A/N: When I wrote this chapter, I realized that in one of the first few chapters I alluded to an AU change that Bella wasn't there when the wolves took down Laurent but never explained it. Since I want no part of a Zombie Bella, she didn't fall apart after Edward left. Not doing stupid, destructive shit to hallucinate his voice or whatever meant she didn't go to the meadow.

Thank you for reading and for all your kind reviews! You're still keeping me smiling through the flu:)

Meeting a Myth

A few days later, on his way back to the house after a quick hunt, Jasper got a call from Kate Denali.

"Do you know what month this is, Jasper Whitlock?"

"Uh… May?" Jasper said, unsure why Kate sounded a little pissed.

"Yes, Jasper, it's May. I've been waiting for you to call me back for five months. You're lucky I actually have a life and wasn't sitting by the phone this whole time, you inconsiderate dick."

"Oops," Jasper laughed, having completely forgotten about his call to Kate back when they were still in Italy. "I'm really sorry, Kate. Truly. Life has been a little bit crazy and it completely slipped my mind."

"I'm not really angry," she laughed. "Shocked as hell about everything I've heard, but not angry."

"So Edward did make his way up there?"

"He did. Thanks for that, by the way," she snarked. "You guys get rid of him and force his company on me."

"Sorry about that, too," Jasper laughed. "If you need a break, you can always come visit. You're welcome anytime, you know that. We'd love to see you."

And Jasper meant it. Of the three Denali sisters, Kate was the only one any of them could stand. Tanya and Irina were both a little too intense, though each in different ways. Kate was lighthearted and fun and made the best of just about every situation. Jasper liked Carmen and Eleazar also, but like Irina, they were a little on the serious side.

"Yes!" Kate shouted, then started laughing. "I'd love to get out of here and I want to meet this mate of yours. I heard about her when she was Edward's girlfriend, of course, so I'm interested to see how someone who could love that arrogant, pretentious asshole could turn around and love you, too. You're the better man, obviously, but it's still a little weird. Besides, I need to make sure she's good enough for you."

"I'm confident you'll approve," Jasper said with a smile.

"And you'll tell me the whole story of everything that's happened? Edward's ego is big enough that I have no doubt he's either holding some things back or outright lying to make himself look better."

"We'll tell you the whole long, sordid tale," Jasper assured her. "You know we've added a few wolves to the family, right? If you're gonna come, you've gotta be polite."

"I'm always polite, Jasper!" she said, sounding highly offended.

"Okay, Kate," Jasper scoffed. "Sure you are."

"Fine," she laughed. "Maybe I'm not. But I promise to be polite to your family."

"Good, then hurry your ass up. We're tryin' to get a house built and could use an extra pair of hands. If you do decent enough work we'll even let you stay for the wedding."

"YOU'RE GETTING MARRIED?" she shouted excitedly, then Jasper heard some rustling on the line. "Get out of my face, Edward. Touch me and I'll have you screaming on the ground before you can blink," she growled away from the phone. "Jesus, he's such an asshole. Alright, Jas, I'm on my way."

"Wait! Before you decide, you should know some of the Volturi will be here for the wedding. We've got a few weeks before they arrive, so you can come for a bit and take off before then if you want. But I just wanted you to know before you made a decision. I know you've got a very legitimate reason to not want to be around them."

Kate's sire had broken one of the Volturi's laws and was executed for it. Fortunately Kate, Tanya, and Irina were completely in the dark about it so they weren't punished in any way, but losing Sasha had been exceedingly painful.

"Who's coming?" she asked, sounding a little hesitant.

"The ones that'll matter most to you are all three kings, as well as Jane."

Kate let out a deep sigh and was silent for a minute. "I'll come, but I may leave before they get there," she said eventually.

Jasper smiled. "We'll be glad to have you for however long you stay," he assured her.

"Damn right you will," she laughed. "See you soon!"

Jasper laughed as he hung up the phone, then went in search of his mate. He found her walking around the perimeter of the pasture with Charlotte as they cheered on Paul and Peter, who were sparring. Paul was in his human form and both were laughing as they tried to best each other.

Aside from a sore shoulder, you'd never know Bella had been in a car accident a few days earlier. They'd had their regularly scheduled appointment at the Women's Clinic that morning, and she'd been a little skittish about getting in the car, but Esme's SUV was built like a tank so she relaxed after a few minutes. With Jasper driving, she'd felt as safe as she could. After another ultrasound, both had been relieved to have another reassurance that all was well.

