Natasha had had a point earlier when she'd mentioned fixing up the house for the family. The immediate aftermath of his fight had been cleared away into the garage, but the crack in the wall hasn't been fixed, and the whole place hasn't been dusted or aired out in a month and a half. There's a decent amount to be done, even with their speed, and then Alice goes out to hunt.
She isn't too hungry, it's more that she's missed these woods, but Jasper begs off going with. Someone should be there when Natasha gets back, in case she assumes the worst, in whatever form that might take. He's finishing up the coat of paint on the now-spackled damaged wall when Natasha comes home—somehow it's easy to think of it that way—and at her not-quite-request, he steps out from behind that wall and walks even more slowly than normal into the kitchen.
She's bought enough to make quite a few meals for herself, he notices as he starts stocking the refrigerator, and it's a relief. He's still waiting for her to back out, he realizes, he's waiting for her to tell them thanks but no thanks, there are too many unknowns, she can't leave the familiar, she won't take the risk.
"Competing rumors, we can handle," he says with a nod. "Thank you, Natalia. That'll make things much easier, if the family wants to come back here. It's...troublesome, generally, to stay somewhere too long. People begin to notice when their friendly neighborhood doctor looks just the same as he did ten years ago, or when the kids come home from college for vacations and they haven't changed either, but Forks is different. People seem to be taking it all in stride." He smiles again, and it's sharp and humorless this time. "I'm sure the pack of mutts will be thrilled to hear we're coming back. They've probably already picked up on me and Alice."
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She isn't too hungry, it's more that she's missed these woods, but Jasper begs off going with. Someone should be there when Natasha gets back, in case she assumes the worst, in whatever form that might take. He's finishing up the coat of paint on the now-spackled damaged wall when Natasha comes home—somehow it's easy to think of it that way—and at her not-quite-request, he steps out from behind that wall and walks even more slowly than normal into the kitchen.
She's bought enough to make quite a few meals for herself, he notices as he starts stocking the refrigerator, and it's a relief. He's still waiting for her to back out, he realizes, he's waiting for her to tell them thanks but no thanks, there are too many unknowns, she can't leave the familiar, she won't take the risk.
"Competing rumors, we can handle," he says with a nod. "Thank you, Natalia. That'll make things much easier, if the family wants to come back here. It's...troublesome, generally, to stay somewhere too long. People begin to notice when their friendly neighborhood doctor looks just the same as he did ten years ago, or when the kids come home from college for vacations and they haven't changed either, but Forks is different. People seem to be taking it all in stride." He smiles again, and it's sharp and humorless this time. "I'm sure the pack of mutts will be thrilled to hear we're coming back. They've probably already picked up on me and Alice."