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CROUCHED DOWN BESIDE PAUL, Magnolia waited for signs of the chase. She couldn't hear the Cullen's approaching yet, but she knew it would be soon. Paul, in his wolf form, huffed, clearly getting impatient. Sam turned and gave him a stern stare, shutting him up. "Any second now," She mumbled to mostly herself, but also to reassure Paul. "Soon."

There was the crack of a branch and as if time slowed down, Magnolia could see the Cullen's clearly approaching, with the bright red streak of Victoria just out of their grasp. She made a jump and was now on the Quileute side. Paul glanced quickly at Magnolia, signalling it was time. Adrenaline rushed through her as in one fluid motion, she grabbed hold of Paul's fur and pulled herself up, planting her feet on his back as he ran top speed.

She used to hate speed, but running with the wolves was something entirely different — she felt free, limitless. Her hair was tied up, allowing herself a clear view of the scarlet vampire up ahead. "Get me closer, Paul," She whispered to the wolf carrying her. He huffed, conveying a yes. Her knees were crouched as one hand gripped the scruff of Paul's neck while she held the other out in front of her. Within her palm, a bright blue flame was building, larger than any she had been able to conjure before.

A snap from the trees above her signalled that her father was keeping up on the high ground. Paul had now made it to nearly the front of the pack, running behind to Sam. It was the perfect spot. As the flame raged in her hand, Magnolia aimed carefully for Victoria. She was a moving target, a new challenge for the young sorceress. She took a steady breath and released the ball of fire, its blue sparks flying through the trees. If it aimed true, Victoria would be left as nothing but a pile of ash, washed away by the river.

But alas, it was not meant to be. Magnolia cursed as the fire narrowly missed Victoria and instead hit a tree to the left of her. The vampire then chose to hop back over to the Cullen side. "They got this," Magnolia mumbled. "You got this." She knew they all heard her — she wanted them to. The safety of Bella and the safety of all the humans was the most important thing to her.

She watched as Victoria jumped through the trees, Jasper just barely missing her. She found herself concerned as the male vampire slammed into the ground, though she knew it wouldn't hurt him in the slightest. Jasper faltered as he felt the girl's emotions. For some reason, hers were always the strongest, he wouldn't even be using his powers to know how Magnolia was feeling. Was it some kind of torture? Some form as punishment for hurting her?

Emmett was now leading the coven, making up the distance Victoria had made between them. He was determined, eyes never leaving her. Victoria jumped back to the wolves and Emmett didn't slow. "Emmett, no!" She heard Esme call.

Then, she felt Paul's body turned. He was going for Victoria as well. "Paul!" Magnolia warned him as her footing began to loosen. The wolf didn't let up, however, and as he jumped, it was clear Victoria wasn't his target. He slammed into Emmett, sending Magnolia flying off his back and into the far side of the river. There was a piercing pain as her head was slammed into a rock and the world became blurry. There was a sharp pain in her side as she tried to sit up. She could see Paul and Emmett standing off in the middle of the river. "Paul, no..." Her voice was weak, too quiet for the wolf to hear.

She patted the side of her head, feeling the familiar sticky feeling of blood. She sighed shakily. Still blurry, she attempted to stand up but her feet stumbled and she began to fall forward, only to be caught. Two bulky, familiar arms held her steady. "Jasper?" She mumbled. She was in far too much pain to even register the fact that she should be mad at him.

"I'm here, darlin', just relax," He gently picked her up, bringing her to dry land. "It's okay. Carlisle can patch you up."

Again, her world went blurry, but this time it began to spin. "Dad?" She called out.

Timothy had stopped chasing Victoria as soon as he saw what happened. After cussing out Paul, he rushed to her side. "I'm here, Magnolia, you're fine," He had softly taken one of her arms. "I can carry her there." He was talking to someone else, but Magnolia couldn't tell who. She took a deep breath, wanting to stay awake.

From what brain function she did have, Magnolia knew a fall like that gave her a concussion. She wanted to spend her weekend sleeping peacefully, not nursing herself back to health. Her father lifted her carefully into his arms and starting walking to what she could only guess was the Cullen house. Jasper walked right next to Timothy, never taking his eyes off of the sorceress.

  Magnolia didn't know when she fell asleep, but when she woke up, she was in Edward's bedroom. The only bed in the house, she remembered. It was still dark outside, meaning not much time had passed since the chase. Victoria. She shot up too fast, her head once again spinning. As soon as she groaned, the door opened and Alice and Jasper sped inside.

For being stoic, emotionless vampires, they weren't hiding their concern and nervousness very well. "Careful," Alice softly took Magnolia's arm, sitting her up slowly. "You have a concussion." She frowned.

"Called it," Magnolia sighed, rolling her eyes. Even that hurt to do. "How bad is it?"

