Aurora Borealis

by Star-Of-Radiance

Bella's 'perfect slice of forever' slowly unravels, piece by piece. Months after the confrontation during Breaking Dawn, all the devastating consequences of crimes, both forgotten and overlooked, reveal themselves, and the criminal trials and sentencing of Edward Cullen and the Volturi unfold- along with its equally devastating aftermath. Think carefully before you choose to act...

47. The Night of the Full Moon

And here is the confrontation you've all been hanging around just waiting for.

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"Guilt is good. Guilt helps us stay on track because it's about our behavior. It occurs when we compare something we've done – or failed to do – with our values."

Brené Brown

Despite being a reasonably beautiful day, only marred by cloudiness from time to time, the tension in the air was so thick anyone could have cut it with a knife. The chosen items, goods and sundries in the Cullen house was gone, although the fireplace remained connected to the Old-World Coven in the Carpathians since it was likely that the Cullens would need to make a quick getaway. Upon Gabrielle's request, Charlie's house, the Cullens', and Claire's parents house in the Makah Reserve, had magical wards set up by the MACUSA wizards, including Adsila. The wizards had been unable to interfere, even if would ensure anyone's safety, or to do anything, especially if this all took place within Quileute lands, so even though the Council of Elders had been prepared, for one night only, to allow the Cullens onto their ancestral lands, the Cullens had politely declined saying that it would be easier to escape, should they need it, if it all took place within neutral territory. That was going to be very hard to do, since there were very few places that could hold that many people and was kept far out of reach of any No-Majs that may be wandering around nearby.

Gabrielle had promised to say very little, and to let Leah, Bella, Renesmee and the others do most of the talking. It strained at her, but in the end, the best thing she could do was to prepare them to put things as diplomatically as possible. It wasn't easy learning diplomacy and rhetoric in such a short span of time, but Leah persisted, as did the others, knowing full well what was at stake. As a witch and as a member of the Fey species, Gabrielle could not interfere without drawing potential conflict and disaster onto everyone's heads.

Even though Jacob- and Paul, Sam, Jared and the members of their pack- did not know precisely what was in store for them, they could sense the tension. When Paul had knocked on the Blacks' front door, Billy had shaken his head and warned Paul that Rachel had decided to see and speak to him during the meeting at sunset, so he had to wait, telling him that that was what she wanted. Paul had no choice but to oblige and reluctantly left.

As predicted, Jacob wanted to see Renesmee, but Billy had repeated the same thing. All could sense something was coming, but they didn't know precisely what. Some however, the more astute and those most clued in, like Jacob, had sensed it. Jake's heart was like booming thunder in his ears, threatening to deafen him.

Leah met with Vivian, Gabriel, James and the members of the Vermont and Appalachians pack on the outskirts of Forks. She had eaten carefully and prepared herself without being exhausted, before heading into the meeting. The meeting she was now sure would be a duel. And finally, in the woods outside the Cullen house, Bella and Renesmee threw one final look around the cottage, before walking hand in hand outside the arched wooden door before it closed firmly shut behind them for the very last time. Renesmee's heart thudded, faster than ever before, and although Bella's was silent, she felt that it should have been the same.

The Cullens soon joined them. Esme coming right next to Bella and giving a small smile to Renesmee, and Rosalie taking her other hand. Carlisle gave his granddaughter a reassuring nod while Emmett and Jasper mustered small smiles, even though the latter had promised not to use his powers, even to calm the knotting of nerves that was sure to be inside of them. Alice remained silent, her face drawn and grave although she managed a small smile in the direction of her niece.

It was sunset, the golden glow bathing the lush greenery of the Olympic Peninsula in all its glory. It would also be the last time they would come here in this part of Forks, and certainly as a family, although Bella and Renesmee were sure to visit Charlie and the Wolves had no desire to stop all that.

Gabrielle was waiting in front of the designated meeting space. But to their surprise, Adsila was there with her.

The other faerie-witch's lovely face was grave but firm. Slowly, the Wolves arrived. Sue stared.

"I thought-" but Adsila shook her head.

"I am here as an emissary of MACUSA," she said firmly "and I am just about to leave." She placed a strong emphasis on the final word of her sentence. "The one and only reason I am here is to inform you all that Gabrielle comes, not as an agent of the ICW- the International Confederation of Wizards- or in any official capacity as a diplomat, a witch, or one of the Fey." She took a deep breath and sighed. "But because she cares." She gave Gabrielle a look. "Even though it likely puts her in danger. I am also here to give my word that no witch or wizard- or Fey- will interfere in your internal affairs, and that Gabrielle herself will not interfere because she is not permitted or authorised to do so. In fact," she gave Gabrielle another look "all she has promised to do is to explain the scientific part as best as she can, as a healer, a researcher and scientist." That gave her some odd looks. "She herself will not be able to do anything without the permission of a ruling Alpha or Luna." Her eyes met Leah.

The Wolves' general bewilderment rose. Even more so, since Emily had now arrived along with Kim and Rachel. Even Old Quil was present, placing a comforting hand on his grandson's shoulder. Quil seemed appreciative of the gesture. Emily and Kim themselves did not know what this was all about, only that the Council of Elders had requested their presence for this entire meeting. It was the first time either of the three had set eyes on Bella since she had turned, and she bit her lip as the stares poured in. Bella placed a hand onto Renesmee's shoulder. Her daughter was silent. The woven Quileute promising band and the silver charm bracelet with its carved Wolf weighed heavily in her palm. If she had been human, Bella was sure that her hands would have been damp with sweat.

And strangely enough, she suddenly realised that she missed being human.

The Cullens stood stoic and expressionless, as the Wolves all poured in. Everyone from both packs were present, along with all the imprints. There were only three of them apart from Renesmee, now that Claire was safely back at her parents' house.

Suddenly, Jared spoke. "Are we gonna get some answers?" He asked quietly.

Adsila shrugged. She looked pointedly at the members of the Black pack apart from Jacob, and then spoke. "That's not my business or my call. Just one final thing: while she's not here in any official capacity, apart from what they've asked her to be here for-" she gave a pointed glance at some Wolves and council members, including Leah "-and she's promised not to get involved in your politics, if you attack Gabrielle Delacour, then we have every right to consider this an act of aggression." Her voice grew stern. "And believe me, no reasonably smart person would ever want that." Her eyes narrowed.

The danger levels around Adsila Sizemore's slender frame rose as she made eye contact with each and every one of the Wolves. Her wand was firmly in her hand. Adsila turned towards Gabrielle. "As a member of MACUSA- and your old friend- I am authorised to tell you that the president has ordered, at the first sign of hostilities or any threat towards your own person- no matter how mild- you are to immediately Disapparate and take yourself to the assigned place where we will ensure that you return to ICW headquarters in Switzerland." Gabrielle sighed.

"Goodbye," Adsila nodded. She looked at them. "I wish you all the best of luck." Her eyes moved towards the crowd, before finally setting on Leah. She then turned on her heel and in a crack, her entire form disappeared in a swirl of colour, as if it were dyes being suctioned through a tube, leaving no trace of her. Gasps ensued from those still not used to the sight of magic. Gabrielle sighed again.

"What was that?" Jared blurted.

"What she said. They would rather me not be involved in this, but as a healer and a scientist..." she hesitated and then gave the members of the Black pack, minus Jacob, a look.

"I really do have no choice but to leave if anyone starts getting hostile towards me," she confessed to Leah.

Leah snorted. "And then what? They'll start acting aggressive towards us. Save it, she's not involved." She turned her attention towards the rest of the Wolves.

"No, she's not," it was, surprisingly, Bella who spoke. Ignoring the looks that were being sent her way, Bella spoke up, "this is about Renesmee."

"And me." Rachel suddenly spoke up.

To everyone's surprise, except for maybe Billy's and the rest of the Black Pack, Rachel moved slowly towards Renesmee and turned to face Paul.

"Rach," Paul whispered. "What are you doing?"

Rachel gave Paul a sad and painful look.

She shook her head. "I... We're not meant to be together, Paul. We have to face the facts: the imprinting was wrong."

Those words dropped like a bombshell all over the audience. The floodgates had been opened. There was no going back.

"What?" Paul whispered, hoarsely. Rachel looked ready to burst into tears. But she stilled herself. Her voice was firm. It carried a certainty that none of them, including her imprint, brother and father had ever heard before until this moment.

"I'm sorry Paul, but we have to face the facts... we are not soulmates."

Bella opened her mouth about to speak, but her own daughter beat her to it. "It's not just Rachel." She said, surprising everyone with the strength and clarity of her voice.

"It's me too." Her eyes met Jacob. Renesmee surprised Bella by taking the woven band from Bella's grasp and reaching out to hand it back to Jacob. Jacob looked gob-smacked.

"Y-you can't be-" he managed to choke. Jacob's face was grey, his dark eyes, panicked, darted towards the direction of his imprint who was slowly but calmly moving away from him.

Gabrielle stood at the outskirts, waiting in the shadows. Her face was expressionless, but her eyes were sad.

She shook her head and closed her eyes, turning away from the crowd. There was nothing she could do now.

A ringing began in Jacob's ears. His blood roared. He felt faint, but before he could stumble, much less collapse, Quil's voice broke through the horror of the moment. "Paul... it's possible. It doesn't have to be the end of you."

"What?" Paul whispered, his voice sounding like it had been choked out.

"Yes," Quil insisted. "Because I let Claire go. It was the hardest thing I ever had to do in my life, but I have no regrets. It was the best thing to do for her and the best thing to do for myself." Everybody stared at him. "I did this as much for myself as for her. It was what she needed, and I couldn't live like that any longer, and I knew it."