Emmett had done his magic on the computer and found the name and address of the asshole who'd left an injured woman and a pregnant woman at the scene of an accident he caused. Granted, they needed him to leave, but the dude didn't even attempt to stick around once they told him he could go. He was a single guy with no partner, no kids, and no dependents. He'd already had two DUIs, so Peter and Charlotte shared a nice meal without one iota of guilt. After scaring him half to death, of course.

"Hey sweetheart," Jasper smiled as he took hold of her hand.

Bella pulled him down to give him a quick kiss. "Where've you been all afternoon?"

"I went for a hunt while you were napping. I got a call from Kate Denali on my way back and she's gonna come for a visit."

"Can't stand being around Edward?" Charlotte laughed.

"Kate is part of Tanya's coven?" Bella asked. "Is she the one you called when we were in Italy?"

"Yes to all those questions," Jasper smiled. "She never could stand Edward and isn't real impressed with his behavior. She also reminded me that I was supposed to call her back about five months ago and failed to do so."

"Whoops," Bella laughed. "So she's coming here? What's she like?"

"You'll like her. She's smart as a whip, sarcastic as all hell, and a whole lot of fun to be around."

"Have you met her?" Bella asked Charlotte.

"A few times," Charlotte nodded. "I don't know her as well as Jasper and the others do, but I like her. She's definitely my favorite of the Denalis."

"Mine, too," Jasper agreed.

"Is she gonna be okay about the wolves?" Bella asked quietly. "Wasn't one of her sisters mates with Laurent?"

"Irina and Laurent weren't mates, just companions. And I doubt Kate will have a problem with them, especially when she finds out Laurent was killed because he was trying to get to you. At least that's my best guess. I obviously don't know the whole story, but if Laurent was killed by the Quileute wolves, there's only one reason he'd be so close to Forks. And Paul said his eyes were red, so he obviously wasn't too committed to the animal diet. Kate didn't like him or trust him. She felt bad that her sister lost a companion, but she wasn't sorry he was gone."

Bella nodded her understanding. "Way to go, Paul!" she cheered when he pinned Peter. "When will she be here?" she asked Jasper.

"Soon. She'll run, it's way faster than driving, but it's still a pretty long way. My guess is some time tomorrow."

"Oh good, she can help with the house," Charlotte smiled.

"My thoughts exactly," Jasper laughed, then carefully scooped his mate up into his arms. "You ready for some dinner?"

"Yes, as long as you're cooking," she said with a smile. "I'm lazy and tired and my shoulder and back hurt."

"I'll cook and even throw in a back rub. How's that sound?"

"Perfect. Absolutely perfect," she sighed as she rested her head on his shoulder, happy to let her mate take care of her for a little while.

Jasper smiled when Leah walked into the main cabin just as he put dinner on the table. The girl had a real knack for showing up at mealtimes. Bella loved having someone else to eat with, so even if none of the wolves were expected, they tended to make enough food to accommodate them just in case. And if none showed up, they were always glad to have any leftovers Bella walked down to their house.

Thanks to Leah's wolf gene, her body was now completely healed. She'd had a day of being in pretty severe pain, so Jasper and Bella had spent that time down at her cabin and Jasper had kept her asleep for the most part. Since Paul had experienced a broken bone since becoming a wolf, he knew Leah would heal quickly, but he and Seth stayed close by anyway. The two of them and Bella used it as an excuse to have a lazy day and a movie marathon.

Jasper had taken the opportunity to use their kitchen to make a huge pot of pasta, one of his few non-egg specialties, so Leah had food that was easy to heat up for a day or two. He also did a few loads of laundry. Paul and Seth claimed to be allergic to the washing machine so Leah tended to do the bulk of their laundry. Wanting to ease the burden on her, Jasper got through all three hampers.

"So tell me about this new vamp coming to visit," Leah said as she sat down at the table.

Jasper smiled and told Leah about each member of the Denali coven. He thought Leah would probably like Kate just as much as the rest of them did.

"And you don't think she'll have a problem with us?" Leah asked.

"I honestly don't," Jasper assured her. "She might be a little hesitant at first because she's never met a shapeshifter before and y'all make our instincts a little jumpy, but she knows you're family and will treat you accordingly. And if she doesn't, she'll be politely asked to leave. This is your home, no one has the right to make you feel uncomfortable in your own home, whether they're friends of mine or not."

"Kate's coming?" Rosalie asked with a smile as she sat down beside Bella.

