Chapter 33:

I'm sorry if this is awkward to read at some points, but I was in a bit of a rush.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

"Ah-ah-ah-ah-ah…"

"Irina, you are going to break Bella's spine if you do that any longer," Eleazer sighed from the other side of the room. He was barely looking at us over the top of his book.

She shrugged. "Bella seems to be enjoying it," she said. Her hand continued to hit my back to make my voice vibrate.

I grinned. "Ah-ah-ah-ah-ha-ha-ha-thiiiis-iiiiis-fuuuun-ha-ha…"

"It may be fun," Alice said from her place on the Cullen side of the room in Jasper's lap. She had been watching me intently ever since the phone call, like she was waiting for something to go wrong. "But that doesn't mean the rest of us enjoy it."

I waved my hand at her. "Whaaaateeeeverr…"

Irina chuckled behind me and continued to pound on my back while Rosalie snorted. "It's like having Kate and Emmett doubles," she grumbled just barely loud enough for me to hear.

The blonde had been pouty ever since I had been taken off her lap by Tanya and hadn't had the chance to reapply her scent on me. Really, I was perfectly fine with her not having the chance, because I, frankly, didn't want to be drowned in Rosalie's vampire pheromones again. It felt like I was tripping or something. Not to mention it pissed the Denalis off to no end, and I did not feel like being in the middle of a war today. Irina snorted, but didn't comment, and her hand continued to pound away at my back.

A small clatter made me look towards the kitchen. Tanya, Carmen and Esme were currently preparing a meal for me that apparently took all three of them to complete. Carmen and Esme, I got. They were "competing" with each other, though Carmen was really more of a sister to me than a mother.

But Tanya?

Really?

Did she not trust them together or something? Did she not want Esme feeling like she had any leverage because she had cooked for me far before Carmen had? Or, was she just there to make sure my food was cooked if they got into it over a spice?

In all honesty, I didn't care who made it, how it was made, or where it was made, because I just needed food and I needed it now.

As if reading my mind, Esme blurred to stand directly in front of me suddenly just a second before Carmen. She sent a smirk to the Hispanic woman, before focusing on me again. "Your food is ready, sweetheart," she purred holding out her hand to help me up.

Irina stopped hitting my back and instead set her hand flat between my shoulder blades, sliding it down to the small of my back. Quickly, she grabbed my forearm before I even had a chance to take Esme's hand. "Let's get you fed, then, Roadrunner." She effortlessly pushed herself up without her hands and pulled me with her, practically shoving Esme back to make the caramel haired woman scowl.

I glared at the dirty blonde. "Roadrunner?"

She hummed, pulling her lip into a small smirk. "Yes."

"Do I look like a bird to you?"

"No, but you have the legs for it according to Tanya."

"Meep, meep," Emmett called from the ground. He glanced up at me from the corner of his eye as he versed a sullen Edward in a game of Halo.

Slowly, and a little too dramatically, I turned my head to glare at the large oaf over my shoulder. I narrowed my eyes. "I'll meep, meep you into a nice Coyote Sandwich."

The huge teddy bear raised his hand in surrender. His eyes widened slightly. "Okay, okay," he said. "Geeze, Bella, since when did you become such a savage?"

"It's called having a group of—"

Irina grabbed my arm. "Yes, yes, we know. You are the magnificent Bella Swan whom has hormonal teenage shifters as friends." She gave me a gentle shove towards the kitchen while smacking my butt. "Now get those bird legs moving and go eat."

I yelped when she hit me, clutched my rear and threw her a death glare, but I didn't get to retort. Esme suddenly had my shoulder. She spun me, forcing me to face her causing Carmen to hiss from the force she used—even though she hadn't hurt me.

I looked at the woman bewildered as her other hand grabbed my opposite shoulder, holding me firmly in place. Her eyes were just a shade darker, hardly even noticeable really, and were hard like steel as she stared at me. Her lip curled slightly. "Shifters?" she growled.

Tanya suddenly appeared in the living room, apparently having sensed I wouldn't be joining her soon. She stood by my side, glaring at Esme warningly while her hand rested on the small of my back protectively. I nodded. "Yes," I said. "I'm friends with the Pack."