Quil turned to a shell-shocked Emily and spoke. "You remember how shocked and horrified you were when I imprinted... how reluctant you had been to accept that your two-year-old niece had found her soulmate already, and to a guy who was closer to being an adult than all the other kids at high school. Especially since, as Wolves, we're not physically teenagers, even if we aren't getting any older. Physically, Jake, Embry and myself are twenty-five, probably twenty-six by now. Claire is now three, and she's going to turn four in September." He paused. "Is that fair on either of us? For me to wait that long, and for Claire to grow up only to go straight from her parents' and into my house? What if Claire would prefer freedom? What if she grows up wanting to see, experience and be with other people, to have other options out there? Doesn't she have the right to do that? What if I spend my entire adult life waiting for someone to grow up only for them to not want me?"

No one answered. Quil spoke to the rest of them, particularly Jake and Paul, again. "I don't know whether Claire would even want to get married, or be with anyone, or settle down and have kids someday," he remarked "I don't know whether she's going to grow up liking girls, or whether she'd prefer to be with someone closer to her own age. And if either one of these things happen, what am I supposed to do? Change my gender through surgery? Leave my home, my family, to be with her wherever she goes? What if she still doesn't want me? What if she wants someone else- or no one? What am I supposed to do, throw myself into a fire?" He scoffed. "I can't blame Claire if she ends up wanting something other than what somebody else has already planned for her, 'cause what kid wouldn't?" He asked.

"I know I would."

For a long moment, nobody spoke. Quil stared them all down. "I don't have a damned right to make anyone's choices or decisions for them. That's not love if I do. I sure as hell have no right to influence Claire and the way she thinks as she gets older and grows up, or try to put thoughts and ideas into her head. That's not my right. But it is my right to live my life to the fullest. And it doesn't mean waiting for somebody to grow up, who might not even want me. And I'm not going to force them, no way in hell. I care about Claire very much; she'll always be special to me. But it's not going to happen, guys. And you can't change my mind about that." His voice was firm.

It seemed that no one in the clearing, not even the humans, were breathing. Then, Quil turned towards Gabrielle.

"I asked you to reverse the imprint connection I had with Claire." He said slowly. Gabrielle nodded sadly, but her eyes were filled with respect. "I'm over her now. At first I feared I could never do it, even though I knew it was the right thing to do. And once it was done, I missed what I thought I had or would have with Claire. But then I accepted that it might never have happened anyway, and in the end, I knew I had made the right decision. Claire is happier and freer to live out her childhood and her adulthood, without this hanging over the top of her head. And I also don't want to be accepted by anyone just because she feels guilty or is afraid to reject me because she's scared of what I might do, to her, to anyone she loves, to the person she might choose to end up with, or to myself. I don't regret letting Claire go and having us live the lives we both deserve to live, on our own terms." He said finally.

Again, it seemed that no one spoke. The Wolves, vampires and Gabrielle who had supernatural hearing, could hear the pounding of everyone's hearts as Quil spoke. But even the humans could sense it.

Finally, someone spoke. To Gabrielle's surprise, it was Sam.

"How did you do it?" He managed to ask her.

"It's called a soul-link," she said softly, but clear enough for the humans to hear "it's hard to define in English terms, but someone once described it as 'psychic surgery'. I didn't sever the bond between Claire and Quil: I reversed it. I used Astral-Projection- separating my spiritual consciousness from my body, to heal or mend anything that is spiritual or psychological. It's something which I heard has featured in your past, with some of your earliest ancestors."

There was a flash of recognition and remembrance in Sam's gaze, despite the sheer horror of what the implications of all this could mean.

"I reversed the bond; checked inside and ensured that Quil will be able to imprint again, only this time he won't imprint on anyone unwilling or anyone who has the slightest chance of not wishing to be with him in the end and that he would be able to heal and move on in case the next imprint also doesn't work out. And then I checked for and healed any lasting psychological impacts that remained on either of their souls or mental psyches; ensured that neither one of their mental and emotional development had been impacted in any way, and if it had, it would then be reversed and brought back to the level that it would had the two of them never met in the first place. Then I sealed everything up, and finished it." She stole a quick glance at Quil.

"Quil specifically asked me to modify the memories that he had of Claire and vice versa, which I also did. That wasn't part of the soul-link, but that was an additional request. Claire is back at her parents' house." She looked at Quil again. "Have you felt any pain, physical or psychological, since your connection was reversed?" Quil shook his head.

"Neither does she," Sue's voice rang out. Everybody turned towards her. "I dropped her off at her parents' house and, upon Quil and Gabrielle's request, I've checked her out and looked in on her, even when no one expected, to see if there are any issues that we don't know or haven't seen yet. Claire doesn't seem to be affected. She carries on as normal and she doesn't even ask about Quil."

Quil nodded, his shoulders sagged, seemingly in relief. While there was a hint of sadness in his gaze, there was more relief and resolution. "She's happy and free, and so am I." He said softly.

"But how?" Sam whispered, almost desperately. His dark eyes filled with tears.

Gabrielle shook her head. "I told you about the Alpha of the Appalachians pack, James, who felt the Pull with a girl who was already dead, didn't I? A girl who had died just before he could reach her? He hasn't given up hope. He knows she's not the only potential candidate to be his eventual soulmate out there for him." Emily and Kim gasped, along with the Wolves who didn't know, including Paul. Gabrielle gave a sad smile.

"He hasn't given up hope, and he knows this. Yes, she had a very good chance of being his soulmate, but she wasn't the only option that he had. He could feel the Pull again. In fact, many Wolves often take more than one turn to find and build their perfect match in each other, and it tends to be mutual. None of them have ever felt it with a child who hasn't even finished puberty, much less started it."

"Then why?" Emily's strangled voice resounded. Gabrielle fought the urge to wince. She knew precisely what Emily was asking. And that undoubtedly, she was thinking of her cousin whom she'd put through so much pain just because she accepted her 'soulmate' only to find... this.

Emily's face was pale and pinched, the red of her scars the only colour left on her copper skin. She was shaking. Belatedly, Jake realised he was too, but he couldn't seem to stop it.

"Because, finding 'the One' is only part of the journey," Gabrielle explained patiently "you need to grow, cultivate, nurture, nourish, and- at times- prune the relationship for it to flourish." Her eyes were sad, but understanding. "Do you think you are the only species who fall in love for life? There are immortals- not vampires- who consist of couples that fall in love and stay together for eternity. If it's real, they seldom fall out of love. But even these elves have courtship periods and test the other and themselves to see if they can bear to live together forever, rather than assuming- rather naïvely and jumping right in. Yes, even those couples have disagreements. Yes, they fight, but they continue to love one another. But that still doesn't mean that they don't grow tired or weary of each others' presences, even when they are joined spiritually and mentally, as well as physically. It's not uncommon for these immortal couples to reignite the spark of passion and love through absence. A year-long separational break or holiday might be more gruelling for mortal couples, but going on a trip over a weekend without the other person isn't uncommon for even the most loving and successful human couples. Surely, you've heard and seen all of that? Whose parent hasn't gone on a weekend trip away from the other, at some point, even when they're happily married?"

The audience stared, Wolves and imprints- and vampires- all of them stunned into silence, and yet... understanding.

Gabrielle continued, "This enables them to take time and space to grow and focus on the individual. Since they both get time for themselves to grow, have some peace and reflection, some moment of quiet or fun with other friends, they are able to focus on themselves, so that when they come back together, the two individuals who make up a couple return stronger. They also take time away from each other so when they return, they are able to better see that and treat their time together, as a couple, as a family, as being more precious to them than ever before, no matter how much they enjoy the time apart. They don't take it for granted. That's the definition of a healthy relationship: one that is made up of healthy, happy individuals, in every way."

Something was ringing in Jacob's ears. He no longer heard the pounding of his heart, as loud as it was. Gabrielle's voice faded into the distance. He didn't want to see it, hear it, he wanted to run, run as far away and yet...

He couldn't bear to give up Renesmee. He couldn't bear to abandon all of his efforts, the hardships they went through together, so he stayed, but...

It all made sense.

"It's possible that Quil felt that he wasn't ready yet to have a soulmate, but wondered who he would end up with." Gabrielle was saying. "Maybe he looked at you and Sam and a small part of him secretly hoped that he would have a similar connection to somebody someday." She told Emily. Gabrielle looked back at Quil and then returned her gaze to Emily. "He may not have known it, or even doubted that it would ever happen to him, but he secretly longed for it, although he certainly didn't want it now. Of course, the instinct that triggered him to imprint didn't consider the fact that the reason Quil may not have wanted to jump into any sort of commitment yet was likely because he had his whole life to live and he wanted to live it freely, without restraints. But when he did imprint, his entire life became devoted to Claire, so much so that he couldn't even think about wanting to live a life of his own, the kind that he'd always dreamed of having first." She stated gently.

Quil bowed his head. "It's true." He looked back up at Emily. "I did long for what you and Sam had," he cast a glance towards Sam "even if I didn't know or acknowledge it. But I don't want it now, and I never meant it to end this way. In fact, I didn't even think it would happen." He confessed.

"And me?" Jake managed to break the words out of himself, but barely. He reached out and grabbed a tree trunk. Someone grasped him steadily on his shoulder. He took comfort from the warm touch, but didn't turn to find out who it was. Jake breathed deeply.

"Why did it happen to me?"

Gabrielle regarded him in silence. "I think you of all people know what-" but a voice cut her off.

"It's because of me." Bella stepped forwards. "The one and only reason you imprinted is because of me." Gabrielle closed her eyes.

No one spoke.

"I didn't imprint on you," Jake managed to get out once again.

"I know you didn't," Bella whispered. She looked like she could have been in tears had she been human, but she straightened and pulled herself upright.

