Eternal Sunshine

Together Again

When she woke the next morning to an empty space beside her, Renesmee was a bit frantic. "Jacob?"

"In  here, Nessie," he called from the living room. He was sitting in a  chair, talking with Sam Uley. Seth lounged on the couch. The three of  them, and Jacob's cast, made the room look incredibly small.

"Jake, should you be up? Shouldn't you rest?"

"I'm alright, honey. Have a little more faith in me, I'm a fast  healer, remember?" He stood to hug her, but swayed  and stumbled. Luckily, Seth jumped up and reached out an arm to catch  him.

"Right," she raised an eyebrow at him as Seth helped him sit back down. "Here,  Jake," she said, moving an old ottoman towards him, and helping  him rest his broken leg on it. He smiled wearily, and she noticed his  face was grey beneath his tanned skin.

"Not even wolves heal that  fast, Jake," Sam said, folding his arms across his broad chest. He  glanced at Renesmee, who now sat on the floor next to Jacob's chair, and  then back at Jacob.

"She stays," Jacob said, using his Alpha voice that made Renesmee shiver. "This concerns her too now."

"What  happened, Jacob? And you're the Alpha now," Sam said, growing a bit  irritated. Now that he had grown used to the idea that Jacob was in  charge, he didn't like being summoned to help him lead. He wanted to be  home with Emily, helping her prepare for their child who was due in a  couple of months. "Why do you need me?"

"Because..." Jacob began, slowly shaking his head, "I can't make any sense of this. I don't know what to do."

"Alright.  Start from the beginning, then. Fill me in," Sam said, and Seth leaned  forward slightly in his seat to hear the story too.

She bit  her lip as Jacob plunged into his tale. She hoped he would skip the part  about their conversation on the beach. He did.

"I was in the woods," he said. "I heard a crashing through the trees. I phased and was ready by the time they found me."

"Who  found you?" Seth asked.

"Wolves," Jacob said, a bewildered expression in his eyes as if he still couldn't believe it.

"Wolves?" Renesmee asked, echoing the shock in Sam and Seth's minds. "Like you guys?"

"I guess so. I didn't get a good look," Jacob shook his head. "As soon as they spotted me, they attacked."

"You  didn't recognize any of them?" Seth asked, debating in his head if this  was all some sick joke by Paul or Embry that had gone wrong.

"No,"  Jacob said, shaking his head. "I'd never seen them before. You seriously think someone in our pack could do this to me? They'd be in far  worse shape than I am if they tried it."

"How many were there?" Sam asked, pulling the two of them back to the situation at hand.

"About five, I think."

"You took on five wolves by yourself? Jacob, what were you thinking?" Sam thundered.

Jacob stroked Renesmee's hand in his. "I didn't care much whether I lived or died yesterday."

She pinched her lips and blinked hard against the tears filling her eyes again as she kept her gaze  focused on the floor.

Jacob placed his hand on her cheek and made  her look at him. He pressed his lips to her forehead. "Still with me?"  he asked.

"Forever," she promised.

"She's good with weird," Seth smirked.

"Like  her mother," Sam added. Then he started pacing as he spoke, "If only we  could talk to someone who was around when all this started happening.  Legends are all fine and good, but when we're dealing with people's  lives, we have to have better facts."

"What about my dad? Or Carlisle?" Renesmee chimed in.

"Why would the blood..." Sam began, but with one look, was silenced by Jacob. He took a deep breath and tried again, "Why would they want to help us?"

"Forget the treaty, Sam," Jacob ordered. "The Cullens were the ones to save me. We work together now."

Seth  nodded and Sam sighed. "Alright, it might work. What other choice do we  have?" he said through clenched teeth. They had tried calling truces  before, and it never ended very well. Practically his whole life had  been spent hating and not trusting the Cullens, or any vampires, for  that matter. He still blamed them for turning him into a werewolf, or  whatever the heck they were. It would take a while for this whole  "teamwork" thing to set in. "Did you say that they only saw you in wolf  form?"

Jacob nodded. "As far as I know, why?"

"It means they  won't recognize you in human form. That gives us a little extra time.  Enough time for you to heal properly anyway," he said, glancing at  Jacob's cast. "Seth, I want you to stay here and keep an eye on things  while Nessie and I go talk to the Cullens."

"Sam, there's no  reason for me to stay here. Especially not with Seth babysitting me,"  Jacob said as Seth chuckled from his place on the couch.

"I can  think of plenty," Sam scoffed, and Renesmee could see that Jacob had  brought out the Alpha in Sam. "You're in no condition to phase, much  less fight. And until we figure out what these guys are after, I don't  want you to be alone. Let's go, Ness."

She squeezed Jacob's hand  as she headed towards the door. "Don't worry, Ness," Seth laughed his  easy laugh, "I'll take good care of him."

"Shut up, you idiot,"  Jacob groaned. Renesmee smiled to herself as she left the house.  Outside, Sam had already turned into a wolf to get there faster. She  climbed onto his back.

"Are you sure Jacob will be alright?" she asked him worriedly.

Sam  rolled his eyes and nodded his huge black head. He took off toward the  Cullen house. Had he and Emily been so sickeningly sweet when they first  got together?