Alice cringed. "Pretty bad. But with your accelerated healing, Carlisle said it should only last until Monday."

Magnolia groaned. "Great, there goes my weekend," She glanced around, avoiding Jasper's gaze. Now that she had her senses back, her dislike for the vampire returned. "Is my dad around?"

"Yes," Alice nodded. "He's downstairs. He refused to leave. I could help you down if you'd like to see him?"

Jasper's head snapped to the small vampire girl. "No. She's not ready," His face hardened as he stepped in front of Magnolia, blocking Alice from her. "She could barely sit up on her own. She shouldn't be walking yet."

"Jasper," Magnolia huffed. "With all due respect, do you think you have any say over what I can and can't do?" Jasper's eyes winded as he opened his mouth to speak. "No. You don't. If I want to go see my dad then I will go," She turned to Alice, who was peeking around Jasper's shoulder. "I'd appreciate your help, Alice."

"Of course," The small vampire lightly pushed past the blond. "This might hurt," She warned.
Slowly, she moved Magnolia's legs, shifting her to sit on the edge of the bed. Sometimes Magnolia forgot how strong vampires were — Alice looked like she could barely lift a textbook. With ease, Alice managed to get her standing. She had an arm looped around her waist and was holding one of her hands. "We'll take it slow, okay?"

Magnolia winced as her body awkwardly shifted. "Yeah, slow," Carefully, Alice walked the girl into the hallway and down the large flight of stairs. Esme and Rosalie stood at the bottom, waiting to help. Two more pairs of hands reached out to support her once her feet touched the main floor. "Thanks," She mumbled quietly, slightly embarrassed that she needed this much help to walk.

Esme smiled — a smile that could make even the worst of days better. Magnolia turned her head slightly as Jasper slipped past the group of females, into the kitchen. She frowned, but shook off the feeling of hurt, she was the one who pushed away his help. The women of the Cullen coven led her into the living room, where Carlisle and Emmett sat together discussing loudly about football, and where her father sat alone, arms crossed and waiting. "The lady of the hour!" Alice announced.

Timothy's head snapped up, relieved to see his daughter up and walking. She was brought to the couch he was sitting at and was placed down next to him. Timothy steadied her with a strong hand. "How are you feeling?"

Magnolia shrugged. "My head is pounding and my body aches all over, but great, all things considered," She smirked. Timothy laughed with a scoff. If she was using sarcasm, he knew she was fine. "Um...what happened with Paul?" She remembered how angry the wolf was. Her father paused and looked over at Carlisle.

The latter stood from his spot and moved to sit next to Magnolia. "Emmett made a mistake, Paul was merely keeping him from crossing the treaty line."

The girl cringed and shook her head. Timothy huffed angrily from beside her. "He's lucky he didn't kill you," He spat.

"I'm not so easily defeated," Magnolia nudged him, smiling the best she could with tired muscles. Timothy's frown depended. "Come on, dad. I'm fine!" She winced when her head moved too fast, contradicting her words. "All I need is rest, right?" She turned to Carlisle for help.

The head of the coven nodded. "That's right. If you relax for the weekend, by Monday you should be back to normal." His smile was kind and warm. Magnolia smiled widely back.

"See? Everything will be okay," She touched her fathers arm gently. "And if makes you feel better, Paul probably feels really bad. Remember the last time something like this happened? He wouldn't stop calling for a week. It will all be okay, trust me."

Timothy took a deep breath and paused. He knew his daughter was right, but it didn't make him any less angry, but for her, he would do anything — even keeping his raging temper at bay. "I trust you," He said slowly. "And you should be resting. I can take her home from here."

Carlisle stood quickly. "Please, take one of our cars. You can return it any time you see fit," He smirked at Magnolia. The girl smirked back — she was gonna drive the hell out of that thing before returning it.

"Thank you. All of you," Magnolia smiled. She stressed the word all, hoping to catch Jasper's ear. As much as she resented him, she appreciated his help and concern. "See you Monday?" She cocked her head towards Alice, who nodded vigorously.

Each Cullen, minus Jasper, gave Magnolia a small hug before she left. As she walked out to the car Emmett had pulled for them, she could feel the eyes of the southern vampire watching her from his room window. She risked a glance over her shoulder. His frown was deep and his face reminiscent of that from Italy — shallow, empty, devoid of any happiness. Magnolia gulped down the lump in her throat as her father help her into the passenger seat.

She knew the truth. When a vampire loses a mate, they lose themselves, and by depriving him, by depriving herself, of the love they both craved, happiness was an oddity. But she also knew he hurt her and she was not so easily forgiving.

AUTHORS NOTE

Can y'all tell how much I'm loving this? I never right angst but this push and pull between Magnolia and Jasper is just too much fun!