"But it was still my fault." She looked ready to burst out crying, but she held herself together, and took a deep breath.

"The reason you ever imprinted on Renesmee was because of me, Jacob." She bit her lip, and looked at him in the eye. Jacob recoiled as he met Bella's chocolate-brown ones, the ones she initially had as a human, and the Culllens suddenly remembered that he didn't know that she'd reverted back to her original eye colour.

"It is, isn't it?" Bella asked quietly. "That's why you were even near her in the first place, close enough to imprint."

Jake paled. "Bells-" but Bella wasn't listening.

"You hated Renesmee before she was born, not simply because the pregnancy, the strain of carrying a half-human baby that threatened to kill me, but because you couldn't bring yourself to hate me, or even Edward." She whispered. Her eyes were still on Jacob's darker ones. "Isn't that right? So you needed a substitute. You knew by then that Edward had wanted to give me up so I could live a human life, a normal one in peace. And he tried. That's why I was there in the middle of the woods in September two years ago. That's what Sam needed to rescue me for." She gave out a harsh laugh. "It didn't make Edward any more noble, believe me. He wanted to keep me human, but he did it for all the wrong reasons. Yet he still made sure to dump me even if he was careless and stupid enough to dump me in the middle of the woods and I was dumb enough to try to follow. And you thought he was noble- and you hated that since you couldn't bring yourself to deny that he wasn't an evil, soulless monster at the core, like you'd wanted to believe. So you couldn't kill him.

"You also couldn't bring yourself to hate me even though you wanted to, and I know I deserved it." Her voice broke. "You still cared for me, Jake. That's why you turned Renesmee- my unborn baby- into your target. The recipient of your hatred."

"No," Jake protested feebly, but his voice sounded weak even to his own ears. His heart thudded. His breaths sounded ragged. His lungs felt like they were tightening. His grip onto the tree tightened.

"She was one-half Edward- but not the half you had grown to respect. Not the guy who wanted to give me up so that I could live a normal human life and be safe from anything supernatural that could harm me," Bella continued "and I'd chosen Edward. You didn't have an excuse, as much as you hated- or wanted to hate- him. She was also one-half of me, and you also wanted to hate me, to be angry with me, but you couldn't." She gave a harsh and bitter laugh. "I took that away from you, just as Renée took that away from me: your ability to even be angry at someone who hurt you and who deserved to be taught a lesson. Someone who you needed to stand up to. You couldn't bear to be angry at me, to hurt me. You couldn't bring yourself to even hate me, because you thought you were still in love with me." She looked like she was ready to double over and break down completely.

Bella's brown eyes, seemingly moist with tears but actually dry, met Jacob's once more. "So you turned your sights onto my baby. After all, it was easy, right? The strain of carrying a half-vampire baby nearly killed me and to survive, you knew as much as Edward and I did, that I would have to be changed. I could no longer be human. I was far out of your reach for good. It was already convenient to hate her."

Jacob opened his mouth. He desperately wanted to say something, to deny... but it all made sense.

Bella's brown eyes bore into his soul's. "You already hated her for ensuring that I would be out of your reach, never to return, for good." She said slowly, but there was an undeniable certainty in her voice. "The strain of the pregnancy nearly killed me, but even though you knew she didn't mean to harm me and she had literally no choice in deciding who her parents were or what method of conception she had, you couldn't bear it. You couldn't bring yourself to think about, to care that she might, in fact, be innocent. Because you already felt like your power to hate, to be angry, to be anything other than filled with pain and hurt and rage, unable to even lash out properly, so bad that you would rather be tortured or killed, had been taken away from you. As was your ability to hate and be angry at Edward and I, for what we had done to you. So you needed a substitute target. A means of getting revenge on us. On me. And that's what it was, wasn't it? That's why when you wandered downstairs, after you thought I was dead from delivering her, and you stumbled near Rosalie carrying the baby, you wanted to kill her."

Gasps ensued all around, particularly from the Wolves and the imprints who didn't know. Even Paul stared in horror, no doubt also in denial since he knew what this would also mean for him and Rachel. Billy closed his eyes. Rachel looked ready to burst into tears.

Jake trembled. He took a step back. "No." But his feeble voice was cut off by Bella.

"The reason why you were ever even near my baby- whom you called a monster, a thing, a killer before she was born and you imprinted-" Jacob shook. Bile was filling his mouth. "-was because you wanted to kill her." Bella said, her voice flat. Her eyes were filled with anguish, betrayal, and self-blame. Just like Charlie's. "And you wanted to kill her because you wanted to hurt me. I forced you to stay. I forced you to watch while I tore myself apart by my choice to keep this baby, and worse, I forced you to watch while Edward and I planned our life together with her, to be one big happy family while you were left all alone. That's why you ran out of the house, isn't it? When Edward and I bent over her, and we were discussing names, after he'd heard her thoughts, you rushed out of there. Not simply because you felt angry that Edward had jumped sides, but because now he couldn't suffer watching me carry this baby and he and I were planning a life together, while you were left standing there." Bella took a deep breath.

"And I'm sorry, Jacob. For all that." She looked like she was crying.

"I'm sorry that I ever flirted with you on First Beach, the day we met. I'm sorry I never stood up to Edward and told him to stop playing around with me, when he first glared at me in school, steered clear of me so that everybody noticed, disappeared for days, and then came back only to try and be friendly, save my life, act friendly and after all that, tell me that we shouldn't be friends. I'm sorry I was so damned nosy I not only failed to steer clear of Edward Cullen, I didn't heed what he said that since he'd saved my life he didn't owe me any explanations, and then I dragged you into this whole mess, which you didn't have to be dragged into, because I just couldn't drop it. I'm sorry I flirted with you to try to get information on the Cullens." Everybody stared. "I didn't realise it at the time, but I was using you. I thought you would get over it, eventually, but you didn't, and that was also my fault. And even if you could get over it, it still was a horrible thing for me to do." Bella whispered, but her voice rang clear.

"I'm sorry I jumped back into your life after flirting with you, but also an entire year of not even searching for you, or trying to initiate contact in any way, and only after my boyfriend had left. I should have realised what in hell I was doing, but instead, I was so broken that my boyfriend of six months dumped me all of a sudden for no reason, and the first guy I loved left me, that I didn't think I was good enough for anybody to love and I couldn't bear to be alone in case that was true. So I searched for my friends, who I'd ignored for months, maybe even before we broke up, since I was hanging around the Cullens so much." Alice winced, as did Jasper and Emmett.

"And when they either didn't connect with me as well, gave up after trying, or got mad at me for abandoning them- or putting their life in danger, as was Jessica's case- I turned to you. I looked for you because I was weak. I was stupid. I believed every word Edward had said to me in that clearing, every time he showered me with love and attention only to express his discontent about our relationship, and I didn't stand up for myself or get tired of all that. And I dragged you into this mess. My mess. To look for a connection, someone who loved or cared. To prove to myself that I wasn't as disposable or a dead weight as he'd led me to believe- the way he said when he broke up with me." Emmett and Jasper winced.

"I used you. Even though I didn't know it, I should've known it, but I didn't because I was weak, stupid, and pathetic." Bella spat those words out as if they tasted like poison. "I dragged you into my mess, because I was too stupid and too weak to even think about learning how to stand on my own. It never even occurred to me." She laughed bitterly. "I'm not strong like Leah."

Leah closed her eyes. It was sickening to watch as well as listen. At long last, everything had come full circle and Bella was finally reaping the rewards that she sowed, but none of it gave any pleasure or satisfaction to Leah. Because now, she finally understood at the heart of it all, Bella was just a girl. Not a villain, not a monster, not a master manipulator, but a girl, just like her. And while she might state that Leah was stronger than her, Leah could easily understand how and why Bella had reacted like this. Her mind flashed to Renée, Bella's mother and the woman who'd dominated her life before Edward Cullen arrived. Leah looked at her own mother and thought about her dad, and realised just how lucky she'd been. She also realised and accepted that Jacob was not the innocent victim, either. And while Edward wasn't an inherently evil, soulless monster, and he wasn't such a good guy, despite his vampirism, he seemed very... human.

"I'm sorry I didn't have the guts to stand up and tell you to my face that I'd chosen to be with Edward, that I'd decided to marry him. I should've hit myself, grown up and did the right thing." Bella's voice was laden with self-loathing. "I'm sorry I didn't slap myself in the head and wake up just to see that you really were infatuated with me and tell you 'Sorry Jake, but No' straight to your face. Instead, just because I couldn't bear to hurt you, to drive you away even if it meant that you would've been a hell of a lot happier than you were without me in the picture, I led you on, gave you false hope and played with you, only for it to come crashing down and you never had time or space to heal. Even after I got married. Even during my pregnancy. I never never had the guts and the strength to grow up. I was more like my mother than I ever knew, and I'm sorry, Jacob. For everything. For ruining- no, destroying your entire life."

For a moment, no one spoke. Bella realised she was sobbing, but she stifled them. This wasn't the time to break down.

"I'm sorry I couldn't even get mad at Edward when he made sure that you would overhear about our engagement. I should've seen him for who and what he was. Instead he manipulated me by blaming himself, so that I would stop blaming myself and not get angry or go after you, and then I turned my attention to him to stop his self-blame." She whispered. "I'm sorry I fell for your manipulation too. I'm not sorry I forgave you after you assaulted me by kissing me against my consent-" people's eyes widened and both Kim and Emily sucked in a breath. Rachel's jaw crashed to the ground "-but I'm sorry I ever trusted you again after that and led you back into my life when I sure as hell had no plans to have a future with you. I'm sorry I didn't stand up to you, and I never stood up for myself. I'm sorry I ever took the bait you were giving me and kissed you for the second and third times, when you- like Edward- emotionally blackmailed me, playing with my fears of losing either of you, of you being hurt, all to get a second and third kiss. I'm sorry I was never smart or strong enough to see and allowed you and Edward to play with me, to emotionally manipulate me, and I'm sorry I never cut ties with the two of you since we were all bad for each other."

