Troubleshoot

Disclaimer: all characters and copyright belong to SM.

Life Moves On

Time passes as it always does. With the ebb and flow of each season - from spring, to summer, to fall, to winter - each day marked by the flow of warm companionship, by loving arms, comforted by the knowledge that in the end time is always the great healer.

And so it was, two years in the aftermath of the near fatal accident which had so nearly taken his life, Charlie Swan stood on the front porch of his house in Forks, one hand leaning on the wooden cane that was his constant companion these days, revelling in the warmth of the winter sun that shone on his face.

Even on the coldest days of winter the sun was bright in the sky, bringing joy to his heart. The snow had a purity that elevated his spirit, the world made as pristine as a book ready for new stories. Charlie felt like he was ready for a new chapter in his own life story. After two years of rest, recuperation, and intense physical therapy, he had finally reached a stage in his life where he woke up each morning with a renewed sense of optimism.

At his lowest point he had thought he would be tied to a wheelchair for life. The loss of his career in law enforcement hitting him hard, coupled with Bella's selfless decision to forego the whole college experience so she could stay at home to nurse him through his physical injuries, only compounded his guilt. He was worried that she would come to resent him just like Renee had, that in time she would flee, that the pressure of small-town life would make her long to break free.

Bella took his worries and complaints on the chin, constantly reassuring him that wasn't the case. Reminding him that she was more like him than Renee, and that small town life suited her and she never craved the whole going to college thing like other teens her age. She could study just as well in Forks as she could anywhere in the world. Living at home suited her. She would not be left in a mountain of debt like others her age.

Bella found a job in a coffee shop in Port Angeles, simultaneously attending evening classes at Peninsula college in Forks while enrolling in the Early Child Education program, with the intent of becoming a pre-school teacher, or a respite care provider for children with special needs in the future.

She was easily able to adapt her busy schedule around Charlie's needs, interacting with his other care workers, drawing up a Rota so that there was always someone on hand to care for him during the initial stages of his recovery.

Jacob was a great help to Bella in this regard. He was a hands-on carer to his own dad, and had been for years, with little to no help. Roping in Embry and Quil to assist him, he spent a week adapting the Swan house to suit the former police chief's ongoing needs: installing grab rails and assistance poles in the bathroom, as well as a shower seat in the walk-in shower, so that Charlie could navigate his way through his daily washing routine without the need for another's intervention, allowing the older man to still feel like he had some semblance of independence. A temporary stair lift was fitted to enable him to get up the stairs, paid for by money raised from the sale of the souped up Mercedes that had been Edward's last gift to Bella.

Some of the doorways in the house had to be widened to allow wheelchair access. Charlie would be using one for quite a while during the healing process. With all the right aids and adaptations in place, it made the transition from hospital care to home so much easier and less stressful.

Bella had tears in her eyes afterwards as she gazed with awe as what the boys had done. With no words of thanks able to suffice for all the selfless effort they had put in, she ended up cooking them a large meal full of their favourite foods to express her gratitude instead. This became a regular occurrence, and it wasn't long before the Swan house became like wolf pack central as word got around to the others about the delectable delights she had on offer.

To his surprise Charlie eventually found that he hardly missed the stresses and strains of his old job. Tragically forced out of a career he had spent a lifetime forging, after a short period of frustration and regret, he managed to move on, focusing fully on his recovery and enjoying the slower, more restful pace his life had taken on. On the days he wasn't in rehab, he was able to spend more time doing the things he loved: fishing, attending baseball games, spending a leisurely day with his old friends. It showed him how much he had been missing out on this whole time, giving him renewed energy, which in turn proved a boon to his on-going recovery.

With things looking up for the Swan's in Forks, Jacob and Billy were doing the same in La Push. Jacob enrolled in an on-line business course, studying for this as well as focusing on getting his GED. During his spare time, he also began to advertise locally for any cash in hand jobs, listing his credentials and mechanical prowess, he was soon inundated with work offers. With his pricing so much lower than Jim Dowling (the only other registered mechanic in town) he was soon overwhelmed with work. Soon Embry and Quil were pitching in to help him, and before they knew it, they had a nice little side business going on. With both boys following Jacob's example in getting their GED's, by the end of the second year, all three were close to achieving what they could only have dreamed of in the past – growing an actual business of their own.

As for Billy, it wasn't so easy. Daily he had to battle with his own private guilt about what had happened. The distress and injury that his daughter had caused, to not only his best friend, but to other innocents as well, were wide and far reaching. Thankfully most of the tourists on the coach had only received minor injuries, though a few would need on-going medical care, it was the mental scars that would continue to haunt them for some time to come.

It certainly haunted Billy. He spent days full of self-blame, hiding away in his house, unable to face the reality of what his daughter had become. It took the intervention of both Sue and Charlie to pull him out of the dark abyss he was sinking into.

"If I don't blame you, then you shouldn't blame yourself." Charlie pointed out reasonably. "None of us could have predicted the outcome of any of this. Rachel came from a loving home; it was her own bad decisions and poor choices that led her down a dark path. That's all on her, Billy. Not you."

Billy had wept then, unable to understand how Charlie could be so forgiving. "She put you in a wheelchair, Chief. She stole from you. She ruined your career. I'm her father. I should have known! I should have – "

"Oh, Billy, stop it." Charlie sighed. "We all make mistakes. I've made plenty with Bella, believe me. And maybe in my case it ended up not being such a bad thing. All of this has made me reassess my life. I was plodding along at the station. Don't get me wrong, I loved my job, but it took up so much of my daily life that it actually stopped me from having one. I should have taken a step back years ago. I'm doing that now and am much better for it."

