Disclaimer:

*** This was my first attempt at writing fanfic. It gets off to a VERY rocky start. I actually really hate the beginning of this story and how I wrote it. Once the whole thing is complete, I have every intention of coming back to the early chapters and making it... better. Easier to read. For now... Suffice it to say, I think my growth as a writer is pretty easy to see in the earliest chapters. By that... I mean... I go from sucking tons to sucking less. If you're able to just get past the shit, it gets better later, I think.

~It is my full intent to have grown up subject matter. There will be swearing (and lots of it), character death, sex & who know what else. If you mom would get mad at you reading this kind of story (and is able to punish you for doing so), then you are probably too young.

~I sucked at having betas. Some chapters are beta'd, most are not.

~Oh, and... I own only the mind that created this story right here. Any characters you recognize, I don't own them. And if I did own them, I'd be much richer. But, I'm not. So, yeah...

Author: frggystyl

Pairing(s): Alice & Charlie, Bella & Jasper

Genre: Supernatural, Romance, Suspense, Humor

Rating: M (at least old enough to vote, mmm kay?)

Status: In progress

Banner Made By:Mist

Readers of this story: Um, you guys rock my socks. Yep.

Summary:

At Alice's request, Edward is absent for Bella's first day of school. While sulking in the woods contemplating his siblings' recent secrecy, Edward happens upon the most intoxicating scent he's ever encountered...

Something is about to go down at Casa Swan & there are two targets in the cross hairs. Charlie wants to be a good dad, & he's going to start by doing what comes naturally to a good dad, trying to protect his daughter. He'll get his chance, maybe for longer than he ever imagined...

(First Fan Fic - constructive criticism welcomed!)

Bella POV

Ugh. Just, ugh. Guess it's a much more positive sentiment than I expected to be able to express after my first day on display. I all things considered, my first day at Forks High could have been worse. Having moved often with my capricious, lovable, hairbrained mom multiple times in her various searches for, well, whatever she was looking for at that time, I figured I would be ready for this move. Once you've been a new kid, you can do it at any school, right? Wrong.

My notoriety could have been due to several factors. Being the daughter of the beloved police chief whose flighty wife took off with their only child may have been a contributing factor. Let's not forget that it was the middle of the first semester of my Junior year not unusual to start up then. Oh, then there is the fact that this entire town's population is only slightly smaller than the student body at my last high school. I guess when everyone has gone to the same school since kindergarten, new faces like my pale one tend to stick out. Well, I didn't stick out as much as the only other new kids in Forks since the 1980s, the Carters, er, um, Cullens. Looked like someone did a cut & paste from an Abercrombie ad & put the touched up models in the wrong picture. They somehow managed to look more out of place than me, a truly magnificent feat. All four of them seemed otherworldly. According to Jessica, my apparent new BFF or tapeworm, the 'hottest' and only available Cullen, Edwin (I think?) was absent.

My arrival could have been a little less traumatic; would have been nice for Charlie, er, um, Dad, to keep his yap shut. Yeah, I get that he's excited to have me live here with him. Apparently it was too much to ask that he keep some of that excitement in. Considering Char..Dad likes the spotlight as much as I do he might have maybe tried to help me slip in under the radar or something. No such luck. Guess Mr. Stoic the Mustachioed gets to gossiping like a girl when he gets too excited.

Alright, time to find the silver lining on this cloud… every cloud is supposed to have one, right? Don't want to walk in from my first day looking like someone kicked my puppy. It is obvious Charlie is already far too nervous about making me happy here. I can just imagine him in Port Angeles trying to pick out the new bedding. Oh, the color of red he must've turned while buying that purple comforter & accent pillows. Doubt he even knew what an accent pillow even was until he got taken by the sales lady. Bet she got a commission off of THAT sale. Dad kind of went overboard trying to make my room comfortable. No one needs THAT many throw pillows. Guess the ol' sales gal really did snow Dad, huh?

So, Bella, silver lining, silver lining, silver lining – Ooh – my truck DOES kick ass. And I didn't have to get a police escort to and from school. That was the thing I'd most dreaded about moving here. Well, that and the first day of school. First day of school wasn't my cup of tea, so I'd just have to go with the warm & fuzzies I could conjure up while thinking of my new beast. Hell, Beast might even be a good name for this beautiful tank!