That last sentence dropped like an exploding bombshell down into the clearing. Although everyone else was silent, it could not be more defeaning.

"I betrayed you," Bella said finally, fixing him with her painful, anguished, grieving, betrayed yet self-blaming gaze "you betrayed me. Edward betrayed me and I betrayed him. We were all bad for each other, Jacob. We have done nothing but pain and harm to one another. I will never regret my daughter, and I am glad I met my family, but I wish I'd never gotten hung up with Edward any more than with you." She took a deep breath.

"I'm planning to divorce Edward," she said flatly "after he finishes thirty-three years of imprisonment. I wanted to do the right thing and to tell him straight to his face, but yet again, I've done otherwise, not because I don't want to, but because none of us are able to visit him in his jail, especially not me and Renesmee. And despite everything he's done, Edward does not deserve to sit in prison for decades without being allowed a single visit so that he could sit in the dark with the knowledge he has been abandoned by his wife and daughter." She said finally. "I don't think that a release after thirty-three years of imprisonment with the hope that the would someday see us again- even if it's centuries more after that- only to find out that I intend to file for divorce is better for him, but it's the only option we have at the moment. Especially since I don't trust him not to play and manipulate my mind, and worse, my daughter's, so he could keeping steering me into making the decisions that he wants as he always did."

Everybody stood or sat in stunned silence. "You're divorcing him?" Emily asked quietly, as if she couldn't believe, after all that pain and suffering, all that trouble, Bella and Edward weren't even going to make it to their first wedding anniversary together.

Bella nodded. "I should've never gotten with him," she said quietly but clearly. "Not because he's a vampire, but because he was manipulative. And controlling. He was never genuine, either, not with my father, he wasn't sincere or kind. He never respected Charlie or me. And I never saw that." She shook her head. "Not until I was forced to. Of course, I would've seen it sooner or later, even if Edward hadn't been arrested and brought to trial.

"But the few things I don't regret, is my new family." She looked back at the Cullens. "And learning from this experience. Most of all, I certainly don't regret my daughter, even though I wish I could've given her the childhood and parents that she deserves. Instead, I allowed Edward to manipulate and control her, to try to turn her into another puppet or a chess piece, like he did me. I thought he was doing it out of love, just as I was. I was scared out of my mind that the Volturi would try to sneak back and find a way to get to her. That someone from school would spot her and see someone who looks like Edward but with my eyes, only she's too close to us in age to be our daughter... I also wanted to protect her. To make her feel safe, loved, and cherished the way my mother never did for me, the way my father was too far away to do, until it was too late and we'd turned into strangers." She inhaled deeply. "Instead, I took away her freedom, just as Edward did. And since I blindly trusted him, like an idiot, never remembering how he was so willing for me to get an abortion he even made plans to knock me unconscious with drugs and rip the baby out-" Emily, Kim, and Rachel gasped "-which you also suggested to Carlisle, Jacob-" Jacob flinched like he'd been struck "-I never thought that he was smothering her out of anything other than love. And maybe it was, to an extent, but it was mainly guilt that led him to do this, even to the point of using his own powers- or abusing them- over Renesmee. He read her thoughts, kept her in line that way and sweet-talked her into feeling guilty whenever she wanted to do something he didn't want her to do, or got upset because of her lack of freedom. He even used to use Jasper to manipulate her emotions, until Jasper refused to do it any longer." Jasper winced, remembering that it took Renesmee to stand up to and point it out to him what he had been doing to her "So she wasn't even allowed to think or feel anything without his input." Everybody stood in horrified silence. "And she wasn't allowed to go anywhere outside of our cottage and the main house, apart from Charlie's house, Jacob's house, and the houses of the Pack in La Push. She wasn't allowed to make friends, or spend time with anyone we didn't know, or even just Charlie, unless there were a few Wolves or Cullens watching over her. Can you imagine what that feels like?" Her voice cracked.

Emily looked like she was in tears and Kim swallowed, hard. A tear rolled from Rachel's eye. Many of the Wolves were silent, imprinters or non-imprinters.

"It has been that way since Renesmee was born," Bella's voice threatened to break. "I deserve whatever you dish out on me, Jacob, I will NEVER dispute that." She said with such fierceness that it startled her audience. "But Renesmee is innocent. Even worse, she's better than I was. She stood up to us, told us what we were doing was out of order, even if we never listened-" her voice cracked again, and pure grief and shame shone through her eyes "and I was complicit in everything and told her off because I so dumb and blind I trusted Edward without question and thought she was just being disobedient. I didn't see that she was better than me. Stronger. Wiser. I never stood up to my mother, Edward, or you. She deserves her freedom, and to live her life the way she wishes."

Bella paused for a moment. "Please," she whispered "don't make her pay for my mistakes- or Edward's- any longer."

Jacob was unable to speak. He struggled to find his voice until he managed, "Bella... she's... she's not... I'm not-"

"You don't love her," Bella said flatly and lifted her eyes again to meet his, with such certainty that Jacob took an involuntary step back "anymore than you hated her. Because you never hated her, Jacob. You hated me, or at least you wanted to. You hated Edward too, or rather, you tried. But since you couldn't hurt either of us, you could get to us by hurting her. One-half of Edward, one-half of me. That's why you wanted to kill her before you imprinted: you never saw her for her own person. Not even during and after you've imprinted."

Those words dropped like another bombshell. Before anyone could protest or interrupt, Bella continued:

"You were about to tear her throat out to hurt me and Edward, but then you looked into her eyes and you saw they were- conveniently- mine. Jacob, what would have happened if Renesmee had inherited Edward's eyes, like I'd imagined? What would have happened if she had been a boy the way I thought she was?" A pregnant pause followed her words.

Jacob instantly felt cold. Another rush of freezing Artic water washing over him and threatening to both freeze and drown him, from the inside out.

"I- I would've never-" but he knew it was a lie, and everybody else knew it too.

"I saw it, Jacob." Seth's voice interrupted his horrifying revelations, and everybody's heads snapped towards his direction. Seth didn't falter. He met Jacob's gaze bravely. "When Charlie started confiding to our mom, and Leah and me overheard or even got let in on the whole thing, one of the things he felt concerned about was your interest in Renesmee. To Charlie, it didn't make any sense. You'd been so devastated, you ran away from home and lived in the wild with no contact to anyone for months, and even though you were there at Bella's wedding, Charlie didn't know. But then you turned up at his doorstep- and apart from the fact that you phased in front of a stressed-out and anxious guy who didn't know a damned thing about the supernatural even after knowing how my father died-" Emily gasped again "- suddenly you did a one-eighty and became all happy, for no apparent reason, despite your previous heartbreak which led you to leave home and go for no contact for months. And you started hanging around Bella and Edward, of all people, the ones who hurt you the most; but this time, the person you'd taken an interest in was their daughter.

"Charlie thought that you might've been grooming Renesmee to be Bella's replacement- which you technically were," Seth pointed out coldly "he also wondered if you were trying to find a way to get closer to Bella and Edward, so you could hurt them through their daughter. And when I relayed those thoughts to you, you remembered what you were doing right up to the moment you imprinted: you were about to kill her. I saw your thoughts, your memories. I couldn't believe it, I didn't want to. But it all makes sense if you found it easy to accept her innocence afterwards, since if you never really hated her because of anything she did or who she was, then you certainly never loved her either. Because you never knew or cared to know, much less accepted Renesmee for who she was, Jacob. To you, she was a replacement for Bella." He stared Jacob down coldly. "Nothing more."

That jarred Jacob back to his reality, "No, Seth, you're wrong, she's not-"

"Yeah, she was. You saw Bella's chocolate-brown eyes and that was the last thing you saw before you imprinted. No, scratch that," Seth amended "that was the very thing that MADE you imprint. Something in you realised that she could be Bella's substitute or replacement."

"NO!" Jacob didn't know whether he shouted it to deny or to drown out Seth's words. His hands were trembling.

"You said to Bella, when she found out that you imprinted on her newborn daughter, the reason you and her were ever drawn together- and the reason why during her pregnancy Bella couldn't bear to be apart from you- was because you and Renesmee were always meant to be together, even then." Seth said bluntly. "But that wasn't true, was it? That started long before Renesmee started forming thoughts of her own inside the womb and Edward heard what they were." He got a lot of creeped-out looks for this, but Seth ignored them. "Otherwise, what? What were you saying? That the only reason you ever befriended, became infatuated with and stayed close to Bella was just so she could give birth to a girl who you could then raise to be your wife someday?" Seth's voice turned incredulous.

"Isn't that using Bella as much as she used you?"

At that, the rest of the audience winced. Jacob stared, aghast but unable to form the words.

"It's not like that," he finally said, weakly.

Seth crossed his arms. "You sure?" He asked coldly. "What if she had been a boy, Jacob? The way Bella thought she'd be? What if she'd had Edward's eyes instead of Bella? Would you have hesitated in tearing her throat out?"

That was a mistake. Jacob growled. His vision started to turn red but Embry, Quil and Leah all stepped forwards and blocked his way before he could attack Seth. Seth stood unfazed, his arms crossed.

"Don't do this, Jacob." Leah's voice was flat, but firm.

Jacob snarled, "What?"

"Last warning." The same tone of voice carried. Her eyes met his. "Don't make me do something I don't want to do."