"She is," Jasper nodded. "I think she's looking for any excuse to get away from Edward, and her curiosity about the whole story of the Cullen's implosion from within makes us the best option. She's not stupid, she knows Edward's probably doing a whole lot of editing to make himself look better."

"It'll be interesting to hear how he spun it," Rosalie laughed.

"My guess is Tanya's the only one who lets herself be swayed," Jasper shrugged. "And that's a willful choice on her part. She's smart enough to know he's every inch the asshole that whole situation showed him to be."

"She's the one who's wanted to bang Edward for a few decades?" Leah asked, her nose scrunched up in disgust.

"Yes," Jasper laughed. "To be fair, Edward's just one of many thousands she's wanted to bang. Kate and her sisters are the origin of the succubus mythology."

"Seriously?" Bella asked in surprise. Edward, being the virginal prude he was, hadn't shared that fun little tidbit with her. "How cool to have a whole mythology based on you. Are they even more beautiful than regular vamps?"

Jasper and Rosalie both tipped their heads a bit as they considered it. "I don't personally think so, no," Jasper answered after a few seconds. "I know I'm biased because she's my twin, but I think Rose is prettier."

Rosalie did her patented hair flip and gave him a haughty "Thank you" before laughing. "I don't think so either. Tanya always looked a little too plastic to me. Irina's quite beautiful in a teeny tiny elfin way. She's only a few inches taller than Alice was and her hair is a beautiful silvery blond. If she was less intense, she'd probably be even more beautiful, but her face always looks a bit severe. Kate's the beauty of the three in my opinion."

"Do any of them have a gift?" Bella asked. "Besides a magical vagina or whatever?" she added.

"A magical vagina?" Jasper laughed. "I'm not sure that's actually how the succubus legend goes, sweetheart."

Bella laughed and shrugged. "You know what I mean. Do any of them have gifts that aren't related to being sex goddesses?"

"Of the three sisters, only Kate does," Rose answered with a smile. "She can run an electrical current over her body and shock someone. The only other gift in the Denali coven is Eleazar, who can discern the gifts of others."

"How does she have zillions of sex partners if she's always electrocuting people?" Leah asked.

"It's not constant," Jasper answered. "It's like any other gift that has to be actively used. Like the pathokinesis aspect of mine. Feeling the emotions around me is automatic, I can't turn that off, but unless I'm projecting by accident, I have to make a conscious decision to manipulate someone else's emotions. Same with Kate's gift. She can run it over any part of her body and at any strength, but if she's not actively using it, coming into physical contact with her is as safe as coming into physical contact with anyone else."

"Cool," Leah nodded. "As fascinating as that all is, more importantly, how is she with construction projects?"

"Brilliant," Rose laughed. "They built the house in Denali and it's spectacular. You'd love it."

"I'm sure she'll have plenty of good ideas," Jasper agreed as he got up to clear the table. "But that's still a day away, so get your lazy asses up and help me clean the kitchen. And before you try to argue about it, Bella's exempt. She doesn't have accelerated healing thanks to supernatural genes."

"Fine," Leah and Rosalie grumbled at the same time, while Bella just watched them with a little self-satisfied smirk.

Aside from her ability to grow a Lilly flower, it wasn't often that Bella's humanity was a point in her favor, so she'd take any win she could.

Bella was taking a walk around their property with Leah in her wolf form the following afternoon when the fur on the back of her neck stood up. It was the first time Leah had phased since the accident. She knew she was probably being overly cautious by staying strictly human for that many days, but she hadn't wanted to risk it. There was always a degree of pain when phasing, which is understandable given that literally their entire bodies - skin, muscles, and bones - were completely rebuilding themselves in a matter of seconds, and she hadn't wanted to add additional pain on top of it. Especially because of the broken collarbone, which had hurt like a motherfucker.

"What's wrong?" Bella asked as Leah came to a stop, then rolled her eyes at herself. Leah couldn't exactly answer her in that form.

Not a second later, Jasper ran up. "It's just Kate," he reassured the wolf, knowing she'd probably caught a hint of her scent. "Wanna head back and phase human? We'll meet you there."

Leah nodded and took off in the direction of the house, running but not using her full speed.

"Wanna walk back or do you want to run?" Jasper asked Bella.

"Do we have time to walk?" she asked.

"Of course. Rose, Esme, and Emmett are all at the house so there's no rush," he assured her and happily took the hand she held out. "How was Leah when she phased?"