Esme scowled, her grip on my shoulders tightening. Something in her eyes clicked—an instinct, if I had to guess—her lip curled just a fraction more. Around me I could feel the room stiffen. The Denalis were ready to defend me, to tear Esme off if she hurt me or any other Cullen that attempted to touch me. The Cullens, however, seemed ready to knock sense into me or something becuase a few of their expression turned to deep frowns.

"Why?" Esme asked. "Don't you know how dangerous they are, Bella? They can lose control of themselves so easily…they could hurt you. You should not trust them. You should not be around them."

Tanya growled lightly next to me as Esme gripped me just a little tighter. She took a small step forward when I reached out my arm to stop her. A deep frown took over my features. I had expected objections from Esme, for her instinct to kick in, but I hadn't expected that. From Edward, I could understand, but Esme?

Not at all.

I raised my hands and grabbed her wrists; pulling her hands from my shoulders. "Actually," I said in a cold voice, "the wolves are no more dangerous to me than you, Esme." Her name came out bitter on my tongue making the woman flinch. "Wolves, like vampires, are wilder in their first year. They are less in control, more likely to act on impulse than logic from both having shifted in their adolescent years and the speed in which their bodies change, unable to let their minds keep up.

"After that year, however, they mature quickly and gain control over their anger. The Elders know ways to keep them calm from their ancestors, and they share it with each shifter. The wolves are, most likely, in better control of themselves during their second year as a shifter than most vampires in their tenth."

By now, every vampire in the room was silent as I gave Esme a verbal beating. The woman was clenching her jaw and holding her hands in tight fists at her sides as she held my gaze, not breaking it the entire time I spoke and corrected her.

I had to admit that I enjoyed sharing my knowledge of the shifters with them. After hearing the Pack's side on why they hated the Cullens before they knew what they had done to me, it was clear neither side knew that much about each other and that was where their hate came from.

The Denalis watched me in fascination as I stood up to the women, not flinching from her never ceasing gaze on me. While Esme did seem to be thinking of what I said, she continued to frown. "That doesn't mean they still aren't a danger to you, Bella. Sam injured his mate after all when he lost his temper—according to what Edward read in his mind."

As soon as the words left her mouth, every part of my body stiffened. Anger quickly began to boil in my stomach. She did not just say that, I snarled to myself. I stepped forward, and, for the first time since she'd been there, Esme actually looked scared.

"Never," I growled, "ever say that to me again, Esme. That incident is something you have no business in, and it was not Edward's place to tell you of it." I sent a glare to him. He quickly avoided my gaze, and I looked at her. "What happened to Emily does not involve you, nor does it relate to my safety with the wolves. In fact, the only species I've ever been hurt by is yours."

The woman swallowed; her eyes filled with shock. Her mouth, wisely, stayed shut and kept her thoughts to add out of the air. The room was tense and filled with a tough silence as it gaped at me from openly accusing Esme—my old mother.

Esme, herself, looked like the rug had been tugged out from underneath her. I might has well have told her to go fuck herself or break her vow of her nonhuman blood diet by the way she was looking at me.

Tanya, trying to help ease the tension, gave my back a small and gentle nudge. "Let's get you your food, Bella," she said in my ear softly. "You need to eat."

I nodded, slightly glad for the excuse to get out of the room. I hated people talking about the Pack in such a way, and it did feel good to rub what the Cullens did in their faces, but that didn't mean I enjoyed the atmosphere that was left in the room afterwards.

The blonde behind me quickly led me out of the room, taking me to the kitchen with Irina following close behind, throwing a glare over her shoulder at Esme. As we left the room, I could faintly hear Carmen speaking to the others about the wolves saving me from myself and Victoria along with how close I was to them and them to me.

I didn't mind her filling the Cullens in on it, frankly I was glad she did so they would understand just how much the wolves had on them. While I'm sure my little speech to Esme was enough to make them hold their tongues on the wolves, having knowledge of what happened would be insurance.