Jacob laughed bitterly. "You? The eternally miserable person who never wants anyone to be happy, even if it's not your ex or your cousin?" He demanded

"I thought you might say that," Leah smiled sadly, any anger inside her evaporating like mist. She eyed him with something in her eyes: pity.

That stunned Jacob and he took an involuntary step back. His whole body felt cold again. He paled.

The pity in Leah's eyes along with the sadness had completely replaced the bitterness, anger, and resentment that had filled them for so long. That's when Jacob knew she was being serious. She was no longer angry. She didn't give a damn about what he just said.

"No," he breathed, but it was barely a whisper.

"You should tell them." Gabrielle's voice resounded. Everybody all turned towards her. And now it was Leah's turn to pale.

"Tell them the truth." Gabrielle repeated herself, looking first at Leah, and then pointedly towards Sam and Emily.

"I- I can't," she whispered. "Emily and Sam don't deserve-" Gabrielle sighed. "It's your call, then. But just because they can't see something, doesn't mean that it won't hurt them, especially in the end." She pointed.

Leah froze.

"You yourself know that there have been signs." Gabrielle pointed. "They deserve to know the truth."

"What truth?" Sam said in a strangled voice. His face was ashen. His dark eyes wide with panic and fear. "What truth is this?"

Sue sighed. "Sam," she said softly, stepping forwards, to relieve her daughter, just a little bit and to own up to her mistakes. "You and Leah are related. My maiden name is Uley." Leah and Seth cringed.

Gasps resounded from all around. Even Gabrielle winced.

"WHAT?!" Sam nearly fell as he stumbled backwards. Likewise, Emily reeled back in shock, almost falling over. Her face had gone a ghostly shade of white.

"That's right." Sue sighed. "I admit, I had my doubts about you and Leah in the past, but my relatives brushed me off and I was naïve and foolish enough to believe them." She shook her head with remorse and regret. "I'm sorry. More than I can ever describe. Maybe it wouldn't have been a concern if you and Leah were truly and purely human, but you were both descended from Taha Aki, and she was doubly descended from him through both me and Harry. You said it yourself: the reason you believe that Wolves imprint is because you needed to inject fresh new blood into the gene pool, and find the best person suited for, not only your individual selves, but to carry on the bloodline. You and Leah once planned a future together, no doubt with children, but there was no way they could've turned out a hundred-percent healthy if you'd had them with her." Leah flinched.

"Mom-" she whispered. But Sue gave her a look.

"They need to know," she warned her. "You and Leah's genes were not compatible together," Sue informed Sam, and then she turned pained eyes to both him and Emily. "but her cousin was another matter, especially since you, Emily, were similar enough and not only available since your breakup-"

"MOM!" Leah shouted, frantic. Her face was completely anguished. Frantically, she stared back between Emily and Sam.

"Don't do this." Leah whispered, even though she knew it had come too late.

"Please." She looked completely horrified and desperate as she looked back and forth between the two of them who had once caused her so much hurt. That's when everybody knew that Leah and Sue, and the other members of the former's pack were completely serious.

Emily's copper skin was so white she might've been completely bloodless. Sam's eyes were wide with horror and his whole body was trembling, shaking, but not because he was about to phase.

For a moment, no one spoke. They all just stared, aghast, repulsed, and anguished. Carlisle closed his eyes and Esme turned away.

Finally, Sam managed to speak, "N-no." His voice barely came out and made it to be a whisper.

"I didn't want to tell you," Leah whispered. Her eyes- no, her entire body radiated both remorse and regret "to make it all for nothing... You've both suffered so much, you even had family walk away and turn their backs on you because of this. Of me. I know Daniel hurt you, Emily." Her tearful eyes met Emily's "and I know you didn't mean to do it, even though you wanted something that you thought Sam and I had, as opposed what Daniel gave you and what you never found when you casually dated a few other guys. You might've lost many people when you and Sam got together, but you found family and acceptance. And you nearly died, so-" Leah's voice broke "I couldn't do this to you. I couldn't tell you." She took a deep breath. "I also didn't think that anyone would believe me if I'd been the one to tell you guys about all of this, because of the way I'd been acting." She sighed. "I'm more sorry and ashamed of that than you'll ever know."

Seth came up to her and took her hand. Embry and Quil flanked beside her. That triggered Jacob to back where he had been right before this happened.

He snarled, "So you guys are taking her side, is that it?"

Jacob couldn't care less if Sam and Emily only got together because he and Leah weren't a perfect genetic match for future generations of Quileute Wolves, and Emily, as her cousin, was an easy substitute or a replacement. He didn't care if either of them were going to be driven apart by this revelation. He only cared about one thing.

"We're taking no one's side," Embry said firmly "we're doing what your imprinting did, even though it made an even bigger problem: we're stopping you from doing something that you'll regret once you're back to your normal senses."

"What is THAT supposed to mean?!" He shouted.

"When have you ever blamed anyone- including a kid- for something their parents did to you?" Jacob nearly stumbled at the question.

"What- what does that- I didn't-"

"You did," Embry reminded "you tried to kill Renesmee because you couldn't hurt Bella or Edward for what they did to you. But that's not something you'd normally do. We're protectors, Jacob. We don't harm the innocent, we don't use the gifts that Taha Aki gave us to hurt others for our own ends. You nearly killed her-" Embry didn't stop when he saw Jacob flinch like he'd been stabbed "-but that wasn't you, Jacob. If the imprint hadn't triggered and stopped you, then you would've woken up and regretted it, and hated yourself for what you did, sooner or later. Even if you feel vindicated and justified when you saw how much hurt and suffering you'd caused Bella and Edward in revenge for what they did to you, you would have regretted it. You would've hated yourself."

That hit Jacob like a lightning bolt, but before he could process or deny everything, Leah stepped forwards, again.

"Don't make me do this, Jacob." She repeated quietly, more gently this time.

"Don't make me challenge you."

That dropped like another bolt of thunder and lightning, this time on the entire crowd. Leah took another breath.

"If you won't stop and give up now... then I intend to challenge you for the leadership of the pack."

Leah's voice rang out at the last part. Gasps and whispers erupted from all around. Bella gave a muffled sob. Billy closed his eyes briefly. Tears streamed from Rachel's eyes. Gabrielle bowed her head.

Jacob snarled, "Fine."

Leah bowed her head gravely. To the crowd it seemed like she was accepting her fate, but secretly she prayed, Taha Aki, if you care about your descendants, your tribe and for what's right... you won't let Jacob win. She looked back up, and her eyes were resolute.

Suddenly, Leah realised that even if Jacob had a chance of backing down, she would've still challenged him for the leadership of the pack. Not because she wanted it, but because she wanted to save them. She knew that Jacob not only never wanted to be an Alpha, but he put his own wants and needs first, and those which they revolved around, regardless of what they even wanted or may want. All because he would never let Renesmee- or Bella- go, even deep inside, and consent to a soul-link. Or rather, he wouldn't let Bella's shadow go, and the idea of who and what he thought Renesmee was that could consequently replace it. It all boiled down to this.

And because, in the end, Leah cared more about her people's future and wellbeing. And that included Emily, her cousin who had been, and still was in the end, her sister.

Billy wheeled forwards. "State your terms." He ordered. Leah spoke before Jacob could.

"If Jacob wins, everyone gets to keep their imprints the way they are," her voice rang through the clearing. The sun was beginning to set "and no one has the right to take them away from them. Jacob also gets to do what he wants with me: kill me, imprison me, banish me- break my bones- whatever he wants. I won't stop him."

"Leah-" Sue tried to interject. Seth also made a move to object. Quil and Embry both looked alarmed- as did Sam. The Cullens looked aghast, none more than Bella. Emily looked horrified, and Rachel sickened. More than one person looked like they were about to rush over and stop all this, but Leah held up a hand. "Stop. This all comes down between him and me." She said firmly, her voice leaving no room for any argument. "Unless any of you wishes to join in the fight, then stay back. And even then if you wish to dispute either of us, then you'll have to fight us both. But if you do join the fight, then you'll be going against not only both of us, but what we both want, even though we have separate aims. And you can't take sides if you fight. So you'll just have to root for and let one of us win." She finished, turning back to Jacob.

Jacob bared his teeth. "Fine."

"Leah!" Emily gasped. She looked completely shaken, but managed to stay standing long enough to be horrified by this new development. She looked like she was about to throw up. Nearby, Sam stood still, frozen in shock and horror, too much to be able to react while he was still struggling to come to terms and process this monumental revelation and everything else that was now happening.

"But if I win, you will consent to get a soul-link to reverse your imprint with Renesmee," Leah said to Jacob, her voice resolute "you will leave Claire alone and never force Quil to take her back and for her to accept Quil, just so you could prove a point. The entire pack will get a soul-link to make sure nothing like you and Renesmee ever happens again. Sam," she looked at him "I realise I can't speak for your pack or tell any of you what to do, but the soul-link option is there and not just for anyone who wishes to reverse their imprint-bonds." Whispers of confusion followed. Even Jacob momentarily paused.

"If this compels us to feel that a newborn baby or a toddler are our soulmates, if we can't even take a weekend getaway, a teenage slumber party or a coffee break away from each other without putting ourselves in literal agony, then that's a sign there's something wrong." Leah said frankly. "If we can't even take no for an answer and respect another person's wishes without it killing us, then something has to change." Her eyes met Emily's briefly. "Because nobody deserves to give up their entire lives or their freedom of consent. No one.

