

"Not a soccer player?" Leah asked.

"Could be, but it feels more like gentle rolling, rather than kicking. Jasper thinks she's doing pirouettes," Bella said, smiling at her mate.

"I danced when I was younger," Leah said, sounding a little wistful.

"Did you really? Perfect, you can teach her," Bella laughed. "Me and ballet don't like each other. My mom had me in classes for about seven seconds until I pointed my foot in the wrong direction and knocked into the girl next to me. From there it was just a long line of tutu-wearing dominoes."

"No wonder you never had any friends," Leah teased, making both Jasper and Bella laugh.

"I got to see her ballet studio once," Jasper said with a raised eyebrow at his escapee mate. "Just before it burned to the ground."

"Did you do the burning?" Leah asked suspiciously. "Oh! That's where the James thing happened?"

"It is," Bella nodded a little sheepishly. She was way too naive back then and she still felt a little embarrassed that she'd walked right into James' trap, rather than confiding in the two vamps who'd gone to considerable lengths to keep her safe. Or even just picked up the damn phone to call her mom or Phil to confirm if James actually had her or not. "Less said about it, the better."

Jasper laughed at her mix of emotions and gave her a kiss. "You're cute when you're embarrassed."

"Just how much shit did Peter give you for losing a mere human?" Leah asked Jasper.

"Probably less than I deserved, but way more than I was comfortable with," he laughed.

"It was shameful!" Peter called from his bedroom.

Jasper rolled his eyes and sent him a wave of revulsion. When Peter let out a low moan, Jasper winked at his mate.

"Did you make him nauseous again?" Charlotte laughed as she walked in the living room.

"Might've," Jasper shrugged, though his smirk gave him away.

Peter came stomping in behind her. "You're such an ass… tronomically mean person," he corrected at the last second, making everyone laugh.

Curbing bad language after the eons they'd been alive for wasn't going particularly well. For any of them. Bella found the whole thing amusing as hell. Some of the ways Peter, Charlotte, and Jasper tried to correct themselves mid-word had Bella laughing so hard she was afraid she'd pee in her pants. Which was not one of the pregnancy tricks she was eager to pick up, thank you very much.

"He is astronomically mean, isn't he?" Bella laughed.

Jasper smiled and gave Peter the finger. Nothing for the baby to overhear with that.

"Has Angela decided what she's gonna do yet?" Charlotte asked Leah.

Bella zoned out of the conversation for a little while, instead getting lost in watching Jasper's hand move across her stomach as if chasing Lilly's movements. If she'd thought he liked cradling her baby bump before, he was practically obsessive about it now. It was a really good thing she loved him so much or it might've annoyed her. Fortunately, she did love him, so instead she just felt joy at the look of awe on his face every time he felt the baby move.

It was a nice bonus that she could feel his love more 'clearly' with his hand on her skin. There's a lot to be said for being able to know so concretely exactly how much your partner loves you.

"—isn't sure how they'll react."

Bella tuned back in to reality just in time to catch the end of Leah's sentence. "Angela's worried about how her parents will react to your relationship?" she asked. "Because they're religious?"

"Yeah," Leah answered. "I've met her parents and they seem really nice so I'm not sure she has much to be worried about. Even if the idea of a gay relationship makes them a little uncomfortable, I can't imagine they'd disown her or anything. But yeah, she's nervous."

"Being religious doesn't mean someone's going to automatically be anti-gay," Bella pointed out. "And Angela's parents have never struck me as being narrow-minded. Not that I want to minimize her fears, because I can understand how it might be a little scary."

"Well, if they do end up being ass… tronomically mean, we can just yank her into our fold," Charlotte said, rolling her eyes at her near miss.

Bella shook her head and laughed at her family. She didn't think the world would end if one of them used the word 'asshole' but she didn't plan on pointing that out. It was way too amusing to watch them stumble and stutter.

Bella leaned against the pasture fence with a huge smile on her face. "Yes!" she shouted when Jasper tackled Peter and got his teeth to his neck, laughing when Peter shot her a playful glare.