Once in the kitchen, I sat down in front of the plate of spaghetti with a refreshing bottle of V8. Irina and Tanya immediately occupied a seat on either side of me, scooting closer to help comfort me while I rested my elbows on the table and set my face in my hands in sudden exhaustion.

Tanya set her hand on my thigh soothingly and began to rub circles over my jeans with her thumb. Irina took a similar approach as she began to rub my back, going in small circles while her head moved to rest on my shoulder.

I took in a deep breath, just letting their physical contact help soothe me before I pulled away from my hands, let out the breath and moved to eat the meal in front of me. Irina kept her head on my shoulder when I didn't shrug her off.

As I began to eat, swallowing a few mouthfuls of spaghetti, Emmett slowly crept into the room. He watched Irina and Tanya wearily when the two blondes turned to glare at him. Taking a few cautious steps forward he cleared his throat. "Bella-Bear?" he asked.

I swallowed, but didn't turn to look at him. "Yes, Emmett?" I asked.

He shuffled his feet while I took another bite. "I was wondering if you could do something for me?" he asked.

"Depends what you're asking."

He moved closer, ducking his head as Irina began to raise her lip at him in warning. Slowly, he pulled out his phone and held it towards me. "Next time you're going to go all Savage Bella…can you record it for me?"

My lip twitched upwards minutely, and I couldn't bring myself to pull it back down. "I'll see what I can do."

"No, I'm the car!"

"No, I am!"

"No, I am!"

"Me!"

"Me!"

"M—"

"Would you two shut-up already, and start your fucking game?!" Irina shouted, cutting Kate off before she could get her "e" out. She glared at us from the couch as we sat around a Monopoly board, and—if you couldn't tell—had been arguing on who got to be the car for the past ten minutes.

Kate and I snapped our heads to the blonde. "NO!" we shouted at once.

I glared back at Kate. "I am the car."

"No, I am the car. You can be the shoe."

"How about you're the shoe and I'm the car?"

"No."

"I am—"

"Okay, that's it!" Irina shot forward, grabbed the car from the pile of game pieces in front of us, and tossed it to Tanya who caught it. She rounded back on us. "Now neither of you can be the fucking car, so just fucking start your game."

Kate pouted, "But, Rina—"

"No," the dirty blonde cut her off. She turned on her heel to walk away when I lunged forward, wrapping my arms around her ankle. She stumbled and grunted. "Bella!"

The blonde turned to glare at me over her shoulder as I looked up at her with the puppy dog eyes and stuck out my lip. It was time for some Little Sister Bella Charm. "Rina…" I whined.

She shook her head. "Uh-uh, I am not falling for that." She tried to pull away, but I pulled myself forward and wrapped myself around her leg like a koala bear. "Ugh, Bella!"

I looked up at her innocently. "Please, Rina?" I begged. "Pretty, pretty, pretty please…sissy?"

As soon as I said the word, I saw her defenses begin to crumble. She tilted her head to the side in consideration for a second, wavering just a little, before she shook her head. "Uh-uh."

At least she wasn't as convictional about it.

I pouted. "But, sissy…"

Dynamite in place.

"Bella…"

"Rina…"

"Oh, come on, Bella. Let go, little one."

Little one, yes! Fuse is ready.

I pouted, snuggling closer to her leg as I noticed the amused and annoyed faces of the vampires around me. "You can be my good luck charm and hold me during the game. Luck always comes from siblings."

"Well…"

Fuse is lit. Pssch…pssch…

I gave my best puppy dog eyes and pout up at her, and squeezed her leg a little tighter. "Oh come on, Rina, you can't let your little sister down can you?" I asked.

She bit her lip and her eyes just barely darkened. Then, she held her hand out to Tanya and shook her head. "Of course not, little one."

DOWN SHE GOES!

A wicked grin pulled on my mouth and I released her leg as Tanya, shaking her head and chuckling at her sister's fall to my charms, gave her the car game piece. Irina handed it to me as I squealed, wrapped my arms around her neck and kissed her cheek before I sat in front of the game board.