With these thoughts, I grabbed my backpack from the passenger seat and opened my door, trying to swing my legs as I pulled my backpack towards me. Smart, Bella. Ever just KNOW something is going to happen and you are powerless to stop it? Not like psychic kind of stuff (as if), no, more like, you can just TELL that a certain idiot on the road is going to crash or that a kid is going to burn their hand on the stove, that kind of stuff? Well, here I sat, er, um, fell watching the cement rapidly approaching my face. I knew that if I didn't brace myself that my face & this patch of cement were going to become quite friendly & stitches would not a good second day of school make.

Grace may not be my strong point, but minimizing the effects of a fall sure may be… folks as klutzy as I am tend to master the art of the fall pretty quick. I was able to use my filled backpack's momentum to swing the impromptu cushion under by belly and braced my hands to catch the fall.

I heard rather than felt the effects of the fall first. A loud "oof" left my mouth as the familiar sound of my body hitting the ground followed. Waiting for the pain to kick in, I heard Char, Dad, rushing down the stairs.

"Bells! Wow! Still know how to take a good fall, eh, kiddo?" Charlie rushed. "What did my sidewalk ever do to you? Seems like once a visit you always get into it with the ol' sidewalk & you've yet to win a bout, Bella. Might wanna consider laying off the ol' sidewalk for a while, considering you'll be living here. One fall every two weeks on this sidewalk could take a lot of extra pressure washing in the spring."

Old man has jokes, huh?

A large part of me felt like doing an impression of Peter Griffin skinning his knee (Dad always HAS has loved juvenile humor), but an even larger part realized that I was too out of breath and in too much pain to try and have jokes, too. So, since joking was out, looks like Operation Hurt Little Girl was in effect.

Not bothering to wipe the tears from my eyes ('cause that fucking fall hurt), I looked up at Charlie, DAD, and sniffled. "Daddy, if you really loved me, you would take my side against my nemesis. This sidewalk just hurt me & you are there making jokes!"

Reaching down to help me up, Dad chuckled, "Nemesis, huh? And I'm the jokester"

"Yes, Dad, nemesis. Enemy, adversary, foe, rival."

The smell hit. Ugh. Worse than ugh. Copper, metal, rust, the undeniable smell of blood. You'd think a fall-taking klutz like me would be used to the smell. Well, you'd be thinking wrong in this case. I felt my face twist into a grimace as I realized I must be bleeding from at least both palms, if not my knees as well.

"C'mon, Kiddo. Let's get you inside & get fixed up. Looks like that extra first aid kit I got when you called to say that you wanted to move in is going to be coming in handy much sooner than I'd hoped."

Dad grabbed by arm by the wrist & elbow, being careful to avoid by bleeding palms to help me up off of my backpack. I must've looked like a high-centered truck sprawled on my backpack like that.

Dad was checking out my palms, "Got some gravel in there. When you do it, you really do it, huh Bells? Want me to help get the gravel out or do you want to go ahead & get your chart established at Forks General? The nurses might be gentler than I am going to be getting those rocks out."

Do I want to go to the hospital? Hell no. Once the PE teacher stops letting me sit out, I'm sure I'll be in the ER often enough, and will probably be bringing them some extra business (depending on the sport I try to play & how close people have to be when I try to play it).

"No, let's do this."

"Alright kiddo, you have a seat on the couch & I'll be down with the supplies. Doctor Dad is on duty!" Charlie sang as he dropped my backpack & headed for the upstairs bathroom. "Doctor Dad" is what I used to call Charlie when he'd have to fix the hundreds of 'boo-boos' I got each summer during our visits. Suppose all of the basic medical training Charlie has to keep up with for his job as the Chief of the Forks Police Department comes in handy at home, since nothing requiring any sort of action ever really happens here.

Charlie POV

"Alright kiddo, you have a seat on the couch & I'll be down with the supplies. Doctor Dad is on duty!" I was simply unable to help the smile that the simple phrase brought forth. My little Bells may have grown up, but she'll always be the same klutzy kiddo who needed Doctor Dad to fix the bad boo-boos. A dad always likes to know he's needed, and my Bella needed me.

While digging out the first aid kit & tweezers, I couldn't help but recall the day a few months ago when Bella called. As Bella was a Junior in high school, I'd basically resigned myself to the fact that she'd finish school, go to college & then my next big role in her life would be walking her down the aisle; hopefully in that order. However, Renee had just remarried some kid who played baseball & my sweet Bella was once again looking out for everyone but herself.