"But you'll never be able to go back." Billy lamented.

"No." Charlie agreed, shrugging. "But I'm sure I'll find something else to keep me occupied."

With tears still running down his lined cheeks, Billy had embraced his old friend in gratitude. With Sue watching on with a relieved smile on her face, the two men hugged each other for a long time.

As for the others involved, the outcome wasn't so positive. Sam and Emily's relationship never fully recovered in the aftermath of Rachel's wrongdoing. They gradually drifted further and further apart, the imprint pull easing over time, becoming less intense as Emily made an internal decision to move on with her life. Sam came home one day to find her bags packed, with a short note left propped up against a broken vase full of wildflowers, informing him that she had gone back to the Makah res to stay with her family.

Sam's initial devastation turned to melancholy, his melancholy turning to hope as he realized that maybe he had a chance at getting his life back now that the ties of the imprint no longer had a chokehold on his heart. Emily had given him the keys to his freedom, he could now choose his own path, which meant also choosing to be with the woman he truly loved.

First, he went to find Jacob, informing him that he was stepping down as Alpha of the pack. This wasn't much of a surprise to anybody. Jacob had been subtly taking up the leadership reigns for a long while now. Sam had been Alpha in name only. The transition proved smooth and easy. No one objected when Jacob pronounced himself leader of the pack – not even Jared – the last outlier.

Freed from both his mental and physical burdens, Sam then went straight to Leah, getting down on one knee before the she-wolf and redeclaring his love. What he hadn't foreseen was her outright rejection. Leah, like everyone else in the intervening months, had made a mental decision to move on. She saw getting back together with Sam as a step backwards in her efforts to reclaim her life.

Unlike her usual manner, she was gentle with Sam, reassuring him she held no ill-will toward him, and that she hoped in time they could renew their relationship but as friends, and that she was already planning a future beyond La Push and the pack. She had already expressed to Jacob that she wanted to set a time frame to leave and he had willingly listened and accepted her decision with good grace.

Sam had no choice but to accept her decision. His mood remained low for a long time, but with the help of his brothers, he finally found the will to move on and plan his own future as a single man.

With vampire activity becoming less and less over the intervening months and years as word got out among the cold ones about the terrifying beasts that stalked that part of the world, the pack were able to settle into a much more workable routine, with Jacob pulling back on the daily patrols, they were all able to concentrate on more important things –

Like a marriage proposal.

On Bella's twentieth birthday, Jacob got down on one knee in front of both their fathers, his pack, the elders, and Sue Clearwater, and asked her to marry him. Billy had gifted him his mother's engagement and wedding ring. Holding the precious heirloom aloft in front of him, Jacob looked up at Bella, waiting with baited breath for her answer.

"Oh, God, Jacob, your timing!" Bella laughed, wiping a stray tear from her eye.

Jacob was confused. "Bells?" He asked, wondering what he was missing here. He glimpsed Sue and Leah exchanging a meaningful look out of the corner of his eye. "What's going on?"

Bella laughed again as she knelt beside him. She took Sarah's ring from him, placing it on the ring finger of her left hand. "First my answer is yes." She said, leaning in to kiss him. When she pulled back, she was wearing a wistful smile. "And secondly I have a question to ask you?"

Jacob cocked his head to one side. "Go on."

"How do you feel about being a father sooner than we anticipated?"

Jacob's dark eyes widened in surprise. He had suspected something. His wolf senses had been tingling for days whenever he was around Bella. But he hadn't let himself dare hope or believe…

"You're pregnant?"

"Yes again." Bella cried as Jacob stood, scooping her up and whirling her around and around until they were both dizzy.

Everyone gathered began cheering, even Paul Lahote, who stood in the background, looking a little misty-eyed. Unlike the others it had taken him the longest to recover. Even though his imprint with Rachel was waning, he still felt an incredible feeling of loyalty toward her. Even though he tried to resist the pull, he ended up visiting her on remand a few times, hoping and praying to see some sign of remorse or regret.

Unfortunately, Rachel remained as she always had been, her narcissistic personality not allowing her to experience either emotion, she continued to rage at Paul during his visits, blaming him, Billy, Jacob, Bella, the world for the dreadful circumstances she found herself in. It proved to be the cutting off point for Paul. During his last visit he told her what he truly thought of her, not holding back either in his language or the reality behind his words. Rachel shrank back beneath the weight of the hostility he showered upon her, his last comment the most damming indictment of all.

"You deserve to rot alone in prison. We could have had everything. You chose this life. I wish you luck, sweetheart. You're gonna need it. You won't see me again."

"Paul! Come back! I'm your imprint! You can't abandon me!" Rachel shrieked wildly. "I won't let you!"

Paul stood, his face set in grim lines, as he strode away, his ears ringing with her desperate cries.

One year and six months after she was first arrested, with no choice but to plead guilty because of the overwhelming amount of evidence that was stacked against her, Rachel accepted a plea deal. She was given a sentence of twenty-five years to life, with the possibility of parole. Not one member of her family came to her sentencing hearing, not even her twin, Rebecca having cut off all ties once she learned of what her sister had done.

Rachel Black was as alone as Paul as said she would be. With reality at last setting in, she was finally learning that you reap what you sow, as she was led away in cuffs to begin her incarceration.

So, while Jacob, Bella, along with their families and wider circle of friends began to enjoy the next stage of their life, moving on and forming families of their own, Rachel remained stagnant behind bars, never able to grow, never moving on.

Which, when you come to think of it, is pretty much resembles life as a vampire? Don't you agree?

FIN.

A/N-thanks for reading!