"Nervous," Bella nodded. "I can't say how it felt, but it didn't take her any longer than it usually did and she didn't appear to be in pain once she was a wolf. She took her first few steps a little gingerly but after that it was as normal as any other time."

Jasper smiled at the news. He'd thought she'd be perfectly fine but could also completely understand her trepidation.

The two walked back in the kind of comfortable silence that came with being in the presence of someone who knew you inside and out and loved every single bit of you. Occasionally they'd pass emotions back and forth, mainly because Bella thought she was hilarious when she sent him random emotions out of the blue, but they just held hands and walked home at a leisurely human pace.

When the house came into view, Bella saw that all three wolves were sitting in the grass in the yard in their human forms. When she sent Jasper her curiosity, he looked down at her with a smile.

"Their instincts are still triggered in their human bodies, but to a much lesser degree than as wolves. And my guess is they're waiting to do introductions outside where the fresh air will dilute her scent a bit," he explained.

Bella nodded her understanding and then skipped over to her siblings, tugging Jasper behind her, and plopped down in the grass with them.

"Why do y'all look so nervous?" Jasper laughed. "You weren't this nervous when we had a pack of five wolves and a deluded telepath about to show up who were out for our blood."

"Venom," Bella corrected. "Blood and venom."

"Thank you, you're absolutely right. Blood and venom," Jasper said with a smile.

"Leah's got us on edge," Seth grumbled. "She thinks we're gonna fall into the vamp's magical vagina against our will."

A sharp crack of laughter exploded out of Jasper as Bella dissolved in a fit of giggles.

Another beautiful laugh rang out as the door opened and all five of them looked up to see Kate standing on the porch. Well, Jasper knew it was Kate, the others just assumed.

"Magical vagina?" Kate laughed as she slowly walked over to them. "I'm not sure I've ever heard it described that way, but I appreciate the compliment."

"I think that's my fault," Bella laughed. "I was a little tired when Jasper was telling us about you and your sisters and my verbal filter tends to disappear when I'm tired."

Kate pointed to the ground beside her. "May I sit?"

"Please," Bella nodded. "I apologize for not getting up. I probably should've given it more thought before I sat on the ground. If you'd prefer to stand, you'll just have to give me an awkward few seconds to get to my feet."

"Sitting is fine," Kate assured her as she gracefully sank down onto the grass and held out her hand. "I'm pleased to finally be meeting you, Bella."

Bella smiled and held her hand out but then snatched it back at the last second. "You're not doing the electrocution thing, right?"

Kate immediately shook her head. "No. I'd never do that to you when you're still human. After you're a vampire, if you want to feel it, absolutely. But not until then," she assured her.

"Then it's a pleasure to meet you, Kate," Bella smiled and shook her hand, then pointed at each wolf. "These are my brothers and sister - Paul, Seth, and Leah."

All the wolves nodded politely and said hello, and Kate looked at them curiously. Jasper felt no wariness in her.

"So you're all shapeshifters?" Kate asked. "I've never met one before."

"We are," Leah nodded. "We thought we were werewolves until Jasper pointed out that we'd been misinformed."

Kate immediately shook her head. "Definitely not werewolves. I've seen a few of those and you're nothing like them. Just the scent alone is miles different."

"You've met true werewolves?" Seth asked curiously.

"Not met, seen," Kate laughed. "My kind doesn't meet true werewolves socially, even when they're human. But I've seen them from a distance, yes."

Esme, Rosalie, and Emmett came outside and joined them on the grass.

"Kate's been around a long time," Emmett said with a smile. "She's seen a lot in her life."

"How long is long?" Bella asked her.

"I'm over a thousand years old."

"So have you traveled a lot in your life? Been all over the globe?" Bella asked excitedly, making Jasper laugh because he knew what was coming.

"I have," Kate said, sounding a little unsure.

"Have you ever met a mermaid? Or ever seen one?" Bella asked.

Kate very nearly laughed but stopped herself when she saw how serious the human's expression was. "I'm afraid not. If merpeople exist it will be a surprise to me," she answered. Seeing Bella's disappointment, she couldn't help smiling. "I'll keep an eye out from now on and let you know if I ever come across one in the future."

"Thank you, I appreciate that. I appreciate even more that you didn't laugh at me," she said pointedly while glaring at her family.

Jasper laughed and held his hands up. "I don't recall any of us laughing at you," he defended himself and his family. "And Rosalie went so far as to helpfully point out that Aro would be the man to ask. Which you did."