I knew exactly why she wanted to move in with me. Renee had wanderlust again and Bella felt like she was holding her mom back, putting her new marriage in jeopardy. I knew it would be easier for Bella to just finish out high school without moving, but having missed so many major milestones in her life already, I jumped at the chance to have her living with me. Was it selfish? Maybe. Was I going to do everything in my power be the dad I missed out on being? You bet your ass I was.

First aid kit & tweezers in hand, I dropped my cargo on the coffee table on my way to the kitchen to grab some paper towels. Maybe ought to get some wet and dry paper towels. This was gonna be a bit messy. Poor kiddo.

As I settled on the coffee table across from Bella, I laid some paper towels on my lap to rest her hand on & handed a few wet paper towels to her to hold in the hand I wasn't 'doctoring'. If I didn't know what the sight & smell of blood did to her, I'd ask her to get started on the pebbles imbedded in that palm, but for now at least the cool rag would somewhat soothe her.

Concentrating on my "Doctor Dad" task, I decided now was as good a time as any to see how her first day at school went. Not going to get a much more captive audience than I have now. Having grown up here in Forks, I knew how the kids treated "fresh meat" back in my high school days. If Bella enjoyed the spotlight, she'd be in a much better mood than she is now. I'd bet my badge that she got too much attention & felt embarrassed today. I'd also bet that she'd rather talk about it with anyone other than her dad. But like I said, I had missed out on a lot. Kinda sucks that the first day I actually get to see my baby girl come home from school she's already 17. Also kinda sucks that she decided to put half of the rocks from the front of the house into her hands. Only my Bells.

"So, how was the first day? Have fun being the FNG?"

"Effing G? Effing G?! Are you turning gangster on me now, Dad?"

I chuckled. "No, Bells, it's an acronym – F N G. Stands for Fuc…. Er, um, Fun New Gal."

"Uh huh. FUN New Gal, huh? Seriously Dad, you are the Chief of Police. Even in a small town like Forks, I'm sure you good ol' boys cuss down at the station. You should HEAR some of the stuff at school. Some of the stuff I say at school. Not gonna be dropping the "F-bomb" on you, but we're both grown ups here. You can swear."

"No, Isabella, I am a 'grown up' as you put it. Until you are old enough to vote or register for the draft, would you save us both some embarrassment & at least pretend to watch your mouth in front of me?. I can try to do the same." I truly didn't care if she had a colorful vocabulary. Hell, if she aged chronologically for each thing she did for her mom over the years, she'd be older than me. One doesn't work in my line of work & retain their virgin ears. I had heard a doozy or two in my day. Didn't mean I wanted to say those words & phrases in front of my only baby girl.

Having distracted Bella from the blood long enough to quickly clean & bandage both hands, I nudged her foot with my own. "Looks like those nice jeans are now really nice fishing jeans, huh? Wanna go change & you can check to see if you need help cleaning those knees up, too. Then you can tell me about your first day. "

"School was fine, Dad."

"Fine, huh? Do you honestly think a man of my age doesn't know just how loaded a simple word like 'fine' can be? So, when we get back, we can talk about your first day while I distract you from smelling your own blood & passing out. I don't wanna have to run to the cruiser for smelling salts again."

Bella huffed & rolled her eyes, but trudged up the stairs anyway. I may not be drinking my coffee out of a "World's Best Dad" coffee mug, but I intended to do my level best to at least inspire my little girl to consider maybe buying one. I might have a lot of years to catch up on, but my baby girl is going to know that her daddy is always going to be her daddy & always be there.

I've finally got a chance to get to know my daughter. I'd be damned if I was going to blow it. Bella had spent enough of her youth being the 'grown up' – the remainder of her time with me was going to be as worry free as possible. If that included her sucking it up & accepting help to bandage her wounds, well, I would take what I could get. And if she decided to confide in me, then great. Bonus.

While Bella bumped around gracefully in her room, I decided to grab a few extra paper towels since I wasn't sure what the exact damage to her knees was. I DID know that the knees on her jeans were shot. Looking at the messy pile of paper towels, bandage wrappers & scraps of gauze, I realized that my triage skills could be a bit tidier. Screw it; I could clean this mess in a few minutes, as soon as I've taken care of my girl. Wonder if she's too old for ice cream after this sort of thing? Always cheered her up when she was littler. Also always hear gals on TV talking about binging on Ben & Jerry's when they get mad at guys, so there's got to be some sort of magic in ice cream, right? Maybe it's one of those gender linked traits or something. Ice cream never calmed me down.