Being in Forks had been great for a lot of reasons, but Bella was glad to be back home. Not only had she missed Peter and Charlotte, but Jasper had also. It seemed to Bella that her mate had kept his inner vamp on lockdown while they were in Washington and she was glad he was loosening the reins again. She understood why he did it - creating relationships with the Quileutes was delicate enough, they didn't need vampire instincts putting up additional barriers - but she was happy he was back to himself.

Vampires communicated both in words and in the sounds animals used to communicate, and Bella had been surprised to find how much she'd missed hearing her mate's hisses and growls. Because the Cullens had fought so hard to hold on to their humanity, they communicated with those sounds far less often than the three original Whitlocks. Bella was sure Peter, Charlotte, and Jasper could have whole conversations without using any words.

Jasper mostly purred for Bella, but if Peter or Charlotte were upset about something, he would occasionally purr for them as a way to offer them comfort. Gentle head-bumps were another way they showed each other affection, and Bella knew scent had something to do with it. Jasper, Peter, and Charlotte all carried some of the same notes in their scents because Jasper had sired them. Having Jasper's scent near could settle Charlotte almost as well as Peter's.

Because of where their relationship began, the life they were living, Peter and Charlotte were rarely separated, finding it far more uncomfortable than those whose bond was formed with no trauma. Before Charlotte left Italy to meet Peter, she'd gotten herself worked up in a ball of anxiety that he'd get himself hurt killing Kristof. No one's words could get through the fog of fear in her mind, so Jasper sat on the couch and pulled Charlotte into his lap. He wrapped her up tight so her head was resting against his throat, then set his chin on top of her head and purred so she could both hear it and feel the vibrations. He took a moment to whisper that she needed to try and take some deep breaths. It didn't take long for Jasper's scent to start helping her calm down.

Rosalie and Emmett had been there and they'd both looked on a little shocked, and Rose had asked Bella why she wasn't upset that Jasper had another woman in his lap, and that he was purring for her.

"Why would I be upset?" Bella asked, trying to keep her anger from showing. "Charlotte's worried about Peter being so far away. If Jasper can make her feel better, why the hell would I not want him to help her? If you were upset, and Jasper purring brought you some comfort, should I tell him not to bother?" she snapped, then stopped and took a deep breath and continued in a calmer voice. "Those three had a completely different start to this life, as you know. I'm grateful you both were spared the kind of lives they lived, I am, but I think sometimes that means you can't always understand them. For far, far too long, Jasper had no one. And then he had Peter. He was the only person Jasper felt any love for or could allow himself to get any comfort from. Just like you're watching Jasper comfort Charlotte with purring and his scent, Peter can do the same for Jasper. They both can do it for Charlotte, and my guess is she could comfort Jasper the same way. Why would I ever want them to hold themselves back from helping in whatever way is most effective? I'm not bothered by this, and I'm honestly not sure why you are. I think it's a wonderful thing that they had each other back then and still have each other now."

It was the closest Bella and Rose had come to an argument in the time they'd all been reunited.

"What's got you so lost?" Jasper asked as he wrapped her in a hug. "Your emotions are a trip right now. You're grateful, pissed, relieved, sad… What's happening in that pretty head?"

Bella blinked herself back to the pasture. "Just glad you've got Peter and Charlotte, that's all," she smiled, then pushed up on her toes to kiss her too-tall mate.

"We're the best, aren't we?" Charlotte asked with a beaming grin as she jumped on Peter's back.

"I definitely think so," Bella agreed with a laugh.

Jasper picked her up and sat her on the fence. "You about ready to go?" he asked Bella, who nodded with a huge smile. They had an appointment at the Clinic, which meant getting to see Lilly for themselves. "Think she'll move for us?"

Bella laughed. "I certainly hope so, but if she takes after her mother, she'll freeze in panic at the camera."

"I'll sing for her if she gets camera shy," Jasper smiled and scooped her into his arms. "Come on, let's go see if we can catch us an eyeful of a dancing Lilly."