"The soul-link option is only for us to make sure that if anyone wants to leave, no one has to get killed or be in so much agony that they won't survive," Leah clarified "THAT. IS. IT. No one needs to reverse or break any imprint, or do ANYTHING unless they specifically ask for it. If you wish to stay and make this work, then you're more than welcome to," Leah nodded firmly, putting the weight of every meaning that she could behind those words as she looked at the remaining imprint-couples "but if you wish to leave, then this will only make sure that you can both heal and find someone else without it killing any of you."

She looked back at Jacob. "If I win, you will give your consent for a soul-link, move to Canada to get treatment at a therapy centre for Wolves that we've looked in for you," she stated roughly "you will also never look for Renesmee or Bella- or any of the Cullens- ever again. You will leave them alone for good.

"Because that is what they're asking for, Jacob. And she's too young for you."

Heat flooded in Jacob's veins. He breathed deeply. A large part of him felt outrage at Leah's words, and even more so because his whole damned pack had betrayed him, including all his friends, to stop him from being with his imprint, but to his surprise, a small part of him also felt... sadness. So this was what it's come to. Those words were in Leah and Jacob's thoughts, and while there was a sense of grimness, there was undoubtedly a feeling of sadness, especially in Leah but also in Jacob.

In the end, they may not have always gotten along or even liked each other, but they would always be family.

"Do you both agree to these terms?" Billy's voice boomed.

"Yes." Leah stated without even taking a second to breathe. Jacob opened his eyes.

"Yes." He gritted out. The sadness and regret were both gone. He knew what was at stake.

"Then it's time to prepare."

---

"Sometimes the hardest decisions are only meant to be made because a better purpose is waiting. Closing one door to walk through another doesn't mean goodbye. It means believing in yourself and intuition to create your best self in the unknown."

Brittany Burgunder

"The Wolves from Vermont and the Appalachians are outside the borders of Forks," Gabrielle said quietly. "They're not going to enter until this dispute has been resolved. Even worse, if you intend to mate with any underage child, even if you have to wait for them to grow someday, they refuse to have any part in this. If you force anybody to stay, either by threats- and that includes threats to harm anyone including yourselves- coercion, including emotional coercion... well, they've made it perfectly clear that they don't approve of anyone being forced to mate against their explicitly stated and freely given consent." Her voice was soft but laden with unshakeable meaning, as she told the Wolves.

Gabrielle took a deep breath and moved towards Leah where she was now preparing. "You've been prepared. You know what you have to do." Her words were filled with so much certainty, it was hard for anyone to think that there could be a possibility that the outcome would be different than what she believed would happen. Leah nodded. "I know, and thank you."

They both knew that Leah couldn't afford to lose. For the sake of everyone's futures, she had to succeed. Gabrielle looked up at the sky. The sun had set. The moon would soon make its appearance. She turned towards the other members of the Jacob and Leah's pack. Nearby, Rachel had rushed over to Jacob, as did Sam and Emily, to try and talk reason with him. Rachel was jabbering away and gesticulating wildly, trying to make her brother see sense, but he'd brushed her aside as he always did. Besides, the challenge had been issued and answered.

"The Wolves from the Appalachians and Vermont have requested that the pack send a signal," Gabrielle informed Quil, Seth, Embry, and the rest of their pack who hadn't known what was going on. "A howl through the night sky, to acknowledge the new Alpha- or Luna- once the fight is over." She gave them a firm look.

They nodded.

Emily came running over to Leah. "Leah," she said hastily. Leah shook her head, "Stop." She stated. "It's too late. The challenge has already been issued."

"Then take it back!" Emily looked wildly, desperately, first at Leah, and then the other members of her pack. Leah shook her head. "This is the only way. Jacob will never let Renesmee leave or live his own life in peace without following and haunting her footsteps. They'll barge over to your brother's house, force their way in, grab Claire even if they have to kill anyone who stands in their way, and force Quil to take her back, even if either of them don't want to." Emily froze and paled, taking a step back.

"And we can't risk anybody imprinting on underage kids ever again- or for them to lose their whole minds and kill themselves just because an imprint doesn't turn out the first time it happens. We can't risk our species' future." Leah explained patiently, while Emily opened and then closed her mouth, finding nothing to say. "Neither Claire, Renesmee or Rachel deserves to be kept and forced to stay against or without their free will." Leah's eyes softened. "And neither do you. You can leave if you wish, or you can stay. But no one has the right to decide that for you, except for yourself. Not even Sam." She held out her hand.

To Emily's surprise, Leah held a round cosmetic tub out to her. "It's a cream I asked Gabrielle to make," she admitted "to erase your scars completely. You can use it regardless of whether you wish to stay with or leave Sam. I'm sorry it took so long, Emily. I truly am. It wasn't just Sam I was upset about losing. It was also my dad... and you."

For a moment, Emily was unable to speak. She couldn't find the words, her voice. "Leah-" she choked out.

Leah held the tub back towards Emily and turned towards the direction of the Cullens. "You know what we discussed," she warned them, particularly Bella.

Bella choked. "Leah," Leah shook her head. "Not the time," she insisted. Renesmee whispered, "Please don't die."

I don't intend to, Leah thought, but she turned to face where Jacob had stripped off his shirt and shorts, throwing both onto the ground.

Leah sighed. "Good luck," Esme whispered, the other Cullens echoing her. "And thank you for everything."

Leah nodded. It was beginning to grow dark, but to Wolves, vampires, and Gabrielle who was part-faerie, it was still pretty clear. Leah stepped forwards.

"Jacob," she called. Suddenly, the full moon revealed itself.

Brilliant, silvery light gleamed, illuminating the entire area. For a moment, it was as bright as daylight. Everyone had fallen silent.

"Last chance," she announced, her voice ringing with an authority and presence that Leah never knew she had.

"Turn back now. Let Renesmee go. Consent to get healed."

Jacob snarled, "You want me to get fixed up like there's nothing wrong with you?"

Leah gave an apologetic look towards Billy and Rachel. "I tried."

Rachel closed her eyes. "I know," Billy said softly.

Jacob looked furious. "You're taking her side too?" He spewed those words with so much venom that Emily instantly and involuntarily recoiled. Bella and the rest of the Cullens flinched. Even Rosalie turned away. Kim looked shaken and- dare Leah believe it? So did Sam, Jared and the others. Paul stood silent and unmoving, also in shock and unable to process anything.

"No one's taking sides, Jacob." Rachel retorted firmly. "This isn't a game. It's not one of your fun brawls and practice fights where you can place bets. This is serious. This concerns everyone's future including yours."

Jacob seethed. "I meant what I said Jacob," his father said to him softly "please remember that." He turned back towards Leah and the audience while also still looking at his son.

"It ends at first blood or surrender." He ordered. "No one is to intervene." Billy paused.

"That is all."

They knew it was no longer in their hands.

As the full moon seemed to shine brighter, Leah and Jacob phased. Two Wolves, one as large as a barnyard horse and russet-brown fur, dark eyes spewing hate and a snarling mouth appeared to explode in Jacob's place. The second Wolf, grey but illuminated silver by the light of the full moon and smaller than the first, also appeared.

"Go." At the sound of Billy's signal, the two charged at each other.

Snarling fangs and gnashing snouts, growls, and fur-clad muscle and bone smashed into each other, although one was significantly smaller and lighter than the first. Leah didn't have the advantages that Jacob and the others had, due to her small size, but she was faster than all of them combined. She wove through Jacob's limbs and dodged his snapping jaws, ran loops around him, and when he tried to backtrack and crush her, she dodged him again. Jacob snarled and ripped his paw towards her direction, but Leah dodged it, and he ripped a chunk out of the earth instead.

Grass and clods of dirt flew in all directions as the two Wolves battled for supremacy. Someone- probably Kim or Emily- gasped. A rock flew out of nowhere as the two Wolves tussled more fiercely than they had in Charlie's living room or anywhere else. Jacob was snarling, enraged and lashing out, intending to hurt whenever and wherever he could, as much as he could, but Leah had expecting this. She was faster, and dodged swiftly. But she knew she couldn't wait for too long.

Jacob leapt onto her, jaws snapping into thin air as he made a near-miss. Leah snarled in turn and leapt onto his back, prompting him to growl and throw her off. Emily's gasp resounded, but Leah caught herself, rolling sideways on the grass as Jacob made a leap to kill.

Leah tried to leap onto him again, but Jacob roared and shoved her off. He used his body weight- the greatest superiority he had over her- to try to push and shove her down, but Leah slipped away again and yanked one of his legs. Jacob yelped and was about to throw her off, but Leah leapt back, pranced around and disorientated him, while also teasing him.

Jacob growled, his eyes obsidian fires glowing with hate. Leah taunted him, dancing forwards and then leaping back, pulling her canine lips back into a smirk.

Jacob roared and charged forwards, Leah tried to leap to the side, but Jacob had been expecting this. He grabbed onto her hind leg, but Leah didn't even give herself time to react to what had happened: she did the only thing she could, knowing she had to move quickly, and grabbed onto Jacob's side with her teeth.

She sunk her teeth in and pulled backwards as harsh as she could. Jacob bellowed in pain, and tried to tear her off, but before he could react, Leah bit deeper. She sank her teeth in and started shaking him around like a chew toy. Jacob yelped and tried to tear her off, but Leah used the force of his own strength to help propel her upwards until she was on top of him.

She growled. Leah sank her teeth into the juncture of Jacob's neck and dug as firmly as she could without aiming to do any damage. Jacob yelped again and tried to shake her off, but she pushed whatever body weight she had to push him down while simultaneously holding onto him with her teeth, sinking them deeper, but pulling her head back upwards.

And then she found it. Jacob screamed. She drew back up.

Blood droplets gleamed on her lips and on Jacob's fur. She leapt off, dodging him effortlessly as he tried feebly to swipe a paw in her direction.

