XXXVIII. Ultimatum.

I was completely silent for a long moment. Edward stared at me, patiently waiting for me to explain myself. Because I explained to him that I was definitely going to. He'd make sure of that.

I sighed softly, poking at my waffles until Edward took my fork and laid it down on my plate, his eyes never leaving me. "I like Jasper's idea," I explained and he tensed up as he squeezed his eyes shut for a second. "I want to help. I have to do something," I insisted.

"It wouldn't help to have you in danger," Edward argued as he shook his head, eyebrows furrowing as a frown tugged at his lips.

"Jasper thinks it would. This is his area of expertise." I argued as I threw my arms up in the air in exasperation. Edward sighed in frustration as he stood up, running a hand over his face. "You can't keep me away," I told him as I stood up as well. "I'm not going to hide out in the forest while you all take risks for me."

"Alice doesn't see you in the clearing, Ana," he told me as he shook his head. "She sees you stumbling around lost in the woods. You won't be able to find us; you'll just make it more time-consuming for me to find you afterward," he explained, and I frowned.

My mind flashed to a certain wolf and I shook my head. "That's because Alice didn't factor in Seth Clearwater," I argued back to him. "If she had, of course, she wouldn't have been able to see anything at all. But it sounds like Seth wants to be there as much as I do. It shouldn't be too hard to persuade him to show me the way." I said smugly as I crossed my arms over my chest,

"That might have worked... if you hadn't told me. Now I'll just ask Sam to give Seth certain orders. Much as he might want to, Seth won't be able to ignore that kind of injunction." Edward replied just as smugly as he stared me down.

I scoffed softly and rolled my eyes. "But why would Sam give those orders? If I tell him how it would help for me to be there? I'll bet Sam would rather favor me than you." I challenged him. We both knew I was very slightly more liked than him by the pack.

Edward hummed as he nodded his head. "Maybe you're right. But I'm sure Jacob would be only too eager to give those same orders." he challenged me as well.

My eyebrows furrowed as I shook my head. "That may have worked if he was the pack leader, but seeing as he's not..." I muttered as I quirked an eyebrow.

"Jacob is second in command," Edward informed me and my eyebrows furrowed again. What? "Did he never tell you that? His orders have to be followed, too," he explained and my lips parted in shock and confusion. "I got a fascinating look into the pack's minds last night. It was better than a soap opera. I had no idea how complex the dynamic is with such a large pack. The pull of the individual against the plural psyche... Absolutely fascinating." he explained.

"Jacob never told me..." I muttered softly as I slumped back down into my seat, looking up at Edward with my eyebrows deeply furrowed.

"Jacob's been keeping a lot of secrets," Edward replied with a nod of his head as he sat back down in front of me. "But then again, so have you," he added as he pointed his finger at me.

I raised my eyebrows. "I have?" I questioned.

"Their new members," Edward explained as he raised his eyebrows, pulling his lips into a tight thin line.

I bite down on the inside of my cheek as I stare at him. "Yeah, well, a lot has been on my mind lately..." I mumbled as I picked up my fork, stabbing it into a piece of fruit and taking a bite. "I only know of Quil, Leah, and Seth," I explained before shaking my head. "Not the other younger ones."

Edward hummed softly, eyebrows knitting together. "Leah, that's the one." He mumbled softly, speaking more to himself than to me.

I sat up a little straight, crossing my arms over the table as I raised my eyebrows. "Leah?" I questioned him and he nodded. "What did poor Leah do?" I asked.

Edward scoffed at my words, giving me a weary smile as he shook his head. "She's making life exceedingly unpleasant for the rest of the pack, I'm not sure she deserves your sympathy." He said with a shake of his head.

"What do you mean?" I asked curiously as I leaned a little forward in my seat.

"It's hard enough for them, having to share all their thoughts. Most of them try to cooperate, make it easier. When even one member is deliberately malicious, it's painful for everyone." he explained as he shook his head again.

"She has reason enough," I insisted, thinking that this was all solely based on her being rightfully bitter about Sam and Emily. Jacob had once before mentioned that it was hard living with the Leah-Sam-Emily situation.

"Oh, I know," Edward agreed with a soft hum. He sat back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest. "The imprinting compulsion is one of the strangest things I've ever witnessed in my life, and I've seen some strange things," he muttered.

"Well I mean...we're not much different, are we?" I asked him and he raised his eyebrows in question. "Our relationship, I mean," I explained. Just like the wolves, me and Edward didn't have a choice in falling in love.

"I suppose not." he agreed softly as he shook his head.