Alice POV

"Funny how pleasant a car ride can be without our resident 'Debbie Downer' "Rosalie mused.

It was hard to disagree. Edward hadn't been happy with me lately. Who am I kidding; Edward hadn't been happy with anyone ever. Lately things just seemed a bit worse. I knew exactly what was bothering him and the problem was that he didn't. My all-knowing brother hated not knowing all. It was only due to his trust in my visions of the future & their ability to protect our family that he even listened to me today at all.

Lately I'd been having visions of a girl who was, before today, completely unknown to me; visions that I'd been hiding from Edward. I knew that all of our futures rested in a very delicate balance right now & that she was the key to whatever lie in store for us.

*Flashback*

Jasper & I had just finished hunting and were headed back to our home on the banks of the Sol Duc River. The forests here in Washington were ideal for game of all sort & Jasper & I had just sated ourselves on a couple of large bull elk. Suddenly, the silence was broken by the ring tone that I loved to hate.

"Cos I'm a model you know what I mean
And I do my little turn on the catwalk
Yeah on the catwalk yea on the catwalk, yeah
I shake my little tush on the catwalk
I'm too sexy for my cat
Too sexy for my cat
Poor pussy poor pussy cat
I'm too sexy for my love
Too sexy for my love
Love's going to leave me"

"Hey Pete."

"Hey Shortly, how's it going? Pickin' squirrel fur out of your teeth?"

"No, bull elk was on tap today. So, did you call to discuss the finer intricacies of the taste of animal blood versus human or did you just call to fuck with me?"

"Well, I ALWAYS call to fuck with you, you know that Alice. But I did call to tell you that you and Major ought not head back to the casa just yet. My knowers tellin' me that somethin's gonna be flashin' through that pretty little head of yours & it is somethin' that you might want kept private. Capiche?"

"Got it. Call me if your gift tells you anything else."

"It ain't a gift. And I'll be speaking to you Shortly, I'm sure."

"Hey- don't call me Shortly!"

*End Flashback*

Since then, Peter & I had worked out a system of sorts to give me a heads up so that I could get away from Edward. Any time his "knower" told him my vision would center around this lovely young brunette, he'd text me & I'd find a way to get alone.

My visions showed me a wonderful girl who would change our family. She would be my best friend. If I didn't play things just right, Edward would soon profess his love for her, despite the obvious fact that she is his singer. Dumbass. Who would ever be mated to the one person that the fates had made it near impossible for them to NOT kill? Well, a masochist like Edward of course thinks he'd be the first in history. Idiot.

I knew that if Edward caught a whiff of Bella at school that we would have a potential crisis on our hands. He could very easily slaughter the entire classroom in his blood induced haze. He could kill her. Or a worse fate yet, he could fall in love with her and somehow convince her that she felt the same way.

So, this morning I set my plan into motion. I "had a vision" as we were all about to head towards the cars in the garage on our way to school. It's not too hard to get a spaced out look & play a "best of" killing Bella film in my mind. These visions were enough to get him to agree to stay home. We all knew what a singer was. Emmett had run across his & the poor woman never stood a chance. Edward agreed to stay home & I agreed to use some mad ninja skills to get something with Bella's smell to desensitize Edward.

There were too many choices to be made & too many paths that were not yet certain.

We pulled in to the garage & all trooped into the house. It soon became obvious that Esme was the only one at home.

"Where is Edward?" Jasper asked. The slight flare of his nostrils & widening of his stance warned me that he was slipping close to Major Mode. As I raised my hand to rest it on Jasper's shoulder as a sign of comfort, I was pulled violently into a vision. A vision I never wanted to see come to pass.

Without a backwards glance, I yelled the one thing I could before I let my own demon take over, "Swan house, NOW!"

AN: Well, there you have it. That's what I've got so far. Well, what I've got so far here... There MAY be other chapters somewhere out there...

Okay, I'll cut the shit - if you're interested, I have more chapters posted on betterintexasfiction dot ning dot com / My name over there is frggystyl... but since my real life name is Ellen... that's my name here.

So...