It was done. Jacob winced, taking a few deep breaths. His vision spun, but soon he managed to focus on the smaller figure with grey fur turned silvery by the light of the moon.

He tried to leap forwards, but then someone howled. As Jacob and the others turned in surprise, more voices joined them. Jacob's own pack, the former Black pack, had started a howl. They were heralding Leah's victory to the skies and informing their allies that it had been done. They had a new Luna.

Jacob's eyes bugged and he snarled. He couldn't care less about all that! That was fine by him. He wanted one thing; he leaped forwards, but Quil pounced onto him, and so did Seth, Embry and all the others who had once followed him as Alpha.

Jacob tried to shake them off, but they all growled and pinned him down in place.

"It's done," Jared breathed, still in his human form, as shocked as all the other observers. Everybody turned at the sound of his voice. "I can't believe... it's done.

"Leah's done it. She's won." He looked into the Cullens' direction.

Jacob screamed No! But they couldn't hear him, even if they guessed what he was saying. He tried to lunge towards Renesmee's direction, to try reach to her, but his pack-mates didn't let him. Worse still, more Wolves- the un-imprinted ones of Sam's pack- leaped forwards in their Wolf forms to help contain Jacob. Jacob snarled, desperately trying to knock them all off and to reach Renesmee, but the numbers suddenly grew too much. His eyes were wild and crazed, like that of a rabid animal. This couldn't be happening! His eyes lost their focus, but their wild light intensified. He started foaming.

Suddenly, something snapped. Jacob screamed. At the same time, Renesmee cried out and her hands flew to her head.

"Renesmee!" Several vampire voices shouted at once. Jacob's scream rang out and suddenly he was no longer fighting the other Wolves. He rolled on the ground, thrashing and shaking like he was having some kind of seizure.

The pain was like a thousand canons had exploded inside his skull. Like muscle, skin, fur and bone were being flayed off of him by acid while being electrocuted. The other Wolves jumped back, bewildered and horrified as Jacob rolled around, screaming and howling, unknowingly phasing until he was back to his human self.

Renesmee collapsed to the ground. Only her family kept her from hitting the earth. Jacob screamed and thrashed, hands flying involuntarily and unknowingly to his head as he shook, before falling silent.

"Quick!" Gabrielle shouted, fighting her way through the crowd of stunned and horrified spectators. "Get them inside! There's no time!"

"What?" Rachel gasped. "What's happening?" Her voice had reached the point of hysteria.

"The imprint-bond between Renesmee and Jacob has severed," Gabrielle said darkly "by force."

The members of Jacob's pack gasped, as did the Cullens. "But didn't you say that would make them go insane?!" Rachel blurted.

"Which is why we have to hurry! I need to perform the soul-link NOW!"

The tone of her voice made it clear now was not the time to argue or dispute anything, and that this was a very serious emergency. The reminder that Jacob and Renesmee could go insane was what drove them over the edge.

No one had any time to even consider disputing anything. They rushed back to the nearest place, the Cullens' house and Gabrielle hastily whipped out her wand and temporarily dispelled the wards to let them all through.

Inside was almost stripped off furniture, except the ones the Cullens had planned to leave behind for the buyers, or renters, whoever would take it. There was no time to go upstairs or to search for a bed.

Renesmee was laid on the sofa and Jacob on a kitchen table nearby. Gabrielle summoned a chair with magic.

"This is it." She stated grimly. "Keep them calm, will you?" She asked Sue. Gabrielle sat back on an armchair and appeared to slump into her seat.

The members of Sam's pack, Leah's new one, the council-members and all the imprints stood shaken. "What-" but Sue hushed Emily.

"She's separating her consciousness from her body," Carlisle breathed "like she said she would do in order to fix this."

"Astral-Projection," Jasper breathed. "She has to fix both of them." Sue whispered panicked. "This isn't going to be easy. We should give her some space to work." She began ushering everyone outside.

Much to their reluctance and all the shock, disbelief and unanswered questions that they had, the others had no choice but to oblige. They all filed out of the house. No one minded, complained or even noticed the scent of vampires, and none of the Cullens complained either.

Much to their own reluctance, Alice, Esme, Carlisle, Jasper and Emmett pulled both Rosalie and Bella away from Renesmee. Bella was sobbing, barely managing to be restrained as she was all but dragged out of the door so that Gabrielle could work in peace.

---

"Healing may not be so much about getting better, as about letting go of everything that isn't you—all of the expectations, all of the beliefs—and becoming who you are."

Rachel Naomi Remen

Outside of the house, the Wolves and the Cullens waited. Silence reigned, as if they feared even breathing too loudly could disturb and disrupt the entire process.

Finally, Gabrielle emerged. She looked completely drained as she stepped through the front door and everybody shot to their feet, if they had been sitting, and all gave her their full attention.

"It's done." she managed.

"They're asleep."

She looked at the Cullens. "Give her a few more minutes, then take her to her grandfather's house. I can't risk moving Jacob since..." she struggled for words.

"How?" Sam finally managed to whisper, his voice hoarse.

"Because you were right." She looked at Leah, who had emerged and followed them fully dressed and whose wounds had healed themselves, in the eye. "Jacob imprinted on a person who wasn't really there. And it wasn't Renesmee."

"I don't understand," Sam whispered. His heart was thudding, pounding much too loudly for him to understand and process everything.

Gabrielle looked at him sympathetically. "Jacob never hated her, but needed someone to direct all his rage and bitterness due to his own pain. He needed an outlet for all his rage and cooped-up desire for vengeance, but couldn't bring himself to target and hold the ones truly responsible for his own suffering: Edward, Bella- and himself, since he knew this was bound to happen, as much as he tried to deny everything." No one spoke. "She was a substitute target, an indirect means of achieving revenge.

"And at the same time, he never genuinely loved her, either," Gabrielle continued "since he never saw her as her own person. Always a substitute and a replacement for his hatred and rage, and then his affections. After he imprinted, Jacob tried to rationalise everything to himself and Bella, by claiming that the reason he was ever drawn to Renesmee's mother in the first place was because he was always meant to be with Bella's daughter." Gabrielle cringed and she wasn't the only one. As soon as she said it, everyone learned just how wrong it all sounded. Shudders and grimaces of disgust, revulsion and disbelief were everywhere.

"But he was wrong." Gabrielle explained about Bella's pregnancy hormones and nesting instincts, and how Edward hadn't helped matters, but instead may have made her feel worse. Jacob made his opinion clear, but she trusted him more than Edward not to do anything, especially as he helped take her mind off things during what was not just a supernatural pregnancy with a half-vampire baby, but her very first pregnancy- and a teenage one at that. Jacob had provided the strained, hormonal, and anxious Bella, who had been afraid even to admit to any back-pain or other normal pregnancy symptoms for fear of increasing Edward's resentment towards their own child, had unconsciously sought Jacob's presence as a means, not just to distract herself, but to make herself more cheerful, to convince both Jacob and Edward that this child was not a monster and should not be hated or blamed for anything. There were a lot of winces at this, since the Wolves remembered the lead-up to the birth following the revelations of Bella's pregnancy.

"But Jacob never really loved Bella, either." Gabrielle said quietly. She looked at Leah. "He saw how Emily fit in with the pack, how she looked out and after them, and they accepted her as part of the family. And Bella reminded him of that precisely because she was so used to looking after her own mother, even doing the house chores, managing the finances, reminding her mother to go for job interviews, or helping her navigate whenever she got lost, and paying the utility bills since she was a small child." Gabrielle insisted, as some looked appalled at the description. "It rubbed off on her, but at the same time impacted her emotional growth. All Jacob saw was someone who acted mature for her age and reminded him of Emily. And maybe even filled in the gap that he lost when his mother died and his older sisters left."

Rachel flinched and Gabrielle looked apologetically in her direction. "When she flirted, Jacob didn't really know or understand why. When she sought him out, he knew that her boyfriend had dumped her, but he thought that she was interested in him. But Bella needed someone to connect with and help her in the aftermath of a traumatic breakup." She gave Sam a look. "You remember, don't you?"

Sam admittedly did remember the breakup. He'd been the one to find Bella and carry her back safely. As he recalled this, heart still pounding wildly, trying to control it and process everything still, Gabrielle continued: "Jacob completely misunderstood and misinterpreted everything. He thought Bella either took an interest in his hobby, bikes and cars, because she was either interested in pursuing a romantic relationship with and getting closer to him, or because they both had shared interests that they could bond over with. But Jacob never really thought to observe, even after he had imprinted, that Bella was never into that sort of thing. She only sought both relief and distraction after Edward dumped her in the middle of the woods, destroyed what little self-esteem she already had, and discarded her like rubbish. She didn't want to hurt Jacob, since she not only felt indebted to him after he'd picked her up and brought her back together, Bella genuinely couldn't bear to hurt him, but neither could she stand up to Edward. She couldn't even bring herself to hold a grudge even though Jacob had sexually assaulted her by forcing a kiss- which should have seen him in handcuffs, even Bella's father had admitted that- and emotionally blackmailed and played with her emotions by guilt-tripping her, the same way Edward did. And they both did the same to Renesmee." Gabrielle paused. There was no way to put things delicately. Or diplomatically. Not anymore.

"That isn't love. Not by a long shot." Her voice was flat. "There is no respect. No room to not only respect but accept the other person for who they are and what they want. Neither Bella nor Renesmee, nor anyone else needs a slave or a devotee to worship the very ground they walk upon. They don't need a master to make all the decisions and choices for them, even if they are young. Both of which Edward Cullen has done, same as Jacob. And not just them. They are capable of standing on their own two feet. They also don't need anyone telling them what they think or feel: putting words in their mouth, thoughts in their head, and feelings in their psyche that don't belong there isn't true love."