I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear as I looked at Edward. "What do you mean deliberately malicious?" I asked curiously as my eyebrows furrowed.

"She's constantly bringing up things they'd rather not think of," He explained before raising one of his hands. "For example, Embry," he said.

My eyes squinted. Embry? I stared at him with confusion as I slowly shook my head. "What's with Embry?" I asked. I wasn't the closest with Embry, so I knew less about him, and it wasn't like Jacob was going to take time out of arguing and being mean to me to catch me up on the pack.

"His mother moved down from the Makah reservation seventeen years ago, when she was pregnant with him." He began explaining while I listened with interest. "She's not Quileute. Everyone assumed she'd left his father behind with the Makahs. But then he joined the pack."

"So?" I asked with a shrug of my shoulders, still very confused.

"He has to be a direct decedent from the original wolf," Edward told me. "So the prime candidates for his father are Quil Ateara Sr., Joshua Uley, or Billy Black, all of them married at that point, of course," he said, raising a finger for each name he listed.

"No!" I gasped loudly as my eyes widened, my hand slapping against the tabletop.

"Now Sam, Jacob, and Quil all wonder which of them has a half-brother." He went on as he nodded his head. "They'd all like to think it's Sam since his father was never much of a father. But the doubt is always there. Jacob's never been able to ask Billy about that."

"Wow," I whispered, mouth hanging open in shock. I sat back in my chair, running a hand through my hair. "That sounds like a mess," I muttered and Edward hummed in agreement. "Can't imagine living with that in your head," I said softly as I shook my head.

"Yeah, well, she makes sure that, among other things, are always in their heads," he explained as he pursed his lips.

I looked at him, remembering how this conversation started. We had gotten sidetracked by gossip so quickly that we forgot the important topic we were arguing about. I sighed softly, sitting back in my chair as I scratched the side of my head. "I have to be in that clearing..." I told him softly.

Edward's jaw clenched and he immediately shook his head. "No." he denied me firmly.

I sighed again and reached forward, taking Edward's hands into mine. "Edward...I know this is a painful thing to say...but I wish you could have seen me, when you left." I told him softly and he visibly flinched at the memories of those times. "The pain-"

"This is not the same, Ana," he argued softly as he shook his head, giving my hands a gentle squeeze. "I'm not leaving you forever," he assured.

"I can't bear the thought of not knowing if you're okay throughout that fight," I explained myself to him as I leaned in a little closer. "I can't stand the thought of being away from you," I added softly as I shook my head. My eyes grew a little glossy as I teared up. "I can't bear the thought of you not returning to me. How do I live on, if you don't survive that fight?"

Edward smiled softly at me as he slipped one of his hands free from mine, reaching up to brush his fingers across my cheek. "You have that little faith in me?" he asked with a soft chuckle.

"This isn't funny!" I scolded him softly as I scowled with a pouted frown.

Edward gave me a gentle smile and continued to brush his fingers across my cheek in an affectionate manner. "Ana, it's gonna be an easy fight. There's no need to worry. With the wolves in this, it's an easy win. The rest of us, aren't gonna have enough to do." he assured me.

I hummed softly as my eyes squinted at him. "Okay, either it's so dangerous that I have to hide... Or it's so easy, that you're gonna be sidelined," I said as my head tilted to the side. "Which is it?" I questioned.

"It's dangerous for you. It's easy for us," he claimed firmly as he pulled away from me and shifted back into his seat.

I silently stared at Edward for a second. I frowned as I slowly shook my head. "I think it's dangerous for us to be apart. How many times do we have to prove that?" I spoke insistently and he raised a questioning eyebrow at me. "I'll be worrying. You'll be worried. And we'll both feel more horrible." I explained softly as my gaze diverted to the table.

"What are you suggesting?" he asked curiously as he tilted his head to the side.

I tilted my head up to look at Edward, pursing my lips while flicking a strand of hair over my shoulder. I silently stared at him for a second as I gathered my thoughts. "Either I am with you in that field, or you are with me in the mountains." I gave him an ultimatum.

Edward seemed to think about it for a second as he stared at me. "You want me to sit the fight out?" he asked softly.

I sighed and lowered my gaze down onto the table. "I know it's selfish to ask..." I mumbled softly as I shook my head.

"No, it's not, "Edward assured as he reached across the table and took my hand in his, giving it a gentle squeeze. "I'll discuss this with them," he told me and I let out a soft sigh of relief, giving him a thankful look. "I'm sure Emmett will be more than pleased I'm leaving my kills for him." he mused as he smiled.

I let out a soft scoff of amusement. "Of course he will." I agreed as I nodded my head.