A/N: Hello, lovely readers - this is a short series I've been working on for the past few days. It originally started off as a one-shot, but I've decided to break the separate parts up into chapters. There will be five total, each detailing a different kiss at the different stages of Jacob and Nessie's relationship. Well, except for one, which I think you could gather from the summary.

I have the next part already written - I'm working on the third actually, but I'm not sure if I'll post before I'm finished writing. I might, depending on how long it takes.

Oh, and I'm not sure if it's clear here, and it's not necessarily important but I just wanted to mention that Jacob is the first person Nessie shares her gift with. So anyway, I hope you like it and make sure to let me know what you think!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything except the plot, which I probably stole from somewhere too. Oops.

The Imprint's Kiss

. + .

I couldn't stop staring at her - she was just so beautiful. More beautiful, more beautiful than any other thing my eyes had ever laid on. Not only beauty, perfection - a tiny little bundle of perfection. From her bright, beautiful eyes to her shocking copper curls to her sharp, milky white teeth.

And she was inexplicably mine. To care for, to protect. Forever.

She didn't smell like what she had come from, a human and a vampire. She definitely didn't smell like vampire because my nose wasn't burning, but she didn't smell human either - she smelled like her. Like Renesmee.

Renesmee. That was her name.

Light, life, hope - love's name was Renesmee.

But still . . . it was a big name for such a tiny little thing. My tiny little thing.

I had never held something so small in my arms, so fragile - she was almost warm. I hadn't felt anything warm in more than a year. I rolled her name over in my mind, again and again as I cradled her close to my chest.

Renesmee. Ren, Nesmay, May, no, no. Reness - Ness . . . Nessie.

Nessie.

"Your - your name is awful long," I heard myself say, astoundingly ridiculous first words to say to such a perfect, amazing angel. "Can't I call you something else? Can I call you Nessie?"

Then she reached a tiny, pale white arm out from under her covers and placed it against my jaw. Her tiny, alive, perfectly soft, warm hand against my skin - and then I - I saw something.

I saw myself, as I said 'Nessie', and I felt a surge of happiness.

"Whoa." I might have stumbled if it weren't for the strongest, most base instinct to protect the life in my arms.

"What?" I snapped my eyes, for the first time in what felt like decades, away from my angel and towards her opposite - the blonde demon. "What have you done? Give her back, mutt - I shouldn't have let you lay your grimy paws on her in the first place."

And then she stepped forward, smelling like danger and death, and reached her dead arms out to take my - my Nessie, my special, precious thing from me and a thousand years of instinct rushed up inside of me like a dam about to burst.

I turned, clutching my precious thing closer to my chest yet careful not to crush her, and growled. No one would take her from me - I was hers and she was mine.

"You - you - " Blondie's eyes looked like they were about to pop from her head in pure rage, and I braced myself for flight. There would be no vampire rages close to the amazing thing in my arms. "You didn't - you did your - freaky dog mating shit on my niece?"

Never mind that this was what it took me to realize that I had just imprinted, I immediately bristled. How dare she say that? She may be a monster, but I certainly was not - how could I feel anything other than overwhelming - overwhelming, but platonic - love for this . . this child. I could never . . .

"Give her back to me, you dog! Emmett!"

She lunged for Nessie and I dodged, snarling - how dare she do that? How dare she get her vampire claws close to my - my imprint? Mine?

"Hand to God, Blondie, if you don't calm the hell down, you won't lay hands on her!"

I knew I had to play this right - I was already making contigency plans because I most certiainly did not expect Edward and the rest of them to be okay with this. They had to be, I had to make sure they were, but if they weren't - well, nothing was going to stop me from being with her.

"You will not tell me - "

"What's going on?" I flicked my eyes towards the door to see Emmett barelling in. His eyes went from me to the miracle in my arms and then grew cautious . . . and dangerous. He held his hands out. "Jacob - "

"If you don't tell that blonde devil to stop lunging at Nessie, she won't even have hair to fuss over anymore, you got that?"