Kate looked torn between being a little jealous of my affection towards Irina or annoyed that I had gotten the car. Either way, she grabbed the metal hat and placed both at the starting point while Irina—just like I knew she would—sat behind me and placed me between her legs while her arms slipped around my waist. I could feel the slightest purr rumbling in her chest.

Just to make sure she was still gooey, I passed her the money. "You can be the dealer, Irina," I said with a smile.

The woman smiled behind me, took the money, and nodded happily behind me, well aware of the glares being sent in her direction. "Of course, Bella," she agreed.

She began to pass out the money while Kate grumbled, "Kiss ass."

I shrugged.

"I want a rematch!" Kate barked.

"You don't have rematches in Monopoly, Kate," Jasper said, chuckling at the twitching vampire.

"I don't care! I want a rematch!"

Irina shook her head behind me, still holding me between her legs as she had in the beginning of the game. "Kate," she said, "Bella won fair and square. You can't throw a fit when you clearly lost."

"Says you. She's got you wrapped around her little finger, Miss I'm the Dealer and Best Big Sister."

"Ooh," Emmett grinned. He arched a brow and his lips pulled into a smirk. "Did I hear some jealousy in that tone, Kate?"

Kate froze for a second, her eyes widening, and then quickly covered it with a scowl. "What? Pfft…no. I am simply trying to convey that Bella should play by herself next time and not have the dealer on her side."

"Or back."

She growled at the bear-man and I raised my hand, making a puppet. "Is it time for us to remake that intense puppet battle that I don't remember, Kate?" I asked. Hopefully that would make her less agitated.

I was right, because she cocked her head, looked at my hand, and then smirked. "You are going down." Raising her own hand, she lunged forward. "PUPPET ATTACK!"

I swung my hand out of the way; using so much force to doge I had to actually make Irina release me. She jumped back, avoiding being hit by her sister as well. I rolled across the floor and sat up. "DODGE!"

She smirked, and jumped for me again. I jumped to my feet, barely escaping the attack and held my hand in front of me like a saber while placing the other over my head. She jumped up, taking the same stance as me.

"You are foolish thinking you can defeat me, Isabella."

"Foolish?" I asked. "Oh, believe me, Katrina, the foolish one is you for accepting my challenge!" I lunged forward. "Thrust!"

"Parry!"

"Intense slicing move!"

"Incredibly awesome block!"

By now, we were prancing around the room screaming at each other with our hands out, striking the other and dodging each blow sent our way. The vampires just watched, jumping out of the way when needed, or just followed our moves.

"Are they…using their hands as swords?" Rosalie asked no one in particular.

"Yes," Alice said. "Yes, they are."

I dodged another attack by Kate and somehow managed to hit her arm. "A strike! HA-HA!" I called. "You will not survive if you continue this battle!"

Kate growled. "We'll see about that!" She lunged for me. "Tackle!"

While Kate's tackle wouldn't have hurt me, Emmett had other ideas. He grabbed me and snatched me into his massive arms protectively. I was swung out of the way, and Kate called out as she hit nothing and fell to the floor; only saving herself by her fast reflexes to flip over to her feet.

The room was tense for a second, and looked between Kate, Emmett and me over and over again. No one knew what to do with the situation, and Kate looked torn between continuing the game or retrieving me from Emmett's arms and give him a lashing with her tongue.

I looked around for a second, and then I pulled myself out of Emmett's arms and jumped onto his back. I was pissed at the Cullens, of course, but this was Emmett. He was impossible to ignore and make upset with his childlike behavior. Besides, I had had enough Denali/Cullen drama for one day and needed a break.

I clicked my tongue. "Onward my noble steed!"

With a dopey grin he nodded. "Of course, my lady!" he called. He turned and took off with Kate following behind.

I gripped his neck tightly as Kate screamed, "Run, run, run as fast as you can, but you can't escape me! I'm Kate Denali!"

Emmett froze with Kate behind us. We were, apparently, in the kitchen and the two of us turned to look at the woman. I blinked. "I…have no idea how to comment on that."

"Same."

Kate shrugged.

Silence.

I jabbed my finger in the air. "Onward my noble stee—EEEED!" I wrapped my arms around Emmett's neck tightly as he suddenly took off with Kate following close behind.