"And?" Kate asked with a smile.

Bella huffed a little. "He's never read anyone who's seen one," she grudgingly admitted.

"Ah. Tough luck. I'll keep my eyes peeled for you, but the waters near my home are likely too cold for merpeople to comfortably live in."

"Good point," Bella nodded. "Well, it was worth a try."

"Where are Peter and Charlotte?" Kate asked.

"I don't actually know," Jasper answered. "I haven't seen them since this morning. Probably snuck off for some alone time. Living in a group this size is a big adjustment for them."

"I imagine it is," Kate nodded. "So. Who wants to tell me what happened? Better yet, all of you can tell me what happened."

"What did Edward tell you all when he got there?" Esme asked.

"When he first arrived, he seemed to be pretty ashamed and said more than I think he'd planned on. Since then, his ego has recovered and he's tried to walk it back a bit," Kate answered and rolled her eyes. "He's really quite awful. What did you ever see in him?" she asked Bella.

"Uh…"

"I believe that would be his topaz or caramel or whatever eyes and his likeness to a marbled Greek god," Rosalie answered in a dry ass voice.

Every single being in the yard broke into hysterics at that, thinking Rosalie was making a joke.

Jasper felt Bella's embarrassment and his surprise cut off his laughter. "Seriously? You think Edward looks like a Greek god?"

"The Greek god of what?" Paul scoffed. "Possessive, controlling partners?"

"Arrogant assholes?" Emmett offered.

"Delusional sociopaths?" Rosalie added.

"I… You know what, fuck all of you," Bella laughed as she shrugged. "Yes, I thought he was handsome, though I'm curious how Rosalie knows those particular thoughts. But now when I look at him, I see the same thing all of you do. An arrogant boy who thinks he's the most important person in the world. It's hard to see him as handsome when you know what his true personality is."

"Alice," was all the answer Rosalie gave.

As everyone began telling Kate the whole ugly story from start to finish, Jasper went in the house to grab a blanket and make Bella a cup of tea. The wolves seemed perfectly comfortable with Kate outside, so he didn't want to push them to move the gathering indoors, but Montana still got chilly in May in the late afternoon and evening. Even the tail end of it.

Figuring he might as well bring Bella a snack, he quickly cut an apple and scooped some almond butter into a bowl.

Just before he walked out the door, he doubled back and cut up three more apples, then exchanged the bowl of almond butter for the whole jar with a spoon stuck in it. The wolves were hungry pretty much around the clock and it would be a dick move to bring his mate a snack and not bring something for them, too.

Bella smiled at him when he handed each wolf a plate with apple slices and set the jar of almond butter on the ground in front of them, then handed Bella a plate of her own. After draping the blanket over her shoulders, he sat back down beside her and put a mug of tea in front of her.

"Thank you," she whispered as she rested her head on his shoulders, then quickly swooped in to get the almond butter before the wolves could hog it all.

"It's for sharing, you brat," Paul growled playfully.

Kate tensed up at his tone, not realizing he wasn't actually angry.

"Yes, Paul, for sharing," Bella said, enunciating it extra clearly. "Last time Jasper gave you the jar with a spoon you ate it all, which was very poor manners. Not to mention being a little thoughtless of your pregnant sister with a slight addiction to almond butter," she snarked.

"Slight addiction?" Leah scoffed. "I've seen you go through half a jar all on your own."

Bella started laughing. "I knew you'd caught me that day. Thanks for pretending not to see it."

Jasper just rolled his eyes. "Did y'all forget I just went to the damn grocery store. There are four more jars in the pantry. I think you can manage to share this one for now. And no, Paul, that's not an invitation for you to go get a jar to eat all by yourself. You want a whole jar, go to your own house. I got some for y'all to keep down there so you'd quit coming up here to take it from my pregnant mate."

Rosalie laughed seeing the expression on Kate's face. "Weird, right? Leah likes to call him 'dad' to tease him."

"I can see why," Kate smiled. "The blanket and snacks and… tea of some kind, I think. Grocery shopping also. He's always been a protector, though, so it makes sense," she said. "This is simply a different form of protecting his loved ones. Nourishing them. Keeping them safe and happy and well."

Bella gave her a huge, beaming smile. She thought she and Kate Denali would get along brilliantly. Anyone who saw Jasper that way was bound to find a place in her heart.

A/N: Sorry if there were multiple notifications, I realized I forgot Emily on the wedding list so had to go back and edit her in.