"Nessie - what - ?"

"You heard me." I flashed my eyes down to the life in my arms to check that she wasn't afraid - I wouldn't be able to stand that - but she only stared up at me with her beautiful, round chocolate brown eyes. Blondie was shrieking her explanation at her mate now - and I knew what I had to do before they got too upset. It pained me, but I had to do it. For her. "Get her to calm down, and I'll - I'll give her back."

He watched me warily, like he only half understood what Blondie was screeching at him. Realization dawned, and it didn't look like he liked it, but he turned back to his mate.

"He's right, Rose, calm down," he soothed, and I swear to God he had one of his eyes on each of us. The banshee slowly quieted to a hiss. "You can't go leaping at her like that."

"Emmett," she started emphatically, her eyes wide with disbelief and rage. She gestured at the wonderfullnes I held cradled against me. "He - he - "

"I know that, Rose." For a second, the hulk looked dangerous, but I wasn't afraid. "But that'll have to be dealt with once Carlisle's back and Edward can leave Bella's side. Until then, calm down."

I was shocked to see her obey. I felt relief surge through me as my instincts realized the danger had passed, but pain, unbearable pain, at the thought of having to relinquish the piece of me that I held in my arms.

I looked down at her. Her eyes were still on my face - had she taken them off the entire time? Did she love me anywhere near as much as I loved her? God, I hope so.

"Okay, I'm calm," Blondie bit through her venomous fangs. "Now give her back."

"Okay, all right, just - just wait."

Panic welled up in me at the thought that I would let her go soon, not knowing when I could hold her again. If I would - please, please God let Edward understand. Before I could realize or recognize what I was doing, I had raised my little Nessie up high in my arms so she was closer to my face. Wide, deep, soulful brown eyes watched me as I leaned in. Blondie began to splutter, but I ignored it.

I ignored all of it, my entire being focused on the eyes right below mine, and pressed my lips to the soft, pale white skin of my imprint's forehead. Her scent was beautiful - clean and pure and sweet. I had never been so happy, so content, so perfect and at peace in my life.

Then I felt a warm hand on my jaw again. I pulled my lips back from her skin to gasp at the image I saw. My own face as I leaned closer, and I felt a surge of contentment and love. Then hot, but not too hot, lips against a forehead - and joy.

"Dog - get your - I can't, Emmett how can you let him - I - "

What was this? Some sort of special connection imprints shared? How come I had never heard of it before - or was it special only to my Nessie? Because it was possible - she was the most special thing to ever exist!

"Here," I forced myself to say, not taking my eyes off the ones that held mine so intensely, yet so innocently. "Take her before I change my mind - carefully, though."

I didn't know what this connection between us was, aside from the imprint, and I didn't know if it worked both ways but I liked to think Nessie could see inside my mind right now too. How much I loved her and wanted to protect her, how she was my universe now and would remain so.

I'll hold you again soon, my little Nessie, I thought, praying she'd hear and maybe . . . be comforted. Don't worry, I'll always be here.

And I would, even if it killed me. No self-righteous bloodsucker up on a highhorse was going to stop that.

Next: The Protector's Kiss

"Tell me, Nessie," I urged her, reaching up to tuck one of her curls behind her ear. Her sad eyes looked up at me - I hated to see Nessie sad. I would do whatever to make sure I never had to see it again. "Don't be shy."

"I just . . . . I thought maybe . . . " Nessie's tiny hands reached down and pulled some grass from the ground. "I thought maybe, when I grew up . . .we could get married. But then you said people in the same family can't marry each other . . . and that - that just made me sad."

"No, honey, no." I reached out and picked her up from under her armpits, setting her easily into my lap. She buried her face into my chest and I think I heard a sniffle.

"It's - it's just because I love you more than anyone else in the world and I want to be with you forever just like you said - but, but you're my family so we can't."