Although her words were not loud, they rang through the audience, all the same. Gabrielle continued.

"But Jacob genuinely believed that he was in love with Bella. And because of that, that led him into hating the unborn Renesmee when he was unable to hate her father or her mother, or even to just coherently process all his thoughts and emotions properly which he needed to heal from his pain."

Gabrielle sighed. "And that escalated to the point where he felt so much pain, so much rage, that he was simply unable to control himself. He wandered near the baby by accident, heard Rosalie playing with her, and remembered why they were there. He wanted Bella to be hurt by him, to feel the pain she had forced him to go through." Bella gave a choked sob. "So he stepped forwards and was about to do something he would never normally do; an anathema to his own existence as a protector of the innocent: he was about to kill the newborn baby in a rage-induced, misdirected attempt at revenge, but then saw her eyes: Bella's eyes.

"And that was what triggered everything, deep in his psyche. Because Jacob knew he was wrong, but because he was in so much pain, so much rage, he couldn't bring himself to care as he normally would've done, or to be horrified at the thought of murdering an innocent baby because of something her parents did, something she never chose and was never responsible for. Yet he felt conflicted, deep down. He knew he was not only dishonouring Bella and what might've been her final wishes and rendering her sacrifice for her baby meaningless, Renesmee had nothing to do with her parents' choices or decisions, she didn't even choose who her parents were, much less to be born as half a vampire. It didn't matter to Jacob and he didn't want to care because he was in so much pain, he needed to turn that pain into rage, in order to do something about it, an instinctual act that he desperately thought would stop him from drowning in his own pain and misery. He needed an outlet for all his rage and bitterness, to turn into hatred and revenge. But it was the very antithesis of what it meant to be a protector. A Quileute Wolf. Deep down he knew that within his psyche, and his instinct reacted. Then as he got close and ready to pounce, he saw her eyes and it jumped the opportunity to imprint- all to end Jacob's pain that was so bad that he either felt like he could be dying and to stop him from killing an innocent newborn child in revenge. It was a perfect opportunity: Renesmee was a female, she had Bella's eyes- easy to convince him that all that had been for the sole purpose of encountering this person. She was young, malleable. A cup that needed filling or a blank slate that he could fill with whatever he liked."

Gabrielle grimaced. "It's grooming, but back in the day, long before all of these laws and norms, before science proved that this sort of thing was unhealthy, it wasn't uncommon in the past for even girls as young as twelve to get married. They didn't know it was harmful back then, they only knew that they needed to keep going to repopulate the gene pool."

"That's true," Sue said softly. Old Quil nodded. "Many Quileute girls have married younger than fifteen in the past. It was a harsh world and the community felt they had to keep going and grow up quickly if they wanted their people to survive. It didn't make things right, but they didn't know any better back then." Sue stated. Billy, Rachel and many others grimaced.

Gabrielle nodded. "That's why her age or ability to consent freely without any outside influence didn't matter as much, since your species started phasing and imprinting before it had been known and proven to be remotely harmful. Your species was also isolated, having emerged that way, and your gene pool was consequently not as diverse as those of the other packs and species of your kind, and it had yet to adjust more comfortably with changing into what you all are. You emerged and started much later than all the other species, and then had periods where the gene goes rapidly dormant due to the lack of, not only diversity but available breeding partners that weren't closely related to you, since you were all, from varying degrees, descendants of Taha Aki, even though he had three wives and many offspring over the course of a life that spanned around two centuries." Billy and Old Quil bowed their heads, looking grave. "Your species' growth and evolution were not consistent and had yet to adjust to everything comfortably, including your own personal needs, preferences, modern-day cultural norms and morality. The fact that entire family lineages could go for entire generations without phasing, only relying on the presence of the Cold Ones to activate it, isn't a sure sign of it being healthy. Your species' genome is desperate to catch up and evolve with all the rest of your kind, and sometimes it goes overboard, like with your sudden large sizes, and, in this case, the fact that your Pull instinct, your imprint, goes on complete overdrive and completely overboard to make you win over the first suitable candidate to pass down the genes, even if it has to make you forget all past ties and loyalties."

Many of the observers gasped. Sam looked as if he had an entire truck-load of freezing Artic water dropped onto him. He felt like he'd been stabbed and so did Emily. Sam took a step back.

"And Jacob would have surely regretted and hated himself for killing an innocent baby, regardless of who her parents were and what they did to him, since she wasn't actually responsible and once he had returned to his normal senses." Gabrielle continued softly, more gently now, as Quil, Embry, and Seth all agreed, as did Billy, Rachel and Collin, Jacob's cousin.

"He was desperate, and as wrong as it was, your species... haven't evolved to the same level as the Appalachians and the other Wolves, not even the Vermont Wolves to whom feeling the 'lightning touch'- their species' variation of the Pull, the way imprinting is to you- is relatively new to them, even though every single one of them consist solely of Wolves, have evolved so much they are unable to procreate with humans, and have an even number of males and females in their population. Yet feeling the Pull is a recent thing for their species, compared to many others, and many have gone their entire lives without even feeling it, unlike the other species who refuse to even enter into a committed relationship without first feeling it." Gabrielle explained further.

"It takes a while to adjust. Since you all descend from one common ancestor- and he lived mere centuries ago and that's not enough for the sake of evolution- the gene pool first needs to expand. More and more have imprinted than in previous generations. It's becoming less rare and more a likelihood. Your generation is larger than the last one which phased, but there have been two generations in between that never phased. You've only had less than a handful the last time, and never before have you had any females. Since your species' growth rate is inconsistent, but your species is desperately trying to keep up with the rapid pace of evolution in a harsh and changing world, well your species have to do whatever it can to catch up with the rest of your kind." Gabrielle paused.

"And living here certainly helps."

That got her some bewildered looks. "This isn't an ordinary place you live in," Gabrielle warned. "There may have been a reason as to why your earliest ancestors, before Taha Aki, the ones who could Astral-Project and separate their consciousness from their bodies the way I just did, were drawn to and settled here. They weren't the only ones who did, and neither were the Cullens."

Startled, everybody stared. Gabrielle nodded.

"This place, the Pacific Northwest, is full of wild, powerful and uncontrollable nature magic," she confessed. "Some creatures have featured in your legends, haven't they? The thunderbirds?"

"Tistilal," Billy breathed. Gabrielle nodded.

"There's a mated pair living high in the mountains. Their nests have been warded and they possess a natural magic that prevent them from being seen unless you're lucky, but I assure you they exist and there are at least two here, if they haven't had any offspring recently that is, although those usually tend to fly away. They aren't the only ones. The Pacific Northwest is Sasquatch territory. There's a colony nearby although they and MACUSA have taken steps to ensure that they remain undisturbed. This place..." she shook her head.

"I can't explain it, but something's up with this place. It draws magical beings and animals like insects to a honeypot. It might not be a coincidence that the Cullens chose to settle here, when it's not the only place where they can hide more safely, even if they sometimes leave. Or that Renesmee, a unique Dhampir child, was born here. Or that Bella and her father Charlie, two descendants of magical people- wizards like my kind- came across the Cullens." She sighed. "Maybe it's not fate but..." she gave them a pointed look.

"I can't confirm anything. Only there seems to be an unexplained amount of wild and powerful nature magic everywhere all around: in the air we breathe, the earth, the water, the plant and animal life, even the food and drink that you consume. It might not even be just Jacob's inner psyche and conscience that stopped him through his own pain by imprinting, since... the bond between the two of them was not at all stable to begin with." Gabrielle said.

"Like I said, finding 'the One' is merely a part of the journey." She sighed. "It takes more than that to build a relationship, especially for soulmates. And this relationship was built on shaky ground. I suspect that it was never meant to last and whatever prompted Jacob to imprint knew and intended for it to be that way. Jacob was never going to end up with Renesmee. She was meant to live her own life and so was he."

The full moon was high in the night sky, bathing them all in a soft and silvery glow. Gabrielle turned to the Cullens.

"We can't move Jacob since he's older and now just barely stable, even with magic. And I don't believe that it will be wise to allow Jacob and Renesmee to remain in each other's near vicinity, least it will cause more pain, trouble and upset, even though the imprint-connection is gone. Jacob could still be denial. I have taken precautions, but they may still be in shock. Jacob will have to remain here until he has recovered sufficiently and is strong enough to move. Psychological and emotional wounds take longer to heal and leave deeper scars than physical ones- and I mean this literally." Gabrielle said gravely. "In the meantime, I suggest you take Renesmee away from here. Her grandfather's house has been sufficiently warded, so you can take her there, gently of course, since she's small enough to move easily, especially for you. But you can't go back to the Carpathians just yet, she's not strong or stable enough for intercontinental travel. Even by magical means."

The Cullens nodded and hastily made their way back into their old house. Gabrielle sighed as she turned to watch them go. The Wolves, their remaining imprints and the Council of Elders all watched silently as they left indoors.

---

That was a longer and although it was less challenging than the ones regarding Edward's trial, it was still a rough ride. I used to write extended action scenes, but I didn't think it was necessary here, nor was it necessary for the audience here to start cheering for or placing bets on one contender or another. I didn't want that, and I didn't think it was necessary either to describe the process of how Gabrielle managed to fix everything with Jacob and Renesmee's individual psyches. Just know that the imprint has been reversed and they are no longer connected. Jacob has also been 'fixed up' so he'll be able to imprint again- although not in such a crazy manner- and he won't be as shattered when he wakes.

To Stormshadow13: Thank you. They certainly did and they're much happier now. Leah and Bella actually have more in common than you think. It might shock you, but it's true. Leah understands, but she felt frustrated, not just angry with Bella because of Jacob.